Voice packet combination mechanism

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention relates to voice packet combination. The terminal device receives control information for controlling the voice packet combination at the terminal device from the network device, and determines the voice packet combination based on the control information, and then the terminal device performs the voice packet combination; and transmitting the combined voice packet to the network device. The solution enables the network to control packet combination in the terminal device based on the control information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Various example embodiments relate to the field of telecommunications, and more particularly to methods, devices, apparatus, and computer-readable storage media for a voice packet combining mechanism. Background Art

[0002] In the field of communications, there is an ongoing evolution to provide efficient and reliable solutions for utilizing wireless communication networks. Each new generation of new technology has its own technical challenges for handling different situations and processes required for connecting and serving devices connected to wireless networks. In order to meet the increased wireless data service needs since the deployment of the fourth generation (4G) communication system, people have been working hard to develop improved fifth generation (5G) or pre-5G communication systems. The new communication system can support various types of service applications for terminal devices.

[0003] In recent communication techniques, packet grouping is considered, rather than including one voice frame encapsulated in each Real-time Transport Protocol (RTP) packet / payload, or sending one voice frame in one uplink transmission. Summary of the invention

[0004] In general, example embodiments of the present disclosure provide a solution for a voice packet combining mechanism.

[0005] In a first aspect, a terminal device is provided. The terminal device includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the terminal device to at least: receive control information for controlling voice packet combination at the terminal device from a network device; determine voice packet combination based on the control information; perform voice packet combination; and send a combined voice packet to the network device.

[0006] In a second aspect, a network device is provided. The network device includes at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions. The instructions, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the network device to at least: determine control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device; send the control information to the terminal device; and receive combined voice packets from the terminal device.

[0007] In a third aspect, a method is provided. The method includes receiving control information for controlling voice packet combination at the terminal device from a network device at the terminal device; determining voice packet combination based on the control information; performing voice packet combination; and sending combined voice packets to the network device.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, a method is provided. The method includes determining, at a network device, control information for controlling voice packet combining at a terminal device; sending the control information to the terminal device; and receiving combined voice packets from the terminal device.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes a component for receiving, at a terminal device, control information for controlling voice packet combination at the terminal device from a network device; a component for determining voice packet combination based on the control information; a component for performing voice packet combination; and a component for sending combined voice packets to the network device.

[0010] In a sixth aspect, an apparatus is provided. The apparatus includes a component for determining, at a network device, control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device; a component for sending the control information to the terminal device; and a component for receiving combined voice packets from the terminal device.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, the non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions for causing an apparatus to at least execute a method according to any one of the third to fourth aspects above.

[0012] In an eighth aspect, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, the non-transitory computer-readable medium including program instructions stored thereon, the program instructions being used to at least execute the method according to any one of the third to fourth aspects above.

[0013] In a ninth aspect, a computer program is provided comprising instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to at least: receive control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device from a network device; determine voice packet combination based on the control information; perform voice packet combination; and send combined voice packets to the network device.

[0014] In a tenth aspect, there is provided a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by an apparatus, cause the apparatus to at least: determine control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device; send the control information to the terminal device; and receive combined voice packets from the terminal device.

[0015] In an eleventh aspect, a terminal device is provided. The terminal device includes: a receiving circuit system configured to receive control information for controlling voice packet combination at the terminal device from a network device; a determining circuit system configured to determine the voice packet combination based on the control information; an executing circuit system configured to execute the voice packet combination; and a sending circuit system configured to send the combined voice packet to the network device.

[0016] In a twelfth aspect, a network device is provided. The network device includes: a determining circuit system configured to determine control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device; a sending circuit system configured to send the control information to the terminal device; and a receiving circuit system configured to receive combined voice packets from the terminal device.

[0017] It should be understood that the invention summary is not intended to identify the key or essential features of the embodiments of the present disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. Other features of the present disclosure will become readily understood through the following description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] Some example embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0019] Figure 1 illustrates an example communication network in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

[0020] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of VoIP packet transmission in a scenario where packet combining is not performed;

[0021] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a VoIP packet having a 40 ms period in a voice burst due to packet combining;

[0022] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of configuration authorization for VoIP packet transmission;

[0023] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram for configuration authorization and dynamic scheduling of VoIP packet combinations;

[0024] Figure 6 An example of overhead variation is illustrated;

[0025] Figure 7 A flow chart illustrating communication between a terminal device and a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0026] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a voice grouping method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated;

[0027] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of a voice grouping method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated;

[0028] Fig.10 illustrates a simplified block diagram of an apparatus suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0029] Fig.11 A block diagram of an example computer-readable medium is illustrated in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0030] Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to some example embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are described only for illustrative purposes and help those skilled in the art to understand and implement the present disclosure, and do not represent any limitation on the scope of the present disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various other ways except for the way described below.

[0032] In the following description and claims, unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

[0033] In this disclosure, references to "one embodiment," "an embodiment," and "an example embodiment" indicate that the described embodiment may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but not every embodiment must include the particular feature, structure, or characteristic. In addition, such phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. In addition, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in conjunction with an embodiment, those skilled in the art believe that it is within the knowledge of those skilled in the art to affect such feature, structure, or characteristic in conjunction with other embodiments, whether or not explicitly described.

[0034] It should be understood that although the terms "first" and "second" etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. For example, without departing from the scope of the example embodiments, a first element may be referred to as a second element, and similarly, a second element may be referred to as a first element. As used herein, the term "and / or" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms.

[0035] The terms used herein are only used for the purpose of describing specific embodiments, and are not intended to limit exemplary embodiments. The singular forms "a", "an" and "the" used herein also include plural forms, unless the context clearly states otherwise. It is further understood that the terms "comprises", "comprising", "has", "having", "includes" and / or "including" specify the presence of the features, elements and / or components when used herein, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components and / or their combinations. As used herein, "at least one of the following: " and "at least one of the lists of <two or more elements>" and similar expressions (wherein the lists of two or more elements are connected by "and" or "or") refer to at least any one of these elements, or at least any two or more of these elements, or at least all of these elements.

[0036] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one, more, or all of the following:

[0037] (a) a pure hardware circuit implementation (such as an implementation using only analog and / or digital circuitry), and

[0038] (b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software such as (where applicable):

[0039] (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuits and software / firmware, and

[0040] (ii) any portion of hardware processor(s) (including digital signal processor(s)) with software, software and memory(s) that work together to enable a device (such as a mobile phone or server) to perform various functions), and

[0041] (c) Hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or portion(s) of microprocessor(s), that require software (e.g., firmware) to operate, but which may not be present when the software is not required for operation.

