Configuration based on discard of protocol data unit set importance (PSI)

Abstract

In one embodiment, a method includes sending, by a network device, a first command to a user equipment (UE) based on a first condition to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI)-based discard at the UE, where the PSI-based discard includes discarding a protocol data unit (PDU) set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI criterion, and wherein the set of PDUs comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; and sending, by the network apparatus, a second command to the UE based on a second condition to cancel the PSI-based discard at the UE.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Various example embodiments relate generally to wireless networks, and more particularly to configuring protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding. Background Art

[0002] Wireless networks provide significant advantages for user mobility. The ability of users to stay connected while on the move provides advantages not only to the users, but also to society as a whole for greater efficiency and productivity. As user expectations for, for example, extended reality (XR) services, quality of user experience (QoE), and high traffic handling become more demanding, the technology used for wireless networking must also keep pace with such expectations. Therefore, there is a continued interest in improving wireless networking technology. Summary of the invention

[0003] According to various aspects of the present disclosure, a method includes: sending, by a network device, a first command to a user equipment (UE) based on a first condition to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI)-based discarding at the UE, wherein the PSI-based discarding includes discarding a protocol data unit (PDU) set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI standard, and wherein the PDU set includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of an information unit at an application level; and sending, by the network device, a second command to the UE based on a second condition to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE.

[0004] In one aspect of the method, the payload in the set of PDUs used for PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application.

[0005] In an aspect of the method, sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding includes sending, by the network device to the UE, a control PDU including a flag value indicating the second command.

[0006] In one aspect of the method, the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0007] In one aspect of the method, the control PDU also includes a timer value indicating a duration for which PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0008] In one aspect of the apparatus, sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding includes sending, by the network apparatus to the UE, a control PDU including a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command to cancel PSI-based discarding.

[0009] In an aspect of the method, sending the second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding includes sending, by the network device to the UE, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command.

[0010] In one aspect of the method, the first command includes an indication of a PSI criterion including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration during which PSI-based discarding is to be activated.

[0011] In one aspect of the method, the second command also covers the duration that the PSI based discarding is activated.

[0012] According to various aspects of the present disclosure, a method includes: receiving, by a user equipment (UE), a first command to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI)-based discarding at the UE; discarding, by the UE in response to the first command, a first protocol data unit (PDU) set based at least on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI standard, wherein the first PDU set includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of an information unit at an application level; receiving, by the UE, a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE; and sending, by the UE in response to the second command, a second PDU set without regard to whether the PSI level of the second PDU set satisfies the PSI standard.

[0013] In one aspect of the method, the payload in the discarded first set of PDUs is associated with an extended reality application.

[0014] In an aspect of the method, receiving a second command to cancel PSI based discarding includes receiving, by the UE, a control PDU including a flag value indicating the second command.

[0015] In one aspect of the method, the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0016] In one aspect of the method, the control PDU also includes a timer value indicating a duration for which PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0017] In an aspect of the method, receiving a second command to cancel PSI based discarding includes receiving, by the UE, a control PDU including a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command to cancel PSI based discarding.

[0018] In an aspect of the method, receiving a second command to cancel PSI based discarding includes receiving, by the UE, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command.

[0019] In aspects of the method, receiving a second command to cancel PSI based discarding includes receiving, by the UE, an indication of a PSI criterion and an indication of a duration, the indication of the PSI criterion including a threshold PSI during which the PSI based discarding is to be activated.

[0020] According to some aspects, the subject matter of the independent claims is provided. Some further aspects are defined in the dependent claims. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0022] Figure 1 is a diagram of an example embodiment of wireless networking between a network system and a user equipment (UE) according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure;

[0023] Figure 2 is a diagram of an example packet transmission method with protocol data unit set importance (PSI) information according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 3 is a diagram of an example embodiment of operations for packet transmission with PSI-based discard configuration according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure;

[0025] Figure 4 is an example data packet including an indication of a PSI-based discard cancellation according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure;

[0026] Figure 5 is an example data packet including an indication of a PSI-based discard cancellation according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure;

[0027] Figure 6 is an example data packet including an indication of a PSI-based discard cancellation according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure;

[0028] Figure 7 is a flow chart of example operations of a network device controlling PSI-based discarding of uplink transmissions (UL) at a UE according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure;

[0029] Figure 8 is a flow chart of example operations of a UE performing UL transmissions with PSI-based dropping controlled by the network according to one illustrated aspect of the present disclosure; and

[0030] Fig. 9 is a diagram of an example embodiment of components of a UE or network device according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] In the following description, certain specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the disclosed aspects. However, one skilled in the relevant art will recognize that the aspects may be practiced without one or more of these specific details, or with other methods, components, materials, etc. In other instances, well-known structures associated with transmitters, receivers, or transceivers are not shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the aspects.

[0032] Reference throughout this specification to "an aspect" or "an aspect" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in conjunction with that aspect is included in at least one aspect. Thus, the phrases "in one aspect" or "in an aspect" appearing in various places throughout this specification are not necessarily all referring to the same aspect. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more aspects.

[0033] The embodiments described in the present disclosure may be implemented in wireless networking devices, such as but not limited to devices utilizing Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM, 2G), GSM EDGE Radio Access Network (GERAN), General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS, 3G) based on basic Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA), High Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Advanced LTE, Enhanced LTE (eLTE), 5G New Radio (5G NR), Advanced 5G, 6G (and above) and 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6), and other wireless connectivity systems. Here, the term 'eLTE' means LTE evolution connected to a 5G core. LTE is also known as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (EUTRA) or Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (EUTRAN).

[0034] Recent advances in wireless communication technology (such as 5G NR) can provide fast connection speeds, high bandwidth, and ultra-reliable, low-latency communications. These advances can enable a wide variety of applications and / or services.

[0035] The terms "service" and "application" may be used interchangeably herein such that a description referencing one of these terms will be considered as if the description also refers to the other term.

[0036] Certain services, such as extended reality (XR) applications, video streaming, and cloud-based gaming, may have special traffic characteristics that are different from traditional applications. For example, an information unit at the application level (e.g., a video frame or a video fragment from an encoder) may be carried in a set of protocol data units (PDUs), which may be referred to as a PDU set. On the receiver side, the entire PDU set may be required by an application (e.g., a decoder) to use the corresponding information unit. Therefore, if one or more PDUs in a PDU set cannot be successfully sent by a transmitter and received by a corresponding receiver, the entire PDU set may not be used by the corresponding application on the receiver side. Thus, in some scenarios (e.g., during traffic congestion), when it is known that one PDU in a set is lost or cannot be sent (e.g., within a certain amount of time), it may be beneficial to discard the remaining PDUs in the PDU set at the transmitter to free up (multiple) radio resources for other transmissions.

[0037] Another special traffic characteristic of these services is that one PDU set may have a higher importance level than another PDU set at the application level. For example, a media streaming application may generate data or information in units of I frames, B frames, and P frames, where each of these frames may correspond to a PDU set. An I frame is a reference frame (a separate complete frame). A P frame may carry changes from a previous frame. A B frame may carry changes between a current frame and a previous frame and / or changes between a current frame and a subsequent frame. Since a P frame or a B frame may rely on a reference frame (I frame) for decoding, a PDU set corresponding to an I frame may be more important than a PDU set corresponding to a P frame or a B frame.

[0038] Thus, it may be desirable to increase traffic characteristics awareness (e.g., XR awareness) on the transmitter side to enhance capacity. Such awareness may be achieved via several traffic assistance information elements. One of the traffic assistance information elements may be a PDU set importance (PSI) that may be used to discard (multiple) PDU sets (e.g., XR data packets) under certain network conditions (e.g., in the case of traffic congestion). The PSI may identify the relative importance of a PDU set compared to other PDU sets within a quality of service (QoS) flow. That is, different PDU sets in a QoS flow may have different PSIs.

