Data transmission methods, devices, base stations and storage media

Abstract

This disclosure relates to a data transmission method, apparatus, base station, and storage medium. The method includes: acquiring downlink data buffered in a receive buffer queue of a first network; if the downlink data exceeds a threshold, splitting the downlink data to determine downlink data from a first network and downlink data from a second network; transmitting the downlink data from the first network to a terminal via the first network, and transmitting the downlink data from the second network to the terminal via the second network; wherein the first network and the second network are both WLAN networks and cellular wireless communication networks, and the first network and the second network are different networks. This solution achieves dynamic allocation of the selected network for data transmission, fully utilizing the bandwidth of both networks, thereby effectively avoiding network congestion, improving the aggregation rate of air interface transmission, and enhancing the user experience.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a data transmission method, apparatus, base station, and storage medium. Background Technology

[0002] Existing home-use base stations can be divided into two categories: one is a base station that only provides cellular wireless communication without wireless local area network (WLAN) functionality, and the other is a base station that can support both WLAN and cellular wireless communication simultaneously.

[0003] Currently, for home-level base stations that simultaneously support WLAN and cellular wireless communication, data transmission typically relies on the network selected by the user when accessing the internet. The downlink data is sent to the user's terminal via the corresponding network. However, in scenarios where cellular and WLAN networks coexist, due to the data-based billing model of cellular networks, users generally prefer WLAN. When neighboring users simultaneously need to transmit large amounts of data, WLAN network congestion and mutual interference can easily occur. Current base station data transmission solutions do not effectively utilize the advantages of co-location of both networks. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To solve the above-mentioned technical problems, or at least partially solve them, this disclosure provides a data transmission method, apparatus, base station, and storage medium.

[0005] In a first aspect, this disclosure provides a data transmission method, including:

[0006] Obtain the downlink data buffered in the receive buffer queue of the first network;

[0007] If the downlink data exceeds the threshold, the downlink data will be split to determine the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data;

[0008] The first network downlink data is transmitted to the terminal through the first network, and the second network downlink data is transmitted to the terminal through the second network.

[0009] The first network and the second network are both WLAN networks and cellular wireless communication networks, and the first network and the second network are different networks.

[0010] Secondly, this disclosure provides a data transmission apparatus, including:

[0011] The data acquisition module is used to acquire downlink data cached in the receive buffer queue of the first network;

[0012] The determination module is used to split the downlink data if the downlink data exceeds a threshold, and determine the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data;

[0013] The transmission module is used to transmit downlink data from the first network to the terminal through the first network, and to transmit downlink data from the second network to the terminal through the second network.

[0014] The first network and the second network are both WLAN networks and cellular wireless communication networks, and the first network and the second network are different networks.

[0015] Thirdly, this disclosure provides a base station, including a processor and a memory; the processor executes the data transmission method as described in the first aspect by calling programs or instructions stored in the memory.

[0016] Fourthly, this disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement the data transmission method as described in the first aspect.

[0017] Fifthly, this disclosure provides a computer program product, including a computer program, wherein the computer program, when executed by a processor, implements the data transmission method as described in the first aspect.

[0018] The technical solution provided in this disclosure has the following advantages compared with the prior art:

[0019] In this scheme, downlink data buffered in the receive buffer queue of the first network is obtained. When the downlink data exceeds a threshold, the downlink data is split into downlink data from the first network and downlink data from the second network. The downlink data from the first network is then transmitted to the terminal through the first network, and the downlink data from the second network is transmitted to the terminal through the second network. Both the first and second networks are either WLAN networks or cellular wireless communication networks, and they are different networks. By adopting this scheme, when the downlink data buffered in the receive buffer queue of the first network exceeds a threshold, downlink data is divided into downlink data from the first network and downlink data from the second network, and transmitted to the terminal through the corresponding networks. This achieves downlink data splitting, dynamically allocates the network for data transmission selection, fully utilizes the bandwidth of both networks, effectively avoids network congestion, improves the aggregation rate of air interface transmission, and ultimately enhances the user experience. Attached Figure Description

[0020] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of this disclosure.

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this disclosure or the prior art, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0022] Figure 1 A schematic flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0023] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the architecture of a home-class base station according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure is shown;

[0024] Figure 3 A schematic flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in another embodiment of this disclosure;

[0025] Figure 4 A schematic flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in yet another embodiment of this disclosure;

[0026] Figure 5 A schematic flowchart illustrating a data transmission method provided in a specific embodiment of this disclosure;

[0027] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a data transmission device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0028] To better understand the above-mentioned objectives, features, and advantages of this disclosure, the solutions disclosed herein will be further described below. It should be noted that, unless otherwise specified, the embodiments and features described herein can be combined with each other.

