Data processing method and device, terminal and network side equipment

Abstract

The invention discloses a data processing method and device, a terminal and network side equipment. The data processing method of the embodiment of the invention belongs to the technical field of communication, and comprises the steps that a first protocol layer of network side equipment performs first processing on a data packet, and the first processing comprises at least one of the following items: data distribution related processing; performing data aggregation related processing; wherein the first protocol layer is located on an air interface access technology protocol layer.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application belongs to the field of communication technology, specifically relating to a data processing method, apparatus, terminal, and network-side equipment. Background Technology

[0002] In existing technologies, dual connectivity (DC) is a control method for traffic offloading and aggregation at Radio Access Network (RAN) nodes. In DC, the base station strictly controls the data offloading, such as when to start offloading transmission on the second path, and when to activate / deactivate copy transmission. The UE cannot choose the transmission path independently based on its own needs.

[0003] For core network technologies such as Dual Steer and Access Traffic Steering, Switching, Splitting (ATSSS), the path selection is handled by the User Equipment (UE) and core network nodes. This grants the UE a certain degree of autonomy in path selection decisions. However, the path selection between the UE and core network nodes is relatively static, and in some configurations, copy transmission is not supported, making it impossible to make more accurate and dynamic decisions based on real-time conditions. Neither of the two existing traffic splitting schemes mentioned above can guarantee that the UE will accurately and dynamically select the transmission path, potentially leading to deviations in the selected path and impacting system efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a data processing method, apparatus, terminal, and network-side device that can solve the problem of low system efficiency caused by existing traffic offloading methods.

[0005] Firstly, a data processing method is provided, executed by a network-side device, the method comprising:

[0006] The first protocol layer of the network-side device performs first processing on the data packets, the first processing including at least one of the following: data splitting related processing; data aggregation related processing;

[0007] The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0008] Secondly, a data processing method is provided, executed by a terminal, the method comprising:

[0009] The terminal's first protocol layer performs a second processing on the data packets, the second processing including at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; data splitting related processing;

[0010] The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0011] Thirdly, a data processing apparatus is provided for use in network-side equipment, including:

[0012] A first processing module is used to perform first processing on data packets at a first protocol layer, wherein the first processing includes at least one of the following: data splitting related processing; data aggregation related processing;

[0013] The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0014] Fourthly, a data processing device is provided for use in a terminal, comprising:

[0015] The second processing module is used to perform second processing on the data packets by the first protocol layer. The second processing includes at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; data splitting related processing.

[0016] The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0017] Fifthly, a data processing apparatus is provided, the apparatus being configured to perform the steps of the method described in the first aspect, or to implement the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0018] In a sixth aspect, a terminal is provided, the terminal including a processor and a memory, the memory storing a program or instructions executable on the processor, the program or instructions, when executed by the processor, implementing the steps of the method as described in the second aspect.

[0019] In a seventh aspect, a terminal is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the processor is configured to: perform second processing on data packets at a first protocol layer, the second processing including at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; data splitting related processing; wherein the first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0020] Eighthly, a network-side device is provided, the network-side device including a processor and a memory, the memory storing a program or instructions executable on the processor, the program or instructions, when executed by the processor, implementing the steps of the method as described in the first aspect.

[0021] In a ninth aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the processor is configured to: perform first processing on data packets at a first protocol layer, the first processing including at least one of the following: data splitting related processing; data aggregation related processing; wherein the first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0022] In a tenth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, on which a program or instructions are stored, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the method described in the first aspect, or implement the steps of the method described in the second aspect.

[0023] Eleventhly, a wireless communication system is provided, comprising: a terminal and a network-side device, wherein the terminal can be used to perform the steps of the method as described in the second aspect, and the network-side device can be used to perform the steps of the method as described in the first aspect.

[0024] In a twelfth aspect, a chip is provided, the chip including a processor and a communication interface coupled to the processor, the processor being configured to run programs or instructions to implement the method as described in the first aspect, or to implement the method as described in the second aspect.

[0025] In a thirteenth aspect, a computer program / program product is provided, which is stored in a storage medium and is executed by at least one processor to implement the steps of the data processing method as described in the first aspect, or to implement the steps of the data processing method as described in the second aspect.

[0026] In a fourteenth aspect, a computer program product is provided, including computer instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the data processing method as described in the first aspect, or implement the steps of the data processing method as described in the second aspect.

[0027] In this embodiment, a first protocol layer is configured on both the terminal and the network-side device, and this first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The first protocol layer is used for data splitting and / or data aggregation processing, enabling the network-side device and the terminal to operate more flexibly during data splitting and reception, thereby improving data transmission efficiency and service experience, and enhancing system efficiency while simultaneously improving data transmission performance. Attached Figure Description

[0028] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a wireless communication system;

[0029] Figure 2 This is one of the flowcharts illustrating the data processing method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0030] Figure 3 This is one of the schematic diagrams illustrating the configuration of the first protocol layer in an embodiment of this application;

[0031] Figure 4 This is a second schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of the first protocol layer in an embodiment of this application;

[0032] Figure 5 This is a second schematic flowchart of the data processing method according to an embodiment of this application;

[0033] Figure 6 This is one of the structural schematic diagrams of the data processing apparatus according to an embodiment of this application;

[0034] Figure 7 This is a second schematic diagram of the structure of the data processing device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0035] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0036] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the terminal structure according to an embodiment of this application;

[0037] Figure 10 This is one of the structural schematic diagrams of the network-side device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0038] Figure 11 This is the second schematic diagram of the network-side device in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0039] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of this application. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0040] The terms "first," "second," etc., used in this application are used to distinguish similar objects and not to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such terms can be used interchangeably where appropriate so that embodiments of this application can be implemented in orders other than those illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first" and "second" are generally of the same class, not limited in number; for example, the first object can be one or more. Furthermore, "or" in this application indicates at least one of the connected objects. For example, the scope of protection for "A or B" covers at least three scenarios: Scenario 1: including A but not B; Scenario 2: including B but not A; Scenario 3: including both A and B. In addition, the terms "A and / or B," "at least one of A and B," and "at least one of A or B" also cover at least the above three scenarios. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0041] The term "instruction" in this application can be either a direct instruction (or explicit instruction) or an indirect instruction (or implicit instruction). A direct instruction can be understood as one in which the sender explicitly informs the receiver of specific information, the operation to be performed, or the requested result, etc., in the instruction sent. An indirect instruction can be understood as one in which the receiver determines the corresponding information based on the instruction sent by the sender, or makes a judgment and determines the operation to be performed or the requested result, etc., based on the judgment result.

[0042] It is worth noting that the technologies described in this application are not limited to Long Term Evolution (LTE) / LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, but can also be used in other wireless communication systems, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA), or other systems. The terms "system" and "network" in this application are often used interchangeably, and the described technologies can be used with the systems and radio technologies mentioned above, as well as with other systems and radio technologies. The following description describes New Radio (NR) systems for illustrative purposes, and the term NR is used in most of the following description; however, these technologies can also be applied to systems other than NR systems, such as 6th generation (6G) radio systems. th Generation 6G communication system.

[0043] Figure 1This diagram illustrates a block diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to embodiments of this application. The wireless communication system includes a terminal 11 and a network-side device 12. The terminal 11 can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, laptop computer, notebook computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld computer, netbook, ultra-mobile personal computer (UMPC), mobile internet device (MID), augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) device, robot, wearable device, flight vehicle, vehicle user equipment (VUE), shipboard equipment, pedestrian user equipment (PUE), smart home devices (home appliances with wireless communication capabilities, such as refrigerators, televisions, washing machines, or furniture), game consoles, personal computers (PCs), ATMs, or self-service machines, etc. Wearable devices include: smartwatches, smart bracelets, smart headphones, smart glasses, smart jewelry (smart bracelets, smart chains, smart rings, smart necklaces, smart anklets, smart anklets, etc.), smart wristbands, smart clothing, etc. Among these, in-vehicle devices can also be referred to as in-vehicle terminals, in-vehicle controllers, in-vehicle modules, in-vehicle components, in-vehicle chips, or in-vehicle units, etc. It should be noted that the specific type of terminal 11 is not limited in this application embodiment. Network-side equipment 12 may include access network equipment or core network equipment, wherein access network equipment may also be referred to as Radio Access Network (RAN) equipment, radio access network function, or radio access network unit. Access network equipment may include base stations, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) access points (AS), or Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) nodes, etc.The term "base station" can be referred to as Node B (NB), Evolved Node B (eNB), Next Generation Node B (gNB), New Radio Node B (NR Node B), Access Point, Relay Base Station (RBS), Serving Base Station (SBS), Base Transceiver Station (BTS), Radio Base Station, Radio Transceiver, Basic Service Set (BSS), Extended Service Set (ESS), Home Node B (HNB), Home Evolved Node B, Transmit / Receive Point (TRP), or any other suitable term in the relevant field, as long as the same technical effect is achieved. The term "base station" is not limited to any specific technical terminology. It should be noted that this application embodiment only uses a base station in an NR system as an example for description and does not limit the specific type of base station.

[0044] Core network equipment, also known as core network nodes, core network functions, or core network elements, includes, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Mobility Management Entity (MME), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), Policy Control Function (PCF), Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF), Edge Application Server Discovery Function (EASDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Unified Data Repository (UDR), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Centralized network configuration (CNC), Network Repository Function (NRF), Network Exposure Function (NEF), Local NEF (or L-NEF), and Binding Support Function. Support Functions (BSF), Application Functions (AF), Location Management Functions (LMF), Gateway Mobile Location Centres (GMLC), and Network Data Analytics Functions (NWDAF), etc. It should be noted that this application embodiment only uses core network equipment in the NR system as an example and does not limit the specific type of core network equipment. If the name of the core network equipment mentioned in this application embodiment changes in subsequent protocol versions (e.g., 6G), it will still be within the scope of protection of this application.

[0045] Optionally, the core network equipment can be implemented by one or more functional modules in a single device, or by multiple devices working together; this application does not specifically limit this. It is understood that the aforementioned functional modules can be network elements in hardware devices, software functional modules running on dedicated hardware, or virtualized functional modules instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform).

[0046] The data processing method, apparatus, terminal, and network-side device provided in this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and through some embodiments and application scenarios.

[0047] like Figure 2 As shown in the figure, this application provides a data processing method applied to a network-side device, including:

[0048] Step 201: The first protocol layer of the network-side device performs first processing on the data packets, the first processing including at least one of the following: data splitting related processing; data aggregation related processing;

[0049] The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0050] In this embodiment, the network-side device includes, for example, any one or more of the following: core network devices, access network devices, other network nodes, etc. The first protocol layer can be located within the protocol layer of the network-side device, but it sits above the air interface access technology protocol layer and is used for centralized management and control of terminal data. The air interface access technology protocol layer can be, for example, the protocol layer of a RAN node, the protocol layer of a WiFi access point (AP), etc. The air interface access technology protocol layer can also be the protocol layer of other air interface access technology nodes, and is not limited here.

[0051] For example, the first protocol layer can be set in core network equipment, such as a UPF or other core network node. The first protocol layer can be located below the IP layer and above the base station's protocol layer. Figure 3 As shown; the first protocol layer can perform splitting and / or aggregation processing on data packets across two or more transmission paths.

[0052] The first protocol layer can also be set in the central node or anchor node of the RAN, located above the protocol layer of the RAN, and is used to perform traffic splitting and / or aggregation processing on data packets in two or more transmission paths.

[0053] The first protocol layer can also be set in other network nodes and is located above the protocol layer of the RAN. It is used to perform traffic splitting and / or aggregation processing on data packets in two or more transmission paths.

[0054] In this embodiment, the first protocol layer is a newly added protocol layer for performing data splitting and / or data aggregation processing. The name of this protocol layer is not limited, but it can be a dual stack lower layer (DSLL).

[0055] It should be noted that, in the embodiments of this application, the location of the first protocol layer on the network-side device is not limited, only that it needs to be located above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The first protocol layer can perform data splitting operations and transmit the split data to the air interface access nodes corresponding to multiple transmission paths; the first protocol layer can also perform data aggregation processing on the received data from multiple transmission paths and submit the processed data to higher layers as needed, that is, the first protocol layer can act as both a data sender and a data receiver.

[0056] It should be noted that the terminal also incorporates the first protocol layer for data interaction with network-side devices. This first protocol layer is positioned above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The terminal can perform data aggregation and / or data splitting processing at the first protocol layer.

[0057] For example, for downlink data, the network-side device acts as the data sender, and the terminal acts as the data receiver. The network-side device's first protocol layer performs data splitting processing on the data to be sent and sends the processed data to different transmission paths (e.g., gNB1 or gNB2). The data reaches the UE side through different transmission paths. The terminal performs data duplication detection, reordering, and other processing on the received data before submitting it to higher layers.

[0058] For example, for uplink data, the terminal acts as the data sender, and the network-side device acts as the data receiver. The terminal's first protocol layer performs data splitting processing on the data to be sent and sends the processed data to the L2 protocol layer corresponding to different transmission paths, transmitting it to different network nodes (e.g., gNB1 or gNB2). The data reaches the network side through different transmission paths. The network-side device performs data duplication detection, reordering, and other processing on the received data before submitting it to higher layers.

[0059] In embodiments of this application, a first protocol layer is configured on the network-side device, which sits above the air interface access technology protocol layer. This first protocol layer is used for data splitting and / or data aggregation processing, enabling the network-side device and terminal to operate more flexibly during data splitting and reception. This improves data transmission efficiency and service experience, enhancing both data transmission performance and system efficiency.

[0060] Optionally, the first protocol layer may be configured to appear only for Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sessions, Quality of Service (QoS) flows, or bearers that require offloading, while non-offloaded PDU sessions / QoS flows / bearers may not appear or may not be configured with this protocol layer; alternatively, the first protocol layer may be configured to appear uniformly, performing different operations on offloaded PDU sessions / QoS flows / bearers and non-offloaded PDU sessions / QoS flows / bearers to adapt to different transmission requirements.

