TW201301833A - Radio link protocols for multi-link communication systems - Google Patents

Abstract

Embodiments disclosed herein relate to a new set of radio link protocols (RLPs) configured to provide for efficient data transmission in a multi-link communication system. In an embodiment, an upper-layer packet is segmented into link-layer packets to be transmitted over a plurality of communication links, each including a first sequence number in accordance with a predetermined order. A second sequence number is further added to each link-layer packet to be transmitted for the first time. The second sequence number is configured to be in a sequence space associated with a particular communication link, and may be used for detection of missing packets.

Description

Wireless link protocol for multiple link communication systems

The present disclosure relates generally to wireless communication systems. More specifically, embodiments disclosed herein relate to a new wireless link protocol (RLP) set configured to increase the efficiency of a multi-link communication system.

Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication (eg, audio, data, etc.) to multiple users. The system can be based on coded multidirectional proximity (CDMA), timed multidirectional proximity (TDMA), frequency division multidirectional proximity (FDMA) or other multidirectional proximity techniques. A wireless communication system can be designed to implement one or more standards, such as IS-95, cdma2000, IS-856, W-CDMA, TD-SCDMA, and other standards.

In response to the growing demand for multimedia services and high-speed data, multiple link modulations have been proposed in wireless communication systems. There is a challenge to provide an efficient and robust multi-link communication system.

Embodiments disclosed herein relate to providing a new wireless link agreement (RLP) group and associated procedures configured to increase the efficiency of a multi-link communication system.

FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of a multiple link communication system 100. By way of example, various access terminals (ATs) 110 including ATs 110a through 110c are dispersed throughout the system. Each AT 110 can communicate with the access network (AN) 120 via one or more channels at different frequencies on the forward link and/or the reverse link at a given time, as illustrated by the double-sided arrow 130. of. For illustration and clarity For example, two double-sided arrows 130 are shown for each AT 110. There may be any number of channels (or frequencies) on the forward or reverse link in the communication system. In addition, the number of frequencies on the forward link need not be the same as the number of frequencies on the reverse link.

The AN 120 can further communicate with a core network, such as a packet data network, via a Packet Data Service Node (PDSN) 140. In an embodiment, system 100 can be configured to support one or more standards, such as IS-95, cdma2000, IS-856, W-CDMA, TD-SCDMA, other multi-link standards, or a combination thereof.

The base station transceiver system (BTS) disclosed herein may also be referred to and/or implement an access network transceiver (ANT), an access point (AP), a base station (BS), and a data set field transceiver ( MPT), Node B (for example, in a W-CDMA type system), etc. A unit can refer to the coverage area served by the BST. The unit may further include one or more sectors. In addition, a base station controller (BSC) may be configured to interface with a core network (eg, a packet data network) and to deliver data packets, perform various wireless accesses, and chain between the AT and the core network. Portion maintenance functions (such as soft handover), portions of communication systems that control wireless transmitters and receivers, and the like. The BSC may also be referred to and/or implement the functionality of an Access Network Controller (ANC). The BSC and one or more BTSs may form part of the AN.

The AT disclosed herein may refer to various types of devices including, but not limited to, wireless phones, cellular phones, laptops, multimedia wireless devices, wireless communication personal computer (PC) cards, personal digital assistants (PDAs), external Or internal data machine and so on. AT can be via a wireless channel and/or via a wired channel Any data device (for example, by fiber optic or coaxial cable). The AT can have various names such as access units, access nodes, subscriber units, mobile stations, mobile devices, mobile units, mobile phones, mobile objects, remote stations, remote terminals, remote units, user equipment, user equipment. , handheld devices, and more. Different ATs can be incorporated into one system. The AT can be mobile or stationary and can be dispersed throughout the communication system. The AT can communicate with one or more BTSs on the forward and/or reverse links at a given time.

A "transmitter" as disclosed herein may be a BTS, an AN, an AT, or any other component configured to transmit a data packet via one or more communication links. A "receiver" as disclosed herein may be an AT, a BTS, an AN, or any other component configured to receive a data packet via one or more communication links. Communication links may include radio frequency (RF) carriers, fiber optic links, coaxial cables, other digital communication components, or combinations thereof.

The multiple link communication system disclosed herein may include a frequency division multiplexing system, a quadrature frequency division multiplexing system, or other multiple link modulation system, where each link corresponds to a range of frequencies.