[0029] Numerous specific details are set forth in the following description in order to provide a full understanding of this disclosure, but this disclosure may also be implemented in other ways different from those described herein; obviously, the embodiments in the specification are only some, and not all, of the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0030] Before explaining the specific implementation methods of this disclosure, the terms that may be involved in this disclosure are explained as follows:

[0031] WiFi, officially known as IEEE 802.11, is a WLAN technology standard.

[0032] Cellular wireless communication technology is a radio technology widely used in mobile communication networks. Currently, the fourth-generation (4G) and fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication technologies are widely used in commercial applications.

[0033] LTE: Long Term Evolution, is a wireless data communication technology standard.

[0034] NR: New Radio, a global 5G standard based on a new air interface design using Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) technology;

[0035] Home-based base stations, also known as home mini base stations or indoor base stations, are small wireless communication base stations deployed in homes or small office spaces. They are mainly used to improve the quality of indoor mobile signals, especially in areas with poor outdoor signal coverage.

[0036] Existing home-based base stations can be divided into two categories: those that only provide cellular wireless communication without WLAN functionality, and those that support both WLAN and cellular wireless communication. For home-based base stations supporting both WLAN and cellular wireless communication, data transmission typically relies on the network selected by the user when accessing the internet. This current data transmission method does not effectively utilize the advantages of co-location of the two network technologies. WLAN, deployed in each household, is easily interfered with by neighbors, resulting in a poor user experience. Furthermore, due to its data-based billing model, cellular wireless communication networks are usually not the user's first choice for internet access in scenarios coexisting with WLAN. This can easily lead to WLAN network congestion when there is a large amount of data, further degrading the user's internet experience.

[0037] To address the shortcomings of the existing technologies, this disclosure provides a base station data transmission method for home-grade base stations that combine cellular wireless communication networks and WLAN networks. This method aims to dynamically allocate the network selected for data transmission in scenarios where cellular wireless communication networks and WLAN networks are co-located, thereby fully utilizing the bandwidth of both networks to improve the aggregation rate of air interface transmission (achieving the effect of superimposing the peak rates of WLAN and cellular wireless communication networks) and enhance the user experience.

[0038] The embodiments of this disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0039] Figure 1This is a flowchart illustrating a data transmission method applied to a base station according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The method can be executed by a data transmission device provided in this embodiment of the present disclosure. The data transmission device can be implemented in software and / or hardware and can be integrated into a base station, which is a home-level base station that simultaneously supports WLAN networks and cellular wireless communication networks.

[0040] For example, Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the architecture of a home-class base station, as shown in an exemplary embodiment of this disclosure, is illustrated below. Figure 2 As shown, the base station includes a cellular communication network module, a WLAN network module, a backhaul data receiving module, a traffic splitting module, a link monitoring module, and a storage module. The cellular communication network module provides cellular wireless communication network and related protocol stack processing; the WLAN network module provides WLAN communication network and related protocol stack processing; the backhaul data receiving module receives backhauled data and includes two queues: a WLAN network receive buffer queue and a cellular wireless communication network receive buffer queue, which respectively buffer downlink data received by the base station from the corresponding network for processing; the traffic splitting module distributes data from the backhaul data receiving module; the link monitoring module monitors the network quality of the cellular wireless communication network and the WLAN communication network in real time; and the storage module stores access terminal information and link quality information, etc.

[0041] like Figure 1 As shown, the data transmission method may include the following steps:

[0042] Step 101: Obtain the downlink data cached in the receive buffer queue of the first network.

[0043] In this embodiment of the disclosure, the base station can obtain downlink data cached in the receive buffer queue of a first network. The first network is one of a WLAN network and a cellular wireless communication network (including but not limited to LTE and NR networks). When the first network is a WLAN network, the base station obtains the downlink data cached in the WLAN network's receive buffer queue; when the first network is a cellular wireless communication network, the base station obtains the downlink data cached in the cellular wireless communication network's receive buffer queue. For example, for Figure 2 The base station shown can obtain downlink data cached in the receive buffer queue of the first network from the backhaul data receiving module.

[0044] Step 102: If the downlink data exceeds the threshold, the downlink data is split to determine the downlink data of the first network and the downlink data of the second network.

[0045] The threshold can be pre-configured according to actual needs. For different networks, the corresponding threshold can be pre-configured.

[0046] In this embodiment, after the base station obtains the downlink data to be transmitted from the first network, it can compare the downlink data with a threshold corresponding to the first network to determine whether the downlink data exceeds the threshold. When comparing with the threshold, the number of data packets contained in the downlink data, the data volume (number of bytes) of the downlink data, etc., can be compared with the threshold. The specific objects of comparison can be set according to actual needs, and this disclosure does not impose any restrictions on this. If the downlink data exceeds the threshold of the first network, the downlink data is split, and the downlink data from the first network and the downlink data from the second network are determined.

