WO2025223300A1 - Communication method and apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of communications, and provides a communication method and apparatus. In the method, a core network element can sense a change in at least one of the position of a terminal or the movement speed of the terminal, and indicates the change to a network node by means of terminal status information, wherein the network node may be the terminal or a RAN node. When the terminal status information is received, on the basis of change information of the position or movement speed of the terminal, the network node can determine measurement information for cell handover. Therefore, the problem of inappropriate measurement parameter configuration caused by the movement of the terminal can be avoided, allowing the terminal to perform handover more flexibly, thereby improving communication quality, and meeting user requirements.

Description

Communication methods and devices

This application claims priority to Chinese patent application No. 202410519529.8, filed with the State Intellectual Property Office of China on April 26, 2024, entitled "Communication Method and Apparatus", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

Technical Field

This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to communication methods and apparatus.

Background Technology

Currently, when a terminal is in Radio Resource Control (RRC) connected state, as the terminal moves and the wireless communication environment changes, the signal of the serving cell may gradually deteriorate while the signal of neighboring cells may gradually improve. In this situation, to ensure communication quality, the Radio Access Network (RAN) node configures measurement parameters for the terminal. The terminal can then perform measurements based on these parameters, obtain the results, and send them to the RAN node. If the RAN node determines, based on the measurement results, that the signal quality of a neighboring cell is better than that of the serving cell, it can allow the terminal to switch to the neighboring cell with the better signal quality. This handover mechanism relies primarily on the RAN node configuring measurement parameters for the terminal and determining whether to perform a cell handover based on the terminal's measurement results. This approach lacks flexibility and fails to meet user needs.

Summary of the Invention

This application provides a communication method and apparatus that can flexibly perform cell handover to meet user needs.

To achieve the above objectives, this application adopts the following technical solution:

Firstly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by core network elements. Here, "core network element" can refer to the core network element itself, or to processors, circuits, modules, logic nodes, chips, or chip systems within the core network element that implement the method. For example, the core network element can be a sensing function (SF) network element.

The method includes: a core network element sensing a change in at least one of the terminal's location or the terminal's speed, and sending terminal status information to the terminal or a RAN node. The terminal status information indicates a change in at least one of the terminal's location or the terminal's speed, and is used to determine measurement information for cell handover.

Based on the method provided in the first aspect above, the core network element senses a change in at least one of the terminal's position or its movement speed, and sends terminal status information to the terminal or RAN node. This enables the terminal or RAN node to determine the measurement information for cell handover based on the change in the terminal's position or movement speed. Therefore, the problem of unreasonable measurement parameter configuration caused by terminal movement can be avoided, allowing for more flexible terminal handover, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs. In one possible implementation, the measurement information includes at least one of the following: measurement period information, parameter information of the measurement event, or first indication information, where the first indication information indicates whether to stop the measurement. The measurement period can be understood as the time difference between two adjacent measurements by the terminal during periodic measurement. The parameters of the measurement event can be: serving cell signal quality, threshold corresponding to the serving cell, neighboring cell signal quality, threshold corresponding to the neighboring cell, setting or triggering time of the offset where the neighboring cell signal quality is higher than the serving cell signal quality, etc.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, when the measurement information includes measurement cycle information, the measurement information can be used to determine the measurement cycle information of the terminal, thereby flexibly adjusting the frequency of the terminal's measurement; when the measurement information includes parameter information of the measurement event, the measurement information can be used to determine the parameters of the terminal's measurement event, enabling the terminal to adjust the parameters of the measurement event in a timely manner, thereby enabling better measurement; when the measurement information includes first indication information, it can indicate whether the terminal should stop measuring, thereby instructing the terminal to start measuring when the terminal can perform measurement but does not, or causing the terminal to stop measuring when the terminal can stop measuring, reducing unnecessary measurement behavior of the terminal and saving terminal power consumption.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: receiving first information from a RAN node; the first information indicates coverage information of a cell managed by the RAN node, the cell managed by the RAN node including a first cell, the first cell being the serving cell of the terminal, or a neighboring cell of the serving cell.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, core network elements can sense whether the terminal's location or speed has changed based on the coverage information of the cell managed by the RAN node indicated by the first information. For example, core network elements can construct a perception map based on the first information and determine at least one of the terminal's location or speed through the perception map.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: constructing a perception map based on the first information, the perception map being used to determine at least one of the terminal's position or the terminal's speed of motion.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, core network elements can determine at least one of the terminal's location or the terminal's movement speed through the constructed perception map, thereby being able to determine the terminal's state information based on this change.

In one possible implementation, a change in the terminal's location includes at least one of the following: the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell; the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell; the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell; the terminal enters a first area; or the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell changes; wherein the first area is covered by multiple cells. "A change in the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell" can be understood as a change in the terminal's serving cell, for example, some cells are removed from the management range of the RAN node, or the number of cells managed by the RAN node increases.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, when the location of the terminal changes, including when the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell, it indicates that the signal quality received by the terminal from the serving cell is gradually decreasing. This allows the terminal or RAN node to determine the terminal's measurement parameters based on the change in the terminal's location, so that the terminal can switch in a timely manner.

Alternatively, when the terminal's location changes, such as when the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell, the terminal accesses the cell and the signal quality received by the terminal from the cell becomes increasingly better, enabling the terminal or the RAN node to stop the terminal from measuring or to determine the terminal's measurement parameters, etc.

Alternatively, when the location of the terminal changes, including when the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell, the terminal or RAN node can subsequently instruct the terminal to switch in a timely manner, avoiding situations such as the terminal failing to send test reports due to poor signal quality caused by leaving the cell coverage area.

Alternatively, when the location of the terminal changes, including when the terminal enters the first area, the terminal or RAN node can determine the terminal's measurement parameters to avoid problems such as ping-pong handover.

Alternatively, when the location of the terminal changes, including changes in the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell, the terminal or RAN node can update the terminal's measurement target, enabling the terminal to perform measurements normally.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is relative to the cell managed by the RAN node.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, core network elements can determine terminal status information based on the relative position of the terminal and the cell managed by the RAN node, thereby determining the measurement information used for cell handover.

Secondly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a network node. Here, "network node" can refer to the network node itself, or to a processor, circuit, module, logic node, chip, or chip system within the network node that implements the method. The network node can be a terminal or a RAN node.

The method includes: a network node acquiring terminal status information sensed by the network side, and determining measurement information for cell handover based on the terminal status information. The terminal status information indicates a change in at least one of the terminal's location or its speed.

Based on the method provided in the second aspect above, the network node can determine the measurement information for cell handover based on information indicating a change in at least one of the terminal's location or movement speed sensed by the network side. Therefore, this method can avoid the problem of unreasonable measurement parameter configuration caused by terminal movement, thereby enabling more flexible terminal handover, improving communication quality, and meeting user needs. In one possible implementation, the measurement information includes at least one of the following: measurement period information, parameter information of the measurement event, or first indication information, wherein the first indication information indicates whether to stop the measurement. The measurement period can be understood as the time difference between two adjacent measurements by the terminal during periodic measurement. The parameters of the measurement event can be: serving cell signal quality, threshold corresponding to the serving cell, neighboring cell signal quality, threshold corresponding to the neighboring cell, setting or triggering time of the offset where the neighboring cell signal quality is higher than the serving cell signal quality, etc.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, when the measurement information includes measurement cycle information, the measurement cycle information can be adjusted for the terminal, thereby flexibly adjusting the frequency of the terminal's measurement; when the measurement information includes parameter information of the measurement event, the parameters of the measurement event can be adjusted for the terminal, enabling the terminal to adjust the parameters of the measurement event in a timely manner, thereby enabling better measurement; when the measurement information includes first indication information, it can indicate whether the terminal should stop measuring, thereby instructing the terminal to start measuring when the terminal can perform measurement but does not, or causing the terminal to stop measuring when the terminal can stop measuring, reducing unnecessary measurement behavior of the terminal and saving terminal power consumption.

In one possible implementation, obtaining terminal status information perceived by the network side includes: receiving terminal status information from core network elements. These core network elements can be network elements with sensing capabilities within the core network.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, network nodes can obtain the terminal's status information from the core network, and then determine the measurement information for cell handover based on the terminal's status information, thereby avoiding the problem of unreasonable measurement parameter configuration caused by the movement of the terminal, and enabling the terminal to handover more flexibly.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes sending a second message to the terminal, the second message indicating determined measurement information for cell handover.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the second information can indicate the measurement information for cell handover to the terminal so that the terminal can update the measurement information in a timely manner, thereby avoiding the problem of unreasonable measurement parameter configuration caused by the movement of the terminal and allowing the terminal to handover more flexibly.

In one possible implementation, a change in the terminal's location includes at least one of the following: the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell; the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell; the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell; the terminal enters a first area; or the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell changes; wherein the first area is covered by multiple cells. "A change in the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell" can be understood as a change in the terminal's serving cell, for example, some cells are removed from the management range of the RAN node, or the number of cells managed by the RAN node increases.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, when the location of the terminal changes, including when the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell, it indicates that the signal quality received by the terminal from the serving cell is gradually decreasing. The terminal or RAN node can determine the measurement parameters of the terminal in a timely manner so that the terminal can switch in time.

Alternatively, when the terminal's location changes, including when the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell, the terminal accesses the cell, and the signal quality received by the terminal from the cell becomes increasingly better, the terminal or the RAN node can instruct the terminal to stop measuring or determine the terminal's measurement parameters, etc.

Alternatively, when the location of the terminal changes, including when the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell, the terminal or the RAN node can enable the terminal to switch in a timely manner to avoid situations such as the terminal failing to send test reports due to poor signal quality caused by leaving the cell coverage area.

Alternatively, when the location of the terminal changes, including when the terminal enters the first area, the terminal or RAN node can determine the measurement parameters to avoid problems such as ping-pong handover.

Alternatively, when the location of the terminal changes, including changes in the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell, the RAN node can update the terminal's measurement targets, enabling the terminal to perform measurements normally.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is relative to the cell managed by the RAN node.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, core network elements can determine terminal status information based on the relative position of the terminal and the cell managed by the RAN node, thereby determining the measurement information used for cell handover.

In one possible implementation, the terminal state information includes the terminal's identifier.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, after the RAN node obtains the terminal status information, it can determine the terminal to which the cell measurement information for handover needs to be determined based on the terminal identifier.

Thirdly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by core network elements. Here, "core network element" can refer to the core network element itself, or to processors, circuits, modules, logic nodes, chips, or chip systems within the core network element that implement the method. This method is applied to core network elements. For example, a core network element can be an SF network element.

The method includes: a core network element receiving cell handover information from a first RAN node, determining the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell, and sending first information to the first RAN node based on the cell handover information and the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell. The first information is used by the terminal to perform cell handover. The cell handover information includes condition information for handing the terminal to the first cell.

Based on the method provided in the third aspect above, the core network element can determine whether to hand over the terminal to the first cell based on the terminal's signal quality for the first cell and the conditions for handing over the terminal to the first cell. Therefore, this method can flexibly manage terminal mobility and avoids the current problem of potentially unreasonable measurement parameters configured in RAN nodes due to terminal movement. It allows for more flexible terminal handover, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs.

In one possible implementation, determining the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell includes: determining the location of the terminal, and determining the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell based on the location of the terminal and the coverage information of the first cell.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the core network elements can more conveniently and quickly determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell by using the location of the terminal and the coverage information of the first cell, thereby determining the first information for the terminal to perform cell handover.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: receiving second information from a second RAN node; the second information is used to indicate coverage information of a cell managed by the second RAN node, the cell managed by the second RAN node including the first cell.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the core network element can determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell based on the coverage information of the cell managed by the second RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: constructing a perception map based on the second information, the perception map being used to determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, core network elements can use the second information to construct a perception map, determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell in the form of the perception map, and then combine the condition information for switching the terminal to the first cell to determine whether to switch the terminal to the first cell. This allows for more flexible switching of the terminal, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs.

In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following: first indication information, information about the signal quality or measurement events of the terminal for the first cell; the first indication information instructs the terminal to switch to the first cell. The measurement events can be A1-A5 measurement events or B1-B2 measurement events.

Based on the above possible implementations, when the first information includes first indication information, it can be used to instruct the terminal to switch to the first cell. Alternatively, when the first information includes information about the terminal's signal quality or measurement events for the first cell, the receiving device of the first information (e.g., the first RAN node) can obtain the terminal's signal quality for the first cell at this time and determine subsequent management of the terminal's behavior based on the signal quality.

In one possible implementation, the measurement event is determined based on the location of the terminal.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, core network elements can determine the measurement events that the terminal should report more quickly and accurately according to the terminal's location.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the first RAN node and/or the second RAN node.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the core network element can determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell according to the relative position of the terminal and the cell managed by the RAN node, and then determine whether to switch the terminal to the first cell, thereby enabling the terminal to switch more flexibly.

Fourthly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a first RAN node. Here, the first RAN node can refer to the first RAN node itself, or to a processor, circuit, module, logic node, chip, or chip system within the first RAN node that implements the method. This method is applied to the first RAN node.