[0039] In some examples, PDU set-based QoS processing in the downlink (DL) direction can be performed as defined in Section 5.37.5.2 of the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) TS 23.501 v18.2.2 (2023-07) ("TS23.501 document"), which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. For example, a PDU Session Anchor (PSA) User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., at a core network) may identify PDUs belonging to a PDU set and determine PDU set information for each PDU set. The PDU set information may include, for example, but not limited to, a PDU set sequence number, an indication of the end PDU of the corresponding PDU set, a PDU sequence number within the PDU set, a PDU set size in bytes, and a PSI. In some instances, the PSA UPF may send the PDU set and the corresponding PDU set information together to a corresponding next generation radio access network (NG-RAN). For example, the PSAUPF may send PDU aggregation to the NG-RAN using the General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol (GTP), and may include the PDU aggregation information in the GTP-User Plane (GTPU) header. In some instances, the NG-RAN may use priority levels across QoS flows and PSI within a QoS flow for PDU aggregation level packet discard, for example, in the presence of congestion. For example, as defined in Section 5.7.3.3 of the TS 23.501 document, the priority associated with a QoS flow may indicate a priority for scheduling resources between QoS flows and may be used to distinguish QoS flows of the same UE and / or from different UEs.

[0040] In some examples, in addition to considering the PSI within a QoS flow, the NG-RAN may also consider the relative PSI across QoS flows of the same priority level when determining which set of PDUs needs to be discarded, which may depend on the operator's implementation and configuration.

[0041] In some examples, the PDU set information may be different for different PDU sets within a QoS flow.

[0042] In some examples, the NG-RAN may perform a discard operation based on a PDU set. For example, when PDU set integrated handling information (PSIHI) is set for a QoS flow, once one PDU in a known PDU set is lost, the remaining PDUs in the PDU set may be considered no longer needed by the application and may be subjected to a discard operation at the transmitter to release (multiple) radio resources. However, in some instances where forward error correction (FEC) is applied, when a sufficiently large number of PDUs have been sent and the FEC performs recovery in the absence of remaining PDUs, the active discard of PDUs may trigger an increase in FEC packets.

[0043] In some examples, PDU set based discarding is also beneficial for transmission in the uplink (UL) direction. For example, the UE may be configured with a PDU set based discarding operation for a specific data radio bearer (DRB). When configured, when a PDU belonging to the PDU set is discarded, the UE may discard all packets (PDUs) in the PDU set, for example based on the expiration of a discard timer.

[0044] In some scenarios (e.g., during traffic congestion), it may be desirable to further perform PDU set-based discarding based on the corresponding PSI level of the PDU set. For example, the transmitter may discard (multiple) PDU sets with lower importance and continue to send (multiple) PDU sets with higher importance.

[0045] As used herein, the term “PSI-based discarding” may refer to discarding a PDU set based on the PSI level of a corresponding PDU set.

[0046] In some examples, PSI-based discarding may be performed on the network side and the UE side. Because network conditions and / or traffic conditions may change dynamically, and in some scenarios, the UE may not be aware of the network and / or traffic conditions, it may be desirable for the network to dynamically activate and deactivate PSI-based discarding at the UE based on the network and / or traffic conditions.

[0047] Aspects of the present disclosure relate to configuring a PSI-based discard configuration at a UE. On the one hand, a network device (e.g., a network node in a RAN) may send a first command to a UE based on a first condition to activate PSI-based discard at the UE. PSI-based discarding includes discarding a PDU set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI standard (e.g., a PSI threshold). The PDU set includes one or more PDUs that carry a payload of an information unit at an application level. In some instances, the payload in the PDU set for PSI-based discarding is associated with an XR application. The network device may send a second command to the UE (e.g., at a later time) based on a second condition to cancel PSI-based discarding at the UE. In an example, the first network condition may be a congestion condition, and the second network condition may be a non-congestion condition.

[0048] The network device may send the second command in various ways. In one aspect, as part of sending the second command, the network device may send a control PDU including a flag value (e.g., a one-bit value) indicating the second command. In some instances, the control PDU may be a designated control PDU dedicated to PSI-based discard cancellation. In some instances, the control PDU may also include a timer value indicating the duration for which the PSI-based discard will be canceled. On the other hand, as part of sending the second command, the network device may send a control PDU including a threshold PSI value set to the highest allowable PSI value to serve as a second command to cancel the PSI-based discard. In various aspects, as part of sending the second command, the network device may send a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command. In various aspects, the network device may send the first command and the second command to the UE in the same communication.

[0049] In various aspects, in response to a first command (PSI-based discard activation), the UE may discard a first set of PDUs based on the PSI level of the PDUs satisfying the PSI criteria. In response to a second command (PSI-based discard cancellation), the UE may send a second set of PDUs without regard to the second set of PDUs satisfying the PSI criteria. Sending the second set of PDUs may involve the PDCP entity of the UE submitting the second set of PDUs to a lower layer (e.g., a radio link control (RLC) entity of the UE).

[0050] In various aspects, the network device may also send a PDU set discard timer value, for example, via radio resource control (RRC) signaling. The PDU set discard timer value may specify a duration for configuring a PDU set discard timer, which the UE (e.g., a PDCP entity of the UE) may start upon receiving a PDU set from the application layer, and upon expiration of the PDU set discard timer, the UE may discard the received PDU set.

[0051] In various aspects, as part of sending a first command, the network device may send a control PDU that includes an indication of an activation duration, during which the UE's PSI-based discarding will be activated, and the control PDU includes an indication of a PSI standard (e.g., it includes a threshold PSI for PSI-based discarding). In various aspects, the second command (PSI-based discard cancellation) may cover the activation duration. For example, the network device may send a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE before the end of the activation duration. On the other hand, as part of sending a first command and a second command to the UE in the same communication, the network device may send a control PDU that includes an indication of the PSI standard and an indication of the activation duration, during which the UE's PSI-based discarding will be activated, wherein the start of the activation duration may be used as the first command, and the end of the activation duration may be used as the second command. Such and other aspects will be described in more detail later in this document.

[0052] Aspects of the present disclosure may enable the network to control when PSI-based discarding is canceled at the UE. Such cancellation behavior may be important because it manages whether the UE can keep discarding certain sets of PDUs based on their corresponding PSI values ​​or return to a non-discarding state based on the PSI criteria. For example, it may be undesirable for the UE to continue PSI-based discarding when the network has changed conditions (e.g., less congestion) and is able to support UE transmissions because PSI-based discarding may unnecessarily reduce the user's QoE (e.g., for XR services). Thus, having dynamic PSI-based discard activation and cancellation may improve the user's QoE (e.g., for XR services).

[0053] The present disclosure may use the term "serving network device" to refer to a network node or network device (or a portion thereof) that serves a UE. As used herein, the terms "send to," "receive from," and "cooperate with" (and their variants) include communications that may or may not involve communications through one or more intermediate devices or nodes. The term "acquire" (and its variants) includes acquiring in a first instance or reacquiring after a first instance. The term "connect" may refer to a physical connection or a logical connection.

[0054] The present disclosure uses 5G NR as an example of a wireless network, and may use a smartphone and / or an extended reality headset as an example of a UE. It is intended and should be understood that such examples are merely illustrative, and the present disclosure may be applied to other wireless networks and user equipment.

[0055] Figure 11 is a diagram depicting an example of wireless networking between a network system 100 and a user equipment (UE) 150. The network system 100 may include one or more network nodes 120, one or more servers 110, and / or one or more network devices 130 (e.g., test equipment). The network node 120 will be described in more detail below. As used herein, the term "network device" may refer to any component of the network system 100, such as a server 110, a network node 120, a network device 130, any (multiple) components of the aforementioned components, and / or any other (multiple) components of the network system 100. Examples of network devices include, but are not limited to, devices that implement aspects of 5GNR, etc. The present disclosure describes embodiments related to 5G NR and embodiments involving aspects defined by 3GPP. However, it is contemplated that embodiments involving other wireless networking technologies are included within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0056] The following description provides further details of an example of a network node. In a 5G NR network, a gNodeB (also referred to as a gNB) may include, for example, a node that provides NR user plane and control plane protocol termination to a UE and is connected to a 5G Core (5GC) via an NG interface, for example, in accordance with 3GPP TS 38.300 V16.6.0 (2021-06) Section 3.2, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

[0057] The gNB supports various protocol layers, e.g., Layer 1 (L1) - physical layer, Layer 2 (L2), and Layer 3 (L3).

