Communication method and device

Abstract

The invention relates to a communication method and device. When the inactivation time of a first beam is reached, the terminal device stops and does not reset a timer, the timer is used for waiting for arrival of an out-of-order data packet, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device. When the activation time of the first beam arrives, the terminal device starts the timer. According to the embodiment of the invention, the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer is reduced, and since the timer does not timeout in the inactive time, the terminal device does not execute the timeout processing flow, so that the influence on the service is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device. Background Art

[0002] A non-terrestrial network (NTN) is a wireless communication system operating above the Earth's surface. A typical NTN network provides communication services via satellite. Satellites use beams to cover the Earth's surface. Because satellites have a large coverage area and a single beam has limited coverage, multiple beams are needed. However, due to limitations in satellite components (for example, the number of simultaneously active beams may be limited by satellite transmit power), satellites can use "beam hopping" to provide service to all user equipment (UE) within the satellite's coverage area. For example, beams are scanned, and within a single scan cycle, different beams sequentially cover different areas of the Earth's surface. For example, during a certain time period within a scan cycle, beam 1 is activated, covering area 1. During the next time period within the same scan cycle, beam 1 is deactivated, and beam 2 is activated, covering area 2. Therefore, the same beam has periods of activation and inactivity within a scan cycle. For a UE within a certain area, if the beam covering the area is activated, the UE can communicate with the network through the beam; if the beam covering the area is deactivated, the UE cannot communicate with the network.

[0003] The UE may maintain some timers to implement certain functions. For example, some timers can be used to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive, while others can be used to detect link quality. However, in NTN scenarios, the maintenance of these timers may not be consistent with the actual situation, which may affect current services. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus for reducing the impact of timer maintenance on services.

[0005] In a first aspect, a first communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device. The terminal device is, for example, a terminal device, or other device including the functions of a terminal device, or a chip system (or chip) or other functional module, which can realize the functions of the terminal device, and the chip system or functional module is, for example, set in the terminal device. The following introduction takes the terminal device as an example. The method includes: when the inactivation time of the first beam is reached, stopping and not resetting the timer, the timer is used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets, the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device; when the activation time of the first beam is reached, starting the timer.

[0006] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the terminal device can stop and not reset the timer, so that the timer will not time out during the inactive time; and when the activation time of the first beam is reached, the terminal device can start the timer again, so that the timer can continue to wait for out-of-order data packets. The embodiment of the present application reduces the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the terminal device will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the terminal device executes the timeout processing process, it may cause packet loss. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to reduce the packet loss rate.

[0007] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: not submitting at least one data packet to the upper layer, the at least one data packet being all received data packets whose count value is before the first count value, wherein the first count value is determined based on the count value of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer. For example, a working mode of a timer (such as the t-reordering timer maintained by the PDCP layer) is that if the timer times out, the corresponding protocol layer of the terminal device (such as the PDCP layer) shall submit the at least one data packet to the upper layer. In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device stops the timer, and the timer does not time out, so the terminal device does not have to follow the timeout process, and does not have to submit at least one data packet. In this way, the at least one data packet can still be within the range of data packets waiting to be received, which can reduce the packet loss rate.

[0008] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: not discarding at least one data packet, the at least one data packet being all received unassembled data packets whose sequence numbers are before the first sequence number, wherein the first sequence number is determined based on the sequence number of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer. For example, a working mode of a timer (such as the t-reassembly timer maintained by UM RLC) is that if the timer times out, the corresponding protocol layer (such as the RLC layer) of the terminal device will discard the at least one data packet. In the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device stops the timer, and the timer does not time out, so the terminal device does not have to follow the timeout process, and does not have to discard at least one data packet, which can reduce the packet loss rate.

[0009] In an optional embodiment, before stopping and not resetting the timer, the method further includes determining that the timer will time out within the inactivity period of the first beam. If the timer will not time out within the inactivity period, the terminal device does not need to stop the timer; the timer can continue to run. This determination process can simplify processing on the terminal device and make the timer run more efficiently.