[0061] Optionally, the first protocol layer can be set independently and work in conjunction with L2 sub-layers such as Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) and Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP). A new first protocol layer can be designed without affecting the L2 sub-layer. This setting method has less impact on the protocol layer.

[0062] Optionally, the first protocol layer can be reconstructed with L2 sub-layers such as PDCP and SDAP. For example, if PDCP and DSLL layers each have their own sequence number (SN) and both perform reordering and duplicate detection functions, there are some drawbacks of redundancy and inefficiency. Joint design can be considered. Similarly, the mapping of QoS flow to radio bearer (RB) performed by SDAP can be jointly designed after the first protocol layer is introduced.

[0063] It should be noted that the data splitting and / or data aggregation processing performed by the first protocol layer in this application embodiment can be applied to dual-connection scenarios or more connection scenarios, and is not limited here.

[0064] As an optional embodiment, the data offloading related processing includes at least one of the following:

[0065] Add a header structure to the data packet;

[0066] Select a route path for the data packet;

[0067] Data packets are sent according to the routing path.

[0068] This embodiment is for the case where the network-side device is the data sender. The first protocol layer can distribute and process the data, such as adding header structures to data packets, selecting routing paths for data packets, and sending data packets.

[0069] Optionally, before performing the first processing on the data packet, the method further includes:

[0070] Obtain the first configuration information;

[0071] The first processing of the data packet includes:

[0072] The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information;

[0073] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0074] The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer;

[0075] The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet;

[0076] The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement;

[0077] The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of the data packet; the routing information is information used for route selection, and the routing information includes, for example, one or more of the following: delay priority, main path priority, threshold information, etc.

[0078] The correspondence between Quality of Service (QoS) flows and data packets; for example, which data belong to a QoS flow.

[0079] The correspondence between radio bearers (RBs) and data packets, such as which data belong to a single RB.

[0080] In this embodiment, the first configuration information can be configured by the control plane. For example, if the network-side device is a core network node, the first configuration information can be configured using non-access stratum (NAS) signaling in the control plane between the core network and the UE. This allows for synchronized configuration of the data sender and receiver between the core network and the UE, ensuring that subsequent data processing can be performed uniformly and without errors by both parties. Alternatively, the first configuration information can be configured using the RRC procedure in the control plane between the RAN node and the UE, ensuring consistent data processing between the RAN node and the UE.

[0081] The first protocol layer of the network-side device can process data packets based on the first configuration information. For example, it can determine whether to add a header structure to the data packet, select a routing path for the data packet, and send the data packet based on the first configuration information. For instance, it can add a header structure to all data packets passing through the first protocol layer, add a header structure to data packets indicating that a header structure is needed, or add a header structure to data packets requiring in-order delivery. The first protocol layer can also determine whether to add a header structure to the data packet based on one or more of the information in the first configuration information. For example, it can add a header structure to data packets passing through the first protocol layer that require in-order delivery. These are not all examples listed here.

[0082] The first protocol layer can also determine which data belongs to a QoS flow and which data belongs to an RB based on the first configuration information, thereby adding header structures to data packets based on different granularities.

[0083] As an optional embodiment, adding a header structure to the data packet includes:

[0084] Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity;

[0085] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0086] RB particle size;

[0087] QoS flow granularity.

[0088] In this embodiment, the network-side device can add header structures to the data packets at the first protocol layer based on RB granularity, or it can add header structures to the data packets based on QoS flow granularity. For example, according to the correspondence between RBs and data packets, header structures can be added to the data packets contained in each RB; or, according to the correspondence between QoS flows and data packets, header structures can be added to the data packets contained in each QoS flow.

[0089] Optionally, when adding a header structure to a data packet, the header structure can be added based on the first granularity and according to the first configuration information. For example, for data packets that pass through the first protocol layer, a header structure can be added based on the data packets contained in each RB; or, for data packets contained in each RB, a header structure can be added for data packets that have in-order delivery requirements; or, for QoS flows that pass through the first protocol layer, have multi-path selection requirements, and need to be delivered in order, a header structure can be added to the data packets based on the QoS flow.

[0090] Optionally, the header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information:

[0091] 1) Sequence number (SN); The receiving end of the data packet can perform operations such as reordering and duplicate detection on the data packet based on the SN.

[0092] 2) The QoS flow identifier ID corresponding to the data packet; used to indicate the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs. For example, when adding a header structure to the data packet based on the QoS flow granularity, this QoS flow ID can be carried. The data receiving end can perform operations such as reordering and duplicate detection on the data packet based on the QoS flow ID.

[0093] 3) RB ID; used to indicate the RB where the data packet is located. For example, when adding a header structure to a data packet based on RB granularity, the RB ID can be carried. The data receiving end can perform operations such as reordering and duplicate detection on the data packet based on the RB ID.

[0094] 4) QoS Reflective Bit Information.

[0095] Optionally, the QoS reverse mapping bit information includes at least one of the following:

[0096] Access Stratum (AS) QoS reverse mapping bit information is used to indicate that uplink data supports the same QoS flow mapping relationship to RB as downlink data; the data sender and receiver can map uplink and / or downlink data based on this AS QoS reverse mapping bit information.

[0097] The Non-Access Stratum (NAS) QoS reverse mapping bit information is used to indicate that uplink data supports the same IP flow to RB mapping relationship as downlink data. Data senders and receivers can use this NAS QoS reverse mapping bit information to map uplink and / or downlink data.

[0098] In this embodiment, when adding a header structure to a data packet, one or more of the above-mentioned information can be carried in the header structure, so that the data receiving end can read the information bits of the data packet header structure, obtain the corresponding information content, and perform data aggregation related processing.

[0099] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes:

[0100] SNs are assigned to data packets in a first order, which includes at least one of the following:

[0101] The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer;

[0102] The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer;

[0103] The order of arrival of data packets within an RB;

[0104] The order in which data packets are sent within the RB;

[0105] The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow;

[0106] The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

[0107] In this embodiment, the header structure of the data packet may carry a serial number (SN). The network-side device can assign SNs to the data packets according to a first order. For example: adding a header structure to all data packets passing through the first protocol layer and assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of each data packet; adding a header structure to data packets with in-order delivery requirements and assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of the data packets with in-order delivery requirements; adding a header structure to data packets requiring dynamic routing and assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of the data packets requiring dynamic routing; when adding a header structure to data packets based on RB granularity, assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of data packets within each RB; when adding a header structure to data packets based on QoS flow granularity, assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of data packets within each QoS flow.

[0108] Optionally, while the PDCP layer can also perform SN allocation, it can only allocate SNs and perform duplicate detection / reordering for its own single path transmission. It cannot handle the order of two paths, and the PDCP entity resides within each path, unable to process data from other paths. To avoid resource waste due to duplicate operations, the first protocol layer and the PDCP layer can be jointly designed. When the first protocol layer allocates SNs, the PDCP layer's SN allocation operation can be removed. It should be noted that if the first protocol layer is designed independently, there is no need to remove the PDCP layer's SN allocation operation, as this has less impact on the current protocol layer and is more convenient to implement.

[0109] As an optional embodiment, selecting a routing path for data packets includes one of the following:

[0110] (1) Select the routing path for data packets in the splitting mode;

[0111] Optionally, the routing path of the data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes:

[0112] Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information;

[0113] The first information includes at least one of the following:

[0114] Network load information;

[0115] Path congestion information;

[0116] Is it the primary path or the preferred path?

[0117] Transmission quality information;

[0118] Path configuration ratio information;

[0119] Data caching information.

[0120] In this embodiment, when the network-side device acts as a data sender, it can perform a split operation on the data packets to be sent at the first protocol layer, selecting an appropriate routing path for subsequent data transmission. For example, for data with an added header structure, its routing selection can be relatively dynamic, deciding in real time whether to transmit via path 1 or path 2. This can be achieved by selecting a better path based on real-time link quality, network load and congestion, prioritizing the main path or a preferred path, selecting a path with a higher proportion based on path configuration, or selecting a path with less data buffering. For data without a header structure, path selection is more static, prioritizing the current path (i.e., the path remains unchanged) to avoid out-of-order reception caused by path switching. It should be noted that the above path selection methods are merely examples; the network-side device can select the routing path for each data packet based on its own needs or configuration and according to the first information.

[0121] (2) Determine the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the activation or deactivation status.

[0122] Optionally, determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes:

[0123] The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information;

[0124] The second information includes at least one of the following:

[0125] Service QoS information;

[0126] Network load information;

[0127] Link status information;

[0128] Transmission quality information.

[0129] In this embodiment, when the network-side device acts as a data sender, it can activate or deactivate the duplication operation on the data packets to be sent at the first protocol layer, selecting an appropriate routing path for subsequent data transmission. For example, for data with an added header structure, the activation of its duplication operation can be relatively flexible. It can decide in real time whether to transmit via both path 1 and path 2 simultaneously based on the second information, such as choosing whether to duplicate transmission based on service QoS or network conditions, or choosing whether to duplicate transmission based on link status or transmission quality. For data packets without an added header structure, it is necessary to avoid enabling duplication transmission and try to select the current path (i.e., the path does not change) to avoid duplicate reception caused by duplication. It should be noted that the above method of determining the activation or deactivation of the data packet duplication operation is only an example. The network-side device can activate or deactivate the duplication operation for each data packet based on its own needs or configuration and according to the second information.

[0130] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes at least one of the following:

[0131] Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB;

[0132] Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

[0133] In this embodiment, the mapping operation from QoS flow to RB and / or the mapping operation from IP flow to QoS flow can also be performed at the first protocol layer. Since the current SDAP layer can also perform the above mapping operations, in this embodiment, the mapping operations are set to be performed within the first protocol layer. For example, the network-side device, acting as the data sender, carries a QoS flow ID and corresponding NAS Reflective QoS bits in the packet header structure added at the first protocol layer, indicating that the uplink of this QoS flow also supports the same mapping relationship from IP flow to QoS flow ID, and / or carries corresponding AS reflective QoS bits, indicating that the uplink of this QoS flow also supports the same mapping relationship from QoS flow to RB. In this way, the SDAP mapping function is completed at the first protocol layer. For the data receiver, based on the received NAS reflective QoS bits and / or AS reflective QoS bits, the uplink mapping can be processed according to the same downlink mapping relationship from IP flow to QoS flow, or the uplink mapping can be processed according to the same downlink mapping relationship from QoS flow to RB.

[0134] Optionally, since the current SDAP layer can perform QoS flow to RB mapping operations and IP flow to QoS flow mapping operations, to avoid resource waste caused by repeated execution of mapping operations, the first protocol layer and the SDAP layer can be jointly designed. This can involve removing the QoS flow to RB mapping operation from the SDAP layer and / or the IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation from the SDAP layer. It should be noted that if the first protocol layer is designed independently, there is no need to remove the SDAP layer data mapping operation, which has less impact on the current protocol layer and is more convenient to implement.

[0135] As an optional embodiment, the data aggregation related processing includes at least one of the following:

[0136] Read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure;

[0137] Perform duplicate detection on data packets;

[0138] Reorder the data packets;

[0139] Data packets are delivered in sequence.

[0140] This embodiment is for the case where the network-side device acts as a data receiving end. The network-side device can read the header structure of the data packet at the first protocol layer to obtain the information carried in the header structure; it can perform duplicate detection and / or reordering of the data packet at the first protocol layer based on the read information; and it can deliver the reordered data packet as needed.

[0141] Optionally, the header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information:

[0142] Serial number (SN);

[0143] The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet;

[0144] RB identifier;

[0145] QoS reverse mapping bit information.

[0146] As an optional embodiment, the duplicate detection of data packets includes:

[0147] Based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet, duplicate data is identified; duplicate data received later is deleted.

[0148] Optionally, identifying duplicate data based on the SN carried in the header structure of the data packet includes one of the following:

[0149] Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0150] Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0151] In this embodiment, the header structure of the data packet is read at the first protocol layer to obtain the packet's SN, QoS flow ID, and / or RB ID. Data packets with the same QoS flow ID and the same SN are considered duplicate data, and / or data packets with the same RB ID and the same SN are considered duplicate data, and duplicate data received again can be deleted.

[0152] As an optional embodiment, the reordering of data packets includes: reordering the data packets according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

[0153] Optionally, reordering the data packets according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets includes:

[0154] Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets;

[0155] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0156] RB particle size;

[0157] QoS flow granularity.

[0158] In this embodiment, the header structure of the data packet is read at the first protocol layer to obtain the packet's SN, QoS flow ID, and / or RB ID. The data packets can be reordered based on RB granularity or QoS flow granularity in combination with the packet's SN. For example: based on RB granularity: for each RB, reordering is performed based on the SN of the data packets within that RB; based on QoS flow granularity: for each QoS flow, reordering is performed based on the SN of the data packets within that QoS flow.

[0159] As an optional embodiment, the reordering of data packets includes at least one of the following:

[0160] When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started.

[0161] When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1;

[0162] Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered.

[0163] If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped.

[0164] If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted.

