A data transmission method, a communication device, a chip and a module device thereof

Abstract

The application discloses a data transmission method, a communication device, a chip and a module equipment thereof. The method comprises the following steps: adding a first data packet with a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to obtain a second data packet; the bearer identifier is used for indicating a wireless bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used for representing a sending sequence of the first data packet; and the second data packet is sent to a first access device. Through the method provided by the application, the second data packet with the added bearer identifier and the first sequence number is sent to the first access device, so that the reliable transmission of data can be ensured.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a data transmission method, communication device, chip and module equipment thereof. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of terminal devices, they can simultaneously connect to access network devices using different access technologies. For example, a terminal device can simultaneously access a premises radio access station (PRAS) and a wireless fidelity access point (WiFi AP) and transmit data. However, due to the use of different access technologies, data from different links cannot be sorted or merged.

[0003] Meanwhile, in next-generation radio (NR) communication, duplication transmission is introduced to meet the latency and reliability requirements of ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC). Specifically, duplication transmission refers to transmitting the same data packet through two links. In existing technologies, communication based on these two links used for duplication transmission is NR communication. However, terminal devices can now support both Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) and cellular communication. Therefore, when communication based on the two links used for duplication transmission is cellular and WLAN communication respectively, research on how to implement data packet transmission has significant practical value for improving communication performance. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application discloses a data transmission method, communication device, chip and module device thereof, which helps to ensure reliable data transmission by sending a second data packet with added bearer identifier and first sequence number to a first access device.

[0005] In a first aspect, this application provides a data transmission method, the method comprising: adding a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to a first data packet to obtain a second data packet; the bearer identifier being used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number being used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; and sending the second data packet to a first access device.

[0006] In one implementation, the aforementioned first data packet is sent to the second access device.

[0007] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the bearer identifier is determined based on the QFI.

[0008] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0009] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0010] In one implementation, an initial PDCP sequence number is obtained, and the offset between the first sequence number and the second sequence number is the initial PDCP sequence number.

[0011] In one implementation, an indication message is received from a second access device, which is used to indicate the initiation of a repeated duplication transmission.

[0012] In one implementation, the aforementioned first data packet is received.

[0013] In one implementation, a first message is sent to the second access device, the first message indicating that the second data packet was successfully sent.

[0014] In one implementation, the first message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0015] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0016] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0017] Secondly, this application provides a data transmission method, the method comprising: receiving a second data packet from a first access device, the second data packet including a bearer identifier, a first sequence number and a first data packet; the bearer identifier being used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, the first sequence number being used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; and determining the transmission order of the first data packet based on the bearer identifier and the first sequence number.

[0018] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI), the bearer identifier being determined based on the QFI.

[0019] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0020] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0021] In one implementation, an initial PDCP sequence number is obtained, and the offset between the first sequence number and the second sequence number is the initial PDCP sequence number.

[0022] In one implementation, a second message is sent to a second access device, which indicates that the second data packet was successfully received.

[0023] In one implementation, the second message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0024] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0025] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0026] Thirdly, this application provides a communication device that includes units for implementing the methods of the first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, or includes units for implementing the methods of the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof.

[0027] Fourthly, this application provides a communication device including a processor, which is configured to execute the methods in the first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, or to implement the methods in the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof.

[0028] Fifthly, this application provides a communication device including a processor and a memory, wherein the memory is used to store computer execution instructions; the processor is used to call program code from the memory to execute the method in the first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, or to implement the method in the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof.

[0029] In a sixth aspect, this application provides a chip for adding a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to a first data packet to obtain a second data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; and the second data packet is sent to a first access device.

[0030] In a seventh aspect, this application provides another chip for receiving a second data packet from a first access device, the second data packet including a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; the transmission order of the first data packet is determined according to the bearer identifier and the first sequence number.

[0031] Eighthly, this application provides a module device, which includes a communication module, a power module, a storage module, and a chip module, wherein: the power module is used to provide power to the module device; the storage module is used to store data and instructions; the communication module is used for internal communication within the module device or for communication between the module device and external devices; the chip module is used to: add a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to a first data packet to obtain a second data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; and send the second data packet to a first access device.

[0032] Ninthly, this application provides another module device, which includes a communication module, a power module, a storage module, and a chip module, wherein: the power module is used to provide power to the module device; the storage module is used to store data and instructions; the communication module is used for internal communication within the module device, or for communication between the module device and an external device; the chip module is used to: receive a second data packet from a first access device, the second data packet including a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; and determine the transmission order of the first data packet based on the bearer identifier and the first sequence number. Attached Figure Description

[0033] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0034] Figure 1 An architecture diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0035] Figure 2 A flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0036] Figure 3 A flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0037] Figure 4 A flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0038] Figure 5 A flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in this application embodiment.

[0039] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0040] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0041] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a module device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0042] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0043] To facilitate understanding, the terminology used in this application will be introduced first.

[0044] 1. PRAS

[0045] A PRAS is an access point in a Customer Premises Network (CPN). The PRAS can be deployed in licensed or unlicensed spectrum. Within the CPN, terminal devices can access the network via the PRAS. The connection between the terminal device and the PRAS can be established using either Long Term Evolution (LTE) or Northrop Grumman (NR) technology. The CPN may also include WiFi Access Points (APs), through which terminal devices can also access the network. A CPN can contain multiple access points, including one or more PRASs and one or more WiFi APs. It should be noted that the PRAS and WiFi APs can communicate with the network through an Evolved Residential Gateway (eRG) within the CPN.

[0046] 2. Data transmission in cellular communication links

[0047] Links based on PRAS transmission, such as communication links between eRG and PRAS, and between PRAS and terminal devices, can be called cellular communication links. Within the PRAS, a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer may exist. When the eRG switches between different PRAS and transmits data, it can use the PDCP sequence number in the PRAS to sort and merge data packets, thereby enabling the eRG to switch between various PRASs and ensuring uninterrupted data transmission.

[0048] 3. Data transmission of the WLAN link

[0049] Links based on WiFi AP transmission, such as the communication links between the eRG and the WiFi AP, and between the WiFi AP and the terminal device, can be called WLAN communication links. It should be noted that the protocol stack of a WiFi AP differs from that in a cellular system; this WiFi AP does not have a PDCP layer, and therefore does not have a PDCP sequence number.

[0050] In LTE systems, LTE-WLAN Aggregation (LWA) technology can be used to transmit data over WLAN communication links within the LTE system. For access points using LWA technology, such as LTE base stations, the LWA Application Protocol (LWAAP) can be used to add a DRB ID to data packets processed by the PDCP layer and transmit these processed data packets over the WLAN link via a new interface (Xw interface) to the Wi-Fi AP. After receiving the data packets from this WLAN link, the terminal device can determine the corresponding PDCP entity using the DRB ID carried in the LWAAP header and merge the data packets using the PDCP sequence number in the PDCP layer. Specifically, the base station can place the data packets into the corresponding PDCP entity, where a PDCP sequence number can be added to the data packets to indicate their order within the PDCP layer.

[0051] In NR systems, a Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) layer is added above the PDCP layer. SDAP enables the mapping of QoS flows to radio bearers (RBs), adding information such as the QoS flow identity (QFI) to the packet header. However, in CPN networks, the PDCP layer is typically located at the PRAS. If LWA (Local Wi-Fi) is required, the eRG (electronic receiver) must forward the data packets it receives to the PRAS, and then the PRAS must forward the processed data packets to the Wi-Fi AP via the eRG each time. This transmission method increases latency and cannot guarantee the reliability of WLAN link data transmission.

[0052] Therefore, the data transmission method provided in this application embodiment, by sending a second data packet with added bearer identifier and first sequence number to the WLAN link, helps to ensure the orderly and reliable transmission of data.

[0053] Please see Figure 1 , Figure 1 This is an architecture diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of this application. Figure 1 As shown, the communication system may include a terminal device 101, a first access device 102, a second access device 103, and a gateway device 104. In this embodiment, the terminal device 101 can simultaneously access the first access device 102 and the second access device 103, and the first access device 102 and the second access device 103 can communicate with the network through the gateway device 104.

[0054] In one implementation, the first access device 102 can be a device supporting Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device 103 can be a device supporting cellular communication. Specifically, the first access device 102 can be a WiFi AP, and the second access device 103 can be a PRAS. It should be noted that the PRAS and WiFi AP can be access points in a CPN. In this embodiment, the first access device 102 is described as a WiFi AP, the second access device 103 as a PRAS, and the gateway device 104 as an eRG, without limiting the scope of this application. Optionally, the first access device 102 can also be a PRAS, and the second access device 103 can also be a WiFi AP; this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0055] The terminal device 101 and the second access device 103 can be connected via LTE or NR technology; this application does not impose any restrictions on this. Optionally, Figure 1 The number of terminal devices 101, first access devices 102, second access devices 103 and gateway devices 104 shown are for illustrative purposes only and do not limit the scope of this application.