[0058] NR's Layer 2 (L2) is divided into the following sublayers: Medium Access Control (MAC), RLC, Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), and Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), where, for example: oThe physical layer provides transport channels to the MAC sublayer; o The MAC sublayer provides logical channels to the RLC sublayer; o The RLC sublayer provides RLC channels to the PDCP sublayer; o The PDCP sublayer provides radio bearers to the SDAP sublayer; o The SDAP sublayer provides 5GC QoS flows; oControl channels include the Broadcast Control Channel (BCCH) and the Physical Control Channel (PCCH).

[0059] Layer 3 (L3) includes, for example, Radio Resource Control (RRC), for example, according to 3GPP TS 38.300 V16.6.0 (2021-06) Section 6, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference.

[0060] The gNB Central Unit (gNB-CU) includes, for example, a host of logical nodes, such as the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) protocols of a gNB, or the RRC and PDCP protocols of an en-gNB, which controls the operation of one or more gNB Distributed Units (gNB-DUs). The gNB-CU terminates the F1 interface with the gNB-DU. The gNB-CU may also be referred to herein as a CU, a central unit, a centralized unit, or a control unit.

[0061] The gNB distributed unit (gNB-DU) includes, for example, the radio link control (RLC), media access control (MAC), and physical (PHY) layers of a logical node host, such as a gNB or en-gNB, and its operation is partially controlled by the gNB-CU. One gNB-DU supports one or more cells. A cell is supported by only one gNB-DU. The gNB-DU terminates the F1 interface connected to the gNB-CU. The gNB-DU may also be referred to as a DU or distributed unit in this article.

[0062] As used herein, the term "network node" may refer to any one of a gNB, a gNB-CU or a gNB-DU or any combination thereof. A RAN (Radio Access Network) node or a network node (e.g., a gNB, a gNB-CU or a gNB-DU) or a portion thereof may be implemented using, for example, a device having at least a processor and / or at least a memory having processor-readable instructions ("programs") configured to support and / or provide and / or process CU and / or DU related functions and / or features, and / or at least a protocol (sub) layer of a RAN (Radio Access Network) (e.g., layer 2 and / or layer 3). Different functional splits between central units and distributed units are possible. The following will be combined with Fig. 9 Examples of such devices and components are described.

[0063] The gNB-CU and gNB-DU parts may be, for example, co-located or physically separated. The gNB-DU may be even further split, for example, into two parts, for example, one including a processing device and one including an antenna. The central unit (CU) may also be referred to as a baseband unit / radio equipment controller / cloud-RAN / virtual RAN (BBU / REC / C-RAN / V-RAN), an open RAN (O-RAN), or a portion thereof. The distributed unit (DU) may also be referred to as a remote radio head / remote radio unit / radio equipment / radio unit (RRH / RRU / RE / RU) or a portion thereof. Hereinafter, in various example embodiments of the present disclosure, a network node supporting at least one of a central unit function or a layer 3 protocol of a radio access network may be, for example, a gNB-CU. Similarly, a network node supporting at least one of a distributed unit function or a layer 2 protocol of a radio access network may be, for example, a gNB-DU.

[0064] A gNB-CU may support one or more gNB-DUs. A gNB-DU may support one or more cells and may therefore support a serving cell for a user equipment (UE), or a candidate cell for handover, dual connectivity and / or carrier aggregation, among other processes.

[0065] UE 150 may be or include a wireless or mobile device, a device having a radio interface interacting with a RAN (Radio Access Network), a smart phone, a vehicle-mounted device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, or an M2M device, as well as other types of user equipment. Such a UE 150 may include: at least one processor; and at least one memory including program code; wherein the at least one memory and the computer program code are configured to, together with the at least one processor, cause the device to at least perform certain operations, such as an RRC connection to the RAN. Fig. 9 An example of components of a UE is described. In an embodiment, the UE 150 may be configured to generate a message (e.g., including a cell ID) to be sent to the RAN via radio (e.g., to reach and communicate with a serving cell). In an embodiment, the UE 150 may generate and send and receive RRC messages containing one or more RRC PDUs (packet data units). Those skilled in the art will understand the RRC protocol and other processes that the UE may perform.

[0066] Continue to refer Figure 1In the example of a 5G NR network, the network system 100 provides one or more cells that define the coverage area of ​​the network system 100. As described above, the network system 100 may include a gNB of the 5G NR network, or may include any other device configured to control radio communications and manage radio resources within a cell. As used herein, the term "resource" may refer to a radio resource, such as a resource block (RB), a physical resource block (PRB), a radio frame, a subframe, a time slot, a subband, a frequency region, a subcarrier, a beam, etc. In an embodiment, the network node 120 may be referred to as a base station.

[0067] Figure 1 An example is provided and only the network system 100 and the UE 150 are described. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the network system 100 includes Figure 1 Components not shown in the figure, and it will be understood that other user devices may communicate with the network system 100.

[0068] Figure 2 1 is a diagram of an example packet transmission method with PSI information according to an illustrative aspect of the present disclosure. A 5G NR network may be described as an example of a network system 100, and it is intended that aspects described below should also be applicable to other types of network systems. In one aspect, the network system 100 may use Figure 2 The data packet transmission method shown. Unless otherwise specified, the terms "component", "function" and "service" are used interchangeably herein, and they may refer to instructions executed by one or more processors and implemented by these instructions.

[0069] Example functions of the components are described below. The example functions are merely illustrative, and it should be understood that additional operations and functions may be performed by the components described herein. Additionally, the connections between the components may be logical connections through service-based interfaces, such that any component may communicate with any other component. In this manner, any component may act as a service "producer" for any other component that is a service "consumer" in order to provide services to the network function.

[0070] like Figure 2As shown, the packet transmission method may include a UE 202, an access node (AN) 204 at a RAN of a network system, and a UPF 206 at a core network of the network system. For example, the UE 202 may correspond to the UE 150, the AN 204 may correspond to the network node 120, and the UPF 206 may be a component at the core network of the network system 100. As used herein and unless otherwise noted, the terms "network system", "network side", and "network" (when used alone) may include both RAN components and core network components, for example, both the AN 204 and the UPF 206. A PDU session 218 may be established between the UE 202 and the network (e.g., UPF 206) to provide an application (or service) 210 to the UE 202. In an example, the application 210 may be an XR application. In Figure 2 In the example shown, the PDU session 218 supports three QoS flows 216. However, a PDU session may support any suitable number of QoS flows (eg, 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, or more).

[0071] The application 210 may generate a PDU set 212. Each PDU set 212 may include one or more PDUs that carry a payload of one information unit at the application 210. The application 210 may have a part on the network side (e.g., a server application) and another part on the UE side (e.g., a client application) (where the server application and the client application may communicate with each other via the UPF 206, the AN 204, and the UE 202 in the network system). On the network side, the application 210 may send the PDU set 212 to the UPF 206 for transmission to the UE 202 in the DL direction. On the UE side, the application 210 may configure the PDU set 212 for the UE 202 to be transmitted to the network (e.g., the AN 204 and the UPF 206) in the UL direction.

[0072] In the DL direction, the UPF 206 may apply a packet detection rule (PDR) 232 to classify the incoming DL PDU sets 212 (from the server application 210) of the QoS flow 216. Each QoS flow 216 may be identified by a QoS flow identifier (QFI). In an example, the classification may include encapsulating or marking the DL PDU sets 212 with the corresponding QFI. In addition, the UPF 206 may include a PDU set information generation and insertion component 230. The PDU set information generation and insertion component 230 may generate PDU set information for each DL PDU set 212. The PDU set information may include, for example, but not limited to, a PDU set sequence number, an indication of the end PDU of the corresponding PDU set, a PDU sequence number within the PDU set, a PDU set size in bytes, and a PSI. As an example, the PDU set information may indicate that the kth PDU set 212 includes PDUs with sequence numbers 1 to 10, with a size of B1 bytes and a PSI value of P1, the (k+1)th PDU set includes PDUs with sequence numbers 11 to 20, with a size of B2 bytes and a PSI value of P2, etc. In an example, a higher PSI value may indicate a lower PDU set importance level than a lower PSI value (and vice versa). The UPF 206 may send the DL PDU set 212 to the AN 204 using GTP, and may include the PDU set information in the corresponding GPT-U header.

[0073] like Figure 2 As further shown, QoS flow 216 may carry PDU sets of different PSI levels, including, for example, low-PSI PDU set(s) 240 , medium-PSI PDU set(s) 242 , and high-PSI PDU set(s) 244 .