[0010] In an optional embodiment, a data packet that fails to be transmitted during the activation time of an activation cycle of the first beam is retransmitted during the activation time of the next activation cycle of the first beam. This HARQ behavior allows the network device to perform retransmissions during the activation time of the first beam, reducing the probability of retransmission failure.

[0011] In a second aspect, a second communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device. For implementation of the terminal device, refer to the relevant description of the first aspect. The method includes: upon reaching the inactivity time of a first beam, extending a timer, wherein the extended timer expiration time falls within the activity time of the first beam, the first beam being a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer is configured to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets.

[0012] Alternatively, the method includes: when the inactivation time of the first beam is reached, extending the timing duration of the timer by a first duration, the first duration being determined based on the activation period of the first beam, the first beam being a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer being used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets.

[0013] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the terminal device can extend the timing duration of the timer. For example, after the extension, the timeout time of the timer is within the activation time of the first beam. In this inactive time, the timer will not time out, so that when the activation time of the first beam is reached, the timer can continue to wait for out-of-order data packets. The embodiment of the present application reduces the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out within the inactive time, the terminal device will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the terminal device executes the timeout processing process, it may cause packet loss. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to reduce the packet loss rate.

[0014] In an optional embodiment, the extension amount of the timer duration is determined based on the activation period of the first beam. This extension amount may also be referred to as an offset, etc., without limitation to the name. For example, based on the activation period of the first beam, the terminal device may determine the length of the inactive period of the first beam within an activation period. For example, the extension amount may be greater than the length, so that the timer does not time out during the inactive period.

[0015] In an optional implementation, before extending the timing duration of the timer, the method further includes: determining that the timer will time out within the inactivity time of the first beam.

[0016] In an optional implementation, a data packet that fails to be transmitted within an activation time in an activation cycle of the first beam will be retransmitted within an activation time in a next activation cycle of the first beam.

[0017] Regarding the technical effects brought about by some optional implementations of the second aspect, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementations.

[0018] In a third aspect, a third communication method is provided. This method can be performed by a terminal device. For implementation of the terminal device, please refer to the relevant description of the first aspect. The method includes: upon reaching the inactivity time of a first beam, stopping and resetting a timer, wherein the timer is used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device.

[0019] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the terminal device can stop and reset the timer, thereby reducing the delay in delivering data packets to the upper layer and reducing the power consumption caused by the terminal device maintaining the timer.

[0020] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: submitting at least one data packet to an upper layer, wherein the at least one data packet is a received data packet whose count value is before a first count value, wherein the first count value is determined based on the count value of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer. For example, a working mode of a timer (such as a t-reordering timer maintained by the PDCP layer) is that if the timer times out, the corresponding protocol layer of the terminal device (such as the PDCP layer) shall submit the at least one data packet to the upper layer. However, the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application is processed according to the timeout process, so the at least one data packet can be submitted to the upper layer.

[0021] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: updating the value of the first parameter to a count value of a first data packet, where the first data packet is the first data packet not delivered to the upper layer. For example, if the timer is a t-reordering timer, the first parameter is, for example, RX DELIV.

[0022] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: deleting at least one data packet, wherein the at least one data packet is a received unassembled data packet whose sequence number is before a first sequence number, wherein the first sequence number is determined based on the sequence number of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer. For example, a working mode of a timer (such as the t-reassembly timer maintained by the UMRLC) is that if the timer times out, the corresponding protocol layer (such as the RLC layer) of the terminal device will delete (or discard) the at least one data packet. However, the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application is processed according to the timeout process, so the at least one data packet can be deleted (or discarded).

[0023] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: determining a status report; or, determining a status report when the activation time of the first beam is reached; wherein the status report is used to indicate an unreceived, unassembled data packet whose sequence number is before a first sequence number, and the first sequence number is determined based on the sequence number of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer.

[0024] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: sending the status report within the activation time of the first beam.