[0056] In this embodiment, when the second access device 103 connected to the terminal device 101 detects a poor network or high service reliability requirements, the second access device 103 can initiate duplication transmission. In the downlink, when the gateway device 104 receives the instruction to start duplication transmission, the gateway device 104 can, after receiving the first downlink data packet, add a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first downlink data packet to obtain a second data packet, and send the second downlink data packet to the first access device 102. Optionally, after receiving the first downlink data packet, the gateway device 104 can also send the first downlink data packet to the second access device 103.

[0057] Optionally, after receiving the second downlink data packet from the gateway device 104, the first access device 102 can also send the second downlink data packet to the terminal device 101. Correspondingly, the terminal device 101 can receive the second downlink data packet through the first access device 102, and determine the transmission order of the first downlink data packets using the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number in the second downlink data packet. This allows the terminal device 101 to sort and merge the first downlink data packets according to their transmission order, thereby ensuring reliable transmission of downlink data.

[0058] In the uplink, when terminal device 101 receives an instruction to start duplication transmission, it can add a second bearer identifier and a third sequence number to the first uplink data packet to obtain a second uplink data packet, and send the second uplink data packet to the first access device 102. Optionally, terminal device 101 can also send the first uplink data packet to the second access device 103. The first uplink data packet can be generated by terminal device 101.

[0059] Optionally, after receiving the second uplink data packet from the terminal device 101, the first access device 102 can also send the second uplink data packet to the gateway device 104. Correspondingly, the gateway device 104 can receive the second uplink data packet from the first access device 102, and determine the transmission order of the first uplink data packets through the second bearer identifier and the third sequence number in the second uplink data packet. This allows the gateway device 104 to sort and merge the first uplink data packets according to their transmission order, thereby ensuring reliable transmission of uplink data.

[0060] In this embodiment, the communication link from the network to the terminal device is the downlink, the data transmitted on the downlink is called downlink data, and the transmission direction of the downlink data is called the downlink direction; while the communication link from the terminal device to the network is the uplink, the data transmitted on the uplink is called uplink data, and the transmission direction of the uplink data is called the uplink direction.

[0061] In this context, terminal equipment 101 is an entity on the user side used to receive or transmit signals, such as a mobile phone. Terminal equipment can also be called a terminal, user equipment (UE), mobile station (MS), mobile terminal (MT), etc. Terminal equipment can be a mobile phone, wearable device, tablet, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, virtual reality (VR) terminal device, augmented reality (AR) terminal device, wireless terminal in industrial control, wireless terminal in self-driving, wireless terminal in remote medical surgery, wireless terminal in smart grid, wireless terminal in transportation safety, wireless terminal in smart city, wireless terminal in smart home, and terminal equipment supporting enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) and / or supporting long-term evolution (LTE) of universal mobile communication technologies, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology or device form used in the terminal device.

[0062] Access devices (such as the first access device 102, the second access device 103, and the gateway device 104 described above) may include indoor access devices, such as Customer Premises Network (CPN) devices or access points (APs) in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system. The aforementioned CPN devices may include Premises Radio Access Stations (PRAS) and Evolved Residential Gateways (eRGs). Optionally, the access device may also be an evolved NodeB (eNB), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB) in an NR system, or a base station in other future mobile communication systems. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technologies or device forms used in the network devices.

[0063] It should be noted that the technical solutions of this application embodiment can be applied to wireless communication systems including but not limited to: Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) systems, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) systems, Code Division Multiple Access 2000 (CDMA2000) systems, Time Division-Synchronous Code Division Multiple Access (TD-SCDMA) systems, Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, 5th generation (5G) mobile communication systems, 5G New Radio (NR) systems, and vehicle-mounted short-range wireless communication systems. Optionally, the methods of this application embodiment embodiment are also applicable to various future wireless communication systems, such as 6th generation, 7th generation mobile communication systems, and other future mobile communication systems.

[0064] This technical solution is also applicable to different network architectures, including but not limited to relay network architecture, dual-link architecture, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication architecture.

[0065] In this application, the term "connection" refers to various connection methods, such as direct connection or indirect connection, to achieve communication between devices. This application does not impose any limitations on this.

[0066] It should be understood that the term "and / or" in this document is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, or B existing alone. Additionally, the character " / " in this document indicates that the preceding and following related objects are in an "or" relationship. "Multiple" in the embodiments of this application refers to two or more. The descriptions such as "first," "second," etc., appearing in the embodiments of this application are only for illustration and to distinguish the described objects; they have no order and do not represent a special limitation on the number of devices in the embodiments of this application, nor do they constitute any limitation on the embodiments of this application.

[0067] Please see Figure 2 , Figure 2This is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application. The method primarily describes data transmission on the downlink. This data transmission method can be implemented by the aforementioned terminal device, first access device, second access device, and gateway device, or it can be implemented by a chip in the aforementioned terminal device, a chip in the first access device, a chip in the second access device, and a chip in the gateway device. Figure 2 and Figure 3 In a corresponding embodiment, the aforementioned "first data packet" can be named "first downlink data packet" for ease of communication with other data sources. Figure 4 and Figure 5 In the corresponding embodiment, the "first uplink data packet" in the uplink is distinguished. For example... Figure 2 As shown, the data transmission method includes, but is not limited to, the following steps S201 to S204.

[0068] Optionally, in step S201, the gateway device receives a first downlink data packet from the network. This first downlink data packet can be a downlink data packet to be transmitted to the terminal device. Specifically, this first downlink data packet can be sent by an access network device or a core network device in the network.

[0069] In the downlink, the gateway device can connect to the network and receive downlink data packets to be transmitted from the network, so as to send the downlink data packets to other access devices. As can be seen from the foregoing, the gateway device can be an eRG, which can connect to the network to receive downlink data packets from the network. It should be noted that the first downlink data packet can be any downlink data packet to be transmitted from the network, and this application does not impose any restrictions on it.

[0070] In step S202, the gateway device adds a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first downlink data packet to obtain a second downlink data packet. The first bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first downlink data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first downlink data packet. Specifically, the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number are the bearer identifier and sequence number added to the first downlink data packet in the downlink.

[0071] In this embodiment, an adapter layer can be introduced. This adapter layer can be used to add a bearer identifier and a sequence number to a first data packet (such as a first downlink data packet, or a first uplink data packet mentioned below). It should be noted that both the sending end (e.g., a gateway device in the downlink) and the receiving end (e.g., a terminal device in the downlink) can incorporate this adapter layer. By introducing an adapter layer at the receiving end, the receiving end can process the information added by the sending end through the adapter layer. For example, if the terminal device receives a second downlink data packet with a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number added by the gateway device through the adapter layer, the terminal device can use its own adapter layer to extract the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number from the second downlink data packet for processing.

[0072] It should be noted that after receiving the first downlink data packet, the gateway device can perform some processing on the first downlink data packet through the aforementioned Adapter layer, such as adding a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first downlink data packet. Adding the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number to the first downlink data packet can be understood as adding the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number to the header of the first downlink data packet, or adding the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number to the payload of the first downlink data packet; this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0073] In one implementation, the first downlink data packet may include a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the gateway device can determine a first bearer identifier based on the QFI. The QFI identifies the QoS flow, and the QoS flow is mapped to a first data radio bearer (DRB). Optionally, the first bearer identifier may be a data radio bearer identity (DRB ID) for the first downlink data packet, whereby the DRB ID identifies the DRB. The DRB ID can be used to determine the PDCP entity processing the first downlink data packet.

[0074] When a gateway device receives the first downlink data packet from the network, it can determine the first bearer identifier based on the QFI carried in the General Packet Radio Service Tunneling Protocol (GTP) tunnel and the mapping relationship between QoS flow and DRB. Specifically, the DRB identifier corresponding to the QoS flow indicated by the QFI can be determined as the DRB ID of the first downlink data packet, i.e., the first bearer identifier, within the aforementioned mapping relationship. It should be noted that in this invention, bearers and logical channels (LCHs) also have a one-to-one correspondence, and the bearer identifier can also be a logical channel identifier. In an optional implementation, before determining the first bearer identifier, the gateway device can obtain the mapping relationship between QoS flow and DRB, and / or the mapping relationship between DRB and LCH, from the PRAS.

[0075] In one implementation, the gateway device receives downlink data packets and determines the QFI based on the information carried in the GTP tunnel. Information such as the QFI can be added to the header of the downlink data packets to implement SDAP functionality.