[0165] If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

[0166] In this embodiment, reordering can employ a reordering window (T-reordering) operation. Data with the same stream ID or RB ID is sorted according to SN order. Data received sequentially and consecutively can be directly delivered to higher layers in ascending SN order. For any received gaps, a T-reordering timer is started, waiting for the corresponding duration. For example, if the received data packets have SNs 1, 2, and 5, and a gap occurs between 2 and 5, the maximum SN value of the received data packets before the timer starts, or the maximum SN value plus 1, can be recorded, for example, recording 5 or 6. And / or, during the waiting period, if the received data packets do not meet the requirement of sequential delivery, these data packets are buffered. For example, if the received data packets have SNs 6 and 7 during the waiting period, these data packets are buffered. And / or, during the waiting period, if the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value... If all data packets before the value incremented by 1 are received and delivered in order, the timer can be stopped. For example, if packets 3 and 4 are received during the waiting period, satisfying the requirement of in-order delivery, the timer can be stopped. And / or, if a gap is found again after the timer stops, the timer is restarted. For example, if packet 9 is received after packet 7 is delivered in order, indicating a gap, the timer is restarted, and the above waiting steps are repeated. If not all data packets in the gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for unreceived data packets is stopped, and other data is delivered in order. For example, if packet 8 is not received after the timer expires, other data packets such as 9, 10, etc., are delivered to the higher layer in order.

[0167] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes:

[0168] Receive capability information sent by the terminal;

[0169] The capability information includes at least one of the following:

[0170] The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol layer reconstructed with L2;

[0171] The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal;

[0172] The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

[0173] In this embodiment, the terminal can report UE capabilities to the network-side device, either as a standalone capability or as a capability bound to a multi-stream function. The capability information may indicate whether the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer or a protocol layer reconstructed with L2. The capability information may also indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal. The network-side device needs detailed information about the UE's support for this new first protocol layer function in order to perform subsequent configuration and usage operations.

[0174] Optionally, the method further includes: sending second configuration information to the terminal, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

[0175] In this embodiment, the network-side device can configure the first protocol layer based on the terminal's capabilities. For example, the network side can configure the reconstructed first protocol layer and related layers through the Control Plane (CP) configuration process. Since this involves both the configuration between the core network and the UE, and also the configuration between the RAN and the UE, the NAS procedure is used for the configuration between the core network and the UE, and the RRC procedure is used for the configuration between the RAN and the UE. Optionally, the core network node and the RAN node need to reach an agreement on the configuration information. The core network node can carry new information in the N2 signaling sent to the RAN node to inform the RAN node to cooperate in configuring the first protocol layer.

[0176] Optionally, the second configuration information may also include at least one of the following:

[0177] The eighth instruction is used to indicate the operation of deleting the mapping of QoS flows from the SDAP layer to the RB;

[0178] The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation;

[0179] The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the PDCP layer;

[0180] The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

[0181] In this embodiment, for the case of reconstructing the first protocol layer and the L2 layer, the relevant L2 layer can be instructed to delete duplicate operations in the second configuration information. For example, if the first protocol layer performs the mapping operation of QoS flow to RB and / or the mapping operation of IP flow to QoS flow, the mapping operation of QoS flow to RB and / or the mapping operation of IP flow to QoS flow in the SDAP layer can be deleted; if the first protocol layer performs the operation of allocating SN, the operation of allocating SN in the PDCP layer can be deleted, thus avoiding the overhead and resource waste caused by duplicate operations.

[0182] When the first protocol layer allocates SNs based on QoS flow, its allocation granularity differs from that of the traditional PDCP SN allocation. In this case, the operation of the PDCP layer can be modified. For example, when the PDCP layer performs a security operation, the input parameter can be changed from RB ID + SN value to QoS flow + SN value. In this way, the PDCP layer can also directly use the SN of DSLL for operation, and the PDCP layer does not need to perform reordering function. The duplicate detection function of the PDCP entity is relatively simple and can continue to be performed to deal with duplicate transmissions on the RAN side.

[0183] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes one of the following:

[0184] When the first protocol layer is the data sending end, the receiving terminal sends the third information;

[0185] When the first protocol layer is the data receiving end, third information is sent to the terminal;

[0186] The third information includes at least one of the following:

[0187] Data packet loss information;

[0188] Network quality information;

[0189] Path switching request information;

[0190] Copy operation activation request information.

[0191] In this embodiment, when the network-side device is the data sender, the data receiver can send a control PDU to the network-side device. The control PDU may include reception feedback, such as which data packets were lost, or link status feedback, such as link quality improving / deteriorating. It may also request the data sender to switch paths or request the data sender to activate copy transmission, etc.

[0192] The implementation process of the data processing method in this application embodiment is described below for two cases: the first protocol layer is set up independently and the first protocol layer is reconstructed with the L2 layer.

[0193] Example 1: Independent configuration of the first protocol layer

[0194] In this embodiment, the first protocol layer is set independently. Assuming the first protocol layer is located at the UPF node in the core network, below the IP layer and above the gNB's protocol layer, it performs splitting, copying, routing, and other processing on IP data packets across two or more transmission paths. Figure 3 As shown. It should be noted that, Figure 3 The location of the first protocol layer shown is not the only implementation method. There can be other configuration methods, such as the first protocol layer being located on other core network nodes or anchor base stations on the RAN side, and unified management and control of data from multiple base stations. The embodiments of this application do not limit various reasonable implementation methods.

[0195] like Figure 3 As shown, the first protocol layer is mainly responsible for managing and controlling the data of two or more paths of the UE. It is divided into sending end function and receiving end function. The sending end function is mainly responsible for data diversion related processing, such as data distribution, routing mechanism, adding header, copy transmission control, etc. The receiving end function is mainly responsible for data aggregation related processing, such as data reception, duplicate detection, reordering, and in-order delivery.

[0196] Figure 3 Taking two transmission paths as an example, path 1 can be a 4G, 5G, or 6G air interface transmission path through gNB1, or other wireless access technologies such as RAT, satellite path, or Wi-Fi path. There are no restrictions here. Path 2 can also be a 4G, 5G, or 6G air interface transmission path through gNB2, or other RAT, satellite path, or Wi-Fi path. Path 1 and Path 2 can be from the same operator or different operators. There can be two or more specific transmission paths.

[0197] In this embodiment, the new functions required are implemented as much as possible in the first protocol layer, while other protocol layers, such as the transport layers PDCP and SDAP in different paths, use traditional protocol versions, which can avoid the impact caused by protocol layer upgrades and modifications.

[0198] The sending end of the first protocol layer has at least one of the following functions and processes:

[0199] Taking the network-side device as the data sender as an example, the terminal is the data receiver. The sender at the first protocol layer processes downlink data: data generated by the application entity in the service layer is transmitted through the traditional transport layer protocols User Datagram Protocol (UDP) / Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) / Quick UDP Internet Connections (QUIC) / Internet Protocol (IP) before reaching the first protocol layer. The sender at the first protocol layer distributes and processes the data, sending it to different transmission paths, such as... Figure 3 In the gNB1 or gNB2, data reaches the UE side through different paths.

[0200] Taking the network-side device as the data receiver as an example, the terminal is the data sender. The sender of the first protocol layer processes the uplink data. The data generated by the application entity is transmitted through the traditional transport layer protocols UDP / TCP / QUIC / IP before reaching the first protocol layer. The sender of the first protocol layer distributes and processes the data, sending it to the L2 protocol layer corresponding to different transmission paths, and then transmitting it to different network nodes, such as gNB1 or gNB2. The data reaches the network side through different paths.

[0201] The function of the transmitter of the first protocol layer is described below. Taking DSLL as an example, the transmitter can be a network-side device or a terminal. There is no distinction between UE and network side here. Therefore, the data processing procedure applicable to both UE and network side as transmitters is described below, which specifically includes at least one of the following operations:

[0202] (1) The sending end of the first protocol layer adds a header structure (DSLL header) to the data packet according to the requirements or configuration. The DSLL header contains at least a DSLL SN. The purpose of carrying the SN is for the receiving end to perform functions such as duplicate detection and reordering.

[0203] The DSLL layer adds a header to the data packet, which may include at least one of the following:

[0204] 1) Add a header to all data packets passing through the DSLL layer. For example, add a DSLL header to all data transmitted through the DSLL layer, that is, data that has passed through multi-stream selection, and assign SN according to the arrival or sending order of the data packets.

[0205] 2) Add headers to data packets that need to be delivered in order. For example, add a DSLL header to all data that passes through the DSLL layer and needs to be delivered in order, and assign SN according to the arrival or sending order of the data packets.

[0206] 3) Add headers to data packets that require dynamic routing. For example, add a DSLL header to all data transmitted through the DSLL layer that requires dynamic routing, and assign SNs according to the arrival or sending order of the data packets.

[0207] The granularity at which the DSLL layer assigns a serial number (SN) to a data packet can include at least one of the following:

[0208] a) Assign SNs to data packets based on RB granularity. For example, for all data transmitted through the DSLL layer, add a DSLL header for each RB granularity and assign SNs according to the arrival or transmission order of the data packets within that RB. An RB can be a combination of multiple QoS flows that have the same or similar QoS attributes, or whose data packets are sequentially related.

[0209] b) Assign SNs to data packets based on QoS flow granularity. For example, for all data transmitted through the DSLL layer, add a DSLL header for each QoS flow and assign SNs according to the arrival or transmission order of the data packets within that QoS flow.

[0210] When adding header structures to data packets, header structures can be added to data packets in the manner and granularity described above. For example, a QoS flow-based DSLL header can be added only for QoS flows that pass through the DSLL layer, have multi-path selection requirements, and need to be delivered in sequence, and the data SN order can be allocated within the QoS flow.

[0211] Optionally, to better distinguish data packets, information such as QoS flow ID or RB ID can be added to the DSLL header structure to differentiate between different data flows and SN order.

[0212] Optionally, the first configuration information can be configured through the control plane to indicate which data belongs to a QoS flow or RB, and / or which packets need to be dynamically routed, and / or which packets need to be delivered in order, etc. For example, the first configuration information can be configured using NAS signaling in the control plane between the core network and the UE. This allows for synchronized configuration of the DSLL transmitter and receiver between the core network and the UE node, ensuring consistent and error-free operation of subsequent data processing by both parties.

[0213] (2) The sending end of the first protocol layer performs a split operation on the data to be sent according to the requirements or configuration, selects an appropriate route, and performs subsequent data transmission. For example, for data with an added header structure, the route selection can be relatively dynamic, and it can decide in real time whether to transmit via path 1 or path 2, select a better path based on real-time link quality, or select a better path based on network load and congestion, etc.; for data without a header structure, the path selection is more static, and the current path is selected as much as possible to avoid out-of-order reception caused by path switching.

[0214] (3) The sending end of the first protocol layer activates and deactivates duplication operations on the data to be sent according to requirements or configuration, selects an appropriate route, and performs subsequent data transmission. For example, for data with added header structure, the duplication activation selection can be relatively flexible, and it can decide in real time whether to transmit by both path 1 and path 2 simultaneously, and can choose whether to duplicate transmission based on service QoS or network conditions, etc.; for data without header structure, it is necessary to avoid enabling duplication transmission, and try to select the current path to avoid receiving duplicates caused by duplication.

[0215] The receiving end of the first protocol layer has at least one of the following functions and processing methods:

[0216] Taking the network-side device as the data receiver as an example, the terminal is the data sender. The receiver at the first protocol layer processes uplink data: data packets arrive at the first protocol layer through different paths (e.g., gNB1 or gNB2), are processed, and then transmitted to higher layers. The receiver at the first protocol layer (i.e., the network-side device) performs necessary deduplication checks, reordering, header removal, and other operations on the data, and delivers the data to higher layers in sequence as needed.

[0217] Taking the UE as the data receiver as an example, the network-side equipment is the data sender. The receiver at the first protocol layer processes downlink data. Data packets arrive at the UE's first protocol layer through different paths (e.g., gNB1 or gNB2), are processed, and then transmitted to higher layers. The receiver at the first protocol layer (i.e., the terminal) performs necessary deduplication checks, reordering, header removal, and other operations on the data, and delivers the data to higher layers in sequence as needed.

[0218] The following describes the function of the receiver of the first protocol layer. Taking DSLL as an example, the receiver can be a network-side device or a terminal. There is no distinction between UE and network side here. Therefore, the following describes the data processing procedure that applies to both UE and network side as receivers, specifically including at least one of the following operations:

[0219] At the DSLL receiver, data without a header structure can only be passed through and directly delivered.

[0220] At the DSLL receiver, for data with a header structure, different information bits can be read according to the configuration to obtain information such as RBID / QoS flow ID, distinguish different RBs and / or QoS flow streams, and then perform deduplication detection and reordering operations on the data packets according to the SN. The deduplication detection process includes: considering data with the same QoS flow ID and the same SN as deduplicated data, and / or data with the same RB ID and the same SN as deduplicated data, and deleting deduplicated data received again.

[0221] Reordering can be performed using a T-reordering window operation. Data with the same QoS stream ID is sorted according to SN order. Received data in sequence and consecutively is directly submitted to higher layers in ascending SN order. For any received gaps, a T-reordering timer is started, waiting for the corresponding duration. During this waiting period, data after the gap is buffered until it is correctly received at the gap, then submitted to higher layers in ascending SN order. Alternatively, if the timer expires and the gap data is still not received, the data at the gap is abandoned, and subsequent consecutive data is submitted to higher layers in ascending SN order.

[0222] Optionally, the DSLL receiver can also send a control PDU to the DSLL transmitter (i.e., send the third information). The control PDU may include reception feedback, such as which data packets were lost; it may also include link feedback, such as link quality improving / deteriorating; or it may request the transmitter to switch paths or request the transmitter to activate copy transmission, etc.

[0223] In this embodiment, the first protocol layer is designed independently and is fully compatible with existing protocols. Without any modification or upgrade to existing protocols, it can control and transmit multi-stream data between the UE and network nodes based on the first protocol layer to achieve flexible routing and in-order delivery requirements.

