CN109905926B

CN109905926B - Self-adaptive configuration method, device, terminal, medium and system suitable for unlicensed frequency band

Info

Publication number: CN109905926B
Application number: CN201910229014.3A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 康凯; 何晚俊; 钱骅; 裴旭明; 朱正航
Original assignee: Shanghai Advanced Research Institute of CAS
Current assignee: Shanghai Advanced Research Institute of CAS
Priority date: 2019-03-25
Filing date: 2019-03-25
Publication date: 2021-06-04
Anticipated expiration: 2039-03-25
Also published as: CN109905926A

Abstract

The application provides a self-adaptive configuration method, a self-adaptive configuration device, a self-adaptive configuration terminal, a self-adaptive configuration medium and a self-adaptive configuration system which are suitable for an unauthorized frequency band, and aims to provide a technical solution which can solve the system time delay and give consideration to the energy saving efficiency of the system so as to adapt to an unauthorized frequency band scene. That is, when the channel continues to be occupied by Wi-Fi or other wireless devices during the on-receive duration in the DRX cycle, the on-duration in the DRX cycle is adaptively extended, so that data transmission in the unlicensed band is no longer affected by the LBT mechanism. Therefore, the application effectively overcomes various defects in the prior art and has high industrial utilization value.

Description

Self-adaptive configuration method, device, terminal, medium and system suitable for unlicensed frequency band

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method, an apparatus, a terminal, a medium, and a system for adaptive configuration of an unlicensed frequency band.

Background

The shortage of wireless spectrum is a fundamental problem facing wireless communications. In order to increase the available spectrum, it is a solution to use unlicensed frequency bands for communication. In a 4G-LTE based mobile communication system, a Licensed Assisted Access (LAA) technology may be applied to use an unlicensed band with the assistance of a licensed band. For example, the random access procedure is completed in the licensed frequency band, and then the data transmission procedure is performed in the unlicensed frequency band. In unlicensed band communication of a 5G New Radio (NR), the LAA technology based on 4G-LTE has been extended to various application scenarios. The DRX procedure in the Unlicensed band needs to be explored in the 5G NR-U (NR-unlicensenced) scenario.

In order to be able to fairly use the unlicensed band resources with other access technologies, such as Wi-Fi, radar, etc., an operator needs to detect the channel busy idle state, i.e., lbt (list Before talk) mechanism, Before using the unlicensed band, so as to ensure that NR-U can fairly compete with other technologies and coexist.

An LBT mechanism is firstly applied to communication in an unauthorized frequency band, and in a DRX mode, when user equipment is started, due to the fact that a channel is occupied by other systems such as Wi-Fi and the like, a base station cannot effectively transmit user scheduling information to the user equipment when the user equipment is started, and information delay is too large. To solve the DRX problem in unlicensed bands, the following solutions currently exist: 1. the longer on-state duration is used to monitor the PDCCH on the unlicensed band cell, but the power consumption of the ue is increased, which goes against the purpose of DRX power saving. 2. Different DRX configurations are used in the licensed and unlicensed bands, but this may introduce higher complexity to the system.

Content of application

In view of the foregoing drawbacks of the prior art, an object of the present application is to provide an adaptive configuration method, apparatus, terminal, medium, and system suitable for an unlicensed frequency band, for solving the problem of excessive information delay in DRX mode in the unlicensed frequency band in the prior art.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a first aspect of the present application provides a DRX adaptive configuration method for unlicensed frequency bands, including: enabling the user equipment to continuously execute an idle channel evaluation test when the user equipment is in a receiving starting state; under the condition that the results of the idle channel assessment tests are successful, enabling the time period of the user equipment in the receiving starting state to be a preset fixed time period; and under the condition that part or all of the results of the idle channel assessment test are failed, prolonging the time period of the user equipment in the state of starting receiving to a non-fixed time period so as to meet the requirement of the user equipment for data receiving in a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) mode.

In some embodiments of the first aspect of the present application, a time period during which the ue is in an on-reception state is determined by a drx on duration timer; before the timing of the drx onDurationTimer timer is ended, the UE is in a state of starting reception; and when the drx-onDurationTimer timer is finished, the user equipment is in a state of closing reception.

In some embodiments of the first aspect of the present application, the drx onDurationTimer is configured to be preset with a fixed parameter;

in some embodiments of the first aspect of the present application, in case that the result of the idle channel assessment test is a failure, the drx on duration timer is suspended until the result of the idle channel assessment test is a success.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a second aspect of the present application provides an apparatus for DRX adaptive configuration applicable to unlicensed frequency bands, comprising: the idle channel assessment test module is used for enabling the user equipment to execute an idle channel assessment test on each frame when the user equipment is in a receiving starting state; the self-adaptive configuration module is used for enabling the time period of the user equipment in the receiving starting state to be a preset fixed time period under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is successful; and the idle channel estimation test module is used for prolonging the time period of the state of starting receiving of the user equipment to a non-fixed time period under the condition that part or all of the result of the idle channel estimation test is failed so as to meet the requirement of the user equipment for data receiving in a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) mode.

In some embodiments of the second aspect of the present application, the period of time that the ue is in the on-reception state is determined by a drx on duration timer; before the timing of the drx onDurationTimer timer is ended, the UE is in a state of starting reception; and when the drx-onDurationTimer timer is finished, the user equipment is in a state of closing reception.