[0047] For example, the downlink data can be divided into two parts, one part being the first network downlink data and the other part being the second network downlink data.

[0048] For example, based on a threshold, a portion of the downlink data that is equal to or slightly less than the threshold can be obtained as the first network downlink data, and the remaining downlink data can be used as the second network downlink data. This ensures that the data transmitted through the first network does not exceed the threshold, thereby preventing network congestion as much as possible and improving the user's internet experience.

[0049] In one optional embodiment of this disclosure, when the downlink data does not exceed the threshold, the downlink data can be transmitted directly through the first network, or a network with lower latency can be selected to transmit the downlink data. This disclosure does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0050] Step 103: Transmit downlink data from the first network to the terminal through the first network, and transmit downlink data from the second network to the terminal through the second network. The first network and the second network are both WLAN networks and cellular wireless communication networks, and the first network and the second network are different networks.

[0051] In this embodiment of the disclosure, after determining the downlink data of the first network and the downlink data of the second network, the downlink data of the first network can be transmitted to the terminal through the first network, and the downlink data of the second network can be transmitted to the terminal through the second network. This achieves data offloading, effectively avoiding network congestion. Furthermore, when the first network is a WLAN network, some downlink data after offloading is transmitted to the terminal through the cellular wireless communication network. Since the downlink data is transmitted after offloading, the data transmitted through the air interface of the cellular wireless communication network does not pass through the core network, thus avoiding traffic billing in the core network. Therefore, this solution improves the transmission rate and user experience without increasing network billing due to the use of mobile data.

[0052] The base station data transmission method of this disclosure acquires downlink data buffered in the receive buffer queue of a first network. When the downlink data exceeds a threshold, it splits the downlink data to determine downlink data from a first network and downlink data from a second network. The first network downlink data is then transmitted to the terminal via the first network, and the second network downlink data is transmitted to the terminal via the second network. Both the first and second networks are either WLAN networks or cellular wireless communication networks, and they are different networks. By employing the scheme of this disclosure, when the downlink data buffered in the receive buffer queue of the first network exceeds a threshold, downlink data is divided into first network downlink data and second network downlink data and transmitted to the terminal via the corresponding networks. This achieves downlink data splitting, dynamically allocates the selected network for data transmission, fully utilizes the bandwidth of both networks, effectively avoids network congestion, improves the aggregation rate of air interface transmission, and ultimately enhances the user experience.

[0053] In one optional embodiment of this disclosure, when the acquired downlink data exceeds a threshold, the downlink data can be split proportionally. The ratio between the first network and the second network can be preset or determined based on the current channel quality of the two networks. Specifically, the implementation method for splitting downlink data based on the channel quality is as follows: Figure 3 As shown, in Figure 1 Based on the illustrated embodiment, step 102 may include the following sub-steps:

[0054] Step 201: Monitor the first channel quality of the first network and the second channel quality of the second network.

[0055] In this embodiment of the disclosure, when the acquired downlink data exceeds a threshold, the base station can monitor the signal quality of the terminal's first network (referred to as first channel quality for ease of description and distinction), including but not limited to Received Signal Strength Indication (RSSI), Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), Bit Error Rate (BER), network load, and the order of the current adaptive coding modulation, etc. Monitoring methods include, but are not limited to, measuring based on measurement reports and signals during uplink data transmission. The base station can also monitor the signal quality of the terminal's second network (referred to as second channel quality for ease of description and distinction), including but not limited to RSSI, SNR, BER, network load, and the order of the current adaptive coding modulation, etc. Monitoring methods include, but are not limited to, measuring based on signals during uplink data transmission.

[0056] Step 202: Determine the first peak rate of the first network under the current environment based on the first channel quality, and determine the second peak rate of the second network under the current environment based on the second channel quality.

[0057] In this embodiment of the disclosure, after monitoring the first channel quality of the first network and the second channel quality of the second network, the peak rate of the first network in the current environment (referred to as the first peak rate for ease of description and distinction) can be determined based on the first channel quality, and the peak rate of the second network in the current environment (referred to as the second peak rate for ease of description and distinction) can be determined based on the second channel quality.

[0058] It should be noted that, in this embodiment of the disclosure, the method for estimating the peak rate based on channel quality is not limited, and commonly used methods can be used to determine the peak rate. For example, a mapping table between different RSSI, SNR, BER conditions and modulation mode and order can be provided in advance based on channel simulation. Subsequently, the modulation mode and order can be obtained by looking up the table based on the corresponding air interface information. Then, the available air interface resources are given based on the current network load, and the peak rate can be calculated accordingly.

[0059] Step 203: Determine the first weight corresponding to the first network and the second weight corresponding to the second network based on the first peak rate and the second peak rate.