[0074] AN 204 may map QoS flow 216 to AN resource(s) (eg, DL radio resource(s)). That is, AN 204 may allocate or schedule AN resource(s) for transmitting DLPDU set 212 in QoS flow 216 to UE 202.

[0075] In a similar manner, in the UL direction, the UE may apply QoS rules 214 to classify incoming UL PDU sets 212 (from the client application 210) of a QoS flow 216, such as by encapsulating or marking the UL PDU sets 212 with corresponding QFIs. Additionally, the UE 202 may include a PDU set information generation and insertion component 220 substantially similar to the PDU set information generation and insertion component 230 at the UPF 206. The PDU set information generation and insertion component 220 may generate PDU set information for each UL PDU set 212. The UE 202 may also map the QoS flow 216 to AN resources (e.g., UL radio resources (multiple)) for transmission to the AN 204.

[0076] In some instances, under certain network conditions (e.g., congestion), the AN 204 may be configured to perform PSI-based discarding, where a set of DL PDUs is discarded based on the PSI level of the set of PDUs satisfying a PSI criterion (e.g., a PSI threshold). As an example, the gNB may discard a set of PDUs having a PSI value above a PSI threshold when a higher PSI value indicates a lower PSI level. The gNB may further discard the set of PDUs based on the expiration of a PDU discard timer associated with the set of PDUs.

[0077] In some examples, in the UL direction, the UE 202 may be configured with a PDU set-based discard operation for a specific DRB. When the UE 202 is configured with such a configuration, when a PDU belonging to the PDU set is discarded, for example, based on the expiration of a discard timer, the UE may discard all packets (or PDUs) in the PDU set. Further, under certain network conditions (e.g., congestion), the UE 202 may be configured to perform PSI-based discarding, where a PDU set will be discarded based on the PSI level of the PDU set meeting the PSI criteria.

[0078] Figure 2 These are merely examples of components of a transmission model, and variations are contemplated as being within the scope of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, a network system may include Figure 2 Other components not shown in the figure. In an embodiment, the network system may not include Figure 2 In an embodiment, components and connections can be made using Figure 2 Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0079] There are multiple ways to configure a UE (eg, UE 150 or UE 202) to perform PSI-based discarding in the UL direction. Example options for configuring a UE to perform PSI-based discarding in the UL direction are described below.

[0080] In a first option, the DRB may be configured to have two "discard states" corresponding to a congested situation or condition and a non-congested situation or condition. That is, the DRB may switch between two discard states, such as switching between state 1 and state 2. The discard state may indicate whether the UE has different discard treatments for PDU sets (e.g., PDU set 212) with different PSIs on the DRB. As an example, in state 1, the UE does not discard any PDU sets regardless of their PSIs, and in state 2, the UE discards unimportant PDU sets but continues to transmit all important PDU sets. As another example, in state 1, the UE is configured to use the same discard timer value for all PDU sets (including important and non-important PDU sets), and in state 2, the UE is configured with different discard timer values ​​for important and non-important PDU sets. The discard timer value may indicate the duration that the UE may keep the PDU set in its (multiple) buffers before transmission. For example, when the PDCP entity of the UE receives the PDU set from the application layer (e.g., application 210), the UE may start a timer with the duration set to a specified discard timer value. If the UE fails to send the PDU set when the timer expires (eg, due to congestion), the UE may discard the PDU set.

[0081] In the second option, the UE may be configured to have different discard timer values ​​for PDU sets associated with different PSIs. For example, a PDU set with a higher PSI value may also have a longer discard timer value configured than a PDU set with a lower PSI value. That is, the UE may allow a PDU set with a lower PSI value (higher importance) to have a greater transmission opportunity. However, in an embodiment, different discard timer values ​​for PSIs may only be applicable when congestion is encountered. In an embodiment, when the congestion state changes dynamically, the method of using different discard timer values ​​for different PSIs may not be effective because there is a time delay from congestion indication to actual packet discard.

[0082] In a third option, the UE may be configured to perform PSI threshold-based discarding (regardless of discard timer expiration). In this option, the UE may be configured with a PSI threshold and may be configured to discard a set of lower priority PDUs based on the PSI threshold when congestion is encountered. For example, the UE may discard a set of PDUs having a higher PSI value than the PSI threshold (assuming that a higher PSI value indicates a lower PSI level). The discarding may be performed regardless of the associated discard timer running state to achieve early discarding of a less important set of PDUs in a congested situation. For example, when a congestion indication is received from a gNB (e.g., network node 120 or AN 204), the UE may immediately discard packets with low importance in its cache, and may therefore be more efficient than the second option when there is dynamic congestion in the network. The UE may keep discarding packets of low importance, regardless of the expiration of the discard timer, until the congestion ends.

[0083] In a fourth option, the gNB (e.g., the network node 120 or the AN 204) may control the PDU set discard at the UE. In the first sub-option, when congestion occurs, the gNB may temporarily adjust the PDCP discard timer length of the low PSIPDU set, for example, by setting the PDCP discard timer length to 0 (e.g., 0 milliseconds). As a result, when congestion occurs, the low PSIPDU set may be immediately discarded at the UE. In the second sub-option, the gNB may instruct the UE to discard the PDU set with a low PSI. When the value of the PDCP discard timer is set to 0 for the first sub-option, the results of the first sub-option and the second sub-option may be the same, but the first sub-option may allow the UE to largely reuse existing 3GPP procedures (e.g., the current 3GPP PDCP discard mechanism). On the other hand, the second sub-option may introduce new indicators (for UE discarding low PSIPDUs) and new UE behaviors to achieve the same results as the first sub-option. Furthermore, in case of the first sub-option, the gNB may have more flexibility, since the gNB does not have to set the discard timer to 0 (for immediate discard), but may use another value, e.g., a value shorter than the previous PDCP discard timer value. In this way, it may allow at least some low PSIPDU sets to be transmitted when there is a scheduled opportunity that can be used for transmission. Therefore, the first sub-option may be desirable due to its simplicity and flexibility.

[0084] As described above, it may be undesirable to have the UE continue with PSI-based discarding when the network has changed conditions (eg, less congested) and can support UE transmissions, as PSI-based discarding may unnecessarily degrade the user's QoE.

[0085] Example operations for configuring a PSI-based discard configuration, including dynamically activating and deactivating PSI-based discard at a UE, are described below. Figure 3 Example signals and operations of a network system for packet transmission with PSI-based drop configuration are shown. Figures 4 to 6 Various example packet formats for indicating PSI-based discard cancellation to a UE are shown. Figure 7 An example operation of a network device is shown, and Figure 8 Example operations of a UE are shown.

[0086] Figure 3 is a diagram of an example embodiment of operations for packet transmission with PSI-based drop configuration according to one illustrated aspect of the present disclosure. It will be understood that the described signals may have associated operations, and the described operations may have associated signals. Thus, the described signals may also involve operations, and the described operations may also involve signals. In addition, Figure 3 The signals between and operations performed by various network components will be described, such as Figure 3 Specifically, the components include UE 302 and gNB 304. In one aspect, UE 302 may correspond to Figure 1 UE 150, and gNB 304 may correspond to Figure 1 In one aspect, the UE 302 may correspond to a network node 120. Figure 2 UE 202 and gNB 304 may correspond to Figure 2 The network components are illustrative and it is contemplated that other components may be involved in the signaling or may perform operations. In some examples, each of the UE 302 and the gNB 304 may use a Fig. 9 One or more of the following operations may be implemented in conjunction with the operations of the present disclosure, such as those described above. Figure 2 Examples for discussion.

[0087] At operation 310, UE 302 and gNB 304 establish a PDU session for communication (e.g., PDU session 218). For example, gNB 304 may provide an application or service (e.g., an XR service) to UE 302 through the PDU session.

[0088] At operation 312, the gNB 304 sends, and the UE 302 receives, a PDU set discard timer value for PSI-based discarding. The PDU set discard timer value may indicate a duration. As will be discussed below, for PSI-based discarding, the UE 302 (e.g., a PDCP entity of the UE 302) may set a timer according to the PDU set discard timer value upon receiving a PDU set that meets the PSI criteria, and may discard the PDU set upon expiration of the timer. In some instances, the gNB 304 may send the PDU set discard timer value for PSI-based discarding via RRC signaling.