[0076] In one implementation, the aforementioned first sequence number can be the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet, which can be used to characterize the transmission order of the first downlink data packet at the PDCP layer. It should be noted that after the gateway device receives a data packet from the network, it can transmit it via a WLAN link, or via PRAS on a PRAS link or over the air interface. If transmitted via PRAS, the PDCP layer of PRAS can add a sequence number to characterize the data transmission order.

[0077] Optionally, if the first sequence number is a PDCP sequence number, the gateway device can obtain the initial PDCP sequence number. This initial PDCP sequence number can be the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet to be transmitted by the gateway device to the first access device. Optionally, the gateway device can receive first indication information from the second access device, which can be used to indicate the initial PDCP sequence number. That is, the gateway device can obtain the initial PDCP sequence number through the aforementioned first indication information. It should be noted that the second access device can determine the initial PDCP sequence number through the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet to be transmitted.

[0078] It should be noted that when transmitting the first downlink data packet, the gateway device can determine the first sequence number based on the initial PDCP sequence number obtained from the second access device. The first downlink data packet can be the first downlink data packet to be transmitted to the first access device, or any downlink data packet following it. When the first downlink data packet is the first downlink data packet to be transmitted to the first access device, the first sequence number can be the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet, i.e., the aforementioned initial PDCP sequence number; when the first downlink data packet is another downlink data packet to be transmitted, the first sequence number can be the PDCP sequence number accumulated on the initial PDCP sequence number. For example, assuming the initial PDCP sequence number obtained by the gateway device is 5, if the first downlink data packet is the first downlink data packet to be transmitted to the first access device, then the first sequence number can be 5; if the first downlink data packet is the third downlink data packet to be transmitted to the first access device, then the first sequence number can be obtained by accumulating 2 on the initial PDCP sequence number, i.e., the first sequence number can be 7.

[0079] It should be noted that the aforementioned example of the gateway device receiving the initial PDCP sequence number from the second access device is for illustrative purposes. In other implementations, the gateway device can determine the initial PDCP sequence number based on the PDCP sequence number from the second access device (e.g., referred to as PDCP sequence number a). In other words, the PDCP sequence number sent by the second access device to the gateway device can be the initial PDCP sequence number, or PDCP sequence number a used to determine the initial PDCP sequence number. When the PDCP sequence number sent by the second access device to the gateway device is PDCP sequence number a, this PDCP sequence number a is the PDCP sequence number of the previous downlink data packet received by the second access device from the gateway device. When the PDCP sequence number sent by the second access device to the gateway device is the initial PDCP sequence number, this initial PDCP sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the previous downlink data packet received by the second access device from the gateway device plus 1.

[0080] For example, suppose the second access device receives a PDCP sequence number of 5 from the previous downlink data packet from the gateway device. The second access device can send this PDCP sequence number to the gateway device, i.e., send the aforementioned 5 to the gateway device. In this case, 5 is PDCP sequence number a. When the gateway device obtains PDCP sequence number a, it can determine the initial PDCP sequence number as 6 by adding 1 to PDCP sequence number a. As another example, suppose the second access device receives a PDCP sequence number of 5 from the previous downlink data packet from the gateway device. The second access device can then add 1 to the PDCP sequence number of the previous downlink data packet and send it to the gateway device, i.e., send 6 to the gateway device. In this case, 6 is the initial PDCP sequence number. Accordingly, the gateway device can directly determine the initial PDCP sequence number as 6.

[0081] By determining the initial PDCP sequence number, the gateway device can determine the first sequence number based on this initial PDCP sequence number. It can be understood that the gateway device only needs to obtain this initial PDCP sequence number once for the first downlink data packet to be transmitted; for subsequent downlink data packets, the gateway device can increment the initial PDCP sequence number by 1 to obtain the PDCP sequence number for each subsequent downlink data packet. This method reduces the time spent obtaining the PDCP sequence number in the downlink, thereby reducing the transmission time of downlink data packets and ultimately lowering latency.

[0082] Optionally, the aforementioned first sequence number can also be the adapter sequence number of the first downlink data packet. This adapter sequence number can be used to characterize the transmission order of the first downlink data packet at the adapter layer. It should be noted that there can be an offset between this adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number.

[0083] The offset between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number can be a preset value, meaning the gateway device can pre-determine the offset between them. Optionally, the gateway device can obtain the offset between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number from the second access device. Alternatively, the offset between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number can be jointly determined by the gateway device and the second access device. For example, the second access device determines the initial PDCP serial number, the gateway determines the initial value of the Adapter serial number, and the two devices interact to obtain their offset. This application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0084] It should be noted that after the gateway device obtains the offset between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number, it can determine the first serial number based on the initial PDCP serial number obtained by the second access device and the offset between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number. For example, assuming the gateway device obtains an offset of 5 between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number, and if the gateway device receives an initial PDCP serial number of 6 from the second access device, the gateway device can determine the first serial number as 1 (i.e., the difference between the initial PDCP serial number and the offsets between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number), or it can determine the first serial number as 11 (i.e., the sum of the offsets between the initial PDCP serial number and the offsets between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number). For example, assuming the gateway device obtains an offset of 5 between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number, and if the gateway device receives an initial PDCP sequence number of 5 from the second access device, then the gateway device can determine that the first sequence number is 0 (i.e., the initial PDCP sequence number minus the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number), or it can determine that the first sequence number is 10 (i.e., the initial PDCP sequence number plus the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number). In this embodiment, the first sequence number is described below as the difference between the initial PDCP sequence number and the offset (between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number), and does not impose any limitations on this application.

[0085] The offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number can be determined based on the initial PDCP sequence number and the initial Adapter sequence number. It should be noted that the gateway device can determine the aforementioned initial Adapter sequence number, that is, determine the Adapter sequence number of the first downlink data packet to be transmitted by the gateway device to the first access device. Specifically, the initial Adapter sequence number can be 0, 1, or other integers; this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0086] After the gateway device determines the initial Adapter sequence number and the initial PDCP sequence number (e.g., received from the second access device, or determined based on PDCP sequence number 'a' from the second access device), it can determine the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number based on these initial Adapter sequence number and initial PDCP sequence number. For example, assuming the initial Adapter sequence number is 0 and the initial PDCP sequence number is 4, the gateway device can determine that the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number is 4. As another example, assuming the initial Adapter sequence number is 1 and the initial PDCP sequence number is 4, the gateway device can determine that the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number is 3.

[0087] Optionally, the terminal device can obtain the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number, so that when the terminal device receives a second downlink data packet from the first access device, it can determine the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet based on the first sequence number (i.e., the Adapter sequence number) in the second downlink data packet and the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number, thereby sorting the first data packet using the PDCP sequence number. Optionally, the terminal device can obtain the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number from the second access device or from the gateway device; this application does not limit this. Optionally, the terminal device can receive second indication information from the second access device, which can be used to indicate the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number.

[0088] For example, assuming the terminal device obtains an offset of 5 between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number, if the terminal device receives a first downlink data packet from the first access device with a first sequence number of 1, then the terminal device can determine that the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet is 6. Assuming the terminal device obtains an offset of 5 between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number, if the terminal device receives a first downlink data packet from the first access device with a first sequence number of 0, then the terminal device can determine that the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet is 5.

[0089] In step S203, the gateway device sends a second downlink data packet to the first access device. Correspondingly, the first access device can receive this second downlink data packet.

[0090] After determining the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number, the gateway device can send a second downlink data packet, which includes the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number, to the first access device. Correspondingly, upon receiving the second downlink data packet, the first access device can forward it to the terminal device.

[0091] Optionally, in step S204, the first access device sends the second downlink data packet to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the second downlink data packet, which may include a first bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first downlink data packet.

[0092] It should be noted that after receiving the second downlink data packet from the first access device, the terminal device can determine the PDCP entity of the first downlink data packet based on the first bearer identifier in the second downlink data packet; it can also determine the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet in the PDCP entity based on the first sequence number in the second downlink data packet, thereby sorting and merging the first downlink data packet. It should also be noted that before receiving the second downlink data packet from the first access device, the terminal device can receive downlink data packets (such as historical downlink data packets) from the second access device. Optionally, the above-mentioned sorting and merging of the first downlink data packet based on the first sequence number can be understood as sorting or merging the first downlink data packet in the second downlink data packet with the historical downlink data packets from the second access device. The historical downlink data packets may include the downlink data packet corresponding to the previous PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet. For example, if the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet is 5, the terminal device can sort the first downlink data packet with the historical downlink data packet with PDCP sequence number 4 from the second access device.

[0093] In the downlink, the gateway device receives a first downlink data packet from the network, adds a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first downlink data packet to obtain a second downlink data packet, and sends the second downlink data packet to the first access device so that the terminal device can receive the second downlink data packet through the first access device. Based on the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number in the second downlink data packet, the terminal device can obtain the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet, thereby sorting and merging the first downlink data packets, and thus ensuring the continuity of downlink data transmission.

