CN113455100A

CN113455100A - Method and apparatus for relay communication

Info

Publication number: CN113455100A
Application number: CN201980091976.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李晨琬; 于海凤; 吴毅凌; 吴义壮; 李永翠
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-03-29
Filing date: 2019-03-29
Publication date: 2021-09-28
Anticipated expiration: 2039-03-29
Also published as: WO2020199034A1; CN113455100B

Abstract

A method and a device for relaying communication can be applied to communication systems such as V2X, LTE-V, V2V, Internet of vehicles, MTC, IoT, LTE-M, M2M, Internet of things and the like. The method comprises the following steps: the access network device sends third configuration information to the second node, where the third configuration information is used to indicate a bearer configured for the second node and at least one subordinate node, so that the second node as a parent node can send the first configuration information to the first node as a child node. That is to say, the parent node allocates configuration information for establishing the bearers to the child nodes, that is, the bearers are configured in a distributed manner, and the unified configuration through the access network device is not required, so that the superior node is prevented from storing the context of each bearer of each subordinate node, and the signaling overhead is saved.

Description

Method and apparatus for relay communication

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications, and in particular, to a method and an apparatus for relaying communications.

Background

In a conventional scheme, in a multi-hop network scenario, an access network device sends configuration information to each relay node or terminal, where the configuration information is used to instruct the relay node or terminal to establish a bearer with a respective upper node or lower node. Each relay node holds bearer information of each bearer of each terminal, thereby guaranteeing quality of service (QoS) of data.

The relay node in the conventional scheme is usually an access network device, and along with the requirement of service characteristics, the relay node may be a terminal at present, that is, the terminal also has a relay function. However, in a scenario where the terminal has a relay function and is combined with the above conventional scheme, the signaling overhead of the bearer configuration is relatively large.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a method and a device for relay communication, which can save signaling overhead.

In a first aspect, a method for relaying communication is provided, the method including a first node receiving first configuration information from a second node, the first configuration information being used for configuring a bearer between the first node and the second node, the second node being used for providing a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device; the first node establishes at least one bearer with the second node according to the first configuration information.

The second node, which is a parent node, may transmit the first configuration information to the first node, which is a child node. Thus, the father node distributes the configuration information for establishing the load to the child nodes, namely the distributed configuration load is distributed, the unified configuration through the access network equipment is not needed, the superior node is prevented from storing the context of each load of each subordinate node, and the signaling cost is saved.

In some possible implementations, the method further includes: the first node determines a first bearer of the at least one bearer according to the QoS (quality of service) information of the first data; the first node sends the first data to the second node through the first bearer.

The first data received by the first node from the terminal may include QoS information, or the first node may determine the QoS information of the first data according to the first data, so that the first node selects a first bearer from a plurality of bearers already established between the first node and the second node according to the QoS information, and transmits the first data through the selected first bearer, thereby improving communication efficiency.

In some possible implementations, the first data includes time information, and the time information is used to indicate an initial sending time of the first data or a time duration that the first data is currently transmitted, where the determining, by the first node, the first bearer of the at least one bearer according to the QoS information of the first data includes: the first node determines the first bearer according to the QoS information of the first data and the time information.

The time information may be a sending time of the initial sending of the first data, for example, a time when the first data enters the network, so that the first node may know, according to the time information, a duration that the first data is currently transmitted and has already occupied. The first node may also obtain the total duration of the first data transmission requirement according to the QoS information of the first data. Therefore, the first node can select a more proper bearer to transmit the first data according to the total duration of the first data transmission requirement and the duration occupied by the first data, and further improve the communication efficiency.

In some possible implementations, the time information is carried in a field in the adaptation layer.

In the case where the first node is a node with relay capability, for example, when the first node transmits uplink data to the second node, the time information in the uplink data may be added in the adaptation layer. Specifically, for uplink transmission, for a relay node of a directly connected terminal, time information is added to the relay node on an adaptation layer. If the time information is the initial time, after the directly-connected relay nodes are added, the other nodes directly forward the time information until the time information is transmitted to the access network equipment, and if the time information is the used time length, each relay receiving the data needs to update the used time length on an adaptation layer; or the time information of the downlink data can be added in the adaptation layer. When the access network equipment sends data to the relay node, the time information is added to the adaptation layer, if the time is the initial data sending time, the subsequent node directly forwards the value, and if the time is the duration information, the value needs to be updated. Namely, the embodiment of the application provides a method for sending time information.

In some possible implementations, the first node is a terminal, and the time information is carried in a medium access control element, MAC CE, in the first data.

The first data may be regarded as a data packet, the data packet includes a control field and a data field, the control field may be a MAC CE, and the data field may indicate specific content of the data. That is, in the case that the first node is a terminal, the embodiment of the present application provides another way to send time information.

In some possible implementations, the time information may also be carried in a PDCP header or an RLC header, and this embodiment provides various other ways to send the time information.

In some possible implementations, the first data includes one or more time information and corresponding one or more traffic data.

The first data may include a plurality of types of service data, each type of service data corresponding to one time information. Therefore, the proper bearer can be configured for the first data more accurately, and the communication efficiency is further improved.

In some possible implementation manners, the multiple pieces of time information in the first data may be carried in corresponding multiple MAC CEs, and the multiple MAC CEs may be carried after the same MAC frame header or may be carried after one MAC frame header respectively. That is to say, the embodiments of the present application provide a plurality of formats of the MAC CE, and the MAC CE carries the time information, so that a more accurate selection of a suitable bearer for communication is achieved, and the communication efficiency is improved.

In some possible implementations, the method further includes: the first node sends second configuration information to the first terminal, and the second configuration information is used for configuring the load bearing between the first node and the first terminal.

In the case where the first node is a node having a relay function, the first node may also transmit configuration information to the subordinate node as a parent node to configure a bearer between the first node and the subordinate node. In this way, the bearers are configured in a distributed manner, and the condition that the upper node stores the context of each bearer of each lower node is avoided without uniformly configuring the bearers through the access network equipment, so that the signaling overhead is saved.

In some possible implementations, the first configuration information includes at least one of a bearer identification, a packet data convergence protocol, PDCP, configuration, a radio link control, RLC, configuration, or a logical channel configuration.

In some possible implementations, before the first node receives the first configuration information from the second node, the method further includes: the first node sends a configuration request to the second node, wherein the configuration request is used for requesting the configuration of the load bearing between the first node and the second node.

The first node can send the configuration request to the second node under the condition that the first node has the bearing requirement so as to request the first node to configure the bearing for the second node, thereby avoiding that the second node sends the first configuration information to the first node under the condition that the first node has no bearing requirement, and saving the power consumption expense.

In some possible implementations, the first node is a terminal or a relay node.

In some possible implementations, if the second node rejects to receive the third configuration information, sending, to the access network device, indication information indicating that the configuration fails, specifically, the indication information may include a bearer identifier indicating that the bearer configuration fails, so as to indicate which bearer configuration fails.

In a second aspect, a method for relaying communication is provided, the method comprising: a second node acquires first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information is used for configuring a bearer between a first node and the second node, and the second node is used for providing a relay communication service between the first node and access network equipment; the second node sends the first configuration information to the first node.

In some possible implementations, the method further includes: the second node receiving third configuration information, the third configuration information being used for configuring a bearer between the second node and at least one subordinate node of the second node; wherein the second node acquiring the first configuration information comprises: and the second node generates the first configuration information according to the third configuration information.

In some possible implementations, the third configuration information includes at least one of quality of service QoS information, bearer identification, PDCP configuration, RLC configuration, or logical channel configuration.

The third configuration information includes QoS information, and the second node determines a corresponding RLC configuration and/or logical channel configuration according to the QoS information, and carries the RLC configuration and/or logical channel configuration in the first configuration information. In other words, the second node may configure a bearer corresponding to the QoS information for the first node according to the QoS information, so that the first node can transmit in the corresponding bearer according to the QoS information of the data, thereby improving the communication quality.

In some possible implementations, the first configuration information includes at least one of a bearer identification, a PDCP configuration, an RLC configuration, or a logical channel configuration.

In some possible implementations, the determining, by the access network device, the third configuration information includes: the access network device determines the first configuration information under the condition that it is determined that no bearer between the first node and the second node corresponds to a second bearer, where the second bearer is a bearer between the first node and a first terminal.

The terminal is a child node of the first node, and one or more second bearers may exist between the terminal and the first node. The first node is a child node of the second node, and one or more first bearers may exist between the first node and the second node. When data is sent from a terminal to an access network device, the terminal can use a target second bearer corresponding to the data to send to a first node, the first node has QoS information corresponding to the target second bearer, and the first node can add corresponding QoS information to the data for subsequent nodes to perform bearer mapping after receiving the data. Meanwhile, the first node can select a proper target first bearer according to the QoS information of the data and send the first bearer to the second node. In other words, the bearer between the first node and the terminal, and the bearer between the first node and the second node (which may be referred to as a neighboring link) may correspond to the same QoS information or similar QoS, and data having the QoS information may be caused to be transmitted from the terminal to the second node. Since the access network device can know the bearer information of each node and the lower node corresponding to the node, the access network device can know whether a corresponding bearer exists between adjacent links to determine whether to send the third configuration information to the corresponding node. In the embodiment of the present application, the access network device can configure a bearer for the first node in time, so as to improve communication efficiency.

