Infrastructure equipment, communications devices and methods

Circuitry for an infrastructure equipment forming part of a wireless communications network, the circuitry comprising:

• transceiver circuitry configured to transmit signals and receive signals via a wireless access interface provided by the infrastructure equipment;
• and
• controller circuitry configured in combination with the transceiver circuitry to transmit signals to one or more communications devices within a radio coverage area provided by the infrastructure equipment via a wireless access interface of the wireless communications network, the wireless access interface for transmitting signals to the one or more communications devices or for receiving signals from the one or more communication devices, the infrastructure equipment forming either part of a non-terrestrial network of the wireless communications network, the radio coverage area forming a spot beam or a cell of the non-terrestrial network, or part of a terrestrial network, the radio coverage area being a cell of a terrestrial network, wherein
• the transmitting the signals includes the infrastructure equipment being configured to transmit signalling information indicating that one or more neighbouring coverage areas to the radio coverage area provided by the infrastructure equipment are either formed by a spot beam or a cell of a non-terrestrial network, a spot beam or a cell of the non-terrestrial network of which the infrastructure equipment forms part, a cell of a terrestrial network or a cell of the terrestrial network of which the infrastructure equipment forms part, and
• the signalling information includes an indication of at least one frequency range associated with non-terrestrial networks, and an indication of at least one frequency range associated with terrestrial networks, the at least one frequency range associated with non-terrestrial networks and the at least one frequency range associated with terrestrial networks being for use by the one or more communications devices to identify respectively that the one or more coverage areas neighbouring the radio coverage area are either formed by a non-terrestrial network or a terrestrial network.

A method for operating a communications device in a wireless communications network, the method comprising:

• receiving signals from a first infrastructure equipment within a radio coverage area provided by the first infrastructure equipment via a wireless access interface of the wireless communications network, the wireless access interface being for transmitting signals to the first infrastructure equipment or for receiving signals from the first infrastructure equipment, the first infrastructure equipment forming either part of a non-terrestrial network of the wireless communications network, the radio coverage area forming a spot beam or a cell of the non-terrestrial network, or part of a terrestrial network, the radio coverage area being a cell of a terrestrial network;
• receiving, while the communications device is in an idle state, signalling information from the first infrastructure equipment indicating that one or more neighbouring coverage areas to the radio coverage area provided by the first infrastructure equipment are either formed by a spot beam or a cell of a non-terrestrial network, a spot beam or cell of the non-terrestrial network of which the first infrastructure equipment forms part, a cell of a terrestrial network or a cell of the terrestrial network of which the first infrastructure equipment forms part;
• and
• determining, based at least in part on the received signalling information, whether the communications device should perform a cell selection/reselection procedure to select or re-select a second infrastructure equipment providing one of the neighbouring coverage areas,
• wherein the signalling information includes an indication of at least one frequency range associated with non-terrestrial networks, and an indication of at least one frequency range associated with terrestrial networks, and based on a frequency of signals received from the one or more neighbouring coverage areas, identifying whether each of the one or more neighbouring coverage areas are either formed by a non-terrestrial network or a terrestrial network depending on whether the frequency of the received signals is within the at least one frequency range associated with non-terrestrial networks and the at least one frequency range associated with terrestrial networks.