Patent Description:
From analog through long term evolution (LTE), each generation of mobile technology has been motivated by the need to address the challenges not overcome by its predecessor. The 5th generation (<NUM>) of mobile technology is positioned to address the demands and business beyond LTE. It is expected to enable a fully mobile and connected society, related to the tremendous growth in connectivity and density/volume of traffic that will be required in the near future.

China Telecom and China Unicorn have reached a tentative agreement to jointly build a <NUM> network and share network infrastructure. It is possible that China Mobile may join them. The three Chinese operators co-own a tower company, China Tower Corp, which would make it easier for them to collaborate on building out all the thousands of base stations necessary for a new <NUM> network in China.

Generally speaking, there are various forms of network sharing, including: mast/site sharing where mobile operators use the same tower sites to co-locate equipments, but otherwise everything else is separate; radio access network (RAN) sharing where operators share all the equipments in the network as far back as the base station controller/radio network controller; and network roaming where competing operators agree to host one another's customers on their networks in certain geographic areas. The above first and third items are mainly impacted by business negotiation, while the second one may be implemented in different manners.

<FIG> shows two exemplary sharing scenarios for the above second item. The multi-operator core network (MOCN) defines that individual core networks are possessed by different operators, while the hardware (HW), software (SW), radio resource at radio and base band are totally shared in the manner of a predefined percentage. Multi-operator RAN (MORAN) defines that core networks and cells are separated for different operators, while radio and base band are partially or completely shared in the manner of a predefined percentage.

Furthermore, for the initial stage of <NUM> new radio (NR) deployment, one of most typical configuration for NR is to share spectrum resources or partially share spectrum resources with 4th generation (<NUM>) network with the help of mix mode radio. With more and more user equipments (UEs) phasing out from <NUM> network and more and more UEs emerging in <NUM> network, spectrum resources will gradually shift from <NUM> to <NUM>, which can flexibly balance near term and long term network requirements. For example, the table below shows a configuration that China Mobile Communications Group Co. , Ltd (CMCC) suggested for <NUM> NR rollout. In this configuration, there will be <NUM> spectrum shared with LTE.

<CIT> refers to a method, executable in a network node of a first network, for designating one or more cells of a second network as neighboring cells to the first network.

<CIT> refers to arrangements for controlling and supporting mobility of host network elements in a communication environment, where network sharing is employed by plural communication networks or PLMSs.

<CIT> refers to a method for controlling device in wireless communication networks, where reference signals are allocated and used in the networks, having heterogeneous cell deployments.

One of the objects of the disclosure is to provide an improved solution for measurement control.

According to a first aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a method performed by a terminal device. The method may comprise detecting, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. The method may further comprise, when detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, performing measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands. The method may further comprise reporting information about a result of the measurement to the two operators.

In this way, the power consumption at the terminal device can be reduced.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the cell to be measured by the terminal device may be a cell serving the terminal device, or a neighboring cell of the cell serving the terminal device.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the method may further comprise determining whether a same neighboring cell is to be measured for the two operators. The method may further comprise, when determining that a same neighboring cell is to be measured for the two operators, performing measurement on the same neighboring cell only one time. The method may further comprise reporting information indicating the same result of the measurement to the two operators.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the two frequency bands may be the same with each other. The measurement may be performed at the same frequency band. The information sent to the two operators may indicate the same result of the measurement.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the frequency bands may be a first frequency band used by a first operator and a second frequency band used by a second operator, and the overlapped portion of the frequency bands may be the second frequency band. The measurement may be performed at the first frequency band. The information sent to the second operator may indicate part of the result of the measurement corresponding to the second frequency band.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the two frequency bands may be staggered from each other with a portion overlapped therebetween. The measurement may be performed at the overlapped portion. The information sent to the two operators may contain the same result of the measurement.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, discontinuous reception (DRX) periods of the two operators may be completely overlapped with each other. The measurement may be performed at one of measurement opportunities for the two operators, which is closest to the earliest one of reporting occasions for the two operators.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the frequency bands may be a first frequency band used by a first operator and a second frequency band used by a second operator, and a second DRX period of the second operator may fall within a first DRX period of the first operator. The measurement may be performed at a measurement opportunity for the second operator, without using measurement opportunity for the first operator.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, DRX periods of the two operators may be staggered from each other with a portion overlapped therebetween. The measurement may be performed at a measurement opportunity for one of the two operators whose DRX period starts earlier.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, detecting whether the frequency bands are overlapped may comprise obtaining, from a server, information about radio and spectrum sharing. Detecting whether the frequency bands are overlapped may comprise determining whether the frequency bands are overlapped based on the obtained information.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, detecting whether the frequency bands are overlapped may comprise determining a first channel matrix of a first channel for a first operator, based on measurement on the reference signal carried by the first channel. Detecting whether the frequency bands are overlapped may comprise determining a second channel matrix of a second channel for a second operator, based on measurement on the reference signal carried by the second channel. Detecting whether the frequency bands are overlapped may comprise determining whether the two channels are the same channel based on the two channel matrixes.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, determining whether the two channels are the same channel based on the two channel matrixes may comprise calculating a product between the first channel matrix and a conjugate transpose matrix of the second channel matrix. Determining whether the two channels are the same channel based on the two channel matrixes may comprise calculating a ratio between a sum of powers of diagonal elements of the product and a sum of powers of all elements of the product. Determining whether the two channels are the same channel based on the two channel matrixes may comprise, when the ratio is above a predetermined threshold, determining that the two channels are the same channel.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the reference signal may be a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) or a tracking reference signal (TRS).

