KR20210049331A - Operation Method of Connected Mode Discontinuous Reception and device supporting the same - Google Patents

Abstract

According to the present invention, disclosed is a base station device comprising a communication circuit and a processor functionally connected to the communication circuit, wherein the processor performs a DRX function according to a user terminal access. Disclosed are a base station device and a DRX operating method thereof which are set to extend an on duration section of a DRX according as a dummy packet is received if the dummy packet is received from a user terminal which is executing an application needing real-time data transmission during DRX function execution.

Description

DRX operation method and device supporting it {Operation Method of Connected Mode Discontinuous Reception and device supporting the same}

The present invention relates to a DRX operation method, and in particular, to a DRX operation method capable of reducing the occurrence of a delay caused by DRX when operating a specific type of application, and an apparatus supporting the same.

According to the 3GPP standard, communication with the application layer corresponding to Layer 7 of the OSI 7 Layer model reference terminal is not defined in 4G LTE. Likewise in 5G NR (New Radio), the standard for Layer 7 is not separately defined, and a model for communication between the application layer in the terminal and the base station is not defined. For this reason, communication systems such as 4G and 5G are not involved in characteristics such as IP packet size and traffic generation period for the traffic generated by the terminal and the content provider. In this environment, communication systems such as 4G and 5G require higher QoS conditions, and thus delay control is required. In addition, in 5G NR, the requirement for end to end (E2E) latency is not specified, but the latency felt by an actual user should be evaluated as E2E latency including the RAN interval. Accordingly, there is a need for discussion that can improve E2E Latency, but there is no specific standard or plan yet.

On the other hand, in 5G NR, even when there is no traffic to transmit or receive, the user terminal must be in a ready state to receive and decode the PDCCH (Physical Downlink Control Channel) by always maintaining the ON state for the LTE and 5G NR connection. The PDCCH is a control channel used by an LTE base station and an NR base station, and is a channel allocated to convey information on downlink/uplink resource allocation of the LTE base station and the NR base station. However, in order to maintain the PDCCH, battery consumption in the terminal increases, and there is a problem that battery consumption intensifies in a split bearer connection that uses an LTE network and an NR network at the same time. Regarding this problem, battery consumption can be reduced by applying a Connected Mode Discontinuous Reception (cDRX) function to each of the LTE network and the NR network.

However, when the cDRX technology is applied, since the UE can receive the PDCCH only in the ON state, there is a problem in that the downlink latency is increased due to this. In addition, in the case of Uplink, when awakening from an OFF state to an ON state through the transmission of a Scheduling Request, a wakeup latency for waking up from the Sleep state to the ON state occurs in the terminal, thereby increasing the Uplink Latency.

Korean Patent Registration No. 10-182887, registered on February 07, 2108 (Name: Improved non-continuous reception (DRX) in LTE systems)

The present invention is to solve the above-described problem, and propose a structure and apparatus capable of collecting the characteristics of the network to which the user terminal is currently connected from the application terminal located in the user terminal or Contents Provider. It is to provide a DRX operation method that can improve service quality such as E2E Latency by reflecting the characteristics of the network in the application layer and a device supporting it.

A base station apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a communication circuit forming a communication channel with a user terminal and a processor functionally connected to the communication circuit. Here, the processor performs a DRX function according to access to the user terminal, and when receiving a dummy packet from the user terminal running an application requiring real-time data transmission while performing the DRX function, the DRX is It may be set to extend the On Duration section.

In particular, the processor may be configured to periodically receive the dummy packet every time before expiration of the DRX Inactivity Timer, which defines the duration to be maintained on, and extend the On Duration period of the DRX according to the reception of the dummy packet.

Alternatively, the processor may be configured to receive real-time transmission data from a content supply device and transmit the real-time transmission data to the user terminal in an On Duration period extended by the dummy packet.

DRX operation method of a base station apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention includes the step of accessing a user terminal to a base station, performing DRX according to the access of the user terminal by the base station, and the base station performing the DRX, in real time. When receiving a dummy packet from the user terminal running an application requiring data transmission, extending an On Duration period of the DRX according to reception of the dummy packet.

