WO2024065207A1

WO2024065207A1 - Data sending method and apparatus, and readable storage medium

Info

Publication number: WO2024065207A1
Application number: PCT/CN2022/121861
Authority: WO
Inventors: 李艳华; 吴昱民
Original assignee: 北京小米移动软件有限公司
Priority date: 2022-09-27
Filing date: 2022-09-27
Publication date: 2024-04-04
Also published as: CN116097727A

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a data sending method and apparatus, and a readable storage medium. The method comprises: when a service type is a first service, a PDCP entity sends a data packet to at least one type of radio link control (RLC) entity. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, in the scenario where XR service data is transmitted, offloading of the XR service data is achieved by means of a PDCP layer, thereby improving data transmission efficiency.

Description

Data transmission method, device and readable storage medium

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a data sending method, device and readable storage medium.

Background technique

In the fifth-generation (5G) wireless communication system, it is necessary to support the extended reality (XR) service type. In the XR service, the quality of service (QoS) flow transmission can be used for data packet transmission. During the transmission process, the non-access stratum (NAS) may not perform data packet diversion, and different data are included in the same QoS flow. Therefore, it is necessary to solve the data diversion problem in this XR service scenario.

Summary of the invention

The present disclosure provides a data sending method, device and readable storage medium.

In a first aspect, the present disclosure provides a data sending method, the method comprising:

When the service type is the first service, the PDCP entity sends a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, in the scenario of transmitting XR service data, the XR service data is diverted and sent through the PDCP layer to improve the efficiency of transmitting data.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP entity sending a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity includes:

If the data packet is a PDCP data protocol data unit PDU, the PDCP entity sends the data packet to at least one type of RLC entity according to attribute information of the data packet of the first service.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP entity sending the data packet to at least one type of the RLC entity according to attribute information of the data packet of the first service includes:

The PDCP entity determines attribute information of the data packet according to a first field in the data packet;

The PDCP entity sends the data packet to the RLC entity associated with the attribute information of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the first field is a service data unit SDU type field.

If the PDCP packet duplication function of the radio bearer RB of the first service is activated, the PDCP entity copies and sends the data packet to the RLC entity corresponding to the attribute information of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP packet duplication function of the radio bearer RB of the first service is activated, including:

The PDCP packet copy function corresponding to any attribute information in the first service is activated.

In some possible implementations, the attribute information of the data packet includes one of the following:

The type of data packet;

The priority level of the data packet;

The processing level of the data packet.

In a second aspect, the present disclosure provides a communication device, wherein the communication device includes: a PDCP entity.

The PDCP entity is configured to send a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity when the service type is the first service.

In a third aspect, the present disclosure provides a communication device, comprising a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store a computer program; the processor is used to execute the computer program to implement the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, the present disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores instructions (or computer programs, programs), which, when called and executed on a computer, enable the computer to execute the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are used to provide a further understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure and constitute a part of this application. The illustrative embodiments of the embodiments of the present disclosure and their descriptions are used to explain the embodiments of the present disclosure and do not constitute an improper limitation on the embodiments of the present disclosure. In the drawings:

The accompanying drawings herein are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the embodiments of the present disclosure, and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a communication system architecture provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a protocol layer structure provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG3 is a flow chart of a data sending method according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG4 is a flow chart showing another data sending method according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG5 is a flow chart showing another data sending method according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG6 is a structural diagram of a data sending device according to an exemplary embodiment;

FIG7 is a structural diagram of a user equipment according to an exemplary embodiment;

Fig. 8 is a structural diagram of a network device according to an exemplary embodiment.

Detailed ways

The embodiments of the present disclosure are now further described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific implementation methods.

Exemplary embodiments will be described in detail herein, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings. When the following description refers to the drawings, the same numbers in different drawings represent the same or similar elements unless otherwise indicated. The implementations described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all implementations consistent with the embodiments of the present disclosure. Instead, they are merely examples of devices and methods consistent with some aspects of the present disclosure as detailed in the appended claims.

The terms used in the disclosed embodiments are only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the disclosed embodiments. The singular forms of "a" and "the" used in the disclosed embodiments and the appended claims are also intended to include plural forms unless the context clearly indicates other meanings. It should also be understood that the term "and/or" used herein refers to and includes any or all possible combinations of one or more associated listed items.

It should be understood that although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used to describe various information in the disclosed embodiments, these information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish the same type of information from each other. For example, without departing from the scope of the disclosed embodiments, the first information may also be referred to as the second information, and similarly, the second information may also be referred to as the first information. Depending on the context, the words "if" and "if" as used herein may be interpreted as "at" or "when" or "in response to determination".

Embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are intended to be used to explain the present disclosure, and should not be construed as limiting the present disclosure.

FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a wireless communication system 100 applicable to an embodiment of the present application. A user device 101 can access a wireless network to obtain services of an external network (such as the Internet) through the wireless network, or communicate with other devices through the wireless network, such as communicating with other user devices. As shown in FIG1 , the wireless network includes: a radio access network (RAN) device 102 or a network device 102, and a core network (CN) device 103, wherein the RAN device 102 is used to access the user device 101 to the wireless network, and the CN device 103 is used to manage the user device 101 and provide a gateway for communicating with the external network. It should be understood that the number of each device in the communication system shown in FIG1 is for illustration only, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto. In actual applications, the communication system may also include more user devices, more RAN devices, and other devices.

The wireless communication system 100 includes a user equipment 101 , a RAN device 102 and a CN device 103 .

Among them, when the network architecture shown in Figure 1 is applicable to a 5G communication system, the CN device 103 may include: an access and mobility management function (Access and Mobility Management Function, AMF) entity, a session management function (Session Management Function, SMF), a user plane function (User Plane Function, UPF) entity, a policy and charging function (Policy and charging function, PCF) device, a network exposure function (Network Exposure Function, NEF) device, an application function (Application Function, AF) device, etc.

The communication between the RAN device 102 and the user equipment 101 follows a certain protocol layer structure. FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a protocol layer structure according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG2, the control plane protocol layer structure may include functions of protocol layers such as the Radio Resource Control (RRC) layer, the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer, the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, the Media Access Control (MAC) layer and the Physical Layer (PHY). The user plane protocol layer structure may include functions of protocol layers such as the PDCP layer, the RLC layer, the MAC layer and the Physical Layer.

Among them, RAN and UPF are generally referred to as user-layer network function entities. The data traffic of the user device can be transmitted through the packet data unit (PDU) session (Session) established between the user device and the application layer device, and the transmission will pass through the two network function devices, RAN and UPF; the other parts are called control-layer network functions and entities, which are mainly responsible for authentication and authorization, registration management, session management, mobility management, and policy control, so as to achieve reliable and stable transmission of user-layer traffic.

The disclosed embodiment provides a data transmission method, which can be applied to the following scenario: a data transmitting end device transmits a data packet of a first service to a data receiving end device, and a PDCP layer of the data receiving end device receives the data packet sent by the data transmitting end device through a higher layer.

Referring to FIG. 3 , FIG. 3 is a data sending method according to an exemplary embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3 , the method includes step S301, specifically:

Step S301: When the service type is the first service, the PDCP entity sends a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity.

The radio bearer RB of the first service is associated with the PDCP entity. One or a type of RLC entity includes at least one RLC entity.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the PDCP layer and the RLC entity are configured in the same message receiving end device or message sending end device. For example, the message sending end device is the RAN device 102 or the network device 102, and the message receiving end device is the user equipment 101.

The PDCP layer and the RLC entity may be configured in the user equipment 101 to receive data sent by the network device 102. At this time, the method of the embodiment of the present disclosure may be executed by the user equipment 101. When the PDCP layer and the RLC entity are configured in the network device 102, the interaction between the PDCP layer and the RLC entity may still refer to the description of the embodiment of the present disclosure. At this time, the method of the embodiment of the present disclosure may be executed by the network device 102.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP layer may receive data packets of the first service from a higher layer, and perform traffic diversion according to the received data packets, and send the data packets to at least one type of RLC entity.

In some possible implementations, the first service is an XR service, which includes a real and virtual combined environment and a human-computer interaction service generated by computer technology and wearable devices. XR includes augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and cloud gaming, etc.

In some possible implementations, one XR service RB corresponds to one PDCP entity. The one PDCP entity is associated with at least one type of RLC entity. It can be understood that the PDCP layer can pre-configure the association relationship, which can be seen in the description of the following embodiment for details.

In some possible implementations, at least one type of RLC entity may be one or two categories of RLC entities. The category of the RLC entity is related to the service type and configuration. For example, data of a service type may be configured with one or two categories of RLC entities. The configuration can be seen in the following embodiments. Among them, each category of RLC entity includes at least one RLC entity. Among them, RLC includes three transmission modes: transparent transmission mode (TM), unconfirmed transmission mode (UM) and confirmed transmission mode (AM). Therefore, the RLC entity contained in each category of RLC entity may be a TM RLC entity, a UM RLC entity or an AM RLC entity.

In an example, in a scenario where duplication is not configured, a category of RLC entities includes one RLC entity. In UM bidirectional (uplink and downlink) transmission mode, the one RLC entity refers to one UM RLC entity. In UM unidirectional (uplink or downlink only) transmission mode, the one RLC entity refers to one uplink UM RLC entity and one downlink UM RLC entity (one for each transmission direction). In AM mode, the one RLC entity refers to one AM RLC entity.