The method includes: a first RAN node sending cell handover information to a core network element, receiving first information from the core network element, and determining whether to hand over the terminal to the first cell based on the first information. The cell handover information includes conditional information for handing the terminal to the first cell. The first information indicates that the terminal should be handed over to the first cell, and is determined based on the cell handover information and the signal quality of the terminal relative to the first cell as determined by the core network element. Based on the method provided in the fourth aspect above, the core network element can determine whether to hand over the terminal to the first cell based on the signal quality of the terminal relative to the first cell, combined with the conditional information for handing over the terminal to the first cell. Therefore, this method can flexibly manage terminal mobility and avoids the current problem of potentially unreasonable measurement parameters configured by the RAN node due to terminal movement. It allows for more flexible terminal handover, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs.

In one possible implementation, the above method further includes: sending third information to the core network element; the third information is used to indicate the coverage information of the cell managed by the first RAN node.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the third information can enable the core network element to determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell based on the coverage information of the cell managed by the first RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following: first indication information, information about the signal quality or measurement events of the terminal for the first cell; the first indication information instructing the terminal to switch to the first cell.

Based on the above possible implementations, when the first information includes first indication information, it can be used to instruct the terminal to switch to the first cell. Alternatively, when the first information includes information about the terminal's signal quality or measurement events for the first cell, it can enable the first RAN node to obtain the terminal's signal quality for the first cell at this time and determine subsequent management of the terminal's behavior based on the signal quality.

Fifthly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a second RAN node. Here, the second RAN node can refer to the second RAN node itself, or to a processor, circuit, module, logic node, chip, or chip system within the second RAN node that implements the method.

The method includes: a second RAN node sending first information to a first RAN node. The first information indicates at least one of the following: a first beam of a first cell or a timing advance of the terminal relative to the first RAN node. The cells managed by the first RAN node include the first cell, which is the target cell for terminal handover. The first beam is used for communication with the first cell after handover, and the timing advance is used for uplink synchronization after handover. The first information is determined based on second information, which includes at least one of the following: the terminal's measurement results of the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's speed.

Based on the method provided in the fifth aspect above, the second RAN node can determine the first beam based on at least one of the terminal's measurement results of the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's movement speed, and/or the timing advance information used by the terminal when switching to the first cell managed by the first RAN node. This allows the first RAN node to communicate with the terminal through the first beam, determining a suitable beam without beam alignment, thus reducing handover latency. Furthermore, after acquiring the timing advance, the terminal can quickly achieve uplink synchronization with the first RAN node, thereby quickly switching to the first cell and significantly reducing handover latency. Therefore, the above method effectively reduces handover latency, allows for more flexible handover, improves communication quality, and meets user needs.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: acquiring sensing information, which includes the terminal's location information, or the sensing information includes the terminal's location information and the terminal's movement speed.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the first beam can be determined by obtaining the terminal's location information, or by sensing information including the terminal's location information and the terminal's movement speed, and/or by obtaining the timing advance information that the terminal will use when switching to the first cell managed by the first RAN node. This allows the first RAN node to communicate with the terminal through the first beam and determine the appropriate beam without beam alignment, thereby reducing the handover latency of the terminal.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple timing advances, each corresponding to a reference point in the first cell. The method further includes receiving third information from the first RAN node, the third information indicating a first timing advance; the multiple timing advances include the first timing advance. The reference point can refer to a point in time or a location.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, for mobile terminals, since the terminals may be in different locations at different times, multiple timing advances can be used to correspond to different reference points to indicate the timing advances that the terminals at different reference points will use.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple first beams, and any one of the multiple first beams corresponds to a reference point in the first cell. The reference point can refer to a point in time or a location.

Based on the above possible implementations, for mobile terminals, since the terminals may be in different locations at different times, the first RAN node needs to utilize different beams to receive signals transmitted by terminals in different locations. Therefore, multiple timing advances corresponding to different reference points can be used to indicate the first beam that terminals at different reference points will use.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: constructing a perception map based on the coverage information of the cell managed by the first RAN node; using the perception map to determine at least one of the terminal's location or the terminal's movement speed; and determining one or more of the first beam or timing advance based on the perception map.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the second RAN node can obtain the coverage information of the cells managed by the first RAN node to construct a perception map, determine the first beam and/or timing advance based on the perception map, thereby enabling the first RAN node to communicate with the terminal using the first beam, determine the appropriate beam without beam alignment, and reduce handover latency.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes receiving fourth information from a core network element, the fourth information indicating at least one of the following: a first beam or timing advance.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the second RAN node can obtain the first beam or timing advance from the core network element through the fourth information.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the first RAN node.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the second RAN node can determine the first information according to the relative position of the terminal and the cell managed by the RAN node, thereby determining the first beam of the first cell or the timing advance of the terminal for the first RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes receiving a measurement result from the terminal. This measurement result can be used as sensing information.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the second RAN node can obtain the terminal's location information based on the terminal's measurement results, or the sensing information includes the terminal's location information and the terminal's movement speed.

In one possible implementation, the first information is carried in the handover request message.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the second RAN node can indicate the first beam of the first cell or the timing advance of the terminal to the first RAN node through a handover request message.

Sixthly, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a first RAN node. Here, the first RAN node can refer to the first RAN node itself, or to a processor, circuit, module, logic node, chip, or chip system within the first RAN node that implements the method.

The method includes: receiving first information, and communicating with the terminal according to the first information after the terminal switches to a first cell. The first information indicates at least one of the following: a first beam of the first cell or a timing advance of the terminal for a first RAN node; wherein the cells managed by the first RAN node include the first cell, the first cell is the target cell for the terminal switching, the first beam is used for communication with the terminal after switching to the first cell, the timing advance is used for uplink synchronization after switching to the first cell, and the first information is determined based on second information, which includes at least one of the following: the terminal's measurement results of the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's movement speed.

Based on the method provided in the sixth aspect above, the first RAN node can communicate with the terminal according to the first beam indicated by the first information, thereby determining a suitable beam without beam alignment, thus reducing handover latency. Furthermore, the timing advance indicated by the first information can also be given to the terminal, enabling the terminal to quickly achieve uplink synchronization with the first RAN node after acquiring the timing advance, and thus quickly hand over to the first cell, significantly reducing terminal handover latency. Therefore, the above methods can effectively reduce handover latency, allow for more flexible handover by the terminal, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs.

In one possible implementation, the first information indicates the first beam, and communicating with the terminal based on the first information includes: communicating with the terminal via the first beam.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the first RAN node can communicate with the terminal through the first beam indicated by the first information, and can determine the appropriate beam without beam alignment, thus reducing handover latency.

In one possible implementation, receiving the first information includes: receiving the first information from the second RAN node or a core network element.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the first RAN node can obtain the first information through the second RAN node or core network element to obtain at least one of the first beam of the first cell or the timing advance of the terminal for the first RAN node.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple timing advances, each corresponding to a reference point in the first cell. The method further includes sending third information indicating a first timing advance; the multiple timing advances include the first timing advance. The reference point can refer to a point in time or a location.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the first timing advance enables the terminal to perform uplink synchronization with the first RAN node without needing to acquire the timing advance additionally, thereby reducing handover latency. For mobile terminals, since the terminal may be in different locations at different times, multiple timing advances can be used to correspond to different reference points, indicating the timing advance that the terminal at different reference points will use.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple first beams, and any one of the multiple first beams corresponds to a reference point in the first cell. The reference point can refer to a point in time or a location.

Based on the above possible implementations, for mobile terminals, since the terminals may be in different locations at different times, the first RAN node needs to utilize different beams to receive signals transmitted by terminals in different locations. Therefore, multiple timing advances corresponding to different reference points can be used to indicate the first beam that terminals at different reference points will use.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the first RAN node.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the first information can be determined according to the relative position of the terminal and the cell managed by the first RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the first information is carried in the handover request message.

Based on the above possible implementation methods, the first RAN node can obtain the first information from the handover request message, and then obtain the first beam of the first cell or the timing advance of the terminal for the first RAN node.

In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided for implementing the above-described method. This communication device can be a core network element in the first aspect; or, it can be a network node in the second aspect; or, it can be a core network element in the third aspect; or, it can be a first RAN node in the fourth aspect; or, it can be a second RAN node in the fifth aspect; or, it can be a first RAN node in the sixth aspect. The communication device includes modules, units, or means corresponding to the above-described method. These modules, units, or means can be implemented in hardware, software, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules or units corresponding to the above-described functions.

In one possible implementation, the communication device may include a processing module and an interface module. The processing module can be used to implement the processing functions in any of the above aspects and their possible implementations. The processing module may be, for example, a processor. The interface module, also called an interface unit, is used to implement the sending and/or receiving functions in any of the above aspects and their possible implementations. The interface module may consist of an interface circuit, a transceiver, a transceiver unit, or a communication interface.

In one possible implementation, the interface module includes a sending module and a receiving module, which are used to implement the sending and receiving functions in any of the above aspects and any possible implementations.

Eighthly, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor; configured to cause the communication device to perform the method described in any of the preceding aspects by executing a computer program (or computer-executable instructions) stored in a memory, and/or by means of logic circuitry. The communication device may be a core network element in the first aspect; or, the communication device may be a network node in the second aspect; or, the communication device may be a core network element in the third aspect; or, the communication device may be a first RAN node in the fourth aspect; or, the communication device may be a second RAN node in the fifth aspect; or, the communication device may be a first RAN node in the sixth aspect. Optionally, the number of processors may be one or more.

In one possible implementation, the communication device also includes a memory.

In one possible implementation, the processor and memory are integrated together; or, the memory is independent of the processor.

In one possible implementation, the communication device further includes a communication interface for communicating with other devices, such as transmitting or receiving data and/or signals. Exemplarily, the communication interface may be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module, or other type of communication interface.

In one possible implementation, the processor and/or memory also include an artificial intelligence (AI) module for implementing AI-related functions. The AI module can implement AI functions through software, hardware, or a combination of both. For example, the AI module includes a radio access network (RAN) intelligent controller (RIC) module. The AI module can be a near real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

In one possible implementation, the communication device is a chip or a chip system. Optionally, when the communication device is a chip system, it can be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete components.

A ninth aspect provides a communication device, comprising: a processor and an interface circuit; the interface circuit being configured to receive a computer program or instructions and transmit them to the processor; the processor being configured to execute the computer program or instructions to cause the communication device to perform the method described in any of the preceding aspects. The communication device may be a core network element as described in the first aspect; or, the communication device may be a network node as described in the second aspect; or, the communication device may be a core network element as described in the third aspect; or, the communication device may be a first RAN node as described in the fourth aspect; or, the communication device may be a second RAN node as described in the fifth aspect; or, the communication device may be a first RAN node as described in the sixth aspect. Optionally, the number of processors may be one or more.

In one possible implementation, the processor also includes an AI module for implementing AI-related functions. The AI module can implement AI functions through software, hardware, or a combination of both. For example, the AI module may include a RIC module. The AI module could be a near real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

In one possible implementation, the communication device is a chip or a chip system. Optionally, when the communication device is a chip system, it can be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete components.

In a tenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which stores instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the methods described in any of the preceding aspects.

In an eleventh aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which, when run on a computer, enables the computer to perform the methods described in any of the preceding aspects.

In a twelfth aspect, a communication system is provided, including a core network element for performing the method described in the first aspect above, and a network node for performing the method described in the second aspect above.

In a thirteenth aspect, a communication system is provided, including a core network element for performing the method described in the third aspect above, and a first RAN node for performing the method described in the fourth aspect above.

In a fourteenth aspect, a communication system is provided, including a second RAN node for performing the method described in the fifth aspect above, and a first RAN node for performing the method described in the sixth aspect above.

The technical effects of any possible implementation of aspects seven through fourteen can be found in the technical effects of any one of aspects one through six above, or different possible implementations of any one of aspects, and will not be repeated here.

Understandably, provided that the solutions do not contradict each other, the solutions in the above aspects can be combined.

Attached Figure Description

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the process of inter-station handover of the terminal provided in this application;

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the communication system architecture provided in this application;

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the hardware structure of the communication device provided in this application;

Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating the communication method provided in this application.

Figure 5 is a flowchart of the communication method provided in this application (II).

Figure 6 is a flowchart illustrating the communication method provided in this application.

Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of the communication device provided in this application.

Detailed Implementation

Before introducing the technical solution of this application, the relevant technical terms involved in this application are explained. It is understood that these explanations are intended to make this application easier to understand and should not be regarded as a limitation on the scope of protection claimed in this application.

1. Measurement Reporting Types

RAN nodes can configure terminals to perform measurements to obtain measurement information from the terminals. Furthermore, RAN nodes can configure the measurement reporting type of the terminals to obtain the desired type of terminal measurement results. The measurement reporting type can include measurement event type, periodic reporting type, cell global identifier (CGI) type, or system frame number and frame timing difference (SFTD) type. Before a terminal performs a cell handover, the RAN node typically configures measurement event types to obtain the signal quality of the terminal relative to the serving cell or neighboring cells.