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the method may further comprise providing user data and forwarding the user data to a host computer via the transmission to a base station.

According to a second aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a terminal device. The terminal device may comprise at least one processor and at least one memory. The at least one memory may contain instructions executable by the at least one processor, whereby the terminal device may be operative to detect, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. The terminal device may be further operative to, when detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, perform measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands. The terminal device may be further operative to report information about a result of the measurement to the two operators.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the instructions may be executable by the at least one processor, whereby the terminal device may be further operative to determine whether a same neighboring cell is to be measured for the two operators. The terminal device may be further operative to, when determining that a same neighboring cell is to be measured for the two operators, perform measurement on the same neighboring cell only one time. The terminal device may be further operative to report information indicating the same result of the measurement to the two operators.

As a cell is shared by multiple operators and a UE may be equipped with multiple subscriber identity module (SIM) cards and connected to those multiple operators, RAN views this UE as multiple individual UEs and individually configures measurements. Then, the UE must do double or even triple measurements for the same cell or even the same reference signals. This causes unnecessary power consumption at the UE which is quite critical for mobile users.

The present disclosure proposes an improved solution for measurement control. The solution is applicable in a communication system including a terminal device and an access network node. For example, the access network node may be a base station such as a next generation node base station (gNB) in NR. The terminal device can communicate through a radio access communication link with the base station. The base station can provide radio access communication links to terminal devices that are within its communication service cell. Note that the communications may be performed between the terminal device and the base station according to any suitable communication standards and protocols.

The terminal device may also be referred to as, for example, device, access terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile station, mobile unit, subscriber station, or the like. It may refer to any end device that can access a wireless communication network and receive services therefrom. By way of example and not limitation, the terminal device may include a portable computer, an image capture terminal device such as a digital camera, a gaming terminal device, a music storage and playback appliance, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a tablet, a wearable device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), or the like.

In an Internet of things (IoT) scenario, a terminal device may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and/or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring and/or measurements to another terminal device and/or a network equipment. In this case, the terminal device may be a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, which may, in a 3GPP context, be referred to as a machine-type communication (MTC) device. Particular examples of such machines or devices may include sensors, metering devices such as power meters, industrial machineries, bikes, vehicles, or home or personal appliances, e.g. refrigerators, televisions, personal wearables such as watches, and so on.

Hereinafter, the solution will be described in detail with reference to <FIG>. <FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented at a terminal device according to an embodiment of the disclosure. At block <NUM>, the terminal device detects, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands (or operating bands) used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. In other words, the terminal device detects whether the cell is shared by different operators at the same or partially overlapped frequency band. Block <NUM> is performed in consideration of the fact that when the terminal device is equipped with the two operators' SIM cards, it cannot explicitly know whether a cell is shared by the two operators in the mode of MOCN, dynamic spectrum sharing or even a mixed scenario, and it also cannot explicitly know whether the signals for different operators are coming from one radio. The cell to be measured by the terminal device may be a cell serving the terminal device, or a neighboring cell of the cell serving the terminal device. Note that it is possible for the cell to be shared by more than two operators. In this case, the "two operators" described in block <NUM> may refer to any two of the multiple operators.

As an option, block <NUM> is implemented as blocks <NUM>-<NUM> of <FIG>. At block <NUM>, the terminal device obtains, from a server, information about radio and spectrum sharing. For example, such information (e.g. the base stations shared by multiple operators, the corresponding spectrums, etc.) may be available publicly through the server. The terminal device may obtain such information from the server through an application software, for example. At block <NUM>, the terminal device determines whether the frequency bands are overlapped based on the obtained information. This determination may be made since the terminal device can be explicitly aware of such deployment of radio and spectrum sharing. For example, <FIG> illustrates different cases of frequency band overlapping. In case A, the two frequency bands are the same with each other. In case B, the overlapped portion of the frequency bands is the second frequency band. In case C, the two frequency bands are staggered from each other with a portion overlapped therebetween.