In some single-link communication systems, an upper layer packet (eg, an Internet Protocol (IP) packet) is divided into a plurality of packets at a transmitter (eg, a BTS) and is transmitted via a communication link (eg, an RF carrier). Add a sequence number to each packet before transmitting the packets to the receiver (eg, AT). The receiver reconstructs the original upper layer packet using the sequence number of the received packet. If the receiver detects a gap (or hole) in the sequence number (eg, the sequence number of two consecutively received packets), it sends a negative acknowledgement (NAK) message to the transmitter indicating loss (eg , erased) packets. The transmitter then retransmits Lose the lost packet.

In a communication system employing multiple communication links (eg, a plurality of RF carriers and/or other digital communication links), because the packets arrive at the receiver through different communication links, even in the absence of lost packets The serial number of the received packet may also be non-contiguous. In this case, the packet transmission scheme described above can cause a large number of NAK messages (e.g., from the receiver) and pseudo retransmission packets (e.g., from the transmitter), and thus slow down the data transmission process.

Therefore, a new solution is needed to overcome the above drawbacks and provide efficient data transmission in a multi-link communication system.

Embodiments disclosed herein relate to new RLP sets configured to provide efficient data transfer in a multi-link communication system.

In an embodiment, a method for data transmission in a multi-link communication system includes: dividing an upper layer packet into a link layer packet to be transmitted through a plurality of communication links; adding a first sequence number to each chain The layered packets are (e.g., according to a predetermined order); and the second sequence number is added to each of the link layer packets to be transmitted for the first time, the second sequence number being in a sequence space associated with the particular communication link. As further described below, the second sequence number can be used for detection of lost packets.

In an embodiment, a method for data processing in a multi-link communication system includes: checking two link layer packets continuously received via a specific communication link, each link layer packet being by a first serial number And identifying, by the second serial number, the second serial number is associated with the specific communication link; and if the second serial numbers of the two consecutively received data packets are non-contiguous, transmitting a message to the transmitter to Request to retransmit one or more missing link layers package.

In an embodiment, a multi-link RLP is provided that includes a segmentation and reassembly (SAR) portion and an automatic repeat request (ARQ) portion. The SAR part of the RLP may be responsible for: dividing an upper layer packet (for example, an IP packet) into several pieces, referred to herein as a "link layer packet"; and adding a (first) sequence number (referred to herein as "SAR_seq") to each A chain layer packet. The receiver can reconstruct the upper layer packet using the SAR_seq of the received packet. The ARQ portion of the RLP may add another (or second) sequence number (referred to herein as "ARQ_seq") to each link layer packet. The ARQ_seq may belong to a sequence space associated with a particular logical communication link that allows the receiver to detect lost packets by identifying any gap in the ARQ_seq of the packet received via the communication link. The ARQ_seq may be long enough that it does not wrap around during a burst of erasures on the communication link, but it need not be so long to prevent sequence wrap during retransmission. In an embodiment, the logical communication link may include booting to the link before extracting the packet from the same BTS queue.

By way of example, FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of two packets "streams" (or "tubes") 210, 220 arriving at the receiver via two communication links, such as link #1 and link #2. For purposes of illustration, each packet is identified by a pair of serial numbers SAR_seq and ARQ_seq. If the receiver detects a gap in the ARQ_seq of the received packet in each link (for example, according to a transmission scheme, the serial numbers of two packets continuously received via the same link are non-contiguous), the receiver may A message (eg, a NAK message) is sent to the sender to report the missing packet. Note that the SAR_seq within each communication link need not be in order. The receiver can use the received packet (via various links) SAR_seq to reconstruct the original upper layer packet.

Figure 3 illustrates an embodiment of a packet segment of a packet transmitted for the first time. An upper layer (e.g., IP packet) packet can be divided into a plurality of link layer packets. Each link layer packet may include: a first sequence number, such as SAR_seq least significant bit (SAR_seq LSB); and a second sequence number, such as ARQ_seq; other RLP fields associated with a given link; and an F/R Flag. The F/R flag can be implemented to indicate that a packet is the first transmitted packet (the F/R flag is set to "F" for this purpose, such as shown in Figure 3) or is a retransmitted packet (F/R). The flag is set to "R" for this purpose, such as shown in Figure 4. Note that in the illustrated embodiment, RLP-ARQ does not further partition RLP-SAR packets because RLP-ARQ may request RLP-SAR to split the upper layer packet to fit the physical layer payload.