In some possible implementations, in a case that the first node is a node with relay capability, the access network device may detect, in a process of establishing a bearer (e.g., a target second bearer) for the first node and a lower node (e.g., a terminal) of the first node, whether a bearer corresponding to the target second bearer exists in the bearer between the first node and the second node, avoid specially configuring the first configuration information, and save signaling overhead.

In some possible implementation manners, when the second node is a terminal, the third configuration information is carried in fourth configuration information, and the fourth configuration information is used to configure that the second node has relay capability.

The access network device may configure the second node as the relay node, for example, when sending the second configuration information for configuring that the second node has the relay capability to the second node, avoid specially configuring the first configuration information by using the fourth configuration information to carry the first configuration information, and save signaling overhead.

In some possible implementations, the second node sends the first configuration information after receiving the configuration request sent by the first node.

The first node may send a configuration request to the second node in case of bearer requirement, so as to request the first node to configure a bearer for the second node, thereby saving signaling overhead.

Optionally, the first node is a terminal or a relay node.

In a third aspect, a method for relaying communication is provided, the method comprising: the access network equipment determines third configuration information, wherein the third configuration information is used for configuring a bearer between the second node and at least one lower node of the second node; the access network device sends the third configuration information to the second node.

In some possible implementations, the method further includes: the access network equipment sends first configuration information to the first node, wherein the first configuration information is used for configuring a bearer between the first node and the second node, and the second node is used for providing a relay communication service between the first node and the access network equipment; the access network device sends the first configuration information to the second node.

In a case where the first node receives the first configuration information from the access network device, the access network device may also send the first configuration information to the second node, so that a parent node (second node) of the first node can know the bearer of the child node, that is, the second node can know the bearer configuration with the subordinate node, thereby improving communication efficiency.

Optionally, the first node is a terminal or a relay node.

In a fourth aspect, an apparatus is provided, which may be an access network device or a chip within the access network device. The apparatus has the functionality to implement the first aspect described above, as well as various possible implementations. The function can be realized by hardware, and can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the functions described above.

In one possible design, the apparatus includes: the device further comprises a processing module, the transceiver module may be at least one of a transceiver, a receiver, and a transmitter, and the receiving module and the transmitting module may include a radio frequency circuit or an antenna. The processing module may be a processor. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a storage module, which may be a memory, for example. When included, the memory module is used to store instructions. The processing module is connected with the storage module, and the processing module can execute the instructions stored in the storage module or other instructions from other sources, so as to enable the apparatus to execute the communication method of the first aspect and various possible implementations. In this design, the apparatus may be an access network device.

In another possible design, when the device is a chip, the chip includes: a receiving module and a sending module, optionally, the apparatus further includes a processing module, and the receiving module and the sending module may be, for example, an input/output interface, a pin, a circuit, or the like on the chip. The processing module may be, for example, a processor. The processing module may execute instructions to cause a chip within the terminal to perform the first aspect described above, and any possible implemented communication method. Alternatively, the processing module may execute instructions in a memory module, which may be an on-chip memory module, such as a register, a cache, and the like. The memory module may also be located within the communication device, but outside the chip, such as a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static memory devices that may store static information and instructions, a Random Access Memory (RAM), and so on.

The processor mentioned in any of the above may be a general-purpose Central Processing Unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of programs of the communication methods in the above aspects.

In a fifth aspect, an apparatus for determining transmission resources is provided, where the apparatus may be a terminal or a chip within the terminal. The apparatus has the functionality to implement the second aspect described above, as well as various possible implementations. The function can be realized by hardware, and can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the functions described above.

In one possible design, the apparatus includes: the device comprises a receiving module and a sending module. Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a processing module. The receiving module and the transmitting module may be at least one of a transceiver, a receiver, and a transmitter, for example, and the receiving and transmitting module may include a radio frequency circuit or an antenna. The processing module may be a processor.

Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a storage module, which may be a memory, for example. When included, the memory module is used to store instructions. The processing module is connected to the storage module, and the processing module can execute the instructions stored in the storage module or the instructions from other sources, so as to cause the apparatus to perform the method of the second aspect or any one of the above aspects.

In another possible design, when the device is a chip, the chip includes: the chip comprises a receiving module and a sending module, and optionally, the chip further comprises a processing module. The receiving module and the transmitting module may be, for example, input/output interfaces, pins or circuits, etc. on the chip. The processing module may be, for example, a processor. The processing module may execute instructions to cause a chip within the terminal to perform the second aspect described above, and the communication method of any possible implementation.

Alternatively, the processing module may execute instructions in a memory module, which may be an on-chip memory module, such as a register, a cache, and the like. The memory module may also be located within the communication device, but outside the chip, such as a read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static memory devices that may store static information and instructions, a Random Access Memory (RAM), and so on.

In a sixth aspect, an apparatus for determining transmission resources is provided, where the apparatus may be a terminal or a chip in the terminal. The apparatus has the functionality to implement the third aspect described above, and various possible implementations. The function can be realized by hardware, and can also be realized by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the functions described above.

Optionally, the apparatus further comprises a storage module, which may be a memory, for example. When included, the memory module is used to store instructions. The processing module is connected to the storage module, and the processing module can execute the instructions stored in the storage module or the instructions from other sources, so as to cause the apparatus to execute the third aspect or the method of any one of the above aspects.

In another possible design, when the device is a chip, the chip includes: the chip comprises a receiving module and a sending module, and optionally, the chip further comprises a processing module. The receiving module and the transmitting module may be, for example, input/output interfaces, pins or circuits, etc. on the chip. The processing module may be, for example, a processor. The processing module may execute instructions to cause a chip within the terminal to perform the third aspect described above, and the communication method of any possible implementation.

In a seventh aspect, a computer storage medium is provided, in which program code is stored, the program code being used for instructing to execute the instructions of the method in the first aspect and any possible implementation manner thereof.

In an eighth aspect, there is provided a computer storage medium having stored therein program code for instructing execution of instructions of the method of the second aspect, and any possible implementation thereof.

In a ninth aspect, there is provided a computer storage medium having stored therein program code for instructing execution of the instructions of the method of the third aspect, and any possible implementation thereof.

A tenth aspect provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of the first aspect described above, or any possible implementation thereof.

In an eleventh aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of the second aspect described above, or any possible implementation thereof.

In a twelfth aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of the third aspect described above, or any possible implementation thereof.

In a thirteenth aspect, a communication system is provided, which comprises means for implementing the methods and various possible designs of the first aspect, means for implementing the methods and various possible designs of the second aspect, and means for implementing the methods and various possible designs of the third aspect. The apparatus having the functions of implementing the methods and various possible designs of the first aspect may be an access network device, and the apparatus having the functions of implementing the methods and various possible designs of the second and third aspects may be a terminal.

In a fourteenth aspect, a processor is provided, coupled to a memory, for performing the method of the first aspect or any possible implementation manner thereof.

In a fifteenth aspect, a processor is provided, coupled to a memory, for performing the method of the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

In a sixteenth aspect, there is provided a processor, coupled to a memory, for performing the method of the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

In a seventeenth aspect, a chip is provided, where the chip includes a processor and a communication interface, where the communication interface is used to communicate with an external device or an internal device, and the processor is used to implement the method in any one of the above first aspects or any possible implementation manner thereof.

Optionally, the chip may further include a memory having instructions stored therein, and the processor may be configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory or derived from other instructions. When executed, the instructions are for implementing a method of the first aspect described above, or any possible implementation thereof.

Alternatively, the chip may be integrated on the access network device.

In an eighteenth aspect, there is provided a chip comprising a processor and a communication interface for communicating with an external device or an internal device, the processor being configured to implement the method of the second aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

Optionally, the chip may further include a memory having instructions stored therein, and the processor may be configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory or derived from other instructions. When executed, the instructions are for implementing the method of the second aspect described above, or any possible implementation thereof.

Alternatively, the chip may be integrated on the terminal.

In a nineteenth aspect, there is provided a chip comprising a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface being configured to communicate with an external device or an internal device, the processor being configured to implement the method of the third aspect or any possible implementation thereof.

Optionally, the chip may further include a memory having instructions stored therein, and the processor may be configured to execute the instructions stored in the memory or derived from other instructions. When executed, the instructions are for implementing the method of the third aspect, or any possible implementation thereof.

Alternatively, the chip may be integrated on the terminal.

Based on the above technical solution, the second node as a parent node may send the first configuration information to the first node as a child node. Thus, the father node distributes the configuration information for establishing the load to the child nodes, namely the distributed configuration load is distributed, the unified configuration through the access network equipment is not needed, the superior node is prevented from storing the context of each load of each subordinate node, and the signaling cost is saved.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic flow chart diagram of a method of relaying communications in one embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of a MAC frame in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of a MAC frame header in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a MAC CE of a MAC frame according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a diagram of another MAC CE of the MAC frame according to the embodiment of the present application

FIG. 7 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for relaying communications in accordance with a specific embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to another embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a schematic configuration diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to another embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a schematic block diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to another embodiment of the present application;

fig. 12 is a schematic configuration diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to another embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus for relaying communications according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 14 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to another embodiment of the present application;

fig. 15 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to another embodiment of the present application;

fig. 16 is a schematic diagram of an apparatus for relaying communication according to another embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The technical solution in the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The technical scheme of the embodiment of the application can be applied to various communication systems, for example: a Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) System, a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) System, a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) System, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), a Long Term Evolution (Long Term Evolution, LTE) System, an LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) System, an LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) System, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), a world wide Microwave Access (WiMAX) communication System, a future fifth Generation (5G) System, a device to device (2, 3583), a New Radio Access (NR-2, X), a Radio Access (NR-2, 84), V2V), car networking, machine-type communications (MTC), internet of things (IoT), LTE-M, machine to machines (M2M), internet of things, and so on.