As another option, block <NUM> is implemented as blocks <NUM>-<NUM> of <FIG>. At block <NUM>, the terminal device determines a first channel matrix (denoted as H<NUM>) of a first channel for a first operator, based on measurement on a reference signal carried by the first channel. At block <NUM>, the terminal device determines a second channel matrix (denoted as H<NUM>) of a second channel for a second operator, based on measurement on the reference signal carried by the second channel. For example, as the terminal device is connected to the two operators, it may be configured by radio resource control (RRC) (re)configurations and measurement configurations from the two operators, respectively. With the RRC (re)configuration, the terminal device may know the channel carrying the reference signal to be measured. The reference signal may be a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS) or a tracking reference signal (TRS). At block <NUM>, the terminal device determines whether the two channels are the same channel based on the two channel matrixes. If the two channels are the same channel, it may be determined that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. If the two channels are not the same channel, it means they are experiencing different fading. For example, blocks <NUM>-<NUM> may be performed periodically to evaluate the similarity between the channels.

As an exemplary example, block <NUM> is implemented as blocks <NUM>-<NUM> of <FIG>. At block <NUM>, the terminal device calculates a product between the first channel matrix and a conjugate transpose matrix of the second channel matrix. This may be denoted as <MAT>. At block <NUM>, the terminal device calculates a ratio between a sum (denoted as Pd) of powers of diagonal elements of the product and a sum (denoted as P) of powers of all elements of the product. When the ratio (denoted as Pd/P) is above (greater than or equal to) a predetermined threshold, the terminal device determines that the two channels are the same channel at block <NUM>. The threshold may can be determined by considering various factors of the system. Simulations may be done to evaluate the performance loss against different values of the threshold to determine a proper value. Note that there might be some delay between the two channels. It has been proven in field that the timing tolerance for relatively static terminal device is up to <NUM>. Also note that various existing techniques for evaluating the similarity between matrixes may be used instead.

Referring back to <FIG>, when detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, the terminal device performs measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands at block <NUM>. At block <NUM>, the terminal device reports information about a result of the measurement to the two operators. With the measurement configuration described above, the terminal device may know what measurement result needed to be reported and when to report such result to the corresponding operator. For example, the measurement on the CSI-RS may be used for generating a CSI report which helps the base station's downlink transmission. The measurement on the CSI-RS may also be optionally used for helping the terminal device and the base station to do radio link monitoring. It may also be optionally used by the base station for sending handover command to the terminal device. The measurement on the TRS may help the terminal device to adjust time/frequency of the terminal device.

In the method shown in <FIG>, since the reference signal from one of the two operators is measured and the result is reused for measurement reporting, the power consumption at the terminal device can be reduced. If the two operators share the same radio, <NUM>% power saving at maximum can be expected from the perspectives of measurements and control channel monitoring. These two factors dominant the power saving of the terminal device in cases of non-heavy data traffic.

Blocks <NUM> and <NUM> may be performed depending on different cases of frequency band overlapping. For example, in case A of <FIG>, since the two frequency bands are the same with each other, the measurement is performed at the same frequency band at block <NUM> and the information sent to the two operators at block <NUM> indicate the same result of the measurement. In other words, the terminal device may do only one measurement for multiple operators and reuse the same measurement for all. In case B of <FIG>, since the overlapped portion of the frequency bands is the second frequency band, the measurement is performed at the first frequency band at block <NUM> and the information sent to the second operator at block <NUM> indicates part of the result of the measurement corresponding to the second frequency band. In other words, the terminal device may do measurement for the operator with the widest band and then extract the measurement result for the one with smaller band. In case C of <FIG>, since the two frequency bands are staggered from each other with a portion overlapped therebetween, the measurement is performed at the overlapped portion at block <NUM> and the information sent to the two operators at block <NUM> contains the same result of the measurement. In other words, the terminal device may do only one measurement for the partial band overlapped by multiple operators.

Blocks <NUM> and <NUM> may also be performed depending on different cases of DRX configurations. The DRX configurations may be obtained from the RRC (re)configurations described above. For example, in case <NUM> of <FIG>, DRX periods of the two operators are completely overlapped with each other. In this case, the measurement is performed at one of measurement opportunities for the two operators, which is closest to the earliest one of reporting occasions for the two operators. <FIG> illustrates an example for the case of periodic CSI reporting. As shown, CSI reporting occasions from different operators may be grouped and the earliest one may be taken. In addition, only the closest measurement opportunity prior to the earliest reporting occasion may be employed. As a result, the terminal device may ignore the measurement opportunities between the last CSI reporting and the measurement opportunity employed.