[0094] Please see Figure 3 , Figure 3This is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application. The method primarily describes duplication transmission on the downlink. This data transmission method can be implemented by the aforementioned terminal device, first access device, second access device, and gateway device, or it can be implemented by chips in the aforementioned terminal device, first access device, second access device, and gateway device. Figure 3 As shown, the data transmission method includes, but is not limited to, the following steps S301 to S306.

[0095] In step S301, the gateway device receives a first downlink data packet from the network. This first downlink data packet can be a downlink data packet to be transmitted to the terminal device. Specifically, this first downlink data packet can be sent by an access network device or a core network device in the network.

[0096] Before initiating duplication transmission, the terminal device can access the network through the second access device. However, in cases of poor network conditions, the terminal device can switch from the second access device to the first access device; alternatively, the terminal device can add a link to the first access device for dual-connection transmission. In this case, the second access device can determine to initiate duplication transmission, that is, to transmit downlink data packets simultaneously on both links, so as to ensure uninterrupted downlink data packet transmission during the terminal device's switch to the first access device.

[0097] It should be noted that the execution process of step S301 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 2 The specific description of step S201 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0098] In step S302, the gateway device adds a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first downlink data packet to obtain a second downlink data packet; the first bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first downlink data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first downlink data packet.

[0099] It should be noted that after receiving an instruction to initiate duplication transmission, the gateway device can send the first downlink data packet to both the first access device and the second access device. Since the first access device lacks a PDCP layer, the gateway device can add a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first downlink data packet to obtain a second downlink data packet, and then send the second downlink data packet to the first access device. This second downlink data packet includes the first bearer identifier, the first sequence number, and the first downlink data packet itself.

[0100] In one implementation, the gateway device can receive third indication information from the second access device, which can be used to instruct the gateway device to initiate downlink duplication transmission. Optionally, the third indication information can be the same as the aforementioned first indication information, or it can be a different indication information. When the third indication information and the first indication information are the same, the third indication information can also be used to indicate the initial PDCP sequence number.

[0101] Optionally, the terminal device may also receive a fourth indication information from the second access device, which is used to instruct the terminal device to initiate downlink duplication transmission. Optionally, after receiving the fourth indication information, the terminal device may establish a dual connection with both the first and second access devices. Optionally, the fourth indication information may be the same as the aforementioned second indication information, or it may be a different indication information. When the fourth indication information and the second indication information are the same, the fourth indication information may also be used to indicate the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number. Optionally, the fourth indication information may be the same as the aforementioned first indication information, or it may be a different indication information. When the fourth indication information and the first indication information are the same, the fourth indication information may also be used to indicate the initial PDCP sequence number.

[0102] It should be noted that if the second access device detects poor network conditions, it can send a third indication message and a fourth indication message to the gateway device and the terminal device, respectively. Both the third and fourth indication messages can be used to instruct the initiation of duplication transmission. Optionally, if the terminal device detects poor network conditions, it can send a request to the second access device it is connected to. In this case, the second access device can respond to the request and send the aforementioned third and fourth indication messages to the gateway device and the terminal device, respectively, thereby initiating duplication transmission.

[0103] It should be noted that the execution process of step S302 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 2 The specific description of step S202 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0104] In step S303, the gateway device sends a second downlink data packet to the first access device. Correspondingly, the first access device receives the second downlink data packet.

[0105] Optionally, in non-duplication transmission scenarios, the gateway device can transmit different downlink data packets through two links, enabling terminal devices connected to these two links to quickly obtain the downlink data packets. It should be noted that the aforementioned third indication information is used to indicate duplication transmission as an example. Optionally, the second access device can also send the aforementioned third and fourth indication information to the gateway device and terminal devices to instruct the initiation of multi-link transmission.

[0106] It should be noted that in non-duplication transmission scenarios, the gateway device can determine the sequence numbers of the downlink data packets transmitted on the two links separately. Specifically, the gateway device can add sequence numbers to different downlink data packets according to the sending order. For example, assuming the gateway device sorts the first four downlink data packets to be transmitted as number 1, 2, 3, and 4 according to the sending order; after initiating multi-link transmission, the gateway device can send downlink data packets with sequence numbers 1 and 2 to the first access device and downlink data packets with sequence numbers 3 and 4 to the second access device; and can carry a PDCP sequence number in the downlink data packets, which can be determined based on the initial PDCP sequence number obtained after initiating multi-link transmission. After receiving the above four downlink data packets, the terminal device can determine the sending order of the downlink data packets according to the sequence numbers added by the gateway device. Optionally, the sequence number added by the gateway device can be a PDCP sequence number or an adapter sequence number, and this application does not limit this. It should be noted that the execution process of step S303 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 2 The specific description of step S203 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0107] In step S304, the gateway device sends a first downlink data packet to the second access device. Correspondingly, the second access device receives the first downlink data packet.

[0108] It should be noted that the execution of steps S303 and S304 is not in any particular order, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0109] In step S305, the second access device adds a second sequence number to the first downlink data packet to obtain a third downlink data packet, and sends the third downlink data packet to the terminal device. The second sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first downlink data packets.

[0110] Optionally, in a duplication transmission scenario, after receiving the first downlink data packet, the second access device can add a second sequence number to the first downlink data packet to obtain a third downlink data packet. This second sequence number represents the transmission order of the first downlink data packets. This second sequence number can be the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet.

[0111] In one implementation, where both the first serial number and the second serial number are PDCP serial numbers, the values ​​of the first and second serial numbers can be the same. Optionally, the first serial number can also be different from the second serial number, such as when the first serial number is an Adapter serial number; this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0112] It should be noted that when the first serial number is the Adapter serial number and the second serial number is the PDCP serial number, there can be an offset between the first and second serial numbers. This offset can be... Figure 2 The offset (between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number) described in the embodiment.

[0113] Optionally, if the terminal device receives a third downlink data packet from the second access device, the terminal device can determine the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet based on the second sequence number added to the third downlink data packet, thereby enabling the terminal device to perform duplicate detection, sorting, and merging of the first downlink data packet based on the PDCP sequence number.

[0114] In step S306, the first access device sends the second downlink data packet to the terminal device. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the second downlink data packet from the first access device, the second downlink data packet including a first bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first downlink data packet.

[0115] It should be noted that the execution order of steps S305 and S306 is not important, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this. Optionally, in the scenario of duplication transmission, the terminal device can receive the second downlink data packet through the first access device, or it can receive the third downlink data packet through the second access device. For example, when the network of the first access device is poor, the terminal device can receive the third downlink data packet through the second access device. This application uses the example of the terminal device receiving the second downlink data packet through the first access device for illustration, and does not impose any limitations on this application.

[0116] In one implementation, the terminal device may send a second message to the second access device, the second message indicating that the second downlink data packet has been successfully received. It should be noted that after successfully receiving the second downlink data packet, the terminal device may send the second message to the second access device.

[0117] In one implementation, the second message may include a first bearer identifier and a first sequence number. Specifically, this second message can be used to indicate that the terminal device has successfully received a second downlink data packet including the first bearer identifier and the first sequence number. It should be noted that after receiving the second message, the second access device can stop retransmitting downlink data packets including the first sequence number from the second message to the terminal device. That is, after receiving the first downlink data packet from the gateway device, the second receiving device can determine the sequence number (e.g., a PDCP sequence number) of the first downlink data packet and determine whether the sequence number of the first downlink data packet is the same as the first sequence number in the second message. If they are the same, it stops sending or retransmitting the third downlink data packet to the terminal device; if they are different, it can send the third downlink data packet to the terminal device.

[0118] Optionally, if the terminal device successfully receives the aforementioned third downlink data packet from the second access device, the terminal device may send a third message to the first access device, which may be used to indicate that the third downlink data packet was successfully received. Optionally, if the terminal device successfully receives the aforementioned third downlink data packet from the second access device, the third message sent by the terminal device to the first access device may also include a first bearer identifier and a second sequence number, to instruct the first access device to stop retransmitting the downlink data packet corresponding to the second sequence number (i.e., the PDCP sequence number), that is, to instruct the first access device to stop retransmitting the aforementioned third downlink data packet.

[0119] Optionally, after the terminal device successfully receives the second downlink data packet from the first access device and completes the duplication transmission, the terminal device can disconnect from the second access device, thereby switching from the second access device to the first access device. For example, after successfully receiving the downlink data packet from the Wi-Fi link and completing the duplication transmission, the terminal device can disconnect from the PRAS, thereby switching from the PRAS to the Wi-Fi AP. Optionally, the PRAS can instruct the terminal device to delete the connection with the PRAS.