In another example, in a scenario where replication is configured, a category of RLC entities may include multiple RLC entities. For example, in combination with the above example where replication is not configured, in a scenario where replication is configured, two UM RLC entities are corresponding to UM bidirectional transmission, four UM RLC entities are corresponding to UM unidirectional transmission, and two AM RLC entities are corresponding to AM mode.

In some possible implementations, when there is only one type of RLC entity (RLC entity) associated with PDCP, the PDCP layer sends data packets to this type of RLC entity.

In some possible implementations, when the PDCP-associated RLC entity has more than one category, the PDCP layer may distribute data to the more than one category of RLC entities based on the importance of the data packets. For example, the data packets are classified according to their importance, and then the PDCP layer distributes the data packets to the RLC entities of different categories.

In some possible implementations, when the PDCP-associated RLC entity has more than one category, the PDCP layer may distribute data to the more than one category of RLC entities based on the attribute information of the data packet. For example, the data packets are classified according to the attribute information of the data packets, and then the PDCP layer distributes the data packets to the RLC entities of different categories.

In one example, the attribute information of the data packet may refer to the type, priority level, or processing level of the data packet.

As an embodiment: data packets may be classified by flow or sub-flow, such as first sub-flow data packets (sub-flow1) and second sub-flow data packets (sub-flow2).

In one example, if the attribute information of the data packet includes the type of the data packet, the PDCP layer may divert the data packet according to the type of the data packet and deliver the data packet to at least one RLC entity or at least one type of RLC entity.

In one example, if the target category RLC entity to which the traffic is diverted contains only one RLC entity, for example, for UM bidirectional transmission, the one RLC entity is a UM RLC entity, for UM unidirectional transmission, the one RLC entity refers to one UM RLC entity for each transmission direction (uplink and downlink), or for AM mode, the one RLC entity is an AM RLC entity, then PDCP delivers the data packet to this one RLC entity.

In some possible implementations, the types of data packets include, for example, intra-coded picture (I frame) and predictive-frame (P frame), i.e., I frame and P frame, wherein the I frame is a key frame.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP layer may include diversion in a duplication scenario during the diversion of XR service data.

The present disclosure provides a data transmission method. Referring to FIG. 4 , FIG. 4 is a data transmission method according to an exemplary embodiment. As shown in FIG. 4 , the method includes step S401, specifically:

Step S401: If the data packet is PDCP control data, the PDCP entity sends the data packet to the first RLC entity.

In one example, the first RLC entity is a primary RLC entity or a specific RLC entity designated by the network.

In some possible implementations, the first service is an XR service, and the data packet is data transmitted in an XR service scenario.

In some possible implementations, PDCP control data (PDCP Control PDU) is data generated by the PDCP layer.

In the disclosed embodiment, in the XR service scenario, the PDCP layer delivers the PDCP control data to the first RLC entity.

The present disclosure provides a data transmission method. Referring to FIG5 , FIG5 is a data transmission method according to an exemplary embodiment. As shown in FIG5 , the method includes step S501, specifically:

Step S501: If the data packet is a PDCP data protocol data unit (PDU), the PDCP entity sends the data packet to at least one type of RLC entity according to attribute information of the data packet of the first service.

In some possible implementations, a PDCP data protocol data unit (PDCP Data PDU) is a data packet received by the PDCP layer from higher layers.

The type of data packet;

The priority level of the data packet;

The processing level of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the types of data packets include, for example, I frames and P frames, wherein the I frame is a key frame.

In some possible implementations, the priority levels of the data packets include, for example: high priority and low priority.

In some possible implementations, the processing level of the data packet includes, for example: a first processing level and a second processing level.

There is a correlation between the three data packet attribute information, namely, the type, priority level and processing level of the data packet. For example, the I frame in the type corresponds to the high priority in the priority level and the first processing level in the processing level, indicating higher data reliability and higher importance. The P frame in the type corresponds to the low priority in the priority level and the second processing level in the processing level, and is less important than the I frame.

In one example, the type of a data packet is used as an example for explanation. When the type of the data packet is an I frame, the RLC entity associated with it is a first-category RLC entity; when the type of the data packet is a P frame, the RLC entity associated with it is a second-category RLC entity. It is worth noting that this association relationship can be pre-configured, as described in the following embodiment.

In this example, the PDCP layer diverts the PDCP Data PDU according to the type of data packet, sends the I frame data packet to the first category of RLC entities, and sends the P frame data packet to the second category of RLC entities.

Referring to this example, the PDCP layer may also divert the PDCP Data PDU according to the priority level of the data packet and send data to at least one category of RLC entity; or divert the PDCP Data PDU according to the processing level of the data packet and send data to at least one category of RLC entity.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, in an XR service scenario, the PDCP layer performs diversion according to the attribute information of the PDCP Data PDU and sends data to at least one category of RLC entities.