Figure 4 illustrates an embodiment of a packet segment for a retransmitted packet. In this case, the ARQ_seq need not be included in the retransmission packet (based on the packet that has been identified as "lost" by the receiver). The F/R flag is set to "R". Note that the length of the SAR_seq field included in the retransmitted RLP-SAR packet may be longer than the length of the first transmitted packet (eg, SAR_seq versus SAR_seq LSB). This allows the first transmitted packet (which constitutes most of the packets sent) to have a smaller SAR_seq length without causing retransmission of the RLP-SAR packet to wrap around. For example, the length of the SAR_seq in the RLP-SAR packet transmitted for the first time need only be such that it does not wrap around during a set of errors.

In some embodiments, the format shown in Figure 4 can be used when retransmitting RLPs using delayed ARQ (referred to herein as "D-ARQ"). This avoidance The possibility of a small ARQ_seq (such as shown in Figure 3) surrounding between the first transmission of the packet and the transmission of the D-ARQ packet is avoided.

Figure 5 illustrates one embodiment of a protocol stack, such as showing the relationship between upper layer protocols, RLP-SAR, and RLP-ARQ instances on each link flow. For the sake of illustration and clarity, two communication links are explicitly shown. The embodiment of Figure 5 can be extended to systems employing more than two communication links.

6 illustrates an embodiment of an architecture in a multi-link communication system in which a BSC 610 communicates with a serving sector employing two communication links 620, 630. Similar to the case of a single link, the RLP header can be added by the sector to allow for timely encapsulation of the RLP packet.

In the embodiment of FIG. 6, associated with each of the BSC queues may be relay data indicating the SAR_seq associated with the octet in the packet. Flow control between the BTS and the BSC can be performed using a frame identifier (or "FrameID") independent of the SAR_seq space. Therefore, the fact that the upper layer packet in each BSC queue can be non-contiguous does not impact the BTS-BSC interface. In some embodiments, the BSC may split the upper layer packet by crossing the BTS associated with the different link. De-framing can be done at the receiver after the RLP frames are placed back together in SAR_seq order. If the framing of the upper packet is to be done by RLP, the RLP packet may not contain octets from more than one upper layer packet. If high order data link control (HDLC) is used, the RLP payload may contain octets from more than one upper layer packet as long as the octets from the upper layer are contiguous.

Figure 7 illustrates one embodiment of how a packet is interleaved across multiple links. Lift For example, the RLP packet of SAR_seq=81 on link #2 may also include octets 91 to 100.

After performing cell switching, each serving BTS may indicate to the BSC a pair of parameters associated with the last frame it serves, such as <FrameID, octet_offset>. Based on this information, the BSC can determine which octets are still served and only send those octets to the new serving sector. Unlike the case of a single link, the octets provided to the new serving sector need not be contiguous, such as illustrated in FIG.

In an embodiment, after detecting a gap in the ARQ_seq on any of the communication links, the receiver may send a status report message, which may include the following: associated with the communication link in which the ARQ_seq gap has been observed. The SAR_seq pair at the beginning and end of the SAR sequence gap. The receiver may either send a NAK message to the sender, the NAK message may include information such as loss of SAR_seq and/or last SAR_seq received on the communication link.

In an embodiment, the transmitter can maintain a list of SAR_seqs sent on each of the communication links. The sender can use this mapping to determine if the missing SAR packet that SAR_seq includes in the status report message needs to be retransmitted (although it still works). In an embodiment, after receiving the status report message, the transmitter can perform the following operations associated with each reported SAR gap in the status report message: a) determining a communication link associated with the SAR gap; b) retransmitting the RLP data unit associated with the SAR gap reported in the status report message and sent on the communication link in which the SAR gap is reported.

There may be cases where the receiver (eg, AT) re-refers to a unit To (or switch) to another unit while receiving packets on multiple communication links. In an embodiment, the ARQ_seq sequence space may be configured on a per cell basis and per frequency. For example, ARQ_seq can be initialized when a unit is added to a valid group. ARQ_seq may not be initialized after the unit is re-executed. Sectors in soft handover can share the same ARQ_seq space. In some embodiments, a transmitter (eg, an AN) may explicitly specify sectors that share the same ARQ_seq space, for example, via messages sent to a receiver (eg, an AT). This allows the AT to discover any gaps at the beginning of a sector service.