[0089] UE 302 may receive multiple PDU sets from an application. The application may generate PDU set information for each PDU set and send the PDU set information together with the multiple PDU sets to UE 302. UE 302 may read the PDU set information, map the PDU set to a QoS flow of a PDU session, and send the PDU set through the QoS flow, as described above with reference to Figure 2 The PDU set information may include, for example but not limited to, a PDU set sequence number, an indication of the end PDU of the corresponding PDU set, a PDU sequence number within the PDU set, a PDU set size in bytes, and a PSI of the corresponding PDU set.

[0090] At a high level, the UE 302 may switch between a normal state 305 and a PSI-based discarding state 306 based on control from the gNB 304. The UE 302 may begin operating in the normal state 305. The following operations and signals are discussed based on an example where a lower PSI value indicates a higher PSI level. However, in other examples, a lower PSI value may indicate a lower PSI level.

[0091] During normal state 305, UE 302 may transmit a set of PDUs regardless of the PSI level of the PDU sets. For example, at operation 314, UE 302 transmits and gNB 304 receives a first set of PDUs with a PSI value of 4. At operation 316, UE 302 transmits and gNB 304 receives a second set of PDUs with a PSI value of 3.

[0092] At operation 318, gNB 304 detects a first condition. In an example, the first condition may be traffic congestion. In general, gNB 304 may perform detection based on various network, scheduling, and / or traffic characteristics (e.g., resource availability, packet error rate, bit error rate, retransmission rate, etc.). gNB 304 may determine to activate PSI-based discard at UE 302 based on the detected first condition.

[0093] At operation 320, the gNB 304 transmits under a first condition, and the UE 302 receives a first command to activate PSI-based discarding at the UE. The gNB 304 may transmit the first command in various ways. In some aspects, the gNB 304 may transmit a control PDU including an indication of a PSI criterion. The PSI criterion may be a threshold PSI that controls the set of PDUs to which the UE 302 may apply a PDU set discard timer value (received at operation 312) for PSI-based discarding. The control PDU may optionally include a time value indicating a duration during which the UE 302 may apply PSI-based discarding to its transmissions. Upon receiving the first command (activation command), the UE 302 may transition from the normal state 305 to the PSI-based discarding state 306.

[0094] During the PSI-based discard state 306, if the PSI level of the PDU aggregate meets the PSI criteria, the UE 302 may apply the PDU aggregate discard timer value (received at operation 312) to the PDU aggregate. Figure 3 In the example shown, if the PDU set has a PSI value higher than the threshold PSI, the PSI criterion is met. That is, if the PSI value of the PDU set is higher than the threshold PSI, the UE 302 may apply the PDU set discard timer value to the PDU set.

[0095] As an example, in operation 320, the PSI threshold in the first command is set to 3. As shown, the Kth PDU with a PSI value of 4 will be sent as operation 322. For example, UE 302 can queue or store the Kth PDU set at its cache, waiting for a scheduling opportunity to send the Kth PDU set. UE 302 can compare the set PSI value of the Kth PDU with the threshold PSI. Because the PSI value of 4 is higher than (or greater than) the threshold PSI value of 3 (meaning that the Kth PDU set does not meet the PSI standard), UE 302 can apply a timer configured with a PDU set discard timer value to the Kth PDU set. For example, the PDCP entity at UE302 can start a timer when receiving the kth PDU set from an application, and the timer is configured to have a duration set to the PDU set discard timer value. If the Kth PDU set is not submitted to lower layers (e.g., RLC, MAC, and / or PHY of UE 302) before the timer expires, UE 302 may discard the Kth PDU set upon expiration of the timer, e.g., as indicated by a cross symbol ("X").

[0096] At operation 324, UE 302 transmits, and gNB 304 receives the (K+1)th PDU set with a PSI value of 3. UE 302 may compare the PSI value of the (K+1)th PDU set with a threshold PSI. Because the PSI value of 3 is not higher than the threshold PSI (meaning that the (K+1)th PDU set meets the PSI criteria), UE 302 may not apply the PDU set discard timer value to the (K+1)th PDU set for PSI-based discarding. Therefore, UE 302 may queue the (K+1)th PDU set in a cache and may send the (K+1)th PDU set when radio resources are available for transmission. In other examples, the PSI criteria are met if the PDU set has a PSI value higher than or equal to the threshold PSI. In such an example, the UE 302 may also apply the PDU set discard timer value to the (K+1)th PDU set based on the (K+1)th PDU set having a PSI value of 3 (equal to the threshold PSI of 3). At operation 326, the gNB 304 detects a second condition (e.g., a traffic non-congestion condition). The gNB 304 may determine to cancel the PSI-based discard at the UE 302 based on the detected second condition.

[0097] At operation 328, gNB 304 sends based on the second condition, and UE 302 receives the second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE. Figures 4 to 6 As will be discussed further, the gNB 304 may send the second command in various ways. Upon receiving the second command (cancel command), the UE 302 may transition from the PSI-based discard state 306 back to the normal state 305.

[0098] After returning to the normal state 305, the UE 302 may send a PDU set regardless of whether the PSI level of the PDU set satisfies the PSI criterion. For example, at operation 320, the UE 302 sends, and the gNB 304 receives the (K+M)th PDU set with a PSI value of 4. Due to the PSI-based discard cancellation in the second command, the UE 302 may send the (K+M)th PDU set regardless of the (K+M)th PDU set with a PSI value that satisfies the PSI criterion (e.g., the threshold PSI is 3). In other examples, the UE 302 may be configured with a PDCP discard timer in addition to the PDU set discard timer. Therefore, although the UE 302 does not discard the (K+M)th PDU set based on the PSI value of the (K+M)th PDU set, the UE 302 may discard the (K+M)th PDU set based on the expiration of the PDCP discard timer.

[0099] At operation 332, UE 302 transmits and gNB 304 receives the (K+M+1)th PDU set with a PSI value of 3.

[0100] In some aspects, the gNB 304 may send a first command (PSI-based discard activation) via PDCP signaling at operation 320 and / or send a second command (PSI-based discard cancellation) via PDCP signaling at operation 328. In some aspects, the gNB 304 may send a first command (PSI-based discard activation) via UE-specific or dedicated signaling at operation 320 and / or send a second command (PSI-based discard cancellation) via UE-specific or dedicated signaling at operation 328.

[0101] In some aspects, the PDU aggregate discard timer is separate and independent from the PDCP discard timer, and Figure 3 The operation may be performed in conjunction with the 3GPP PDCP discard procedure.

[0102] Figure 3 The signals and operations are illustrative only, and variations are contemplated within the scope of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the signals and operations may include Figure 3 Other signals and operations not shown in the embodiment. In an embodiment, the signals and operations may not include Figure 3 In the embodiment, different signals and operations can be used. Figure 3 The signals and operations are implemented in the order shown in . Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0103] Figure 4-Figure 6 A gNB is shown that cancels PSI-based discarding at the UE (e.g., Figure 1 The network node 120, Figure 2 AN 204 and / or Figure 3 For example, Figure 3 The gNB 304 can use Figure 4-Figure 6 Any of the packet formats shown in is used to indicate the second command (PSI-based cancel command) at signal 328.

[0104] Figure 4 is an example packet including an indication of a PSI-based discard cancellation according to one aspect of the present disclosure. Figure 4As shown, control PDU 400 may include group field 403 and group field 404. Group field 403 may indicate a threshold PSI for PSI-based discarding at a UE (e.g., UE 150, 202, and / or 302). In some aspects, group field 403 (threshold PSI) may be set to a maximum allowable (highest) PSI value to indicate PSI-based discarding cancellation at the UE (second command at signal 328).

[0105] In some aspects, the control PDU 400 may be a control PDU for activating PSI-based discarding at the UE, wherein the threshold PSI (in the packet field 403) may be a PSI criterion for the UE to discard a set of PDUs, and the duration indicated in the packet field 404 may be a duration for which the PSI-based discarding will be activated. As described above, when a higher PSI value indicates a lower PSI level, there may not be any set of PDUs with a PSI value higher than the maximum allowable PSI value. As an example, the packet field 403 may be 4 bits long, where 0 is the highest priority and 15 is the lowest priority. Thus, setting the packet field 403 to 15 may cause the UE to not discard any set of PDUs based on the corresponding PSI, and effectively cancel the PSI-based discarding. In other words, the PSI-based discard cancellation (second command) may be indicated by reusing the threshold PSI packet field 403 in the control PDU for PSI-based discarding activation. Reusing the threshold PSI packet field 403 may free up code points in the control PDU, and may therefore allow for more efficient use of radio resources. Further, when the control PDU 400 is used for PSI-based discard cancellation, the packet field 404 may be reused to indicate the duration for which the PSI-based discard is to be cancelled.