The embodiment of the present disclosure provides a data transmission method. The method includes steps S501-11 to S501-12, specifically:

Step S501-11: The PDCP entity determines attribute information of the data packet according to the first field in the data packet.

Step S501-12: The PDCP entity sends a data packet to the RLC entity associated with the attribute information of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the first field is a newly added field in the header part of the data packet PDCP Data PDU, which is used to indicate the attribute information of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the first field is a newly added field in the GPRS Tunnelling Protocol for the user plane (GTP-U) packet header at the user level, which is used to indicate the attribute information of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the attribute information of the data packet includes one of the following: the type of the data packet; the priority level of the data packet; and the processing level of the data packet. For ease of description and the correlation between the three attribute information, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the attribute information of the data packet is described as the type of the data packet, and the first field indicates that the type of the data packet is an I frame or a P frame.

In some possible implementations, when the type of the data packet is an I frame, the RLC entity associated therewith is a first-category RLC entity; when the type of the data packet is a P frame, the RLC entity associated therewith is a second-category RLC entity. It is worth noting that this association relationship may be pre-configured, as described in the following embodiments.

In one example: the PDCP layer determines that the type of the data packet is an I frame based on the first field of the header part of the PDCP Data PDU. The PDCP layer sends the data packet to the first type of RLC entity associated with the I frame.

In another example: the PDCP layer determines that the type of the data packet is a P frame according to the first field of the header part of the PDCP Data PDU. The PDCP layer sends the data packet to the second type RLC entity associated with the P frame.

In the disclosed embodiment, when diverting the PDCP Data PDU, the PDCP layer may divert the PDCP Data PDU through the attribute information indicated by the first field.

The embodiment of the present disclosure provides a data transmission method. The method includes steps S501-11 to S501-12, wherein:

The first field is the service data unit SDU type field.

In some possible implementations, the service data unit type (SDU Type) field indicates that the type of data packet is I frame or P frame.

In some possible implementations, when the first field is a first set value, it indicates that the type of the corresponding PDCP Data PDU is an I frame.

In some possible implementations, when the first field is the second set value, it indicates that the type of the corresponding PDCP Data PDU is a P frame.

In an example:

As shown in Table 1 below, the first setting value is 101, and the second setting value is 110. When the bit value of the first field is 101, it indicates that the type of the corresponding PDCP Data PDU is an I frame. When the bit value of the first field is 110, it indicates that the type of the corresponding PDCP Data PDU is a P frame. It can be understood that when the bit value of the first field is other values, it indicates other meanings.

Table 1 SDU Type

比特Bit	类别category
000000	IPIP
001001	Non-IPNon-IP
010010	EthernetEthernet
011011	UnstructuredUnstructured
100100	ARPARP
101101	I frameI frame
110110	P frameP frame
111111	ReservedReserved

In the disclosed embodiment, the PDCP layer determines the type of the PDCP Data PDU based on the SDU type field of the PDCP Data PDU, so as to facilitate diversion according to the type of the data packet.

The present disclosure provides a method for sending data. The method includes step S501-21, specifically:

Step S501-21, if the PDCP packet duplication function of the radio bearer RB of the first service is activated, the PDCP entity copies and sends the data packet to the RLC entity corresponding to the attribute information of the data packet;

Alternatively, if the PDCP packet copy function of the RLC entity associated with the PDCP of the radio bearer RB of the first service is activated, the PDCP entity copies and sends the data packet to the RLC entity corresponding to the attribute information of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the first service is an XR service, and in this embodiment, a PDCP packet duplication function is configured for an RB corresponding to the XR service. When the PDCP packet duplication function corresponding to the RB is activated, the PDCP layer duplicates and sends a data packet to an associated RLC entity.

In some possible implementations, the first service is an XR service. In this embodiment, a PDCP packet duplication function is configured for an RLC entity associated with the PDCP of an RB corresponding to the XR service. When the PDCP packet duplication function corresponding to the RLC entity is activated, the PDCP layer duplicates and sends a data packet to the associated RLC entity. The benefit of this function is that the PDCP packet duplication function is refined to the RLC entity granularity, rather than the RB granularity.

In some possible implementations, the attribute information of the data packet may be one of the following: the type of the data packet; the priority level of the data packet; and the processing level of the data packet. For ease of description and because there is a correlation between the three attribute information, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, the attribute information of the data packet is taken as the type of the data packet for description.

In some possible implementations, when the type of the data packet is an I frame, the RLC entity associated with it is a first-category RLC entity; when the type of the data packet is a P frame, the RLC entity associated with it is a second-category RLC entity. Then PDCP delivers the data packet to different types of RLC entities.