Here, in the extending step, the base station periodically receives the dummy packet every time before expiration of the DRX Inactivity Timer, which defines the duration to be kept on, and the On Duration period of the DRX according to the reception of the dummy packet. It may include the step of repeatedly extending.

The method may include receiving real-time transmission data from a content supply device and transmitting the real-time transmission data to the user terminal in an On Duration period extended by the dummy packet.

A user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a communication circuit forming a communication channel with a base station and a processor functionally connected to the communication circuit, and the processor collects network configuration information from the base station, and the network configuration information Based on the DRX function, check the application type when requesting to execute an application, and if the application type is a designated type, generate a dummy packet, and before the Inactivity Timer expires, which defines the duration period in which the On state should be maintained. It may be configured to transmit a dummy packet to the base station to extend the On Duration period of the DRX.

Here, the processor of the user terminal may be configured to generate the dummy packet when the application type is an application that requires data transmission in real time.

Alternatively, the processor of the user terminal may be configured to periodically generate a dummy packet during execution of the application, and to transmit the dummy packet every time before expiration of the inactivity timer updated according to the transmission of the dummy packet.

Meanwhile, when the base station is changed during the generation and transmission of the dummy packet, the processor of the user terminal re-collects network configuration information of the changed base station, and generates and transmits the dummy packet based on the re-collected network configuration information. Can be set to perform.

DRX operation method of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention includes the steps of forming a communication channel with a base station by the user terminal, collecting network configuration information from the base station, and performing a DRX function based on the network configuration information. Checking the application type when requesting to execute an application, generating a dummy packet when the application type is a designated type, turning on the dummy packet before expiration of an Inactivity Timer defining a duration period in which the On state should be maintained. It may include transmitting to the base station to extend the duration period.

In the DRX operation method of the user terminal, when the base station is changed during the generation and transmission of the dummy packet, re-collecting network configuration information of the changed base station and generating and transmitting the dummy packet based on the re-collected network configuration information. It may further include the step of performing.

In the present invention, when cDRX is applied in 5G and LTE environments, it is possible to reduce the occurrence of delay in the process of the user terminal operating a specific application.

1 is a diagram showing an example of a system configuration to which a DRX operating method according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.
2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hierarchical connection between a content supply device and a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DRX-related operation method of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5A is a diagram illustrating a method of operating DRX in connection with operation 409 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5B is a diagram illustrating a DRX operating method related to operation 411 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a base station operating method related to DRX operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to a specific embodiment, and it should be understood that various modifications, equivalents, and/or alternatives of the embodiments of the present invention are included. In connection with the description of the drawings, similar reference numerals may be used for similar elements.

The present invention described below proposes a structure capable of accommodating the characteristics of the network at the application stage of the user terminal, and a scheme for reducing the E2E latency by utilizing these characteristics at the application stage of the user terminal or the content supply terminal. Suggest. Specifically, the present invention can reduce latency by flexibly operating the standard cDRX period according to the traffic type.

1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration to which a DRX operating method according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied.

Referring to FIG. 1, a network system 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a user terminal 100, a communication network 200, and a content supply device 300. Here, the communication network 200 includes a first base station 210 (or a first base station device) (eg, an LTE base station, an eNB), a second base station 220 (or a second base station device) (eg, an NR base station, gNB). ), EPC 230 may be included. This network system 10 includes a number of evolved base stations 210 and 220 (or base station devices) capable of supporting wireless communication for the user terminal 100 (e.g., Node Bs (eNBs, gNBs)) and other networks. It can also contain entities. Each of the base stations may provide communication coverage for a specific geographic area.

The user terminal 100 may be fixed or movable. The user terminal 100 may also be referred to as a mobile station, a terminal, an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a station, and the like. The user terminal 100 may be a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a wireless communication device, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless telephone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, or the like. When power is supplied, the user terminal 100 may search for wireless networks capable of receiving communication services. When two or more wireless networks are detected, the user terminal 100 may select a wireless network having the highest priority. This user terminal 100 may be located within the coverage of cells of multiple frequencies or multiple radio access technologies (RATs) while in the idle mode. In the case of LTE, the user terminal 100 may select a frequency and RAT to camp based on the priority list. This priority list may include a set of frequencies, a RAT associated with each frequency, and a priority of each frequency.