Terminal equipment in the embodiments of the present application may refer to user equipment, access terminals, subscriber units, subscriber stations, mobile stations, remote terminals, mobile devices, user terminals, wireless communication devices, user agents, or user devices. The terminal device may also be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device with Wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a Wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a terminal device in a future 5G Network or a terminal device in a future evolved Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN), and the like, which are not limited in this embodiment.

The Access Network device in this embodiment may be a device for communicating with a terminal device, where the Access Network device may be a Base Transceiver Station (BTS) in a Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) System or a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) System, may also be a Base Station (NodeB, NB) in a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) System, may also be an evolved node b (eNB, or eNodeB) in an LTE System, may also be a wireless controller in a Cloud Radio Access Network (CRAN) scenario, or may be a relay Station, an Access point, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, an Access Network device in a future 5G Network, an Access Network device in a future evolved PLMN Network, and the like, and the embodiment of the present invention is not limited.

In NR, the function of a base station is divided into two parts, called Centralized Unit (CU) -Distributed Unit (DU) separation. From the perspective of the protocol stack, the CU includes an RRC layer and a PDCP layer of the LTE base station, and the DU includes a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, a Medium Access Control (MAC) layer, and a Physical (PHY) layer of the LTE base station. In a common 5G base station deployment, the CU and the DU can be physically connected by optical fibers, and there is logically a specially defined F1 interface for communication between the CU and the DU. From the functional point of view, the CU is mainly responsible for radio resource control and configuration, cross-cell mobility management, bearer management, and the like. The DU is mainly responsible for scheduling, physical signal generation and transmission.

The relay node in the embodiment of the present application may be a relay base station, such as a micro base station. The relay node may also be a terminal device providing a relay function. The relay node may also be a network entity such as a relay transceiver node, a user equipment (CPE), a relay transceiver, a relay agent, a Relay Node (RN), a Transmission and Reception Point (TRP), or a relay TRP. In specific implementation, the relay nodes may be distributed at the edge of the cell, and the coverage area of the network device may be expanded.

In addition, various aspects or features of the present application may be implemented as a method, apparatus, or article of manufacture using standard programming and/or engineering techniques. The term "article of manufacture" as used herein is intended to encompass a computer program accessible from any computer-readable device, carrier, or media. For example, computer-readable media can include but are not limited to magnetic storage devices (e.g., hard disk, floppy disk, magnetic strips, etc.), optical disks (e.g., Compact Disk (CD), Digital Versatile Disk (DVD), etc.), smart cards, and flash memory devices (e.g., erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), card, stick, or key drive, etc.). In addition, various storage media described herein can represent one or more devices and/or other machine-readable media for storing information. The term "machine-readable medium" can include, without being limited to, wireless channels and various other media capable of storing, containing, and/or carrying instruction(s) and/or data.

The terms referred to in this application are described below:

backhaul (BH) link:

the relay communication system comprises access network equipment, a relay node and a terminal. Here, a link between the access network device and the relay device may be referred to as a BH link, and a link between the relay device and the terminal device may be referred to as an "Access (AC) link". The access link includes an uplink access link and a downlink access link. The uplink access link is also referred to as uplink transmission of the access link, and the downlink access link is also referred to as downlink transmission of the access link. Furthermore, the link between two relay nodes may also be referred to as a "backhaul link".

It should be understood that the communication system according to the embodiment of the present application does not limit the number of relay nodes, and for example, the communication system may include 4 or 5 relay nodes.

It should also be understood that the present application does not limit the names of the links between the access network device and the relay node, between two relay nodes, and between the relay node and the terminal.

QoS：

QoS refers to a network that can provide better service capability for a given network communication using various basic technologies, and is a security mechanism of the network, which is a technology for solving the problems of network delay and congestion.

QoS class identifier (QoS class identifier, QCI):

QCI is a scale value used to measure packet forwarding behavior, such as packet loss rate and packet delay budget. It is applied to Guaranteed Bit Rate (GBR) and Non-GBR bearers simultaneously, and is used to specify the control bearer level packet forwarding modes (such as scheduling weight, admission threshold, queue management threshold, link layer protocol configuration, etc.) defined in the access node, which are all configured in advance by the operator into the access network device.

Guaranteed Bit Rate (GBR):

by GBR, it is meant that the bit rate required by the bearer is allocated by the network "permanently" and constantly, and the corresponding bit rate is maintained even in the presence of a shortage of network resources. The Maximum Bit Rate (MBR) parameter defines the upper rate limit that a GBR bearer can reach under the condition of sufficient resources. The value of MBR must be greater than or equal to the value of GBR. In contrast, Non-GBR refers to the requirement that traffic (or bearers) should be subjected to a reduced rate in the case of network congestion, and can be established for a long time since Non-GBR bearers do not need to occupy fixed network resources. Whereas GBR bearers are typically established only when needed.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system of the present application. In the wireless communication system 100, the relay node 103 may be configured to provide a relay service for the at least one terminal 105 and the access network device 101. The number of the relay nodes 103 may be one, or may be multiple, that is, multiple relay nodes simultaneously provide relay services for the first terminal device and the access network device. Or a plurality of relay nodes, provide relay services for the access network device, for example, the access network device 101 needs to communicate with the terminal 105 through the relay nodes 103 and 107.

It should be noted that the wireless communication system 100 shown in fig. 1 is only for more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the present application, and does not constitute a limitation to the present application, and as a person having ordinary skill in the art knows, the technical solution provided in the present application is also applicable to similar technical problems as the network architecture evolves and new service scenarios emerge.

Alternatively, the relay node may be a terminal type node. In this way, communication between the relay node 103 and the relay node 107, and between the relay node 107 and the terminal 105 can be performed through a side link (also referred to as PC5 port).

In a conventional scheme, in a multi-hop network scenario, an access network device sends configuration information to each relay node or terminal, where the configuration information is used to instruct the relay node or terminal to establish a bearer with a respective upper node or lower node. The relay node in the conventional scheme is usually an access network device, and along with the requirement of service characteristics, the relay node may be a terminal device at present, that is, the terminal also has a relay function. However, in a scenario where the terminal has a relay function and is combined with the above conventional scheme, the signaling overhead of the bearer configuration is relatively large.

Fig. 2 shows a schematic flowchart of a method of relaying communication according to an embodiment of the present application.

The access network device determines 201 third configuration information for configuring a bearer between the second node and the at least one subordinate node.

Specifically, the access network device may cause the second node to configure a bearer for the second node to communicate with the lower node through the third configuration information. The bearer between the second node and a certain subordinate node may be a path for the subordinate node and the second node to communicate.

It should be understood that the lower node of the second node may be one or more.

In one embodiment, step 201 may be that the access network device receives the third configuration information from the core network device. Accordingly, the core network device sends the third configuration information to the access network device. That is, the third configuration information may be triggered by the core network device.

It should be understood that the access network device may not parse the third configuration information, i.e., pass through the third configuration information.

In another embodiment, the access network device may generate the third configuration information. That is, the access network device may trigger generation of the third configuration information itself.

Optionally, the third configuration information comprises QoS information.

In particular, the QoS information may be used to indicate the communication quality of the data demand.

Optionally, the QoS information includes at least one of Allocation and Retention Priority (ARP), GBR, Maximum Bit Rate (MBR), maximum aggregation bit rate (APN) per Access Point (APN), AMBR, communication quality Identifier (5G QoS Identifier, 5QI), QCI, reflective QoS attribute (data RQA), Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) configuration in a data bearer (DRB) configuration.

202, the access network device sends the third configuration information to the second node. Accordingly, the second node receives the third configuration information sent by the access network device.

Specifically, the access network device may send the third configuration information to the second node after receiving the third configuration information.

Optionally, the second node may be a terminal having a relay function, a relay node, or an Integrated Access Backhaul (IAB) node.

Optionally, if the second node rejects to receive the third configuration information, sending, to the access network device, indication information indicating that the configuration fails, specifically, the indication information may include a bearer identifier indicating that the bearer configuration fails, so as to indicate which bearer configuration fails.

It should be understood that the bearer identities for which the bearer configuration fails may be represented by a list.

It should be noted that the third configuration information sent by the access network device to the second node may also be referred to as a radio bearer setup request (radio bearer setup request-IAB).

In one embodiment, the access network device may send the first configuration information to the second node on the condition that it is determined that no bearer between the first node and the second node corresponds to a second bearer, where the second bearer is a bearer between the first node and a terminal, and the terminal is a child node of the first node.