[0224] Example 2: Joint design of the first protocol layer and L2

[0225] In this embodiment, the newly added first protocol layer and the traditional L2 protocol layer functions are considered together to perform multi-stream data control and transmission in a more efficient and effective manner. Assuming the first protocol layer is located at the UPF node in the core network, below the IP layer and above the gNB's protocol layer, it performs processes such as splitting, copying, routing, and receiving IP packets across two or more transmission paths. Figure 4As shown, the first protocol layer performs some functions of the SDAP and PDCP layers, such as: mapping QoS flow to RB, mapping IP flow to QoS flow, and allocating SN, etc. Redundant functions in the SDAP and PDCP layers are removed. It should be noted that... Figure 4 The location of the first protocol layer shown is not the only implementation method. There can be other configuration methods, such as the first protocol layer being located on other core network nodes or anchor base stations on the RAN side, and unified management and control of data from multiple base stations. The embodiments of this application do not limit various reasonable implementation methods.

[0226] Referring to the functions of the first protocol layer in Example 1, in order to meet basic multi-stream functions such as routing and receiving duplicate detection / in-order delivery, the sending end of the first protocol layer needs to add SNs to data packets in order according to QoS flow or RB granularity, and the receiving end needs to perform reordering and duplicate detection functions according to the SN order. These functions overlap to some extent with the functions of SDAP and PDCP in the traditional L2 protocol. If the design can be restructured, it will have a more efficient processing effect. The restructured design includes at least one of the following:

[0227] (A) The main function of the traditional SDAP layer is to map QoS flows with similar or identical transmission requirements to corresponding RBs, and to carry QoS flow IDs and reflective QoS tags in the SDAP header as needed to distinguish QoS flows, saving the signaling required for core network to configure IP flow to QoS flow mapping and RAN to configure QoS flow to RB mapping. After introducing the first protocol layer, these functions can all be considered to be performed by the first protocol layer, thereby eliminating the need for the SDAP sublayer on each path. Specific implementations include at least one of the following:

[0228] a1) The network-side device, acting as the data sender, adds a header structure to the data packet in the first protocol layer for downlink data. The header carries a QoS flow ID and corresponding NAS Reflective QoS bits, indicating that the uplink of this QoS flow also supports the same mapping relationship from IP flow to QoS flow ID, and / or carries corresponding AS reflective QoS bits, indicating that the uplink of this QoS flow also supports the same mapping relationship from QoS flow to RB. In this way, the SDAP function is basically completed in the first protocol layer. On the RAN side, only a simple implementation is needed to map the QoS flow to the corresponding RB. The mapping method can be implemented or configured based on the base station.

[0229] As a data receiver, the terminal can process uplink mapping for downlink data by using the NAS reflective QoS bits and / or AS reflective QoS bits carried in the header structure of the received data packets, according to the same downlink IP flow to QoS flow mapping relationship, or according to the same downlink QoS flow to RB mapping relationship.

[0230] a2) As a data sender, the terminal adds a header structure to the data packet in the first protocol layer on the UE side for uplink data. The header carries the corresponding QoS flow ID to distinguish different QoS flows. The QoS flow to RB is mapped according to the mapping method configured on the network side, which can complete the basic functions of traditional SDAP.

[0231] As a data receiver, the network-side device processes uplink data based on the QoS flow ID in the header of the received data packet using its first protocol layer, and then forwards the data according to the QoS flow.

[0232] a3) As the data sender, the network-side device adds an RB ID and corresponding Reflective QoS bits to the header of the data packet at the first protocol layer of the network side for downlink data, indicating that the uplink also supports the same IP flow to RB ID mapping relationship. The traditional SDAP function is basically completed at the first protocol layer, and each RB ID data corresponds to a PDCP entity on the RAN side.

[0233] As a data receiver, the terminal can process uplink mapping for downlink data by using the first protocol layer on the UE side, based on the reflective QoS bits carried in the header of the received data packet and the same IP flow to RB mapping relationship as downlink.

[0234] a4) As a data sender, the terminal carries the corresponding RB ID in the header added by the first protocol layer on the UE side for uplink data. This is used to distinguish different RB flows and to map them according to the QoS flow / IP flow to RB mapping method configured on the network side. This completes the basic functions of traditional SDAP.

[0235] As a data receiver, the network-side device processes and forwards uplink data based on the RB ID carried in the header of the received data packet, according to the first protocol layer of the network side.

[0236] (B) Traditional PDCP layer transmitters also have the functions of adding PDCP headers and allocating serial numbers (SNs). The receiver performs deduplication detection and reordering based on the SN. However, in this architecture, the PDCP layer can only allocate SNs and perform deduplication detection / reordering for its own single path transmission, and cannot handle the order of two paths. This is related to the location of the PDCP entity; the PDCP entity is located within each path and cannot process data from other paths. In this embodiment, the first protocol layer and PDCP are jointly designed to further improve efficiency. Specific methods include at least one of the following:

[0237] b1) When the first protocol layer allocates SNs based on each RB, its allocation granularity is the same as that of traditional PDCP. Therefore, the operation of reallocating SNs in the PDCP layer can be saved. For PDCP security operations, such as encryption / decryption, integrity protection, and integrity verification, the SNs allocated by the first protocol layer can be used directly, and the PDCP layer does not need to perform reordering functions. This is because the consecutive SNs allocated by the first protocol layer are split into two PDCP entities. For example, the data SNs of one PDCP entity may be 1, 3, 5, 7, etc., and the data SNs of the other PDCP entity may be 2, 4, 6, 8, etc. The PDCP entities themselves do not have the basis or necessity for ordering, and the duplicate detection function of a single PDCP entity can continue to be performed because it is relatively simple, in order to deal with duplicate transmissions on the RAN side.

[0238] Optionally, for the control PDU of the first protocol layer, a serial number (SN) can be assigned like that for data, or no SN can be assigned. If a SN is assigned, it is processed together with the data in PDCP, such as for security operations; if no SN is assigned, the relevant operations that require SN processing can be skipped.

[0239] In this embodiment, the SN allocation and reordering functions are moved up to the first protocol layer for execution, which can remove redundant functions of PDCP and reduce processing efficiency and header overhead.

[0240] b2) When the first protocol layer allocates SNs based on QoS flow, its allocation granularity differs from that of traditional PDCP. In this case, the operation of the PDCP layer can be modified, for example, for security operations: the input parameter can be changed from RB ID + SN value to QoS flow + SN value. This way, the PDCP layer can also directly use the SN of DSLL for operation, and the PDCP layer does not need to perform reordering. The duplicate detection function of the PDCP entity can continue because it is relatively simple, in order to deal with duplicate transmissions on the RAN side. The processing method of the control PDU of the first protocol layer is described in b1) above, and will not be repeated here.

[0241] In this embodiment, the first protocol layer is co-designed with the traditional L2 layer, reconstructing traditional L2 sublayers such as SDAP and PDCP. Therefore, enhanced compatibility with traditional systems is required. For example, during the configuration phase, the RAN node needs to recognize that this is for enhanced multi-stream transport operations, specifically an enhanced first protocol layer entity, and needs to cooperate in configuring it to remove redundant functions from the SDAP and enhanced PDCP entities. This method can significantly improve processing efficiency and reduce overhead.

[0242] Example 3: For Examples 1 and 2 above, the information related to the newly added first protocol layer needs to be configured.

[0243] This embodiment describes the important processes related to the configuration, switching, and reconfiguration of the two setting methods of the first protocol layer.

[0244] Optionally, support for the first protocol layer requires UE capability reporting, either as a standalone capability or as a capability bound to multi-stream functionality. Reported capabilities may include: whether the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or the first protocol layer reconstructed with L2, and / or the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal. The network side needs detailed knowledge of the first protocol layer functions supported by the UE in order to perform subsequent configuration and usage operations.

[0245] When both the UE and the network-side equipment support independently configured first protocol layer functions, the network-side equipment can configure the independently configured first protocol layer through the CP plane configuration process. Since this involves configuration between the core network and the UE, the NAS procedure can be used to establish the first protocol layer and its internal detailed parameters, such as the granularity of the DSL SN and the SN length. Once an equivalent first protocol layer is established between the UE and the core network, data transmission and reception can be performed as described in Example 1 above.

[0246] When both the UE and network-side equipment support the reconfigured first protocol layer function, the network-side equipment can configure the reconfigured first protocol layer and related layers through the CP plane configuration process. Since this involves configuration between the core network and the UE, as well as configuration between the RAN and the UE, the configuration between the core network and the UE uses the NAS procedure, and the configuration between the RAN and the UE uses the RRC procedure. Optionally, the core network control node, such as the AMF, also needs to reach consensus with the RAN node on configuration information to achieve unified configuration. For example, the N2 signaling sent by the AMF to the RAN node carries new information, informing the RAN node to cooperate in reconfiguring SDAP and PDCP to facilitate the reconfiguration of the first protocol layer. After the core network node, RAN node, and UE have all configured the reconfigured first protocol layer, reconfigured SDAP, and PDCP layers, data transmission and reception can be performed as in Example 2.

[0247] If both the terminal and network-side devices can support two different configuration methods for the first protocol layer, the network implementation will decide which one to configure.

[0248] For a UE, in the current service mix, some services may support or have established off-flow transmission, while others may not. Therefore, during configuration, it's necessary to consider how to differentiate between them. One approach is to explicitly specify in the configuration information which services, QoS flows, or RBs are transmitted through the first protocol layer, while other services are transmitted using the traditional protocol stack architecture. Another approach is to configure the first protocol layer, where the data to be processed is processed according to the normal first protocol layer flow and undergoes corresponding L2 processing, while other data is transparently transmitted through the first protocol layer, with the corresponding L2 processing also using the legacy method. These two approaches allow traditional and new service requirements to coexist and be processed independently.

[0249] For reconfiguration of the first protocol layer: A full reconfiguration approach can be used, which involves deleting the old entities and states, recreating new entities, and starting from the initial state. This method is simple to execute but can lead to packet loss during reconfiguration. To overcome this drawback, further optimization is needed to maintain the state before configuration and continue processing as much as possible after configuration.

[0250] For reconfiguration scenarios involving the first protocol layer going from nothing to something or from something to nothing, the feasibility of optimization is low due to the significant differences in architecture and processing. It is advisable to perform some parameter reconfiguration only within the first protocol layer and to consider continuous optimization.

[0251] If a UE configured with the first protocol layer is handover, and either the source node or the target node does not support the new features of the first protocol layer, a full configuration approach is adopted. This involves deleting the old entities and states, re-establishing new entities, and starting from the initial state. This approach is simple to operate and can overcome version compatibility issues. When both the source and target nodes support the same new features configuration of the first protocol layer, configuration and state preservation can be considered during handover. When performing data recovery, reconstruction, or data forwarding at the first protocol layer, the state of the source node should be migrated to the target node as much as possible. This ensures that the current state can be continued on the target node as much as possible, avoiding arbitrary packet loss and achieving a seamless handover experience.

[0252] The embodiments of this application can be applied to NR Uu, or extended to other different versions, and are not limited here.

[0253] In embodiments of this application, a first protocol layer is configured on both the terminal and the network-side device. This first protocol layer sits above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The first protocol layer is used for data splitting and / or data aggregation processing, enabling the network-side device and the terminal to operate more flexibly during data splitting and reception. This improves data transmission efficiency and service experience, enhancing both data transmission performance and system efficiency.

[0254] like Figure 5 As shown, this application also provides a data processing method applied to a terminal, comprising:

[0255] Step 501: The terminal's first protocol layer performs a second processing on the data packet, the second processing including at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; data splitting related processing;

[0256] The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0257] In this embodiment, the first protocol layer can be located at the terminal's protocol layer, but above the air interface access technology protocol layer, enabling centralized management and control of the terminal's data. The air interface access technology protocol layer can be, for example, the protocol layer of a RAN node, a WiFi AP protocol layer, etc., and can also be the protocol layer of other air interface access technology nodes; this is not limited here. The first protocol layer can perform splitting and / or aggregation processing on data packets across two or more transmission paths. For example, the first protocol layer can perform data splitting operations and transmit the split data to the air interface access nodes corresponding to multiple transmission paths; the first protocol layer can also perform data aggregation processing on the received data from multiple transmission paths and submit the processed data to higher layers as needed. That is, the first protocol layer can act as both a data sender and a data receiver.

[0258] It should be noted that the first protocol layer is also configured on the network-side device to interact with the terminal. The first protocol layer is configured above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The network-side device may include any one or more of the following: core network equipment, access network equipment, other network nodes, etc. The first protocol layer can be configured at any position within the protocol layer of the network-side device, but it must be located above the air interface access technology protocol layer. In the embodiments of this application, the location of the first protocol layer on the network-side device is not limited; it only needs to be located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0259] For example, for uplink data, the terminal acts as the data sender, and the network-side device acts as the data receiver. The terminal's first protocol layer performs data splitting processing on the data to be sent and then sends the processed data to the L2 protocol layer corresponding to different transmission paths, transmitting it to different network nodes (e.g., gNB1 or gNB2). The data reaches the network side through different transmission paths. The network-side device performs data deduplication detection, reordering, and other processing on the received data before submitting it to higher layers.

[0260] For downlink data, the terminal acts as the data receiver, and the network-side equipment acts as the data sender. The network-side equipment's first protocol layer performs data splitting processing on the data to be sent and sends the processed data to different transmission paths (e.g., gNB1 or gNB2). The data reaches the UE side through different transmission paths. The terminal performs data duplication detection, reordering, and other processing on the received data before submitting it to higher layers.

[0261] In embodiments of this application, a first protocol layer is configured on the terminal, which is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer. This first protocol layer is used for data splitting and / or data aggregation processing, enabling network-side devices and the terminal to operate more flexibly during data splitting and reception. This improves data transmission efficiency and service experience, enhancing both data transmission performance and system efficiency.

[0262] As an optional embodiment, the data offloading related processing includes at least one of the following:

[0263] Add a header structure to the data packet;

[0264] Select a route path for the data packet;

[0265] Data packets are sent according to the routing path.

[0266] This embodiment is for the case where the terminal is the data sender. The first protocol layer can distribute and process the data, such as adding header structures to data packets, selecting routing paths for data packets, and sending data packets.