In one example, if the target category RLC entity to which the traffic is diverted contains only one RLC entity, for example, for UM bidirectional transmission, the one RLC entity is a UM RLC entity, for UM unidirectional transmission, the one RLC entity is a UM RLC entity for each transmission direction (uplink and downlink), or for AM mode, the one RLC entity is an AM RLC entity, then PDCP delivers the data packet to this one RLC entity.

In one example, if the target category RLC entity to which the traffic is diverted contains more than one RLC entity, for example, there are two UM RLC entities corresponding to UM bidirectional transmission, four UM RLC entities corresponding to UM unidirectional transmission, and two AM RLC entities corresponding to AM mode, then PDCP packet replication may be activated for the target category RLC entity to which the traffic is diverted, and data packets are copied and sent to the related RLC entities obtained by replication.

In this example, the PDCP packet copy function corresponding to any attribute information in the first service may be activated, for example, the PDCP packet copy function corresponding to the I frame data packet may be activated.

For example, when the PDCP packet replication function corresponding to the RB of the XR service is activated, and the type of the data packet is an I frame, the I frame is associated with the first category of RLC entities, wherein the first category of RLC entities includes two RLC entities, denoted as the first RLC entity and the second RLC entity. At this time, if the PDCP packet replication is activated for the first RLC entity, a data packet is sent to the first RLC entity and a data packet is replicated and sent to the second RLC entity. At this time, the first RLC entity can be referred to as the primary RLC entity, and the second RLC entity can be referred to as the secondary RLC entity; or, the first RLC entity can be referred to as the replicated RLC entity, and the second RLC entity can be referred to as the replicated RLC entity.

In one embodiment, the first RLC entity and the second RLC entity may be determined by protocol or network instruction. For example, the first configured RLC entity is the first RLC entity, and the second configured RLC entity is the second RLC entity.

In one embodiment, the first RLC entity may be used by default for transmission of the PDCP layer control PDU.

In an example, the number of the secondary RLC entity or the duplicate RLC entity may be greater than one, that is, multiple PDCP packets are duplicated and sent.

In the above embodiments, only the I-frame data packet is illustrated to be transmitted by PDCP duplication. In other examples of the present disclosure, optional PDCP duplication packet transmission can also be performed for other types of data packets. In this way, it is possible to flexibly select data types with high reliability requirements to be transmitted by PDCP duplication, while data types with low reliability requirements are not transmitted by PDCP duplication, which can meet reliability requirements while reducing transmission overhead.

In the disclosed embodiment, the PDCP packet duplication function of the associated RLC entity may be activated in combination with the attribute information of the data packet to achieve diversion in a duplication scenario.

The embodiment of the present disclosure provides a data transmission method. The method includes step S301, or step S401, or step S501. The method also includes the following step S300:

Step S300, configuring the PDCP entity to be associated with N categories of RLC entities, where the N categories correspond to attribute information of N types of data packets.

The PDCP entity is a PDCP entity corresponding to or associated with the radio bearer RB of the first service.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP layer may pre-configure: the association relationship between the PDCP entity corresponding to the radio bearer (Radio Bearer, RB) of the XR service and N types of RLC entities.

In some possible implementations, the attribute information of the data packet includes one of the following: the type of the data packet; the priority level of the data packet; and the processing level of the data packet. The type of the data packet includes, for example, two types: I frame and P frame. The priority level of the data packet includes, for example, two types: high priority and low priority. The processing level of the data packet includes, for example, two types: first processing level and second processing level.

For each item of attribute information, N=2.

With respect to the type of data packet, the PDCP entity corresponding to the XR service RB is associated with two types of RLC entities, for example, an I frame is associated with a first type of RLC, and a P frame is associated with a second type of RLC.

As for the priority level of the data packet, the PDCP entity corresponding to the RB is associated with two types of RLC entities, for example, a high priority is associated with a first type of RLC, and a low priority is associated with a second type of RLC.

Regarding the processing level of the data packet, the PDCP entity corresponding to the RB is associated with two types of RLC entities, for example, the first processing level is associated with the first type of RLC, and the second processing level is associated with the second type of RLC.

It can be understood that step S300 in the embodiment of the present disclosure can be pre-configured to facilitate determining the RLC entity type associated with the service, and after determining the associated RLC entity type, the PDCP layer sends data to the associated RLC entity type.

In some possible embodiments, each category of RLC entities includes at least one unacknowledged mode UM RLC entity (associated with unidirectional or bidirectional transmission), or includes an acknowledged mode AM RLC entity.

In one example, each category of RLC entities includes one RLC entity.

For example, in a scenario where replication is not configured, a category of RLC entities includes one RLC entity. In UM bidirectional transmission mode, the one RLC entity refers to one UM RLC entity. In UM unidirectional transmission mode, the one RLC entity refers to one uplink UM RLC entity and one downlink UM RLC entity (one for each transmission direction). In AM mode, the one RLC entity refers to one AM RLC entity.