Specifically, the terminal is a child node of the first node, and one or more second bearers may exist between the terminal and the first node. The first node is a child node of the second node, and one or more first bearers may exist between the first node and the second node. When data is sent from a terminal to an access network device, the terminal can use a target second bearer corresponding to the data to send to a first node, the first node has QoS information corresponding to the target second bearer, and the first node can add corresponding QoS information to the data for subsequent nodes to perform bearer mapping after receiving the data. Meanwhile, the first node can select a proper target first bearer according to the QoS information of the data and send the first bearer to the second node. In other words, the bearer between the first node and the terminal, and the bearer between the first node and the second node (which may be referred to as a neighboring link) may correspond to the same QoS information or similar QoS, and data having the QoS information may be caused to be transmitted from the terminal to the second node. Since the access network device can know the bearer information of each node and the lower node corresponding to the node, the access network device can know whether a corresponding bearer exists between adjacent links to determine whether to send the third configuration information to the corresponding node. By the above way of mapping qos and bearers, bearer-related configuration does not need to be established at each node for each bearer of each UE, but data of different qos of the UE is mapped to bearers between different nodes by using the existing relationship between the bearers and the qos between every two nodes, so that signaling overhead for configuring the bearers and the storage capacity of each relay node are greatly reduced, and complexity is reduced.

Optionally, the third configuration information may specifically include QoS information corresponding to the target first bearer, so that the second node establishes the target first bearer between the second node and the first node according to the QoS information.

For example, as shown in fig. 1, the first node may be a relay node 107, the second node may be a relay node 103, and the terminal may be a node 105, so that if the access network device 101 determines that no bearer exists between the relay node 103 and the relay node 107 and corresponds to the target second bearer between the node 105 and the relay node 107, the access network device 101 sends configuration information to the relay node 103, so that the relay node 103 configures the target first bearer for the relay node 107.

Optionally, in a case that the first node is a node with relay capability, the access network device may detect whether a bearer corresponding to a target second bearer exists in a bearer between the first node and the second node in a process of establishing a bearer (e.g., the target second bearer) between the first node and a lower node (e.g., a terminal) of the first node.

It should be noted that, during the process of establishing a bearer (e.g., a target second bearer) for the first node and a lower node (e.g., a terminal) of the first node, the access network device may also detect whether a bearer corresponding to the target second bearer exists between the second node and the access network device. For example, the target second bearer has a corresponding relationship with the target QoS information, and the access network device may determine whether a bearer corresponding to the second bearer exists between the second node and the access network device according to whether a bearer corresponding to the target QoS information exists between the second node and the access network device.

In another embodiment, the first configuration information may be carried in fourth configuration information, which is used to configure the second node to have relay capability.

Specifically, the access network device may configure the second node as the relay node, for example, when fourth configuration information for configuring that the second node has the relay capability is sent to the second node, the fourth configuration information carries the first configuration information, so that the first configuration information is prevented from being specially configured, and signaling overhead is saved.

Optionally, after the terminal is configured to start the relay function or serve as a relay node, a bearer between the second node and the access network device may be configured for the second node. For example, if only the first bearer exists before the configuration, at least one bearer may be reconfigured, for example, different bearers may be configured according to different QCI values according to the QCI, the second bearer is configured corresponding to the QCI of 1, the third bearer is configured corresponding to the QCI of 2, and the like. Of course, different bearers may be configured according to ARP, GBR, etc., or a combination of these different qos parameters. Of course, this configuration is also applicable to the access network device configuring the bearer between the second node and its child node. In this way, multiple bearers can be established at one time, and the situation that no bearers which can be mapped exist during data transmission is avoided.

Alternatively, if the second node is directly connected to the access network device (that is, the access network device is a parent node of the second node), in a case that the access network device configures a bearer between the second node and the access network device for the second node, the access network device may directly send, to the second node, configuration information indicating the bearer between the second node and the access network device.

203, the second node generates the first configuration information according to the third configuration information, where the first configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the first node and the second node, and the second node is used to provide a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device.

Specifically, the second node may generate, according to the third configuration information configured by the access network device, first configuration information for configuring a bearer with the first node.

Optionally, the third configuration information includes QoS information, and step 203 may specifically be that the second node determines, according to the QoS information, a corresponding RLC configuration and/or logical channel configuration, and carries the RLC configuration and/or logical channel configuration in the first configuration information. In other words, the second node may configure a bearer corresponding to the QoS information for the first node according to the QoS information, so that the first node can transmit in the corresponding bearer according to the QoS information of the data, thereby improving the communication quality.

Optionally, the third configuration information may further include at least one of a bearer Identity (ID), a PDCP configuration, a Radio Link Control (RLC) configuration, or a logical channel configuration, and thus the first configuration information includes at least one of the bearer identity, the PDCP configuration, the RLC configuration, or the logical channel configuration. Wherein the RLC configuration or logical channel configuration may also be configured for the relay according to the qos received.

Optionally, the first configuration information may further include QoS information for indicating QoS of the corresponding established bearer. At this time, the method can be used for the base station to generate a scenario of the third configuration information, which is used for configuring bearers between nodes at each level and enabling each node to clearly correspond to the qos information of the bearers.

It should be noted that the RLC configuration or the logical channel configuration in the third configuration information may be the same as or different from the RLC configuration or the logical channel configuration of the first configuration information; the bearer identifier and the PDCP configuration in the third configuration information may be the same as the bearer identifier and the PDCP configuration in the first configuration information, which is not limited in this application.

It should be further noted that the bearer in the embodiment of the present application may be an Evolved Packet System (EPS) bearer (bearer), or may also be a Data Radio Bearer (DRB). Accordingly, the bearer identification may be an EPS bearer ID, or a DRB bearer ID.

204, the second node sends the first configuration information to the first node. Accordingly, the first node receives the first configuration information sent by the second node.

Specifically, the second node as a parent node may transmit the first configuration information to the first node as a child node. In this way, the parent node distributes the configuration information for establishing the bearer to the child node, that is, the bearer is configured in a distributed manner, and the unified configuration through the access network device is not needed, so that the superior node is prevented from storing the context of each bearer of each subordinate node (the subordinate node of the first node or the subordinate nodes and the like), and the signaling overhead is saved.

It should be understood that the first configuration information may also be referred to as Radio Resource Control (RRC) reconfiguration information (reconfig-IAB).

Alternatively, this step 204 may be performed by the second node after completing step 203.

Optionally, this step 204 may be performed by the second node after receiving the configuration request sent by the first node.

Specifically, the first node may send a configuration request to the second node when there is a bearer requirement, so as to request the first node to configure a bearer for the second node. For example, when a first node establishes a certain bearer (e.g., a first bearer) with a subordinate terminal, the first node detects that there is no corresponding second bearer, where the second bearer may be a bearer between the first node and a second node, and the first node may send the configuration information to the second node. That is, when there is no data received by the first node or the bearer between the first node and the child node between the first node and the second node, the QoS for data transmission is matched with the QoS for the active request.

Optionally, the configuration request may include QoS information, and the first node may configure a corresponding bearer for the second node according to the QoS information included in the configuration request.

Optionally, the first node may be a terminal having a relay function, or may be a common terminal, or may be a relay node, or an Integrated Access Backhaul (IAB) node.

It should be noted that the node with the relay function may be a terminal with the relay function, that is, the first node may be a terminal.

It should also be noted that the third configuration information may not include the RLC configuration or the logical channel configuration, that is, the third configuration information includes the bearer identity and the PDCP configuration.

Optionally, after determining that the first node completes the bearer configuration, the second node may send feedback information to the access network device to indicate that the first node completes the configuration. This feedback information may be referred to as radio bearer setup response information (radio bearer setup response-IAB). If the bearing is not successfully established, returning the bearing identification which is failed to be established.

Optionally, the first configuration information received by the first node may also be sent by the access network device. In this case, the present embodiment may not perform the above steps 201 and 204.

Specifically, the access network device may directly send the first configuration information to the first node, or may forward the first configuration information to the first node by another relay node, which is not limited in this application. Or the second node forwards the first configuration information, but the second node does not resolve the first configuration information, i.e. the second node transparently transmits the first configuration information. In a case where the first node receives the first configuration information from the access network device, the access network device may also send the first configuration information to the second node, so that a parent node (second node) of the first node can know the bearer of the child node, that is, the second node can know the bearer configuration with the subordinate node, thereby improving communication efficiency.

It should be understood that, the present application does not limit the order in which the access network device sends the first configuration information to the first node and sends the first configuration information to the second node.

205, the first node establishes at least one bearer with the second node according to the first configuration information.

Specifically, the access network device sends third configuration information to the second node, where the third configuration information is used to indicate bearers configured for the second node and at least one subordinate node, so that the second node as a parent node can send the first configuration information to the first node as a child node. That is to say, the parent node allocates configuration information for establishing the bearers to the child nodes, that is, the bearers are configured in a distributed manner, and the unified configuration through the access network device is not required, so that the superior node is prevented from storing the context of each bearer of each subordinate node, and the signaling overhead is saved.

Optionally, when the first node is a node with a relay function, the first node may further send second configuration information to the terminal, where the second configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the first node and the terminal.

Specifically, in the case that the first node is a node having a relay function, the first node may also serve as a parent node to transmit configuration information to the subordinate node to configure a bearer between the first node and the subordinate node. In this way, the bearers are configured in a distributed manner, and the condition that the upper node stores the context of each bearer of each lower node is avoided without uniformly configuring the bearers through the access network equipment, so that the signaling overhead is saved. The first node may send a bearer configuration request before configuring the child node.

Optionally, before the first node serving as the parent node sends the configuration information to the subordinate node, the first node may obtain the configuration information from the access network device, where the configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the first node and at least one of the subordinate nodes.