In some embodiments of the second aspect of the present application, the drx on duration timer is preset with a fixed parameter;

in some embodiments of the second aspect of the present application, the adaptive configuration module causes the drx-onDurationTimer timer to pause and causes the ue to monitor a PDCCH (common downlink control channel) and start the drx-onDurationTimer for timing when the ue is scheduled to transmit downlink data transmission, if the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a third aspect of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, where the computer program is executed by a processor to implement the DRX adaptive configuration method applicable to unlicensed frequency bands.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a fourth aspect of the present application provides a user terminal comprising a processor, a memory, and a communicator; the memory is used for storing a computer program; the communicator is used for being in communication connection with other equipment; the processor is configured to execute the computer program stored in the memory, so as to enable the user terminal to execute the DRX adaptive configuration method applicable to the unlicensed frequency band.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a fifth aspect of the present application provides a DTX adaptive configuration method applicable to an unlicensed frequency band, where the method is applied to a base station, and the method includes: enabling the base station to continuously execute an idle channel evaluation test when the base station is in a state of starting transmission; under the condition that the idle channel evaluation results are successful, enabling the base station to regard the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism in the cell as an opening time period, wherein the time period capable of receiving the PDCCH is a preset fixed time period, and if the PDCCH is issued to the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism, the base station issues the PDCCH in the fixed time period; and under the condition that part or all of the results of the idle channel evaluation test are failed, enabling the base station to regard the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism in the cell as the period which can receive the PDCCH to be prolonged to the non-fixed period so as to meet the requirement of the base station for transmitting data in the discontinuous transmission DTX mode, wherein if the PDCCH is transmitted to the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism, the base station can transmit the data in the non-fixed period.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a sixth aspect of the present application provides a DTX adaptive configuration apparatus for unlicensed frequency bands, comprising: the idle channel assessment test module is used for enabling the base station to continuously execute the idle channel assessment test when the base station is in the state of starting transmission; the self-adaptive configuration module is used for enabling the base station to consider that the time period of the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism and is in the state of starting transmission in the range of the cell is a preset fixed time period under the condition that the result of the idle channel evaluation test is successful; and when the result of the idle channel assessment test is partial or total failure, the base station is made to consider that the period in which the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism is in the state of starting transmission in the range of the cell is extended to a non-fixed period, so as to meet the requirement that the base station transmits data in the discontinuous transmission DTX mode.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a seventh aspect of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, having a computer program stored thereon, where the computer program is executed by a processor to implement the DTX adaptive configuration method applicable to an unlicensed frequency band.

To achieve the above and other related objects, an eighth aspect of the present application provides a base station comprising a processor, a memory, and a communicator; the memory is used for storing a computer program; the communicator is used for being in communication connection with other equipment; the processor is configured to execute the computer program stored in the memory to enable the base station to execute the DTX adaptive configuration method applicable to the unlicensed frequency band.

To achieve the above and other related objects, a ninth aspect of the present application provides a communication system suitable for unlicensed frequency bands, which includes at least one of the base stations and at least one of the user terminals.

As described above, the adaptive configuration method, apparatus, terminal, medium, and system applicable to the unlicensed frequency band according to the present application have the following beneficial effects: the method aims to provide a technical solution which can solve the system time delay and also can consider the energy-saving efficiency of the system so as to adapt to the unauthorized frequency band scene. That is, when the channel continues to be occupied by Wi-Fi or other wireless devices within the on-receive duration in the DRX cycle, the on-transmit duration in the DTX cycle is adaptively extended, based on a similar principle, so that data transmission in the unlicensed band is no longer affected by the LBT mechanism. Therefore, the application effectively overcomes various defects in the prior art and has high industrial utilization value.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a flowchart illustrating a DRX adaptive configuration method applicable to an unlicensed frequency band according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a ue in a DRX cycle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a ue in a DRX cycle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a diagram illustrating an operation of a ue in a long DRX cycle and a short DRX cycle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5 shows a schematic diagram of the original operation mode of the ue based on the existing drx onDurationTimer.

Fig. 6 is a diagram illustrating an original operation mode of a drx onDurationTimer according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 7 is a diagram illustrating a comparison result of data transmission based on different operation modes of a drx onDurationTimer according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating an apparatus for DRX adaptive configuration for unlicensed frequency bands according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 10 is a diagram illustrating an adaptive configuration method for DTX in an unlicensed band according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus for adaptive DTX configuration in unlicensed band according to an embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of a base station according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The following description of the embodiments of the present application is provided by way of specific examples, and other advantages and effects of the present application will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the disclosure herein. The present application is capable of other and different embodiments and its several details are capable of modifications and/or changes in various respects, all without departing from the spirit of the present application. It is to be noted that the features in the following embodiments and examples may be combined with each other without conflict.

It is noted that in the following description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings which illustrate several embodiments of the present application. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and that mechanical, structural, electrical, and operational changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. The following detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of embodiments of the present application is defined only by the claims of the issued patent. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the application. Spatially relative terms, such as "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "lower," "below," "lower," "above," "upper," and the like, may be used herein to facilitate describing one element or feature's relationship to another element or feature as illustrated in the figures.

In this application, unless expressly stated or limited otherwise, the terms "mounted," "connected," "secured," "retained," and the like are to be construed broadly and can, for example, be fixedly connected, detachably connected, or integrally connected; can be mechanically or electrically connected; they may be connected directly or indirectly through intervening media, or they may be interconnected between two elements. The specific meaning of the above terms in the present application can be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art as appropriate.

Also, as used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises," "comprising," and/or "comprising," when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, operations, elements, components, items, species, and/or groups, but do not preclude the presence, or addition of one or more other features, operations, elements, components, items, species, and/or groups thereof. The terms "or" and/or "as used herein are to be construed as inclusive or meaning any one or any combination. Thus, "A, B or C" or "A, B and/or C" means "any of the following: a; b; c; a and B; a and C; b and C; A. b and C ". An exception to this definition will occur only when a combination of elements, functions or operations are inherently mutually exclusive in some way.