The user terminal 100 may collect key information related to cDRX of a base station receiving a service through the application layer, and the collected cDRX-related configuration information is shown in Table 1 below.

cDRX Parameter Description DRX Cycle In general, it is the sum of the'ON' section + the'OFF' section, and is defined as onDurationTimer (= ON section) and longdrx-CycleStartOffset (= ON+OFF section) Param in the RRC message. onDuration timer Duration of'ON' within one DRX Cycle Drx-Inactivity timer Duration for which the UE (user terminal) should extend'ON' after receiving the PDCCH Drx-Retransmission timer Duration of which the UE should maintain'ON' for retransmission for an extended period

In LTE and NR, the units matched to the information element (IE) and eNum value in the RRC Msg for DRX configuration are different, but the meaning of the operation is the same. DRX Config used in LTE and NR according to the 3GPP standard. Since my parameters are marked redundantly, in the present invention, parameters are defined as shown in Table 2 below to distinguish them.

LTE NR onDurationTimerLTE onDurationTimerNR drx-InactivityTimerLTE drx-InactivityTimerNR drx-LongCycleLTE (cycle information) drx-LongCycleNR (cycle information) drx-StartOffsetLTE (Offset information) drx-StartOffsetNR (Offset information)

The user terminal 100 of the present invention does not have data transmitted/received to and from the base stations 210 and 220 according to cDRX (connected discontinuous reception) (or DRX) operation while a real-time-based game application requiring real-time is running. Before the inactivity timer expires, a dummy packet is transmitted to the base stations 210 and 220 to update the inactivity timer, while maintaining the active state during the On Duration period. That is, the user terminal 100 transmits a dummy packet at a specified time and extends the On Duration period by the DRX Inactivity Timer period from the time when the dummy packet is transmitted. DL data (downlink data) can be directly transmitted without additional delay. Such a function can be applied when executing an application such as a game or stock in which real-time data transmission/reception is prioritized over a battery saving function. Meanwhile, the user terminal 100 applies DRX (or cDRX) when an application (e.g., a web browser) that does not require separate real-time performance is running, and checks whether data is received during the On Duration period, and DRX Inactivity After the timer expires, it may transition to the sleep state. Meanwhile, the user terminal 100 may check the expiration time of the DRX Inactivity Timer to be applied according to the type of the accessing base stations 210 and 220, and process dummy packet transmission before the expiration of the expiration time. The base stations 210 and 220 may support wireless communication with the user terminal 100 and other terminals not shown. The base stations 210 and 220 may perform various functions for communication with the user terminal 100. For example, the base stations 210 and 220 may receive an uplink signal from the user terminal 100 in the uplink and transmit a signal to the user terminal 100 through the downlink. The base stations 210 and 220 may support communication with the EPC 230 and/or other network entities. In particular, the base stations 210 and 220 of the present invention support DRX operation of the user terminal 100, apply DRX Inactivity Timer update according to the packet provided by the user terminal 100, and based on this, the corresponding user terminal ( The On Duration section of 100) can be extended. When receiving DL data from the content supply device 300 during the extended On Duration period, the base stations 210 and 220 may directly transmit the DL data to the user terminal 100. In connection with performing the above-described operation, each of the first base station 210 and the second base station 220 is a communication circuit capable of communicating with the user terminal 100, a processor that performs cDRX setting, and stores a cDRX setting value. It may include memory and the like.

The EPC 230 may perform various functions such as mobility management of the user terminal 100, bearer management, split bearer management, distribution of paging messages, security control, authentication, gateway selection, and the like. The EPC 230 may perform various functions supporting communication services for the user terminal 100. For example, the EPC 230 may include a controller/processor, a memory, a communication unit, and the like. The EPC 230 may calculate a cDRX setting value of the base stations 210 and 220 and transmit the calculated value to the user terminal 100.