[0042] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of the term in this application, including in any claims. As another example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its accompanying software and / or firmware. For example, if applicable to a particular claim element, the term circuitry also covers a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device, or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0043] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network that complies with any suitable communication standard, such as long term evolution (LTE), advanced LTE (LTE-A), wideband code division multiplexing (WCDMA), high speed packet access (HSPA), narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), etc. In addition, the communication between the terminal equipment and the network equipment in the communication network can be performed according to any suitable generation of communication protocol, including but not limited to the first generation (1G), second generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), 4.5G, future fifth generation (5G) communication protocol, and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. The embodiments of the present disclosure can be applied to various communication systems. In view of the rapid development of communication, there will certainly be communication technologies and systems that can be used to embody future types of the present disclosure. It should not be regarded as limiting the scope of the present disclosure to the above-mentioned system.

[0044] As used herein, the term "network device" refers to a node in a communication network via which a terminal device accesses the network and receives services from the network. Depending on the terminology and technology applied, a network device may refer to a base station (BS) or an access point (AP), such as a NodeB (NodeB or NB), an evolved NodeB (eNodeB or eNB), a NR NB (also known as a gNB), a remote radio unit (RRU), a radio head (RH), a remote radio head (RRH), a relay, a low-power node (such as a femto, a pico), etc.

[0045] The term "terminal device" refers to any terminal device capable of wireless communication. As an example and not limitation, the terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, a user equipment (UE), a subscriber station (SS), a portable subscriber station, a mobile station (MS) or an access terminal (AT). The terminal device may include, but is not limited to, a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a tablet computer, a wearable terminal device, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a portable computer, a desktop computer, an image capture terminal device (such as a digital camera), a game terminal device, a music storage and playback device, a vehicle-mounted wireless terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, a laptop embedded device (LEE), a laptop mounted device (LME), a USB dongle, a smart device, a wireless customer premises equipment (CPE), an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a watch or other wearable device, a head mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, medical equipment and applications (e.g., remote surgery), industrial equipment and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in industrial and / or automated processing chain environments), consumer electronic devices, equipment operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, etc. In the following description, the terms "terminal device", "communication device", "terminal", "user equipment" and "UE" may be used interchangeably.

[0046] 3GPP has defined work items on non-terrestrial networks (NTN) for Rel-17 in RP-201256, and further enhancements will continue in Rel-18 in WID RP-220953. For Rel-18, one goal is to support VoNR (VoIP over NR) for commercial mobile terminals in NTN.

[0047]

[0048] RAN1 has started Rel-18 NR NTN VoNR discussion at RAN1-109e. In the discussion, voice packet combining is a hot topic because it can save PDCCH usage and improve system voice user capacity. For example, there is a discussion that if two voice frames every 40ms can provide performance gain, it should be allowed, and it is encouraged to report on how to apply packet combining in NR NTN at the next RAN1 meeting.

[0049]

[0050] To more clearly introduce the embodiments of the present disclosure, the following is a description of configuration grants. For PUSCH scheduling, RAN2 agreed in Rel-17 that the network can schedule UEs via configuration grants (CGs) in NTNs, and both type 1 and type 2 configuration grants are feasible in NTNs.

[0051] Taking the terminal device as a UE as an example, the configuration authorization can allocate radio resources for the UE for a TTI sequence repeated with a certain period via a PDCCH signal. Since a single PDCCH command is used to schedule repeated uplink allocations for VoIP packets, the use of PDCCH resources by VoIP users can be reduced. However, a single PDCCH command means that voice packets are automatically scheduled using the same MCS and PRB (same TBS) in multiple (periodic) PUSCH transmission opportunities.

[0052] If multiple voice frames are encapsulated in one RTP packet (e.g., 2, 3, or 4 voice frames), the increased VoIP payload requires a larger transport block size (TBS) to accommodate the RTP packets compared to 1 voice frame per RTP packet. Alternatively, if multiple RTP packets are sent in one uplink transmission, the increase in the number of RTP packets requires a larger transport block size (TBS) to accommodate the RTP packets compared to sending one RTP packet in one uplink transmission. However, since packet combining is implemented in the UE, if the network is unaware of the packet combining status, the network may not be able to correctly schedule the UE with the appropriate uplink TBS in the configuration grant. In addition, in cases where uplink coverage is limited (e.g., non-terrestrial networks (NTNs)), the network may not schedule the UE with a larger TBS to accommodate the combined VoIP payload due to the UE's power limitations (e.g., power headroom report (PHR) <0).

[0053] First, for configuration grants, if the UE autonomously decides when to perform packet combining during a voice call (e.g., during a VoIP voice burst), the fixed TBS allocated by the CG may not be able to accommodate the combined VoIP packets. In this case, the network must perform additional dynamic scheduling to deliver the remaining VoIP payload left by the previous CG transmission. Dynamic scheduling will require additional PDCCH grants, which will reduce the gain of the CG (i.e., PDCCH savings). In addition, long propagation delays will introduce delays in the NTN with additional dynamic scheduling, which will have an impact on the voice service quality. In addition, since the arrival time of the RTP packet changes from 20ms to 40ms, the CG-allocated TBS will be wasted in some opportunities. If this situation continues for a long time, it may render the CG useless at all.

[0054] Secondly, if uplink coverage is the bottleneck, then sending twice the size of RTP packets (with VoIP packets) or twice the size of TBS requirement to accommodate the combined VoIP packets in one PUSCH transmission may not be possible due to the power limitations of the UE. In this case, the network may have to schedule multiple small TBSs with the available PHR, so the UE has to perform RLC segmentation on the RTP packets. With more RLC segments, the protocol overhead will increase because MAC (Media Access Control) / RLC and CRC overhead must be added for each segment.

[0055] In summary, the VoIP group combination determined autonomously by the UE may result in a waste of resources in both the PDCCH and the allocated PUSCH, which may result in invalid configuration authorization features. In addition, in the case of limited uplink coverage, the VoIP group combination will increase protocol overhead, E2E delay and consume more PDCCH, which will ultimately reduce the VoIP user capacity of the cell. According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a solution for solving the above problems is provided.

[0056] The principles and embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Figure 1 , which illustrates an example communication system 100 in which embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented. System 100 includes terminal device 110 and network device 120. Network device 120 may use frequency bands in both downlink and uplink to serve a corresponding area (also referred to as a cell). Such frequency bands may also be referred to as operating frequency bands of the corresponding network device.

