Method and apparatus for data transmission based on quality of service flow switching

Abstract

The present disclosure describes methods, systems, and devices for switching a quality of service (QoS) flow from a source network node to a target network node. The method includes sending a first request by a first network node to a target network node; receiving a first response to the first request from the target network node by the first network node; and sending a second request by the first network node to the source network node. The method may also include receiving a second response to the second request from the source network node by the first network node; and sending a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration complete indication by the first network node to the source network node.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure is generally directed to wireless communications. In particular, the present disclosure relates to methods and apparatus for data transmission based on Quality of Service (QoS) flow switching. Background Art

[0002] Wireless communication technology is driving the world towards an increasingly interconnected and networked society. High-speed, low-latency wireless communications rely on efficient network resource management and allocation between user devices and wireless access network nodes (including but not limited to wireless base stations). The new generation of networks is expected to provide high-speed, low-latency and ultra-reliable communication capabilities and meet the needs of different industries and users. A wireless base station can send data to and from a user device based on a quality of service (QoS) flow. A wireless base station may include a control plane and multiple user planes. The present disclosure describes a method and apparatus for data transmission based on switching a QoS flow from one user plane to another. The present disclosure may solve at least some of the problems associated with existing systems to improve the performance of wireless communications. Summary of the invention

[0003] The present application relates to methods, systems and devices for wireless communications, and more particularly, to methods, systems and devices for data transmission based on Quality of Service (QoS) flow switching.

[0004] In one embodiment, the present disclosure describes a wireless communication method. The method includes switching a quality of service (QoS) flow from a source network node to a target network node by a first network node through the following steps: sending a first request by the first network node to the target network node; receiving a first response to the first request from the target network node by the first network node; and sending a second request by the first network node to the source network node. The method may also include receiving a second response to the second request from the source network node by the first network node; and sending a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration completion indication by the first network node to the source network node.

[0005] In another embodiment, the present disclosure describes a wireless communication method. The method includes transmitting user data between a user device and a core network by the following steps: a first network node switches a quality of service (QoS) flow from a source network node to a target network node; the target network node continuously receives first uplink user data from the user device; the source network node receives a first uplink end marker from the user device; and upon receiving the first uplink end marker, the source network node determines whether the source network node has completed sending the second uplink user data to the core network. The second uplink user data is received by the source network node from the user device. The method may also include, in response to determining that the source network node has completed sending the second uplink user data to the core network, the source network node sends a second uplink end marker to the target network node; and upon receiving the second uplink end marker, the target network node sends the first uplink user data to the core network.

[0006] In some other embodiments, a wireless communication device may include a memory storing instructions and a processing circuit in communication with the memory. When the processing circuit executes the instructions, the processing circuit is configured to perform the above method.

[0007] In some other embodiments, a wireless communication device may include a memory storing instructions and a processing circuit in communication with the memory. When the processing circuit executes the instructions, the processing circuit is configured to perform the above method.

[0008] In some other embodiments, a computer-readable medium includes instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the above method.

[0009] The above-described aspects and other aspects and embodiments thereof are described in more detail in the drawings, the description and the claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Figure 1A An example of a wireless communication system including a core network, a radio network node and one or more user equipments is shown.

[0011] Figure 1B Shows Figure 1A An example of an architecture of a wireless network node in FIG.

[0012] Figure 2 An example of a wireless network node is shown.

[0013] Figure 3 An example of a user device is shown.

[0014] Figure 4 A flow chart of a method for wireless communication is shown.

[0015] Figure 5 Shows Figure 4 An exemplary logic flow of a method for wireless communication in.

[0016] Figure 6 Shows Figure 4 Another exemplary logic flow of a method for wireless communication in.

[0017] Figure 7 Shows Figure 4 Another exemplary logic flow of a method for wireless communication in.

[0018] Figure 8 Shows Figure 4 Another exemplary logic flow of a method for wireless communication in.

[0019] Fig. 9 A flow chart of a method for wireless communication is shown.

[0020] Fig.10 Shows Fig. 9 An exemplary logic flow of a method for wireless communication in.

[0021] Fig.11 A flow chart of a method for wireless communication is shown.