[0025] For example, a timer (such as the t-reassembly timer maintained by AM RLC) operates in such a way that if the timer expires, the terminal device must send a status report to the sender of the data packet. However, the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application follows the timeout process, so the terminal device can determine the status report but temporarily refrain from sending it; or it can wait until the first beam is inactive before determining and sending the status report. Clearly, in the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device will not send the status report during the first beam's inactive period, reducing the probability of information transmission failure.

[0026] In an optional embodiment, before stopping and resetting the timer, the method further includes: determining that the timer will time out within an inactive time of the first beam.

[0027] Regarding the technical effects brought about by some optional implementations of the third aspect, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementations.

[0028] In a fourth aspect, a fourth communication method is provided. This method can be performed by a terminal device. For implementation of the terminal device, refer to the relevant description of the first aspect. The method includes: stopping a timer for determining link quality when an inactive time of a first beam is reached, where the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device; and starting the timer when an active time of the first beam is reached.

[0029] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the terminal device can stop the timer, and the timer will not time out during the inactive time; and when the activation time of the first beam is reached, the terminal device can start the timer again, so that the terminal device can continue to detect the link quality through the timer. The embodiment of the present application is equivalent to extending the time for the terminal device to detect the link quality, reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the terminal device will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the terminal device executes the timeout processing process, it may execute RRC re-establishment. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to save transmission resources, reduce the power consumption of the terminal device, and reduce the service delay caused by RRC re-establishment.

[0030] In an optional embodiment, after stopping the timer, the method further includes: stopping detection of reference signals. At this point, the timer has stopped and the first beam is in an inactive period. Therefore, the terminal device cannot communicate with the network device and cannot receive reference signals from the network device. In this case, the terminal device can stop detecting reference signals, thereby reducing power consumption caused by detecting reference signals.

[0031] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: resetting the value of the second parameter; or not resetting the value of the second parameter; wherein the second parameter is used to indicate the number of consecutive synchronization indications received during the operation of the timer. If the terminal device resets the value of the second parameter, then after restarting the timer, the terminal device still needs to detect N311 consecutive synchronization indications to determine that a wireless link failure has occurred. Since the judgment time required by the terminal device is longer, the judgment result is more accurate and stable. Alternatively, the terminal device may not reset the value of the second parameter, then it may have received H consecutive synchronization indications before the timer stops. After restarting the timer, the terminal device can detect whether N311-H consecutive synchronization indications have been received. In this way, the terminal device can reach a judgment result earlier to restore the link as soon as possible.

[0032] In an optional implementation, after starting the timer, the method further includes: determining whether the link quality is restored based on the second parameter. After the timer is started, the timer can continue to operate in the mode of the timer to determine the link quality.

[0033] In an optional implementation, after starting the timer, the method further includes: if the timer times out, determining that a radio link failure occurs.

[0034] In an optional embodiment, before stopping the timer, the method further includes: determining that the timer will time out within an inactive time of the first beam.

[0035] Regarding the technical effects brought about by some optional implementations of the fourth aspect, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or corresponding implementations.

[0036] In a fifth aspect, a fifth communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device. For implementation of the terminal device, refer to the relevant description of the first aspect. The method includes: when the inactivity time of a first beam is reached, extending the timing duration of a timer, wherein the timeout period of the extended timer is within the activity time of the first beam, the timer is used to determine link quality, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device.

[0037] Alternatively, the method includes: when the inactive time of the first beam is reached, extending the timing duration of the timer by a first duration, the first duration being determined based on the activation period of the first beam, the first beam being a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer being used to determine the link quality.

[0038] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the terminal device can extend the timing duration of the timer, and then the timer will not time out during the inactive time, so that the terminal device can continue to detect the link quality through the timer. The embodiment of the present application is equivalent to extending the time for the terminal device to detect the link quality, reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the terminal device will not execute the timeout processing flow, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the terminal device executes the timeout processing flow, it may execute RRC re-establishment. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to save transmission resources, reduce the power consumption of the terminal device, and also reduce the service delay caused by RRC re-establishment.

[0039] In an optional embodiment, the extension amount of the timing duration is determined based on an activation period of the first beam. For example, based on the activation period of the first beam, the terminal device may determine a length of an inactive period of the first beam within an activation period. For example, the extension amount may be greater than the length, so that the timer does not time out during the inactive period.