[0120] It should be noted that the relevant content of step S306 above can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 2 The detailed description of step S204 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0121] After receiving the third indication information used to indicate duplication transmission, the network device can send a second downlink data packet including the first downlink data packet to the first access device, and send the first downlink data packet to the second access device, so as to transmit the first downlink data packet through two links. This allows the terminal device to receive the first downlink data packet from the link with better signal quality more quickly, and can sort and merge the first downlink data packet according to the PDCP sequence number of the first downlink data packet, thereby ensuring the continuous transmission of downlink data packets and reducing the downlink data packet transmission latency.

[0122] Please see Figure 4 , Figure 4 This is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application. The method primarily describes data transmission on the uplink. This data transmission method can be implemented by the aforementioned terminal device, first access device, second access device, and gateway device, or it can be implemented by a chip in the aforementioned terminal device, a chip in the first access device, a chip in the second access device, and a chip in the gateway device. Figure 4 and Figure 5 In a corresponding embodiment, the aforementioned "first data packet" can be named "first uplink data packet" to facilitate communication with... Figure 2 and Figure 3 In the corresponding embodiment, the "first downlink data packet" in the downlink is distinguished. For example... Figure 4 As shown, the data transmission method includes, but is not limited to, the following steps S401 to S403.

[0123] In step S401, the terminal device adds a second bearer identifier and a third sequence number to the first uplink data packet to obtain a second uplink data packet. The second bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first uplink data packet, and the third sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first uplink data packet. The second bearer identifier and the third sequence number are the bearer identifier and sequence number added to the first uplink data packet in the uplink.

[0124] It should be noted that the terminal device can acquire the first uplink data packet before adding the second bearer identifier and the third sequence number to the first uplink data packet to obtain the second uplink data packet. The first uplink data packet can be an uplink data packet to be transmitted generated by the terminal device.

[0125] In one implementation, the first uplink data packet may include a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the terminal device can determine a second bearer identifier based on the QFI. The second bearer identifier may be the DRB ID of the first uplink data packet, used to identify the DRB. The DRB ID can be used to determine the PDCP entity processing the first uplink data packet.

[0126] In one implementation, the aforementioned third sequence number can be the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet, which can be used to characterize the transmission order of the first uplink data packet at the PDCP layer. Optionally, the aforementioned third sequence number can also be the Adapter sequence number of the first uplink data packet, which can be used to characterize the transmission order of the first uplink data packet at the Adapter layer; this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0127] Optionally, if the aforementioned third sequence number is the adapter sequence number of the first uplink data packet, the gateway device can obtain the offset between the adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number. Specifically, the gateway device can obtain the offset between the adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number from the terminal device through the second access device. Optionally, the gateway device can also obtain the offset between the adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number through other methods, and this application does not limit this.

[0128] Optionally, if the aforementioned third sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet, the gateway device can obtain the initial PDCP sequence number. Specifically, the gateway device can obtain the initial PDCP sequence number from the terminal device through the second access device. Optionally, the gateway device can also obtain the initial PDCP sequence number through other means, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0129] It should be noted that the descriptions regarding the second bearer identifier and the third serial number in step S401 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 2 The specific details regarding the first bearer identifier and the first serial number in step S202 of the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0130] In step S402, the terminal device sends a second uplink data packet to the first access device. Correspondingly, the first access device can receive the second uplink data packet.

[0131] After determining the second bearer identifier and the third sequence number, the terminal device can send a second uplink data packet, which includes the second bearer identifier and the third sequence number, to the first access device. Correspondingly, upon receiving the second uplink data packet, the first access device can forward it to the gateway device.

[0132] Optionally, the first access device can be a WiFi AP. After receiving the second uplink data packet, the WiFi AP can further process the second uplink data packet using the WiFi-side protocol stack and send the processed second uplink data packet to the first access device.

[0133] It should be noted that the relevant content in step S402 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 2 The detailed description of step S203 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0134] In step S403, the first access device sends the second uplink data packet to the gateway device. Correspondingly, the gateway device receives the second uplink data packet from the first access device. The second uplink data packet may include a second bearer identifier, a third sequence number, and a first uplink data packet. Optionally, the second uplink data packet may be a second uplink data packet processed by the first access device, which may include a second bearer identifier, a third sequence number, and a first uplink data packet.

[0135] In one implementation, the gateway device can determine the PDCP entity of the first uplink data packet based on the second bearer identifier mentioned above; the gateway device can also determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet in the PDCP entity based on the third sequence number mentioned above; the PDCP sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first uplink data packet in the PDCP entity.

[0136] It should be noted that after receiving the second uplink data packet, the gateway device can upload the second uplink data packet to the network sequentially according to the sequence number. For example, if the third sequence number is a PDCP sequence number, the gateway device can upload the first uplink data packet to the network according to the order of the PDCP sequence number in the PDCP layer. Alternatively, if the third sequence number is an Adapter sequence number, the gateway device can obtain the offset between the Adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number to determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet, thereby uploading the first uplink data packet in sequence. Optionally, if the third sequence number is an Adapter sequence number, the gateway device can also send the third sequence number to the second access device to determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet; this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0137] It should be noted that the relevant content in step S403 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 2 The detailed description of step S204 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0138] In the uplink, the terminal device obtains a second uplink data packet by adding a second bearer identifier and a third sequence number to the first uplink data packet, and sends the second uplink data packet to the first access device. This allows the gateway device to receive the second uplink data packet through the first access device, and obtain the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet based on the second bearer identifier and the third sequence number in the second uplink data packet. This enables the gateway device to sort and merge the first uplink data packets, thereby ensuring the continuity of uplink data transmission.

[0139] Please see Figure 5 , Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application. The method primarily describes duplication transmission on the uplink. This data transmission method can be implemented by the aforementioned terminal device, first access device, second access device, and gateway device, or it can be implemented by chips in the aforementioned terminal device, first access device, second access device, and gateway device. Figure 5 As shown, the data transmission method includes, but is not limited to, the following steps S501 to S505.

[0140] In step S501, the terminal device adds a second bearer identifier and a third sequence number to the first uplink data packet to obtain a second uplink data packet; the second bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first uplink data packet, and the third sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first uplink data packet.

[0141] In one implementation, the terminal device may receive a fifth indication message from the second access device, which instructs the terminal device to initiate uplink duplication transmission. Optionally, after receiving the fifth indication message, the terminal device may simultaneously connect to both the first and second access devices.

[0142] In non-duplication transmission scenarios, terminal devices can transmit different uplink data packets through two links, enabling terminal devices connected to these two links to quickly and successfully transmit uplink data packets. It should be noted that the fifth indication information mentioned above is used as an example to indicate duplication transmission. Optionally, the second access device can also send the above indication information to the gateway device and the terminal device to instruct the initiation of multi-link transmission.

[0143] It should be noted that, similar to the downlink, the current network status can be determined by either the second access device or the terminal device. However, whether to initiate duplication transmission can also be determined by the second access device, which will not be elaborated upon here.

[0144] It should be noted that the execution process of step S501 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 4 The specific description of step S501 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0145] In step S502, the terminal device sends a second uplink data packet to the first access device. Correspondingly, the first access device receives the second uplink data packet.

[0146] By initiating duplication transmission, the terminal device can send the first uplink data packet to both the first and second access devices, transmitting the data through different links. Since the first access device lacks a PDCP layer, it also lacks a corresponding PDCP sequence number. Therefore, the terminal device can add a second bearer identifier and a third sequence number to the first uplink data packet to obtain a second uplink data packet, and then send the second uplink data packet to the first access device. This second uplink data packet includes the second bearer identifier, the third sequence number, and the first uplink data packet itself.

[0147] It should be noted that the execution process of step S502 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 4 The specific description of step S402 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0148] In step S503, the terminal device adds a fourth sequence number to the first uplink data packet to obtain a third uplink data packet, and sends the third uplink data packet to the second access device. The fourth sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first uplink data packets.

[0149] It should be noted that the execution of steps S501, S502, and S503 is not in any particular order, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this. That is to say, the execution of the terminal device adding the second bearer and the third sequence number to the first uplink data packet and sending it to the first access device is not in any particular order with the execution of the terminal device adding the fourth sequence number to the first uplink data packet and sending it to the second access device.

[0150] Optionally, in a duplication transmission scenario, after receiving the third uplink data packet and obtaining the first uplink data packet, the second access device can determine the fourth sequence number. This fourth sequence number characterizes the transmission order of the first uplink data packet. This fourth sequence number can be the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet.

[0151] In one implementation, where both the third and fourth serial numbers are PDCP serial numbers, the values ​​of the first and second serial numbers can be the same. Optionally, the third and fourth serial numbers can also be different, such as when the third serial number is an Adapter serial number; this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0152] It should be noted that when the third serial number is the Adapter serial number and the fourth serial number is the PDCP serial number, there can be an offset between the third and fourth serial numbers. This offset can be... Figure 2 The offset (between the Adapter serial number and the PDCP serial number) described in the embodiment.