Optionally, after step 205, the first node may send feedback information to the second node, where the feedback information is used to indicate that the bearer configuration is completed.

It should be understood that the feedback information may be carried in an RRC configuration complete message (RRC reconfiguration compound).

Optionally, after step 205, the first node may receive data from a lower node (e.g., a terminal) and select a suitable bearer for transmission according to QoS information of the data. Accordingly, the terminal transmits the data.

Specifically, the following embodiments take the first data as an example, where the first data received by the first node from the terminal may include QoS information, or the first node may determine the QoS information of the first data according to a bearer used by the first data, so that the first node selects a first bearer from multiple bearers already established between the first node and the second node according to the QoS information, and sends the first data through the selected first bearer, thereby improving communication efficiency.

It should be noted that, when the first data is transmitted to the second node, the second node may also determine an appropriate bearer according to the QoS information and the time-to-time information, so as to meet the transmission quality-of-service requirement of the service.

Optionally, the first data includes time information, where the time information is used to indicate an initial sending time of the first data or a current time duration of the first data, so that the first node may select a suitable bearer from multiple bearers between the first node and the second node more accurately according to the QoS information of the first data and the time information, thereby further improving communication efficiency and meeting service requirements.

Specifically, the time information may be a sending time of the first data initial sending, for example, a time when the first data enters the network, so that the first node may know, according to the time information, a duration that the first data is currently transmitted and has been occupied. The first node may also obtain the total duration of the first data transmission requirement according to the QoS information of the first data. Therefore, the first node can select a more proper bearer to transmit the first data according to the total duration of the first data transmission requirement and the duration occupied by the first data, and further improve the communication efficiency. Or the time information may directly indicate the currently transmitted time length of the first data, for example, a timer is set, so that the first node may select a more appropriate bearer to transmit the first data according to the total time length required for transmitting the first data and the time length occupied by the first data, thereby further improving the communication efficiency.

It should be noted that the first data may further include at least one of a bearer identifier, a Logical Channel Identifier (LCID), a QCI, hop count information, an ARP, or GBR information. The QCI may indicate a Packet Delay Budget (PDB), and the PDB may indicate a total duration of a data transmission requirement. This information may be placed in the adaptation layer. This information may allow the receiving relay node to more reasonably determine the QoS that the data needs to be mapped to.

Wherein, the QCI table may be as shown in table 1 below:

TABLE 1

It should be noted that the radio channel delay may be a transmission delay when a packet is successfully received from an SGi interface on a Packet Data Network (PDN) side to a Zd interface of a communication terminal.

It should be understood that, during the uplink transmission process, the first node receives the time information from the terminal, and the determination that the time length currently occupied by the first data transmission according to the time information may be a time length between when the received Buffer Status Report (BSR) or Scheduling Request (SR) starts to be calculated, or a time length between when the uplink scheduling start calculation is performed by a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) sent by the access network device until the first node receives the first data, that is, the time length currently occupied by the first data transmission may be determined.

It is further understood that, during the downlink transmission process, the first node may receive first data from the access network device or the second node, where the first data may carry time information, and the time information may correspond to bearers, data, or Media Access Control (MAC) Service Data Units (SDUs).

Alternatively, the time information may indicate a relative time, or may indicate an absolute time. For example, the specific time may be a System Frame Number (SFN) number or a super frame (H-SFN) number, and may be coordinated Universal Time (UTC) time. The relative time may be how many frames are transmitted, or how many time minutes and seconds, and the absolute time may be a specific frame number or hyper frame number, or a specific time, a certain minute and a certain second.

Alternatively, the time information may be in a field of the adaptation layer.

Specifically, in the case that the first node is a node with relay capability, for example, when the first node transmits uplink data to the second node, the time information in the uplink data may be added in the adaptation layer. Specifically, for uplink transmission, for a relay node of a directly connected terminal, time information is added to the relay node on an adaptation layer. If the time information is the initial time, after the directly-connected relay nodes are added, the other nodes directly forward the time information until the time information is transmitted to the access network equipment, and if the time information is the used time length, each relay receiving the data needs to update the used time length on an adaptation layer; or the time information of the downlink data can be added in the adaptation layer. When the access network equipment sends data to the relay node, the time information is added to the adaptation layer, if the time is the initial data sending time, the subsequent node directly forwards the value, and if the time is the duration information, the value needs to be updated.

Alternatively, the time information may be carried in a Media Access Control (MAC) -Control Element (CE).

Specifically, if the first node is a terminal, or the terminal sends first data to the first node, where the first data carries time information, the first data may be regarded as a data packet, the data packet includes a control field and a data field, the control field may be a MAC CE, and the data field may indicate specific content of the data. Or, in downlink transmission, the base station adds the information to the MAC CE.

It should be noted that the time information may also be carried in a PDCP header or an RLC header.

Optionally, the first data includes one or more time information and one or more corresponding service data.

Specifically, the first data may include a plurality of types of service data, each type of service data corresponding to one time information. For example, as shown in fig. 3, the MAC CE including the time information and the MAC SDU have a one-to-one mapping relationship in order, i.e., the MAC CE1 corresponds to the MAC SDU1, the MAC CE2 corresponds to the MAC SDU2, and the MAC CE3 corresponds to the MAC SDU 3. The MAC CE may be identified by an SFN, and the MAC SDU may be identified by a logical channel number, that is, the SFN identifier and the logical channel number identifier have a mapping relationship.

Optionally, the multiple pieces of time information in the first data may be carried in corresponding multiple MAC CEs, and the multiple MAC CEs may be carried after the same MAC frame header or may be carried after one MAC frame header respectively.

For example, as shown in fig. 4, a MAC subheader is shown, multiple MAC CEs may be carried behind the same MAC header, where R denotes a reserved bit, F2 denotes a size of a following data field, if the following data is larger than 32767 bytes and is not the last subheader, the value is 1, otherwise, the value is 0, E denotes whether there is a MAC subheader behind the subheader, if the value is 1, the following byte is MAC sdu or MAC CE or padding bit, and if the value is 0, the value is not 1. For example, as shown in fig. 5. SFN1, SFN2, …, SFNn is carried after one MAC header. Where SFN1 denotes the SFN number for the first MAC SDU, SFN2 denotes the SFN number for the second MAC SDU, and so on, and SFNn denotes the SFN number for the nth MAC SDU. That is, each SFN number corresponds to one MAC SDU, and each SFN number may correspond to a MAC SDU having the same logical channel number identifier. Or each of the MAC CEs is carried after one MAC header, for example, as shown in fig. 6, where a certain MAC CE is carried after one MAC header. The corresponding MAC SDU mode for each MAC CE value is the same as described above.

Therefore, in the method of relaying communication according to the embodiment of the present application, the second node serving as the parent node may transmit the first configuration information to the first node serving as the child node. Therefore, the father node distributes the configuration information for establishing the load to the child nodes, namely the distributed configuration load is distributed without being uniformly configured through the access network equipment, the condition that the superior node stores the context of each load of each subordinate node is avoided, and the signaling cost is saved.

Fig. 7 shows a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 700 for relaying communication according to an embodiment of the present application shown in fig. 7.

It is to be understood that the apparatus 700 may correspond to the first node in the embodiment shown in fig. 3, and may have any of the functions of the first node in the method. The apparatus 700 includes a transceiver module 710 and a processing module 720. The first node may be a terminal.

The transceiver module 710 is configured to receive first configuration information from a second node, where the first configuration information is used to configure a bearer between a first node and the second node, and the second node is used to provide a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device;

the processing module 720 is configured to establish at least one bearer with the second node according to the first configuration information.

Optionally, the processing module 720 is further configured to determine a first bearer of the at least one bearer according to the QoS information of the first data;

the transceiver module 710 is configured to send the first data to the second node through the first bearer.

Optionally, the first data includes time information, where the time information is used to indicate an initial sending time of the first data or a currently transmitted time length of the first data, and the processing module 720 is specifically configured to:

and determining the first bearer according to the QoS information of the first data and the time information.

Optionally, the time information is carried in a field in the adaptation layer.

Optionally, the first node is a terminal, and the time information is carried in a media access control element MAC CE in the first data.

Optionally, the transceiver module 710 is further configured to send second configuration information to the first terminal, where the second configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the first node and the first terminal.

Optionally, the first configuration information includes at least one of a bearer identity, a packet data convergence protocol PDCP configuration, a radio link control RLC configuration, or a logical channel configuration.

Optionally, before the first node receives the first configuration information from the second node, the transceiver module 710 is further configured to send a configuration request to the second node, where the configuration request is used to request configuration of a bearer with the second node.

Therefore, in the apparatus for relaying communication provided by the embodiment of the present application, the access network device sends, to the second node, third configuration information that indicates a bearer configured for the second node and at least one subordinate node, so that the second node serving as a parent node may send the first configuration information to the first node serving as a child node. That is to say, the parent node allocates configuration information for establishing the bearers to the child nodes, that is, the bearers are configured in a distributed manner, and the unified configuration through the access network device is not required, so that the superior node is prevented from storing the context of each bearer of each subordinate node, and the signaling overhead is saved.