[0057] As long as the terminal device 110 is located in the corresponding cell, the terminal device 110 can connect and communicate with the network device 120 in the uplink and downlink. In the communication system, the uplink refers to the link in the direction from the terminal device 110 to the network device 120, and the downlink refers to the link in the direction from the network device 120 to the terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the communication between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120 can be sending voice packets from the terminal device 110 to the network device 120. In the communication, the voice packet combination at the terminal device 110 can be applied. In some embodiments, the network device 120 can control the voice packet combination at the terminal device 110 by sending control information to the terminal device 110.

[0058] It should be understood that the number of network devices 120 and terminal devices 110 is for illustration purposes only and does not represent any limitation. The system 100 may include any suitable number of network devices 120 and terminal devices 110 suitable for implementing the embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0059] The communication in the communication system 100 can be implemented according to any appropriate (multiple) communication protocols, including but not limited to cellular communication protocols such as the first generation (1G), the second generation (2G), the third generation (3G), the fourth generation (4G) and the fifth generation (5G), wireless local area network communication protocols such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11, and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. In addition, the communication can utilize any appropriate wireless communication technology, including but not limited to: code division multiple access (CDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division duplex (FDD), time division duplex (TDD), multiple input multiple output (MIMO), orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM), discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM) and / or any other technology currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0060] In order to more clearly introduce the solution of the embodiment of the present disclosure, the transmission mechanism of the voice packet is first introduced. Generally, if packet combination is not used, each VoIP packet is sent with a period of 20ms. Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of VoIP packet transmission in a scenario where packet combining is not performed. More specifically, Figure 2 A VoIP packet with a 20ms period in a voice burst is shown. In this case, one voice frame is encapsulated in each RTP packet. The TB size used to accommodate (send) VoIP packets should take into account factors such as the VoIP payload, RTP / UDP / IP headers, and MAC / RLC / PDCP headers. As shown in Table 1 below, an example TBS calculation is given, assuming the VoIP AMR codec is 4.75Kbps in bandwidth efficient mode (see 26.114 for detailed calculations of RTP payloads for different VoIP codecs).

[0061] Table 1

[0062]

[0063] If packet combination is considered, the UE may include multiple voice frames (e.g., 2 or 3 or 4 voice frames) for each RTP packet, or send multiple RTP packets in one uplink transmission, instead of including one voice frame encapsulated in each RTP packet / payload. If two voice frames are encapsulated in the RTP payload, the VoIP packets will be sent with a period of 40ms, but the TBS required to accommodate the RTP packets should be increased accordingly. Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a VoIP packet having a 40 ms period in a voice burst due to packet combining.

[0064] Using the same assumptions as in the previous calculation, we can see that the VoIP payload should be doubled since there are two voice frames in one RTP payload. If we assume the same overhead in both cases, the required TBS is 304 bits, as shown in Table 2.

[0065] Table 2

[0066]

[0067] Another example in R2-164579 is to apply encapsulation of up to four packets in one RTP packet. As shown in Table 3, when the number of voice frames in one RTP packet changes from 1 to 4, the required TBS changes from 256 bits to 720 bits accordingly. It should be noted that the application encapsulation of voice frames in one RTP packet requires updating the VoLTE service description.

[0068] Table 3

[0069]

[0070] As described above, a single PDCCH order means that voice packets are automatically scheduled with the same MCS and PRB (same TBS) in multiple (periodic) PUSCH transmission opportunities. For example, the network can configure grants with a 20ms periodic schedule to deliver VoIP packets in voice bursts, where a fixed TBS (e.g., 256 bits) is used in each PUSCH opportunity. Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of configuration authorization for VoIP packet transmission. More specifically, Figure 4 A configuration grant with a period of 20 ms is shown to save PDCCH resources for VoIP packets.

[0071] In some scenarios where the UE autonomously decides when to perform packet combining during a voice call, the arrival of RTP packets can change from 20ms to 40ms, as described above. Figure 5 As shown, Figure 5 Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of configuration authorization and dynamic scheduling for VoIP group combination. Figure 5 As shown, for voice calls, the network can allocate a fixed TBS at times t1, t2, t3, t4, t5 and t6 via configuration grant (CG) with a period of 20ms. If the UE decides to perform packet combining after t2, it will result in: 1) RTP packet arrival will change from 20ms to 40ms. 2) The TBS required to accommodate the combined VoIP payload will almost double.

[0072] Due to the packet arrival period variation, the allocated TBS at t3 and t5 will be wasted, as no RTP packets will be sent at that time. Since the VoIP payload is almost doubled, the allocated TBS at t4 and t6 cannot accommodate the RTP packets, so corresponding dynamic scheduling must be performed (PDCCH in the box marked 4, PUSCH in the box marked 5).

[0073] As mentioned above, when it is not possible to send twice the size of RTP packets (combined with VoIP packets) or TBS to accommodate the combined VoIP packets in one PUSCH transmission due to the power limitation of the UE, the network may have to schedule multiple small TBSs with the available PHR, so the UE has to perform RLC segmentation on the RTP packets. Figure 6 , Figure 6 An example of overhead variation is shown, which shows the protocol overhead of RLC segmentation. Figure 6 As shown in Figure 1, with the increase of RLC segments, the protocol overhead will increase because MAC / RLC and CRC overhead must be added for each segment. In addition, the more RLC segments there are, the more PDCCH is used, which is also a waste of system resources. In addition, considering that the RTT in NTN (LEO case) can be 42ms, the more RLC segments to be sent, the greater the E2E delay of delivering all segments in the HARQ process, especially in uplink HARQ mode A, where retransmission is based on PUSCH decoding results in the network.

[0074] Figure 7 700 is illustrated, which illustrates the communication between the terminal device 110 and the network device 120 according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 7 As shown, the network device 120 may determine (710) control information 705 for controlling voice packet combination at the terminal device 110. The network device 120 may then send (720) the control information 705 to the terminal device 110. Thus, the terminal device 110 may receive (730) the control information 705 for controlling voice packet combination at the terminal device 110 from the network device 120.

[0075] The terminal device 110 may determine (740) voice packet combination based on the control information 705, and may perform (750) the voice packet combination. The terminal device 110 may send (760) the combined voice packet 715 to the network device 120. Thus, the network device 120 may receive (770) the combined voice packet 715 from the terminal device 110. In this way, the network device 120 may configure rules regarding how and whether the terminal device 110 may apply voice packet combination in the terminal device 110.