[0267] Optionally, before performing the second processing on the data packet, the method further includes:

[0268] Obtain the first configuration information;

[0269] The second processing of the data packet includes:

[0270] The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information;

[0271] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0272] The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer;

[0273] The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet;

[0274] The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement;

[0275] The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of the data packet; the routing information is information used for route selection, and the routing information includes, for example, one or more of the following: delay priority, main path priority, threshold information, etc.

[0276] The correspondence between QoS flows and data packets; for example, which data belong to a QoS flow;

[0277] The correspondence between RBs and data packets, such as which data belongs to a RB.

[0278] In this embodiment, the first configuration information can be configured by the control plane. For example, the control plane between the core network and the UE can use NAS signaling to configure the first configuration information, so that the data sending end and receiving end can be synchronously configured between the core network and the UE, so that subsequent data processing can be carried out uniformly and without errors by both parties; the control plane between the RAN node and the UE can use the RRC procedure to configure the first configuration information, so that the data processing between the RAN node and the UE is consistent.

[0279] The terminal's first protocol layer can process data packets based on the first configuration information. For example, it can determine whether to add a header structure to the data packet, select a routing path for the data packet, and send the data packet based on the first configuration information. For instance, it can add a header structure to all data packets passing through the first protocol layer, add a header structure to data packets indicating that a header structure is needed, or add a header structure to data packets requiring sequential delivery. The first protocol layer can also determine whether to add a header structure to the data packet based on one or more of the information in the first configuration information. For example, it can add a header structure to data packets passing through the first protocol layer that require sequential delivery. These are not all examples listed here.

[0280] The terminal can also determine, at the first protocol layer, which data belongs to a QoS flow and which data belongs to an RB based on the first configuration information, thereby adding header structures to data packets based on different granularities.

[0281] As an optional embodiment, adding a header structure to the data packet includes:

[0282] Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity;

[0283] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0284] RB particle size;

[0285] QoS flow granularity.

[0286] In this embodiment, the terminal can add header structures to the data packets at the first protocol layer based on RB granularity, or it can add header structures to the data packets based on QoS flow granularity. For example, according to the correspondence between RBs and data packets, header structures can be added to the data packets contained in each RB; or, according to the correspondence between QoS flows and data packets, header structures can be added to the data packets contained in each QoS flow.

[0287] Optionally, when adding a header structure to a data packet, the header structure can be added based on the first granularity and according to the first configuration information. For example, for data packets that pass through the first protocol layer, a header structure can be added based on the data packets contained in each RB; or, for data packets contained in each RB, a header structure can be added for data packets that have in-order delivery requirements; or, for QoS flows that pass through the first protocol layer, have multi-path selection requirements, and need to be delivered in order, a header structure can be added to the data packets based on the QoS flow.

[0288] Optionally, the header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information:

[0289] 1) Sequence number (SN); The receiving end of the data packet can perform operations such as reordering and duplicate detection on the data packet based on the SN.

[0290] 2) The QoS flow identifier ID corresponding to the data packet; used to indicate the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs. For example, when adding a header structure to the data packet based on the QoS flow granularity, this QoS flow ID can be carried. The data receiving end can perform operations such as reordering and duplicate detection on the data packet based on the QoS flow ID.

[0291] 3) RB ID; used to indicate the RB where the data packet is located. For example, when adding a header structure to a data packet based on RB granularity, the RB ID can be carried. The data receiving end can perform operations such as reordering and duplicate detection on the data packet based on the RB ID.

[0292] 4) QoS Reflective Bit Information.

[0293] Optionally, the QoS reverse mapping bit information includes at least one of the following:

[0294] AS QoS reverse mapping bit information is used to indicate that uplink data supports the same QoS flow to RB mapping relationship as downlink data; the data sender and receiver can perform uplink and / or downlink data mapping based on this AS QoS reverse mapping bit information.

[0295] NAS QoS reverse mapping bits are used to indicate that uplink data supports the same IP flow to RB mapping relationship as downlink data. Data senders and receivers can use this NAS QoS reverse mapping bits to map uplink and / or downlink data.

[0296] In this embodiment, when adding a header structure to a data packet, one or more of the above-mentioned information can be carried in the header structure, so that the data receiving end can read the information bits of the data packet header structure, obtain the corresponding information content, and perform data aggregation related processing.

[0297] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes:

[0298] SNs are assigned to data packets in a first order, which includes at least one of the following:

[0299] The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer;

[0300] The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer;

[0301] The order of arrival of data packets within an RB;

[0302] The order in which data packets are sent within the RB;

[0303] The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow;

[0304] The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

[0305] In this embodiment, the header structure of the data packet may carry a serial number (SN). The terminal can assign SNs to the data packets according to a first order. For example: adding a header structure to all data packets passing through the first protocol layer, and assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of each data packet; adding a header structure to data packets with in-order delivery requirements, and assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of the data packets with in-order delivery requirements; adding a header structure to data packets requiring dynamic routing, and assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of the data packets requiring dynamic routing; when adding a header structure to data packets based on RB granularity, assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of data packets within each RB; when adding a header structure to data packets based on QoS flow granularity, assigning SNs according to the arrival or sending order of data packets within each QoS flow.

[0306] Optionally, while the PDCP layer can also perform SN allocation, it can only allocate SNs and perform duplicate detection / reordering for its own single path transmission. It cannot handle the order of two paths, and the PDCP entity resides within each path, unable to process data from other paths. To avoid resource waste due to duplicate operations, the first protocol layer and the PDCP layer can be jointly designed. When the first protocol layer allocates SNs, the PDCP layer's SN allocation operation can be removed. It should be noted that if the first protocol layer is designed independently, there is no need to remove the PDCP layer's SN allocation operation, as this has less impact on the current protocol layer and is more convenient to implement.

[0307] As an optional embodiment, selecting a routing path for data packets includes one of the following:

[0308] (1) Select the routing path for data packets in the splitting mode;

[0309] Optionally, the routing path of the data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes:

[0310] Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information;

[0311] The first information includes at least one of the following:

[0312] Network load information;

[0313] Path congestion information;

[0314] Is it the primary path or the preferred path?

[0315] Transmission quality information;

[0316] Path configuration ratio information;

[0317] Data caching information.

[0318] In this embodiment, when the terminal acts as a data sender, it can perform a split operation on the data packets to be sent at the first protocol layer, selecting an appropriate routing path for subsequent data transmission. For example, for data with an added header structure, its routing selection can be relatively dynamic, deciding in real time whether to transmit via path 1 or path 2. This could be based on real-time link quality, network load and congestion, prioritizing the main path or a preferred path, selecting a path with a higher proportion based on path configuration, or choosing a path with less data buffering. For data without a header structure, path selection is more static, prioritizing the current path (i.e., the path remains unchanged) to avoid out-of-order reception caused by path switching. It should be noted that the above path selection methods are merely examples; the terminal can select the routing path for each data packet based on its own needs or configuration and the first information.

[0319] (2) Determine the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the activation or deactivation status.

[0320] Optionally, determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes:

[0321] The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information;

[0322] The second information includes at least one of the following:

[0323] Service QoS information;

[0324] Network load information;

[0325] Link status information;

[0326] Transmission quality information.

[0327] In this embodiment, when the terminal acts as a data sender, it can activate or deactivate the duplication operation on the data packets to be sent at the first protocol layer, and select an appropriate routing path for subsequent data transmission. For example, for data with an added header structure, the activation of its duplication operation can be relatively flexible. It can decide in real time whether to transmit via both path 1 and path 2 simultaneously based on the second information, such as choosing whether to duplicate transmission based on service QoS or network conditions, or choosing whether to duplicate transmission based on link status or transmission quality. For data packets without an added header structure, it is necessary to avoid enabling duplication transmission and try to select the current path (i.e., the path does not change) to avoid duplicate reception caused by duplication. It should be noted that the above method of determining the activation or deactivation of the data packet duplication operation is only an example. The terminal can activate or deactivate the duplication operation for each data packet based on its own needs or configuration and according to the second information.

[0328] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes at least one of the following:

[0329] Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB;

[0330] Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

[0331] In this embodiment, the mapping operation from QoS flow to RB and / or the mapping operation from IP flow to QoS flow can also be performed at the first protocol layer. Since the current SDAP layer can also perform the above mapping operations, in this embodiment, the mapping operations are set to be performed within the first protocol layer. For example, the terminal, as the data sender, carries a QoS flow ID and corresponding NAS Reflective QoS bits in the packet header structure added at the first protocol layer, indicating that the uplink of the QoS flow also supports the same mapping relationship from IP flow to QoS flow ID, and / or carries corresponding AS reflective QoS bits, indicating that the uplink of the QoS flow also supports the same mapping relationship from QoS flow to RB. In this way, the SDAP mapping function is completed at the first protocol layer. For the data receiver, based on the received NAS reflective QoS bits and / or AS reflective QoS bits, the uplink mapping can be processed according to the same downlink mapping relationship from IP flow to QoS flow, or the uplink mapping can be processed according to the same downlink mapping relationship from QoS flow to RB.

[0332] Optionally, since the current SDAP layer can perform QoS flow to RB mapping operations and IP flow to QoS flow mapping operations, to avoid resource waste caused by repeated execution of mapping operations, the first protocol layer and the SDAP layer can be jointly designed. This can involve removing the QoS flow to RB mapping operation from the SDAP layer and / or the IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation from the SDAP layer. It should be noted that if the first protocol layer is designed independently, there is no need to remove the SDAP layer data mapping operation, which has less impact on the current protocol layer and is more convenient to implement.

[0333] As an optional embodiment, the data aggregation related processing includes at least one of the following:

[0334] Read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure;

[0335] Perform duplicate detection on data packets;

[0336] Reorder the data packets;

[0337] Data packets are delivered in sequence.

[0338] This embodiment is for the case where the terminal acts as a data receiving end. The terminal can read the header structure of the data packet at the first protocol layer to obtain the information carried in the header structure; it can perform duplicate detection and / or reordering of the data packet at the first protocol layer based on the read information; and it can deliver the reordered data packet as needed.

[0339] Optionally, the header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information:

[0340] Serial number (SN);

[0341] The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet;

[0342] RB identifier;

[0343] QoS reverse mapping bit information.

[0344] As an optional embodiment, the duplicate detection of data packets includes:

[0345] Based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet, duplicate data is identified; duplicate data received later is deleted.

[0346] Optionally, identifying duplicate data based on the SN carried in the header structure of the data packet includes one of the following:

[0347] Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0348] Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0349] In this embodiment, the terminal's first protocol layer reads the header structure of the data packet to obtain the packet's SN, QoS flow ID, and / or RB ID. Data packets with the same QoS flow ID and the same SN are considered duplicate data, and / or data packets with the same RB ID and the same SN are considered duplicate data, and duplicate data received again can be deleted.

[0350] As an optional embodiment, the reordering of data packets includes: reordering the data packets according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

[0351] Optionally, reordering the data packets according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets includes:

[0352] Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets;

[0353] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0354] RB particle size;

[0355] QoS flow granularity.

[0356] In this embodiment, the terminal reads the header structure of the data packet at the first protocol layer to obtain the packet's SN, QoS flow ID, and / or RB ID. The terminal can then reorder the data packets based on RB granularity or QoS flow granularity, combined with the packet's SN. For example: based on RB granularity: for each RB, reordering is performed based on the SN of the data packets within that RB; based on QoS flow granularity: for each QoS flow, reordering is performed based on the SN of the data packets within that QoS flow.

[0357] As an optional embodiment, the reordering of data packets includes at least one of the following:

[0358] When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started.

[0359] When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1;

[0360] Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered.

[0361] If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped.

[0362] If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted.

[0363] If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

[0364] In this embodiment, reordering can employ a reordering window (T-reordering) operation. Data with the same stream ID or RB ID is sorted according to SN order. Data received sequentially and consecutively can be directly delivered to higher layers in ascending SN order. For any received gaps, a T-reordering timer is started, waiting for the corresponding duration. For example, if the received data packets have SNs 1, 2, and 5, and a gap occurs between 2 and 5, the maximum SN value of the received data packets before the timer starts, or the maximum SN value plus 1, can be recorded, for example, recording 5 or 6. And / or, during the waiting period, if the received data packets do not meet the requirement of sequential delivery, these data packets are buffered. For example, if the received data packets have SNs 6 and 7 during the waiting period, these data packets are buffered. And / or, during the waiting period, if the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value... If all data packets before the value incremented by 1 are received and delivered in order, the timer can be stopped. For example, if packets 3 and 4 are received during the waiting period, satisfying the requirement of in-order delivery, the timer can be stopped. And / or, if a gap is found again after the timer stops, the timer is restarted. For example, if packet 9 is received after packet 7 is delivered in order, indicating a gap, the timer is restarted, and the above waiting steps are repeated. If not all data packets in the gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for unreceived data packets is stopped, and other data is delivered in order. For example, if packet 8 is not received after the timer expires, other data packets such as 9, 10, etc., are delivered to the higher layer in order.

[0365] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes:

[0366] Send capability information to network-side devices;

[0367] The capability information includes at least one of the following:

[0368] The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol side layer reconstructed with L2;

[0369] The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal;

[0370] The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

[0371] In this embodiment, the terminal can report UE capabilities to the network-side device, either as a standalone capability or as a capability bound to a multi-stream function. The capability information may indicate whether the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer or a protocol layer reconstructed with L2. The capability information may also indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal. The network-side device needs detailed information about the UE's support for this new first protocol layer function in order to perform subsequent configuration and usage operations.