[0060] In this embodiment of the disclosure, after determining the first peak rate of the first network and the second peak rate of the second network, the first weight corresponding to the first network and the second weight corresponding to the second network can be determined based on the first peak rate and the second peak rate.

[0061] For example, assuming the first peak rate is denoted as X and the second peak rate is denoted as Y, the first weight Wt1 corresponding to the first network can be expressed as Wt1 = X / (X+Y), and the second weight Wt2 corresponding to the second network can be expressed as Wt2 = Y / (X+Y).

[0062] It is understood that, in this embodiment of the disclosure, the first weight and the second weight can also be pre-calculated, obtained, and stored for retrieval when traffic splitting is required. For example, with Figure 2 Taking the base station shown as an example, the link monitoring module can be set to monitor the channel quality of the first network and the second network every preset time interval, and estimate the peak rate of each network based on the channel quality, and then calculate the corresponding weight. The calculated weight is stored in the storage module. Each time a new weight is calculated, the weight in the storage module is updated to the new weight, and the originally stored weight is deleted. In other words, the storage module stores the latest obtained weight.

[0063] Step 204: The downlink data is split based on the first weight and the second weight to obtain the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data.

[0064] In this embodiment of the disclosure, after determining the first weight corresponding to the first network and the second weight corresponding to the second network, the downlink data can be proportionally split according to the first weight and the second weight to obtain the downlink data of the first network and the downlink data of the second network, that is, the downlink data of the first network = downlink data * first weight, the downlink data of the first network = downlink data * second weight = downlink data - downlink data of the first network.

[0065] As an example, when splitting downlink data, it can be divided according to the total number of bytes of all data packets in the downlink data. That is, the first weight multiplied by the total number of bytes of downlink data gives the number of bytes of downlink data in the first network. Then, during each cycle of processing in the first network, data packets of the corresponding number of bytes are directly allocated according to the number of bytes of downlink data in the first network to obtain the downlink data of the first network. The remaining data packets in the downlink data are the downlink data of the second network.

[0066] In practical applications, when dividing downlink data according to the first weight, there may be situations where the proportion of the number of bytes in a complete data packet to the total number of bytes in downlink data is inconsistent with the first weight. In such cases, the downlink data is divided to obtain the first network downlink data based on the ratio of the number of bytes in a data packet to the total number of bytes in downlink data exceeding the first weight and having the smallest difference between the two weights. For example, assuming the first weight is 0.7, the second weight is 0.3, the proportion of the number of bytes in data packets A, B, and C to the total number of bytes in downlink data is 0.69, the proportion of the number of bytes in data packets A, B, C, and D to the total number of bytes in downlink data is 0.71, and the proportion of the number of bytes in data packets A, B, C, and E to the total number of bytes in downlink data is 0.73, then data packets A, B, C, and D are classified as the first network downlink data.

[0067] As another example, when splitting downlink data, it can be divided according to the number of data packets in the downlink data. That is, the number of downlink data packets in the first network is the first weight multiplied by the number of downlink data packets. Then, during each cycle of the first network processing, the corresponding number of data packets are directly allocated according to the number of downlink data packets in the first network to obtain the first network downlink data. It should be noted that when determining the number of downlink data packets in the first network according to the first weight, if the obtained number of data packets is not an integer, it is determined by rounding up. For example, assuming the first weight is 0.7 and the number of downlink data packets is 28, the first weight multiplied by the number of downlink data packets = 0.7 * 26 = 18.2. By rounding up, the number of downlink data packets in the first network is determined to be 19. Therefore, 19 data packets are allocated from the downlink data as the first network downlink data, and the remaining data packets are used as the second network downlink data.

[0068] In practical applications, with Figure 2 Taking the base station shown as an example, the base station's traffic splitting module can perform data splitting based on the first weight and the second weight.

[0069] The base station data transmission method of this embodiment monitors the first channel quality of the first network and the second channel quality of the second network, determines the first peak rate of the first network under the current environment based on the first channel quality, and determines the second peak rate of the second network under the current environment based on the second channel quality. Based on the first peak rate and the second peak rate, it determines the first weight corresponding to the first network and the second weight corresponding to the second network, and then splits the downlink data based on the first weight and the second weight to obtain downlink data of the first network and downlink data of the second network. Thus, it realizes the splitting of data according to the channel quality of the first network and the second network, so that the data transmitted by each network matches its network conditions.

[0070] In one optional embodiment of this disclosure, the base station may also obtain the first IP address of the first network and the second IP address of the second network assigned to the terminal, and associate the first IP address and the second IP address with the internal entities of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack of the terminal according to the terminal's identity identifier, thereby obtaining the association relationship between the terminal and the first IP address and the second IP address.