The content supply device 300 forms a communication channel with the user terminal 100 through the communication network 200, and transmits data according to the execution of a specific application by the user terminal 100 to the user terminal 100 through the communication network 200. Can be provided to. Here, the content supply device 300 may provide real-time application data to the user terminal 100 through the communication network 200. The content supply device 300 may process E2E data transmission through the user terminal 100 and the hierarchical formation as illustrated in FIG. 2.

2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hierarchical connection between a content supply device and a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 2, the user terminal 100 may form an OSI 7 layer according to execution of an application that communicates with the content supply device 300 through the communication network 200. In particular, the first layer (L1 Layer (PHY)) and the second layer (L2 Layer (MAC, RLC, PDCP, SDAP)) of the user terminal 100 are the first layer (L1 Layer) of the content supply device 300 And communication data with the second layer (L2 Layer).

The user terminal 100 may collect related configuration information of the first layer and the second layer related to the 4G/5G network in the seventh layer (Application Layer). For example, the application layer may directly collect network configuration information from the first layer and the second layer. The user terminal 100 may transmit the collected network setting information to the content supply device 300. For example, the application layer of the user terminal 100 delivers the collected network setting information to the content supply device 300 through the second layer and the second layer, and the content supply device 300 The network configuration information provided by the user terminal 100 may be received through the second layer and may be transmitted to its own application layer.

On the other hand, when the information of the serving cell being serviced is changed (for example, the user terminal 100 enters the second base station 220 related to the 5G network from the first base station 210 related to the 4G network). In case or vice versa), related configuration information of the first layer and the second layer related to the 4G/5G network may be re-collected, and the re-collected network configuration information may be delivered to the content supply device 300.

3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, a user terminal 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a communication circuit 110, a memory 140, and a processor 160. Additionally, the user terminal 100 may further include a display unit, an input/output unit, at least one sensor, a camera, a battery, and a housing (or frame) surrounding at least a part of the above-described device configuration in connection with the operation of user functions.

The communication circuit 110 may form a communication channel of the user terminal 100. For example, the communication circuit 110 may form a communication channel with the content supply device 300 through the communication network 200. The communication circuit 110 may access a specific base station of the communication network 200 and receive network configuration information related to the base station. In addition, the communication circuit 110 may receive the DL data provided by the content supply device 300 through a base station of the communication network 200. The communication circuit 110 may provide user data generated according to a user input in a specific application execution state to the content supply device 300 through the communication network 200.

The memory 140 may store various applications related to operation of the user terminal 100. For example, the memory 140 may store a first application 141 requiring data transmission in real time and a second application 142 requiring data transmission and reception according to a predetermined period or event occurrence. In addition, the memory 140 may store a list of information related to types of installed applications. The type-related information list may include information on which application is a type requiring real-time data transmission/reception.

The processor 160 may transmit and process signals related to the operation of the user terminal 100. For example, the processor 160 executes at least one of the first application 141 or the second application 142 stored in the memory 140 according to a user input, and transmits or processes a signal related to operation of the executed application. You can do it. In this process, the processor 160 may configure an application layer according to the execution of the first application 141 or the second application 142.

The processor 160 may access the base station based on the communication circuit 110 and may process channel operation according to the DRX application according to the base station access. Regarding the application of DRX, the processor 160 may collect network configuration information from the connected base station, and check DRX cycle information, DRX Inactivity Timer information, On Duration Timer information, and the like. After checking the network configuration information, the processor 160 wakes up in the On Duration period based on the corresponding information, and may receive and decode data for the PDCCH channel.

The processor 160 may check the type of the application when an application execution request is received during DRX application. For example, when the execution of the first application 141 is requested, the processor 160 outputs a related screen to the display unit after the execution of the first application 141, and the first application 141 through the communication circuit 110 In relation to operation, a communication channel with the content supply device 300 may be formed. In addition, if the identified application type is determined to be a type requiring real-time data transmission/reception, the processor 160 generates a dummy packet and transmits the dummy packet to the connected base station before expiration of the DRX Inactivity Timer of the corresponding base station. While updating, you can request to extend the On Duration. In this process, the processor 160 may transmit a dummy packet immediately before expiration of the DRX Inactivity Timer in order to minimize network overhead.