[0372] Optionally, the method further includes: receiving second configuration information sent by a network-side device, wherein the second configuration information includes the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

[0373] In this embodiment, the network-side device can configure the first protocol layer based on the terminal's capabilities. For example, the network side can configure the reconstructed first protocol layer and related layers through the CP configuration process. Since it involves both the configuration between the core network and the UE, and also the configuration between the RAN and the UE, the NAS procedure is used for the configuration between the core network and the UE, and the RRC procedure is used for the configuration between the RAN and the UE. Optionally, the core network node and the RAN node need to reach an agreement on the configuration information. The core network node can carry new information in the N2 signaling sent to the RAN node to inform the RAN node to cooperate in configuring the first protocol layer.

[0374] Optionally, the second configuration information may also include at least one of the following:

[0375] The eighth instruction is used to indicate the operation of deleting the mapping of QoS flows from the SDAP layer to the RB;

[0376] The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation;

[0377] The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the PDCP layer;

[0378] The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

[0379] In this embodiment, for the case of reconstructing the first protocol layer and the L2 layer, the relevant L2 layer can be instructed to delete duplicate operations in the second configuration information. For example, if the first protocol layer performs the mapping operation of QoS flow to RB and / or the mapping operation of IP flow to QoS flow, the mapping operation of QoS flow to RB and / or the mapping operation of IP flow to QoS flow in the SDAP layer can be deleted; if the first protocol layer performs the operation of allocating SN, the operation of allocating SN in the PDCP layer can be deleted, thus avoiding the overhead and resource waste caused by duplicate operations.

[0380] When the first protocol layer allocates SNs based on QoS flow, its allocation granularity differs from that of the traditional PDCP SN allocation. In this case, the operation of the PDCP layer can be modified. For example, when the PDCP layer performs a security operation, the input parameter can be changed from RB ID + SN value to QoS flow + SN value. In this way, the PDCP layer can also directly use the SN of DSLL for operation, and the PDCP layer does not need to perform reordering function. The duplicate detection function of the PDCP entity is relatively simple and can continue to be performed to deal with duplicate transmissions on the RAN side.

[0381] As an optional embodiment, the method further includes one of the following:

[0382] When the first protocol layer is the data receiving end, third information is sent to the network-side device;

[0383] When the first protocol layer is the data sending end, it receives third information sent by the network-side device;

[0384] The third information includes at least one of the following:

[0385] Data packet loss information;

[0386] Network quality information;

[0387] Path switching request information;

[0388] Copy operation activation request information.

[0389] In this embodiment, when the terminal is the data sender, the data receiver can send a control PDU to the terminal. The control PDU may include reception feedback, such as which data packets were lost, or link status feedback, such as link quality improving / deteriorating. It may also request the data sender to switch paths or request the data sender to activate copy transmission, etc.

[0390] In the embodiments of this application, the two cases of the first protocol layer being set independently and the first protocol layer being reconstructed with the L2 layer are respectively referred to the method embodiments executed by the network-side device, and will not be described in detail here.

[0391] In embodiments of this application, a first protocol layer is configured on both the terminal and the network-side device. This first protocol layer sits above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The first protocol layer is used for data splitting and / or data aggregation processing, enabling the network-side device and the terminal to operate more flexibly during data splitting and reception. This improves data transmission efficiency and service experience, enhancing both data transmission performance and system efficiency.

[0392] The data processing method provided in this application can be executed by a data processing device. This application uses an example of a data processing device executing the data processing method to illustrate the data processing device provided in this application.

[0393] This application provides a data processing apparatus. As an example, the data processing apparatus may be a communication device or a component within a communication device, such as a chip. The communication device may be a terminal, a network-side device, or a server, etc. Exemplarily, the terminal may include, but is not limited to, the type of terminal 11 listed above, and the network-side device may include, but is not limited to, the type of network-side device 12 listed above. This application does not impose specific limitations.

[0394] The data processing device includes a receiving module, a transmitting module, and a processing module. These modules can be implemented in software or hardware. When implemented in hardware, the processing module can be implemented by a processor. For example, the processor can include general-purpose processors, special-purpose processors, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), microprocessor, Digital Signal Processor (DSP), Artificial Intelligence (AI) processor, Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), Network Processor (NP), Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, gate circuits, transistors, discrete hardware components, etc. The receiving and transmitting modules can be implemented by a communication interface, which can include one or more of the following: transceiver, pins, circuits, bus, radio frequency unit, etc.

[0395] See Figure 6 When the data processing device is a network-side device or a component of a network-side device, the data processing device 600 includes a first processing module 610 for performing first processing on data packets at a first protocol layer. The first processing includes at least one of the following: data splitting related processing; data aggregation related processing; wherein the first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0396] Optionally, the first processing module includes at least one of the following:

[0397] The first processing unit is used to add header structures to data packets;

[0398] The first selection unit is used to select a routing path for data packets;

[0399] The first sending unit is used to send data packets according to the routing path.

[0400] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0401] A first acquisition device is used to acquire first configuration information;

[0402] The first processing unit is specifically used for:

[0403] The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information;

[0404] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0405] The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer;

[0406] The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet;

[0407] The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement;

[0408] The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of data packets;

[0409] The correspondence between Quality of Service (QoS) flows and data packets;

[0410] The correspondence between radio bearers (RBs) and data packets.

[0411] Optionally, the first processing unit is specifically used for:

[0412] Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity;

[0413] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0414] RB particle size;

[0415] QoS flow granularity.

[0416] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0417] A first allocation module is configured to allocate SNs to data packets according to a first order, wherein the first order includes at least one of the following:

[0418] The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer;

[0419] The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer;

[0420] The order of arrival of data packets within an RB;

[0421] The order in which data packets are sent within the RB;

[0422] The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow;

[0423] The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

[0424] Optionally, the first processing unit is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0425] Select the routing path for data packets in the traffic splitting mode;

[0426] Determine whether the data packet copying operation is active or deactivated, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the active or deactivated state.

[0427] Optionally, the routing path of the data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes:

[0428] Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information;

[0429] The first information includes at least one of the following:

[0430] Network load information;

[0431] Path congestion information;

[0432] Is it the primary path or the preferred path?

[0433] Transmission quality information;

[0434] Path configuration ratio information;

[0435] Data caching information.

[0436] Optionally, determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes:

[0437] The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information;

[0438] The second information includes at least one of the following:

[0439] Service QoS information;

[0440] Network load information;

[0441] Link status information;

[0442] Transmission quality information.

[0443] Optionally, the apparatus further includes: a first mapping module, the first mapping module being configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0444] Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB;

[0445] Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

[0446] Optionally, the first processing module includes at least one of the following:

[0447] The first reading unit is used to read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure;

[0448] The first detection unit is used to detect duplicate data packets;

[0449] The first sorting unit is used to reorder data packets;

[0450] The first transmission unit is used to deliver data packets in order.

[0451] Optionally, the first detection unit is specifically used for:

[0452] Duplicate data is identified based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet;

[0453] Delete duplicate data received later.

[0454] Optionally, the first detection unit is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0455] Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0456] Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0457] Optionally, the first sorting unit is specifically used for:

[0458] The data packets are reordered based on the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

[0459] Optionally, the first sorting unit is specifically used for:

[0460] Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets;

[0461] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0462] RB particle size;

[0463] QoS flow granularity.

[0464] Optionally, the first sorting unit is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0465] When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started.

[0466] When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1;

[0467] Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered.

[0468] If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped.

[0469] If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted.

[0470] If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

[0471] Optionally, the header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information:

[0472] Serial number (SN);

[0473] The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet;

[0474] RB identifier;

[0475] QoS reverse mapping bit information.

[0476] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0477] The first receiving module is used to receive capability information sent by the terminal;

[0478] The capability information includes at least one of the following:

[0479] The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol layer reconstructed with L2;

[0480] The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal;

[0481] The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

[0482] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0483] The first sending module is used to send second configuration information to the terminal, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

[0484] Optionally, the second configuration information may also include at least one of the following:

[0485] The eighth instruction information is used to instruct the deletion of the mapping operation of the QoS flow of the service data adaptation protocol SDAP layer to the RB;

[0486] The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation;

[0487] The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer;

[0488] The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

[0489] Optionally, the device further includes one of the following:

[0490] The second receiving module is used to receive third information sent by the terminal when the first protocol layer is the data sending end;

[0491] The second sending module is used to send third information to the terminal when the first protocol layer is the data receiving end;

[0492] The third information includes at least one of the following:

[0493] Data packet loss information;

[0494] Network quality information;

[0495] Path switching request information;

[0496] Copy operation activation request information.

[0497] For details, see Figure 7 When the data processing device is a terminal or a component in a terminal, the data processing device 700 includes a second processing module 710 for performing second processing on data packets at the first protocol layer. The second processing includes at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; data splitting related processing; wherein the first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0498] Optionally, the second processing module includes at least one of the following:

[0499] The second processing unit is used to add header structures to data packets;

[0500] The second selection unit is used to select a routing path for data packets;

[0501] The second sending unit is used to send data packets according to the routing path.

[0502] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0503] The second acquisition module is used to acquire the first configuration information;

[0504] The second processing module is specifically used for:

[0505] The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information;

[0506] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0507] The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer;

[0508] The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet;

[0509] The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement;

[0510] The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of data packets;

[0511] The correspondence between QoS flows and data packets;

[0512] The correspondence between RBs and data packets.

[0513] Optionally, the second processing unit is specifically used for:

[0514] Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity;

[0515] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0516] RB particle size;

[0517] QoS flow granularity.

[0518] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0519] The second allocation module is configured to allocate SNs to data packets according to a first order, wherein the first order includes at least one of the following:

[0520] The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer;

[0521] The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer;

[0522] The order of arrival of data packets within an RB;

[0523] The order in which data packets are sent within the RB;

[0524] The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow;

[0525] The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

[0526] Optionally, the second selection unit is specifically used to perform at least one of the following:

[0527] Select the routing path for data packets in the traffic splitting mode;

[0528] Determine whether the data packet copying operation is active or deactivated, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the active or deactivated state.

[0529] Optionally, the routing path of the data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes:

[0530] Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information;

[0531] The first information includes at least one of the following:

[0532] Network load information;

[0533] Path congestion information;

[0534] Is it the primary path or the preferred path?

[0535] Transmission quality information;

[0536] Path configuration ratio information;

[0537] Data caching information.

[0538] Optionally, determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes:

[0539] The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information;

[0540] The second information includes at least one of the following:

[0541] Service QoS information;

[0542] Network load information;

[0543] Link status information;

[0544] Transmission quality information.

[0545] Optionally, the apparatus further includes a second mapping module, which is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0546] Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB;

[0547] Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

[0548] Optionally, the second processing module is specifically used to perform at least one of the following:

[0549] The second reading unit is used to read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure;

[0550] The second detection unit is used to detect duplicate data packets;

[0551] The second sorting unit is used to reorder data packets;

[0552] The second sending unit is used to deliver data packets in order.

[0553] Optionally, the second detection unit is specifically used for:

[0554] Duplicate data is identified based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet;

[0555] Delete duplicate data received later.

[0556] Optionally, the second detection unit is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0557] Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0558] Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0559] Optionally, the second sorting unit is specifically used for:

[0560] The data packets are sorted according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

[0561] Optionally, the second sorting unit is specifically used for:

[0562] Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets;

[0563] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0564] RB particle size;

[0565] QoS flow granularity.

[0566] Optionally, the second sorting unit is specifically used to perform at least one of the following:

[0567] When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started.

[0568] When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1;

[0569] Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered.

[0570] If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped.

[0571] If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted.

[0572] If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

[0573] Optionally, the header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information:

[0574] SN;

[0575] The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet;

[0576] RB identifier;

[0577] QoS reverse mapping bit information.

[0578] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0579] The third sending module is used to send capability information to network-side devices;

[0580] The capability information includes at least one of the following:

[0581] The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol side layer reconstructed with L2;

[0582] The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal;

[0583] The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

[0584] Optionally, the device further includes:

[0585] The third receiving module is used to receive second configuration information sent by the network-side device, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

[0586] Optionally, the second configuration information may also include at least one of the following:

[0587] The eighth instruction is used to indicate the operation of deleting the mapping of QoS flows from the SDAP layer to the RB;

[0588] The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation;

[0589] The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the PDCP layer;

[0590] The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

[0591] Optionally, the device further includes one of the following:

[0592] The fourth sending module is used to send third information to the network-side device when the first protocol layer is the data receiving end;

[0593] The fourth receiving module is used to receive third information sent by the network-side device when the first protocol layer is the data sending end;

[0594] The third information includes at least one of the following:

[0595] Data packet loss information;

[0596] Network quality information;

[0597] Path switching request information;

[0598] Copy operation activation request information.

[0599] In embodiments of this application, a first protocol layer is configured on both the terminal and the network-side device. This first protocol layer sits above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The first protocol layer is used for data splitting and / or data aggregation processing, enabling the network-side device and the terminal to operate more flexibly during data splitting and reception. This improves data transmission efficiency and service experience, enhancing both data transmission performance and system efficiency.

[0600] The data processing device provided in this application embodiment can achieve... Figures 2 to 5The various processes implemented in the method embodiments achieve the same technical effect, and will not be described again here to avoid repetition.

[0601] like Figure 8 As shown, this application embodiment also provides a communication device 800, including a processor 801 and a memory 802. The memory 802 stores programs or instructions that can run on the processor 801. For example, when the communication device 800 is a terminal, the program or instructions executed by the processor 801 implement the various steps of the data processing method embodiment applied to the terminal described above, and can achieve the same technical effect. When the communication device 800 is a network-side device, the program or instructions executed by the processor 801 implement the various steps of the data processing method embodiment applied to the network-side device described above, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0602] This application embodiment also provides a terminal, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement, for example... Figure 5 The steps in the method embodiment shown are illustrated. This terminal embodiment corresponds to the above-described terminal-side method embodiment. All implementation processes and methods of the above-described method embodiments can be applied to this terminal embodiment and achieve the same technical effect. The terminal can be... Figure 7 The data processing device shown. Specifically, Figure 9 A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a terminal to implement an embodiment of this application.