[0071] Among them, the terminal's identity identifier is used to uniquely identify the terminal, and one terminal corresponds to a unique identity identifier.

[0072] In this embodiment, after the terminal accesses the first network provided by the base station, the terminal records the IP address of the first network it is assigned (referred to as the first IP address for ease of description and distinction). Similarly, after the terminal accesses the second network provided by the base station, it also records the IP address of the second network it is assigned (referred to as the second IP address for ease of description and distinction). It is understood that if there are multiple first and / or second IP addresses (e.g., IPv4 and IPv6), they can all be recorded. Then, the terminal and the base station negotiate and transmit the recorded first and second IP addresses to the base station. If the terminal's IP address changes, the updated first and second IP addresses can be transmitted to the base station through retrieval. Each terminal accessing a base station is associated with a corresponding internal entity within the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack. This internal entity is the protocol entity used for receiving or transmitting at each protocol layer in the protocol stack. Each terminal's internal entity within the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack can be bound to the terminal's identity identifier. After receiving the first IP and second IP uploaded by the terminal, the base station can determine its internal entity within the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack based on the reporting terminal's identity identifier. Then, it associates the first IP and second IP reported by the terminal with the terminal's internal entity within the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack, thus realizing the association between the terminal's reported first IP, second IP, and the terminal, thereby obtaining the association relationship between the terminal and the first IP and second IP.

[0073] It should be noted that in this embodiment, the negotiation method between the terminal and the base station is not limited. For example, the terminal can establish a connection with the base station's traffic splitting module through the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) to transmit the recorded IP information. The base station's traffic splitting module associates the IP uploaded by the terminal with the terminal's internal entities, obtains the association relationship, and stores it in the storage module.

[0074] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by associating the first IP and the second IP uploaded by the terminal with the internal entities of the terminal's cellular wireless communication network protocol stack, the first IP and the second IP reported by the terminal are associated with the terminal, laying the foundation for subsequent data transmission after data diversion and ensuring that the data is accurately transmitted to the corresponding terminal.

[0075] Furthermore, in one optional embodiment of this disclosure, the first network is a WLAN and the second network is a cellular wireless communication network. For the determined downlink data of the first network (i.e., data packets transmitted through the WLAN network), the transmission is performed directly. For the determined downlink data of the second network (i.e., data packets that need to be transmitted through the cellular wireless communication network), the WLAN network IP carried by the downlink data of the second network can be obtained from the downlink data of the second network. The above-mentioned association relationship is queried according to the obtained WLAN network IP. The target terminal associated with the WLAN network IP is determined through the association relationship. Then, the downlink data of the second network is sent to the buffer queue of the Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) layer of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack corresponding to the target terminal, so as to transmit the downlink data of the second network to the target terminal through the cellular wireless communication network of the target terminal.

[0076] It is understandable that when transmitting downlink data from the second network to the terminal via the cellular wireless communication network, the WLAN network IP carried by each data packet in the downlink data is obtained. The target terminal associated with that WLAN network IP is then determined through the aforementioned correlation, and the data packet is sent to the target terminal. This ensures that each data packet in the downlink data is accurately sent to its corresponding terminal. Since downlink data transmission does not pass through the core network, there is no additional traffic billing when transmitting downlink data received from the WLAN network using the cellular wireless communication network. Therefore, the aggregation rate of air interface transmission is improved without incurring additional costs.

[0077] In one optional embodiment of this disclosure, the first network is a cellular wireless communication network and the second network is a WLAN. For the determined downlink data of the first network (i.e., data packets transmitted through the cellular wireless communication network), the data is transmitted directly. For the determined downlink data of the second network (i.e., data packets that need to be transmitted through the WLAN network), the cellular network IP carried by the downlink data of the second network can be obtained from the downlink data of the second network. The above-mentioned association relationship is queried according to the cellular network IP. The target WLAN network IP associated with the cellular network IP is determined through the association relationship, and then the downlink data of the second network is transmitted to the terminal through the target WLAN network IP.

[0078] It is understandable that when transmitting the second network downlink data to the terminal via the WLAN network, the cellular network IP carried by each data packet in the second network downlink data is obtained, and the target WLAN network IP associated with the cellular network IP is determined through the above-mentioned correlation. Then, the data packet is sent to the corresponding terminal through the target WLAN network IP, thereby achieving the accurate delivery of each data packet in the second network downlink data to the corresponding terminal.

[0079] In one optional embodiment of this disclosure, the threshold can be preset according to actual needs, and the thresholds for different networks can be the same or different.

[0080] In one optional embodiment of this disclosure, the threshold can be the smaller of a preset value corresponding to the network and the peak rate of the network. The preset value can be pre-set according to requirements, and the preset values ​​for different networks can be the same or different. The peak rate of the network can be estimated based on the current channel quality of the network. That is, in the above embodiment, the threshold for the first network is the smaller of the preset value corresponding to the first network and the first peak rate. By taking the threshold as the smaller of the preset value and the peak rate, traffic can be distributed even when there are many networks, minimizing network congestion and improving the user's internet experience.