[0022] Fig.12 Shows Fig.11 An exemplary logic flow of a method for wireless communication in. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0023] The present disclosure will now be described in detail hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of the present disclosure and show by way of illustration specific examples of embodiments. However, it is noted that the present disclosure may be embodied in a variety of different forms and, therefore, the subject matter covered or claimed is intended to be construed as not limited to any embodiment described below.

[0024] Throughout the specification and claims, terms may have subtle meanings suggested or implied by the context rather than the explicitly stated meanings. Similarly, the phrases "in one embodiment" or "in some embodiments" used herein do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, and the phrases "in another embodiment" or "in other embodiments" used herein do not necessarily refer to different embodiments. The phrases "in one implementation" or "in some implementations" used herein do not necessarily refer to the same implementation, and the phrases "in another implementation" or "in other implementations" used herein do not necessarily refer to different implementations. For example, the claimed subject matter includes all or part of the exemplary embodiments or combinations of implementations.

[0025] In general, terms can be understood at least in part from usage in context. For example, terms such as "and", "or" or "and / or" used in this article can include multiple meanings, which depend at least in part on the context in which the terms are used. Generally, "or" if used in an associated list, such as A, B or C, means A, B and C (used here in an inclusive sense), as well as A, B or C (used here in an exclusive sense). In addition, the terms "one or more" or "at least one" used in this article, depending at least in part on the context, can be used to describe any feature, structure or characteristic in a singular sense, or can be used to describe a combination of features, structures or characteristics in a plural sense. Similarly, terms such as "a", "an" or "the" can also be understood to mean singular usage or plural usage, which depends at least in part on the context. In addition, the term "based on" or "determined by..." may be understood to not necessarily be intended to convey a set of exclusive factors, but may allow for the presence of additional factors that are not necessarily explicitly described, depending at least in part on the context.

[0026] The present disclosure describes methods and apparatus for data transmission based on switching QoS flows.

[0027] Next generation (NG) or fifth generation (5G) wireless communications can provide a range of capabilities from fast downloads to support real-time low latency communications. This range of capabilities may require some characteristics of quality of service (QoS), such as latency, error rate, priority level, etc. In NG wireless communications, one or more service data flows with the same QoS characteristics can be grouped together as a QoS flow. Each QoS flow can be identified by a QoS flow identifier, thereby informing network components of the corresponding characteristics of the QoS flow.

[0028] Figure 1A A wireless communication system 100 is shown that includes a core network 110, a wireless network base station 130, and one or more user equipment (UE) (152, 154, and 156). The wireless network base station 130 may be an NG radio access network (NG-RAN) base station or node, which may include a nodeB (NB, e.g., gNB) in a mobile telecommunication environment. Each of the UEs may wirelessly communicate with the wireless network base station 130 via one or more wireless channels 140. For example, a first UE 152 may wirelessly communicate with the gNB 130 via a channel including a plurality of wireless channels during a specific time period. Similarly, a second UE 154 and a third UE 156 may wirelessly communicate with the gNB 130. The wireless network base station 130 may communicate with the core network 110 via an interface 125. In one embodiment, the core network 110 may include a 5G core network (5GC), and the interface 125 may include an NG interface.

[0029] A wireless network base station (e.g., gNB) may include an architecture that separates a centralized unit (CU) and one or more distributed units (DUs). Figure 1B , gNB 130 may include gNB-CU 132, a first distributed unit 136 (gNB-DU1), and a second distributed unit 138 (gNB-DU2). gNB-CU 132 may communicate and manage gNB-DU1 136 and gNB-DU2 138. One or more DUs may communicate with one or more user equipment (e.g., user equipment 152).

[0030] refer to Figure 1B , gNB-CU 132 may include an architecture including a control plane (CP) 133 (gNB-CU-CP) and one or more user planes (UPs) (134 and 135). gNB-CU-CP 133 may communicate and control a first UP (gNB-CU-UP1) 134 and a second UP (gNB-CU-UP2) 135.

[0031] A gNB-CU-UP can communicate with one or more gNB-DUs, and a gNB-DU can communicate with one or more gNB-CU-UPs. Figure 1B , gNB-CU-UP1 134 can communicate with gNB-DU1 136 and / or gNB-DU2 138; and gNB-DU1 can communicate with gNB-CU-UP1 134 and / or gNB-CU-UP2 135.

