Synchronous communication method and terminal

• US 10,721,697 B2
• Filed: 01/12/2018
• Issued: 07/21/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 08/12/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Li, Mingchao, Zhu, Jiezuo, Zhang, Jun, Han, Guanglin
• Primary Examiner(s): Ngo, Ricky Q
• Assistant Examiner(s): Steiner, Stephen N
• Application Number:
  US15/870,277
• Publication Number:
  US 20180139714A1
• Time in Patent Office: 921 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 56/0015 one node acting as a reference for the others
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 72/02 Selection of wireless resources by user or terminal
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 92/18 between terminal devices

Abstract

A synchronous communication method is provided. The method includes: obtaining, by a first terminal, first configuration information, where the first configuration information includes a first parameter; determining, by the first terminal according to a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) clock, a transmission timeslot corresponding to a current moment in a device-to-device (D2D) communications system; determining, by the first terminal according to the transmission timeslot and the first parameter, whether the current moment is a synchronization-information-sending moment; if the current moment is the synchronization-information-sending moment, sending, by the first terminal, sidelink synchronization information at the synchronization-information-sending moment, where the sidelink synchronization information carries indication information, the sidelink synchronization information is used to synchronize a second terminal with the first terminal, and the indication information is used to indicate, to the second terminal, that the first terminal is a synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock.

Claims

1. A synchronous communication method, comprising:

obtaining, by a first terminal, first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information comprises an offset;

determining, by the first terminal according to a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) clock, a current moment;

calculating, by the first terminal, a frame number in a device-to-device (D2D) communications system and a subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment;

determining, by the first terminal, whether the frame number and the subframe number satisfy a formula of;

(c*DFN_i+subframe_i)mod K₃=syncOffsetIndicator, wherein subframe_i is the subframe number, DFN_i is the frame number, c is the quantity of subframes included in one frame, K₃ is a synchronization sending period, and syncOffsetIndicator is the offset; and

if the frame number and the subframe number satisfy the formula, sending, by the first terminal, sidelink synchronization information in a subframe corresponding to the frame number and the subframe number, wherein the sidelink synchronization information carries indication information that the first terminal is a synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sidelink synchronization information comprises a sidelink synchronization signal (SLSS).

3. The method according to claim 2, wherein the SLSS comprises a primary sidelink synchronization signal (PSSS) and a secondary sidelink synchronization signal (SSSS), wherein at least one of the PSSS and the SSSS comprises a first sequence, and wherein the first sequence is the indication information indicating that the first terminal is a synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein the sidelink synchronization information further comprises a sidelink master information block (MIB-SL), and wherein the MIB-SL comprises information about the frame number and the subframe number for aligning timeslots of the second terminal and the first terminal.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the following is applied:

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source that does not use the GNSS clock;

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source beyond network coverage that does not use the GNSS clock;

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source beyond network coverage that does not use the GNSS clock and a priority of a cell within network coverage; and

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source beyond network coverage that does not use the GNSS clock but lower than a priority of a cell within network coverage.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein before the calculating, by the first terminal, a frame number in a D2D communications system and a subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment, the method further comprises:

obtaining, by the first terminal, second configuration information; and

wherein the calculating, by the first terminal, a frame number in a D2D communications system and a subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment comprises;

calculating, by the first terminal according to the GNSS clock and the second configuration information, the frame number and the subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein the obtaining, by the first terminal, the second configuration information comprises at least one of:

obtaining, by the first terminal, the second configuration information in a pre-configuration manner;

when the first terminal is within network coverage, obtaining, by the first terminal, the second configuration information by receiving system broadcast information sent by a base station;

when the first terminal is within network coverage, obtaining, by the first terminal, the second configuration information by receiving radio resource control (RRC) signaling sent by a base station; and

obtaining, by the first terminal, the second configuration information according to a preset protocol.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the second configuration information comprises a second parameter;

and

wherein the calculating, by the first terminal, the frame number and the subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment comprises;

calculating, by the first terminal, the frame number and the subframe number according to the current moment and the second parameter in accordance with a preset calculation rule.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the second parameter comprises an initial reference moment;

and

wherein the calculating, by the first terminal, the frame number and the subframe number according to the current moment and the second parameter in accordance with the preset calculation rule comprises;

calculating, by the first terminal, a difference between the current moment and the initial reference moment; and

calculating, by the first terminal according to the preset calculation rule and the difference, the frame number and the subframe number in the D2D communications system that correspond to the current moment.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the first terminal calculates the frame number DFN_t by using the following formula:

DFN_t=(a*T_duration)mod K₁, wherein

K₁ is a length of a frame period, T_duration is the difference, a is a first scale parameter, and the first scale parameter is used to align a time unit of the difference with a frame length unit.