In some embodiments, it may be desirable to be able to detect lost RLP packets at the end of a self-guided transmission. Consider the following scenario:

The last few RLP packets from the active set detect a boot and sent from the other are lost (eg, erased). Because the receiver can detect the gap in the ARQ_seq depending on the reception of the next good RLP packet, the lost RLP packet may not be detected and the status report message may not be triggered.

The AT redirects its data source channel (DSC) from sector A to sector B (sector A and sector B belong to different units) and the last few RLP packets from sector A are erased. Therefore, the AT may not be able to discover the gap in the ARQ_seq of the received RLP packet and the status report message may not be triggered.

In one embodiment, the method described below can be used to detect an erased RLP packet from the end of a guided transmission. After the DSC redirects or removes a boot from the active set, the AT sends a message to the AN, which can Includes the last SAR_seq from the boot that is no longer in the service sector. (In some cases, to avoid sending too many NAK messages while the AT is reciprocating between the two units, the AT only has passed the predetermined period (eg, T ms) and the AT has not yet returned its DSC to the original unit. This report is sent.) In the case of DSC redirection, the message may include the last SAR_seq from the bootstrap in the old serving sector. In the event that the boot is removed from the active set, the message may include the last SAR_seq from the boot removed from the serving sector. After receiving the message from the AT, the AN can determine if the AT has lost any RLP packets.

There may be cases where the receiver loses the RLP packet sent by the sender at the end of a group of data from a communication link. To detect such lost packets, in one embodiment, the receiver may initiate a timer (eg, a "catch-all" timer) when it detects a gap in SAR_seq. If the gap is filled, or if the receiver sends a NAK message including the gap (due to other triggers), the timer can be reset. When the timer expires, the receiver can send a NAK message for this gap. The NAK message may include the last SAR_seq received from all services.

In an embodiment, when a status report/NAK message is sent, the following measures can be applied:

接收 If any of the following events occur, the receiver (eg, AT) sends a status report/NAK message:

1. The service unit changes or removes the service bootstrap from the active set and there is a gap in SAR_seq.

2. The AT detects a gap in the ARQ_seq from a unit.

̇If the AT has passed a predetermined period since it detected a gap in SAR_seq (For example, T ms), the NAK message including the missing SAR_seq has not been sent.

In the event that the boot is removed from the active set, the status report message from the AT may include the last SAR_seq from the boot removed from the serving sector.

In the case where the DSC is redirected, the status report message from the AT may include the last SAR_seq from the bootstrap in the old serving sector.

The status report message may include the last SAR_seq from all communication links in the serving sector.

AN After receiving the status report message from the AT, the AN determines whether the AT has lost any RLP packets.

AN After receiving the NAK message from the AT, the AN can transmit the SAR_seq octet of the NAK message that has not been retransmitted.

There may also be cases where the receiver loses the RLP packet sent by the sender at the end of a set of data (not just from a communication link). In an embodiment, the following may be used to detect the lost packets:

BS After sending an RLP packet to the sector, the BSC may initiate a timer (or "refresh timer").

̇ Whenever the BSC sends a new RLP packet to any sector, the timer can be reset.

When the timer expires, the BSC can send a refresh message.

1. The message may indicate to the receiver (e.g., AT) that the system is at the end of the set of data.

2. This message can include the last RLP packet.

AT After receiving the refresh message, if the AT detects that it is stored in SAR_seq The AT sends a NAK message in a gap that has not been previously reported.

The examples described below further illustrate various embodiments disclosed herein.

In the example of removing a boot from the serving sector, consider the case where it is removed from the serving sector after the booted service packet <3, 10> belonging to link #2.

After receiving the traffic channel assignment message from the active group removal guide, the AT can send a message including the following information to the AN: AT Status_Report_Message{pilot x link_2:last_SAR_seq=6}

The AN then resends the SAR_seq = 8, 10 packets on any remaining boots in the serving sector.

In one instance of unit switching, consider the case where the service unit changes and the following packets are from the old service unit service: <3,10> erased After the switch, the AT sends a message including the following information to the AN: AT Status_Report_Message{pilot x link_2: last_SAR_seq=6 pilot y link_1: last_SAR_seq=7} AN is then in the service sector The packet of SAR_seq=8, 9, 10 is resent on any of the bootstraps.