[0076] In some embodiments, the voice packet combination may be a VoIP packet combination, and then, the embodiments may introduce a new mechanism on how to control the VoIP packet combination (i.e., packet aggregation) in the terminal device 110, wherein the network may configure rules on how and whether the terminal device 110 may apply the packet combination. In some embodiments, the voice packet corresponds to a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frame.

[0077] In some embodiments, the network device 120 may send one or more information of the control information via a radio resource control (RRC) or a system information block (SIB). Thus, the terminal device 110 may receive one or more information of the control information via the RRC or SIB.

[0078] In some embodiments, the control information received by the terminal device 110 from the network device 120 may include a TBS threshold for voice packet combining at the terminal device 110. On the network device 120 side, the network device 120 may send the TBS threshold to the terminal device.

[0079] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may send the radio channel condition of the terminal device 110 to the network device 120 for determining the TBS threshold by the network device 120. Therefore, the network device 120 may receive the radio channel condition of the terminal device 110 from the terminal device 110; and determine the TBS threshold as control information based on the radio channel condition of the terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may determine the TBS threshold as control information based on the configured TBS in the configuration grant (CG).

[0080] In some embodiments, to perform voice packet combining, if the transport block size (TBS) required to accommodate the combined packet is less than a TBS threshold, the terminal device 110 may determine a plurality of voice packets to be combined; and then combine the plurality of voice packets into a single packet for uplink transmission. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may determine the number of voice packets to be combined into a single packet based on the TBS threshold and the applied voice codec rate.

[0081] According to the above embodiments, for example, the network can be used to configure the TBS threshold for packet combination to the UE via RRC or SIB. The UE can perform packet combination (i.e., combining two or more VoIP voice frames or VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission) only when the TBS required to accommodate the combined packet is less than the TBS threshold defined by the network. In some embodiments, the UE can decide the number of voice frames or VoIP packets to be combined in a single packet based on the TBS threshold and the applied voice codec rate (e.g., different data rates in AMR-WB, AMR-NB or EVS (Enhanced Voice Service)). In some embodiments, the network can configure the TBS threshold based on the supported TBS according to the radio channel conditions of the UE and / or the TBS configured in the CG.

[0082] In some other embodiments, the control information received by the terminal device 110 from the network device 120 may include a delay threshold for voice packet combination at the terminal device. In some embodiments, on the network device 120 side, the network device 120 may determine the delay threshold as the control information based on a scheduling policy of the network device 120, the scheduling policy may include a scheduling priority for scheduling voice packets, and the network device 120 may send the delay threshold to the terminal device 110.

[0083] In some embodiments, in order to perform voice packet combination, if the offset from the time of packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission is less than a delay threshold, the terminal device 110 can determine multiple voice packets to be combined; and combine the multiple voice packets into a single packet for uplink transmission.

[0084] According to the above embodiment, for example, the network may configure the delay threshold for packet combination to the UE via RRC or SIB. The UE can perform packet combination only when the offset from the time when the VoIP packet is generated to the time when the voice packet is transmitted is less than the delay threshold. In some embodiments, the threshold may be 20ms, 40ms, 60ms or 80ms, which corresponds to 1, 2, 3 or 4 voice frames or voice packet combinations. In some embodiments, the network may configure the delay threshold based on the network scheduling policy. For example, the network should give priority to the scheduling of packets with higher delays to meet the end-to-end delay target. In scenarios where different UEs may be configured with different delay thresholds, the network may assign different scheduling priorities to packets based on different delay thresholds.

[0085] In some embodiments, the network device 120 may send a flag indicating whether voice packet combination at the terminal device 110 is allowed to the terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the network device 120 may send the flag via a radio resource control (RRC) or a system information block (SIB). Therefore, the terminal device 110 may receive the flag via the RRC or SIB.

[0086] In some embodiments, in order to perform voice group combination, the terminal device 110 can receive a flag indicating whether voice group combination at the terminal device 110 is allowed from the network device 120, and can determine that voice group combination at the terminal device is allowed, and then can perform voice group combination based on determining that voice group combination at the terminal device is allowed.

[0087] According to the above embodiment, for example, the network may configure the UE via RRC or SIB an ON / OFF flag regarding whether packet combining is allowed. In some embodiments, when the UE is at the cell edge where uplink coverage becomes a bottleneck, the network may disable the packet combining function to limit the TBS required for VoIP payload accommodation. In some embodiments, the control information received by the terminal device 110 from the network device 120 may include at least one reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold.

[0088] In some embodiments, on the network device 120 side, the network device 120 may determine at least one RSRP threshold as control information, the RSRP threshold may correspond to a packet combination level for the terminal device 110 to perform voice packet combination, and the network device 120 may send at least one RSRP threshold to the terminal device 110.

[0089] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may receive an RSRP threshold for voice packet combining at the terminal device from the network device 120. And in some embodiments, to perform voice packet combining, if the measured RSRP in the terminal device is higher than the RSRP threshold, the terminal device 110 may determine that voice packet combining is allowed, and then perform voice packet combining.

[0090] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may receive multiple RSRP thresholds for voice packet combination at the terminal device from the network device 120. And in some embodiments, in order to perform voice packet combination, the terminal device 110 may determine a packet combination level corresponding to the measured RSRP based on the multiple RSRP thresholds, and then perform voice packet combination based on the number of voice packets corresponding to the packet combination level. In some embodiments, the control information may include one or more of the above information.

[0091] According to the above embodiments, for example, the network may configure one or more RSRP thresholds via RRC or SIB to facilitate the UE to decide whether group combination is allowed and / or the maximum group combination level to be applied. In some embodiments, if the measured RSRP in the UE is lower than or equal to the RSRP threshold, group combination is not allowed. In some other embodiments, the network may configure multiple RSRP thresholds for different group combination levels (e.g., PCRSRP-threshold-level2, PCRSRP-thresold-level3... to PCRSRP-threshold-levelX), and the UE can only apply the maximum group combination level when the measured RSRP is higher than the corresponding RSRP threshold. For example, if the measured RSCP is higher than PCRSRP-threshold-level2 but lower than or equal to PCRSRP-threshold-level3, the number of groups that can be combined is 2. If the measured RSRP is higher than PCRSRP-threshold-level3 but lower than or equal to PCRSRP-threshold-level4, the number of groups that can be combined is 3.

[0092] The present disclosure also provides a solution for reporting the packet combination status. The following describes a solution for the terminal device 110 to report the packet combination status to the network device 120 through some embodiments. It should be noted that these embodiments may depend on the above-mentioned embodiments, that is, the solution for the terminal device 110 to report the packet combination status to the network device 120 may be part of the above-mentioned packet combination solution. Alternatively, these embodiments may exist independently of the above-mentioned embodiments, that is, the solution for the terminal device 110 to report the packet combination status to the network device 120 may be implemented as an independent solution.