When the execution of the second application 142 that does not require real-time transmission/reception data is requested while applying the DRX, the processor 160 outputs a screen according to the execution of the second application 142 to the display unit and turns on according to the application of the DRX. Data reception and decoding of a designated channel may be performed in the duration period. In this operation, the processor 160 may control the base stations 210 and 220 to transmit and receive signals related to the operation of the second application 142, but not to perform a separate dummy packet operation.

The processor 160 may collect network configuration information related to a newly connected base station when a base station is changed or a serving cell is changed according to the movement of the user terminal 100. The processor 160 may apply DRX according to the newly collected network configuration information. In this process, if the base station is changed while the first application 141 is executing, the processor 160 may extend the On Duration period by transmitting a dummy packet to the base station before expiration of the DRX Inactivity Timer of the changed base station.

As described above, in the case of the user terminal 100 using a real-time game, in a situation in which the latency guarantee and shortened service quality for the game played by the user should be prioritized rather than the battery consumption reduction effect, 4G/ It is possible to suppress an increase in latency that may occur due to the cDRX technology applied in the 5G base station. That is, in an environment in which the base station operating the cDRX function does not know which application is used in the user terminal 100, when an application for which real-time is to be guaranteed is executed in the user terminal 100, as described above, a dummy By providing a packet to the base station, a method of preventing data transmission delay due to the idle period by the cDRX function can be performed in the application layer in the user terminal, and through this, the occurrence of latency due to the cDRX operation can be prevented. In this process, cDRX-related information is collected from the application of the user terminal 100, and the information is transmitted to the content supply device 300 so that all subjects of UL/DL traffic can know the cDRX setting information, and In order to prevent delay, a dummy packet (or garbage traffic) may be generated/transmitted in UL/DL.

4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a DRX-related operating method of a user terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, in relation to the DRX operating method according to an embodiment of the present invention, the processor 160 of the user terminal 100 may check whether an application is executed in step 401. When there is no application execution, the processor 160 may have a standby state in step 403. For example, the processor 160 may output a standby screen on the display of the user terminal 100. Alternatively, the processor 160 may transition to a sleep state in which the display unit is turned off as a standby state.

When the application is executed, the processor 160 may check the application type in step 405. For example, the processor 160 determines whether the application type requested to be executed is an application type that requires real-time data transmission/reception or an application type that transmits/receives data according to a specified time interval or event without requiring separate real-time data transmission/reception. I can confirm. In connection with checking the application type, the processor 160 may check the type of the application through identification information of the application requested to be executed or the selected application. Alternatively, the processor 160 may check the application type based on the content supply device 300 forming a communication channel by activating the application requested to be executed. Alternatively, the processor 160 may check the application type based on the communication protocol selected for data transmission/reception with the content supply device 300 that has formed a communication channel.

In step 407, the processor 160 may check whether the application type is a designated type. In this regard, the processor 160 may check a list related to a designated type previously stored in the memory 140. The processor 160 may store and manage a designated type related list. For example, when a new application is installed in the user terminal 100, the processor 160 may collect the application type information and check whether the collected type information is an application type requiring real-time data transmission/reception. In the case of an application type requiring real-time data transmission/reception, the processor 160 may update the specified type related list.

When the type of application requested to be executed is a designated type (eg, a game application requiring real-time data transmission/reception), in step 409, the processor 160 may transmit a dummy packet before expiration of the Inactivity Timer to the connected base station. In this regard, when the processor 160 accesses the base stations 210 and 220, the processor 160 collects network setting information related to the base stations 210 and 220, and based on the collected network setting information, the processor 160 DRX Inactivity Timer expiration time information can be collected.

If the type of the application requested to be executed is not a designated type (eg, a web browser application that does not require real-time data transmission/reception), in step 411, the processor 160 may process DRX execution. For example, the processor 160 may wake up during the On Duration period, receive and decode the PDCCH, and transition to the Sleep state after the lapse of the period or the expiration of the Inactivity Timer.

Thereafter, in step 413, the processor 160 may check whether an event related to termination of the corresponding application occurs. If there is no termination of the application, the processor 160 may branch to a previous step, for example, step 409 or step 411, or branch to step 407 and perform the following operation again.