[0603] The terminal 900 includes, but is not limited to, at least some of the following components: radio frequency unit 901, network module 902, audio output unit 903, input unit 904, sensor 905, display unit 906, user input unit 907, interface unit 908, memory 909, and processor 910.

[0604] Those skilled in the art will understand that the terminal 900 may also include a power supply (such as a battery) for supplying power to various components. The power supply may be logically connected to the processor 910 through a power management system, thereby enabling functions such as managing charging, discharging, and power consumption through the power management system. Figure 9 The terminal structure shown does not constitute a limitation on the terminal. The terminal may include more or fewer components than shown, or combine certain components, or have different component arrangements, which will not be elaborated here.

[0605] It should be understood that, in this embodiment, the input unit 904 may include a graphics processor 9041 and a microphone 9042. The graphics processor 9041 processes image data of still images or videos obtained by an image capture device (such as a camera) in video capture mode or image capture mode. The display unit 906 may include a display panel 9061, which may be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode, or the like. The user input unit 907 includes at least one of a touch panel 9071 and other input devices 9072. The touch panel 9071 is also called a touch screen. The touch panel 9071 may include a touch detection device and a touch controller. Other input devices 9072 may include, but are not limited to, physical keyboards, function keys (such as volume control buttons, power buttons, etc.), trackballs, mice, and joysticks, which will not be described in detail here.

[0606] In this embodiment, after receiving downlink data from the network-side device, the radio frequency unit 901 can transmit it to the processor 910 for processing; in addition, the radio frequency unit 901 can send uplink data to the network-side device. Typically, the radio frequency unit 901 includes, but is not limited to, antennas, amplifiers, transceivers, couplers, low-noise amplifiers, duplexers, etc.

[0607] The memory 909 can be used to store software programs or instructions, as well as various data. The memory 909 may primarily include a first storage area for storing programs or instructions and a second storage area for storing data. The first storage area may store the operating system, application programs or instructions required for at least one function (such as sound playback, image playback, etc.). Furthermore, the memory 909 may include volatile memory or non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory may be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDRSDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct memory bus RAM (DRRAM). The memory 909 in the embodiments of this application includes, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0608] Processor 910 may include one or more processing units; optionally, processor 910 integrates an application processor and a modem processor, wherein the application processor mainly handles operations involving the operating system, user interface, and applications, and the modem processor mainly handles wireless communication signals, such as a baseband processor. It is understood that the aforementioned modem processor may also not be integrated into processor 910.

[0609] The processor 910 is configured to perform second processing on data packets at a first protocol layer, the second processing including at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; data splitting related processing; wherein the first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

[0610] Optionally, the processor 910 is configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0611] Add a header structure to the data packet;

[0612] Select a route path for the data packet;

[0613] Data packets are sent according to the routing path.

[0614] Optionally, the processor 910 is further configured to:

[0615] Obtain the first configuration information;

[0616] The second processing of the data packet includes:

[0617] The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information;

[0618] The first configuration information includes at least one of the following:

[0619] The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer;

[0620] The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet;

[0621] The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement;

[0622] The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of data packets;

[0623] The correspondence between QoS flows and data packets;

[0624] The correspondence between RBs and data packets.

[0625] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically used for:

[0626] Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity;

[0627] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0628] RB particle size;

[0629] QoS flow granularity.

[0630] Optionally, the processor 910 is further configured to:

[0631] SNs are assigned to data packets in a first order, which includes at least one of the following:

[0632] The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer;

[0633] The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer;

[0634] The order of arrival of data packets within an RB;

[0635] The order in which data packets are sent within the RB;

[0636] The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow;

[0637] The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

[0638] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically configured to perform one of the following:

[0639] Select the routing path for data packets in the traffic splitting mode;

[0640] Determine whether the data packet copying operation is active or deactivated, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the active or deactivated state.

[0641] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically used for:

[0642] Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information;

[0643] The first information includes at least one of the following:

[0644] Network load information;

[0645] Path congestion information;

[0646] Is it the primary path or the preferred path?

[0647] Transmission quality information;

[0648] Path configuration ratio information;

[0649] Data caching information.

[0650] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically used for:

[0651] The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information;

[0652] The second information includes at least one of the following:

[0653] Service QoS information;

[0654] Network load information;

[0655] Link status information;

[0656] Transmission quality information.

[0657] Optionally, the processor 910 is further configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0658] Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB;

[0659] Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

[0660] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0661] Read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure;

[0662] Perform duplicate detection on data packets;

[0663] Reorder the data packets;

[0664] Data packets are delivered in sequence.

[0665] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically used for:

[0666] Duplicate data is identified based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet;

[0667] Delete duplicate data received later.

[0668] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically configured to perform one of the following:

[0669] Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0670] Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

[0671] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically used for:

[0672] The data packets are sorted according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

[0673] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically used for:

[0674] Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets;

[0675] Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following:

[0676] RB particle size;

[0677] QoS flow granularity.

[0678] Optionally, the processor 910 is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following:

[0679] When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started.

[0680] When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1;

[0681] Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered.

[0682] If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped.

[0683] If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted.

[0684] If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

[0685] Optionally, the header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information:

[0686] SN;

[0687] The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet;

[0688] RB identifier;

[0689] QoS reverse mapping bit information.

[0690] Optionally, the radio frequency unit 901 is used for:

[0691] Send capability information to network-side devices;

[0692] The capability information includes at least one of the following:

[0693] The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol side layer reconstructed with L2;

[0694] The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal;

[0695] The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

[0696] Optionally, the radio frequency unit 901 is further used for

[0697] The device receives second configuration information sent by the network-side device, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

[0698] Optionally, the second configuration information may also include at least one of the following:

[0699] The eighth instruction is used to indicate the operation of deleting the mapping of QoS flows from the SDAP layer to the RB;

[0700] The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation;

[0701] The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the PDCP layer;

[0702] The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

[0703] Optionally, the radio frequency unit 901 is further configured to perform one of the following:

[0704] When the first protocol layer is the data receiving end, third information is sent to the network-side device;

[0705] When the first protocol layer is the data sending end, it receives third information sent by the network-side device;

[0706] The third information includes at least one of the following:

[0707] Data packet loss information;

[0708] Network quality information;

[0709] Path switching request information;

[0710] Copy operation activation request information.

[0711] In embodiments of this application, a first protocol layer is configured on both the terminal and the network-side device. This first protocol layer sits above the air interface access technology protocol layer. The first protocol layer is used for data splitting and / or data aggregation processing, enabling the network-side device and the terminal to operate more flexibly during data splitting and reception. This improves data transmission efficiency and service experience, enhancing both data transmission performance and system efficiency.

[0712] It is understood that the implementation process of each implementation method mentioned in this embodiment can refer to the relevant description of the data processing method in the method embodiment and achieve the same or corresponding technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0713] This application embodiment also provides a network-side device, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement, for example... Figure 2The steps of the method embodiment shown are illustrated. This network-side device embodiment corresponds to the above-described network-side device method embodiment. All implementation processes and methods of the above-described method embodiments can be applied to this network-side device embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect.

[0714] Specifically, embodiments of this application also provide a network-side device, which may be... Figure 6 The data processing device shown. (For example...) Figure 10 As shown, the network-side device 1000 includes: an antenna 101, a radio frequency (RF) device 102, a baseband device 103, a processor 104, and a memory 105. The antenna 101 is connected to the RF device 102. In the uplink direction, the RF device 102 receives information through the antenna 101 and transmits the received information to the baseband device 103 for processing. In the downlink direction, the baseband device 103 processes the information to be transmitted and sends it to the RF device 102. The RF device 102 processes the received information and transmits it through the antenna 101.

[0715] The method executed by the network-side device in the above embodiments can be implemented in the baseband device 103, which includes a baseband processor.

[0716] The baseband device 103 may include, for example, at least one baseband board on which multiple chips are disposed, such as... Figure 10 As shown, one of the chips is, for example, a baseband processor, which is connected to the memory 105 via a bus interface to call the program in the memory 105 and execute the network device operation shown in the above method embodiment.

[0717] The network-side device may also include a network interface 106, such as a Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI).

[0718] Specifically, the network-side device 1000 in this application embodiment further includes: instructions or programs stored in memory 105 and executable on processor 104, wherein processor 104 calls the instructions or programs in memory 105 to execute. Figure 6 The methods executed by each module shown achieve the same technical effect, and to avoid repetition, they will not be described in detail here.

[0719] Specifically, embodiments of this application also provide a network-side device. For example... Figure 11 As shown, the network-side device 1100 includes: a processor 1101, a network interface 1102, and a memory 1103. This network-side device can be... Figure 6The data processing device shown. The network interface 1102 is, for example, a common public radio interface (CPRI).

[0720] Specifically, the network-side device 1100 in this application embodiment further includes: instructions or programs stored in memory 1103 and executable on processor 1101, wherein processor 1101 calls the instructions or programs in memory 1103 to execute. Figure 6 The methods executed by each module shown achieve the same technical effect, and to avoid repetition, they will not be described in detail here.

[0721] This application also provides a readable storage medium storing a program or instructions. When the program or instructions are executed by a processor, they implement the various processes of the above-described data processing method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described again here.

[0722] The processor mentioned above is the processor in the terminal described in the above embodiments. The readable storage medium includes computer-readable storage media, such as computer read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disk, or optical disk. In some examples, the readable storage medium may be a non-transient readable storage medium.

[0723] This application embodiment also provides a chip, which includes a processor and a communication interface. The communication interface is coupled to the processor. The processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the various processes of the above data processing method embodiments and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0724] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiments of this application may also be referred to as a system-on-a-chip, system chip, chip system, or system-on-a-chip, etc.

[0725] This application also provides a computer program / program product, which is stored in a storage medium and executed by at least one processor to implement the various processes of the above-described data processing method embodiments, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0726] This application also provides a data processing system, including: a terminal and a network-side device, wherein the terminal can be used to execute the steps of the data processing method applied to the terminal as described above, and the network-side device can be used to execute the steps of the data processing method applied to the network-side device as described above.

[0727] This application also provides a computer program product, including computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the above-described data processing method.

[0728] It should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes that element. Furthermore, it should be noted that the scope of the methods and apparatuses in the embodiments of this application is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed, but may also include performing functions substantially simultaneously or in the reverse order, depending on the functions involved. For example, the described methods may be performed in a different order than described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. Additionally, features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

[0729] From the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by means of computer software products plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms, and of course, they can also be implemented by hardware. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk, etc.) and includes several instructions to cause the terminal or network-side device to execute the methods described in the various embodiments of this application.

[0730] The embodiments of this application have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. The specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art can make many other implementations under the guidance of this application without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims. All of these implementations are within the protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. A data processing method, characterized in that, include: The first protocol layer of the network-side device performs first processing on the data packets, and the first processing includes at least one of the following: data diversion related processing; Data aggregation related processing; The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The data offloading related processing includes at least one of the following: Add a header structure to the data packet; Select a route path for the data packet; Data packets are sent according to the routing path.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Before performing the first processing on the data packet, the method further includes: Obtain the first configuration information; The first processing of the data packet includes: The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information; The first configuration information includes at least one of the following: The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer; The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet; The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement; The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of data packets; The correspondence between Quality of Service (QoS) flows and data packets; The correspondence between radio bearers (RBs) and data packets.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, Adding a header structure to the data packet includes: Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The method further includes: Sequence numbers (SNs) are assigned to data packets in a first order, wherein the first order includes at least one of the following: The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer; The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer; The order of arrival of data packets within an RB; The order in which data packets are sent within the RB; The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow; The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

6. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The process of selecting a routing path for data packets includes the following: Select the routing path for data packets in the traffic splitting mode; Determine whether the data packet copying operation is active or deactivated, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the active or deactivated state.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The routing path for data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes: Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information; The first information includes at least one of the following: Network load information; Path congestion information; Is it the primary path or the preferred path? Transmission quality information; Path configuration ratio information; Data caching information.

8. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, Determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes: The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information; The second information includes at least one of the following: Service QoS information; Network load information; Link status information; Transmission quality information.

9. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes at least one of the following: Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB; Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

10. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The data aggregation-related processing includes at least one of the following: Read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure; Perform duplicate detection on data packets; Reorder the data packets; Data packets are delivered in sequence.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The process of performing duplicate detection on data packets includes: Duplicate data is identified based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet; Delete duplicate data received later.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, The step of identifying duplicate data based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet includes one of the following: Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data. Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

13. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The reordering of data packets includes: The data packets are reordered based on the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, The step of reordering the data packets according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets includes: Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

15. The method according to claim 10, 13, or 14, characterized in that, The reordering of data packets includes at least one of the following: When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started. When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1; Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered. If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped. If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted. If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, 10 to 14, characterized in that, The header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information: Serial number (SN); The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet; RB identifier; QoS reverse mapping bit information.

17. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive capability information sent by the terminal; The capability information includes at least one of the following: The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol layer reconstructed with L2; The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal; The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

18. The method according to claim 1 or 17, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send second configuration information to the terminal, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The second configuration information also includes at least one of the following: The eighth instruction information is used to instruct the deletion of the mapping operation of the QoS flow of the service data adaptation protocol SDAP layer to the RB; The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation; The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer; The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

20. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method also includes the following: When the first protocol layer is the data sending end, the receiving terminal sends the third information; When the first protocol layer is the data receiving end, third information is sent to the terminal; The third information includes at least one of the following: Data packet loss information; Network quality information; Path switching request information; Copy operation activation request information.

21. A data processing method, characterized in that, include: The terminal's first protocol layer performs a second processing on the data packets, the second processing including at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; Data offloading and related processing; The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The data offloading related processing includes at least one of the following: Add a header structure to the data packet; Select a route path for the data packet; Data packets are sent according to the routing path.