[0040] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: stopping detection of reference signals, or detecting reference signals, during an inactive period of the first beam. During the inactive period of the first beam, the terminal device cannot communicate with the network device and cannot receive reference signals from the network device. In this case, the terminal device may stop detecting reference signals, thereby reducing power consumption of the terminal device due to detecting reference signals. Alternatively, the terminal device may continue detecting reference signals, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present application.

[0041] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: resetting the value of a second parameter; or not resetting the value of the second parameter; wherein the second parameter is used to indicate the number of consecutive synchronization signals received during the operation of the timer.

[0042] In an optional implementation, after starting the timer, the method further includes: determining whether the link quality is restored according to the second parameter.

[0043] In an optional implementation, the method further includes: if the timer times out, determining that a radio link failure occurs.

[0044] In an optional implementation, before extending the timing duration of the timer, the method further includes: determining that the timer will time out within the inactivity time of the first beam.

[0045] Regarding the technical effects brought about by some optional implementations of the fifth aspect, reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the fourth aspect or the corresponding implementations, and / or reference may be made to the introduction to the technical effects of the first aspect or the corresponding implementations.

[0046] In a sixth aspect, a sixth communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal device. For the implementation of the terminal device, reference may be made to the relevant introduction of the first aspect. The method includes: determining that a third duration is insufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, where Y represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications received during the operation of the timer, Y is an integer greater than or equal to 0, and N311 represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications used to determine whether the link quality has recovered, the third duration being the duration until the inactivation time of the first beam, the first beam being a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer being used to detect the link quality; and stopping or not starting the timer.

[0047] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal device can promptly determine whether the remaining time is sufficient to perform a link quality judgment. If the remaining time is insufficient, the terminal device can stop the timer as early as possible to save power consumption of the terminal device.

[0048] In an optional embodiment, the method further includes: sending a first message to the network device within the activation time of the first beam, where the first message is used to request RRC re-establishment. When the terminal device stops or does not start the timer, the terminal device can promptly perform RRC re-establishment with the network device within the activation time of the first beam to accelerate the link recovery process.

[0049] In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be the terminal device described in any one of the first to sixth aspects. The communication device possesses the functions of the terminal device described above. The communication device may be, for example, a terminal device, or other device including terminal device functions, or a chip system (or chip) or other functional module. The chip system or functional module is capable of implementing the functions of the terminal device, and the chip system or functional module is, for example, disposed in the terminal device. In one optional implementation, the communication device includes a baseband device and a radio frequency device. In another optional implementation, the communication device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a transceiver unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module). The transceiver unit is capable of implementing both transmitting and receiving functions. When the transceiver unit implements the transmitting function, it may be referred to as a transmitting unit (sometimes also referred to as a transmitting module); when the transceiver unit implements the receiving function, it may be referred to as a receiving unit (sometimes also referred to as a receiving module). The transmitting unit and the receiving unit may be the same functional module, referred to as a transceiver unit, which is capable of implementing both transmitting and receiving functions; alternatively, the transmitting unit and the receiving unit may be different functional modules, with the transceiver unit being a collective term for these functional modules.

[0050] In an optional embodiment, the processing unit is used to stop and not reset the timer when the inactivation time of the first beam is reached, and the timer is used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device; the processing unit is also used to start the timer when the activation time of the first beam is reached.

[0051] In an optional embodiment, the processing unit is configured to extend the timing duration of the timer when the inactive time of the first beam is reached, wherein the timeout period of the extended timer is within the activation period of the first beam, the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer is configured to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive. Alternatively, the processing unit is configured to extend the timing duration of the timer by a first duration when the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the first duration is determined according to the activation period of the first beam, the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer is configured to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive.

[0052] In an optional embodiment, the processing unit is used to stop and reset the timer when the inactive time of the first beam is reached, wherein the timer is used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device.

[0053] In an optional embodiment, the processing unit is used to stop the timer when the inactivation time of the first beam is reached, the timer is used to determine the link quality, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device; the processing unit is also used to start the timer when the activation time of the first beam is reached.