5A is a diagram illustrating a method of operating a DRX in connection with operation 409 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5A, when an application requiring real-time data transmission/reception is executed in a second DRX cycle, the user terminal 100 may transmit a dummy packet (or garbage traffic) to suppress the occurrence of a delay caused by DRX. In this regard, since the application in the user terminal 100 knows the preset cDRX operation information through the network setting information collected in advance, the user terminal 100 repeatedly transmits a dummy packet before each inactivity timer expires. Make it possible to keep the On state. In general, the cDRX operation is a function applied to reduce the battery consumption of the terminal, but the DRX operation method according to the present invention is used for the operation of applications in which low latency is considered to be more important service quality for some applications such as real-time gaming that do not consider battery consumption as important. Can be applied.

Regarding the method for generating and transmitting the dummy packet in the user terminal 100, the packet size may be defined as a small size packet less than or equal to a specified size. Through this, the network system 10 of the present invention can reduce network overhead due to dummy packets.

When the user terminal 100 is connected to an LTE network, a generation and transmission period of a packet (eg, a dummy packet) may be a period obtained by subtracting deltaLTE from drx-InactivityTimerLTE. The user terminal 100 generates a dummy packet at a corresponding period and transmits it through an uplink. In this case, deltaLTE may be a value obtained by adding t2LTE to t1LTE. The t1LTE refers to the time taken to transmit a dummy packet to the LTE PDCP layer after generating a dummy packet in the Application layer of the user terminal 100, and t2LTE may correspond to half of the scheduling request transmission period of the LTE system.

When the user terminal 100 is connected to the 5G NR network, the generation and transmission period of dummy packets may be a period deducting deltaNR from drx-InactivityTimerNR, and the application layer of the user terminal 100 is Create a dummy packet and send it to the Uplink. In this case, deltaNR may be a value obtained by adding t2NR to t1NR. The t1NR refers to the time taken to transmit the dummy packet to the NR PDCP layer after generating a dummy packet in the application layer of the user terminal 100, and t2NR may correspond to half of the scheduling request transmission period of the NR system. .

Since ON and OFF (=Sleep section) by cDRX operation affects both Uplink/Downlink transmission, it is possible to prevent additional delay caused by cDRX when transmitting Uplink/Downlink traffic only by transmitting dummy packets in Uplink.

5B is a diagram illustrating a DRX operation method related to operation 411 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5B, the user terminal 100 may receive and decode data of a PDCCH channel during an On Duration period, and transition to a sleep state during the remaining period. When the DL traffic arrives after the On Duration period, the base stations 210 and 220 may provide the DL traffic to the user terminal 100 after waiting until the next On Duration period. In this case, additional latency occurs due to the cDRX operation, but since the currently running application is an application that is not affected by a certain delay, the delay may be ignored.

6 is a diagram showing an example of a base station operating method related to DRX operation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 6, in the base station operating method related to DRX operation according to an embodiment of the present invention, the base stations 210 and 220 may process access to the user terminal 100 in step 601. The base stations 210 and 220 may provide network setting information to the user terminal 100 in the process of accessing the user terminal 100.

In step 603, the base stations 210 and 220 may apply DRX to the corresponding user terminal 100. In this process, the base stations 210 and 220 and the user terminal 100 may activate the DRX Inactivity Timer during the On Duration section based on the transmitted/received network configuration information. For example, in the On Duration period, the user terminal 100 may wake up and receive and decode data of the PDCCH channel. The user terminal 100 may drive the DRX Inactivity Timer during the On Duration period, and may transition to the Sleep state when the corresponding timer is completed.

In step 605, the base stations 210 and 220 may check whether a dummy packet is received before expiration of the Inactivity Timer according to the DRX application. When there is no dummy packet reception, the base stations 210 and 220 may branch to step 603 and perform the following operation. In connection with this operation, the base stations 210 and 220 may continue to apply DRX and check whether a dummy packet is received while the corresponding user terminal 100 maintains the connected state, and when the connection is released, the DRX application operation may be terminated. .