For example, let's take the measurement event type configured by the RAN node as an example. The RAN node can configure at least one measurement target (distinguished by different measurement target IDs), and each measurement target corresponds to at least one measurement configuration (distinguished by different measurement configuration IDs). A measurement identifier (measID) associates the measurement target ID and the measurement configuration ID. Specifically, the RAN node uses a reconfiguration message to instruct the terminal to perform measurements. The reconfiguration message can include the measurement target and the measurement configuration, and the measurement configuration is the configuration corresponding to the measurement event. A description of the measurement event configuration is provided below. For example, when the RAN node configures the measurement reporting type for the terminal as a measurement event type, the measurement configuration can be specific parameters for measuring the measurement target, such as measurement thresholds. It should be understood that other types of measurement reporting types are similar and will not be elaborated further. Thus, the terminal can perform measurements on the configured measurement targets according to the measurement configuration. For measurement targets that meet the measurement configuration conditions, a measurement report is reported, including the corresponding measurement identifier.

The RAN node can configure the measurement target using the `measObjectNR` cell. The configuration includes the frequency points of the synchronization signal and PBCH block (SSB) or channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) to be measured. Optionally, the configuration may also include at least one of the following: a neighboring cell measurement list, reference signal configuration (e.g., time-frequency resource configuration), measurement gap, and measurement period. When the configuration includes the SSB frequency point, it may also include parameters such as the SSB band number or sub-carrier space (SCS). When the configuration includes the CSI-RS frequency point, it may also include parameters such as the CSI-RS band number or SCS.

2. Measurement Events

As mentioned above, each measurement target corresponds to at least one measurement configuration. Taking the RAN node as the terminal and configuring the measurement reporting type as the measurement event type as an example, the content configured in a measurement configuration includes: a measurement event identifier (event ID, for example, including A1~A6 and B1~B2, etc.). Optionally, the content configured in a measurement configuration also includes at least one of the following parameters: the measurement threshold, measurement offset, hysteresis, or trigger time (timeToTrigger) corresponding to the measurement event.

As shown in Table 1, the following 8 types of measurement events are currently included.

Table 1

In Table 1, Ms represents the terminal's measurement result of the serving cell, Mn represents the terminal's measurement result of the neighboring cell, and Hys represents the amplitude hysteresis of the measurement result (amplitude hysteresis can be understood as the influence of the measurement result of the previous moment on the measurement result of the next moment, i.e., trailing). Ms or Mn can be the reference signal receiving power (RSRP) or reference signal receiving quality (RSRQ), etc. timeToTrigger represents the duration for which the event entry condition is continuously met, i.e., time hysteresis (time hysteresis can be understood as the duration). It should be understood that even if the measurement value fluctuates, if the fluctuation is greater than Hys and continues for timeToTrigger, the terminal will be triggered to report a measurement. Thresh corresponding to events A1, A2, and A4 can represent thresholds, and Thresh1 and Thresh2 corresponding to event A5 can represent threshold 1 and threshold 2, respectively. Ofs corresponding to event A3 represents the frequency offset of the serving cell, and Ofn represents the frequency offset of the neighboring cell. For events A3 or A6, Ocs represents the cell individual offset (CIO) of the serving cell, Ocn represents the cell offset (CIO) of the neighboring cell, and Off represents the offset of the measurement result. In the following text, the threshold corresponding to the measurement event will be referred to as the "measurement threshold".

For example, taking the RAN node configuring the A2 measurement event for the terminal as an example, when Ms meets the entry condition Ms+Hys<Thresh in Table 1 (that is, the sum of the terminal's measurement result of the serving cell and the amplitude hysteresis is less than the threshold corresponding to the A2 event) and continues for the timeToTrigger duration, the terminal can send a measurement report to the RAN node, which may include the measurement target ID and measurement configuration ID corresponding to the A2 event, so as to indicate to the RAN node that the terminal has met the measurement event corresponding to the measurement configuration ID for the measurement target.

3. Cell handover

Currently, when a terminal is in Radio Resource Control (RRC) connected state, as the terminal moves and the wireless communication environment changes, the serving cell signal may gradually deteriorate while the signal of neighboring cells gradually improves. In this situation, to ensure communication quality, the RAN node configures measurement parameters for the terminal, enabling the terminal to perform measurements based on these parameters and report the measurements. Based on the measurement reports reported by the terminal, the RAN node can then allow the terminal to switch to a neighboring cell with a better signal.

The following uses an inter-site handover scenario as an example to illustrate the specific process of cell handover. Specifically, it can be shown in Figure 1. In Figure 1, RAN node 1 is the source node for the terminal's cell handover, and RAN node 2 is the target node for the terminal's cell handover. The source node can be understood as the RAN node to which the source cell of the terminal's cell handover belongs, and the target node can be understood as the RAN node to which the target cell of the terminal's cell handover belongs. The method shown in Figure 1 may include the following steps:

S101: RAN node 1 sends a reconfiguration (measurement configuration) message to the terminal. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the reconfiguration (measurement configuration) message from RAN node 1.

This reconfiguration message may include information about the measurement target and measurement configuration, as detailed above.

S102: The terminal sends a measurement report to RAN node 1. Correspondingly, RAN node 1 receives the measurement report from the terminal.

For example, after receiving a reconfiguration message, the terminal can perform measurements according to the measurement configuration configured in the reconfiguration message. For instance, taking a reconfiguration message that includes measurement target 1, measurement reporting type as measurement event type, measurement event A3, and the measurement configuration corresponding to measurement event A3, the measurement configuration corresponding to measurement event A3 includes parameters such as the threshold for A3, the offset value where the neighboring cell signal quality is higher than the serving cell signal quality, and timeToTrigger (refer to the explanation of the parameters in Table 1; the threshold for A3 corresponds to Thresh in Table 1, the offset corresponds to Off in Table 1, and timeToTrigger corresponds to timeToTrigger in Table 1). Furthermore, measurement target 1 corresponds to frequency 1300 and SCS = 15kHz, and the terminal can perform measurements on at least one neighboring cell that satisfies frequency 1300 and SCS = 15kHz. If the terminal measures that the RSRP of the source cell is lower than the RSRP of neighboring cell 1 by a certain offset and maintains the timeToTrigger duration, according to Table 1, the entry condition corresponding to A3 has been met. The terminal can report the A3 measurement report, and neighboring cell 1 may be used as the target cell for handover.

S103: RAN Node 1 sends a handover request to RAN Node 2. Correspondingly, RAN Node 2 receives the handover request from RAN Node 1.

For example, RAN node 1 determines the target node (e.g., RAN node 2) to which the target cell belongs for the terminal based on measurement reports and network-side resources.

S104: RAN Node 2 sends a handover confirmation to RAN Node 1. Correspondingly, RAN Node 1 receives the handover confirmation from RAN Node 2.

The handover confirmation includes information about the radio resources that the terminal will use after switching to RAN node 2.

S105: RAN node 1 sends a reconfiguration (switching) message to the terminal. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the reconfiguration (switching) message from RAN node 1.

The reconfiguration message instructs the terminal to switch to the target cell (managed by RAN node 2), and includes information on the radio resources that the terminal will use after switching to the target cell.

S106: The terminal initiates random access to RAN node 2.

Understandably, the terminal performs random access to perform time alignment (TA) with RAN Node 2 and then completes uplink synchronization with RAN Node 2. After successfully completing random access, the terminal can also send a reconfiguration complete (RRCReconfigurationComplete) message to RAN Node 2 to indicate a successful handover.

Understandably, under the current handover mechanism, the RAN node primarily configures measurement parameters for the terminal, and determines whether the terminal should perform a cell handover based on the measurement results. However, in practical applications, terminals are mobile, and their location and/or movement state constantly change. Therefore, the measurement parameters configured by the RAN node may no longer be suitable for terminals whose location and/or movement state have changed. For example, when a terminal moves at high speed at the cell edge, if the value of timeToTrigger is configured too large, the measurement results may not easily meet the entry conditions for the corresponding handover measurement event (e.g., A2 or A3 events, etc.) (see the third column "Entry Conditions" in Table 1 for details), making it difficult for the terminal to report measurement reports and thus hindering timely cell handover. Furthermore, handover may occur only after the terminal has left a suitable cell, affecting the terminal's communication quality. Also, when a terminal moves at high speed from the cell center towards the cell edge, the measurement threshold may become inappropriate. Finally, when a terminal is located at the edges of two cells, an inappropriate setting of the measurement threshold or timeToTrigger may cause ping-pong handover (i.e., the terminal repeatedly switches between two cells). For example, during inter-site handover, the handover may fail due to excessive handover latency. In summary, the current handover mechanism lacks flexibility and fails to meet user needs.

To address the aforementioned issues, this application provides three communication methods, which are described in detail below.

Method 1: The core network element senses a change in at least one of the terminal's position or its speed and sends terminal status information to the terminal or RAN node. Accordingly, upon receiving the terminal's status information, the terminal or RAN node can determine the measurement information needed for cell handover based on the terminal's status information. The aforementioned terminal status information indicates a change in at least one of the terminal's position or its speed.

In the above method, core network elements can sense changes in the terminal's position or speed and indicate these changes to the terminal or RAN node via terminal status information. This allows the terminal or RAN node to determine the measurement parameters for handover based on the changes in the terminal's position or speed. Compared to the current method where the RAN node configures terminal measurement parameters and the terminal reports measurement data to trigger handover, this method allows the terminal or RAN node to manage terminal mobility based on its position or speed. This avoids the problem of potentially inappropriate measurement parameter configuration due to terminal movement, enabling more flexible handover and thus improving communication quality to meet user needs. The specific process of Method 1 will be described in detail in the method shown in Figure 4 below.

Method 2: The first RAN node sends cell handover information to the core network element. This cell handover information includes condition information for handing the terminal to the first cell. Accordingly, the core network element receives the cell handover information from the first RAN node, determines the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell, and, based on the cell handover information and the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell, sends first information to the first RAN node, indicating that the terminal should be handed to the first cell. The first RAN node receives the first information.

In the above method, the core network element can determine whether to hand over the terminal to the first cell based on the terminal's signal quality for the first cell and the conditions for handing over the terminal to the first cell. Therefore, this method can flexibly manage terminal mobility and avoids the current problem of potentially unreasonable measurement parameters configured in the RAN nodes due to terminal movement. It allows for more flexible terminal handover, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs. The specific process of Method 2 will be described in detail in the method shown in Figure 5 below.

Method 3: The second RAN node sends first information to the first RAN node. Correspondingly, the first RAN node receives the first information from the second RAN node. This first information indicates at least one of the following: a first beam of the first cell or a timing advance of the terminal relative to the first RAN node. The cells managed by the first RAN node include the first cell, which is the target cell for the terminal's handover. The first beam is used for communication with the first cell after the terminal hands over, and the timing advance is used for uplink synchronization after the terminal hands over to the first cell. The first information is determined based on second information, which includes at least one of the following: the terminal's measurement results of the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's movement speed.

In the above method, the second RAN node can determine the first beam based on at least one of the terminal's measurement results of the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's movement speed, and/or the timing advance information used by the terminal when switching to the first cell managed by the first RAN node. Thus, the first RAN node can communicate with the terminal through the first beam and determine a suitable beam without beam alignment, thereby reducing handover latency. Furthermore, after obtaining this timing advance, the terminal can quickly achieve uplink synchronization with the first RAN node and quickly switch to the first cell, significantly reducing handover latency. Therefore, the above method effectively reduces handover latency, allows for more flexible handover, improves communication quality, and meets user needs. The specific process of method 3 will be described in detail in the method shown in Figure 6 below.

The implementation of the above method will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The method provided in this application can be used in various communication systems. For example, the communication system can be a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) system, a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, a 5G communication system, a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) system, a 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) related communication system, a communication system evolved after 5G (such as a 6th generation (6G) communication system), or a system integrating multiple systems, etc., without limitation. 5G can also be referred to as New Radio (NR). The method provided in this application is described below using the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2 as an example. Figure 2 is only a schematic diagram and does not constitute a limitation on the applicable scenarios of the technical solution provided in this application.

Figure 2 shows a schematic diagram of the architecture of the communication system 20 provided in this application. In Figure 2, the communication system 20 includes a RAN 201. Optionally, the communication system 20 also includes a core network (CN) 204. RAN 201 includes at least one RAN node (202a and 202b in Figure 2, collectively referred to as 202) and at least one terminal (203a-203j in Figure 2, collectively referred to as 203). RAN 201 may also include other RAN nodes, such as wireless relay devices and/or wireless backhaul devices (not shown in Figure 2). Terminal 203 is wirelessly connected to RAN node 202. RAN node 202 is wirelessly or wiredly connected to core network 204. The core network equipment in core network 204 and RAN node 202 in RAN 201 can be different physical devices, or they can be the same physical device integrating core network logical functions and RAN logical functions.

RAN 201 can be a 3GPP-related cellular system, such as a 4G or 5G mobile communication system, or a future-oriented evolution system (such as a 6G mobile communication system). RAN 201 can also be an open access network (O-RAN or ORAN), a cloud radio access network (CRAN), or a WiFi system. RAN 201 can also be a communication system integrating two or more of the above systems. The core network can include network elements used to implement various core network functions, such as SF network elements. SF network elements, also known as sensing network elements, can perform tasks such as selecting sensing devices (e.g., terminals or RAN nodes), controlling sensing services, receiving and integrating sensing measurement data, and outputting sensing results.

RAN node 202, sometimes also referred to as access network equipment, RAN entity, or access node, constitutes part of the communication system and is used to help terminals achieve wireless access. Multiple RAN nodes 202 in the communication system 20 can be of the same type or different types.