The shortage of wireless spectrum is a fundamental problem facing wireless communications. In order to increase the available spectrum, it is a solution to use unlicensed frequency bands for communication. The LBT mechanism is needed for communication in the unlicensed band, but the User Equipment (UE) is also affected by LBT, and needs a longer on-state duration to monitor the PDCCH on the cell in the unlicensed band, which increases power consumption, which goes against the original purpose of DRX technology energy saving. Furthermore, using different configurations in the licensed and unlicensed bands can introduce high complexity to the system.

In view of the above problems existing in the prior art, the present application provides a method, an apparatus, a terminal, a medium, and a system for adaptive configuration of an unlicensed frequency band, which can solve both system latency and system energy saving efficiency, so as to adapt to an unlicensed frequency band scenario. That is, when the channel continues to be occupied by Wi-Fi or other wireless devices during the on-receive duration in the DRX cycle, the on-duration in the DRX cycle is adaptively extended, so that data transmission in the unlicensed band is no longer affected by the LBT mechanism.

Fig. 1 shows a flow chart of a DRX adaptive configuration method applicable to an unlicensed frequency band according to an embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, the method changes the operation mode of the DRX on duration timer in the prior art to implement the adaptive configuration of the DRX.

For the understanding of those skilled in the art, the LBT mechanism, the DRX mechanism, and the operation mode of the DRX on duration timer in the prior art are explained below.

The lbt (list Before talk) mechanism refers to that in the unlicensed band, a radio device first tests its radio environment Before starting transmission. A radio device may use LBT to find a network that allows the device to operate or to find a free radio channel to operate. LBT operation is a fundamental requirement for operation in unlicensed frequency bands and is mandated by regulations in most unlicensed frequency bands. The requirement to perform LBT before transmission applies to both the network and the user equipment. Since 5G requires the use of an unlicensed band in which there is a need to perform LBT, enhancements to some operations of uplink (Up Link, UL) and downlink (Down Link, DL) are necessary.

DRX (discontinuous reception) mechanism refers to discontinuous reception, which is used to reduce energy consumption to achieve increased battery endurance in LTE and 5G. Without DRX technology, the ue must constantly keep on receiving to monitor all common downlink control channel (PDCCH) monitoring scenarios to confirm that it is scheduled for UL (downlink) data transmission at any time. But the nature of the traffic arrival pattern indicates that such a state would unnecessarily consume user equipment power. As traffic arrival is bursty. In the DRX state, the user equipment is set to monitor the PDCCH only for certain times (active time), so that the time other than the active time can be used for sleep to reduce battery consumption.

When a User Equipment (UE) is configured with a DRX function, it monitors a PDCCH during an active period. If the DRX function is configured in the RRC _ CONNECTED state, the User Equipment (UE) may monitor the PDCCH discontinuously using an operation specification of DRX. To facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art, the DRX cycle will now be further explained in conjunction with fig. 2. Taking the first DRX cycle in the figure as an example, the UE configured with the DRX function monitors the PDCCH during the active time, and does not monitor the PDCCH during the rest of the inactive time.

The network may configure the user equipment with a set of DRX parameters and may select specific values of these parameters based on the type of application so that the efficiency of power saving can be maximized. This comes at the cost of a reduced ability of the network to continue to reach the user equipment.

In an embodiment, the MAC entity may be configured by RRC (radio Resource control) with DRX function that controls the UE (user equipment) listening activity for the PDCCH of the MAC entity's C-RNTI, CS-RNTI, INT-RNTI, SFI-RNTI, SP-CSI-RNTI, TPC-PUCCH-RNTI, TPC-PUSCH-RNTI, and TPC-SRS-RNTI. When using DRX operation, the MAC entity should also monitor the PDCCH according to the requirements in other sub-clauses in the specification. While in the RRC _ CONNECTED state, if DRX is configured, the MAC entity may discontinuously monitor the PDCCH using a DRX operation formulated as follows; otherwise the MAC entity will continuously monitor the PDCCH.

Specifically, the RRC controls DRX operation by configuring any one or more combinations of the following parameters, including: the schematic diagram of some parameters in the DRX period is shown in FIG. 3.

Wherein, DRX-onDurationTimer indicates the number of subframes of the PDCCH that the UE needs to monitor in each DRX cycle, and the UE can turn off its receiver in the rest of the time; drx-SlotOffset represents the delay before starting drx-onDurationTimer; DRX-StartOffset indicates the subframe where the DRX cycle starts; drx-Inactivity Timer represents the duration after a PDCCH scenario, where the PDCCH indicates a new UL or DL transmission of the MAC entity; drx-retransmission timerdl, i.e. each DL HARQ (hybrid automatic repeat request) process, represents the maximum duration before a downlink retransmission is received; drx-retransmission timerll, i.e., each UL HARQ (hybrid automatic repeat request) process, represents the maximum duration before the uplink retransmission grant is received; DRX-LongCycle represents a long DRX cycle; DRX-ShortCycle, which is an optional parameter and represents the short DRX cycle; a DRX-ShortCycleTimer, which is an optional parameter and represents a short DRX cycle timer; drx-HARQ-RTT-TimerDL, i.e. each DL HARQ (hybrid automatic repeat request) process, represents the minimum duration before DL allocation that the MAC entity expects for HARQ process retransmissions; drx-HARQ-RTT-timerll, i.e. each UL HARQ (hybrid automatic repeat request) process, represents the minimum duration before the MAC entity expects a UL HARQ retransmission grant.