When a dummy packet is received before the DRX Inactivity Timer expires, in step 607, the base stations 210 and 220 may perform an Inactivity Timer update. In this process, the base stations 210 and 220 and the user terminal 100 may extend the On Duration period. The base stations 210 and 220 may receive dummy packets from the user terminal 100 immediately before expiration of the inactivity timer in order to minimize network overhead due to transmission and reception of dummy packets.

In step 609, the base stations 210 and 220 may check whether a DL packet (or DL data) is received during the On Duration period. When a DL packet is received in the On period, the base stations 210 and 220 may immediately transmit to the user terminal 100 in step 611. The DL packet may be received from the content supply device 300 through which the user terminal 100 has established a communication channel. Thereafter, the base stations 210 and 220 may return to a designated step, for example, step 603 before. If there is no DL packet reception in the On section in step 609, it is possible to check whether there is a dummy packet reception from the user terminal 100 while applying DRX by branching to step 603 before.

Meanwhile, in the above description, when the base stations 210 and 220 receive a dummy packet from the user terminal 100, it has been described that the On Duration period is extended, but the user terminal 100 includes data related to application operation ( Example: data corresponding to a user input) may be generated and transmitted to the base stations 210 and 220 in order to transmit the corresponding data to the content supply device 300. Even in this case, the base stations 210 and 220 may extend the On Duration period while transmitting the corresponding data to the content supply device 300. Checking whether a dummy packet is received or user data (e.g., data to be provided to the content supply device 300) is received, and the operation of extending the On Duration section of the DRX according to the packet reception before the expiration of the Inactivity Timer is performed to maintain the connection of the user terminal. Can be operated during.

The method according to the present invention may be implemented in a form of software that can be read through various computer means and recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. Here, the recording medium may include a program command, a data file, a data structure, or the like alone or in combination. The program instructions recorded on the recording medium may be specially designed and constructed for the present invention, or may be known and usable to those skilled in computer software. For example, the recording medium is a magnetic medium such as a hard disk, a floppy disk, and a magnetic tape, an optical medium such as a CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), a digital video disk (DVD), and a floppy disk. Magnetic-Optical Media, such as a floptical disk, and hardware devices specially configured to store and execute program instructions such as ROM, Random Access Memory (RAM), Flash memory, etc. do. Examples of the program instructions may include not only machine language codes such as those produced by a compiler, but also high-level language codes that can be executed by a computer using an interpreter or the like. Such a hardware device may be configured to operate as one or more software modules to perform the operation of the present invention, and vice versa.

In addition, the functional operations and implementations of the subject described in the present specification may be implemented by other types of digital electronic circuits, or by computer software, firmware, or hardware including the structures disclosed in this specification and structural equivalents thereof, or It can be implemented by combining one or more of them. The implementations of the subject matter described herein are one or more computer program products, that is, one relating to computer program instructions encoded on a tangible program storage medium for execution by or for controlling the operation of a device according to the invention. It can be implemented as the above module. The computer-readable medium may be a machine-readable storage device, a machine-readable storage substrate, a memory device, a composition of materials that affect a machine-readable radio wave signal, or a combination of one or more of them.

In addition, although this specification includes details of a number of specific implementations, these should not be construed as limiting to the scope of any invention or claimable, but rather to features that may be peculiar to a particular embodiment of a particular invention. It should be understood as an explanation. Certain features described herein in the context of separate embodiments may be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment can also be implemented in multiple embodiments individually or in any suitable sub-combination. Furthermore, although features operate in a particular combination and may be initially described as so claimed, one or more features from a claimed combination may in some cases be excluded from the combination, and the claimed combination may be a sub-combination. Or sub-combination variations.

Likewise, although operations are depicted in the drawings in a specific order, it should not be understood that such operations must be performed in that particular order or sequential order shown, or that all illustrated operations must be performed in order to obtain a desired result. In certain cases, multitasking and parallel processing can be advantageous. Further, the separation of the various system components of the above-described embodiments should not be understood as requiring such separation in all embodiments, and the program components and systems described are generally integrated together into a single software product or packaged in multiple software products. It should be understood that you can.