In one possible scenario, a RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB), a next-generation base station in a 6G mobile communication system, a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a WiFi system. A RAN node can be a macro base station (as shown in Figure 2, 220a), a micro base station or indoor station (as shown in Figure 2, 220b), a relay node or donor node, or a radio controller in a CRAN scenario. Optionally, a RAN node can also be a server, wearable device, vehicle, or in-vehicle equipment. For example, the access network equipment in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology can be a roadside unit (RSU). In some scenarios, the roles of RAN node 220 and terminal 220 are relative. For example, a helicopter or drone that is usually configured as a terminal can also be configured as a mobile base station, and a device that accesses the RAN via a helicopter or drone is configured as a terminal.

In another possible scenario, multiple RAN nodes collaborate to assist the terminal in achieving wireless access, with each RAN node performing a portion of the base station's functions. For example, RAN nodes can be central units (CUs), distributed units (DUs), CU-control plane (CPs), CU-user plane (UPs), or radio units (RUs). CUs and DUs can be separate entities or included in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio frequency equipment or radio frequency units, such as remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs).

In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU, or RU may have different names, but those skilled in the art will understand their meaning. For example, in an ORAN system, CU can also be called O-CU (open CU), DU can also be called O-DU, CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and RU can also be called O-RU. For ease of description, this application uses CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU, and RU as examples. Any of the units among CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU, and RU in this application can be implemented through software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of software and hardware modules.

The terminal in this application, such as terminal 203, is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities. The terminal can be deployed on land, including indoors, outdoors, handheld, or vehicle-mounted; it can also be deployed on water (such as on ships); and it can be deployed in the air (such as on airplanes, balloons, and satellites). The terminal can also be referred to as a terminal device, which can be a user equipment (UE), a mobile station (MS), a mobile terminal (MT), or a device used to provide voice or data connectivity to users. The UE includes handheld devices with wireless communication capabilities, vehicle-mounted devices (e.g., cars, bicycles, electric vehicles, airplanes, ships, trains, high-speed trains, etc.), wearable devices (e.g., smartwatches, smart bracelets, pedometers, etc.), or computing devices. Exemplarily, the UE can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, laptop computer, PDA, mobile internet device (MID), satellite terminal, or computer with wireless transceiver capabilities. UE can also be a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless modem, a point-of-sale (POS) machine, a customer-premises equipment (CPE), a smart robot, a robotic arm, workshop equipment, smart home devices (e.g., refrigerators, televisions, air conditioners, electricity meters, etc.), a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in autonomous driving, a wireless terminal in telemedicine, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a wireless terminal in a smart home, a vehicle-mounted terminal, a roadside unit (RSU) with terminal functionality, or a flying device (e.g., a smart robot, a hot air balloon, a drone, an airplane), etc. A terminal can also be other devices with terminal functionality; for example, a terminal can also be a device that performs terminal functionality in D2D communication.

By way of example and not limitation, in this application, the terminal can be a wearable device. Wearable devices, also known as wearable smart devices, are a general term for devices that utilize wearable technology to intelligently design and develop everyday wearables, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes. Wearable devices are portable devices that are worn directly on the body or integrated into a user's clothing or accessories. For example, wearable devices are not merely hardware devices, but also devices that achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly speaking, wearable smart devices include devices that are feature-rich, large in size, and can achieve complete or partial functions without relying on a smartphone, such as smartwatches or smart glasses, as well as devices that focus on only one type of application function and need to be used in conjunction with other devices such as smartphones, such as various smart bracelets and smart jewelry for vital sign monitoring.

In this application, the terminal can be a terminal in an Internet of Things (IoT) system. IoT is an important component of future information technology development, and its main technical feature is connecting objects to networks through communication technologies, thereby realizing an intelligent network of human-machine interconnection and machine-to-machine interconnection. The terminal in this application can be a terminal in machine-type communication (MTC).

The terminal in this application can be an on-board module, on-board component, on-board chip, on-board unit (OBU), or telematics box (T-BOX) built into a vehicle as one or more components or units. The vehicle can implement the methods of this application through the built-in on-board module, on-board component, on-board chip, on-board unit, or T-BOX. The terminal can also be a complete vehicle device. Therefore, this application can be applied to vehicle networking, such as vehicle-to-everything (V2X), long-term evolution vehicle (LTE-V), and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V).

It is understood that the above-mentioned communication system 20 can be applied to a variety of communication networks, such as the 5G network currently under discussion, or other future networks, etc. This application embodiment does not specifically limit it in this regard.

It is understood that the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2 is for illustrative purposes only and is not intended to limit the technical solutions of this application. Those skilled in the art should understand that in specific implementations, the communication system 20 may also include other devices, and the number of RAN nodes and terminals may be determined according to specific needs without limitation.

Optionally, each network element or device (such as RAN node, terminal or core network element, etc.) in Figure 2 of this application may also be referred to as a communication device, which may be a general-purpose device or a special-purpose device. This application does not make specific limitations on this.

Optionally, the functions of each network element or device (e.g., RAN node 202, terminal 203, or core network element 204) in Figure 2 of this application can be implemented by one device, multiple devices working together, or one or more functional modules within a single device. This application does not impose specific limitations on these functions. It is understood that the aforementioned functions can be network elements in hardware devices, software functions running on dedicated hardware, a combination of hardware and software, or virtualization functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform).

In practical implementation, each network element or device shown in Figure 2 (e.g., RAN node 202, terminal 203, or core network element 204) can adopt the composition structure shown in Figure 3, or include the components shown in Figure 3. Figure 3 shows a schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a communication device applicable to this application. It is understood that the communication device 30 includes means of necessary forms such as modules, units, elements, circuits, or interfaces, which are appropriately configured together to execute the solution provided in this application. For example, the communication device 30 includes one or more processors 301 for implementing the method provided in this application.

Processor 301 can be a general-purpose processor or a dedicated processor. For example, processor 301 can be a baseband processor or a central processing unit (CPU). The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data, while the CPU can be used to control the communication device 30 (such as a RAN node, terminal, or chip), execute software programs, and process data from the software programs. Optionally, in one design, processor 301 may include program 305 (sometimes referred to as code or instructions), which can be run on processor 301 to cause the communication device 30 to perform the methods described in the following embodiments. In yet another possible design, communication device 30 includes circuitry (not shown in FIG3) for implementing the terminal, RAN node, or core network element functions described in the following embodiments.

Optionally, the communication device 30 may include one or more memories 303. The memory 303 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device capable of storing static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM), cache, or other type of dynamic storage device capable of storing information and instructions. It may also be an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compressed optical discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital universal optical discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), magnetic disk storage media, or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures that can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory provided in this application may generally be non-volatile. Optionally, the memory 303 stores a program 307 (sometimes referred to as code or instructions), which can be run on the processor 301 to cause the communication device 30 to perform the methods described in the following method embodiments.

Optionally, the processor 301 may include an AI module 306, and/or the memory 303 may include an AI module 308. The aforementioned AI modules are used to implement AI-related functions. The AI modules can be implemented through software, hardware, or a combination of both. For example, the AI module may include a RIC module. For example, the AI module can be a near real-time RIC or a non-real-time RIC.

Optionally, data may also be stored in the processor 301 and/or the memory 303. The processor 301 and the memory 303 may be configured separately or integrated together.

Optionally, the communication device 30 may also include a transceiver 302 and/or an antenna 304. The processor 301, sometimes referred to as a processing unit, controls the communication device 30. The transceiver 302, sometimes referred to as a transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver circuit, or transceiver, is used to realize the transmission and reception functions of the communication device 30 through the antenna 304.

It is understood that the composition shown in Figure 3 does not constitute a limitation on the communication device. In addition to the components shown in Figure 3, the communication device may include more or fewer components than shown, or combine certain components, or have different component arrangements.

It is understood that the message names between network elements or the names of parameters in the messages in the following embodiments of this application are just examples, and other names may be used in the specific implementation. This application does not make any specific limitations on this.

It is understood that in this application, "/" can indicate that the objects before and after it are in an "or" relationship. For example, A/B can mean A or B. "And/or" can be used to describe three relationships between the related objects. For example, A and/or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. Here, A and B can be singular or plural. Furthermore, expressions like "at least one of A, B, and C" or "at least one of A, B, or C" are generally used to indicate any of the following: A exists alone; B exists alone; C exists alone; A and B exist simultaneously; A and C exist simultaneously; B and C exist simultaneously; A, B, and C exist simultaneously. The above examples using three elements (A, B, and C) illustrate the optional entries for this item. When the expression contains more elements, its meaning can be obtained according to the aforementioned rules.

To facilitate the description of the technical solutions of this application, the terms "first" and "second" may be used to distinguish technical features with the same or similar functions. The terms "first" and "second" do not limit the number or execution order, nor do they imply that they are necessarily different. In this application, the terms "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations, or descriptions. Any embodiment or design scheme described as "exemplary" or "for example" should not be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other embodiments or design schemes. The use of "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a concrete manner for ease of understanding.

It is understood that the term "embodiment" used throughout the specification means that a specific feature, structure, or characteristic related to an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of this application. Therefore, various embodiments throughout the specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, these specific features, structures, or characteristics can be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. It is understood that in the various embodiments of this application, the sequence number of each process does not imply a sequential order of execution; the execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of this application.

It is understood that in this application, "for indicating" can include direct and indirect indication, as well as explicit and implicit indication. When describing an indication information as being used to indicate A, it can include whether the indication information directly or indirectly indicates A, but does not necessarily mean that the indication information carries A. The information indicated by a certain piece of information (such as the first indication information described below) is called the information to be indicated. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the information to be indicated, such as, but not limited to, directly indicating the information to be indicated, such as the information to be indicated itself or its index. It can also indirectly indicate the information to be indicated by indicating other information, where there is a correlation between the other information and the information to be indicated. It can also indicate only a part of the information to be indicated, while the other parts are known or pre-agreed upon. For example, the indication of specific information can be achieved by using a pre-agreed (e.g., protocol-defined) arrangement of various pieces of information, thereby reducing the indication overhead to some extent.

It is understood that in this application, "when," "under the circumstances," "if," and "if" all refer to the corresponding processing that will be carried out under certain objective circumstances, and are not time-limited, nor do they require that there must be a judgment action when implemented, nor do they imply any other limitations.

In this application, "multiple" can be understood as two or more. For example, "multiple timing advances" can be understood as two or more timing advances.

It is understood that some optional features in this application can be implemented independently in certain scenarios without relying on other features, such as the current solution upon which they are based, to solve the corresponding technical problems and achieve the corresponding effects. Alternatively, they can be combined with other features as needed in certain scenarios. Correspondingly, the apparatus provided in this application can also implement these features or functions, which will not be elaborated here.

It is understood that the same step or step with the same function or technical feature in this application can be referenced and learned from each other in different embodiments.

It is understood that the processing of user personal information involved in this application, such as collection, storage, use, processing, transmission, provision, and disclosure, all comply with relevant laws and regulations and do not violate public order and good morals. For example, in this application, the processing of user personal information is carried out with the user's authorization, which will be stated uniformly here and will not be repeated below.

It is understood that the methods described below in this application use core network elements, RAN nodes, and terminals as examples to illustrate the interaction, but this application does not limit the execution entities of the interaction. For example, the core network element in the method provided in the following embodiments of this application can also be a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the core network element in implementing the method, or it can be a logical node, logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the core network element functions; the RAN node in the method provided below in this application can also be a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the RAN node in implementing the method, or it can be a logical node, logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the RAN node functions; the terminal in the method provided below in this application can also be a chip, chip system, or processor that supports the terminal in implementing the method, or it can be a logical node, logical module, or software that can implement all or part of the terminal functions.

As shown in Figure 4, a communication method provided in this application may include the following steps:

S401: At least one of the following changes: the position of the core network element sensing terminal or the speed of the terminal's movement.

In this application, the core network element can be the SF network element in the core network 204 of the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2. The terminal can be any terminal in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2.

The location of the terminal mentioned above refers to its relative position to the cell managed by the RAN node. This relative position can be understood as the center or edge of a cell managed by the RAN node, or the boundary between different cells, etc., without limitation. The RAN node is the RAN node connected to the terminal, such as RAN node 202 in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2.

One possible implementation is that the core network element repeatedly acquires the terminal's sensing information (e.g., the terminal's position or speed), compares the newly acquired terminal sensing information with the previously acquired terminal sensing information, and determines whether the terminal's position or speed has changed.

The sensed information can be measurement information from the terminal, and the core network element obtains the terminal's sensed information based on the measurement information. For example, the core network element receives measurement information sent by the terminal, or it can receive measurement information reported by the RAN node from the terminal. The core network element can process the measurement information to obtain the sensed information.

Specifically, the measurement information can include the physical cell identifier (PCI) of the terminal's serving cell or neighboring cells, as well as the signal quality of each cell or neighboring cell. Core network elements can determine the terminal's location based on the PCI included in the measurement information reported by the terminal. For example, when the terminal reports an A1 measurement report (indicating that cell 1, as the serving cell, has good signal quality), it can be determined that the terminal is located at the center of cell 1. Alternatively, when the terminal reports an A3 measurement report (indicating that when cell 1 is the serving cell, the signal quality of cell 1 is lower than that of the neighboring cell, cell 2), the core network elements can determine that the terminal is located at the edge of cell 1 and cell 2, or even that the distance between the terminal and the center of cell 2 is closer than the distance between the terminal and the center of cell 1.