When one DRX cycle is configured, the active time includes: drx-onDurationTime, drx-inactivytimer, drx-retransmission timerdl, drx-retransmission timerll, or Mac-contentionresolutiontiimer; or comprises the following steps: transmitting a scheduling request on PUCCH and waiting; or comprises the following steps: after successfully receiving a random access response of a random access preamble not selected by the MAC entity in the contention-based random access preamble, a PDCCH indicating a new transmission addressed to the C-RNTI of the MAC entity has not been received.

In an embodiment, if the short DRX cycle is configured, the UE will use the short DRX cycle after expiration of DRX-inactivity timer or after receiving a DRX command MAC CE. The UE will use the long DRX cycle after expiration of the DRX-shortCycleTimer or after receipt of a DRX command MAC CE, which is schematically shown in fig. 4.

Data communication in the unlicensed frequency band is different from data communication in the licensed frequency band, and due to the existence of the LBT mechanism, a base station cannot guarantee that User Equipment (UE) can be scheduled at corresponding time instantly at any time. The base station must successfully perform a Clear Channel Assessment (CCA) before scheduling downlink data transmission. If the existing DRX mechanism of the authorized frequency band is directly used in the unlicensed frequency band, a series of problems will be caused. For example: in the current DRX period, when a new data frame arrives, the gNB needs to schedule the UE to perform downlink data transmission; at this time, if the gNB does not schedule any downlink data due to LBT failure in the on-state duration in the current DRX cycle, the data frame cannot be transmitted in the current DRX cycle, and the gNB can only schedule downlink data transmission in the on-state duration in at least the next DRX cycle of the UE, which causes a problem of increasing delay in reception of downlink data.

Therefore, in order for a cell in the unlicensed band to obtain the same capacity of being immediately scheduled as a cell in the licensed band, affected by LBT, a User Equipment (UE) needs a longer on-state duration to monitor the PDCCH on the unlicensed band cell. However, if the UE is simply configured with a longer on-duration timer to monitor the PDCCH in the NR-U, it inevitably increases power consumption, which goes against the original purpose of DRX technology power saving. Furthermore, using different configurations in the licensed and unlicensed bands can introduce high complexity to the system.

The drx-onDurationTimer works as follows: a fixed parameter is preset in a DRX-onDurationTimer timer, wherein the fixed parameter is the number of PDCCH subframes that the UE needs to monitor in each DRX cycle, the DRX cycle is entered each time, the DRX-onDurationTimer is started after a delay frame, and the User Equipment (UE) is in a state of starting reception before the timer expires; when the timer expires, the User Equipment (UE) turns off the receiver for other times.

As shown in fig. 5, a diagram illustrating the operation mode of the drx onDurationTimer in the prior art is shown. User Equipment (UE) is initially in a dormant state and judges whether the current DRX period is finished; if not, continuously judging whether the current DRX period is finished or not; if the end, then starting a drx-onDurationTimer to make the ue in a state of starting reception. After starting the drx on DurationTimer timer, the UE monitors the PDCCH and determines whether the UE is scheduled for data transmission. If no new data frame arrival is detected before the expiration of the drx on duration timer, the terminal will go to sleep after expiration of the drx on duration timer. If a new data frame arrives before the drx on Duration timer expires, a drx-InactivtyTimer timer is started, the User Equipment (UE) performs data transmission, and continuously monitors the PDCCH before the drx-InactivtyTimer timer expires, if a new data frame arrives, the drx-InactivtyTimer timer is restarted until the drx-InactivtyTimer timer expires, and the User Equipment (UE) enters a sleep state.

In the prior art, the working mode of the drx on duration timer causes the time period of the user equipment in the state of starting reception to be a fixed time period, so that, when the user equipment is in the state of starting and a channel is occupied by other systems such as Wi-Fi and the like, a base station fails to perform LBT, and cannot send out downlink control information, which may cause a problem of data transmission delay.

In the present application, the working mode of the drx-onDurationTimer is different from the existing working mode, and the time period of the ue in the state of starting reception is adaptively configured according to the channel occupation condition by adjusting the drx-onDurationTimer to suspend the timing work. The method flow in fig. 1 will be further explained below.

In step S11, the user equipment is made to continuously perform the idle channel assessment test while in the state of on reception.

It should be noted that the terms user equipment are used interchangeably herein and may refer to a device including, but not limited to, devices such as cellular or other wireless communication devices, Personal Communication Systems (PCS) devices, Personal Navigation Devices (PNDs), Personal Information Managers (PIMs), Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), laptop computers or other suitable mobile devices capable of receiving wireless communication and/or navigation signals, and the like.

In one embodiment, the period of time that the User Equipment (UE) is in the on-receive state is determined by a drx-onDurationTimer timer; before the timing of the drx onDurationTimer timer is ended, the UE is in a state of starting reception; and when the drx-onDurationTimer timer is finished, the user equipment is in a state of closing reception.

The drx-onDurationTimer is preset with a fixed parameter; the fixed parameter is the number of subframes of the common downlink control channel PDCCH which the user equipment needs to monitor in each DRX period.

In step S12, if the idle channel assessment results are successful, the time period when the ue is in the on-reception state is a preset fixed time period.

In an embodiment, in case the result of the clear channel assessment test is successful, the User Equipment (UE) may infer that the current channel is in a clear state. Therefore, it can be determined that the base station does not schedule the ue if there is no downlink data, in which case the drx on duration timer is running normally in the original mode.