The following illustrates a SAR_seq instance based on partitioning:

When the packet <3, 9> is received on the link #1, the receiver can send: Status_Report_message{SAR_missing_boundary=5,9}

When the sender receives the above status report message, it may only retransmit the packet of SAR_seq=7 because the status report message indicates to the sender: a) link #1 (where SAR_seq=5, 9 packets have been sent) Erasing has occurred; and b) RLP data units transmitted on link #1 and SAR_seq between 5 and 9 are lost. When the transmitter retransmits the packet of SAR_seq=7, it can transmit the packet on link #1 or link #2. The retransmitted packet of SAR_seq=7 can be sent without ARQ_seq.

When the packet <3, 10> is received on link #2, the receiver can transmit (assuming that the retransmitted packet of SAR_seq=7 has been received): Status_Report_message{SAR_missing_boundary=6,10} When the sender receives the above status report message, it can retransmit the packet with SAR_seq=8.

Figure 9 illustrates an example of octet-based SAR_seq similar to the segmentation based example described above with SAR_seq as the difference based on the octet number. In this case, the receiver can transmit a status report message after receiving the RLP packet containing "octet 81 to 90". The reason for this status report is that the receiver detected a gap in the ARQ_seq on link #1. The status report message can indicate:

̇missing_interval: SAR_seq=51 to 80 octets are lost on link #1.

The transmitter may perform the following operations after receiving the status report message: for each missing_interval reported, the transmitter determines the communication link on which the RLP data unit has been transmitted, and the retransmission is reported by the receiver as belonging_interval and A missing data unit that has been sent on the link. When retransmitting, it is irrelevant which one of the service sectors is selected to transmit the lost octet.

Figure 10 illustrates an example in which the receiver transmits a status report message due to the detection of a gap in the ARQ_seq. In this case, the communication link (e.g., link #1) on which the packet "1" is to be transmitted may be blocked and thus unavailable; the packet "2" may be erased during transmission. After the "Recycle" timer expires, the receiver sends a status report message requesting retransmission of the packet sent on link #1 and SAR_seq between 0 and 2.

Figure 11 illustrates an example similar to the example shown in Figure 10, except that the status report message has been erased. Therefore, the transmitter resends the packets "1" and "2" after receiving the NAK message.

12 illustrates a flow diagram of a process 1200 that can be used in an embodiment to implement data transfer in a multiple link communication system. Step 1210 divides an upper layer packet into a link layer packet to be transmitted on a plurality of communication links. Step 1220 adds a first sequence number (eg, SAR_seq LSB or SAR_seq) to each link layer packet. Step 1230 adds a second sequence number (e.g., ARQ_seq) to each of the link layer packets to be transmitted for the first time, the second sequence number being in the sequence space associated with the particular communication link.

13 illustrates a flow diagram of a process 1300 that can be used in an embodiment to implement data processing in a multiple link communication system. Step 1310 checks for two link layer packets that are continuously received via a particular communication link. Each link layer packet is identified by a first sequence number and a second sequence number associated with the particular communication link. If the second sequence number of the two consecutively received data packets is non-contiguous, then step 1320 transmits a message to the transmitter requesting retransmission of one or more lost link layer packets.

Figure 14 illustrates a block diagram of apparatus 1400 that can be used to implement certain disclosed embodiments (such as those described above). By way of example, apparatus 1400 can include a splitting unit (module) 1410 configured to divide an upper layer packet into a link layer packet to be transmitted on a plurality of communication links; and a sequence number adding unit 1420 It is configured to add a first sequence number to each link layer packet (such as described above). The sequence number adding unit 1420 can also be configured to add the second sequence number to each link layer packet to be transmitted for the first time (such as the above describe). Apparatus 1400 can further include: receiving unit 1430 configured to receive a message (such as the status report or NAK message described above) from the receiver, such as reporting one or more lost packets; and transmitting unit 1440 configured to Transfer the data packet to the receiver.

In the device 1400, the dividing unit 1410, the sequence number adding unit 1420, the receiving unit 1430, and the transmitting unit 1440 may be coupled to the communication bus 1450. The processing unit 1460 and the memory unit 1470 can also be coupled to the communication bus 1450. Processing unit 1460 can be configured to control and/or coordinate the operation of various units. Memory unit 1470 can include instructions to be executed by processing unit 1460.