[0093] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may report the status of the voice packet combination to the network device 120, and thus the network device 120 may receive a report of the status of the voice packet combination from the terminal device 110. In some embodiments, the report includes at least one of the following: the number of combined VoIP voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission; the number of VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission; the offset from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission at the terminal device; and information indicating whether voice packet combination is performed or is to be performed.

[0094] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may report the status of voice packet combination based on determining that the number of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission or the number of VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission has changed or will be changed. In some embodiments, in the report, the terminal device 110 may report the number of combined VoIP voice frames or VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may report the status of voice packet combination based on determining that the offset from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission has changed or will be changed.

[0095] In some embodiments, when no control information is received from the network device 120 or there is no trigger condition, the terminal device 110 can report the packet combination state to the network device, that is, the terminal device 110 can automatically report the above state. In some embodiments, in the report, the terminal device 110 can report the offset from the time when the VoIP packet is generated to the time when the voice packet is transmitted. In some embodiments, in the report, the terminal device 110 can report information indicating whether the voice packet combination is executed or will be executed.

[0096] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 may report the status of the voice packet grouping via a media access control control element (MAC CE) or RRC. On the network device 120 side, the network device 120 may receive the report via a MAC CE or RRC.

[0097] With reference to the previously described embodiments, in some embodiments, the network device 120 may update the control information based on the report. According to the above embodiments, for example, the UE may report the packet combination status to the network (network device 120). The report may be triggered when the number of VoIP voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission has changed or will be changed (e.g., the number of combined VoIP voice frames has changed or will be changed), or the number of VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission has changed or will be changed.

[0098] Alternatively, the report may be triggered in case the time offset (from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of packet assembly / transmission) is changed or will be changed. The content may include the number of VoIP voice frames or VoIP packets combined in a single packet for uplink transmission. Alternatively, the content may include whether packet assembly is performed or will be performed. Alternatively, the content may include the time offset (from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of packet assembly / transmission).

[0099] The UE may report the status to the network via MAC CE. Alternatively, the UE may report the status via RRC. Using the reported packet combining status, the network may derive the required change in TBS for accommodating the VoIP payload, thereby (re)scheduling the appropriate TBS in the configuration grant. Alternatively, the network may control the packet combining via (re)configuration of a TBS threshold or an ON / OFF flag regarding whether packet combining is allowed. Alternatively, the network may adjust the packet scheduling priority based on the reported time offset. In addition, the present disclosure introduces new auxiliary information, where the UE should report the packet combining status to the network to achieve efficient gNB scheduling.

[0100] According to the solution of the present disclosure, the solution enables the network to control the packet combining in the UE based on (multiple) network defined thresholds, so the network can control the TBS and delay offset required for the VoIP packet uplink transmission. It is necessary to ensure that the UE can work properly at the cell edge with uplink coverage bottleneck, and to ensure that the configuration authorization feature can work properly with achievable gains (e.g., saving PDCCH in CG opportunities and no PUSCH waste). The solution enables the UE to report the packet combining status to the network, which is to achieve efficient gNB scheduling based on latency-based priority and / or required TBS to accommodate the combined voice frames.

[0101] Figure 8 FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a voice grouping method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 8 As shown, in method 800, at block 810, terminal device 110 may receive control information for controlling voice packet combination at terminal device from network device 120. At block 820, terminal device 110 may determine voice packet combination based on the control information. At block 830, terminal device 110 may perform voice packet combination. At block 840, terminal device 110 may send the combined voice packet to the network device.

[0102] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 receives the control information by: receiving a TBS threshold for voice packet combination at the terminal device from the network device. In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 performs voice packet combination by: determining a plurality of voice packets to be combined if a transport block size (TBS) required to accommodate the combined packet is less than the TBS threshold; and combining the plurality of voice packets into a single packet for uplink transmission.

[0103] In some embodiments, method 800 further comprises sending a radio channel condition of terminal device 110 to network device 120 for determining a TBS threshold by network device 120. In some embodiments, the radio condition may be RSRP or reference signal reception quality (RSRQ) measured by terminal device 110.

[0104] In some embodiments, method 800 further comprises determining the number of voice packets to be combined in a single packet based on the TBS threshold and the applied voice codec rate.In some embodiments, terminal device 110 receives control information by receiving a latency threshold for voice packet combination at the terminal device from a network device.

[0105] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 performs voice packet combining in the following manner: determining multiple voice packets to be combined if the offset from the time of packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission is less than a delay threshold; and combining the multiple voice packets into a single packet for uplink transmission.

[0106] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 receives the control information by receiving a reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold for voice packet combining at the terminal device from a network device.

[0107] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 performs voice packet combining by: determining that voice packet combining is allowed if the measured RSRP in the terminal device is above an RSRP threshold; and performing voice packet combining.

[0108] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 receives the control information by receiving a plurality of RSRP thresholds for voice packet combining at the terminal device from a network device.

[0109] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 performs voice packet combining by: determining a packet combining level corresponding to the measured RSRP based on multiple RSRP thresholds; and performing voice packet combining based on the number of voice packets corresponding to the packet combining level.

[0110] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 performs voice packet combining by: receiving a flag indicating whether voice packet combining at the terminal device is allowed from a network device, and determining that voice packet combining at the terminal device is allowed; and performing voice packet combining.

[0111] In some embodiments, the voice packets correspond to voice frames of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).In some embodiments, the method 800 further comprises receiving one or more of the flag and the control information via a radio resource control (RRC) or a system information block (SIB).

[0112] In some embodiments, the method 800 further includes reporting the status of the voice packet grouping to a network device.

[0113] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 reports the status of the voice packet combination in the following manner: reporting the status of the voice packet combination based on determining that the number of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frames or the number of VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission has changed or will change.

[0114] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 reports the status of voice packet combining by reporting the number of VoIP voice frames or the number of VoIP packets combined in a single packet for uplink transmission.

[0115] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 reports the status of the voice packet grouping by reporting the status of the voice packet grouping based on determining that the offset from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission is or will be changed.

[0116] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 reports the status of voice packet assembly by reporting an offset from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission.

[0117] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 reports the status of the voice packet combining by reporting information indicating whether the voice packet combining is performed or is to be performed.

[0118] In some embodiments, the terminal device 110 reports the status of the voice packet grouping by reporting the status of the voice packet grouping via a media access control control element (MAC CE) or RRC.