Specific embodiments of the subject matter described herein have been described. Other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims. For example, the operations recited in the claims may be performed in a different order while still achieving desirable results. As an example, the process depicted in the accompanying drawings does not necessarily require that particular depicted order or sequential order to obtain desirable results. In certain implementations, multitasking and parallel processing can be advantageous.

The present description presents the best mode of the invention, and provides examples to illustrate the invention and to enable those skilled in the art to make and use the invention. The written specification is not intended to limit the present invention to the specific terms presented. Accordingly, although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the above-described examples, those skilled in the art can make modifications, changes, and modifications to these examples without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be determined by the described embodiments, but should be determined by the claims.

The present invention is applied to the communication field, and in particular, relates to a technique for minimizing a data transmission delay between a terminal and a base station.

In particular, according to the present invention, by selectively operating the C-DRX function according to a specific application type, it is possible to improve the quality of service of an application requiring real-time data transmission/reception that has a greater delay than battery saving.

100: terminal
210, 220: base station
230: EPC
300: content supply device

Claims (12)

A communication circuit forming a communication channel with a user terminal;
And a processor functionally connected to the communication circuit,
The processor is
Performs the DRX function according to the user terminal access,
When receiving a dummy packet from the user terminal running an application that requires real-time data transmission while performing the DRX function,
The base station apparatus, characterized in that it is configured to extend the On Duration period of the DRX according to the reception of the dummy packet. The method of claim 1,
The processor is
Periodically receiving the dummy packet from the user terminal every time before the expiration of the DRX Inactivity Timer that defines the duration that should be kept on,
The base station apparatus, characterized in that it is configured to extend the On Duration period of the DRX according to the reception of the dummy packet. The method of claim 1,
The processor is
Receives data to be transmitted in real time from the content supply device,
And transmitting the data to be transmitted in real time to the user terminal in an On Duration period extended by the dummy packet. Accessing a user terminal to a base station;
Including, the base station performing DRX according to the access to the user terminal;
And if the base station receives a dummy packet from the user terminal running an application requiring real-time data transmission while performing the DRX, extending the On Duration period of the DRX according to the reception of the dummy packet; DRX operation method of a base station device as described above. The method of claim 4,
The extending step
Periodically receiving, by the base station, the dummy packet from the user terminal every time before expiration of a DRX Inactivity Timer defining a duration to be maintained in an On state;
And repeatedly extending the On Duration period of the DRX according to reception of the dummy packet. The method of claim 4,
Receiving data to be transmitted in real time from a content supply device;
And transmitting the data to be transmitted in real time to the user terminal in an On Duration period extended by the dummy packet. A communication circuit forming a communication channel with the base station;
And a processor functionally connected to the communication circuit,
The processor is
Collect network configuration information from the base station,
Performs the DRX function based on the network configuration information,
When requesting to execute an application, check the application type,
When the application type is a designated type, a dummy packet is generated,
A user terminal configured to transmit the dummy packet to the base station to extend the On Duration period of the DRX before expiration of an Inactivity Timer defining a Duration period in which the On state should be maintained. The method of claim 7,
The processor is
When the application type is an application type requiring data transmission in real time, the user terminal is configured to generate the dummy packet. The method of claim 7,
The processor is
A user terminal configured to periodically generate a dummy packet during execution of the application, and to periodically transmit the dummy packet every time before expiration of the inactivity timer updated according to transmission of the dummy packet. The method of claim 7,
The processor is
When the base station is changed during the generation and transmission of the dummy packet, the user terminal configured to re-collect network configuration information of the changed base station and to generate and transmit the dummy packet based on the re-collected network configuration information. Establishing a communication channel with the base station by the user terminal;
Collecting network configuration information from the base station;
Checking the application type when an application execution request is made while performing a DRX function based on the network configuration information;
Generating a dummy packet when the application type is a designated type;
And transmitting the dummy packet to the base station to extend the On Duration period of the DRX before expiration of an Inactivity Timer defining a Duration period in which the On state should be maintained. The method of claim 11,
If the base station is changed during the generation and transmission of the dummy packet, re-collecting network configuration information of the changed base station;
Generating and transmitting the dummy packet based on the re-collected network configuration information.

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