[0081] In one alternative embodiment of this disclosure, such as Figure 4 As shown, based on the foregoing embodiments, the base station data transmission method of this disclosure may further include the following steps:

[0082] Step 301: If the downlink data does not exceed the threshold, obtain the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network.

[0083] In this embodiment of the disclosure, if the acquired downlink data does not exceed the threshold, the base station further acquires the latency of the first network (referred to as the first latency for ease of description and distinction) and the latency of the second network (referred to as the second latency for ease of description and distinction).

[0084] This disclosure does not limit the method for monitoring latency; commonly used latency monitoring methods can be used to obtain the latency corresponding to the first and second networks respectively. For example, for cellular wireless communication networks, the latency can be determined by the time difference between data transmission and acknowledgment at the Radio Link Control (RLC) layer. For WLAN networks, Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) messages can be constructed and sent to the terminal, and the latency can be determined by the ICMP response messages.

[0085] Step 302: Based on the first delay and the second delay, determine the target network with the smaller delay from the first network and the second network.

[0086] In this embodiment of the disclosure, after obtaining the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network, the first latency and the second latency can be compared, and the smaller value can be determined. The network corresponding to the smaller value is then identified as the target network. If the first latency is less than the second latency, the first network is identified as the target network; if the first latency is greater than the second latency, the second network is identified as the target network; if the first latency is equal to the second latency, the first network is identified as the target network, allowing downlink data to be transmitted along the original path.

[0087] Step 303: Transmit downlink data to the terminal through the target network.

[0088] In this embodiment of the disclosure, once the target network is determined, downlink data can be transmitted to the terminal through the target network.

[0089] The base station data transmission method of this embodiment obtains the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network when the downlink data does not exceed the threshold, and determines the target network with the smaller latency from the first network and the second network based on the first latency and the second latency, and then transmits the downlink data to the terminal through the target network, thereby reducing the latency of data transmission and improving the user's Internet experience.

[0090] In one optional embodiment of this disclosure, when the downlink data does not exceed the threshold, before obtaining the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network, it can be determined whether the low latency network function is enabled.

[0091] The low-latency network function is configurable. When using a base station, users can configure it in advance according to their own needs, choosing to enable or disable the low-latency network function. When the user enables the function, the base station will select a network with lower latency to transmit data. When the user disables the function, the base station will transmit data according to the original path.

[0092] In this embodiment of the disclosure, if the acquired downlink data does not exceed the threshold, the system further detects whether the low-latency network function of the base station is enabled. If enabled, the base station further acquires the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network, and selects the target network with the smaller latency to transmit downlink data to the terminal based on the two latency. If the low-latency network function of the base station is not enabled, the system directly transmits downlink data to the terminal through the first network.

[0093] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating a base station data transmission method provided in a specific embodiment of this disclosure, as shown below. Figure 5As shown, in step 401, the downlink data received by the base station through the first network is cached in the receive buffer queue of the first network, awaiting processing. When the data transmission opportunity arrives, step 402 is executed to determine whether the downlink data cached in the receive buffer queue of the first network exceeds a threshold. The threshold is the smaller of a pre-configured preset value and the peak rate of the first network. If the threshold is exceeded, step 403 is executed; otherwise, step 405 is executed. In step 403, the base station proportionally distributes downlink data according to the first weight of the first network and the second weight of the second network, obtaining downlink data for the first network and downlink data for the second network. Based on the stored internal entities associated with the IP addresses, the base station distributes the downlink data to the cellular wireless communication network module and the WLAN communication network module for data transmission. Specifically, when the first network is a WLAN network, data packets transmitted via the WLAN network are directly transmitted to the WLAN communication network module. Data packets transmitted via the cellular wireless communication network are distributed to the PDCP layer buffer queue of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack through an internal queue, based on the stored relationship between the IP address and the internal entity, for air interface data transmission through the cellular wireless communication network module. Similarly, when the first network is a cellular wireless communication network, data packets transmitted via the cellular wireless communication network are directly transmitted to the cellular wireless communication network module. Data packets transmitted via the WLAN network are distributed to the WLAN communication network module through an internal queue, based on the stored relationship between the IP address and the internal entity, for air interface data transmission through the WLAN network. In step 404, the cellular wireless communication network module and the WLAN communication network module transmit the distributed data respectively. In step 405, it is checked whether the network with lower latency is configured for transmission. If yes, i.e., the network with lower latency is configured for transmission, then step 406 is executed; otherwise, step 407 is executed. In step 406, based on the latency of the first network and the second network, the target network with lower latency is selected to transmit downlink data. In step 407, downlink data is transmitted through the first network.