[0153] In step S504, the second access device sends the first uplink data packet to the gateway device; it may also send the fourth sequence number to the gateway device at the same time.

[0154] In one optional implementation, the second access device can send the fourth sequence number to the gateway device to notify the gateway device that the first uplink data packet identified by the fourth sequence number has been successfully received. Subsequently, relevant data packets can be submitted to the gateway device in sequence.

[0155] Optionally, in non-duplication transmission scenarios, the terminal device may send different uplink data packets to the first access device and the second access device respectively, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0156] Optionally, if the gateway device receives a third uplink data packet from the second access device, the gateway device can determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet based on the fourth sequence number added to the third uplink data packet, so that the gateway device can upload the received first uplink data packets to the network in sequence according to the sequence number order.

[0157] In step S505, the first access device sends the second uplink data packet to the gateway device. Correspondingly, the gateway device can receive the second uplink data packet from the terminal device through the first access device. The second uplink data packet may include a second bearer identifier, a third sequence number, and the first uplink data packet.

[0158] It should be noted that the execution order of steps S504 and S505 is not important, and this application does not impose any restrictions on this. Optionally, in the scenario of duplication transmission, the gateway device can receive the second uplink data packet through the first access device, or it can receive the third uplink data packet through the second access device. For example, when the network of the first access device is poor, the terminal device can receive the third uplink data packet through the second access device. This application uses the example of the gateway device receiving the second uplink data packet through the first access device for illustration, which does not impose any limitations on this application.

[0159] Optionally, if the gateway device receives a second uplink data packet from the first access device, the gateway device can determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet based on the third sequence number added to the second uplink data packet, thereby enabling the gateway device to upload the received first uplink data packets to the network in sequence according to the sequence number order. Optionally, when the third sequence number is an adapter sequence number, the gateway device can determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet based on the adapter sequence number and the initial PDCP sequence number obtained by the gateway device. Optionally, when the third sequence number is an adapter sequence number, the gateway device can determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet based on the adapter sequence number and the offset between the adapter sequence number and the PDCP sequence number.

[0160] In one implementation, the terminal device may send a first message to the second access device, the first message indicating that the first uplink data packet was successfully sent.

[0161] It should be noted that if a terminal device receives a feedback message indicating successful reception of an uplink data packet from a certain link, the terminal device can notify another link of the sequence number of the successfully received uplink data packet. For example, if the terminal device receives a feedback message from a WiFi link indicating that the WiFi link has successfully received a second uplink data packet, the terminal device can send a first message to the second access device in the PRAS link. This first message can be used to indicate that the first uplink data packet contained in the second uplink data packet has been successfully received.

[0162] In one implementation, the first message may include a second bearer identifier and a third sequence number. It should be noted that the second access device can determine the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet based on the second bearer identifier and the third sequence number in the first message, thereby instructing the second access device to stop sending resource scheduling information to the terminal device. This resource scheduling information is used to schedule the retransmission of the uplink data packet corresponding to the PDCP sequence number, i.e., to stop scheduling the retransmission of the third uplink data packet.

[0163] For example, if the terminal device receives a feedback message from the WiFi link, which can indicate that the network device has successfully received the second uplink data packet, the terminal device can send a first message to the PRAS link. This first message indicates that the first uplink data packet contained in the second uplink data packet has been successfully received. Optionally, the first message may include a second bearer identifier and a third sequence number. The first message can also be used to instruct the PRAS to stop scheduling resources for retransmitting uplink data packets with the PDCP sequence number corresponding to the third sequence number.

[0164] Optionally, if the gateway successfully receives the first uplink data packet from the second access device, the gateway device may send a fourth message to the first access device. This fourth message can be used to indicate that the first uplink data packet was successfully received. Optionally, if the gateway device successfully receives the first uplink data packet from the second access device, the fourth message sent by the gateway device to the first access device may also include a second bearer identifier and a fourth sequence number to instruct the first access device to stop sending resource scheduling information to the terminal device. This resource scheduling information is used for the retransmission of the uplink data packet corresponding to the fourth sequence number (i.e., the PDCP sequence number), that is, to stop scheduling the retransmission of the second uplink data packet.

[0165] Optionally, after the terminal device successfully transmits the second uplink data packet through the first access device and completes the duplication transmission, the terminal device can disconnect from the second access device, thereby switching from the second access device to the first access device. For example, after the terminal device successfully transmits the uplink data packet through the Wi-Fi link and completes the duplication transmission, it can disconnect from the PRAS link, thereby switching from the PRAS to the Wi-Fi AP. Optionally, the PRAS can instruct the terminal device to delete the connection with the PRAS.

[0166] It should be noted that the execution process of step S505 can be found in [reference needed]. Figure 4 The specific description of step S403 in the corresponding embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0167] After receiving the fifth indication information used to indicate duplication transmission, the terminal device can send a second uplink data packet including the first uplink data packet to the first access device, and a third uplink data packet including the first uplink data packet to the second access device, so as to transmit the first uplink data packet through two links. This allows the gateway device to receive the first uplink data packet more quickly from the link with better signal quality, and to sort and merge the first uplink data packet according to the PDCP sequence number of the first uplink data packet, thereby ensuring the continuous transmission of uplink data packets and reducing the latency of uplink data packet transmission.

[0168] Please see Figure 6 , Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. The device can be a gateway device in the downlink, a device within a gateway device, or a device compatible with a gateway device. Optionally, the device can be a terminal device in the uplink, a device within a terminal device, or a device compatible with a terminal device. Figure 6 The communication device shown may include a processing unit 601 and a communication unit 602. The processing unit 601 is used for data processing. The communication unit 602 integrates a receiving unit and a transmitting unit, etc. The communication unit 602 may also be called a transceiver unit. Alternatively, the communication unit 602 may be split into a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The detailed descriptions of each unit are as follows:

[0169] The processing unit 601 is used to add a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first data packet to obtain a second data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet;

[0170] The communication unit 602 is used to send the aforementioned second data packet to the first access device.

[0171] In one implementation, the communication unit 602 is further configured to send the first data packet to the second access device.

[0172] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the processing unit 601 is further configured to determine the bearer identifier based on the QFI.

[0173] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0174] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0175] In one implementation, the processing unit 601 is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP sequence number, wherein the offset between the first sequence number and the second sequence number is the initial PDCP sequence number.

[0176] In one implementation, the communication unit 602 is further configured to receive indication information from the second access device, the indication information being used to instruct the initiation of repeated duplication transmission.

[0177] In one implementation, the communication unit 602 is further configured to receive the first data packet.

[0178] In one implementation, the communication unit 602 is further configured to send a first message to the second access device, the first message indicating that the second data packet was successfully sent.

[0179] In one implementation, the first message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0180] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0181] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0182] The device can be a terminal device in the downlink, a device within a terminal device, or a device compatible with a terminal device. Optionally, the device can be a gateway device in the uplink, a device within a gateway device, or a device compatible with a gateway device. Figure 6 The communication device shown may include a processing unit 601 and a communication unit 602. The processing unit 601 is used for data processing. The communication unit 602 integrates a receiving unit and a transmitting unit, etc. The communication unit 602 may also be called a transceiver unit. Alternatively, the communication unit 602 may be split into a receiving unit and a transmitting unit. The detailed descriptions of each unit are as follows:

[0183] The communication unit 602 is used to receive a second data packet from a first access device. The second data packet includes a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet. The bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet.

[0184] The processing unit 601 is used to determine the transmission order of the first data packet based on the bearer identifier and the first sequence number.

[0185] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI), the bearer identifier being determined based on the QFI.

[0186] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0187] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0188] In one implementation, the processing unit 601 is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP sequence number, wherein the offset between the first sequence number and the second sequence number is the initial PDCP sequence number.

[0189] In one implementation, the communication unit 602 is further configured to send a second message to the second access device, the second message indicating that the second data packet was successfully received.

[0190] In one implementation, the second message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0191] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0192] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0193] According to the embodiments of this application, Figure 6 The various units in the illustrated communication device can be individually or entirely merged into one or more other units, or some of the units can be further divided into multiple functionally smaller units. This achieves the same operation without affecting the technical effects of the embodiments of this application. The above-mentioned units are based on logical function division. In practical applications, the function of one unit can also be implemented by multiple units, or the function of multiple units can be implemented by one unit. In other embodiments of this application, the communication device may also include other units. In practical applications, these functions can also be implemented with the assistance of other units, and can be implemented collaboratively by multiple units.