For example, core network elements can use a perception map to sense the location or speed of a terminal. Specifically, core network elements can use the terminal's location information at different times on the perception map to determine whether the terminal's location has changed. Core network elements can use information such as the terminal's current speed presented on the perception map to determine whether the terminal's speed has changed. It should be understood that, in addition to the terminal's location and speed, the perception map also includes other geographic information, thereby enabling more convenient acquisition of the terminal's perception information.

For example, since the perception map can indicate the location of the terminal, the location of the RAN node, or the location of the cell managed by the RAN node, core network elements can obtain the relative position of the terminal and the RAN node, or the relative position of the terminal and the cell managed by the RAN node, through the perception map. For instance, the core network element first obtains the terminal's perception information (e.g., the terminal's location or speed), then combines it with the location of the RAN node indicated by the perception map and the location of the cell managed by the RAN node, and then obtains the relative position of the terminal and the RAN node, or the relative position of the terminal and the cell managed by the RAN node.

Optionally, the RAN node sends first information to the core network element. The first information indicates the coverage information of the cells managed by the RAN node. The cells managed by the RAN node include a first cell, which is the serving cell of the terminal or a neighboring cell of the serving cell. After receiving the first information, the core network element can construct a perception map based on the first information. This perception map is used to determine at least one of the terminal's location or its movement speed. It is understood that, to improve the perception map, the core network element can also obtain coverage information of cells managed by RAN nodes other than the aforementioned RAN node, and the core network element can also obtain the perception results of any RAN node and/or any terminal regarding the aforementioned terminal. The perception result of any RAN node regarding the terminal can be obtained by the RAN node through self-transmission and self-reception, or by other-transmission and self-reception. The perception result of any terminal regarding the aforementioned terminal can be obtained by any terminal through self-transmission and self-reception, or by other-transmission and self-reception, or by sensing.

The coverage information mentioned above can indicate the coverage area of a cell managed by the RAN node. For example, the coverage information can indicate the center location of a cell managed by the RAN node, as well as the radius of the cell. Optionally, the coverage information can also indicate the shape of the cell coverage area (e.g., a circular or fan-shaped shape) or other types of information, without limitation.

S402: Core network elements send terminal status information to network nodes. Correspondingly, network nodes receive terminal status information from core network elements.

In this application, the network node can be a RAN node or a terminal. The RAN node can be RAN node 202 in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2. The terminal status information indicates a change in at least one of the terminal's position or its movement speed. For example, if the core network element senses a change in the terminal's position in S401, the terminal status information indicates that the terminal's position has changed. If the core network element senses a change in the terminal's movement speed in S401, the terminal status information indicates that the terminal's movement speed has changed. If both the core network element senses a change in the terminal's position and its movement speed in S401, the terminal status information indicates that both the terminal's position and its movement speed have changed.

In this application, core network elements can indicate changes in terminal position, speed, or both by carrying different information. For example, terminal status information may include two bits: a value of "01" indicates a change in terminal position; a value of "10" indicates a change in terminal speed; and a value of "11" indicates a change in both terminal position and speed. Optionally, the terminal status information may also additionally indicate other parameters characterizing speed changes, such as terminal acceleration, without limitation.

Optionally, when the network node is a RAN node, the terminal status information includes the terminal's identifier. Therefore, core network elements can use the terminal status information to specifically indicate to the RAN node which terminal has changed its location or speed, facilitating the RAN node to adjust measurement parameters for the terminal corresponding to that identifier.

S403: The network node determines the measurement information used for cell handover based on the terminal status information.

In this application, the measurement information used for cell handover may include at least one of the following: measurement cycle information, parameter information of measurement events, or first indication information. The first indication information indicates whether to stop measurement, or may include other parameters, such as trigger time, measurement threshold, or measurement interval. The measurement cycle can be understood as the time difference between two adjacent measurements by the terminal during periodic measurement. The parameters of the measurement events are described in Table 1.

In this application, the terminal and RAN node determine the measurement information for cell handover based on the terminal's status information in a similar way. The difference is that if the measurement information is determined by the RAN node, the RAN node can also send the determined measurement information to the terminal, for example, by sending second information (optionally, this second information can be carried in an RRC reconfiguration message). The second information can indicate the measurement information for cell handover determined by the RAN node. Thus, the terminal can perform measurements based on this measurement information. For example, the second information may include at least one of the following: measurement cycle information, parameter information of measurement events, or first indication information. The RAN node can define information elements corresponding to the first indication information to explicitly indicate whether the terminal should stop measurement, or implicitly indicate whether to stop measurement through reconfiguration information. For example, when the information element MeasIdToRemoveList includes measurement identifiers to be removed (corresponding to the aforementioned measID, where one measID is bound to a measurement target ID and a measurement configuration ID), if the measurement target ID corresponding to a certain measID corresponds to the serving cell or neighboring cell where the terminal is located, the terminal stops measurement. Conversely, if the MeasIdToAddModList cell contains the serving cell or neighboring cell corresponding to the measurement identifier to be added, the terminal begins measurement. Alternatively, the measurement information is determined by the terminal itself, which adjusts the measurement information autonomously. This allows the terminal to directly determine the measurement information used for cell handover based on changes in its own position or speed, saving signaling overhead and latency caused by interaction with the RAN node. For ease of description, the following uses a network node as an example to illustrate the specific process of determining the measurement information used for cell handover based on the terminal's state information.

In this application, the terminal status information also indicates a specific change in at least one of the terminal's position or its movement speed. For example, the terminal status information indicates the distance the terminal has moved in a certain direction, or how much the terminal's speed has increased or decreased.

One possible implementation is that network nodes determine the location of the terminal based on the terminal status information, and then determine the measurement information used for cell handover based on the location of the terminal.

Understandably, terminal status information can indicate a change in the terminal's location, a change in its speed, or a change in both. When the content indicated by the terminal status information differs, the network node determines the terminal's location differently based on the information, which will be explained in detail below.

Scenario 1: Terminal status information indicates that the terminal's location has changed.

Understandably, network nodes can determine the location of a terminal based on the location changes indicated by the most recently acquired terminal location and terminal status information.

Scenario 2: Terminal status information indicates that the terminal's movement speed has changed.

Understandably, network nodes can determine the terminal's travel distance based on the most recently acquired terminal speed, changes in the terminal's speed indicated by its status information, and a first time interval. Based on this travel distance, the terminal's location is determined by the most recently acquired position and direction of movement. The first time interval is the time between the moment the terminal most recently acquired its speed and the moment the core network sensed a change in the terminal's speed.

For example, taking a terminal moving at a constant speed v as an example, based on the terminal's position and direction of motion at time t1, the core network element can determine the terminal's position at time t2. Furthermore, based on the obtained changes in the terminal's speed, the core network element can calculate the displacement traversed by the terminal after time t1, thereby determining the position at any time after time t1.

Scenario 3: Terminal status information indicates changes in the terminal's position and speed of movement.

Understandably, network nodes can determine the direction of the terminal's movement based on changes in the terminal's speed indicated by the terminal's status information, and determine the terminal's position based on the most recently acquired terminal position, the terminal's direction of movement, and changes in the terminal's position indicated by the terminal's status information.

Optionally, core network elements can use the aforementioned changes to determine the location of the terminal in real time.

The method for network nodes to determine measurement information for cell handover based on the location of the terminal is explained in detail below.

One possible design involves a change in terminal location that includes at least one of the following: the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell; the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell; the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell; the terminal enters a first area; or the coverage area of the serving cell of the terminal changes. The first area is covered by multiple cells.

Understandably, when a terminal's location changes, indicating it's moving from the center of a cell to its edge, it's understood that the terminal receives the best signal quality when at the cell center and will connect to that cell; therefore, that cell is the terminal's serving cell. As the terminal moves from the serving cell center to the edge, the signal quality received from the serving cell gradually decreases, while the signal quality from other neighboring cells increases. To ensure communication quality, network nodes can allow the terminal to switch to neighboring cells with better signal quality. In this situation, the network node can adjust the terminal's measurement parameters.

Specifically, if the terminal is in a stopped measurement state, the network node can enable the terminal's measurement. Alternatively, the network node can configure a shorter measurement cycle for the terminal, allowing it to perform measurements more frequently to better capture changes in signal quality. Or, when a measurement gap is configured, the network node can configure a longer duration for the measurement gap to encourage more measurements. Alternatively, the network node can reduce the timeToTrigger for measurement events. Or, the network node can adjust the measurement threshold based on the terminal's neighbor cell deployment and its distance from the cell edge. For example, when the terminal is within the serving cell range, the threshold for measurement events (e.g., A2 or A3) can be increased to make handover less difficult; when the terminal is near the serving cell edge, the threshold can be decreased to make handover easier.

Understandably, when a terminal's location change indicates that it is moving from the edge of a cell towards its center, the terminal accesses the cell, and the signal quality received by the terminal from that cell improves. The network node can then allow the terminal to stop measuring. Alternatively, the network node can configure a longer measurement cycle for the terminal, i.e., reduce the terminal's measurement frequency. Or, when a measurement gap is configured, the network node can configure a longer duration for the measurement gap. Alternatively, the network node can also increase the threshold corresponding to measurement events (e.g., measurement events A2 or A3). Or, the network node can also increase the trigger time (timeToTrigger) corresponding to measurement events. Furthermore, by reducing unnecessary measurement activities by the terminal through these methods, power consumption can be saved.

Understandably, when a change in the terminal's location indicates that the terminal has left the coverage area of the serving cell, the network node can trigger the terminal to switch in advance even if it has not received the corresponding measurement report. This can prevent situations such as the terminal failing to send measurement reports due to poor signal quality caused by leaving the cell's coverage area.

For example, when the network node is a terminal, the terminal detects that the signal quality of the serving cell and neighboring cell 1 meets the conditions of measurement event A3, reports a measurement report, and can use neighboring cell 1 as the target cell and switch to neighboring cell 1 whether or not it receives a handover instruction from the RAN node. This enables timely handover and ensures the communication quality of the terminal.

For example, when the network node is a RAN node, the following process is described based on the terminal measurement report: The terminal reports an A2 measurement report corresponding to threshold 1. As the terminal signal deteriorates, the terminal will continue to report an A2 measurement report corresponding to threshold 2 (threshold 2 is less than threshold 1). Upon receiving the A2 measurement report, the RAN node will configure an A3 measurement event for the terminal. If the terminal can be switched after reporting the A3 measurement event, the RAN node will switch the terminal to the target cell. Under the above conditions, after the RAN node receives an indication that the terminal has left the coverage area of the serving cell, even if it has not received the measurement report corresponding to A3 (i.e., it has just received the A2 measurement report corresponding to threshold 1 or threshold 2, or has not received the A2 measurement report at all), the RAN node can trigger the terminal switch. It can determine which cell the terminal has entered based on the direction of the terminal's movement, select a target cell for the terminal, and switch the terminal in advance. This achieves the purpose of flexibly triggering the terminal switch and simplifies the signaling process.

Alternatively, when the network node is a RAN node, the RAN node can wait for the terminal's measurement report before handing over when it receives an indication that the terminal has left the coverage area of the serving cell. The RAN node can also make it easier for the terminal to report measurement data by adjusting measurement parameters, such as reducing the trigger time (timeToTrigger) or the threshold for the measurement event. It should be understood that the specific adjustment values can be determined based on the relative position of the terminal and the cell and are not restricted.

Understandably, when a terminal's location change indicates that it has entered a first area, this first area can be understood as an overlapping coverage area of multiple cells. Since the terminal may receive signals from multiple neighboring cells with similar signal quality when in this area, ping-pong handovers are likely to occur if the threshold for the measurement event corresponding to the handover is not increased. (Because even a small fluctuation in the signal quality of at least one of the aforementioned cells can lead to handover, frequent handovers occur, which not only increases the UE's measurement power consumption but also increases the load on the wireless network.) In this situation, network nodes can take measures such as increasing the trigger time (timeToTrigger) or increasing the threshold corresponding to the measurement event to avoid ping-pong handovers.

Understandably, when a change in the location of a terminal indicates a change in the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell, "a change in the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell" can be understood as a change in the serving cell of the terminal. For example, some cells may be removed from the management range of the RAN node, or the number of cells managed by the RAN node may increase.

Optionally, when the network node is a RAN node, if the RAN node receives an updated RAN node list from the core network element (this information can be carried by the target gNB list cell), it means that some cells managed by the RAN node have changed (e.g., cells have been added or deleted). If the changed cell is a neighboring cell or a candidate neighboring cell of the terminal, it can be understood that the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell or neighboring cell has changed. In this case, the RAN node can update the terminal's measurement target (see the aforementioned introduction to measurement targets for details).

For example, when the network node is a RAN node, if the RAN node receives a target gNB list indicating that the number of cells managed by the RAN node or another RAN node has decreased, the RAN node will update the terminal's measurement information and delete the corresponding measurement target. Conversely, if the RAN node receives a target gNB list indicating that the number of cells managed by the RAN node or another RAN node has increased, the RAN node will update the terminal's measurement information and may add the corresponding measurement target. When the network node is a terminal, the terminal updates the information corresponding to the measurement target in its local context. Optionally, the terminal indicates the updated information corresponding to the measurement target to the RAN node. Optionally, when the network node is a terminal, since information transmission between the core network elements and the terminal can be forwarded through the RAN node, for example, the RAN node forwards the terminal status information from the core network elements to the corresponding terminal via a downlink information transfer (DLInformationTransfer) message.