[0032] exist Figure 1A In the wireless communication system 100 in, the core network 110 can provide services to the user equipment by establishing one or more protocol data unit (PDU) sessions. The PDU session may include one or more QoS flows. For each user equipment, at least one data radio bearer (DRB) may be established for the PDU session. The data to be transmitted associated with different PDU sessions may be mapped to different DRBs; and one or more QoS flows may have a mapping relationship with one or more DRBs. For the DRB, the user equipment may monitor the QoS flow identifier (ID) of the downlink data packet and send the uplink data using the corresponding mapping relationship, which may be referred to as reflective QoS flow remapping.

[0033] In one embodiment, reference Figure 1A, a DRB for the PDU session may be established by gNB-CU-UP1 134, and a corresponding QoS flow may be established by gNB-CU-UP1 134. In certain cases, for example but not limited to, during reflective QoS flow remapping, the QoS flow may need to be switched from gNB-CU-UP1 134 to gNB-CU-UP2 135. The present disclosure describes embodiments of methods and apparatus for switching a QoS flow from one network node (e.g., gNB-CU-UP1 134) to another network node (e.g., gNB-CU-UP2 135).

[0034] Figure 2 An exemplary wireless communication base station 200 is shown. Base station 200 may include wireless transmit / receive (Tx / Rx) circuitry 208 to send / receive communications with one or more UEs and / or one or more other base stations. The base station may also include network interface circuitry 209 to enable the base station to communicate with other base stations and / or a core network (e.g., fiber or wired interconnects, Ethernet, and / or other data transmission media / protocols). Base station 200 may optionally include an input / output (I / O) interface 206 to communicate with an operator or the like.

[0035] The base station may also include system circuitry 204. System circuitry 204 may include one or more processors 221 and / or memory 222. Memory 222 may include an operating system 224, instructions 226, and parameters 228. Instructions 226 may be configured for one or more processors 124 to perform functions of the base station. Parameters 228 may include parameters for supporting the execution of instructions 226. For example, the parameters may include network protocol settings, bandwidth parameters, radio frequency mapping allocations, and / or other parameters.

[0036] Figure 3An exemplary user equipment (UE) 300 is shown. UE 300 may be a mobile device, such as a smart phone or a mobile communication module provided in a vehicle. UE 300 may include a communication interface 302, a system circuit 304, an input / output interface (I / O) 306, a display circuit 308, and a storage device 309. The display circuit may include a user interface 310. System circuit 304 may include any combination of hardware, software, firmware, or other logic / circuits. For example, system circuit 304 may be implemented with one or more systems on a chip (SoC), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), discrete analog and digital circuits, and other circuits. System circuit 304 may be part of the implementation of any desired function in UE 300. In this regard, the system circuit 304 may include, for example, logic to facilitate the following operations: decoding and playing music and video logic (e.g., MP3, MP4, MPEG, AVI, FLAC, AC3, or WAV decoding and playback); running applications; accepting user input; saving and retrieving application data; establishing, maintaining, and terminating mobile phone calls or data connections for Internet connections, for example; establishing, maintaining, and terminating wireless network connections, Bluetooth connections, or other connections; and displaying relevant information on the user interface 310. The user interface 310 and the input / output (I / O) interface 306 may include a graphical user interface, a touch-sensitive display, tactile feedback or other tactile output, voice or facial recognition input, buttons, switches, speakers, and other user interface elements. Additional examples of the I / O interface 306 may include microphones, video and still image cameras, temperature sensors, vibration sensors, rotation and orientation sensors, headphone and microphone input / output jacks, universal serial bus (USB) connectors, memory card slots, radiation sensors (e.g., IR sensors), and other types of inputs.

[0037] refer to Figure 3, the communication interface 302 may include a radio frequency (RF) transmission (Tx) and reception (Rx) circuit 316 for processing the transmission and reception of signals through one or more antennas 314. The communication interface 302 may include one or more transceivers. The transceiver may be a wireless transceiver that includes a modulation / demodulation circuit, a digital-to-analog converter (DAC), a shaping table, an analog-to-digital converter (ADC), a filter, a waveform shaper, a filter, a preamplifier, a power amplifier, and / or other logic for sending and receiving through one or more antennas or (for some devices) through a physical (e.g., wired) medium. The signals sent and received may follow any of a variety of formats, protocols, modulations (e.g., QPSK, 16-QAM, 64-QAM, or 256-QAM), frequency channels, bit rates, and encodings. As a specific example, the communication interface 302 may include a transceiver that supports transmission and reception under 2G, 3G, BT, WiFi, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA) +, 4G / Long Term Evolution (LTE), and 5G standards. However, the techniques described below are applicable to other wireless communication technologies, whether originating from the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), the GSM Association, 3GPP2, IEEE, or other partnership or standards body.