[0194] The aforementioned communication device may be, for example, a chip or a chip module. The modules included in the various devices and products described in the above embodiments may be software modules, hardware modules, or a combination of both. For example, for various devices and products applied to or integrated into a chip, each module can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits, or at least some modules can be implemented using software programs that run on a processor integrated within the chip, while the remaining (if any) modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits; for various devices and products applied to or integrated into a chip module, each module can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits, and different modules can be located in the same component (e.g., chip, circuit module, etc.) or different components of the chip module, or at least some modules can be implemented using software programs that run on a processor integrated within the chip module, while the remaining (if any) modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits; for various devices and products applied to or integrated into a terminal, each module can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits, and different modules can be located in the same component (e.g., chip, circuit module, etc.) or different components within the terminal, or at least some modules can be implemented using software programs that run on a processor integrated within the terminal, while the remaining (if any) modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits.

[0195] The embodiments of this application and the embodiments of the aforementioned methods are based on the same concept and have the same technical effects. For the specific principles, please refer to the description of the aforementioned embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0196] Please see Figure 7 , Figure 7 A communication device 70 is provided as an embodiment of this application. This communication device 70 can be used to implement the function of a gateway device in the downlink of the above-described method embodiment. The communication device can be a gateway device or a device for a gateway device. The device for the gateway device can be a chip system or a chip within the gateway device. Optionally, the communication device 70 can be used to implement the function of a terminal device in the uplink of the above-described method embodiment. The communication device can be a terminal device or a device for a terminal device. The device for the terminal device can be a chip system or a chip within the terminal device. The chip system can be composed of chips or can include chips and other discrete devices. Figure 7 As shown, the communication device 70 may include a processor 701 and a transceiver 702. Optionally, the communication device may also include a memory 703. The processor 701, transceiver 702, and memory 703 can be connected via a bus 704 or other means. The bus is in... Figure 7The connections between other components are shown in bold lines only and are not intended to be limiting. Buses can be categorized as address buses, data buses, control buses, etc. For ease of illustration, Figure 7 The bus is represented by a single thick line, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0197] The coupling in this application embodiment is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units, or modules, which can be electrical, mechanical, or other forms, used for information exchange between devices, units, or modules. This application embodiment does not limit the specific connection medium between the processor 701, transceiver 702, and memory 703 described above.

[0198] Memory 703 may include read-only memory and random access memory, and provides instructions and data to processor 701. A portion of memory 703 may also include non-volatile random access memory.

[0199] Processor 701 can be a Central Processing Unit (CPU), but it can also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor; optionally, processor 701 can also be any conventional processor. Wherein:

[0200] Memory 703 is used to store program instructions.

[0201] Processor 701 is used to call program instructions stored in memory 703 for:

[0202] A second data packet is obtained by adding a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet;

[0203] The transceiver 702 is invoked to send the aforementioned second data packet to the first access device.

[0204] In one implementation, the transceiver 702 is further configured to send the first data packet to the second access device.

[0205] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the processor 701 is further configured to determine the bearer identifier based on the QFI.

[0206] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0207] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0208] In one implementation, the processor 701 is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP serial number, wherein the offset between the first serial number and the second serial number is the initial PDCP serial number.

[0209] In one implementation, the transceiver 702 is further configured to receive indication information from a second access device, the indication information being used to instruct the initiation of repeated duplication transmission.

[0210] In one implementation, the transceiver 702 is also used to receive the first data packet.

[0211] In one implementation, the transceiver 702 is further configured to send a first message to the second access device, the first message indicating that the second data packet was successfully sent.

[0212] In one implementation, the first message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0213] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0214] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0215] The communication device 70 can be used to implement the functions of a terminal device in the downlink of the above method embodiments. The communication device can be a terminal device or a device for a terminal device. The device for the terminal device can be a chip system or a chip within the terminal device. Optionally, the communication device 70 can be used to implement the functions of a gateway device in the uplink of the above method embodiments. The communication device can be a gateway device or a device for a gateway device. The device for the gateway device can be a chip system or a chip within the gateway device. The chip system can be composed of chips or can include chips and other discrete devices. Figure 7 As shown, the communication device 70 may include a processor 701 and a transceiver 702. Optionally, the communication device may also include a memory 703. Wherein:

[0216] Memory 703 is used to store program instructions.

[0217] Processor 701 is used to call program instructions stored in memory 703 for:

[0218] Transceiver 702 is invoked to receive a second data packet from the first access device. The second data packet includes a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet. The bearer identifier indicates the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number characterizes the transmission order of the first data packet.

[0219] The processor 701 is used to determine the transmission order of the first data packet based on the aforementioned bearer identifier and the aforementioned first sequence number.

[0220] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI), the bearer identifier being determined based on the QFI.

[0221] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0222] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0223] In one implementation, the processor 701 is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP serial number, wherein the offset between the first serial number and the second serial number is the initial PDCP serial number.

[0224] In one implementation, the transceiver 702 is further configured to send a second message to the second access device, the second message indicating that the second data packet was successfully received.

[0225] In one implementation, the second message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0226] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0227] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0228] In the embodiments of this application, the following can be performed by running on a general-purpose computing device, such as a computer, which includes processing elements and storage elements such as a central processing unit (CPU), random access memory (RAM), and read-only memory (ROM). Figures 2-5 The computer program (including program code) for each step involved in the corresponding method shown herein, and the method for implementing the embodiments provided in this application. The computer program may be recorded on, for example, a computer-readable recording medium, loaded onto the aforementioned computing device via the computer-readable recording medium, and run therein.

[0229] Based on the same inventive concept, the principle and beneficial effects of the communication device provided in the embodiments of this application in solving the problem are similar to those of the communication device in the method embodiments of this application in solving the problem. For reference, please refer to the principle and beneficial effects of the method implementation. For the sake of brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0230] This application also provides a chip that can perform the relevant steps of the gateway device in the downlink or the terminal device in the uplink of the aforementioned method embodiments. The chip is used to: add a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to a first data packet to obtain a second data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; the chip is also used to send the second data packet to a first access device.

[0231] In one implementation, the chip is also used to send the aforementioned first data packet to a second access device.

[0232] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the chip is further configured to determine the bearer identifier based on the QFI.

[0233] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0234] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0235] In one implementation, the chip is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP serial number, wherein the offset between the first serial number and the second serial number is the initial PDCP serial number.

[0236] In one implementation, the chip is also used to receive indication information from a second access device, the indication information being used to indicate the initiation of repeated duplication transmission.

[0237] In one implementation, the chip is also used to receive the aforementioned first data packet.

[0238] In one implementation, the chip is further configured to send a first message to the second access device, the first message indicating that the second data packet was successfully sent.

[0239] In one implementation, the first message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0240] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0241] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0242] In one implementation, the chip includes at least one processor, at least one first memory, and at least one second memory; wherein the at least one first memory and the at least one processor are interconnected by a circuit, and the first memory stores instructions; the at least one second memory and the at least one processor are interconnected by a circuit, and the second memory stores data that needs to be stored in the aforementioned method embodiment.

[0243] For each device or product applied to or integrated into a chip, each of its modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits, or at least some modules can be implemented using software programs that run on a processor integrated inside the chip, while the remaining (if any) modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits.

[0244] This application embodiment also provides another chip, which can perform the relevant steps of the terminal device in the uplink or the gateway device in the downlink of the aforementioned method embodiments. The chip is used to: receive a second data packet from a first access device, the second data packet including a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; the chip is further used to determine the transmission order of the first data packet based on the bearer identifier and the first sequence number.

[0245] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI), the bearer identifier being determined based on the QFI.

[0246] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0247] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0248] In one implementation, the chip is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP serial number, wherein the offset between the first serial number and the second serial number is the initial PDCP serial number.

[0249] In one implementation, the chip is also used to send a second message to a second access device, the second message indicating that the second data packet was successfully received.

[0250] In one implementation, the second message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0251] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0252] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0253] In one implementation, the chip includes at least one processor, at least one first memory, and at least one second memory; wherein the at least one first memory and the at least one processor are interconnected by a circuit, and the first memory stores instructions; the at least one second memory and the at least one processor are interconnected by a circuit, and the second memory stores data that needs to be stored in the aforementioned method embodiment.

[0254] For each device or product applied to or integrated into a chip, each of its modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits, or at least some modules can be implemented using software programs that run on a processor integrated inside the chip, while the remaining (if any) modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits.

[0255] Please see Figure 8 , Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of a module device provided in an embodiment of this application. The module device 80 can perform the relevant steps of the gateway device in the downlink or the terminal device in the uplink of the aforementioned method embodiments. The module device 80 includes: a communication module 801, a power module 802, a storage module 803, and a chip module 804.

[0256] The power supply module 802 is used to provide power to the module device; the storage module 803 is used to store data and instructions; the communication module 801 is used for internal communication within the module device, or for communication between the module device and external devices; the chip module 804 is used for:

[0257] A second data packet is obtained by adding a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet;

[0258] The aforementioned second data packet is sent to the first access device.