Based on the method shown in Figure 4, core network elements can sense changes in the terminal's position or speed and indicate these changes to the terminal or RAN node via terminal status information. This allows the terminal or RAN node to determine the terminal's position and the measurement parameters for handover based on the changes in position or speed. Understandably, when the network node is the RAN node, since it manages the radio resources of multiple connected terminals, it can more rationally schedule and manage the radio resources of multiple terminals based on the sensed information (including information about changes in the terminal's position or speed) to determine the measurement information for cell handover. When the network node is the terminal, the terminal can autonomously adjust its measurement information based on its status. Since the terminal is more aware of its own movement status (including changes in position or speed) than the RAN node, if the core network elements directly indicate the terminal's status information to the terminal, allowing the terminal to autonomously determine the measurement parameters, compared to the aforementioned method where the RAN node adjusts the terminal's measurement parameters, this saves the time the RAN node spends determining measurement information based on the terminal's status and sending secondary information. This allows for more efficient adjustment of the terminal's measurement parameters, ensuring more timely handover and switching to a suitable cell. In summary, compared to the current method where RAN nodes configure terminal measurement parameters and the terminal reports measurement data to trigger handover, the above method allows the terminal or RAN node to manage terminal mobility based on the terminal's location. This avoids the problem of potentially inappropriate measurement parameter configuration due to terminal movement, thus enabling more flexible terminal handover, improving communication quality, and meeting user needs.

In the method shown in Figure 4, the device sensing changes in the terminal's position or speed is a core network element. In specific applications, the RAN node can also sense changes used for cell handover. For example, the RAN node (which could be RAN node 202 in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2) can sense changes in the terminal's position or speed in a manner similar to that of the core network element in Figure 4, and determine measurement information for cell handover based on these changes. The process by which the RAN node determines the measurement information for cell handover based on changes in the terminal's position or speed is similar to S403, and can be found in the corresponding description in S403. It is understood that after determining the measurement information, the RAN node can also send second information to the terminal so that the terminal can perform measurements based on the second information. Alternatively, the RAN node can sense changes in the terminal's position or speed in a manner similar to that of the core network element in Figure 4, and indicate these changes to the terminal so that the terminal can determine the measurement information for cell handover based on these changes and perform measurements based on this information.

As shown in Figure 5, a communication method provided in this application may include the following steps:

S501: The first RAN node sends cell handover information to the core network element. Correspondingly, the core network element receives the cell handover information from the first RAN node.

In this application, the core network element can be any network element such as the SF network element in the core network 204 of the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2, without limitation. The first RAN node can be any RAN node in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2, such as RAN node 202a or RAN node 202b.

The aforementioned cell handover information includes conditional information for handing over the terminal to the first cell. It should be understood that this conditional information may be information related to the handover measurement configuration, which includes specific parameters for measuring the target. The description of the measurement target or measurement configuration can be found in the preceding description and will not be repeated here. In this application, the terminal may be terminal 203 communicating with RAN node 202 in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2.

S502: Core network elements determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell.

One possible implementation is that the core network element can determine the location of the terminal and, based on the terminal's location and the coverage information of the first cell, determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell. Optionally, the above process can be executed in real time by the core network element.

Optionally, the terminal's location is its relative position to the cells managed by the first RAN node and/or the second RAN node. For example, the terminal may be located in the overlapping area of the cells managed by the first RAN node and the second RAN node. Alternatively, the terminal may be located in the central area of the cell managed by the first RAN node. Or, the terminal may be located in the edge area of the cell managed by the second RAN node.

The second RAN node can be a different RAN node from the first RAN node in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2. For example, if the first RAN node is RAN node 202a, then the second RAN node is RAN node 202b; if the first RAN node is RAN node 202b, then the second RAN node is RAN node 202a.

Understandably, core network elements can acquire terminal sensing information (e.g., terminal location or speed) multiple times, compare the updated terminal sensing information with known terminal sensing information to determine if the terminal's location or speed has changed. Based on this change, core network elements can determine the terminal's location and, based on the terminal's location and the coverage information of the first cell, determine the terminal's signal quality for the first cell.

For example, core network elements can use a perception map to obtain the signal quality of a terminal for a first cell. In other words, the perception map can be used to determine the signal quality of a terminal for a first cell. For instance, core network elements use the perception map to obtain the location of the terminal and the coverage information of the first cell, and determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell based on the location of the terminal and the coverage information of the first cell.

One possible implementation is that the core network element can determine the terminal's signal quality based on the terminal's location and the coverage information of the first cell. For example, the core network element can determine the signal transmission path between the terminal and the second RAN node managing the first cell based on the terminal's location and the coverage information of the first cell, and determine the terminal's signal quality based on this transmission path. Optionally, the perception map can also include environmental information near the terminal, such as the location and height of buildings, bridges, and other structures. Since these buildings may obstruct line-of-sight signal transmission between the terminal and the second RAN node, the transmission path of the signal transmitted between the second RAN node and the terminal (which may include direct or reflected paths) can be determined based on information about buildings or other obstructions (e.g., the size of the obstruction), thereby determining the path loss and the terminal's received power (which can be understood as the terminal's signal quality for the first cell). Optionally, the locations of various objects in the perception map (e.g., terminals, obstacles, or network devices such as RAN nodes) can be determined using latitude and longitude coordinates.

Optionally, based on obtaining the terminal location, the core network element can also determine the transmission path between the first RAN node and the terminal according to the specific location and height of the antenna of the first RAN node and the environment near the terminal. Then, combined with the power of the signal transmitted by the first RAN node and the path loss, the receiving power of the terminal receiving the signal of the first cell can be determined, that is, the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell.

One possible implementation is that core network elements can construct a perception map. Specifically, core network elements can construct a perception map based on second and/or third information. The methods by which core network elements obtain the second or third information are as follows:

The first RAN node sends third information to the core network element. Correspondingly, the core network element receives the third information from the first RAN node. This third information is used to indicate the coverage information of the cells managed by the first RAN node. For example, the third information may indicate the coverage information of the cells managed by the first RAN node. This coverage information may indicate the center location of the cells managed by the first RAN node, and the radius of the cells. Optionally, the coverage information may also indicate the shape of the coverage area of the cells managed by the first RAN node (e.g., a circular or fan-shaped shape) or other types of information, without limitation. For example, the third information may include the coverage information of at least one cell managed by the first RAN node. For instance, the cells managed by the first RAN node include cell A, and the coverage information of cell A may include: the latitude and longitude coordinates of the center of cell A, indication that cell A is circular, and indication that the radius of cell A is 1000 meters.

The second RAN node sends second information to the core network elements. Correspondingly, the core network elements receive the second information from the second RAN node. This second information is used to indicate the coverage information of the cells managed by the second RAN node, including the first cell. For example, the second information may indicate the coverage information of the cells managed by the second RAN node, which may indicate the center location and radius of the cells. Optionally, the coverage information may also indicate the shape of the coverage area of the cells managed by the second RAN node (e.g., a circular or fan-shaped shape) or other types of information, without limitation.

For example, the second information may include coverage information of at least one cell managed by the second RAN node. For instance, the cell managed by the second RAN node includes cell B, and the coverage information of cell B may include: the latitude and longitude coordinates of the center of cell B, indication that cell B is fan-shaped, and indication that cell B has a radius of 2000 meters.

Understandably, to improve the perception map, core network elements can also acquire coverage information of cells managed by RAN nodes other than the first and second RAN nodes. Core network elements can also acquire the perception results of any RAN node and/or any terminal regarding the aforementioned terminals. Specifically, the perception result of any RAN node regarding a terminal can be obtained by the RAN node through self-transmission and self-reception, or by a third party transmitting and receiving data. Similarly, the perception result of any terminal regarding the aforementioned terminals can be obtained by the terminal through self-transmission and self-reception, or by a third party transmitting and receiving data, or through sensor perception.

S503: The core network element sends the first information to the first RAN node. Correspondingly, the first RAN node receives the first information from the core network element.

One possible design is that the first information is determined by the core network element based on cell handover information and the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell, and the first information is used by the terminal for cell handover.

The first information includes at least one of the following: first indication information, which is information about the signal quality or measurement events of the terminal for the first cell. The measurement events can be measurement events A1 to A5 or measurement events B1 to B2 as described in Table 1 above. The aforementioned first indication information indicates that the terminal should be switched to the first cell.

Understandably, when a terminal meets the conditions for reporting a measurement event regarding the signal quality of the first cell, the first information includes information about the measurement event, enabling the first RAN node to obtain the measurement event that the terminal meets at this time. The first RAN node may send a message to the terminal based on this measurement event. For example, when the terminal reports A3, the first RAN node may send a message including a handover instruction to the terminal. For instance, core network elements can determine whether a threshold corresponding to the measurement event is met based on the relative position of the terminal and the first cell. When the threshold is met, it is determined that the first information includes the measurement event.

Understandably, when the terminal measures the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell, or when the signal quality is different from the signal quality of the same cell included in the first information sent by the terminal last time, the first information includes the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell, so that the first RAN node can obtain the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell at this time, and the first RAN node can perform network optimization, etc. based on the signal quality.

Understandably, when the signal quality of the terminal relative to the first cell meets the handover conditions, the first information includes first indication information to indicate that the terminal should be handed over to the first cell. The core network element can determine the relative position of the terminal and the cell based on the signal quality of the terminal relative to the first cell, and thus determine whether the terminal should perform a cell handover.

Understandably, a terminal will typically experience different signal quality depending on its location within a cell. For example, using RSRP (Resonance Ratio) to measure signal quality, when the terminal is located in the cell center, the RSRP is greater than -80dBm; when the terminal is located in the area between the cell center and the cell edge, the RSRP value can range from -100dBm to -80dBm; and when the terminal is located at the cell edge, the RSRP can be less than -100dBm. The range of signal quality values is not limited to the above examples and can be adjusted according to the actual cell coverage; this application does not impose any limitations on this. After determining the relative position of the terminal and the cell, the core network element can determine first information based on this relative position and cell handover information. For example, when it is determined that the terminal is located at the cell edge, the target cell (e.g., the first cell) of the terminal is determined based on the terminal's position and direction of movement, and then the first information includes a handover command (e.g., first indication information, instructing the terminal to hand over to the first cell).

Optionally, after receiving the first information, the first RAN node determines whether to hand over the terminal to the first cell based on the first information. For example, when the first information includes first indication information, the first RAN node can instruct the terminal to hand over; for instance, the first RAN node sends a reconfiguration message to the terminal, which includes a command to hand over the terminal to the first cell. When the first information includes measurement event information, the first RAN node can update the terminal's measurement configuration or determine whether the terminal should hand over the cell based on the measurement event information. For example, when the measurement event information includes an A2 measurement report or a deterioration in the terminal's signal quality relative to the first cell, the first RAN node can configure an A3 measurement event for the terminal to obtain the terminal's signal quality relative to neighboring cells. When the first information includes the terminal's signal quality relative to the first cell, if the signal quality is below a threshold, a terminal handover can be determined. If the signal quality is good (e.g., RSRP ≥ -80dBm), the first RAN node can record the terminal's signal quality relative to the first cell, and this data can be used for network optimization.

Based on the method shown in Figure 5, the core network element can determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell according to the terminal's location. Combined with cell handover information, it can then determine whether the terminal should perform a cell handover. Therefore, this method enables the core network element to flexibly manage terminal mobility, allowing the terminal to handover more flexibly, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs.

As shown in Figure 6, a communication method provided in this application may include the following steps:

S601: The second RAN node sends the first information to the first RAN node. Correspondingly, the first RAN node receives the first information from the second RAN node.

In this application, the first RAN node and the second RAN node can be different RAN nodes in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2. For example, if the first RAN node is RAN node 202a, then the second RAN node is RAN node 202b, and if the first RAN node is RAN node 202b, then the second RAN node is RAN node 202a.

The aforementioned first information indicates at least one of the following: the first beam of the first cell or the timing advance (TA) of the terminal to the first RAN node. The cells managed by the first RAN node include the first cell, which is the target cell for terminal handover. The first beam is used for communication between the terminal and the first cell after handover, and the timing advance is used for uplink synchronization after handover. The terminal can be terminal 203 communicating with RAN node 202 in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2.

This method will be illustrated using the example of inter-site handover of a terminal. The target RAN node of the target cell to which the terminal is handover belongs is the first RAN node, and the RAN node of the source cell to which the terminal is handover belongs is the second RAN node.

Optionally, the first information is determined based on the second information, which includes at least one of the following: the terminal's measurement results of the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's movement speed. It should be understood that the second RAN node can determine the terminal's location based on the second information, and then determine the first beam and/or the aforementioned timing advance based on the terminal's location. Specifically, the second RAN node can determine the first beam and the aforementioned timing advance according to the following two possible designs.

One possible design involves multiple first beams, with any one of these first beams corresponding to a reference point in the first cell. The reference point can refer to a point in time or a location. The first beam can be a receive beam used by the first RAN node for communication with the terminal.