23. The method according to claim 21 or 22, characterized in that, Before performing the second processing on the data packet, the method further includes: Obtain the first configuration information; The second processing of the data packet includes: The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information; The first configuration information includes at least one of the following: The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer; The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet; The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement; The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of data packets; The correspondence between QoS flows and data packets; The correspondence between RBs and data packets.

24. The method according to claim 22, characterized in that, Adding a header structure to the data packet includes: Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

25. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 24, characterized in that, The method further includes: SNs are assigned to data packets in a first order, which includes at least one of the following: The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer; The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer; The order of arrival of data packets within an RB; The order in which data packets are sent within the RB; The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow; The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

26. The method according to claim 22, characterized in that, The process of selecting a routing path for data packets includes the following: Select the routing path for data packets in the traffic splitting mode; Determine whether the data packet copying operation is active or deactivated, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the active or deactivated state.

27. The method according to claim 26, characterized in that, The routing path for data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes: Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information; The first information includes at least one of the following: Network load information; Path congestion information; Is it the primary path or the preferred path? Transmission quality information; Path configuration ratio information; Data caching information.

28. The method according to claim 26, characterized in that, Determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes: The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information; The second information includes at least one of the following: Service QoS information; Network load information; Link status information; Transmission quality information.

29. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The method further includes at least one of the following: Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB; Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

30. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The data aggregation-related processing includes at least one of the following: Read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure; Perform duplicate detection on data packets; Reorder the data packets; Data packets are delivered in sequence.

31. The method according to claim 30, characterized in that, The process of performing duplicate detection on data packets includes: Duplicate data is identified based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet; Delete duplicate data received later.

32. The method according to claim 31, characterized in that, The step of identifying duplicate data based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet includes one of the following: Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data. Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

33. The method according to claim 30, characterized in that, The reordering of data packets includes: The data packets are sorted according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

34. The method according to claim 33, characterized in that, The step of reordering the data packets according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets includes: Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

35. The method according to claim 30, 33, or 34, characterized in that, The reordering of data packets includes at least one of the following: When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started. When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1; Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered. If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped. If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted. If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

36. The method according to any one of claims 21 to 24, 30 to 34, characterized in that, The header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information: SN; The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet; RB identifier; QoS reverse mapping bit information.

37. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send capability information to network-side devices; The capability information includes at least one of the following: The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol side layer reconstructed with L2; The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal; The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

38. The method according to claim 21 or 37, characterized in that, The method further includes: The device receives second configuration information sent by the network-side device, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

39. The method according to claim 38, characterized in that, The second configuration information also includes at least one of the following: The eighth instruction is used to indicate the operation of deleting the mapping of QoS flows from the SDAP layer to the RB; The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation; The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the PDCP layer; The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

40. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The method also includes the following: When the first protocol layer is the data receiving end, third information is sent to the network-side device; When the first protocol layer is the data sending end, it receives third information sent by the network-side device; The third information includes at least one of the following: Data packet loss information; Network quality information; Path switching request information; Copy operation activation request information.

41. A data processing apparatus, characterized in that, include: A first processing module is used to perform first processing on data packets at a first protocol layer, wherein the first processing includes at least one of the following: data splitting related processing; Data aggregation related processing; The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

42. The apparatus according to claim 41, characterized in that, The first processing module includes at least one of the following: The first processing unit is used to add header structures to data packets; The first selection unit is used to select a routing path for data packets; The first sending unit is used to send data packets according to the routing path.

43. The apparatus according to claim 41 or 42, characterized in that, The device further includes: A first acquisition device is used to acquire first configuration information; The first processing unit is specifically used for: The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information; The first configuration information includes at least one of the following: The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer; The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet; The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement; The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of data packets; The correspondence between Quality of Service (QoS) flows and data packets; The correspondence between radio bearers (RBs) and data packets.

44. The apparatus according to claim 42, characterized in that, The first processing unit is specifically used for: Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

45. The apparatus according to any one of claims 41 to 44, characterized in that, The device further includes: A first allocation module is configured to allocate SNs to data packets according to a first order, wherein the first order includes at least one of the following: The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer; The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer; The order of arrival of data packets within an RB; The order in which data packets are sent within the RB; The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow; The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

46. ​​The apparatus according to claim 42, characterized in that, The first processing unit is specifically configured to perform at least one of the following: Select the routing path for data packets in the traffic splitting mode; Determine whether the data packet copying operation is active or deactivated, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the active or deactivated state.

47. The apparatus according to claim 46, characterized in that, The routing path for data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes: Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information; The first information includes at least one of the following: Network load information; Path congestion information; Is it the primary path or the preferred path? Transmission quality information; Path configuration ratio information; Data caching information.

48. The apparatus according to claim 46, characterized in that, Determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes: The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information; The second information includes at least one of the following: Service QoS information; Network load information; Link status information; Transmission quality information.

49. The apparatus according to claim 41, characterized in that, The apparatus further includes: a first mapping module, the first mapping module being configured to perform at least one of the following: Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB; Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

50. The apparatus according to claim 41, characterized in that, The first processing module includes at least one of the following: The first reading unit is used to read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure; The first detection unit is used to detect duplicate data packets; The first sorting unit is used to reorder data packets; The first transmission unit is used to deliver data packets in order.

51. The apparatus according to claim 50, characterized in that, The first detection unit is specifically used for: Duplicate data is identified based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet; Delete duplicate data received later.

52. The apparatus according to claim 51, characterized in that, The first detection unit is specifically used to perform at least one of the following: Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data. Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

53. The apparatus according to claim 50, characterized in that, The first sorting unit is specifically used for: The data packets are reordered based on the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

54. The apparatus according to claim 53, characterized in that, The first sorting unit is specifically used for: Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

55. The apparatus according to claim 50, 53, or 54, characterized in that, The first sorting unit is specifically used to perform at least one of the following: When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started. When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1; Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered. If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped. If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted. If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

56. The apparatus according to any one of claims 41 to 44, 50 to 54, characterized in that, The header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information: Serial number (SN); The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet; RB identifier; QoS reverse mapping bit information.

57. The apparatus according to claim 41, characterized in that, The device further includes: The first receiving module is used to receive capability information sent by the terminal; The capability information includes at least one of the following: The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer, or supports a first protocol layer reconstructed with L2; The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal; The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or the offloading service.

58. The apparatus according to claim 41 or 57, characterized in that, The device further includes: The first sending module is used to send second configuration information to the terminal, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

59. The apparatus according to claim 58, characterized in that, The second configuration information also includes at least one of the following: The eighth instruction information is used to instruct the deletion of the mapping operation of the QoS flow of the service data adaptation protocol SDAP layer to the RB; The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation; The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer; The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

60. The apparatus according to claim 41, characterized in that, The device also includes the following: The second receiving module is used to receive third information sent by the terminal when the first protocol layer is the data sending end; The second sending module is used to send third information to the terminal when the first protocol layer is the data receiving end; The third information includes at least one of the following: Data packet loss information; Network quality information; Path switching request information; Copy operation activation request information.

61. A data processing apparatus, characterized in that, include: The second processing module is used to perform second processing on the data packets by the first protocol layer, and the second processing includes at least one of the following: data aggregation related processing; Data offloading and related processing; The first protocol layer is located above the air interface access technology protocol layer.

62. The apparatus according to claim 61, characterized in that, The second processing module includes at least one of the following: The second processing unit is used to add header structures to data packets; The second selection unit is used to select a routing path for data packets; The second sending unit is used to send data packets according to the routing path.

63. The apparatus according to claim 61 or 62, characterized in that, The device further includes: The second acquisition module is used to acquire the first configuration information; The second processing module is specifically used for: The data packet is processed according to the first configuration information; The first configuration information includes at least one of the following: The first indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has passed through the first protocol layer; The second indication information is used to indicate whether a header structure needs to be added to the data packet; The third indication information is used to indicate whether the data packet has an in-order delivery requirement; The fourth indication information is used to indicate the routing information of data packets; The correspondence between QoS flows and data packets; The correspondence between RBs and data packets.

64. The apparatus according to claim 62, characterized in that, The second processing unit is specifically used for: Add a header structure to the data packet based on the first granularity; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

65. The apparatus according to any one of claims 61 to 64, characterized in that, The device further includes: The second allocation module is configured to allocate SNs to data packets according to a first order, wherein the first order includes at least one of the following: The order in which data packets arrive at the first protocol layer; The order in which data packets are sent at the first protocol layer; The order of arrival of data packets within an RB; The order in which data packets are sent within the RB; The order of arrival of data packets within a QoS flow; The order in which data packets are sent within a QoS stream.

66. The apparatus according to claim 62, characterized in that, The second selection unit is specifically used to perform at least one of the following: Select the routing path for data packets in the traffic splitting mode; Determine whether the data packet copying operation is active or deactivated, and select a routing path for the data packet based on the active or deactivated state.

67. The apparatus according to claim 66, characterized in that, The routing path for data packets in the selected traffic splitting mode includes: Select the routing path for the data packets in the traffic splitting mode based on the first piece of information; The first information includes at least one of the following: Network load information; Path congestion information; Is it the primary path or the preferred path? Transmission quality information; Path configuration ratio information; Data caching information.

68. The apparatus according to claim 66, characterized in that, Determining the activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation includes: The activation or deactivation status of the data packet copying operation is determined based on the second information; The second information includes at least one of the following: Service QoS information; Network load information; Link status information; Transmission quality information.

69. The apparatus according to claim 61, characterized in that, The apparatus further includes: a second mapping module, the second mapping module being specifically configured to perform at least one of the following: Map the QoS stream to the corresponding RB; Map IP flows to corresponding QoS flows.

70. The apparatus according to claim 61, characterized in that, The second processing module is specifically used to perform at least one of the following: The second reading unit is used to read the header structure of the data packet and obtain the information carried by the header structure; The second detection unit is used to detect duplicate data packets; The second sorting unit is used to reorder data packets; The second sending unit is used to deliver data packets in order.

71. The apparatus according to claim 70, characterized in that, The second detection unit is specifically used for: Duplicate data is identified based on the serial number (SN) carried in the header structure of the data packet; Delete duplicate data received later.

72. The apparatus according to claim 71, characterized in that, The second detection unit is specifically used to perform at least one of the following: Based on the SN and QoS flow identifier carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same QoS flow identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data. Based on the SN and RB identifiers carried in the header structure of the data packet, data packets with the same RB identifier and the same SN are identified as duplicate data.

73. The apparatus according to claim 70, characterized in that, The second sorting unit is specifically used for: The data packets are sorted according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets.

74. The apparatus according to claim 73, characterized in that, The second sorting unit is specifically used for: Based on the first granularity, the data packets are reordered according to the SN carried in the header structure of the data packets; Wherein, the first granularity includes at least one of the following: RB particle size; QoS flow granularity.

75. The apparatus according to claim 70, 73, or 74, characterized in that, The second sorting unit is specifically used to perform at least one of the following: When receiving data packets, the received data packets are sorted in ascending order of SN. If a reception gap occurs, a timer is started. When the timer is started, record the maximum value of SN received before the start time of the timer, or the maximum value of SN plus 1; Before the timer expires, packets that are not delivered in order are buffered. If, when the timer is started, all data packets before the recorded maximum SN value or the maximum SN value plus 1 are delivered in order, then the timer is stopped. If a reception gap occurs again in the reception sequence after the timer has been stopped, the timer will be restarted. If not all data packets in the receive gap are received after the timer expires, the waiting for data packets in the receive gap is stopped, and the remaining data packets are delivered to the higher layer in ascending order of SN.

76. The apparatus according to any one of claims 61 to 64, 70 to 74, characterized in that, The header structure of the data packet carries at least one of the following information: SN; The QoS flow identifier corresponding to the data packet; RB identifier; QoS reverse mapping bit information.

77. The apparatus according to claim 61, characterized in that, The device further includes: The third sending module is used to send capability information to network-side devices; The capability information includes at least one of the following: The fifth instruction information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports an independently configured first protocol layer or supports a first protocol side layer reconstructed with L2. The sixth indication information is used to indicate the SN granularity information of the first protocol layer supported by the terminal; The seventh indication information is used to indicate whether the terminal supports the first protocol layer or offloading services.

78. The apparatus according to claim 61 or 77, characterized in that, The device further includes: The third receiving module is used to receive second configuration information sent by the network-side device, the second configuration information including the configuration information of the first protocol layer.

79. The apparatus according to claim 78, characterized in that, The second configuration information also includes at least one of the following: The eighth instruction is used to indicate the operation of deleting the mapping of QoS flows from the SDAP layer to the RB; The ninth instruction message is used to instruct the deletion of the SDAP layer IP flow to QoS flow mapping operation; The tenth instruction message is used to instruct the operation of deleting the allocated SN of the PDCP layer; The eleventh instruction is used to indicate the modification of the security operation input parameters of the PDCP layer.

80. The apparatus according to claim 61, characterized in that, The device also includes the following: The fourth sending module is used to send third information to the network-side device when the first protocol layer is the data receiving end; The fourth receiving module is used to receive third information sent by the network-side device when the first protocol layer is the data sending end; The third information includes at least one of the following: Data packet loss information; Network quality information; Path switching request information; Copy operation activation request information.

81. A network-side device, characterized in that, It includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing a program or instructions that can run on the processor, the program or instructions being executed by the processor to implement the steps of the data processing method as described in any one of claims 1 to 20.

82. A terminal, characterized in that, It includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing a program or instructions that can run on the processor, the program or instructions being executed by the processor to implement the steps of the data processing method as described in any one of claims 21 to 40.

83. A readable storage medium, characterized in that, The readable storage medium stores a program or instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement the data processing method as described in any one of claims 1 to 20, or implement the steps of the data processing method as described in any one of claims 21 to 40.

Images