In another example, a category of RLC entities includes multiple RLC entities.

For example, in the scenario of configuration replication, UM bidirectional transmission corresponds to two UM RLC entities, UM unidirectional transmission corresponds to four UM RLC entities, and AM mode corresponds to two AM RLC entities.

In some possible implementations, when one category of RLC entities includes one RLC entity, for N categories of RLC entities, there correspond to N UM RLC entities (bidirectional), or 2N UM RLC entities (one for each transmission direction when unidirectional), or N AM RLC entities.

In one example, the RLC entity associated with the I frame data packet is a first-category RLC entity, which may include: a UM RLC entity (bidirectional), two UM RLC entities (corresponding to uplink and downlink directions respectively) or an AM RLC entity.

In some possible implementations, when a category of RLC entities includes multiple RLC entities, the radio bearer RB of the first service is configured with a PDCP packet replication function. For N categories of RLC entities, there are (N*M) corresponding RLC entities. Among them, the (N*M) RLC entities can be: (N*M) UM RLC entities (bidirectional), or (2*N*M) UM RLC entities (one for each transmission direction when unidirectional), or (N*M) AM RLC entities.

The PDCP entity is a PDCP entity corresponding to or associated with the wireless bearer RB of the first service.

In some possible implementations, when configuring the associated RLC entity, the number of replications M needs to be considered, where 2≤M≤4.

To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure, several specific examples are listed below.

Example 1:

For the RB of the XR service, each PDCP entity of the RB is configured to be associated with N types of RLC entities.

When the RB is not configured with the PDCP packet replication function or the PDCP-associated RLC entity of the RB is not configured with the PDCP packet replication, the N categories of RLC entities may correspond to: N UM RLC entities (bidirectional transmission), or 2N UM RLC entities (corresponding to the uplink and downlink directions respectively), or N AM RLC entities. That is, one RLC entity category includes one RLC entity, and for UM bidirectional transmission, the one RLC entity is one UM RLC entity, and for UM unidirectional transmission, the one category of RLC entities corresponds to one UM RLC entity in each direction, and for the AM mode, the one category of RLC entities is one AM RLC entity.

Example 2:

For RBs of XR services, each PDCP entity of the RB is configured to be associated with N types of RLC entities for traffic diversion based on service attributes.

When the RB is not configured with the PDCP packet replication function or the PDCP-associated RLC entity of the RB is not configured with PDCP packet replication, each PDCP entity is associated with N types of RLC entities. However, a certain type of the N types of RLC entities can be configured with multiple RLC entities for RLC entity-level traffic diversion.

For example: for the first service data type, a category RLC entity is configured, and the category RLC entity includes one RLC entity; for the second service data type, a category RLC entity is configured, and the category RLC entity includes two RLC entities, which are respectively used for the main base station (MCG) and the secondary base station (SCG).

In this way, multiple split bearers can be used to transmit services with large traffic volumes, while for services with small traffic volumes, there is no need to use split bearer transmission.

Example 3:

For the RB of the XR service, when the PDCP packet replication function is configured for the RB or the PDCP-associated RLC entity of the RB is configured with PDCP packet replication, the PDCP entity of the RB is configured to be associated with N categories of RLC entities. The N categories of RLC entities correspond to (N*M) RLC entities, where M is the number of replications.

For example, the N types of RLC entities may correspond to: (N*M) UM RLC entities (bidirectional transmission), or (2*N*M) UM RLC entities (corresponding to uplink and downlink directions respectively), or (N*M) AM RLC entities. Where 2≤M≤4. That is, M replicated RLC entities are configured for each type of RLC entity.

Example 4:

In a scenario where the PDCP entity is associated with a radio bearer RB of an XR service, for example, in a scenario where the sending PDCP entity is associated with an RB of an XR service, the PDCP layer may perform offload transmission after receiving the data packet.

When the data packet is a PDCP Data PDU, it can be split in the following two ways:

Method 1: Determine the type based on the SDU field in the PDCP Data PDU and send the data packet to the RLC entity associated with the type;

Method 2: Determine the type according to the SDU field in the PDCP Data PDU, and if the PDCP packet copy function of the XR service RB is activated or the PDCP packet copy function of the RLC entity associated with the PDCP of the XR service RB is activated, copy and send the data packet to the RLC entity associated with this type.

Otherwise, the data packet is sent to the first RLC entity. For example, when the data packet is control data, the data packet is sent to the first RLC entity. The first RLC entity is a master RLC entity or a network-designated RLC entity.

Based on the same concept as the above method, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a communication device, which can be used to execute the data sending method in the above embodiment.