Fig. 8 illustrates an apparatus 800 for relaying communication provided in an embodiment of the present application, where the apparatus 800 may be an access network device described in fig. 7. The apparatus may employ a hardware architecture as shown in fig. 8. The apparatus may comprise a processor 810 and a transceiver 830, and optionally a memory 840, the processor 810, the transceiver 830 and the memory 840 being in communication with each other via an internal connection path. The related functions implemented by the processing module 720 in fig. 7 can be implemented by the processor 810, and the related functions implemented by the transceiver module 710 can be implemented by the processor 810 controlling the transceiver 830.

Alternatively, the processor 810 may be a general processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a special-purpose processor, or one or more ics for performing the embodiments of the present application. Alternatively, a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions). For example, a baseband processor, or a central processor. The baseband processor may be configured to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processor may be configured to control a device (e.g., a base station, a terminal, or a chip) that relays communication, execute a software program, and process data of the software program.

Optionally, the processor 810 may include one or more processors, for example, one or more Central Processing Units (CPUs), and in the case of one CPU, the CPU may be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

The transceiver 830 is used for transmitting and receiving data and/or signals, and receiving data and/or signals. The transceiver may include a transmitter for transmitting data and/or signals and a receiver for receiving data and/or signals.

The memory 840 includes, but is not limited to, a Random Access Memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM), and a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), and the memory 840 is used for storing relevant instructions and data.

Memory 840, which may be a separate device or integrated within processor 810, is used to store program codes and data for the access network equipment.

Specifically, the processor 810 is configured to control the transceiver to perform information transmission with the terminal. Specifically, reference may be made to the description of the method embodiment, which is not repeated herein.

In particular implementations, apparatus 800 may also include an output device and an input device, as one embodiment. An output device, which is in communication with the processor 810, may display information in a variety of ways. For example, the output device may be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), a Light Emitting Diode (LED) display device, a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) display device, a projector (projector), or the like. An input device is in communication with the processor 601 and may receive user input in a variety of ways. For example, the input device may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen device, or a sensing device, among others.

It will be appreciated that fig. 8 only shows a simplified design of the means of relaying communication. In practical applications, the apparatus may also include necessary other components respectively, including but not limited to any number of transceivers, processors, controllers, memories, etc., and all access network devices that can implement the present application are within the scope of the present application.

In one possible design, the apparatus 800 may be a chip, for example, a communication chip that may be used in an access network device, and is used to implement the relevant functions of the processor 810 in the access network device. The chip can be a field programmable gate array, a special integrated chip, a system chip, a central processing unit, a network processor, a digital signal processing circuit and a microcontroller which realize related functions, and can also adopt a programmable controller or other integrated chips. The chip may optionally include one or more memories therein for storing program code that, when executed, causes the processor to implement the corresponding functions.

The embodiment of the present application further provides an apparatus, which may be an access network device or a circuit. The apparatus may be configured to perform the actions performed by the access network device in the above method embodiments.

Fig. 9 shows a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 900 for relaying communication according to an embodiment of the present application.

It is to be understood that the apparatus 900 may correspond to the second node in the embodiment shown in fig. 2, and may have any of the functions of the second node in the method. The apparatus 900 includes a processing module 910 and a transceiver module 920.

Optionally, the second node may be a terminal.

The processing module 910 is configured to obtain first configuration information, where the first configuration information is used to configure a bearer between a first node and a second node, and the second node is used to provide a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device;

the transceiver module 920 is configured to send the first configuration information to the first node.

Optionally, the transceiver module 920 is further configured to receive third configuration information, where the third configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the second node and at least one subordinate node of the second node; the processing module 910 is specifically configured to: and generating the first configuration information according to the third configuration information.

Optionally, the third configuration information includes at least one of quality of service QoS information, bearer identification, PDCP configuration, RLC configuration, or logical channel configuration.

Optionally, the first configuration information includes at least one of bearer identification, PDCP configuration, RLC configuration, or logical channel configuration.

Therefore, the apparatus for relaying communication according to the embodiment of the present application may transmit the first configuration information to the first node as a child node by the second node as a parent node. Thus, the father node distributes the configuration information for establishing the load to the child nodes, namely the distributed configuration load is distributed, the unified configuration through the access network equipment is not needed, the superior node is prevented from storing the context of each load of each subordinate node, and the signaling cost is saved.

Fig. 10 shows an apparatus 1000 for relaying communication according to an embodiment of the present application, where the apparatus 1000 may be the terminal shown in fig. 9. The apparatus may employ a hardware architecture as shown in fig. 10. The apparatus may include a processor 1010 and a transceiver 1020, and optionally, the apparatus may further include a memory 1030, the processor 1010, the transceiver 1020, and the memory 1030 communicating with each other through an internal connection path. The related functions implemented by the processing module 910 in fig. 10 may be implemented by the processor 1010, and the related functions implemented by the transceiver module 920 may be implemented by the processor 1010 controlling the transceiver 1020.

Alternatively, the processor 1010 may be a general processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a special-purpose processor, or one or more ics for executing embodiments of the present application. Alternatively, a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions). For example, a baseband processor, or a central processor. The baseband processor may be configured to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processor may be configured to control a device (e.g., a base station, a terminal, or a chip) that relays communication, execute a software program, and process data of the software program.

Optionally, the processor 1010 may include one or more processors, for example, one or more Central Processing Units (CPUs), and in the case of one CPU, the CPU may be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

The transceiver 1020 is used for transmitting and receiving data and/or signals, as well as receiving data and/or signals. The transceiver may include a transmitter for transmitting data and/or signals and a receiver for receiving data and/or signals.

The memory 1030 includes, but is not limited to, a Random Access Memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM), and a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), and the memory 1030 is used for storing relevant instructions and data.

The memory 1030, which is used to store program codes and data for the terminal, may be a separate device or integrated into the processor 1010.

Specifically, the processor 1010 is configured to control the transceiver to perform information transmission with the terminal. Specifically, reference may be made to the description of the method embodiment, which is not repeated herein.

In particular implementations, apparatus 1000 may also include an output device and an input device, as one embodiment. An output device, which is in communication with the processor 1010, may display information in a variety of ways. For example, the output device may be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), a Light Emitting Diode (LED) display device, a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) display device, a projector (projector), or the like. The input device, which is in communication with the processor 901, may receive user input in a variety of ways. For example, the input device may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen device, or a sensing device, among others.

It will be appreciated that fig. 10 shows only a simplified design of the means of relaying communication. In practical applications, the apparatus may also include other necessary elements respectively, including but not limited to any number of transceivers, processors, controllers, memories, etc., and all terminals capable of implementing the present application are within the protection scope of the present application.

In one possible design, the apparatus 1000 may be a chip, such as a communication chip that may be used in a terminal, for implementing the relevant functions of the processor 1010 in the terminal. The chip can be a field programmable gate array, a special integrated chip, a system chip, a central processing unit, a network processor, a digital signal processing circuit and a microcontroller which realize related functions, and can also adopt a programmable controller or other integrated chips. The chip may optionally include one or more memories therein for storing program code that, when executed, causes the processor to implement the corresponding functions.

The embodiment of the application also provides a device which can be a terminal or a circuit. The apparatus may be configured to perform the actions performed by the terminal in the above-described method embodiments.

Fig. 11 shows a schematic block diagram of an apparatus 1100 for relaying communication according to an embodiment of the present application.

It is understood that the apparatus 1100 may correspond to the access network device in the embodiment shown in fig. 2, and may have any function of the access network device in the method. The apparatus 1100 includes a processing module 1110 and a transceiver module 1120.

The processing module 1110 is configured to determine third configuration information, where the third configuration information is used to configure a bearer between a second node and at least one subordinate node of the second node;

the transceiver 1120 is configured to send the third configuration information to the second node.

Optionally, the transceiver module 1120 is further configured to send first configuration information to the first node, where the first configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the first node and the second node, and the second node is used to provide a relay communication service between the first node and the access network device;

the transceiver 1120 is further configured to send the first configuration information to the second node.

Fig. 12 illustrates an apparatus 1200 for relaying communication according to an embodiment of the present application, where the apparatus 1200 may be the terminal illustrated in fig. 11. The apparatus may employ a hardware architecture as shown in fig. 12. The apparatus may include a processor 1210 and a transceiver 1220, and optionally, the apparatus may further include a memory 1230, the processor 1210, the transceiver 1220 and the memory 1230 communicating with each other through an internal connection path. The related functions implemented by the processing module 1110 in fig. 11 may be implemented by the processor 1210, and the related functions implemented by the transceiver module 1120 may be implemented by the processor 1210 controlling the transceiver 1220.

Alternatively, the processor 1210 may be a general processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a special-purpose processor, or one or more ics for performing the embodiments of the present application. Alternatively, a processor may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions). For example, a baseband processor, or a central processor. The baseband processor may be configured to process communication protocols and communication data, and the central processor may be configured to control a device (e.g., a base station, a terminal, or a chip) that relays communication, execute a software program, and process data of the software program.

Optionally, the processor 1210 may include one or more processors, for example, one or more Central Processing Units (CPUs), and in the case that the processor is one CPU, the CPU may be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

The transceiver 1220 is used for transmitting and receiving data and/or signals, and receiving data and/or signals. The transceiver may include a transmitter for transmitting data and/or signals and a receiver for receiving data and/or signals.

The memory 1230 includes, but is not limited to, a Random Access Memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), and the memory 1230 is used for storing relevant instructions and data.

The memory 1230, which is used to store program codes and data for the terminal, may be a separate device or integrated into the processor 1210.