Specifically, a fixed parameter is preset for the drx-onDurationTimer timer; the fixed parameter is the number of subframes of the common downlink control channel PDCCH that the ue needs to monitor in each DRX cycle, and the working mode thereof can refer to the flowchart shown in fig. 5.

In step S13, if part or all of the results of the idle channel assessment test are failed, the period in which the ue is in the on-reception state is extended to a non-fixed period to meet the requirement of the ue for data reception in the DRX mode.

In an embodiment, when the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, the drx-onDurationTimer timer is caused to suspend timing, the ue is caused to monitor a PDCCH (physical downlink control channel), and the drx-onDurationTimer is started for timing when the ue is scheduled to transmit downlink data.

Specifically, when the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, the User Equipment (UE) may estimate that the current channel is in an occupied state. Therefore, the drx on DurationTimer timer is suspended and the User Equipment (UE) is made to monitor the PDCCH. If the User Equipment (UE) is scheduled with downlink data transmission, enabling the User Equipment (UE) to follow a DRX mechanism under a licensed frequency band so as to carry out data transmission based on a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) mode; and if the user equipment is not scheduled with downlink data transmission, enabling the user equipment to perform idle channel assessment test of the next frame until a drx-onDuration timer expires, and enabling the User Equipment (UE) to enter a dormant state.

Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing an operation mode of a drx onDurationTimer according to an embodiment of the present application. In the adaptive DRX mechanism proposed in this application, after a user equipment enters a new DRX cycle, first, a terminal reception function is turned on after a delay frame, and a DRX-onduration timer is turned on, then a User Equipment (UE) performs a CCA check actively at each timeslot, if the CCA check is successful, it indicates that the channel is idle, and the timeslot DRX-onduration timer operates normally, and if the CCA check is failed, it indicates that the channel is busy, the timeslot DRX-onduration timer stops operating, and if no new data frame arrival is detected before the DRX-onduration timer expires, the User Equipment (UE) enters a sleep state after the DRX-onduration timer expires. If a new data frame arrives before the DRX on Duration timer expires, the adaptive DRX and the conventional DRX both start the DRX-InactivityTimer timer, the User Equipment (UE) performs data transmission, and continuously monitor the PDCCH before the DRX-InactivityTimer timer expires, and if a new data frame arrives, the DRX-InactivityTimer timer is restarted until the DRX-InactivityTimer timer expires, and the terminal enters a sleep state.

As can be seen from a comparison between fig. 5 and fig. 6, the present application adaptively delays the time period for which the originally fixed ue starts receiving by changing the working mode of the drx on duration timer. When the User Equipment (UE) is in the state of starting receiving, the User Equipment (UE) executes the idle channel evaluation test in each frame, and then adaptively controls the drx on DurationTimer according to the result of the evaluation test so as to play the role of flexibly adjusting the time for starting receiving of the User Equipment (UE).

Fig. 7 shows a schematic diagram of data transmission of a drx on duration timer according to an embodiment of the present application in different operating modes. In the first DRX period and the second DRX period, the existing working mode and the working mode of the application smoothly complete data transmission.

However, in the third DRX cycle, since the conventional DRX on duration timer adopts a fixed period of time, the ue only monitors the PDCCH for the "on duration", and data after the "on duration" cannot be monitored and transmitted in the current DRX cycle, thereby causing a delay in data transmission. The working mode of the DRX-onDurationTimer timer adopts a flexible self-adaptive mode, under the condition that the result of a clear channel assessment test (CCA) is failed, the timing of the DRX-onDurationTimer timer is suspended, and when the result of the clear channel assessment test (CCA) is successful, the timing of the DRX-onDurationTimer is started, so that the effect of effectively prolonging the 'starting and receiving duration' is achieved, the data to be transmitted can be transmitted in the current DRX period, and the delay of data transmission is avoided.

The working principle of the technical solution of the present application is explained in detail above. Hereinafter, the technical solution of the present application will be further described with reference to experimental data of the present application in an embodiment.

In the simulation experiment of this embodiment, the DRX cycle is set to 160ms, the on duration Ton in the cycle is 20ms, and a Wi-Fi frame is 5 ms; when the packet sending probability of Wi-Fi in each time slot is 0, the situation that the network environment is not busy can be considered, when the existing DRX mechanism is directly used for testing, the system time delay is 61.25ms, and the energy-saving efficiency of the system is 87.5%; when the self-adaptive DRX mechanism provided by the application is used, the system time delay is 61.25ms, and the energy-saving efficiency of the system is 87.5%.

Therefore, when the network environment is not busy, the adaptive DRX mechanism provided by the application can ensure that the average delay of the system is the same as that of the conventional DRX mechanism, and the energy-saving effect is also the same.

When a Wi-Fi system of an unauthorized frequency band is used, the packet sending probability of each time slot is 0.001 (an IEEE802.11ac system, the time slot length is 9 microseconds), the length of each frame is 5ms, which can be regarded as the condition when the network environment is busy, when the existing DRX mechanism is used for testing, the system time delay is 62.9522ms, and the energy-saving efficiency of the system is 87.5%; when the self-adaptive DRX mechanism provided by the application is used, the system delay is 52.3326ms, and the energy-saving efficiency of the system is 80.02%.

Therefore, when the network environment is busy, the average system delay of the conventional DRX mechanism is increased due to poor accessibility of the user terminal, and the adaptive DRX mechanism provided by the application can still ensure that the data frames arriving within the starting duration of the DRX period can be received by the user terminal.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that: all or part of the steps for implementing the above method embodiments may be performed by hardware associated with a computer program. The aforementioned computer program may be stored in a computer readable storage medium. When executed, the program performs steps comprising the method embodiments described above; and the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as ROM, RAM, magnetic or optical disks.