In case <NUM> of <FIG>, the second DRX period of the second operator falls within the first DRX period of the first operator. For example, the first DRX period may be a multiple of the second DRX period. In this case, since the measurement reporting for the second operator needs to be more frequent than the first operator, the measurement is performed at a measurement opportunity for the second operator, without using measurement opportunity for the first operator. In case <NUM> of <FIG>, DRX periods of the two operators are staggered from each other with a portion overlapped therebetween. In this case, the measurement is performed at a measurement opportunity for one of the two operators whose DRX period starts earlier. In this way, the measurement result obtained earlier for one operator may be reused for the other operator. Note that the above case <NUM> to case <NUM> in <FIG> may apply to case A and case C in <FIG>. For case B, the measurement opportunity for the first operator is always used for performing the measurement.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented at a terminal device according to another embodiment of the disclosure. As shown, the method comprises blocks <NUM>-<NUM> and <NUM>-<NUM>. Blocks <NUM>-<NUM> have been described above and its details are omitted here. At block <NUM>, the terminal device determines whether a same neighboring cell is to be measured for the two operators. Note that there may be one or more same neighboring cells to be measured for the two operators. This determination may be performed according to the carrier bands of neighboring cells. When determining that a same neighboring cell is to be measured for the two operators, the terminal device performs measurement on the same neighboring cell only one time at block <NUM>. The measurement may comprise inter-frequency cell measurement and intra-frequency cell measurement. In the case of inter-frequency cell measurement, the measurement gap, measurement period and measurement offset may be obtained from the RRC (re)configuration described above. The measurement result obtained in a measurement gap for one operator may be reused for the other operator. At block <NUM>, the terminal device reports information indicating the same result of the measurement to the two operators. With the method of <FIG>, the power consumption at the terminal device can be further reduced.

<FIG> is a block diagram showing an apparatus suitable for use in practicing some embodiments of the disclosure. For example, the access network node described above may be implemented through the apparatus <NUM>. As shown, the apparatus <NUM> may-include a processor <NUM>, a memory <NUM> that stores a program, and optionally a communication interface <NUM> for communicating data with other external devices through wired and/or wireless communication.

The memory <NUM> may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor based memory devices, flash memories, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memories and removable memories. The processor <NUM> may be of any type suitable to the local technical environment, and may include one or more of general purpose computers, special purpose computers, microprocessors, digital signal processors (DSPs) and processors based on multi-core processor architectures, as non-limiting examples.

<FIG> is a block diagram showing a terminal device according to an embodiment of the disclosure. As shown, the terminal device <NUM> comprises a detection module <NUM>, a measurement module <NUM> and a reporting module <NUM>. The detection module <NUM> is configured to detect, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, as described above with respect to block <NUM>. The measurement module <NUM> is configured to, when detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, perform measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands, as described above with respect to block <NUM>. The reporting module <NUM> is configured to report information about a result of the measurement to the two operators, as described above with respect to block <NUM>. The modules described above may be implemented by hardware, or software, or a combination of both.

Access network <NUM> comprises a plurality of base stations 3212a, 3212b, 3212c, such as NBs, eNBs, gNBs or other types of wireless access points, each defining a corresponding coverage area 3213a, 3213b, 3213c. Each base station 3212a, 3212b, 3212c is connectable to core network <NUM> over a wired or wireless connection <NUM>. A first UE <NUM> located in coverage area 3213c is configured to wirelessly connect to, or be paged by, the corresponding base station 3212c. A second UE <NUM> in coverage area 3213a is wirelessly connectable to the corresponding base station 3212a.

Communication interface <NUM> is configured to facilitate connection <NUM> to host computer <NUM>.

It is noted that host computer <NUM>, base station <NUM> and UE <NUM> illustrated in <FIG> may be similar or identical to host computer <NUM>, one of base stations 3212a, 3212b, 3212c and one of UEs <NUM>, <NUM> of <FIG>, respectively.

Wireless connection <NUM> between UE <NUM> and base station <NUM> is in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. One or more of the various embodiments improve the performance of OTT services provided to UE <NUM> using OTT connection <NUM>, in which wireless connection <NUM> forms the last segment. More precisely, the teachings of these embodiments may improve the power consumption.

In substep <NUM> (which is optional) of step <NUM>, the host computer provides the user data by executing a host application. In step <NUM> (which is optional), the base station transmits to the UE the user data which was carried in the transmission that the host computer initiated, in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure. In step <NUM> (which is also optional), the UE executes a client application associated with the host application executed by the host computer.