[0259] In one implementation, the chip module 804 is further configured to send the first data packet to the second access device.

[0260] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the chip is further configured to determine the bearer identifier based on the QFI.

[0261] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0262] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0263] In one implementation, the chip module 804 is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP serial number, wherein the offset between the first serial number and the second serial number is the initial PDCP serial number.

[0264] In one implementation, the chip module 804 is further configured to receive indication information from a second access device, the indication information being used to indicate the initiation of repeated duplication transmission.

[0265] In one implementation, the chip module 804 is further configured to receive the first data packet.

[0266] In one implementation, the chip module 804 is further configured to send a first message to the second access device, the first message indicating that the second data packet was successfully sent.

[0267] In one implementation, the first message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0268] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0269] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0270] For various devices and products applied to or integrated into chip modules, each of its modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits. Different modules can be located in the same component (e.g., chip, circuit module, etc.) or different components of the chip module. Alternatively, at least some modules can be implemented using software programs that run on the processor integrated inside the chip module, while the remaining (if any) modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits.

[0271] Please see Figure 8 , Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of another module device provided in an embodiment of this application. The module device 80 can perform the relevant steps of the terminal device in the uplink or the gateway device in the downlink of the aforementioned method embodiments. The module device 80 includes: a communication module 801, a power module 802, a storage module 803, and a chip module 804.

[0272] The power supply module 802 is used to provide power to the module device; the storage module 803 is used to store data and instructions; the communication module 801 is used for internal communication within the module device, or for communication between the module device and external devices; the chip module 804 is used for:

[0273] A second data packet is received from a first access device. The second data packet includes a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet. The bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet.

[0274] The transmission order of the first data packet is determined based on the aforementioned bearer identifier and the aforementioned first sequence number.

[0275] In one implementation, the first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI), the bearer identifier being determined based on the QFI.

[0276] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; wherein, the second sequence number is a sequence number added by the second access device for the first data packet, and the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet.

[0277] In one implementation, the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, which is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

[0278] In one implementation, the chip module 804 is further configured to obtain an initial PDCP serial number, wherein the offset between the first serial number and the second serial number is the initial PDCP serial number.

[0279] In one implementation, the chip module 804 is further configured to send a second message to the second access device, the second message indicating that the second data packet was successfully received.

[0280] In one implementation, the second message includes a bearer identifier and a first sequence number.

[0281] In one implementation, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication.

[0282] In one implementation, the first access device is a WiFi access point (AP) and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

[0283] For various devices and products applied to or integrated into chip modules, each of its modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits. Different modules can be located in the same component (e.g., chip, circuit module, etc.) or different components of the chip module. Alternatively, at least some modules can be implemented using software programs that run on the processor integrated inside the chip module, while the remaining (if any) modules can be implemented using hardware methods such as circuits.

[0284] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing one or more instructions adapted for loading by a processor and executing the methods provided in the above-described method embodiments.

[0285] This application also provides a computer program product containing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method provided in the above-described method embodiments.

[0286] It should be noted that, for the sake of simplicity, the foregoing method embodiments are all described as a series of actions. However, those skilled in the art should understand that this application is not limited to the described order of actions, as some steps may be performed in other orders or simultaneously according to this application. Furthermore, those skilled in the art should also understand that the embodiments described in the specification are preferred embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily essential to this application.

[0287] The steps in the method of this application embodiment can be adjusted, combined, or deleted according to actual needs.

[0288] The modules in the device of this application embodiment can be merged, divided, and deleted according to actual needs.

[0289] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the steps in the various methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by a program instructing related hardware. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, which may include: flash drive, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disk or optical disk, etc.

[0290] The above-disclosed embodiments are merely one preferred embodiment of this application and only a part of the embodiments of the present invention. They should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present application. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without inventive effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A data transmission method, characterized in that, The method is applied to a gateway device, and the method includes: Receive indication information from the second access device, the indication information being used to instruct the initiation of repeated duplication transmission; A second data packet is obtained by adding a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; Send the second data packet to the first access device, and send the first data packet to the second access device; Wherein, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication; the first serial number is the same as the second serial number, or the first serial number is different from the second serial number; the second serial number is a serial number added by the second access device to the first data packet, and the second serial number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; the first serial number is the PDCP serial number of the first data packet, and the first serial number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI); the method further includes: The bearer identifier is determined based on the QFI.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Obtain the initial PDCP sequence number, where the offset between the first sequence number and the second sequence number is the initial PDCP sequence number.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive the first data packet.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: A first message is sent to the second access device, the first message indicating that the second data packet was successfully sent.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The first message includes the bearer identifier and the first sequence number.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first access device is a WiFi access point (AP), and the second access device is a residential wireless access station (PRAS).

8. A data transmission method, characterized in that, The method is applied to a terminal device, and the method includes: A second data packet is received from a first access device. The second data packet includes a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet. The bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet. The transmission order of the first data packet is determined based on the bearer identifier and the first sequence number. Receive a third data packet from a second access device; the third data packet includes a second sequence number and the first data packet; the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet; Wherein, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication; the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The first data packet includes a Quality of Service Flow Identifier (QFI), and the bearer identifier is determined based on the QFI.

10. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The method further includes: Obtain the initial PDCP sequence number, where the offset between the first sequence number and the second sequence number is the initial PDCP sequence number.

11. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The method further includes: A second message is sent to the second access device, the second message indicating that the second data packet was successfully received.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, The second message includes the bearer identifier and the first sequence number.

13. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The first access device is a WiFiAP wireless access point, and the second access device is a PRAS (Residential Wireless Access Station).

14. A communication device, characterized in that, Including the processor; The processor is configured to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 13.

15. The communication device according to claim 14, characterized in that, The communication device also includes a memory: The memory is used to store computer programs; The processor is specifically configured to invoke the computer program from the memory and execute the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 13.

16. A chip, characterized in that, The chip is used in gateway devices. The chip is configured to receive indication information from a second access device, the indication information being used to instruct the initiation of repeated duplication transmission; to add a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to a first data packet to obtain a second data packet; the bearer identifier being used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number being used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; The chip is also used to send the second data packet to the first access device and to send the first data packet to the second access device; Wherein, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication; the first serial number is the same as the second serial number, or the first serial number is different from the second serial number; the second serial number is a serial number added by the second access device to the first data packet, and the second serial number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; the first serial number is the PDCP serial number of the first data packet, and the first serial number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

17. A chip, characterized in that, The chip is used in terminal devices. The chip is used to receive a second data packet from a first access device, the second data packet including a bearer identifier, a first sequence number and a first data packet; The bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; The transmission order of the first data packet is determined based on the bearer identifier and the first sequence number; The chip is also configured to receive a third data packet from a second access device; the third data packet includes a second sequence number and the first data packet; the second sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; Wherein, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication; the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

18. A module device applied to a gateway device, characterized in that, The module device includes a communication module, a power module, a storage module, and a chip module, wherein: The power module is used to provide electrical energy to the module device; The storage module is used to store data and instructions; The communication module is used for internal communication within the module device, or for communication between the module device and external devices; The chip module is used for: Receive indication information from the second access device, the indication information being used to instruct the initiation of repeated duplication transmission; A second data packet is obtained by adding a bearer identifier and a first sequence number to the first data packet; the bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; Send the second data packet to the first access device, and send the first data packet to the second access device; Wherein, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication; the first serial number is the same as the second serial number, or the first serial number is different from the second serial number; the second serial number is a serial number added by the second access device to the first data packet, and the second serial number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet; the first serial number is the PDCP serial number of the first data packet, and the first serial number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

19. A module device for use in terminal equipment, characterized in that, The module device includes a communication module, a power module, a storage module, and a chip module, wherein: The power module is used to provide electrical energy to the module device; The storage module is used to store data and instructions; The communication module is used for internal communication within the module device, or for communication between the module device and external devices; The chip module is used for: A second data packet is received from a first access device. The second data packet includes a bearer identifier, a first sequence number, and a first data packet. The bearer identifier is used to indicate the radio bearer of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet. The transmission order of the first data packet is determined based on the bearer identifier and the first sequence number. Receive a third data packet from a second access device; the third data packet includes a second sequence number and the first data packet; the second sequence number is used to characterize the sending order of the first data packet; Wherein, the first access device is a device that supports wireless local area network (WLAN) communication, and the second access device is a device that supports cellular communication; the first sequence number is the same as the second sequence number, or the first sequence number is different from the second sequence number; the first sequence number is the PDCP sequence number of the first data packet, and the first sequence number is used to characterize the transmission order of the first data packet at the PDCP layer.

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