11. A first terminal, comprising:

at least one processor;

a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium coupled to the at least one processor and storing programming instructions for execution by the at least one processor, the programming instructions instruct the at least one processor to;

obtain first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information comprises an offset;

determine, according to a global navigation satellite system (GNSS) clock, a current moment;

calculating a frame number in a device-to-device (D2D) communications system and a subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment;

determine whether the frame number and the subframe number satisfy a formula of;

(c*DFN_i+subframe_i)mod K₃=syncOffsetIndicator, wherein subframe_i is the subframe number, DFN_i is the frame number, c is the quantity of subframes included in one frame, K₃ is a synchronization sending period, and syncOffsetIndicator is the offset; and

if the frame number and the subframe number satisfy the formula, send sidelink synchronization information in a subframe corresponding to the frame number and the subframe number, wherein the sidelink synchronization information carries indication information indicating that the first terminal is a synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock.

12. The first terminal according to claim 11, wherein the programming instructions further instruct the at least one processor to:

obtain second configuration information; and

wherein the programming instructions instruct the at least one processor to calculate a frame number in a D2D communications system and a subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment, comprises;

instruct the at least one processor to calculate, according to the GNSS clock and the second configuration information, the frame number and the subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment.

13. The first terminal according to claim 12, wherein the second configuration information is obtained by at least one of the following:

obtain the second configuration information in a pre-configuration manner;

when the first terminal is within network coverage, obtain the second configuration information by receiving system broadcast information sent by a base station;

when the first terminal is within network coverage, obtain the second configuration information by receiving radio resource control (RRC) signaling sent by a base station; and

obtain the second configuration information according to a preset protocol.

14. The first terminal according to claim 12, wherein the second configuration information comprises a second parameter;

and wherein the programming instructions instruct the at least one processor to calculate the frame number and the subframe number in the D2D communications system corresponding to the current moment comprises;

instruct the at least one processor to calculate the frame number and the subframe number according to the current moment and the second parameter in accordance with a preset calculation rule.

15. The first terminal according to claim 14, wherein the second parameter comprises an initial reference moment;

and wherein the programming instructions instruct the at least one processor to calculate the frame number and the subframe number according to the current moment and the second parameter in accordance with a preset calculation rule comprise;

instruct the at least one processor to calculate a difference between the current moment and the initial reference moment; and

instruct the at least one processor to calculate, according to the preset calculation rule and the difference, the frame number and the subframe number in the D2D communications that correspond to the current moment.

16. The first terminal according to claim 11, wherein the sidelink synchronization information comprises a sidelink synchronization signal (SLSS), and the SLSS comprises a primary sidelink synchronization signal (PSSS) and a secondary sidelink synchronization signal (SSSS), wherein at least one of the PSSS and the SSSS comprises a first sequence, and the first sequence is the indication information indicating that the first terminal is a synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock.

17. The first terminal according to claim 11, wherein the sidelink synchronization information further comprises a sidelink master information block (MIB-SL), and wherein the MIB-SL comprises information about the frame number and the subframe number for aligning timeslots of the second terminal and the first terminal.

18. The first terminal according to claim 11, wherein at least one of the following is applied:

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source that does not use the GNSS clock;

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source beyond network coverage that does not use the GNSS clock;

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source beyond network coverage that does not use the GNSS clock and a priority of a cell within network coverage; and

a priority of the synchronization source that uses the GNSS clock is higher than a priority of a synchronization source beyond network coverage that does not use the GNSS clock but lower than a priority of a cell within network coverage.

19. The first terminal according to claim 15, wherein programming instructions instruct the at least one processor to calculate the frame number DFN_t by using the following formula:

DFN_t=(a*T_duration)mod K₁, wherein

K₁ is a length of a frame period, T_duration is the difference, a is a first scale parameter, and the first scale parameter is used to align a time unit of the difference with a frame length unit.