Specifically, the processor 1210 is configured to control the transceiver to perform information transmission with the terminal. Specifically, reference may be made to the description of the method embodiment, which is not repeated herein.

In particular implementations, apparatus 1200 may also include an output device and an input device, as one embodiment. An output device, which is in communication with the processor 1210, may display information in a variety of ways. For example, the output device may be a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), a Light Emitting Diode (LED) display device, a Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) display device, a projector (projector), or the like. The input device is in communication with the processor 1101 and may receive user input in a variety of ways. For example, the input device may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen device, or a sensing device, among others.

It will be appreciated that fig. 12 only shows a simplified design of the means of relaying communication. In practical applications, the apparatus may also include other necessary elements respectively, including but not limited to any number of transceivers, processors, controllers, memories, etc., and all terminals capable of implementing the present application are within the protection scope of the present application.

In one possible design, the apparatus 1200 may be a chip, such as a communication chip that may be used in a terminal to implement the relevant functions of the processor 1210 in the terminal. The chip can be a field programmable gate array, a special integrated chip, a system chip, a central processing unit, a network processor, a digital signal processing circuit and a microcontroller which realize related functions, and can also adopt a programmable controller or other integrated chips. The chip may optionally include one or more memories therein for storing program code that, when executed, causes the processor to implement the corresponding functions.

Optionally, when the apparatus in this embodiment is a terminal, fig. 13 illustrates a simplified structural diagram of the terminal. For easy understanding and illustration, in fig. 13, the terminal is exemplified by a mobile phone. As shown in fig. 13, the terminal includes a processor, a memory, a radio frequency circuit, an antenna, and an input-output device. The processor is mainly used for processing communication protocols and communication data, controlling the terminal, executing software programs, processing data of the software programs and the like. The memory is used primarily for storing software programs and data. The radio frequency circuit is mainly used for converting baseband signals and radio frequency signals and processing the radio frequency signals. The antenna is mainly used for receiving and transmitting radio frequency signals in the form of electromagnetic waves. Input and output devices, such as touch screens, display screens, keyboards, etc., are used primarily for receiving data input by a user and for outputting data to the user. It should be noted that some kinds of terminals may not have input/output devices.

When data needs to be sent, the processor performs baseband processing on the data to be sent and outputs baseband signals to the radio frequency circuit, and the radio frequency circuit performs radio frequency processing on the baseband signals and sends the radio frequency signals to the outside in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the terminal, the radio frequency circuit receives radio frequency signals through the antenna, converts the radio frequency signals into baseband signals and outputs the baseband signals to the processor, and the processor converts the baseband signals into the data and processes the data. For ease of illustration, only one memory and processor are shown in FIG. 13. In an actual end product, there may be one or more processors and one or more memories. The memory may also be referred to as a storage medium or a storage device, etc. The memory may be provided independently of the processor, or may be integrated with the processor, which is not limited in this embodiment.

In the embodiment of the present application, the antenna and the radio frequency circuit having the transceiving function may be regarded as a transceiving unit of the terminal, and the processor having the processing function may be regarded as a processing unit of the terminal. As shown in fig. 13, the terminal includes a transceiving unit 1310 and a processing unit 1320. A transceiver unit may also be referred to as a transceiver, a transceiving device, etc. A processing unit may also be referred to as a processor, a processing board, a processing module, a processing device, or the like. Alternatively, a device for implementing a receiving function in the transceiving unit 1310 may be regarded as a receiving unit, and a device for implementing a transmitting function in the transceiving unit 1310 may be regarded as a transmitting unit, that is, the transceiving unit 1310 includes a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. A transceiver unit may also sometimes be referred to as a transceiver, transceiving circuitry, or the like. A receiving unit may also be referred to as a receiver, a receiving circuit, or the like. A transmitting unit may also sometimes be referred to as a transmitter, or a transmitting circuit, etc.

It should be understood that the transceiving unit 1310 is configured to perform the transmitting operation and the receiving operation on the terminal side in the above-described method embodiments, and the processing unit 1320 is configured to perform other operations on the terminal in the above-described method embodiments besides the transceiving operation.

For example, in one implementation, the processing unit 1320 is configured to perform step 203 shown in fig. 2. The transceiving unit 1310 is configured to perform transceiving operation in step 202 in fig. 2, and/or the transceiving unit 1310 is further configured to perform other transceiving steps at the terminal side in this embodiment.

When the communication device is a chip, the chip includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit can be an input/output circuit and a communication interface; the processing unit is a processor or a microprocessor or an integrated circuit integrated on the chip.

Optionally, when the apparatus is a terminal, reference may also be made to the device shown in fig. 13. As an example, the device may perform functions similar to processor 1310 in FIG. 13. In fig. 14, the apparatus comprises a processor 1401, a transmission data processor 1403, and a reception data processor 1405. The processing module in the above embodiment may be the processor 1401 in fig. 14, and performs the corresponding functions. The transceiver modules in the above embodiments may be the receive data processor 1105 and the transmit data processor 1403 in fig. 14. Although fig. 14 shows a channel encoder and a channel decoder, it is understood that these blocks are not limitative and only illustrative to the present embodiment.

Fig. 15 shows another form of the present embodiment. The processing device 1500 includes modules such as a modulation subsystem, a central processing subsystem, and peripheral subsystems. The communication device in this embodiment may act as a modulation subsystem therein. In particular, the modulation subsystem may include a processor 1503 and an interface 1504. The processor 1503 performs the functions of the processing module, and the interface 1504 performs the functions of the transceiver module. As another variation, the modulation subsystem includes a memory 1506, a processor 1503 and a program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the processor implements the method according to one of the first to fifth embodiments when executing the program. It should be noted that the memory 1506 may be non-volatile or volatile, and may be located within the modulation subsystem or within the processing device 1500, as long as the memory 1506 is connected to the processor 1503.

When the apparatus in this embodiment is an access network device, the access network device may be as shown in fig. 16, and the apparatus 1600 includes one or more radio frequency units, such as a Remote Radio Unit (RRU) 1610 and one or more baseband units (BBUs) (which may also be referred to as digital units, DUs) 1620. The RRU 1610 may be referred to as a transceiver module, which corresponds to the above transceiver module, and may also be referred to as a transceiver, transceiver circuit, or transceiver, etc., which may include at least one antenna 1611 and a radio frequency unit 1612. The RRU 1610 portion is mainly used for transceiving radio frequency signals and converting the radio frequency signals into baseband signals, for example, for sending indication information to a terminal device. The BBU 1610 portion is mainly used for performing baseband processing, controlling a base station, and the like. The RRU 1610 and the BBU 1620 may be physically located together or physically located separately, that is, distributed base stations.

The BBU 1620 is a control center of the base station, and may also be referred to as a processing module, and may correspond to the processing module 620 in fig. 6, and is mainly used for completing baseband processing functions, such as channel coding, multiplexing, modulation, spreading, and the like. For example, the BBU (processing module) may be configured to control the base station to perform an operation procedure related to the access network device in the foregoing method embodiment, for example, to generate the foregoing indication information.

In an example, the BBU 1620 may be formed by one or more boards, and the boards may collectively support a radio access network of a single access system (e.g., an LTE network), or may respectively support radio access networks of different access systems (e.g., an LTE network, a 5G network, or other networks). BBU 1620 also includes a memory 1621 and a processor 1622. The memory 1621 is used to store the necessary instructions and data. The processor 1622 is configured to control the base station to perform necessary actions, for example, to control the base station to perform the operation procedure related to the access network device in the above method embodiment. The memory 1621 and processor 1622 may serve one or more boards. That is, the memory and processor may be provided separately on each board. Multiple boards may share the same memory and processor. In addition, each single board can be provided with necessary circuits.

As another form of the present embodiment, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon instructions that, when executed, perform the method of the above-described method embodiments.

As another form of the present embodiment, there is provided a computer program product containing instructions that, when executed, perform the method of the above-described method embodiments.

In the above embodiments, the implementation may be wholly or partially realized by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, may be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When loaded and executed on a computer, cause the processes or functions described in accordance with the embodiments of the application to occur, in whole or in part. The computer may be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a network of computers, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored on a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another, for example, from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wire (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device, such as a server, a data center, etc., that incorporates one or more of the available media. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., a Digital Video Disk (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a Solid State Disk (SSD)), among others.

It should be understood that the processor may be an integrated circuit chip having signal processing capabilities. In implementation, the steps of the above method embodiments may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware in a processor or instructions in the form of software. The processor may be a general purpose processor, a Digital Signal Processor (DSP), an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), an off-the-shelf programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, or discrete hardware component. The various methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented or performed. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may be any conventional processor or the like. The steps of the method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present application may be directly implemented by a hardware decoding processor, or implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module may be located in ram, flash memory, rom, prom, or eprom, registers, etc. storage media as is well known in the art. The storage medium is located in a memory, and a processor reads information in the memory and completes the steps of the method in combination with hardware of the processor.

It will be appreciated that the memory in the embodiments of the subject application can be either volatile memory or nonvolatile memory, or can include both volatile and nonvolatile memory. The non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a Programmable ROM (PROM), an Erasable PROM (EPROM), an electrically Erasable EPROM (EEPROM), or a flash memory. Volatile memory can be Random Access Memory (RAM), which acts as external cache memory. By way of example, but not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM, enhanced SDRAM, SLDRAM, Synchronous Link DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct bus RAM (DR RAM).