In step <NUM> (which is optional), the UE receives the user data carried in the transmission.

In step <NUM> (which is optional), the UE receives input data provided by the host computer. In substep <NUM> (which is optional) of step <NUM>, the UE provides the user data by executing a client application. In substep <NUM> (which is optional) of step <NUM>, the UE executes a client application which provides the user data in reaction to the received input data provided by the host computer. Regardless of the specific manner in which the user data was provided, the UE initiates, in substep <NUM> (which is optional), transmission of the user data to the host computer.

In step <NUM> (which is optional), in accordance with the teachings of the embodiments described throughout this disclosure, the base station receives user data from the UE. In step <NUM> (which is optional), the base station initiates transmission of the received user data to the host computer. In step <NUM> (which is optional), the host computer receives the user data carried in the transmission initiated by the base station.

According to an aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a method implemented in a communication system including a host computer, a base station and a terminal device. The method comprise, at the host computer, providing user data. The method further comprise, at the host computer, initiating a transmission carrying the user data to the terminal device via a cellular network comprising the base station. The terminal device detect, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. When detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, the terminal device perform measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands. The terminal device report information about a result of the measurement to the two operators.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprise, at the terminal device, receiving the user data from the base station.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a communication system including a host computer comprising processing circuitry configured to provide user data and a communication interface configured to forward user data to a cellular network for transmission to a terminal device. The terminal device comprise a radio interface and processing circuitry. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is configured to detect, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is further configured to, when detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, perform measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is further configured to report information about a result of the measurement to the two operators.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the communication system further include the terminal device.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the cellular network further include a base station configured to communicate with the terminal device.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing the user data. The processing circuitry of the terminal device may be configured to execute a client application associated with the host application.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a method implemented in a communication system including a host computer, a base station and a terminal device. The method comprise, at the host computer, receiving user data transmitted to the base station from the terminal device. The terminal device detect, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. When detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, the terminal device perform measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands. The terminal device report information about a result of the measurement to the two operators.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprise, at the terminal device, providing the user data to the base station.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprise, at the terminal device, executing a client application, thereby providing the user data to be transmitted. The method may further comprise, at the host computer, executing a host application associated with the client application.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the method further comprise, at the terminal device, executing a client application. The method further comprise, at the terminal device, receiving input data to the client application. The input data may be provided at the host computer by executing a host application associated with the client application. The user data to be transmitted is provided by the client application in response to the input data.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, there is provided a communication system including a host computer comprising a communication interface configured to receive user data originating from a transmission from a terminal device to a base station. The terminal device comprise a radio interface and processing circuitry. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is configured to detect, for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is further configured to, when detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, perform measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is further configured to report information about a result of the measurement to the two operators.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the communication system further include the base station. The base station comprise a radio interface configured to communicate with the terminal device and a communication interface configured to forward to the host computer the user data carried by a transmission from the terminal device to the base station.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is configured to execute a client application associated with the host application, thereby providing the user data.

In an embodiment of the disclosure, the processing circuitry of the host computer is configured to execute a host application, thereby providing request data. The processing circuitry of the terminal device is configured to execute a client application associated with the host application, thereby providing the user data in response to the request data.

It should be appreciated that at least some aspects of the exemplary embodiments of the disclosure may be embodied in computer-executable instructions, such as in one or more program modules, executed by one or more computers or other devices. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc. that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types when executed by a processor in a computer or other device. The computer executable instructions may be stored on a computer readable medium such as a hard disk, optical disk, removable storage media, solid state memory, RAM, etc. As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, the function of the program modules may be combined or distributed as desired in various embodiments. In addition, the function may be embodied in whole or in part in firmware or hardware equivalents such as integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays (FPGA), and the like.

References in the present disclosure to "one embodiment", "an embodiment" and so on, indicate that the embodiment described may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but it is not necessary that every embodiment includes the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Further, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is submitted that it is within the knowledge of one skilled in the art to implement such feature, structure, or characteristic in connection with other embodiments whether or not explicitly described. It should be noted that two blocks shown in succession in the figures may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved.

Claim 1:
A method performed by a terminal device, comprising:
detecting (<NUM>), for a cell that is shared by two operators and to be measured by the terminal device, whether frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped;
when detecting that frequency bands used by the two operators for the cell are overlapped, performing (<NUM>) measurement on a reference signal from one of the two operators at least at the overlapped portion of the frequency bands; and
reporting (<NUM>) information about a result of the measurement to the two operators.