As shown in fig. 8, it is shown that the DRX adaptive configuration apparatus for unlicensed frequency bands in an embodiment of the present application includes a clear channel assessment test module 81 and an adaptive configuration module 82.

The idle channel assessment test module 81 is configured to enable the user equipment to perform an idle channel assessment test on each frame when the user equipment is in an on-receiving state; the adaptive configuration module 82 is configured to enable a time period when the ue is in the on-receiving state to be a preset fixed time period when the result of the idle channel assessment test is successful; and the idle channel assessment module is used for prolonging the time period of the user equipment in the state of starting receiving to a non-fixed time period which enables the user equipment to carry out data transmission based on the Discontinuous Reception (DRX) mode under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure.

In an embodiment, the time period when the ue is in the on-reception state is determined by a drx on duration timer; before the timing of the drx onDurationTimer timer is ended, the UE is in a state of starting reception; and when the drx-onDurationTimer timer is finished, the user equipment is in a state of closing reception.

In one embodiment, the drx on duration timer is preset with a fixed parameter; the fixed parameter is the number of subframes of the common downlink control channel PDCCH which the user equipment needs to monitor in each DRX period.

In an embodiment, the adaptive configuration module 82 causes the drx-onDurationTimer timer to pause and the ue to monitor a PDCCH when the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, and starts the drx-onDurationTimer timer to time when the ue is scheduled to transmit downlink data.

It should be noted that, the DRX adaptive configuration apparatus applicable to the unlicensed frequency band provided in this embodiment is similar to the DRX adaptive configuration method applicable to the unlicensed frequency band provided in the foregoing, and therefore, the detailed description is omitted. It should be noted that the division of the modules of the above apparatus is only a logical division, and the actual implementation may be wholly or partially integrated into one physical entity, or may be physically separated. And these modules can be realized in the form of software called by processing element; or may be implemented entirely in hardware; and part of the modules can be realized in the form of calling software by the processing element, and part of the modules can be realized in the form of hardware. For example, the idle channel assessment test module may be a separately installed processing element, or may be implemented by being integrated into a chip of the apparatus, or may be stored in a memory of the apparatus in the form of program code, and a processing element of the apparatus calls and executes the functions of the idle channel assessment test module. Other modules are implemented similarly. In addition, all or part of the modules can be integrated together or can be independently realized. The processing element described herein may be an integrated circuit having signal processing capabilities. In implementation, each step of the above method or each module above may be implemented by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in a processor element or an instruction in the form of software.

For example, the above modules may be one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the above methods, such as: one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), or one or more microprocessors (DSPs), or one or more Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), among others. For another example, when one of the above modules is implemented in the form of a Processing element scheduler code, the Processing element may be a general-purpose processor, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU) or other processor capable of calling program code. For another example, these modules may be integrated together and implemented in the form of a system-on-a-chip (SOC).

Fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of an electronic terminal according to an embodiment of the present application. This example provides an electronic terminal, includes: a processor 91, a memory 92, a transceiver 93, a communication interface 94, and a system bus 95; the memory 92 and the communication interface 94 are connected to the processor 91 and the transceiver 93 through the system bus 95 to complete communication therebetween, the memory 92 is used for storing computer programs, the communication interface 94 and the transceiver 93 are used for communicating with other devices, and the processor 91 is used for operating the computer programs to enable the electronic terminal to execute the steps of the DRX adaptive configuration method applicable to the unlicensed frequency band.

The above-mentioned system bus may be a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus, an Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, or the like. The system bus may be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, and the like. For ease of illustration, only one thick line is shown, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus. The communication interface is used for realizing communication between the database access device and other equipment (such as a client, a read-write library and a read-only library). The Memory may include a Random Access Memory (RAM), and may further include a non-volatile Memory (non-volatile Memory), such as at least one disk Memory.

The Processor may be a general-purpose Processor, and includes a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a Network Processor (NP), and the like; the Integrated Circuit may also be a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) or other Programmable logic device, a discrete Gate or transistor logic device, or a discrete hardware component.

Fig. 10 shows a flowchart of a DTX adaptive configuration method applied to an unlicensed frequency band in an embodiment of the present application. In this embodiment, the method is applied to a base station, and specifically includes step S101, step S102, and step S103.

In step S101, the base station is made to continuously perform the idle channel assessment test while in the state of turning on transmission.

In step S102, when the idle channel evaluation results are successful, the base station considers that the ue that enables the DRX mechanism in the cell is in the on period, and the period that can receive the PDCCH is a preset fixed period, and if the base station issues the PDCCH to the ue that enables the DRX mechanism, the base station issues the PDCCH in the fixed period.

In step S103, when the result of the idle channel assessment test is partial or complete failure, the base station is made to regard the ue in the cell that activates the DRX mechanism as a time period capable of receiving the PDCCH to extend to a non-fixed time period, so as to meet the requirement of the base station for data transmission in the discontinuous transmission DTX mode, and if the PDCCH is issued to the ue that activates the DRX mechanism, the base station may issue the PDCCH in the non-fixed time period.

It should be noted that, an implementation manner of the DTX adaptive configuration method provided in this embodiment is similar to that of the DRX adaptive configuration method in the foregoing, where the DTX adaptive configuration method is a data transmission method applied to a base station, and the DRX adaptive configuration method is a data reception method applied to a user terminal, and although the two methods are different, the period extension function is also implemented based on changing an operation mode of an onDurationTimer timer.