In the present application, "at least one" means one or more, "a plurality" means two or more. "and/or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, meaning that there may be three relationships, e.g., a and/or B, which may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone, wherein A and B can be singular or plural. The character "/" generally indicates that the former and latter associated objects are in an "or" relationship. "at least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of the singular or plural items. For example, at least one (one) of a, b, or c, may represent: a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c, or a-b-c, wherein a, b, c may be single or multiple.

It should be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Thus, the appearances of the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments. It should be understood that, in various embodiments of the present invention, the sequence numbers of the above-mentioned processes do not mean the execution sequence, and the execution sequence of each process should be determined by its function and inherent logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present invention.

As used in this specification, the terms "component," "module," "system," and the like are intended to refer to a computer-related entity, either hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, or software in execution. For example, a component may be, but is not limited to being, a process running on a processor, an object, an executable, a thread of execution, a program, and/or a computer. By way of illustration, both an application running on a computing device and the computing device can be a component. One or more components can reside within a process and/or thread of execution and a component can be localized on one computer and/or distributed between 2 or more computers. In addition, these components can execute from various computer readable media having various data structures stored thereon. The components may communicate by way of local and/or remote processes such as in accordance with a signal having one or more data packets (e.g., data from two components interacting with another component in a local system, distributed system, and/or across a network such as the internet with other systems by way of the signal).

It should also be understood that the reference herein to first, second, and various numerical designations is merely a convenient division to describe and is not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

It should be understood that the term "and/or" herein is merely one type of association relationship that describes an associated object, meaning that three relationships may exist, e.g., a and/or B may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. Wherein A or B is present alone, and the number of A or B is not limited. Taking the case of a being present alone, it is understood to have one or more a.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative elements and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as electronic hardware or combinations of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware or software depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the implementation. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present application.

It is clear to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the above-described systems, apparatuses and units may refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus and method may be implemented in other ways. For example, the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely illustrative, and for example, the division of the units is only one logical division, and other divisions may be realized in practice, for example, a plurality of units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted, or not executed. In addition, the shown or discussed mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection may be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, and may be in an electrical, mechanical or other form.

The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of the embodiment.

In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integrated into one unit.

The functions, if implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as a stand-alone product, may be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solution of the present application or portions thereof that substantially contribute to the prior art may be embodied in the form of a software product stored in a storage medium and including instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or an access network device) to perform all or part of the steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media capable of storing program codes, such as a usb disk, a removable hard disk, a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

The above description is only for the specific embodiments of the present application, but the scope of the present application is not limited thereto, and any person skilled in the art can easily conceive of the changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present application, and shall be covered by the scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

A method for relaying communications, comprising:

a first node receives first configuration information from a second node, wherein the first configuration information is used for configuring a bearer between the first node and the second node, and the second node is used for providing a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device;

and the first node establishes at least one bearer with the second node according to the first configuration information.
The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the first node determines a first bearer in the at least one bearer according to the QoS (quality of service) information of the first data;

and the first node sends the first data to the second node through the first bearer.
The method of claim 2, wherein the first data comprises time information, and the time information is used for indicating an initial sending time of the first data or a time duration that the first data is currently transmitted, wherein the determining, by the first node, the first bearer of the at least one bearer according to the QoS information of the first data comprises:

and the first node determines the first bearer according to the QoS information of the first data and the time information.
The method of claim 3, wherein the time information is carried in a field in an adaptation layer.
The method of claim 3, wherein the first node is a terminal, and wherein the time information is carried in a media access control element (MAC CE) in the first data.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising:

and the first node sends second configuration information to a first terminal, wherein the second configuration information is used for configuring the load bearing between the first node and the first terminal.
The method according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first configuration information comprises at least one of a bearer identity, a packet data convergence protocol, PDCP, configuration, a radio Link control, RLC, configuration or a logical channel configuration.
The method according to any of claims 1 to 7, wherein before the first node receives the first configuration information from the second node, the method further comprises:

the first node sends a configuration request to the second node, wherein the configuration request is used for requesting the configuration of the load bearing between the first node and the second node.
A method for relaying communications, comprising:

a second node acquires first configuration information, wherein the first configuration information is used for configuring a bearer between a first node and the second node, and the second node is used for providing a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device;

the second node sends the first configuration information to the first node.
The method of claim 9, further comprising:

the second node receiving third configuration information, the third configuration information being used for configuring a bearer between the second node and at least one subordinate node of the second node;

wherein the second node acquiring the first configuration information comprises:

and the second node generates the first configuration information according to the third configuration information.
The method of claim 10, wherein the third configuration information comprises at least one of quality of service (QoS) information, bearer identification, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) configuration, Radio Link Control (RLC) configuration, or logical channel configuration.
The method of claim 10 or 11, wherein the first configuration information comprises at least one of a bearer identity, a PDCP configuration, an RLC configuration, or a logical channel configuration.
A method for relaying communications, comprising:

the access network equipment determines third configuration information, wherein the third configuration information is used for configuring a bearer between the second node and at least one lower node of the second node;

and the access network equipment sends the third configuration information to the second node.
The method of claim 13, further comprising:

the access network equipment sends first configuration information to the first node, wherein the first configuration information is used for configuring a bearer between the first node and the second node, and the second node is used for providing a relay communication service between the first node and the access network equipment;

and the access network equipment sends the first configuration information to the second node.
The method according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the first configuration information comprises at least one of a bearer identity, a packet data convergence protocol, PDCP, configuration, a radio link control, RLC, configuration or a logical channel configuration.
The method according to any of claims 13 to 15, wherein the third configuration information comprises at least one of quality of service, QoS, information, bearer identity, packet data convergence protocol, PDCP, configuration, radio link control, RLC, configuration or logical channel configuration.
An apparatus for relaying communications, comprising:

a transceiver module, configured to receive first configuration information from a second node, where the first configuration information is used to configure a bearer between a first node and the second node, and the second node is used to provide a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device;

and the processing module is used for establishing at least one bearer with the second node according to the first configuration information.
The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the processing module is further configured to determine a first bearer of the at least one bearer according to quality of service (QoS) information of first data;

the transceiver module is configured to send the first data to the second node through the first bearer.
The apparatus according to claim 18, wherein the first data includes time information, and the time information is used to indicate an initial sending time of the first data or a current time duration for which the first data has been transmitted, and wherein the processing module is specifically configured to:

and determining the first bearer according to the QoS information of the first data and the time information.
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the time information is carried in a field in an adaptation layer.
The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the first node is a terminal, and wherein the time information is carried in a medium access control element (MAC CE) in the first data.
The apparatus according to any of claims 17 to 20, wherein the transceiver module is further configured to send second configuration information to the first terminal, and the second configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the first node and the first terminal.
The apparatus according to any of claims 17-22, wherein the first configuration information comprises at least one of a bearer identity, a packet data convergence protocol, PDCP, configuration, a radio link control, RLC, configuration or a logical channel configuration.
The apparatus according to any of claims 17 to 23, wherein before the first node receives the first configuration information from the second node, the transceiver module is further configured to send a configuration request to the second node, where the configuration request is used to request configuration of a bearer with the second node.
An apparatus for relaying communications, comprising:

a processing module, configured to obtain first configuration information, where the first configuration information is used to configure a bearer between a first node and a second node, and the second node is used to provide a relay communication service between the first node and an access network device;

a transceiver module, configured to send the first configuration information to the first node.
The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the transceiver module is further configured to receive third configuration information, and wherein the third configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the second node and at least one subordinate node of the second node;

wherein the processing module is specifically configured to:

and generating the first configuration information according to the third configuration information.
The apparatus of claim 26, wherein the third configuration information comprises at least one of quality of service (QoS) information, bearer identification, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) configuration, Radio Link Control (RLC) configuration, or logical channel configuration.
The apparatus according to claim 26 or 27, wherein the first configuration information comprises at least one of a bearer identity, a PDCP configuration, an RLC configuration, or a logical channel configuration.
An apparatus for relaying communications, comprising:

a processing module, configured to determine third configuration information, where the third configuration information is used to configure a bearer between the second node and at least one subordinate node of the second node;

a transceiver module, configured to send the third configuration information to the second node.
The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the transceiver module is further configured to send first configuration information to a first node, the first configuration information being used to configure a bearer between the first node and the second node, and the second node being used to provide a relay communication service between the first node and the access network device;

the transceiver module is further configured to send the first configuration information to the second node.
The apparatus according to claim 29 or 30, wherein the first configuration information comprises at least one of a bearer identity, a packet data convergence protocol, PDCP, configuration, a radio link control, RLC, configuration or a logical channel configuration.
The apparatus according to any of claims 29-31, wherein the third configuration information comprises at least one of quality of service, QoS, information, bearer identification, packet data convergence protocol, PDCP, configuration, radio link control, RLC, configuration or logical channel configuration.
A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 16.
A computer program product which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 16.
A communications apparatus, comprising:

a memory for storing a computer program;

a processor for executing a computer program stored in the memory to cause the apparatus to perform the method of any of claims 1 to 16.
A communication system, comprising: apparatus for use in any one of claims 17 to 24, apparatus for use in performing any one of claims 25 to 28 and apparatus for use in performing any one of claims 29 to 32.