[0038] refer to Figure 3 , the system circuit 304 may include one or more processors 321 and a memory 322. The memory 322 stores, for example, an operating system 324, instructions 326, and parameters 328. The processor 321 is configured to execute the instructions 326 to perform the desired functions of the UE 300. The parameters 328 may provide and specify configuration and operating options for the instructions 326. The memory 322 may also store any BT, WiFi, 3G, 4G, 5G, or other data that the UE 300 will send or has received through the communication interface 302. In various embodiments, the system power of the UE 300 may be provided by a power storage device such as a battery or a transformer.

[0039] The present disclosure describes several embodiments of methods and apparatus for switching a Quality of Service (QoS) flow from a source network node to a target network node. These methods and apparatus may be partially or fully implemented in a wireless network base station and / or the above-mentioned Figure 2 and Figure 3 is implemented on the user device described in .

[0040] In one embodiment, reference Figure 4, method 400 may include some or all of the following: step 410, the first network node sends a first request to the target network node; step 420, the first network node receives a first response to the first request from the target network node; step 430, the first network node sends a second request to the source network node; step 440, the first network node receives a second response to the second request from the source network node; and step 450, the first network node sends a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration completion indication to the source network node.

[0041] Figure 5 An exemplary logic flow of a method 500 for switching a quality of service (QoS) flow from a source network node to a target network node is shown. The source network node 134 may be gNB-CU-UP1, the target network node 135 may be gNB-CU-UP2, the first network node 133 may be gNB-CU-CP, and the core network 110 may be 5GC.

[0042] The method 500 may include step 510: the gNB-CU-CP sends a bearer context establishment request to the gNB-CU-UP2. The bearer context establishment request may be Figure 4 The first request in step 410 of . In one embodiment, the bearer context establishment request may include a list of data radio bearers (DRBs) to be established. The list of DRBs to be established may include one or more DRBs based on the QoS flow.

[0043] The method 500 may include step 520: when receiving the bearer context establishment request from the gNB-CU-CP, the gNB-CU-UP2 may send a bearer context establishment response to the gNB-CU-CP. The bearer context establishment response may be Figure 4 The first response in step 420 of . In one embodiment, the bearer context establishment response may include data forwarding information. The data forwarding information may include information related to general packet radio service (GPRS) tunneling protocol (GTP) tunnel information.

[0044] The method 500 may include step 530: the gNB-CU-CP sends a bearer context release request (or a bearer context modification request) to the gNB-CU-UP1. The bearer context release request (or the bearer context modification request) may be Figure 4 The method 500 may further include step 540: upon receiving the bearer context release request (or bearer context modification request) from the gNB-CU-CP, the gNB-CU-UP1 may send a bearer context release response (or bearer context modification response) to the gNB-CU-CP. The bearer context release response (or bearer context modification response) may be Figure 4 The second response in step 430 in .

[0045] In one embodiment, the bearer context release request may include a list of DRBs to be released. The list of DRBs to be released may include one or more DRBs that have been established for the QoS flow. The bearer context modification request may include a list of DRBs to be modified. The list of DRBs to be modified may include one or more DRBs based on the QoS flow. In another embodiment, the bearer context release request (or bearer context modification request) may also include data forwarding information.

[0046] In one implementation of steps 530 and 540, when the gNB-CU-CP sends a bearer context release request to gNB-CU-UP1, gNB-CU-UP1 may send a bearer context release response to gNB-CU-CP. In another implementation of steps 530 and 540, when the gNB-CU-CP sends a bearer context modification request to gNB-CU-UP1, gNB-CU-UP1 may send a bearer context modification response to gNB-CU-CP.