[0106] Figure 4 The packet fields of are illustrative only, and variations are contemplated within the scope of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the control PDU 400 may include Figure 4 In an embodiment, the control PDU 400 may not include other fields not shown. Figure 4 Each grouping field shown in FIG. In an embodiment, the grouping field can be Figure 4 Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0107] Figure 5 is an example packet including an indication of a PSI-based discard cancellation according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure. Figure 5As shown, the designated control PDU 500 may include a packet field 502. The designated control PDU 500 may be dedicated to a PSI-based discard cancellation indication. The packet field 502 may be a one-bit flag indicating that the PSI-based discard (the second command at the signal 328) is canceled (or revoked) at the UE.

[0108] Figure 5 The packet fields of are illustrative only, and variations are contemplated within the scope of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, a specified control PDU 500 may include Figure 5 Other fields not shown in . This and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0109] Figure 6 is an example packet including an indication of a PSI-based discard cancellation according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure. Figure 6 As shown, the control PDU 600 may include a group field 602, a group field 604, and a group field 606. The control PDU 600 may be used by the gNB to activate or deactivate PSI-based discarding at the UE. The group field 602 may be a one-bit flag (reserved flag) indicating whether PSI-based discarding at the UE is turned on (e.g., for activation) or turned off (e.g., for cancellation). For example, a flag value of 1 may indicate activation (on value), while a flag value of 0 may indicate cancellation (off value), and vice versa. The group field 604 may indicate a threshold PSI for PSI-based discarding at the UE. If the group field 602 indicates activation, the group field 606 may indicate a duration for which the PSI-based discarding will be activated. However, if the group field 602 indicates cancellation, the group field 606 may indicate a duration for which the PSI-based discarding will be cancelled.

[0110] Figure 6 The packet fields of are illustrative only, and variations are contemplated within the scope of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the control PDU 600 may include Figure 6 In an embodiment, the control PDU 600 may not include Figure 6 Each grouping field shown in FIG. In an embodiment, the grouping field can be Figure 6 Such and other embodiments are contemplated to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0111] In some aspects, the gNB 304 may send the PDCP signaling (as a PDCP control PDU) Figure 4 Control PDU 400, Figure 5 The designated control PDU 500, and / or Figure 6In general, the control PDUs 400, 500 and / or 600 may be sent via any suitable signaling, such as medium access control-control element (MAC-CE), layer 1 (L1) and / or RRC signaling.

[0112] In some aspects, the cancellation of PSI-based discarding at the UE 302 may be one-time, explicitly indicated, timer-based, and / or cache size-based. For a one-time cancellation, the gNB 304 may indicate to the UE 302 that the PSI-based discarding is cancelled without specifying a duration during which the PSI-based discarding will be cancelled. For an explicit indication, the gNB 304 may indicate the cancellation of the PSI-based discarding using any of the control PDUs 400, 500, or 600. For a time-based cancellation, the gNB 304 may configure the UE 302 with a timer, wherein expiration of the timer may trigger the cancellation of the PSI-based discarding. For a cache-based cancellation, the gNB 304 may configure a cache threshold for the UE 302 to trigger the cancellation of the PSI-based discarding. For example, if the transmission buffer at the UE 302 is below a certain threshold (e.g., below X% of the total), the UE 302 may stop applying the PSI-based discarding to the set of PDUs in the transmission buffer.

[0113] Figure 7 is a flowchart of example operations of a network device for controlling PSI-based discarding of UL transmissions at a UE according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure. In one aspect, the network device may correspond to the above referenced Figure 1 The network node 120 discussed above Figure 2 AN 204 and / or the above references discussed Figure 3 In some examples, the network device may use a gNB 304 having Fig. 9 The components shown are arranged to implement the operation. Figure 7 The operations may include the above reference Figure 2-Figure 6 As shown in the figure, Figure 7 involves multiple enumerated steps, but Figure 7 The aspects of the operations in the embodiment may include additional steps before, after, and between the steps listed. In some aspects, one or more of the steps listed may be omitted or performed in a different order.

[0114] At box 702, the network device sends a first command to the UE (e.g., UE150, 202, 302) based on a first condition to activate PSI-based discarding at the UE. In some examples, the first condition can be a traffic congestion condition detected by the network device (e.g., based on resource availability, packet error rate, bit error rate, retransmission rate, etc.). PSI-based discarding includes discarding a PDU set (e.g., PDU set 212) based on the PSI level of the PDU set satisfying the PSI standard. The PDU set includes one or more PDUs that carry a payload of an information unit at the application level. In some examples, the payload in the PDU set for PSI-based discarding is associated with an XR application.

[0115] At block 704, the network device sends a second command to the UE based on the second condition to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE. In some examples, the second condition may be a traffic non-congestion condition detected by the network device (e.g., based on resource availability, packet error rate, bit error rate, retransmission rate, etc.). Generally speaking, the occurrence of the second condition may be due to the first condition being alleviated or recovered.

[0116] In some aspects, as part of sending the second command at block 704 to cancel the PSI-based discarding, the network device sends a control PDU to the UE including a flag value (e.g., a one-bit flag) indicating the second command, e.g., as described above with reference to Figure 5-Figure 6 In some aspects, the control PDU is a designated control PDU that is specific to PSI-based discard cancellation, for example, as described above with reference to Figure 5 In some aspects, the control PDU also includes a timer value indicating the duration for which the PSI-based discarding will be cancelled, for example, as described above with reference to Figure 6 In some aspects, as part of sending the second command to cancel PSI-based discarding at block 704, the network device sends a control PDU to the UE that includes a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding, e.g., as described above with reference to Figure 4 discussed.

[0117] In some aspects, as part of sending the second command to cancel PSI-based discarding at block 704, the network device sends a PDCP control PDU including the second command to the UE.

[0118] In some aspects, the first command at block 702 includes an indication of a PSI criterion (including a threshold PSI) and an indication of a duration for which PSI-based discarding will be activated. In some aspects, the second command at block 704 overrides the duration indicated in the first command.

[0119] Figure 8 is a flowchart of example operations of a UE performing UL transmissions with PSI-based discarding controlled by the network according to one illustrative aspect of the present disclosure. In one aspect, the UE may correspond to the above referenced Figure 1 UE 150 discussed above Figure 2 UE 202 discussed above and / or reference Figure 3 In some examples, the UE may use a UE 302 having Fig. 9 The arrangement of components shown implements the operation. Figure 8 The operations may include the above reference Figures 2 to 6 As shown in the figure, Figure 8 involves multiple enumerated steps, but Figure 8 The aspects of the operations in the embodiment may include additional steps before, after, and between the listed steps. In some aspects, one or more of the listed steps may be omitted or performed in a different order.

[0120] At block 802, a UE receives a first command to activate PSI based discarding at the UE.

[0121] At box 804, the UE discards a first PDU set (e.g., PDU set 212) in response to a first command based at least on a PSI level of the first PDU set satisfying a PSI criterion, wherein the first PDU set includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of an information unit at an application level.

[0122] At block 806, the UE receives a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding at the UE.

[0123] At block 808, the UE transmits a second PDU set (e.g., PDU set 212) in response to the second command, without regard to whether the PSI level of the second PDU set meets the PSI standard. The transmission of the second PDU set may refer to the PDCP entity of the UE submitting the second PDU set to a lower layer (e.g., the RLC entity of the UE).

[0124] In some aspects, the payload in the first set of PDUs discarded at block 704 and / or the payload in the second set of PDUs discarded at block 708 is associated with an XR application.