[0094] The solution disclosed herein is designed for data transmission in scenarios where cellular wireless communication networks and WLAN networks are co-located. It makes full use of the bandwidth of both networks, improves the aggregation rate of air interface transmission (achieving the effect of superimposing the peak rates of WLAN and cellular wireless communication networks), reduces transmission latency, and enhances user experience.

[0095] To implement the above embodiments, this disclosure also provides a data transmission device, which can be implemented in software and / or hardware and can be integrated into a base station, wherein the base station is a home-level base station that simultaneously supports WLAN networks and cellular wireless communication networks.

[0096] Figure 6This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a data transmission device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure, as shown below. Figure 6 As shown, the data transmission device 50 may include: a data acquisition module 510, a determination module 520, and a transmission module 530.

[0097] Among them, the data acquisition module 510 is used to acquire downlink data cached in the receive buffer queue of the first network;

[0098] The determination module 520 is used to split the downlink data if the downlink data exceeds a threshold, and determine the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data.

[0099] The transmission module 530 is used to transmit downlink data from the first network to the terminal through the first network, and to transmit downlink data from the second network to the terminal through the second network; wherein the first network and the second network are both WLAN networks and cellular wireless communication networks, and the first network and the second network are different networks.

[0100] Optionally, the determining module 520 is also used for:

[0101] Monitor the first channel quality of the first network and the second channel quality of the second network;

[0102] The first peak rate of the first network in the current environment is determined based on the first channel quality, and the second peak rate of the second network in the current environment is determined based on the second channel quality.

[0103] Based on the first peak rate and the second peak rate, determine the first weight corresponding to the first network and the second weight corresponding to the second network;

[0104] The downlink data is split based on the first weight and the second weight to obtain the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data.

[0105] Further optionally, the threshold is the smaller of a preset value corresponding to the first network and the first peak rate.

[0106] Optionally, the data transmission device 50 further includes:

[0107] The IP acquisition module is used to acquire the first IP address of the first network and the second IP address of the second network assigned to the terminal;

[0108] The association module is used to associate the first IP and the second IP with the internal entities of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack of the terminal based on the identity identifier of the terminal, so as to obtain the association relationship between the terminal and the first IP and the second IP.

[0109] Further optionally, the first network is a WLAN network, the second network is a cellular wireless communication network, and the transmission module 530 is also used for:

[0110] Obtain the WLAN network IP carried in the second network downlink data;

[0111] Based on the association relationship of the WLAN network IP, determine the target terminal associated with the WLAN network IP;

[0112] The second network downlink data is sent to the PDCP layer buffer queue of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack corresponding to the target terminal, so as to transmit the second network downlink data to the target terminal through the cellular wireless communication network.

[0113] Optionally, the first network is a cellular wireless communication network, the second network is a WLAN network, and the transmission module 530 is also used for:

[0114] Obtain the cellular network IP carried by the second network downlink data from the second network downlink data;

[0115] Based on the association relationship of the cellular network IP, determine the target WLAN network IP associated with the cellular network IP;

[0116] The second network downlink data is transmitted to the terminal via the target WLAN network IP.

[0117] Optionally, the data transmission device 50 further includes:

[0118] The latency acquisition module is used to acquire the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network if the downlink data does not exceed the threshold.

[0119] The network selection module is used to determine the target network with a smaller latency from the first network and the second network based on the first latency and the second latency;

[0120] The transmission module 530 is also used to transmit downlink data to the terminal via the target network.

[0121] Further optionally, the data transmission device 50 further includes: a judgment module, used to determine whether the low-latency network function is enabled before acquiring the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network.

[0122] The data transmission apparatus applicable to base stations provided in this disclosure can execute the data transmission method provided in this disclosure, and has the corresponding functional modules and beneficial effects for executing the method. Content not described in detail in the apparatus embodiments of this disclosure can be referred to the description in any method embodiment of this disclosure.

[0123] This disclosure also provides a base station, including a processor and a memory; the processor executes the steps of the data transmission method described in the foregoing embodiments by calling programs or instructions stored in the memory. To avoid repetition, these steps will not be repeated here.

[0124] This disclosure also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions. When executed by a processor, the computer-executable instructions implement the steps of the data transmission method described in the foregoing embodiments. To avoid repetition, these steps will not be repeated here.

[0125] This disclosure also provides a computer program product, including a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the data transmission method described in the foregoing embodiments. To avoid repetition, these steps will not be repeated here.