[0047] Optionally, the method 500 may include step 543: the gNB-CU-CP sends a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration to a user equipment (UE). In one embodiment, the gNB-CU-CP may send the RRC reconfiguration to the gNB-DU, and then the gNB-DU may send the RRC reconfiguration to the user equipment. For example, the gNB-DU may be Figure 1B Upon receiving the RRC reconfiguration, the UE may perform the RRC reconfiguration. Optionally, method 500 may include step 545: the UE may send an RRC reconfiguration completion to the gNB-CU-CP. The RRC reconfiguration completion indicates the completion of the RRC reconfiguration.

[0048] refer to Figure 5 , the method 500 may include step 550: the gNB-CU-CP sends an RRC reconfiguration complete indication to the gNB-CU-UP1. The RRC reconfiguration complete indication sent in step 550 may be a one-way message belonging to a category 2 procedure so that upon receiving the RRC reconfiguration complete indication, the gNB-CU-UP1 does not need to send a response back to the gNB-CU-CP.

[0049] Optionally, the method 500 may include step 580: the gNB-CU-CP sends a protocol data unit (PDU) resource modification indication to the 5GC. The PDU session resource modification indication may indicate that one or more PDU sessions of the 5GC have been updated, and / or a mapping relationship between one or more QoS flows and one or more downlink tunnels. In one embodiment, the PDU session resource modification indication may include a downlink tunnel corresponding to the QoS flow.

[0050] Optionally, the method 500 may include step 590: upon receiving the PDU session resource modification indication, the 5GC sends a PDU session resource modification confirmation to the gNB-CU-CP. In one embodiment, the PDU session resource modification confirmation may include an uplink tunnel corresponding to the QoS flow.

[0051] The present disclosure describes another embodiment of a method and apparatus for switching a QoS flow from a source network node to a target network node. Figure 6 An exemplary logic flow of method 600 for switching a QoS flow from gNB-CU-UP1 134 to gNB-CU-CP2 135 is shown.

[0052] Method 600 may be related to Figure 5 The method 500 in step 650 is slightly different. Steps 650 and 660 are different from step 550. Instead of sending a one-way message to gNB-CU-UP1 in step 550, the gNB-CU-CP sends a second bearer context modification request to gNB-CU-UP1 in step 650 and receives a second bearer context modification response from gNB-CU-UP1 in step 660. In one embodiment, the second bearer context modification request may include an RRC reconfiguration complete indication.

[0053] The present disclosure describes another embodiment of a method and apparatus for switching a QoS flow from a source network node to a target network node. Figure 7 An exemplary logic flow of method 700 for switching a QoS flow from gNB-CU-UP1 134 to gNB-CU-CP2 135 is shown.

[0054] Steps 710-740 of method 700 may be different from Figure 5 Steps 510-540 of method 500.

[0055] In step 710: the gNB-CU-CP sends a first bearer context modification request to gNB-CU-UP2. The first bearer context modification request may be Figure 4In one embodiment, the first bearer context modification request may include a list of DRBs to be modified. The list of DRBs to be modified may include one or more DRBs established for the QoS flow.

[0056] In step 720: upon receiving the first bearer context modification request from the gNB-CU-CP, the gNB-CU-UP2 may send a first bearer context modification response to the gNB-CU-CP. The first bearer context modification response may be Figure 4 In one embodiment, the first bearer context modification response may include data forwarding information. The data forwarding information may include information related to the GTP tunnel.

[0057] In step 730, the gNB-CU-CP sends a second bearer context modification request (or bearer context release request) to gNB-CU-UP1. The second bearer context modification request (or bearer context release request) may be Figure 4 The second request in step 430 in .

[0058] In step 740: upon receiving the second bearer context modification request (or bearer context release request) from the gNB-CU-CP, the gNB-CU-UP1 may send a second bearer context modification response (or bearer context release response) to the gNB-CU-CP. The second bearer context modification response may be Figure 4 The second response in step 430 in .

[0059] In one embodiment, the second bearer context modification request may be the same as the first bearer context modification request, which may include a list of DRBs to be modified. In another embodiment, the second bearer context modification request may be different from the first bearer context modification request. The second bearer context modification request may include another list of DRBs to be modified. The other list of DRBs to be modified may include one or more DRBs that have been established for the QoS flow. In another embodiment, the bearer context release request may also include data forwarding information.