[0119] Fig. 9 FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a voice grouping method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig. 9 As shown, in method 900, at block 910, network device 120 may determine control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device. At block 920, network device 120 may send the control information to the terminal device. At block 930, network device 120 may receive combined voice packets from the terminal device.

[0120] In some embodiments, the network device 120 determines the control information by: receiving a radio channel condition of the terminal device from the terminal device; and determining the TBS threshold as the control information based on the radio channel condition of the terminal device. In some embodiments, the network device 120 sends the control information by sending the TBS threshold to the terminal device.

[0121] In some embodiments, the network device 120 determines the control information by determining a TBS threshold as control information based on a configuration TBS in a configuration grant (CG). In some embodiments, the network device 120 determines the control information by determining a latency threshold as control information based on a scheduling policy of the network device, the scheduling policy including a scheduling priority for scheduling voice packets.

[0122] In some embodiments, the network device 120 sends the control information by sending a latency threshold to the terminal device. In some embodiments, the network device 120 determines the control information by determining at least one RSRP threshold as the control information, the RSRP threshold corresponding to a packet combining level for the terminal device to perform voice packet combining.

[0123] In some embodiments, the network device 120 sends the control information by sending at least one RSRP threshold to the terminal device. In some embodiments, the method 900 also includes sending a flag to the terminal device indicating whether voice packet combination at the terminal device is allowed. In some embodiments, the voice packet corresponds to a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frame.

[0124] In some embodiments, the method 900 further comprises sending a flag, and one or more information of control information via a radio resource control (RRC) or a system information block (SIB). In some embodiments, the method 900 further comprises receiving a report of a status of voice packet combining from a terminal device, the report comprising at least one of: the number of combined VoIP voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission; the number of combined VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission; the offset from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission at the terminal device; and information indicating whether voice packet combining is performed or is to be performed.

[0125] In some embodiments, the network device 120 receives the report of the status of the voice packet combination by receiving the report via a media access control control element (MAC CE) or RRC. In some embodiments, the method 900 further includes updating control information based on the report.

[0126] In some embodiments, a device (e.g., terminal device 120) capable of executing any of the methods in method 800 may include a component for executing the corresponding steps of method 800. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in a circuit system or a software module.

[0127] In some embodiments, the apparatus includes a component for receiving control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device from a network device at the terminal device; a component for determining the voice packet combination based on the control information; a component for performing the voice packet combination; and a component for sending the combined voice packets to the network device.

[0128] In some embodiments, the means for receiving control information includes: means for receiving a TBS threshold for voice packet combination at a terminal device from a network device. In some embodiments, the means for performing voice packet combination includes means for determining a plurality of voice packets to be combined when a transport block size (TBS) required to accommodate the combined packets is less than the TBS threshold; and means for combining the plurality of voice packets in a single packet for uplink transmission.

[0129] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises a component for sending a radio channel condition of the terminal device to the network device for determining a TBS threshold by the network device. In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises a component for determining the number of voice packets to be combined in a single packet based on the TBS threshold and the applied voice codec rate.

[0130] In some embodiments, the means for receiving control information includes means for receiving a latency threshold for voice packet combination at the terminal device from the network device. In some embodiments, the means for performing voice packet combination includes means for determining a plurality of voice packets to be combined if an offset from a time of packet generation to a time of voice packet transmission is less than the latency threshold; and means for combining the plurality of voice packets in a single packet for uplink transmission.

[0131] In some embodiments, the means for receiving control information includes means for receiving a reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold for voice packet combining at the terminal device from the network device. In some embodiments, the means for performing voice packet combining includes means for determining that voice packet combining is allowed if the measured RSRP in the terminal device is above the RSRP threshold; and means for performing voice packet combining.

[0132] In some embodiments, the means for receiving control information includes means for receiving a plurality of RSRP thresholds for voice packet combining at the terminal device from the network device. In some embodiments, the means for performing voice packet combining includes means for determining a packet combining level corresponding to the measured RSRP based on the plurality of RSRP thresholds; and means for performing voice packet combining based on the number of voice packets corresponding to the packet combining level.

[0133] In some embodiments, the components for performing voice packet combination include a flag for receiving from a network device indicating whether voice packet combination at a terminal device is allowed; and a component for determining whether voice packet combination at the terminal device is allowed; and a component for performing voice packet combination. In some embodiments, the voice packets correspond to voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frames.

[0134] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for receiving one or more information of the flag and the control information via a radio resource control (RRC) or a system information block (SIB). In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for reporting the status of the voice packet assembly to the network device.

[0135] In some embodiments, the means for reporting the status of voice packet combining includes means for reporting the status of voice packet combining based on determining that the number of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission has changed or will be changed. In some embodiments, the means for reporting the status of voice packet combining includes means for reporting the number of combined VoIP voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission.

[0136] In some embodiments, means for reporting the status of the voice packet grouping includes means for reporting the status of the voice packet grouping based on determining that an offset from a time of VoIP packet generation to a time of voice packet transmission is or will be changed.

[0137] In some embodiments, the means for reporting the status of voice packet combining includes means for reporting an offset from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission. In some embodiments, the means for reporting the status of voice packet combining includes means for reporting information indicating whether voice packet combining is performed or is to be performed. In some embodiments, the means for reporting the status of voice packet combining includes means for reporting the status of voice packet combining via a media access control control element (MAC CE) or RRC.

[0138] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for performing other steps of some embodiments of method 800. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to enable the above-mentioned execution of the apparatus together with the at least one processor.

[0139] In some embodiments, an apparatus (e.g., network device 120) capable of performing any of the methods in method 900 may include a component for performing the corresponding steps of method 900. The component may be implemented in any suitable form. For example, the component may be implemented in a circuit system or a software module.

[0140] In some embodiments, the apparatus includes: means for determining, at a network device, control information for controlling voice packet combination at a terminal device; means for sending the control information to the terminal device; and means for receiving combined voice packets from the terminal device.

[0141] In some embodiments, the means for determining the control information comprises means for: receiving a radio channel condition of the terminal device from the terminal device; and determining the TBS threshold as the control information based on the radio channel condition of the terminal device. In some embodiments, the means for sending the control information comprises means for sending the TBS threshold to the terminal device.

[0142] In some embodiments, the means for determining the control information includes means for determining a TBS threshold as the control information based on the configured TBS in the configuration grant (CG). In some embodiments, the means for determining the control information includes means for determining a latency threshold as the control information based on a scheduling policy of the network device, the scheduling policy including a scheduling priority for scheduling voice packets.