Figure 15 illustrates a block diagram of an apparatus 1500 that can be used to implement certain disclosed embodiments (such as those described above). By way of example, apparatus 1500 can include an inspection unit (or module) 1510 configured to check two link layer packets that are continuously received via a particular communication link, each link layer packet being a serial number and a second serial number are identified; and a transmission unit 1520 configured to, for example, when the second serial number of the two consecutively received data packets is non-contiguous or to detect other missing packets (such as The above described) then transmits a message to the sender. Apparatus 1500 can further include receiving unit 1530 that is configured, for example, to receive data packets and messages from the transmitter.

In the device 1500, the checking unit 1510, the transmitting unit 1520, and the receiving unit 1530 can be coupled to the communication bus 1540. The processing unit 1550 and the memory unit 1560 can also be coupled to the communication bus 1540. Processing unit 1550 can be configured to control and/or coordinate the operation of various units. Memory unit 1560 can include instructions to be executed by processing unit 1550. (in some embodiments The memory unit 1560 can also store an active set of ATs, such as described above. )

The various units/modules and other embodiments of Figures 14 through 15 can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. The various units/modules described herein can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or a combination thereof. In hardware implementation, one or more special application integrated circuits (ASIC), digital signal processor (DSP), digital signal processing device (DSPD), field programmable gate array (FPGA), processor Various units are implemented within a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, programmable logic device (PLD), other electronic unit, or any combination thereof. In a software implementation, modules (eg, programs, functions, etc.) that can perform the functions described herein implement various elements. The software code can be stored in the memory unit and executed by the processor (or processing unit). The memory unit can be implemented within the processor or external to the processor, in which case the memory unit can be communicatively coupled to the processor via various components known in the art.

Embodiments disclosed herein provide certain embodiments of RLP and implementations thereof for a multi-link communication system. There are other embodiments and implementations. The various disclosed embodiments can be implemented in BTS, BSC, AT, and other transmitters and receivers configured for use in communication systems.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that information and signals can be represented using any of a variety of different techniques and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, which may be referenced throughout the above description, may be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, light fields or particles, or any combination thereof. And wafers.

It will be further appreciated that the various illustrative logical blocks, modules, circuits, and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as an electronic hardware, a computer software, or a combination of both. To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, modules, and steps have been described above in terms of their functionality. The functional construction as a hardware or soft system depends on the specific application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. The described functionality may be implemented in a different manner for each particular application, and should not be construed as a departure from the scope of the invention.

The various illustrative logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be combined with a general purpose processor, digital signal processor (DSP), special application integrated circuit (ASIC) designed to perform the functions disclosed herein. A field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof, is implemented or executed. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative embodiment, the processor may be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other such configuration.

The steps of the method or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of both. The software module can be located in random access memory (RAM), flash memory, read only memory (ROM), electrically programmable ROM (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), scratchpad, hard Disc, removable disc, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. The exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. In an alternate embodiment, the storage medium can be integrated into the processor. The processor and storage medium can be located in an ASIC. The ASIC can be located in the AT. In an alternate embodiment, the processor and the storage medium may be located in the AT as discrete components.

The previous description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the invention. Various modifications to the embodiments are readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Therefore, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the embodiments shown herein, but the broadest scope of the invention is in accordance with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