[0060] In one embodiment, the second bearer context modification response may be the same as the first bearer context modification response. In another embodiment, the second bearer context modification response may be different from the first bearer context modification response.

[0061] In one embodiment, the bearer context release request may include a list of DRBs to be released. The list of DRBs to be released may include one or more DRBs based on QoS flows. In another embodiment, the bearer context release request may also include data forwarding information.

[0062] In one implementation of steps 730 and 740, when the gNB-CU-CP sends a bearer context release request to gNB-CU-UP1, gNB-CU-UP1 may send a bearer context release response to gNB-CU-CP. In another implementation of steps 730 and 740, when the gNB-CU-CP sends a second bearer context modification request to gNB-CU-UP1, gNB-CU-UP1 may send a second bearer context modification response to gNB-CU-CP.

[0063] The present disclosure describes another embodiment of a method and apparatus for switching a QoS flow from a source network node to a target network node. Figure 8 An exemplary logic flow of method 800 for switching a QoS flow from gNB-CU-UP1 134 to gNB-CU-CP2 135 is shown.

[0064] Method 800 may be related to Figure 7 Method 700 in FIG. 7 is slightly different. Steps 850 and 860 are different from step 550. Figure 7 Instead of sending a one-way message to gNB-CU-UP1 in step 550, the gNB-CU-CP sends a third bearer context modification request to gNB-CU-UP1 in step 850, and receives a third bearer context modification response from gNB-CU-UP1 in step 860. In one embodiment, the third bearer context modification request may include an RRC reconfiguration complete indication.

[0065] The present disclosure describes other embodiments of methods and apparatus for transmitting user data between a user device and a core network. The embodiments may be implemented in part or in whole in a wireless network base station and / or Figure 2 and Figure 3 The method is implemented on the user device described in .

[0066] In another embodiment, reference Fig. 9, method 900 may include some or all of the following: step 910: the first network node switches the quality of service (QoS) flow from the source network node to the target network node; step 920: the target network node continuously receives the first uplink user data from the user equipment; step 930: the source network node receives the first uplink end marker from the user equipment; step 940: upon receiving the first uplink end marker, the source network node determines whether the source network node has completed sending the second uplink user data to the core network, wherein the second uplink user data is received by the source network node from the user equipment; step 950: in response to determining that the source network node has completed sending the second uplink user data to the core network, the source network node sends the second uplink end marker to the target network node; and step 960: upon receiving the second uplink end marker, the target network node sends the first uplink user data to the core network.

[0067] Fig.10 An exemplary logic flow of a method 1000 for transmitting user data between a user equipment 152 (UE) and a core network 110 (e.g., 5GC) after switching a quality of service (QoS) flow from a source network node 134 (e.g., gNB-CU-UP1) to a target network node 135 (e.g., gNB-CU-UP2) is shown. The first network node 133 may be a gNB-CU-CP.

[0068] Method 1000 may include step 1010: the gNB-CU-CP switches the QoS flow from gNB-CU-UP1 to gNB-CU-UP2.

[0069] The method 1000 may include step 1020: the UE sends first uplink user data to gNB-CU-UP2. In one embodiment, when the QoS flow is switched from gNB-CU-UP1 to gNB-CU-UP2, the UE starts sending the first uplink user data to gNB-CU-UP2. The method 1000 may include step 1025: when receiving the first uplink user data from the UE, the gNB-CU-UP2 stores the received first uplink user data in a buffer (e.g., a buffer in a memory).

[0070] The method 1000 may include step 1030: the UE sends a first uplink end marker to the gNB-CU-UP1. In one embodiment, after the QoS flow is switched from the gNB-CU-UP1 to the gNB-CU-UP2, the UE sends the first uplink end marker to the gNB-CU-UP1. The first uplink end marker may indicate that the gNB-CU-UP1 stops receiving uplink user data from the UE. In another embodiment, the first uplink end marker may include a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) end marker.

[0071] Optionally, method 1000 may include step 1035: gNB-CU-UP1 sends second uplink user data to 5GC. The second uplink user data may include user data received by gNB-CU-UP1 from the UE. In one embodiment, step 1035 may be a continuous process with a specific duration, which may occur before, after and / or during steps 1010, 1020, 1025, 1030, or 1040.