[0143] In some embodiments, the means for sending the control information comprises means for sending a latency threshold to the terminal device. In some embodiments, the means for determining the control information comprises means for determining at least one RSRP threshold as the control information, the RSRP threshold corresponding to a packet combining level for the terminal device to perform voice packet combining;

[0144] In some embodiments, the means for sending the control information comprises means for sending at least one RSRP threshold to the terminal device.In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for sending a flag to the terminal device indicating whether voice packet combining at the terminal device is allowed.

[0145] In some embodiments, the voice packets correspond to voice frames of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for transmitting one or more information of a flag and control information via a Radio Resource Control (RRC) or a System Information Block (SIB).

[0146] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises a component for receiving a report on the status of voice packet combining from a terminal device, the report comprising at least one of: the number of combined VoIP voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission; the number of combined VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission; the offset from the time of VoIP packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission at the terminal device; and information indicating whether voice packet combining is performed or is to be performed.

[0147] In some embodiments, the means for receiving a report of the status of the voice packet combination comprises receiving the report via a media access control control element (MAC CE) or RRC. In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for updating control information based on the report.

[0148] In some embodiments, the apparatus further comprises means for performing other steps of some embodiments of method 900. In some embodiments, the means comprises at least one processor; and at least one memory comprising computer program code, the at least one memory and the computer program code being configured to enable the above-mentioned execution of the apparatus together with the at least one processor.

[0149] Fig.10 is a simplified block diagram of a device 1000 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure. The device 1000 may be provided to implement a communication device, such as Figure 1 The terminal device 110 and the network device 120 are shown. As shown in the figure, the device 1000 includes one or more processors 1010, one or more memories 1040 coupled to the processors 1010, and one or more communication modules 1040 coupled to the processors 1010.

[0150] The communication module 1040 is used for two-way communication. The communication module 1040 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication. The communication interface may represent any interface required for communication with other network elements.

[0151] Processor 1010 may be of any type suitable for the local technology network, and may include, as non-limiting examples, one or more of: a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 1000 may have multiple processors, such as application specific integrated circuit chips that are time slaved to a clock synchronized with a main processor.

[0152] The memory 1020 may include one or more non-volatile memories and one or more volatile memories. Examples of non-volatile memories include, but are not limited to, read-only memory (ROM) 1024, electrically programmable read-only memory (EPROM), flash memory, hard disks, compact disks (CDs), digital video disks (DVDs), and other magnetic storage devices and / or optical storage devices. Examples of volatile memories include, but are not limited to, random access memory (RAM) 1022 and other volatile memories that do not persist during power outages.

[0153] Computer program 1030 includes computer executable instructions executed by associated processor 1010. Program 1030 may be stored in ROM 1020. Processor 1010 may perform any suitable actions and processes by loading program 1030 into RAM 1020.

[0154] The embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by the program 1030 so that the device 1000 may execute the reference Figures 2 to 9 Any process of the present disclosure discussed. The embodiments of the present disclosure may also be implemented by hardware or by a combination of software and hardware.

[0155] In some embodiments, the program 1030 may be tangibly contained in a computer-readable medium, which may be included in the device 1000 (such as in the memory 1020) or in other storage devices accessible to the device 1000. The device 1000 may load the program 1030 from the computer-readable medium to the RAM 1022 for execution. The computer-readable medium may include any type of tangible non-volatile memory, such as ROM, EPROM, flash memory, hard disk, CD, DVD, etc. Fig.11 An example of a computer readable medium 1100 in the form of a CD or DVD is shown. The computer readable medium has a program 1030 stored thereon.

[0156] Generally, various embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented using hardware or dedicated circuits, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects may be implemented using hardware, while other aspects may be implemented using firmware or software that may be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various aspects of the embodiments of the present disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flow charts, or using some other graphical representations, it should be understood that, as non-limiting examples, the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein may be implemented using hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuits or logic, general-purpose hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0157] The present disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer executable instructions, such as instructions included in a program module, which are executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the above reference Figure 2-Figure 5 The method 1000 described. Typically, a program module includes a routine, program, library, object, class, component, data structure, etc. that performs a specific task or implements a specific abstract data type. In various embodiments, the functions of the program modules can be combined or split between program modules as needed. The machine executable instructions of the program modules can be executed in a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, the program modules can be located in both local and remote storage media.

[0158] The program code for executing the method of the present disclosure can be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. These program codes can be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer or other programmable data processing device so that the program code is implemented when executed by the processor or controller in the flow chart and / or the block diagram. The program code can be executed completely on the machine, partially on the machine, as an independent software package, partially on the machine and partially on a remote machine, or completely on a remote machine or server.

[0159] In the context of the present disclosure, computer program codes or related data may be carried by any suitable carrier to enable a device, apparatus or processor to perform various processes and operations as described above. Examples of carriers include signals, computer readable media, etc.

[0160] Computer readable medium can be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. Computer readable medium can include but is not limited to electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared or semiconductor systems, devices or equipment, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of computer readable storage medium will include electrical connections with one or more wires, portable computer floppy disks, hard disks, random access memories (RAM), read-only memories (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memories (EPROM or flash memory), optical fibers, portable compact disk read-only memories (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. The term "non-transient" used herein is a restriction on the medium itself (i.e., tangible, rather than signal), rather than a restriction on data storage persistence (e.g., RAM and ROM).

[0161] In addition, although the operations are described in a particular order, this should not be understood as requiring such operations to be performed in the particular order shown or in order or performing all the operations shown to obtain the desired result. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, although several specific implementation details are included in the above discussion, these should not be interpreted as limitations on the scope of the present disclosure, but rather descriptions of features that may be specific to a particular embodiment. Certain features described in the context of a separate embodiment may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. On the contrary, the various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in multiple embodiments individually or in any suitable sub-combination.

[0162] Although the disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological acts, it should be understood that the disclosure defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above. Rather, the specific features or acts described above are disclosed as example forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A terminal device, comprising: at least one processor; as well as At least one memory, wherein the at least one memory stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed by the at least one processor, the terminal device at least: receiving control information for controlling voice packet assembly at the terminal device from a network device; determining the voice group combination based on the control information; Executing the voice grouping combination; as well as The combined voice packets are sent to the network device.

2. The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein: The terminal device is caused to receive the control information in the following manner: receiving, from the network device, a transport block size (TBS) threshold for the voice packet combination at the terminal device; The terminal device is caused to perform the voice packet combination in the following manner: determining a plurality of voice packets to be combined if the TBS required to accommodate the combined packets is less than the TBS threshold; and The multiple voice packets are combined into a single packet for uplink transmission.