100‧‧‧Multi-link communication system

110a, 110b, 110c‧‧‧ access terminal

120‧‧‧Access network

130‧‧‧ double-sided arrows

140‧‧‧ Packet Information Service Node

210, 220‧‧‧ packet flow

610‧‧‧BSC

620, 630‧‧‧ communication links

1400‧‧‧ device

1410‧‧‧Dividing unit

1420‧‧‧Sequence Addition Unit

1430‧‧‧ Receiving unit

1440‧‧‧Transmission unit

1450‧‧‧Communication bus

1460‧‧‧Processing unit

1470‧‧‧ memory unit

1500‧‧‧ device

1510‧‧‧Check unit

1520‧‧‧Transmission unit

1530‧‧‧ Receiving unit

1540‧‧‧Communication bus

1550‧‧‧Processing unit

1560‧‧‧ memory unit

1 illustrates an embodiment of a multiple link communication system; FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a packet arriving at a receiver via a plurality of communication links; and FIG. 3 illustrates an implementation of a packet segment of a first transmitted packet Figure 4 illustrates an embodiment of a packet segment of a retransmitted packet; Figure 5 illustrates one embodiment of a protocol stack of a multi-link communication system; Figure 6 illustrates one embodiment of a multi-link communication system architecture; Figure 7 illustrates one embodiment of how packets are interleaved across multiple communication links; Figure 8 illustrates one embodiment of packet transmission during service unit handover; Figure 9 illustrates octet based segmentation and reassembly sequence number (SAR_seq) )one Example; Figure 10 illustrates one scenario in a multiple link communication system; Figure 11 illustrates another scenario in a multiple link communication system; Figure 12 illustrates that it can be used in an embodiment to implement data in a multiple link communication system Flowchart of the process of transmission; Figure 13 illustrates a flow diagram of a process that may be used in an embodiment to implement data processing in a multiple link communication system; Figure 14 illustrates a block diagram of a device in which certain disclosed Embodiments; and Figure 15 illustrates a block diagram of an apparatus in which certain disclosed embodiments may be implemented.

210, 220‧‧‧ packet flow

Claims (12)

A method for data processing in a multi-link communication system, comprising: receiving, by a different communication link, a plurality of link layer packets corresponding to an upper layer packet, wherein each link layer packet comprises a plurality of Serial number; receiving a refresh message from a sender, the refresh message indicating that one of the set of data ends and includes one of the last link layer packets transmitted; when receiving the refresh message, determining the received links Whether one of the plurality of serial numbers of the layer packet has a previously unreported gap; and if at least one gap is detected in the one of the plurality of serial numbers of the received link layer packets, Send a message to the sender. The method of claim 1, wherein the plurality of serial numbers comprises a segment and a recombination sequence number and an automatic repeat request sequence number. An apparatus for data processing in a multi-link communication system, comprising: means for receiving a plurality of link layer packets corresponding to an upper layer packet through different communication links, wherein each link layer The packet includes a plurality of sequence numbers; a component for receiving a refresh message from a sender, the refresh message indicating that one of the group of materials ends and includes one of the last link layer packets transmitted; for receiving the refresh message Determining whether one of the plurality of serial numbers of the received link layer packets has been previously unreported a component of a gap; and for transmitting a message to a component of the transmitter if at least one gap is detected in the one of the plurality of serial numbers of the received link layer packets. The device of claim 3, wherein the plurality of serial numbers comprises a segment and a recombination sequence number and an automatic repeat request sequence number. An apparatus for data transmission in a multi-link communication system, comprising: circuitry configured to: receive a plurality of link layer packets corresponding to an upper layer packet through different communication links, Each link layer packet includes a plurality of sequence numbers; receiving a refresh message from a sender, the refresh message indicating that one of the group of materials ends and includes one of the last link layer packets transmitted; when the refresh message is received Determining, among the one of the plurality of serial numbers of the received link layer packets, whether there is a gap that has not been previously reported; and if one of the plurality of serial numbers is received in the received link layer If at least one gap is detected, a message is sent to the sender. The device of claim 5, wherein the plurality of serial numbers comprises a segment and a recombination sequence number and an automatic repeat request sequence number. A computer readable medium containing instructions executable by a processor to perform the following steps: Receiving, by a different communication link, a plurality of link layer packets corresponding to an upper layer packet, wherein each link layer packet includes a plurality of sequence numbers; receiving a refresh message from a sender, the refresh message indicating one of a group of data Ending and including one of the last link layer packets transmitted; when receiving the refresh message, determining whether one of the plurality of sequence numbers of the received link layer packets has a previously unreported gap And if at least one gap is detected in one of the plurality of serial numbers of the received link layer packets, a message is sent to the transmitter. The computer readable medium of claim 7, wherein the plurality of serial numbers comprises a segment and a recombination sequence number and an automatic repeat request sequence number. A method for data processing in a multi-link communication system, comprising: receiving, by a different communication link, a plurality of link layer packets corresponding to an upper layer packet from a transmitter, wherein each link layer The packet includes a plurality of sequence numbers; when a gap in the sequence number of the link layer packets received through the same one of the communication links is detected, a timer is started; and when the timer expires, a message is transmitted To the transmitter, the message includes the gap and the sequence number of the last data packet received from each of the service boots. The method of claim 9, further comprising resetting the timer when one or more data packets having a sequence number filling the gap are received. The method of claim 9, further comprising resetting the timer when transmitting the message to the transmitter. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of serial numbers comprises a segment and a recombination sequence number and an automatic repeat request sequence number.