Fig. 11 shows a schematic diagram of a DTX adaptive configuration apparatus for unlicensed frequency bands according to an embodiment of the present application. The apparatus includes a clear channel assessment test module 111 and an adaptive configuration module 112. The idle channel assessment test module 111 is configured to enable the base station to continuously perform an idle channel assessment test when the base station is in an on-transmission state, and the adaptive configuration module 112 is configured to enable the base station to regard a period in which the user equipment using the DRX mechanism is in the on-transmission state as a preset fixed period within a range of the cell when a result of the idle channel assessment test is successful; and when the result of the idle channel assessment test is partial or total failure, the base station is made to consider that the period in which the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism is in the state of starting transmission in the range of the cell is extended to a non-fixed period, so as to meet the requirement that the base station transmits data in the discontinuous transmission DTX mode.

Similarly, the implementation of the DTX adaptive configuration apparatus applicable to the unlicensed frequency band is similar to that of the DTX adaptive configuration method applicable to the unlicensed frequency band, and therefore, the detailed description thereof is omitted.

Fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of a base station in an embodiment of the present application. The base station includes a processor 1201, memory 1202, transceiver 1203, communication interface 1204, and system bus 1205; the memory 1202 and the communication interface 1204 are connected to the processor 1201 and the transceiver 1203 via the system bus 1205, and are configured to perform mutual communication, the memory 1202 is configured to store a computer program, the communication interface 1204 and the transceiver 1203 are configured to communicate with other devices, and the processor 1201 is configured to execute the computer program, so that the electronic terminal performs the steps of the DTX adaptive configuration method applicable to the unlicensed frequency band as described above.

The present application further provides a communication system suitable for an unlicensed frequency band, which includes at least one base station and at least one user terminal, where the base station transmits data based on a DTX adaptive configuration method, and the user terminal receives data based on a DRX adaptive configuration method.

In summary, the present application provides a method, an apparatus, a terminal, a medium, and a system for adaptive configuration of an unlicensed frequency band, and aims to provide a technical solution that can solve both system latency and system energy saving efficiency, so as to adapt to an unlicensed frequency band scenario. That is, when the channel continues to be occupied by Wi-Fi or other wireless devices during the on-receive duration in the DRX cycle, the on-duration in the DRX cycle is adaptively extended, so that data transmission in the unlicensed band is no longer affected by the LBT mechanism. Therefore, the application effectively overcomes various defects in the prior art and has high industrial utilization value.

The above embodiments are merely illustrative of the principles and utilities of the present application and are not intended to limit the application. Any person skilled in the art can modify or change the above-described embodiments without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Accordingly, it is intended that all equivalent modifications or changes which can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and technical concepts disclosed in the present application shall be covered by the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A DRX self-adaptive configuration method suitable for an unlicensed frequency band is applied to user equipment and comprises the following steps:

enabling the user equipment to continuously execute an idle channel evaluation test when the user equipment is in a receiving starting state;

under the condition that the idle channel evaluation results are successful, enabling the time period of the user equipment in the state of starting receiving to be a preset fixed time period;

under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is partially or totally failed, the time period of the user equipment in the state of starting receiving is prolonged to a non-fixed time period so as to meet the requirement of the user equipment for data receiving in a Discontinuous Reception (DRX) mode; the time period of the user equipment in the state of starting receiving is determined by a drx-onDurationTimer timer; the non-fixed time period means that under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failed, the drx-onDurationTimer is enabled to pause for timing until the result of the idle channel assessment test is successful;

under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, the user equipment estimates that the current channel is in an occupied state, the drx-onDurationTimer is enabled to pause for timing, and the user equipment is enabled to monitor a public downlink control channel PDCCH; if the user equipment is scheduled with downlink data transmission, the user equipment is enabled to use a DRX mechanism under an authorized frequency range to carry out data transmission based on a discontinuous reception DRX mode; and if the UE is not scheduled with downlink data transmission, enabling the UE to perform idle channel assessment test of the next frame until the drx-onDuration timer expires, and enabling the UE to enter a sleep state.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein a time period for which the UE is in an ON reception state is determined by a drx-on Duration timer; before the timing of the drx onDurationTimer timer is ended, the UE is in a state of starting reception; and when the drx-onDurationTimer timer is finished, the user equipment is in a state of closing reception.

3. The method of claim 2, comprising: the drx onDurationTimer timer is preset with a fixed parameter.

4. An apparatus for DRX adaptive configuration for unlicensed frequency bands, comprising:

the idle channel assessment test module is used for enabling the user equipment to continuously execute the idle channel assessment test when the user equipment is in a receiving starting state;

the self-adaptive configuration module is used for enabling the time period of the user equipment in the receiving starting state to be a preset fixed time period under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is successful; and is used for making the period of time that the user equipment is in the state of starting reception extend to the non-fixed period of time under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is partly or totally failed, so as to meet the requirement that the user equipment carries out data reception in the Discontinuous Reception (DRX) mode; the self-adaptive configuration module makes a drx-onDurationTimer timer to pause for timing when the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, and makes the user equipment monitor a PDCCH (physical downlink control channel), and starts the drx-onDurationTimer for timing when the user equipment is scheduled to transmit downlink data; under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, the user equipment estimates that the current channel is in an occupied state, the drx-onDurationTimer is enabled to pause for timing, and the user equipment is enabled to monitor a public downlink control channel PDCCH; if the user equipment is scheduled with downlink data transmission, the user equipment is enabled to use a DRX mechanism under an authorized frequency range to carry out data transmission based on a discontinuous reception DRX mode; and if the UE is not scheduled with downlink data transmission, enabling the UE to perform idle channel assessment test of the next frame until the drx-onDuration timer expires, and enabling the UE to enter a sleep state.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein a time period for which the UE is in an ON reception state is determined by a drx-on Duration timer; before the timing of the drx onDurationTimer timer is ended, the UE is in a state of starting reception; and when the drx-onDurationTimer timer is finished, the user equipment is in a state of closing reception.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein the drx on DurationTimer timer is preset with a fixed parameter.