3. The terminal device according to claim 2, wherein the terminal device is further configured to: The radio channel condition of the terminal device is sent to the network device for use in determining the TBS threshold by the network device.

4. The terminal device according to claim 2, wherein the terminal device is further configured to: Based on the TBS threshold and the applied voice codec rate, the number of voice packets to be combined into a single packet is determined.

5. The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein: The terminal device is caused to receive the control information in the following manner: receiving, from the network device, a delay threshold for the voice packet combination at the terminal device; The terminal device is caused to perform the voice packet combination in the following manner: determining a plurality of voice packets to be combined if the offset from the time of packet generation to the time of voice packet transmission is less than the delay threshold; and The multiple voice packets are combined into a single packet for uplink transmission.

6. The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein: The terminal device is caused to receive the control information in the following manner: receiving, from the network device, a reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold for the voice packet combination at the terminal device; The terminal device is caused to perform the voice packet combination in the following manner: If the measured RSRP in the terminal device is higher than the RSRP threshold, determining that the voice packet combining is allowed; as well as The voice packet combining is performed.

7. The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein: The terminal device is caused to receive the control information in the following manner: receiving, from the network device, a plurality of reference signal received power (RSRP) thresholds for the voice packet combination at the terminal device; The terminal device is caused to perform the voice packet combination in the following manner: determining a grouping level corresponding to the measured RSRP based on the plurality of RSRP thresholds; and The voice packet combination is performed based on the number of voice packets corresponding to the packet combination level.

8. The terminal device according to claim 1, wherein the terminal device is caused to perform the voice packet combination in the following manner: receiving from the network device a flag indicating whether the voice packet combination at the terminal device is allowed; Determining that the voice packet combination at the terminal device is allowed; as well as The voice packet combining is performed.

9. The terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the voice packets correspond to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frames.

10. The terminal device according to claims 1 to 8, wherein the terminal device is further configured to: The flag and one or more information of the control information are received via a radio resource control (RRC) or a system information block (SIB).

11. The terminal device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the terminal device is further configured to: The status of the voice packet combination is reported to the network device.

12. The terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the terminal device is caused to report the status of the voice packet combination by: The status of the voice packet combination is reported based on determining that a number of Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission has changed or will be changed.

13. The terminal device according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the terminal device is caused to report the status of the voice packet combination by: Reports the number of combined VoIP voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission.

14. The terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the terminal device is caused to report the status of the voice packet combination by: Based on determining that an offset from a time of VoIP packet generation to a time of voice packet transmission is or will be changed, reporting the status of the voice packet combination.

15. The terminal device according to claim 11 or 14, wherein the terminal device is caused to report the status of the voice packet combination by: Reports the offset from the time the VoIP packet is generated to the time the voice packet is transmitted.

16. The terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the terminal device is caused to report the status of the voice packet combination by: Information indicating whether the voice packet combining is performed or is to be performed is reported.

17. The terminal device according to claim 11, wherein the terminal device is caused to report the status of the voice packet combination by: The status of the voice packet combination is reported via a media access control control element (MAC CE) or RRC.

18. A network device comprising: at least one processor; as well as at least one memory storing instructions that, when executed by the at least one processor, cause the network device to at least: determining control information for controlling voice packet assembly at a terminal device; sending the control information to the terminal device; and Combined voice packets are received from the terminal device.

19. The network device according to claim 18, wherein: The network device is caused to determine the control information by: receiving, from the terminal device, a radio channel condition of the terminal device; and determining a transport block size (TBS) threshold as the control information based on the radio channel condition of the terminal device; The network device is caused to send the control information in the following manner: Sending the TBS threshold to the terminal device.

20. The network device of claim 18, wherein the network device is caused to determine the control information by: Based on the configuration TBS in the configuration grant (CG), a TBS threshold is determined as the control information.

21. The network device according to claim 18, wherein: The network device is caused to determine the control information by: Determining a delay threshold as the control information based on a scheduling policy of the network device, wherein the scheduling policy includes a scheduling priority for scheduling voice packets; The network device is caused to send the control information in the following manner: Sending the delay threshold to the terminal device.

22. The network device according to claim 18, wherein: The network device is caused to determine the control information by: determining at least one reference signal received power (RSRP) threshold as the control information, the RSRP threshold corresponding to a packet combining level used by the terminal device to perform the voice packet combining; The network device is caused to send the control information in the following manner: The at least one RSRP threshold is sent to the terminal device.

23. The network device of claim 18, wherein the network device is further caused to: A flag is sent to the terminal device indicating whether the voice packet combination at the terminal device is allowed.

24. The network device of any one of claims 18 to 23, wherein the voice packets correspond to Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) voice frames.

25. The network device according to any one of claims 18 to 23, wherein the network device is further configured to: The flag and one or more information of the control information are transmitted via a radio resource control (RRC) or a system information block (SIB).

26. The network device according to any one of claims 18 to 23, wherein the network device is further configured to: A report on the status of the voice packet combination is received from the terminal device, the report comprising at least one of the following: The number of combined VoIP voice frames in a single packet for uplink transmission; the number of combined VoIP packets in a single packet for uplink transmission; An offset from the time of generation of the VoIP packet to the time of transmission of the voice packet at the terminal device; as well as Information indicating whether the voice packet combining is performed or is to be performed.

27. The network device of claim 26, wherein the network device is caused to receive a report of the status of the voice packet combination by: The report is received via a Medium Access Control Element (MAC CE) or RRC.

28. The network device of claim 27, wherein the network device is further caused to: The control information is updated based on the report.

29. A method comprising: At a terminal device, receiving control information for controlling voice packet combination at the terminal device from a network device; determining the voice group combination based on the control information; Executing the voice grouping combination; as well as The combined voice packets are sent to the network device.

30. A method comprising: At the network device, determining control information for controlling voice packet assembly at the terminal device; Sending the control information to the terminal device; as well as Combined voice packets are received from the terminal device.

31. An apparatus comprising: means for receiving, at a terminal device, from a network device, control information for controlling voice packet assembly at the terminal device; means for determining said voice packet combination based on said control information; means for performing said voice packet combining; as well as Means for sending the combined voice packets to said network device.

32. An apparatus comprising: means for determining, at a network device, control information for controlling voice packet assembly at a terminal device; A component for sending the control information to the terminal device; as well as Means for receiving combined voice packets from said terminal device.

33. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising program instructions, which, when executed by a device, cause the device to at least perform the method according to claim 29 or 30.

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