[0072] The method 1000 may include step 1040: upon receiving the first uplink end marker, the gNB-CU-UP1 may determine whether the gNB-CU-UP1 has completed sending the second uplink user data to the 5GC. The second uplink user data is received by the gNB-CU-UP1 from the UE.

[0073] Method 1000 may include step 1050: In response to determining that gNB-CU-UP1 completes sending the second uplink user data to 5GC, gNB-CU-UP1 sends a second uplink end marker to gNB-CU-UP2. The second uplink end marker may indicate that gNB-CU-UP2 starts sending the stored first uplink user data to 5GC. In one embodiment, the second uplink end marker may include a general packet radio service (GPRS) tunneling protocol user plane (GTP-U) end marker. In another embodiment, the second uplink end marker may include a message indicating that gNB-CU-UP1 completes sending all second uplink user data to the user plane function (UPF).

[0074] The method 1000 may include step 1060: upon receiving the second uplink end marker, the gNB-CU-UP2 sends first uplink user data to the 5GC. The first uplink user data may be the data stored by the gNB-CU-UP2 in step 1025, which is received from the UE in step 1020.

[0075] In another embodiment, reference Fig.11 , method 900 may also include some or all of the following: step 1110: receiving downlink user data from the source network node by the target network node; step 1120: receiving a first downlink end marker from the core network by the source network node; step 1130: receiving a second downlink end marker from the source network by the target network node; and step 1140: upon receiving the second downlink end marker, sending downlink user data from the target network node to the user equipment. In another embodiment, another method may include some or all of steps 1110-1140.

[0076] Method 1000 may also include Fig.12One or more steps shown in the exemplary logic flow in FIG.

[0077] Method 1000 may include step 1210: gNB-CU-UP1 sends downlink user data to gNB-CU-UP2.

[0078] Optionally, method 1000 may include step 1215: when receiving downlink user data, gNB-CU-UP2 stores the downlink user data in a cache or memory.

[0079] The method 1000 may include step 1220: the 5GC sends a first downlink end marker to the gNB-CU-UP1. The first downlink end marker may indicate that the gNB-CU-UP1 stops sending downlink user data to the UE. In one embodiment, the first downlink end marker may include a GTP-U end marker.

[0080] The method 1000 may include step 1230: upon receiving the first downlink end marker, the gNB-CU-UP1 stops sending downlink user data to the UE and sends a second downlink end marker to the gNB-CU-UP2. The second downlink end marker may indicate that the gNB-CU-UP2 starts sending downlink user data to the UE. In one embodiment, the second downlink end marker may include a GTP-U end marker.

[0081] The method 1000 may include step 1240: upon receiving the second downlink end marker, gNB-CU-UP2 sends downlink user data to the UE. The downlink user data may include the stored downlink user data received from gNB-CU-UP1 in step 1210.

[0082] The present disclosure describes methods, apparatus, and computer-readable media for wireless communications. The present disclosure relates to the problem of establishing secure communications between user equipment and service applications in a communication network. The methods, apparatus, and computer-readable media described in the present disclosure can facilitate the performance of wireless communications by switching QoS flows from a source network node to a target network node, thereby improving efficiency and overall performance. The methods, apparatus, and computer-readable media described in the present disclosure can improve the overall efficiency of a wireless communication system.

[0083] References to features, advantages, or similar language in this specification do not mean that all features and advantages that may be realized by the present solution should or are included in any single embodiment of the present solution. Rather, language referring to features and advantages is understood to mean that a particular feature, advantage, or characteristic described in conjunction with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present solution. Therefore, discussions of features and advantages and similar language throughout the specification may, but do not necessarily, refer to the same embodiment.