Understandably, the second RAN node acquires sensing information, which includes the terminal's location information, or the sensing information includes both the terminal's location information and its movement speed. The second RAN node can receive measurement results from the terminal, which can be used as sensing information; or the second RAN node can sense the terminal, for example, through a self-transmitting and self-receiving method, and thus acquire sensing information; or the second RAN node can receive sensing information from core network elements. This application does not limit the method of acquiring sensing information. According to the method in S401, the second RAN node can determine the terminal's location through the terminal's location information or movement speed. Since the location of the first RAN node is also obtainable, based on the locations of the first RAN node and the terminal, the receiving beam information used by the first RAN node after the terminal switches to the first cell managed by the first RAN node, including the direction of the receiving beam, can be determined. It should be understood that for a mobile terminal, the receiving beam used by the first RAN node may be different at different times. Therefore, when the terminal is at different times or locations, the first RAN node can use the corresponding first beam to communicate with the terminal, thereby enabling the prediction of the first beam after the terminal hands over to the first cell. The appropriate beam can be determined without beam alignment between the terminal and the first RAN node, reducing handover latency. Optionally, the second RAN node can predict the terminal's location in real time, and then, for a period of time before the terminal hands over to the first cell, indicate to the first RAN node in real time the first beam that the first RAN node will use.

One possible design is that there are multiple timing advances, and any one of these timing advances corresponds to a reference point of the first cell.

The timing advance can be used for uplink synchronization between the terminal and the RAN node. Since the first cell is managed by the first RAN node, the terminal performs uplink synchronization with the first RAN node when handing over to the first cell. It should be understood that within the same system frame, the RAN node expects signals from different terminals to arrive at the RAN node receiver at aligned times. Because different terminals are at different distances from the RAN node, the time required for each terminal to send signals to the RAN node varies. Therefore, the alignment of the arrival times of signals from different terminals at the RAN node receiver may be affected by the distance between the terminal and the RAN node. If information sent by different terminals arrives at the RAN node at different times, i.e., the times of different terminals are not calibrated, the signals from different terminals will interfere with each other. For example, within the same system frame, terminal A's signal A is expected to be received by the RAN node at time point 1 of subframe, and terminal B's signal B is expected to be received by the RAN node at time point 2 of subframe. However, if the transmission time of signal A is too long, and signal A is only received by the RAN node at the time point of subframe 2, it will affect the RAN node's reception of signal B. Therefore, for example, for terminals far from the RAN node, a larger timing advance is set so that the system frame for sending uplink data is a certain time ahead of the corresponding downlink frame.

Understandably, for a mobile terminal, the terminal may be in different locations at different times. Multiple timing advances can be used to correspond to different reference points, indicating the timing advance that the terminal will use at different times (or different locations). Optionally, the second RAN node can predict the terminal's location in real time, and then, for a period of time before the terminal hands over to the first cell, indicate the timing advance that the terminal will use to the first RAN node in real time.

One possible implementation is that the second RAN node can determine the first beam or timing advance according to method 1 or method 2 below.

Method 1: The second RAN node determines the terminal's sensing information (e.g., the terminal's position or speed), and uses this sensing information to determine the first beam or timing advance.

Optionally, the second RAN node can construct a perception map. The method by which the second RAN node constructs the perception map is similar to the method shown in Figure 4 or Figure 5, and will not be repeated here. This perception map is used to determine at least one of the terminal's location or its speed, thereby facilitating the acquisition of the possible location the terminal might move to after switching to the first cell. Using the perception map, the changes in the terminal's location or speed can be represented. The map also includes other geographical information (e.g., the location or height of obstructions in the terminal's surrounding environment). Optionally, the perception map can acquire the terminal's real-time location. The second RAN node can predict multiple locations of the terminal after switching to the first cell based on the perception map, and then determine the information of the first beam corresponding to each location. For example, the information of the first beam includes the direction in which the second RAN node receives the beam, which can be represented by parameters such as the direction of arrival (DOA). Therefore, after the terminal switches to the first cell, the first RAN node can communicate with the terminal through the first beam.

Optionally, the second RAN node can obtain the terminal's sensing information (e.g., the terminal's location or speed) from the core network elements and use this sensing information to determine the first beam or timing advance.

Similarly, the second RAN node can use a method similar to the above process to predict the location information that the terminal may move to after the terminal switches to the first cell, and determine the timing advance of the terminal at different locations based on the predicted location information. This timing advance is used for the terminal to perform uplink synchronization with the first RAN node.

The terminal's location refers to its relative position to the cell managed by the first RAN node.

Method 2: The second RAN node can obtain the determined first beam or the aforementioned timing advance from an external source.

Optionally, the second RAN node receives fourth information from the core network element, the fourth information indicating at least one of the following: a first beam or timing advance.

Among them, the core network element can be the SF network element of the core network 204 in the communication system 20 shown in Figure 2.

Understandably, the core network elements determine the first beam or timing advance based on sensing information. Optionally, the core network elements can also determine the first beam or timing advance using the sensing map; the specific process can be found in Method 1, and will not be elaborated further.

Optionally, the first information is carried in the handover request message. This handover request can be referred to in the description of S103.

For example, the second RAN node can indicate a first beam to the first RAN node via the first information, so that the first RAN node can use the first beam to receive the terminal's signal after the terminal switches to the first cell. Alternatively, the second RAN node can also indicate multiple timing advances to the first RAN node via the first information, and the first RAN node can select from the multiple timing advances according to the radio resource scheduling situation, for example, selecting a suitable timing advance from the multiple timing advances.

Optionally, the second RAN node sends third information to the first RAN node. Correspondingly, the second RAN node receives the third information from the first RAN node, which indicates a first timing advance, and multiple timing advances include the first timing advance. The third information may be a handover request confirmation message (refer to the description in S104). Through this method, the first RAN node can determine the timing advance used by the terminal after handover to the first cell, based on the radio resource scheduling situation on the RAN node side; this timing advance is more reliable.

Understandably, when the first information includes multiple timing advances, the first RAN node can determine the first timing advance from these multiple timing advances based on the RAN node's radio resource scheduling information, and include the confirmed first timing advance in the third message, sending it to the second RAN node. Upon receiving the third information, the second RAN node can indicate the first timing advance confirmed by the first RAN node to the terminal. For example, this first timing advance information can be included in an RRC reconfiguration message (containing a message about handover to the first cell), sent by the second RAN node to the terminal, which can then use this first timing advance for uplink synchronization during handover.

S602: After the terminal switches to the first cell, the first RAN node communicates with the terminal based on the first information.

Understandably, after the terminal switches to the first cell, the first RAN node can use the first beam indicated by the first information to receive the terminal's signal. The terminal can perform uplink synchronization with the first RAN node based on the first timing advance information.

Based on the method shown in Figure 6, the second RAN node can determine the terminal's location based on the sensing information, and thus determine the timing advance information needed for the terminal to switch to the first cell managed by the first RAN node. After obtaining this timing advance information, the terminal can quickly achieve uplink synchronization with the first RAN node, and then quickly switch to the first cell, thereby greatly reducing the terminal handover latency. The first RAN node can also use the first beam indicated by the first information as the receiving beam, which will also greatly reduce latency compared to the current process of determining the receiving beam (usually the terminal sends signals with multiple beams, and the RAN node selects the beam with the highest received signal quality as the subsequent receiving beam). Therefore, the above method can effectively reduce handover latency, enable terminals to handover more flexibly, thereby improving communication quality and meeting user needs.

It is understood that the actions of the terminal, RAN node, or core network element in the above steps can be executed by the processor 301 in the communication device 30 shown in Figure 3 calling the application code stored in the storage 303, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

The various embodiments mentioned above in this application can be combined without contradiction, and no limitation is imposed.

The above mainly describes the solution provided in this application from the perspective of the interaction between the terminal, RAN node, and core network element. Correspondingly, this application also provides a communication device, which can be the terminal in the above method embodiments, or a device containing the terminal, or a component usable in the terminal; or, the communication device can be the RAN node in the above method embodiments, or a device containing the RAN node, or a component usable in the RAN node; or, the communication device can be the core network element in the above method embodiments, or a device containing the core network element, or a component usable in the core network element. It is understood that the above-mentioned terminal, RAN node, or core network element, etc., include hardware structures and/or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function in order to achieve the above functions. Those skilled in the art should readily recognize that, in conjunction with the unit and algorithm operations of the various examples described in the embodiments disclosed herein, this application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed by hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

This application can divide terminals, RAN nodes, or core network elements into functional modules based on the above method examples. For example, each function can be divided into its own functional module, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional module. It is understood that the module division in this application is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division; other division methods may be used in actual implementation.

For example, when functional modules are integrated, Figure 7 shows a schematic diagram of a communication device 70. The communication device 70 includes a processing module 701 and an interface module 702. The processing module 701, also called a processing unit, is used to perform operations other than transmission and reception; for example, it can be a processing circuit or a processor. The interface module 702, also called an interface unit, is used to perform transmission and reception operations; for example, it can be an interface circuit, a transceiver, a transceiver unit, or a communication interface.

In some embodiments, the communication device 70 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG. 7) for storing program instructions and data.

In some embodiments, the communication device 70 may further include an AI module (not shown in FIG. 7) for implementing AI-related functions. The AI module can implement AI functions through software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. For example, the AI module includes an RIC module. Optionally, the AI module and the storage module are integrated into one module, or the AI module and the interface module 702 are integrated into one module.

For example, the communication device 70 is used to implement the functions of a core network element. The communication device 70 is, for example, the core network element described in the embodiment shown in FIG4.

The processing module 701 is used to sense a change in at least one of the terminal's position or the terminal's movement speed. For example, the processing module 701 can be used to execute S401.

Interface module 702 is used to send terminal status information to the terminal or RAN node. The terminal status information indicates a change in at least one of the terminal's position or its speed, and is used to determine measurement information for cell handover. For example, interface module 702 can be used to execute S402.

In one possible implementation, the measurement information includes at least one of the following: measurement cycle information, parameter information of the measurement event, or first indication information, wherein the first indication information indicates whether to stop the measurement.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is further configured to receive first information from the RAN node. The first information indicates coverage information of cells managed by the RAN node, including a first cell, which is either the serving cell of the terminal or a neighboring cell of the serving cell.

In one possible implementation, the processing module 701 is further configured to construct a perception map based on the first information, the perception map being used to determine at least one of the terminal's position or the terminal's movement speed.

In one possible implementation, a change in the terminal's location includes at least one of the following: the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell; the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell; the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell; the terminal enters a first area; or the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell changes; wherein the first area is covered by multiple cells.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is relative to the cell managed by the RAN node.

When used to implement the functions of core network elements, other functions that the communication device 70 can implement can be referred to the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG4, which will not be elaborated further.

Alternatively, by way of example, the communication device 70 is used to implement the functions of a network node. The communication device 70 is, for example, a network node in the embodiment shown in FIG4. The network node may be a RAN node or a terminal.

The interface module 702 is used to acquire terminal status information sensed by the network side. The terminal status information indicates a change in at least one of the terminal's location or its speed. For example, the interface module 702 can be used to execute S402. The processing module 701 is used to determine measurement information for cell handover based on the terminal status information. For example, the processing module 701 can be used to execute S403.

In one possible implementation, the measurement information includes at least one of the following: measurement cycle information, parameter information of the measurement event, or first indication information, wherein the first indication information indicates whether to stop the measurement.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is specifically used to receive terminal status information from core network elements.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is further configured to send second information to the terminal, the second information indicating the determined measurement information for cell handover.

In one possible implementation, a change in the terminal's location includes at least one of the following: the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell; the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell; the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell; the terminal enters a first area; or the coverage area of the terminal's serving cell changes; wherein the first area is covered by multiple cells.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is relative to the cell managed by the RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the terminal state information includes the terminal's identifier.

When used to implement the functions of a network node, other functions that the communication device 70 can implement can be referred to the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG4, which will not be elaborated further.

For example, the communication device 70 is used to implement the functions of a core network element. The communication device 70 is, for example, the core network element described in the embodiment shown in FIG5.

The interface module 702 is used to receive cell handover information from the first RAN node. This cell handover information includes conditions for handing the terminal to the first cell. For example, the interface module 702 can be used to execute S501.

Processing module 701 is used to determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell. For example, processing module 701 can be used to execute S502.

Interface module 702 is further configured to send first information to the first RAN node based on cell handover information and the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell. The first information is used by the terminal to perform cell handover. For example, interface module 702 can be used to execute S503.

In one possible implementation, the processing module 701 is specifically used to determine the location of the terminal and determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell based on the location of the terminal and the coverage information of the first cell.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is further configured to receive second information from the second RAN node. The second information indicates coverage information of cells managed by the second RAN node, including the first cell.

In one possible implementation, the processing module 701 is further configured to construct a perception map based on the second information, the perception map being used to determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell.

In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following: first indication information, information about the signal quality or measurement events of the terminal for the first cell; the first indication information instructing the terminal to switch to the first cell.

In one possible implementation, the measurement event is determined based on the location of the terminal.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the first RAN node and/or the second RAN node.

When used to implement the functions of core network elements, other functions that the communication device 70 can implement can be referred to the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG5, which will not be elaborated further.

Alternatively, by way of example, communication device 70 is used to implement the functions of a first RAN node. Communication device 70 is, for example, the first RAN node of the embodiment shown in FIG5.