In a possible implementation, as shown in FIG6 , a communication device 600 includes a PDCP entity 601 .

The PDCP entity 601 is configured to send a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity when the service type is the first service.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP entity 601 is further configured to, if the data packet is a PDCP data protocol data unit PDU, send the data packet to at least one type of the RLC entity according to attribute information of the data packet of the first service.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP entity 601 is further configured to determine attribute information of the data packet based on the first field in the data packet; and send the data packet to the RLC entity associated with the attribute information of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the PDCP entity 601 is further configured to copy and send the data packet to the RLC entity corresponding to the attribute information of the data packet if the PDCP packet copy function of the radio bearer RB of the first service is activated.

Under the first service, the PDCP packet copy function corresponding to any attribute information is activated.

The type of data packet;

The priority level of the data packet;

The processing level of the data packet.

In some possible implementations, the communication device may be a user device 101 or a network device 102 .

When the communication device is user equipment 101, its structure may be as shown in Figure 7. Referring to Figure 7, the device 700 may include one or more of the following components: a processing component 702, a memory 704, a power component 706, a multimedia component 708, an audio component 710, an input/output (I/O) interface 712, a sensor component 714, and a communication component 716.

The processing component 702 generally controls the overall operation of the device 700, such as operations associated with display, phone calls, data communications, camera operations, and recording operations. The processing component 702 may include one or more processors 720 to execute instructions to perform all or part of the steps of the above-described method. In addition, the processing component 702 may include one or more modules to facilitate interaction between the processing component 702 and other components. For example, the processing component 702 may include a multimedia module to facilitate interaction between the multimedia component 708 and the processing component 702.

The memory 704 is configured to store various types of data to support operations on the device 700. Examples of such data include instructions for any application or method operating on the device 700, contact data, phone book data, messages, pictures, videos, etc. The memory 704 can be implemented by any type of volatile or non-volatile storage device or a combination thereof, such as static random access memory (SRAM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), read-only memory (ROM), magnetic memory, flash memory, magnetic disk or optical disk.

The power supply component 706 provides power to the various components of the device 700. The power supply component 706 may include a power management system, one or more power supplies, and other components associated with generating, managing, and distributing power for the device 700.

The multimedia component 708 includes a screen that provides an output interface between the device 700 and the user. In some embodiments, the screen may include a liquid crystal display (LCD) and a touch panel (TP). If the screen includes a touch panel, the screen may be implemented as a touch screen to receive input signals from the user. The touch panel includes one or more touch sensors to sense touch, slide, and gestures on the touch panel. The touch sensor may not only sense the boundaries of the touch or slide action, but also detect the duration and pressure associated with the touch or slide operation. In some embodiments, the multimedia component 708 includes a front camera and/or a rear camera. When the device 700 is in an operating mode, such as a shooting mode or a video mode, the front camera and/or the rear camera may receive external multimedia data. Each front camera and rear camera may be a fixed optical lens system or have a focal length and optical zoom capability.

The audio component 710 is configured to output and/or input audio signals. For example, the audio component 710 includes a microphone (MIC), and when the device 700 is in an operating mode, such as a call mode, a recording mode, and a speech recognition mode, the microphone is configured to receive an external audio signal. The received audio signal can be further stored in the memory 704 or sent via the communication component 716. In some embodiments, the audio component 710 also includes a speaker for outputting audio signals.

I/O interface 712 provides an interface between processing component 702 and peripheral interface modules, such as keyboards, click wheels, buttons, etc. These buttons may include but are not limited to: home button, volume button, start button, and lock button.

The sensor assembly 714 includes one or more sensors for providing various aspects of status assessment for the device 700. For example, the sensor assembly 714 can detect the open/closed state of the device 700, the relative positioning of components, such as the display and keypad of the device 700, the sensor assembly 714 can also detect the position change of the device 700 or a component of the device 700, the presence or absence of user contact with the device 700, the orientation or acceleration/deceleration of the device 700, and the temperature change of the device 700. The sensor assembly 714 can include a proximity sensor configured to detect the presence of nearby objects without any physical contact. The sensor assembly 714 can also include an optical sensor, such as a CMOS or CCD image sensor, for use in imaging applications. In some embodiments, the sensor assembly 714 can also include an acceleration sensor, a gyroscope sensor, a magnetic sensor, a pressure sensor, or a temperature sensor.

The communication component 716 is configured to facilitate wired or wireless communication between the device 700 and other devices. The device 700 can access a wireless network based on a communication standard, such as WiFi, 2G or 3G, or a combination thereof. In an exemplary embodiment, the communication component 716 receives a broadcast signal or broadcast-related information from an external broadcast management system via a broadcast channel. In an exemplary embodiment, the communication component 716 also includes a near field communication (NFC) module to facilitate short-range communication. For example, the NFC module can be implemented based on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology, infrared data association (IrDA) technology, ultra-wideband (UWB) technology, Bluetooth (BT) technology and other technologies.