[0084] In addition, in one or more embodiments, the features, advantages, and characteristics of the present solution may be combined in any suitable manner. Based on the description herein, one of ordinary skill in the relevant art will recognize that the present solution may be practiced without one or more specific features or advantages of a particular embodiment. In other cases, additional features and advantages may be recognized in certain embodiments that may not be present in all embodiments of the present solution.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication, comprising: The first network node switches the quality of service (QoS) flow from the source network node to the target network node through the following steps: The first network node sends a first request to the target network node, where the first network node includes a control plane CP of a centralized unit CU of a new generation radio access network node gNB; receiving, by the first network node, a first response to the first request from the target network node; The first network node sends a second request to the source network node, the source network node including a first user plane UP of the CU of the gNB and the target network node including a second UP of the CU of the gNB; receiving, by the first network node from the source network node, a second response to the second request; and The first network node sends a radio resource control (RRC) reconfiguration completion indication to the source network node through the following steps: The first network node sends a third bearer context modification request to the source network node, the third bearer context modification request including the RRC reconfiguration complete indication, and the first network node receives a third bearer context modification response; or The first network node sends the RRC reconfiguration complete indication to the source network node, wherein upon receiving the RRC reconfiguration complete indication, the source network node does not send a response to the first network node.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Before sending the RRC reconfiguration completion indication to the source network node: The first network node sends an RRC reconfiguration to the user equipment; as well as An RRC reconfiguration completion is received by the first network node from the user equipment, wherein the RRC reconfiguration completion indicates completion of the RRC reconfiguration.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first request includes a bearer context establishment request, and the bearer context establishment request includes a list of data radio bearers (DRBs) to be established; The first response includes a bearer context establishment response; The second request includes a bearer context release request, and the bearer context release request includes a list of DRBs to be released; The second response includes a bearer context release response.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first request includes a bearer context establishment request, and the bearer context establishment request includes a list of DRBs; The first response includes a bearer context establishment response; The second request comprises a bearer context modification request, the bearer context modification request comprising a list of DRBs to be modified; and The second response includes a bearer context modification response.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first request comprises a first bearer context modification request, the first bearer context modification request comprising a list of DRBs to be modified, wherein the list of DRBs to be modified is configured to be modified according to the QoS flow; The first response includes a first bearer context modification response; The second request comprises a second bearer context modification request; and The second response includes a second bearer context modification response.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein: The first request comprises a first bearer context modification request, the first bearer context modification request comprising a list of DRBs to be modified, wherein the list of DRBs to be modified is configured to be modified according to the QoS flow; The first response includes a first bearer context modification response; The second request comprises a bearer context release request; and The second response includes a bearer context release response.

7. The method according to any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein: The first response includes data forwarding information; and The second request includes the data forwarding information.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein: The data forwarding information includes General Packet Radio Service GPRS Tunnel Protocol GTP tunnel information.

9. A method for wireless communication, comprising: User data is transferred between the user device and the core network through the following steps: A quality of service QoS flow is switched from a source network node to a target network node by a first network node, the first network node comprising a control plane CP of a centralized unit CU of a new generation radio access network node gNB, the source network node comprising a first user plane UP of the CU of the gNB and the target network node comprising a second UP of the CU of the gNB; The target network node continuously receives first uplink user data from the user equipment; Receiving, by the source network node, a first uplink end marker from the user equipment; Upon receiving the first uplink end marker, the source network node determines whether the source network node has completed sending second uplink user data to the core network, wherein the second uplink user data is received by the source network node from the user equipment; In response to determining that the source network node completes sending the second uplink user data to the core network, the source network node sends a second uplink end marker to the target network node; and When the second uplink end marker is received, the target network node sends the first uplink user data to the core network.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The first uplink end marker includes a Service Data Adaptation Protocol SDAP end marker.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The second uplink end marker includes a general packet radio service GPRS tunneling protocol user plane GTP-U end marker.

12. The method according to claim 9, wherein: The second uplink end marker includes a message indicating that the source network node has completed sending all second uplink user data to the user plane function UPF.

13. The method according to claim 9, further comprising: The target network node receives downlink user data from the source network node; Receiving, by the source network node, a first downlink end marker from the core network; Receiving, by the target network node, a second downlink end marker from the source network; as well as When the second downlink end marker is received, the downlink user data is sent from the target network node to the user equipment.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein: The first downlink end marker includes a GTP-U end marker.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein: The second uplink end marker includes a message instructing the target network node to start sending the downlink user data to the user equipment.

16. The method according to any one of claims 9 to 15, wherein: The core network includes a 5G core network 5GC.

17. A wireless communication device, comprising a processor and a memory, wherein: The processor is configured to read code from the memory and implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

18. A computer program product comprising computer readable program medium code stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, causes the processor to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 16.

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