[0126] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used merely to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0127] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this disclosure, enabling those skilled in the art to understand or implement it. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of this disclosure. Therefore, this disclosure is not to be limited to the embodiments described herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

[0128] Furthermore, while the operations are described in a specific order, this should not be construed as requiring these operations to be performed in the specific order shown or in a sequential order. In certain environments, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, while several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure. Certain features described in the context of individual embodiments may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented individually or in any suitable sub-combination in multiple embodiments.

[0129] Although the subject matter has been described using language specific to structural features and / or methodological logic, it should be understood that the subject matter defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or actions described above. Rather, the specific features and actions described above are merely illustrative examples of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A data transmission method applied to a base station, characterized in that, The base station supports both WLAN and cellular wireless communication networks and includes a backhaul data receiving module, a traffic splitting module, and a link monitoring module. The backhaul data receiving module is used to receive backhauled data and includes two queues: a WLAN network receiving buffer queue and a cellular wireless communication network receiving buffer queue. These queues are used to buffer downlink data received by the base station from the corresponding network and wait for processing. The splitting module is used to distribute data from the return data receiving module; The link monitoring module is used to monitor the network quality of cellular wireless communication networks and WLAN communication networks in real time; the method includes: Obtain the downlink data buffered in the receive buffer queue of the first network; If the downlink data exceeds the threshold, the downlink data will be split to determine the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data; The first network downlink data is transmitted to the terminal through the first network, and the second network downlink data is transmitted to the terminal through the second network. Wherein, the first network is a WLAN network, the second network is a cellular wireless communication network, and the step of transmitting downlink data from the second network to the terminal via the second network includes: Obtain the WLAN network IP carried in the second network downlink data; Based on the WLAN network IP query association relationship, the target terminal associated with the WLAN network IP is determined, wherein the association relationship is obtained by associating the first IP of the first network and the second IP of the second network corresponding to the terminal with the internal entity of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack of the terminal; The second network downlink data is sent to the PDCP layer buffer queue of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack corresponding to the target terminal, so as to transmit the second network downlink data to the target terminal through the cellular wireless communication network.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of splitting the downlink data to determine the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data includes: Monitor the first channel quality of the first network and the second channel quality of the second network; The first peak rate of the first network in the current environment is determined based on the first channel quality, and the second peak rate of the second network in the current environment is determined based on the second channel quality. Based on the first peak rate and the second peak rate, determine the first weight corresponding to the first network and the second weight corresponding to the second network; The downlink data is split based on the first weight and the second weight to obtain the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The method further includes: Obtain the first IP address of the first network and the second IP address of the second network assigned to the terminal; Based on the terminal's identity identifier, the first IP, the second IP, and the internal entities of the terminal's cellular wireless communication network protocol stack are associated to obtain the association relationship between the terminal and the first IP and the second IP.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The threshold is the smaller of the preset value corresponding to the first network and the first peak rate.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The method further includes: If the downlink data does not exceed the threshold, obtain the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network; Based on the first delay and the second delay, the target network with the smaller delay is determined from the first network and the second network; The downlink data is transmitted to the terminal through the target network.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, Before obtaining the first latency of the first network and the second latency of the second network, the method further includes: determining whether the low-latency network function is enabled.

7. A data transmission device, applied to a base station, characterized in that, The base station supports both WLAN and cellular wireless communication networks and includes a backhaul data receiving module, a traffic splitting module, and a link monitoring module. The backhaul data receiving module is used to receive backhauled data and includes two queues: a WLAN network receiving buffer queue and a cellular wireless communication network receiving buffer queue. These queues are used to buffer downlink data received by the base station from the corresponding network and wait for processing. The splitting module is used to distribute data from the return data receiving module; The link monitoring module is used to monitor the network quality of cellular wireless communication networks and WLAN communication networks in real time. The device includes: The data acquisition module is used to acquire downlink data cached in the receive buffer queue of the first network; The determination module is used to split the downlink data if the downlink data exceeds a threshold, and determine the first network downlink data and the second network downlink data; The transmission module is used to transmit downlink data from the first network to the terminal through the first network, and to transmit downlink data from the second network to the terminal through the second network. Wherein, the first network is a WLAN network, the second network is a cellular wireless communication network, and the transmission module is further configured to: Obtain the WLAN network IP carried in the second network downlink data; Based on the WLAN network IP query association relationship, the target terminal associated with the WLAN network IP is determined, wherein the association relationship is obtained by associating the first IP of the first network and the second IP of the second network corresponding to the terminal with the internal entity of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack of the terminal; The second network downlink data is sent to the PDCP layer buffer queue of the cellular wireless communication network protocol stack corresponding to the target terminal, so as to transmit the second network downlink data to the target terminal through the cellular wireless communication network.

8. A base station, characterized in that, Including processor and memory; The processor executes the data transmission method as described in any one of claims 1-6 by calling the program or instructions stored in the memory.

9. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a processor, implement the data transmission method as described in any one of claims 1-6.

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