The interface module 702 is used to send cell handover information to the core network elements. This cell handover information includes conditions for switching the terminal to the first cell. For example, the interface module 702 can be used to execute S501.

Interface module 702 is also used to receive first information from a core network element, the first information indicating that the terminal should be switched to a first cell, the first information being determined based on cell handover information and the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell as determined by the core network element. For example, interface module 702 can be used to execute S503.

The processing module 701 is used to determine whether to switch the terminal to the first cell based on the first information.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is also used to send third information to the core network element; the third information is used to indicate the coverage information of the cell managed by the first RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following: first indication information, information about the signal quality or measurement events of the terminal for the first cell; the first indication information instructing the terminal to switch to the first cell.

When used to implement the functions of a terminal, other functions that the communication device 70 can implement can be referred to the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG5, which will not be elaborated further.

For example, the communication device 70 is used to implement the functions of the second RAN node. The communication device 70 is, for example, the second RAN node described in the embodiment shown in FIG6.

Interface module 702 is used to send first information to the first RAN node. The first information indicates at least one of the following: a first beam of the first cell or a timing advance of the terminal to the first RAN node. The cells managed by the first RAN node include the first cell, which is the target cell for terminal handover. The first beam is used for communication with the first cell after handover, and the timing advance is used for uplink synchronization after handover. The first information is determined based on second information, which includes at least one of the following: the terminal's measurement result of the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's movement speed. For example, interface module 702 can be used to execute S601.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is also used to acquire sensing information, which includes the terminal's location information, or the sensing information includes the terminal's location information and the terminal's movement speed.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple timing advances, and any one of the multiple timing advances corresponds to a reference point of the first cell. The interface module 702 is also used to receive third information from the first RAN node, the third information indicating the first timing advance, and the multiple timing advances include the first timing advance.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple first beams, and any one of the multiple first beams corresponds to a reference point in the first cell.

In one possible implementation, processing module 701 is configured to construct a perception map based on coverage information of the cell managed by the first RAN node, the perception map being used to determine at least one of the terminal's location or the terminal's movement speed. Processing module 701 is also configured to determine one or more of a first beam or timing advance based on the perception map.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is further configured to receive fourth information from the core network element, the fourth information indicating at least one of the following: a first beam or timing advance.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the first RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is also used to receive measurement results from the terminal.

In one possible implementation, the first information is carried in the handover request message.

When used to implement the functions of the second RAN node, other functions that the communication device 70 can implement can be referred to the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG6, which will not be elaborated further.

Alternatively, by way of example, communication device 70 is used to implement the functions of a first RAN node. Communication device 70 is, for example, the first RAN node of the embodiment shown in FIG6.

Interface module 702 is used to receive first information. The first information indicates at least one of the following: a first beam of a first cell or a timing advance of the terminal for a first RAN node. The cells managed by the first RAN node include the first cell, which is the target cell for terminal handover. The first beam is used for communication after the terminal hands over to the first cell, and the timing advance is used for uplink synchronization after the terminal hands over to the first cell. The first information is determined based on second information, which includes at least one of the following: the terminal's measurement results for the first cell, the terminal's location information, or the terminal's movement speed. For example, interface module 702 can be used to execute S601.

The processing module 701 is used to communicate with the terminal based on the first information after the terminal switches to the first cell. For example, the interface module 702 can be used to execute S602.

In one possible implementation, the first information indicates the first beam, and the processing module 701 is specifically used to communicate with the terminal through the first beam.

In one possible implementation, the interface module 702 is specifically used to receive first information from the second RAN node or core network element.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple timing advances, and any one of the multiple timing advances corresponds to a reference point of the first cell. The interface module 702 is also used to send third information, which indicates the first timing advance. The multiple timing advances include the first timing advance.

In one possible implementation, there are multiple first beams, and any one of the multiple first beams corresponds to a reference point in the first cell.

In one possible implementation, the terminal's location is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the first RAN node.

In one possible implementation, the first information is carried in the handover request message.

When used to implement the functions of the first RAN node, other functions that the communication device 70 can implement can be referred to the relevant description of the embodiment shown in FIG6, which will not be elaborated further.

In a simplified embodiment, those skilled in the art will recognize that the communication device 70 can take the form shown in FIG3. For example, the processor 301 in FIG3 can invoke computer execution instructions stored in memory 303 to cause the communication device 70 to perform the methods described in the above embodiments.

For example, the functions/implementation processes of the processing module 701 and interface module 702 in FIG7 can be implemented by the processor 301 in FIG3 calling computer execution instructions stored in memory 303. Alternatively, the functions/implementation processes of the processing module 701 in FIG7 can be implemented by the processor 301 in FIG3 calling computer execution instructions stored in memory 303, and the functions/implementation processes of the interface module 702 in FIG7 can be implemented by the transceiver 302 in FIG3.

It is understood that one or more of the above modules or units can be implemented by software, hardware, or a combination of both. When any of the above modules or units are implemented by software, the software exists as computer program instructions and is stored in memory. The processor can be used to execute the program instructions and implement the above method flow. The processor can be built into a system-on-a-chip (SoC) or ASIC, or it can be a separate semiconductor chip. In addition to the core that executes the software instructions for computation or processing, the processor may further include necessary hardware accelerators, such as field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), or logic circuits that implement dedicated logic operations.

When the above modules or units are implemented in hardware, the hardware can be any one or any combination of a CPU, microprocessor, digital signal processing (DSP) chip, microcontroller unit (MCU), artificial intelligence processor, ASIC, SoC, FPGA, PLD, application-specific digital circuit, hardware accelerator, or non-integrated discrete device, which can run the necessary software or perform the above method flow independently of software.

Optionally, this application also provides a chip system, including: at least one processor and an interface, wherein the at least one processor is coupled to a memory via the interface, and when the at least one processor executes a computer program or instructions in the memory, the method in any of the above method embodiments is executed. In one possible implementation, the chip system further includes a memory. Optionally, the chip system may be composed of chips or may include chips and other discrete devices; this application does not specifically limit this.

Optionally, this application also provides a computer-readable storage medium. All or part of the processes in the above method embodiments can be implemented by a computer program instructing related hardware. This program can be stored in the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium. When executed, the program can include the processes of the above method embodiments. The computer-readable storage medium can be an internal storage unit of the communication device in any of the foregoing embodiments, such as the hard disk or memory of the communication device. The aforementioned computer-readable storage medium can also be an external storage device of the communication device, such as a plug-in hard disk, smart media card (SMC), secure digital (SD) card, flash card, etc., equipped on the communication device. Further, the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium can include both internal storage units and external storage devices of the communication device. The aforementioned computer-readable storage medium is used to store the aforementioned computer program and other programs and data required by the communication device. The aforementioned computer-readable storage medium can also be used to temporarily store data that has been output or will be output.

Optionally, this application also provides a computer program product. All or part of the processes in the above method embodiments can be executed by a computer program instructing related hardware. This program can be stored in the above computer program product, and when executed, it can include the processes described in the above method embodiments.

Optionally, this application also provides computer instructions. All or part of the processes in the above method embodiments can be executed by computer instructions instructing related hardware (such as computers, processors, terminals, RAN nodes, or core network elements). The program can be stored in the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium or the aforementioned computer program product.

Optionally, this application also provides a communication system, including: core network elements and network nodes as shown in Figure 4.

Optionally, this application also provides a communication system, including: the core network element and the first RAN node in the method shown in Figure 5.

Optionally, this application also provides a communication system, including: a first RAN node and a second RAN node as shown in the method of FIG6.

Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, only the division of the above functional modules is used as an example. In actual applications, the above functions can be assigned to different functional modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above.

In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of modules or units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another device, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between devices or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. A component shown as a unit can be one or more physical units; that is, it can be located in one place or distributed in multiple different locations. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims (29)

A communication method, characterized in that the method includes: At least one of the sensing terminal's position or the terminal's speed of movement changes; Terminal status information is sent to the terminal or a wireless access network node, the terminal status information indicating that at least one of the terminal's position or the terminal's movement speed has changed, and the terminal status information is used to determine measurement information for cell handover. The method according to claim 1, wherein the measurement information includes at least one of the following: measurement cycle information, parameter information of measurement events, or first indication information, wherein the first indication information indicates whether to stop the measurement. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the method further comprises: The terminal receives first information from the radio access network node; the first information indicates the coverage information of the cells managed by the radio access network node, the cells managed by the radio access network node include a first cell, the first cell being the serving cell of the terminal, or a neighboring cell of the serving cell. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that the method further comprises: A perception map is constructed based on the first information, and the perception map is used to determine at least one of the terminal's position or the terminal's movement speed. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The change in the location of the terminal includes at least one of the following: the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell; the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell; the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell; the terminal enters a first area; or the coverage area of the serving cell of the terminal changes; wherein the first area is covered by multiple cells. The method according to any one of claims 1-5 is characterized in that, The location of the terminal is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the wireless access network node. A communication method, characterized in that the method includes: Obtain terminal status information sensed by the network side, wherein the terminal status information indicates that at least one of the terminal's position or the terminal's movement speed has changed; The measurement information used for cell handover is determined based on the terminal status information. The method according to claim 7, wherein the measurement information includes at least one of the following: measurement cycle information, parameter information of measurement events, or first indication information, wherein the first indication information indicates whether to stop the measurement. According to the method of claim 7 or 8, the step of obtaining the terminal status information sensed by the network side includes: Receive the terminal status information from the core network element. The method according to any one of claims 7-9, characterized in that the method further comprises: A second message is sent to the terminal, the second message indicating the determined measurement information for cell handover. The method according to any one of claims 7-10, characterized in that, The change in the location of the terminal includes at least one of the following: the terminal moves from the center of a cell to the edge of the cell; the terminal moves from the edge of a cell to the center of the cell; the terminal leaves the coverage area of the serving cell; the terminal enters a first area; or the coverage area of the serving cell of the terminal changes; wherein the first area is covered by multiple cells. The method according to any one of claims 7-11, characterized in that, The location of the terminal is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the wireless access network node. The method according to any one of claims 7-12 is characterized in that, The terminal status information includes the terminal's identifier. A communication method, characterized in that it is applied to a core network element, the method comprising: Receive cell handover information from a first radio access network node, the cell handover information including condition information for handing the terminal to the first cell; Determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell; Based on the cell handover information and the signal quality of the first cell, the terminal sends first information to the first radio access network node, and the first information is used by the terminal to perform cell handover. According to the method of claim 14, the step of determining the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell includes: Determine the location of the terminal; The signal quality of the terminal for the first cell is determined based on the location of the terminal and the coverage information of the first cell. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that the method further comprises: Receive second information from a second radio access network node; the second information is used to indicate the coverage information of the cell managed by the second radio access network node, the cell managed by the second radio access network node including the first cell. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that the method further comprises: A perception map is constructed based on the second information, and the perception map is used to determine the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell. The method according to any one of claims 14-17, wherein the first information includes at least one of the following: first indication information, information of the terminal regarding signal quality or measurement events of the first cell; the first indication information indicating that the terminal be switched to the first cell. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The measurement event is determined based on the location of the terminal. The method according to claim 15 or 19, characterized in that, The location of the terminal is the relative position of the terminal to the cell managed by the first radio access network node and/or the second radio access network node. A communication method, characterized in that the method includes: Send cell handover information to core network elements, wherein the cell handover information includes condition information for handing the terminal to the first cell; The system receives first information from the core network element, the first information indicating that the terminal should be switched to the first cell, the first information being determined based on the cell switching information and the signal quality of the terminal for the first cell as determined by the core network element; Based on the first information, determine whether to switch the terminal to the first cell. The method according to claim 21, wherein the method is applied to a first wireless access network node, and the method further comprises: Send third information to the core network element; the third information is used to indicate the coverage information of the cell managed by the first radio access network node. The method according to claim 21 or 22, wherein the first information includes at least one of the following: first indication information, information of the terminal regarding the signal quality or measurement events of the first cell; the first indication information indicating that the terminal be switched to the first cell. A communication device, characterized in that it includes a unit or module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, or includes a unit or module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 7 to 13, or includes a unit or module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 14 to 20, or includes a unit or module for performing the method as described in any one of claims 21 to 23. A communication device, characterized in that it comprises: a processor coupled to a memory for storing programs or instructions, wherein when the programs or instructions are executed by the processor, the device performs the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, or the method as described in any one of claims 7 to 13, or the method as described in any one of claims 14 to 20, or the method as described in any one of claims 21 to 23. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program or instructions stored thereon, characterized in that, when the computer program or instructions are executed, they cause a computer to perform the method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6, or the method as claimed in any one of claims 7 to 13, or the method as claimed in any one of claims 14 to 20, or the method as claimed in any one of claims 21 to 23. A computer program product comprising computer program code, characterized in that, when the computer program code is run on a computer, it causes the computer to implement the method of any one of claims 1 to 6, or the method of any one of claims 7 to 13, or the method of any one of claims 14 to 20, or the method of any one of claims 21 to 23. A communication system, characterized in that it comprises: means for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 6, and/or means for performing the method as described in any one of claims 7 to 13. A communication system, characterized in that it comprises: means for performing the method as described in any one of claims 14 to 20, and/or means for performing the method as described in any one of claims 21 to 23.