In an exemplary embodiment, the apparatus 700 may be implemented by one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors or other electronic components to perform the above methods.

In an exemplary embodiment, a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium including instructions is also provided, such as a memory 704 including instructions, and the instructions can be executed by the processor 720 of the device 700 to perform the above method. For example, the non-transitory computer-readable storage medium can be a ROM, a random access memory (RAM), a CD-ROM, a magnetic tape, a floppy disk, an optical data storage device, etc.

When the communication device is a network device 102, its structure may be as shown in FIG8. Referring to FIG8, the structure of the communication device is described by taking a base station as an example. As shown in FIG8, the device 800 includes a memory 801, a processor 802, a transceiver component 803, and a power supply component 806. Among them, the memory 801 is coupled to the processor 802, and can be used to store the programs and data necessary for the communication device 800 to implement various functions. The processor 802 is configured to support the communication device 800 to perform the corresponding functions in the above method, and the functions can be implemented by calling the program stored in the memory 801. The transceiver component 803 can be a wireless transceiver, which can be used to support the communication device 800 to receive signaling and/or data through a wireless air interface, and send signaling and/or data. The transceiver component 803 may also be referred to as a transceiver unit or a communication unit. The transceiver component 803 may include a radio frequency component 804 and one or more antennas 805, wherein the radio frequency component 804 may be a remote radio unit (RRU), which may be specifically used for transmission of radio frequency signals and conversion of radio frequency signals into baseband signals, and the one or more antennas 805 may be specifically used for radiation and reception of radio frequency signals.

When the communication device 800 needs to send data, the processor 802 can perform baseband processing on the data to be sent, and then output the baseband signal to the radio frequency unit. The radio frequency unit performs radio frequency processing on the baseband signal and then sends the radio frequency signal in the form of electromagnetic waves through the antenna. When data is sent to the communication device 800, the radio frequency unit receives the radio frequency signal through the antenna, converts the radio frequency signal into a baseband signal, and outputs the baseband signal to the processor 802. The processor 802 converts the baseband signal into data and processes the data.

The present disclosure also provides a communication device, including a processor and a memory, wherein:

The memory is used to store computer programs;

The processor is used to execute the computer program to implement the aforementioned data sending method.

The embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which instructions are stored. When the instructions are called and executed on a computer, the computer executes the aforementioned data sending method.

Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate other implementations of the disclosed embodiments after considering the specification and practicing the invention disclosed herein. This application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations of the disclosed embodiments that follow the general principles of the disclosed embodiments and include common knowledge or customary technical means in the art that are not disclosed in this disclosure. The specification and examples are to be considered merely exemplary, and the true scope and spirit of the disclosed embodiments are indicated by the following claims.

It should be understood that the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to the precise structures described above and shown in the drawings, and various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the scope thereof. The scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure is limited only by the appended claims.

Industrial Applicability

Claims

A data sending method, the method comprising:

When the service type is the first service, the PDCP entity sends a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity.
The method according to claim 1, wherein the PDCP entity sends a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity, comprising:

If the data packet is a PDCP data protocol data unit PDU, the PDCP entity sends the data packet to at least one type of RLC entity according to attribute information of the data packet of the first service.
The method of claim 2, wherein the PDCP entity sends the data packet to at least one type of the RLC entity according to attribute information of the data packet of the first service, comprising:

The PDCP entity determines attribute information of the data packet according to a first field in the data packet;

The PDCP entity sends the data packet to the RLC entity associated with the attribute information of the data packet.
The method according to claim 3, wherein the first field is a service data unit (SDU) type field.
The method of claim 2, wherein the PDCP entity sends the data packet to at least one type of the RLC entity according to attribute information of the data packet of the first service, comprising:

If the PDCP packet duplication function of the radio bearer RB of the first service is activated, the PDCP entity copies and sends the data packet to the RLC entity corresponding to the attribute information of the data packet.
The method according to claim 5, wherein the PDCP packet copy function of the radio bearer RB of the first service is activated, comprising:

The PDCP packet copy function corresponding to any attribute information in the first service is activated.
The method according to any one of claims 2 to 6, wherein the attribute information of the data packet includes one of the following:

The type of data packet;

The priority level of the data packet;

The processing level of the data packet.
A communication device, comprising:

The PDCP entity is used to send a data packet to at least one type of radio link control RLC entity when the service type is the first service.
A communication device includes a processor and a memory, wherein:

The memory is used to store computer programs;

The processor is configured to execute the computer program to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.
A computer-readable storage medium stores instructions, and when the instructions are called and executed on a computer, the computer executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.