[0125] In some aspects, as part of receiving the second command to cancel PSI-based discarding at block 706, the UE receives a control PDU including a flag value (e.g., a one-bit flag) indicating the second command, e.g., as described above with reference to Figure 5-Figure 6In some aspects, the control PDU is a designated control PDU that is specific to PSI-based discard cancellation, for example, as described above with reference to Figure 5 In some aspects, the control PDU also includes a timer value indicating the duration for which the PSI-based discarding will be cancelled, for example, as described above with reference to Figure 6 discussed.

[0126] In some aspects, as part of receiving the second command to cancel PSI-based discarding at block 706, the UE receives a control PDU including a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command to cancel PSI-based discarding, as described above with reference to Figure 4 discussed.

[0127] In some aspects, as part of receiving the second command to cancel PSI based discarding at 806, the UE receives a PDCP control PDU including the second command.

[0128] In some aspects, as part of receiving the first command to cancel PSI-based discarding at block 806, the UE receives an indication of a PSI criterion including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which PSI-based discarding will be activated. In some aspects, the UE further disregards the duration indicated in the first command when receiving the second command.

[0129] Reference now Fig. 9 , a block diagram of example components of a UE or network device is shown. The device includes an electronic storage device 910, a processor 920, a memory 950, and a network interface 940. The different components can be communicatively coupled to each other. The processor 920 can be and may include any type of processor, such as a single-core central processing unit (CPU), a multi-core CPU, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a system on a chip (SoC), or any other type of processor. The memory 950 can be a volatile type of memory (e.g., RAM) or a non-volatile type of memory (e.g., NAND flash memory). The memory 950 includes processor-readable instructions that can be executed by the processor 920 to cause the device to perform various operations, including those mentioned herein such as Figures 3 to 9 operations of the operation.

[0130] Electronic storage device 910 can be and include any type of electronic storage device for storing data, such as a hard disk drive, a solid state drive, and / or an optical disk, as well as other types of electronic storage devices. Electronic storage device 910 stores processor-readable instructions for causing the device to perform its operations and stores data associated with such operations, such as storing data related to the 5G NR standard and other data. Network interface 940 can implement wireless networking technologies such as 5GNR and / or other wireless networking technologies.

[0131] Fig. 9 The components shown in are examples only, and those skilled in the art will appreciate that the device includes other components not shown and may include multiples of any of the components shown. Such and other embodiments are contemplated within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0132] Further embodiments of the present disclosure include the following examples.

[0133] Example 1.1. A method comprising: sending, by a network device, a first command to a user equipment (UE) based on a first condition to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE, wherein the PSI based discarding comprises discarding a protocol data unit (PDU) set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI criterion, and wherein the PDU set comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; and A second command is sent by the network device to the UE based on a second condition to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE.

[0134] Example 1.2. The method of Example 1.1, wherein the payload in the set of PDUs for the PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application.

[0135] Example 1.3. The method of Example 1.1 or Example 1.2, wherein sending the second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding comprises: A control PDU is sent by the network device to the UE, where the control PDU includes a flag value indicating the second command.

[0136] Example 1.4. The method of Example 1.3, wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0137] Example 1.5. The method of Example 1.3, wherein the control PDU further includes a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0138] Example 1.6. The method of Example 1.1 or Example 1.2, wherein sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A control PDU is sent, by the network device, to the UE, the control PDU including a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command for canceling the PSI-based discarding.

[0139] Example 1.7. The method of any of Examples 1.1-1.6, wherein sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command is sent by the network device to the UE.

[0140] Example 1.8. The method of any of Examples 1.1-1.7, wherein the first command includes an indication of the PSI criteria including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be activated.

[0141] Example 1.9. The method of Example 1.8, wherein the second command further overrides the duration for which the PSI-based discarding is activated.

[0142] Example 2.1. A method comprising: Receiving, by a user equipment (UE), a first command to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE; discarding, by the UE in response to the first command, a first set of protocol data units (PDUs) based at least on a PSI level of the first set of PDUs satisfying a PSI criterion, wherein the first set of PDUs includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; receiving, by the UE, a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding at the UE; and The UE sends a second PDU set in response to the second command, without considering whether the PSI level of the second PDU set meets the PSI standard.

[0143] Example 2.2. The method of Example 2.1, wherein the payload in the set of PDUs for the PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application.

[0144] Example 2.3. The method of Example 2.1 or Example 2.2, wherein receiving a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding comprises: A control PDU is received by the UE, the control PDU including a flag value indicating the second command.

[0145] Example 2.4. The method of Example 2.3, wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0146] Example 2.5. The method of Example 2.3, wherein the control PDU further includes a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0147] Example 2.6. The method of Example 2.1 or Example 2.2, wherein receiving a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding comprises: A control PDU is received by the UE, the control PDU comprising a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command to cancel the PSI based discarding.

[0148] Example 2.7. The method of any of Examples 2.1 to 2.6, wherein receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command is received by the UE.

[0149] Example 2.8. The method of any of Examples 2.1-2.6, wherein receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A signal is received by the UE including an indication of the PSI criterion including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI based discarding is to be activated.

[0150] Example 3.1. An apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform: sending, by a network device, a first command to a user equipment (UE) based on a first condition to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE, wherein the PSI based discarding comprises discarding a protocol data unit (PDU) set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI criterion, and wherein the PDU set comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; and A second command is sent by the network device to the UE based on the second condition to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE.

[0151] Example 3.2. The apparatus of Example 3.1, wherein the payload in the set of PDUs for the PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application.

[0152] Example 3.3. The apparatus of Example 3.1 or Example 3.2, wherein sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: The network device is configured to send a control PDU to the UE, where the control PDU includes a flag value indicating the second command.

[0153] Example 3.4. The apparatus of Example 3.3, wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0154] Example 3.5. The apparatus of Example 3.3, wherein the control PDU further comprises a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0155] Example 3.6. The apparatus of Example 3.1 or Example 3.2, wherein sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A control PDU is sent, by the network device, to the UE, the control PDU including a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command for canceling the PSI-based discarding.

[0156] Example 3.7. The apparatus of any of Examples 3.1 to 3.6, wherein sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command is sent by the network device to the UE.

[0157] Example 3.8. An apparatus as described in any of Examples 3.1-3.7, wherein the first command includes an indication of the PSI criteria including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be activated.

[0158] Example 3.9. The apparatus of Example 3.8, wherein the second command further overrides the duration for which the PSI-based discarding is activated.

[0159] Example 4.1. An apparatus comprising: at least one processor; and at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform: Receiving, by a user equipment (UE), a first command to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE; discarding, by the UE in response to the first command, a first set of protocol data units (PDUs) based at least on a PSI level of the first set of PDUs satisfying a PSI criterion, wherein the first set of PDUs includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; receiving, by the UE, a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE; and sending, by the UE in response to the second command, a second set of PDUs without regard to the second PDU Whether the PSI level of the collection meets the PSI standard.

[0160] Example 4.2. The apparatus of Example 4.1, wherein the payload in the set of PDUs for the PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application.

[0161] Example 4.3. The apparatus of Example 4.1 or Example 4.2, wherein receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A control PDU is received by the UE, the control PDU including a flag value indicating the second command.

[0162] Example 4.4. The apparatus of Example 4.3, wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0163] Example 4.5. The apparatus of Example 4.3, wherein the control PDU further comprises a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0164] Example 4.6. The apparatus of Example 4.1 or Example 4.2, wherein receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A control PDU is received by the UE, the control PDU comprising a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command to cancel the PSI based discarding.

[0165] Example 4.7. The apparatus of any of Examples 4.1-4.6, wherein receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command is received by the UE.

[0166] Example 4.8. The apparatus of any of Examples 4.1-4.6, wherein receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: A signal is received by the UE including an indication of the PSI criterion including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI based discarding is to be activated.

[0167] Example 5.1. An apparatus comprising: means for sending, by a network device, a first command to a user equipment (UE) based on a first condition to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE, wherein the PSI based discarding comprises discarding a protocol data unit (PDU) set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI criterion, and wherein the PDU set comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; and Means for sending, by the network device, a second command to the UE based on a second condition to cancel PSI-based discarding at the UE.

[0168] Example 5.2. The apparatus of Example 5.1, wherein the payload in the set of PDUs for the PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application.

[0169] Example 5.3. The apparatus of Example 5.1 or Example 5.2, wherein sending a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: The network device is configured to send a control PDU to the UE, wherein the control PDU includes a component indicating a flag value of the second command.