7. A computer readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, wherein the computer program, when executed by a processor, implements the DRX adaptive configuration method for unlicensed frequency bands according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

8. A user terminal, comprising: a processor, a memory, and a communicator;

the memory is used for storing a computer program;

the communicator is used for being in communication connection with other equipment;

the processor is configured to execute the computer program stored in the memory to enable the user terminal to perform the DRX adaptive configuration method for unlicensed frequency bands according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

9. A DTX adaptive configuration method suitable for an unlicensed frequency band is applied to a base station, and the method comprises the following steps:

enabling the base station to continuously execute an idle channel evaluation test when the base station is in a state of starting transmission;

under the condition that the idle channel evaluation results are successful, enabling the base station to regard the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism in the cell as an opening time period, wherein the time period capable of receiving the PDCCH is a preset fixed time period, and if the PDCCH is issued to the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism, the base station issues the PDCCH in the fixed time period;

under the condition that part or all of the results of the idle channel evaluation test are failed, enabling the base station to regard the user terminal which starts a DRX mechanism in the cell as a user terminal, wherein the period of receiving the PDCCH can be prolonged to a non-fixed period so as to meet the requirement that the base station transmits data in a discontinuous transmission DTX mode; the non-fixed time period means that under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failed, a drx-onDurationTimer timer is enabled to pause for timing until the result of the idle channel assessment test is successful; under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, the user equipment estimates that the current channel is in an occupied state, the drx-onDurationTimer is enabled to pause for timing, and the user equipment is enabled to monitor a public downlink control channel PDCCH; if the user equipment is scheduled with downlink data transmission, the user equipment is enabled to use a DRX mechanism under an authorized frequency range to carry out data transmission based on a discontinuous reception DRX mode; and if the UE is not scheduled with downlink data transmission, enabling the UE to perform idle channel assessment test of the next frame until the drx-onDuration timer expires, and enabling the UE to enter a sleep state.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the base station considers that the time period in which the ue with DRX enabled mechanism in the cell is in the on-transmission state is determined by a DRX-onDurationTimer timer; when the DRX-onDurationTimer timer is timed out, the base station can issue a PDCCH to the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism; and after the timing of the DRX-onDurationTimer is finished, the base station considers that the user starting the DRX mechanism in the cell is in the closed state, so that the PDCCH is not issued to the user terminal starting the DRX mechanism.

11. The method of claim 10, comprising: the drx onDurationTimer timer is preset with a fixed parameter.

12. A DTX adaptive configuration apparatus for an unlicensed frequency band, comprising:

the idle channel assessment test module is used for enabling the base station to continuously execute the idle channel assessment test when the base station is in the state of starting transmission;

the self-adaptive configuration module is used for enabling the base station to consider that the time period of the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism and is in the state of starting transmission in the range of the cell is a preset fixed time period under the condition that the result of the idle channel evaluation test is successful; and is used for making the base station consider that the period of the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism and is in the state of starting transmission in the range of the cell is prolonged to a non-fixed period under the condition that the result of the idle channel evaluation test is partially or totally failed so as to meet the requirement that the base station transmits data in a discontinuous transmission DTX mode; the non-fixed time period means that under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failed, a drx-onDurationTimer timer is enabled to pause for timing until the result of the idle channel assessment test is successful; under the condition that the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, the user equipment estimates that the current channel is in an occupied state, the drx-onDurationTimer is enabled to pause for timing, and the user equipment is enabled to monitor a public downlink control channel PDCCH; if the user equipment is scheduled with downlink data transmission, the user equipment is enabled to use a DRX mechanism under an authorized frequency range to carry out data transmission based on a discontinuous reception DRX mode; and if the UE is not scheduled with downlink data transmission, enabling the UE to perform idle channel assessment test of the next frame until the drx-onDuration timer expires, and enabling the UE to enter a sleep state.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the base station considers that the time period of the DRX enabled ue in the on transmission state is determined by a DRX-on duration timer within the cell; before the timing of the DRX-onDurationTimer is ended, the ue in the cell that activates the DRX mechanism is in an on state; and after the timing of the DRX-onDurationTimer is ended, the user terminal which starts the DRX mechanism in the cell is in a closed state.

14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the drx on duration timer is preset with a fixed parameter.

15. The apparatus of claim 12, comprising:

the adaptive configuration module makes the drx-onDurationTimer timer to pause for timing when the result of the idle channel assessment test is failure, and starts the drx-onDurationTimer for timing when the base station schedules the user equipment for downlink data transmission; when the DRX-onDurationTimer timer is ended and the idle channel assessment test result is successful, if the idle channel assessment test result needs to be sent to the terminal which starts the DRX mechanism, the PDCCH can be sent.

16. A computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored, wherein the computer program, when being executed by a processor, implements the DTX adaptive configuration method for unlicensed frequency bands according to any one of claims 9 to 11.

17. A base station, comprising: a processor, a memory, and a communicator;

the memory is used for storing a computer program;

the processor is configured to execute the computer program stored in the memory to cause the base station to perform the DTX adaptive configuration method for unlicensed frequency bands according to any of claims 9 to 11.

18. A communication system adapted for unlicensed frequency bands, comprising at least one base station according to claim 17 and at least one user terminal according to claim 8.