[0170] Example 5.4. The apparatus of Example 5.3, wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0171] Example 5.5. The apparatus of Example 5.3, wherein the control PDU further comprises a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0172] Example 5.6. The apparatus of Example 5.1 or Example 5.2, wherein the means for sending a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding comprises: means for sending, by the network device, to the UE a control PDU, the control PDU comprising a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command for cancelling the PSI based discarding.

[0173] Example 5.7. The apparatus of any of Examples 5.1 to 5.6, wherein the means for sending a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding comprises: Means for sending, by the network device to the UE, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command.

[0174] Example 5.8. An apparatus as described in any of Examples 5.1-5.7, wherein the first command includes an indication of the PSI criteria including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be activated.

[0175] Example 5.9. The apparatus of Example 5.8, wherein the second command further overrides the duration for which the PSI-based discarding is activated.

[0176] Example 6.1. An apparatus comprising: means for receiving, by a user equipment (UE), a first command to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE; means for discarding, by the UE in response to the first command, a first set of protocol data units (PDUs) based at least on a PSI level of the first set of PDUs satisfying a PSI criterion, wherein the first set of PDUs includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; means for receiving, by the UE, a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding at the UE; and The device is configured to send, by the UE in response to the second command, a second PDU set without considering whether the PSI level of the second PDU set meets the PSI standard.

[0177] Example 6.2. The apparatus of Example 6.1, wherein the payload in the set of PDUs for the PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application.

[0178] Example 6.3. The apparatus of Example 6.1 or Example 6.2, wherein the means for receiving a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding comprises: Means for receiving, by the UE, a control PDU, the control PDU comprising a flag value indicating the second command.

[0179] Example 6.4. The apparatus of Example 6.3, wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

[0180] Example 6.5. The apparatus of Example 6.3, wherein the control PDU further comprises a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

[0181] Example 6.6. The apparatus of Example 6.1 or Example 6.2, wherein the means for receiving a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding comprises: Means for receiving, by the UE, a control PDU including a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command to cancel the PSI based discarding.

[0182] Example 6.7. The apparatus of any of Examples 6.1-6.6, wherein the means for receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: Means for receiving, by the UE, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command.

[0183] Example 6.8. The apparatus of any of Examples 6.1-6.6, wherein the means for receiving a second command to cancel PSI-based discarding comprises: Means for receiving, by the UE, an indication of the PSI criteria including a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be activated.

[0184] Example 7. A non-transitory processor-readable medium comprising program code, which, when executed by the one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform at least the method according to any one of Examples 1.1-1.9.

[0185] Example 8. A non-transitory processor-readable medium comprising program code, which, when executed by the one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to perform at least the method of any one of Examples 2.1 to 2.8.

[0186] The embodiments and aspects disclosed herein are examples of the present disclosure and can be embodied in various forms. For example, although some embodiments herein are described as separate embodiments, each embodiment herein can be combined with one or more other embodiments herein. The specific structural and functional details disclosed herein should not be interpreted as limitations, but as the basis of the claims and as a representative basis for teaching those skilled in the art to adopt the present disclosure differently with virtually any appropriately detailed structure. Throughout the description of the drawings, the same reference numerals may represent similar or identical elements.

[0187] The phrases "in one aspect," "in aspects," "in various aspects," "in some aspects," or "in other aspects" may each refer to one or more of the same or different aspects according to the present disclosure. The phrase "plurality" may refer to two or more.

[0188] The phrases "in one embodiment," "in an embodiment," "in various embodiments," "in some embodiments," or "in other embodiments" may each refer to one or more of the same or different embodiments according to the present disclosure. A phrase in the form "A or B" means "(A), (B), or (A and B)." A phrase in the form "at least one of A, B, or C" means "(A); (B); (C); (A and B); (A and C); (B and C); or (A, B, and C)."

[0189] Any of the methods, programs, algorithms or codes described herein may be converted to or expressed in a programming language or a computer program. As used herein, the terms "programming language" and "computer program" each include any language for specifying instructions to a computer, and include, but are not limited to, the following languages ​​and their derivatives: assembler, Basic, batch files, BCPL, C, C+, C++, Delphi, Fortran, Java, JavaScript, machine code, operating system command language, Pascal, Perl, PL1, Python, scripting languages, Visual Basic, the metalanguage of the program itself, and all first, second, third, fourth, fifth or further generated computer languages. Also include databases and other data patterns and any other metalanguage. There is no difference between the language of the two methods of interpretation, compilation or use of compilation and interpretation. There is no difference between the compiled version of the program and the source version. Therefore, a reference to a program is a reference to any and all such states, wherein a programming language may exist in more than one state (such as source, compilation, object or link). A reference to a program may include the intention of actual instructions and / or those instructions.

[0190] Although various aspects of the present disclosure have been shown in the accompanying drawings, the present disclosure is not intended to be limited thereto, as the present disclosure is intended to be as broad as the art will allow and the specification is read similarly. Therefore, the above description should not be interpreted as limiting, but merely as an example of particular aspects. Those skilled in the art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A network device, comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform the following operations: sending a first command to a user equipment (UE) based on a first condition to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE, wherein the PSI based discarding comprises discarding a protocol data unit (PDU) set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI criterion, and wherein the PDU set comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; as well as A second command is sent to the UE based on a second condition to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE. 2 . The network device of claim 1 , wherein the payload in the set of PDUs for the PSI-based discarding is associated with an extended reality application. 3 . The network device according to claim 1 , configured to send a control PDU to the UE, wherein the control PDU includes a flag value indicating the second command. 4 . The network device according to claim 3 , wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

5. The network device of claim 3, wherein the control PDU further comprises a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

6. The network device according to claim 1 or 2, configured to send a control PDU to the UE, the control PDU comprising a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command for canceling the PSI-based discarding.

7. The network device according to claim 1 or 2, configured to send a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command to the UE.

8. The network device of claim 1 or 2, wherein the first command comprises an indication of the PSI criteria comprising a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be activated.

9. The network device of claim 8, wherein the second command further overrides the duration for which the PSI-based discarding is activated.

10. An apparatus for a user equipment (UE), comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the processor, cause the apparatus to at least perform the following operations: receiving, at the UE, a first command to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding; In response to the first command, discarding a first set of protocol data units (PDUs) based at least on a PSI level of the first set of PDUs satisfying a PSI criterion, wherein the first set of PDUs includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; receiving a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE; as well as In response to the second command, a second PDU set is sent without considering whether the PSI level of the second PDU set meets the PSI standard.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the payload in the first set of PDUs that is discarded is associated with an extended reality application.

12. The apparatus according to claim 10 or 11, configured to receive a control PDU, the control PDU comprising a flag value indicating the second command.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the control PDU is a designated control PDU specific to PSI-based discard cancellation.

14. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the control PDU further comprises a timer value indicating a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be cancelled.

15. The apparatus according to claim 10 or 11, configured to receive, by the UE, a control PDU, the control PDU comprising a threshold PSI value set to a highest allowable PSI value to indicate the second command for cancelling the PSI-based discarding.

16. The apparatus according to claim 10 or 11, configured to receive a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) control PDU including the second command.

17. An apparatus according to claim 10 or 11, configured to receive an indication of the PSI criteria comprising a threshold PSI and an indication of a duration for which the PSI-based discarding is to be activated.

18. A method for communication, comprising: sending, by a network device, a first command to a user equipment (UE) based on a first condition to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE, wherein the PSI based discarding comprises discarding a protocol data unit (PDU) set based on a PSI level of the PDU set satisfying a PSI criterion, and wherein the PDU set comprises one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; as well as A second command is sent by the network device to the UE based on a second condition to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE.

19. A method for communication, comprising: Receiving, by a user equipment (UE), a first command to activate protocol data unit set importance (PSI) based discarding at the UE; discarding, by the UE in response to the first command, a first set of protocol data units (PDUs) based at least on a PSI level of the first set of PDUs satisfying a PSI criterion, wherein the first set of PDUs includes one or more PDUs carrying a payload of one information unit at an application level; receiving, by the UE, a second command to cancel the PSI-based discarding at the UE; as well as The UE sends a second PDU set in response to the second command, without considering whether the PSI level of the second PDU set meets the PSI standard.

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