[0054] In an optional embodiment, the processing unit is configured to extend the timing duration of the timer when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, wherein the timeout period of the extended timer is within the activity time of the first beam, the timer is used to determine link quality, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device. Alternatively, the processing unit is configured to extend the timing duration of the timer by a first duration when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the first duration is determined based on the activity period of the first beam, the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer is used to determine link quality.

[0055] In an optional embodiment, the processing unit is used to determine that the third duration is insufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, where Y represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications received during the operation of the timer, and Y is an integer greater than or equal to 0, and N311 represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications used to determine whether the link quality is restored. The third duration is the duration until the inactive time of the first beam, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device. The timer is used to detect the link quality; the processing unit is also used to stop or not start the timer.

[0056] In an optional embodiment, the communication device also includes a storage unit (sometimes also referred to as a storage module), and the processing unit is used to couple with the storage unit and execute the program or instructions in the storage unit, enabling the communication device to perform the functions of the terminal device described in any one of the first to sixth aspects above.

[0057] In an eighth aspect, a communication device is provided, which may be the terminal device described in any one of the first to sixth aspects above. The communication device has the functions of the above-mentioned terminal device. The communication device is, for example, a terminal device, or other device including the functions of a terminal device, or a chip system (or, chip) or other functional module, which can realize the functions of the terminal device, and the chip system or functional module is, for example, provided in the terminal device. The communication device includes a processor for performing the functions of the terminal device described in any one of the first to sixth aspects above. Optionally, the communication device also includes a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program, and the processor is coupled to the memory. When the processor reads the computer program or instruction, the communication device executes the method performed by the terminal device in the above aspects.

[0058] In a ninth aspect, a communication system is provided, comprising a terminal device, wherein the terminal device is configured to execute the method described in any of aspects 1 to 6. For example, the terminal device may be implemented using the communication device described in aspect 7 or aspect 8. Optionally, the communication system may further include other devices, such as a network device serving the terminal device, without limitation.

[0059] In a tenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, wherein the computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed, the method executed by the terminal device in the above aspects is implemented.

[0060] In an eleventh aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, wherein when the computer program or instructions are executed on a computer, the methods described in the above aspects are implemented.

[0061] In the twelfth aspect, a chip system is provided, comprising a processor and an interface, wherein the processor is used to call and execute instructions from the interface so that the chip system implements the above-mentioned methods. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0062] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the t-reordering timer timing out during the beam inactivity time;

[0063] Figure 2A and Figure 2B Two schematic diagrams of the conditions for starting the t-reassembly timer of the UM RLC;

[0064] Figure 3A and Figure 3B Two schematic diagrams showing the conditions for starting the t-reassembly timer of AM RLC;

[0065] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the t-reassembly timer timing out during the beam inactivity time;

[0066] Figures 5A to 5C Schematic diagrams of several application scenarios of the embodiments of this application;

[0067] Figure 6 、 Figure 8 、 Figure 10 、 Figure 13 、 Figure 15 、 Figure 17 Flowcharts of several communication methods provided in embodiments of the present application;

[0068] Figure 7 、 Figure 9 、 Figure 11 、 Figure 14 、 Figure 16 、 Figure 18 Schematic diagram of the working mode of several communication methods provided in the embodiments of the present application;

[0069] Figure 12A and Figure 12B This is a schematic diagram of the working mode of timer T310;

[0070] Figure 19 A schematic diagram of a device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0071] Figure 20 A schematic diagram of another device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0072] In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0073] In the embodiments of the present application, the number of nouns, unless otherwise specified, means "singular noun or plural noun", that is, "one or more". "At least one" means one or more, and "plural" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there may be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can mean: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B means: A or B. "At least one of the following items" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c means: a, b, c, a and b, a and c, b and c, or a and b and c, where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0074] In the embodiments of this application, ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the size, content, order, timing, priority, or importance of multiple objects. In addition, the numbering of steps in the various embodiments introduced in this application is only to distinguish different steps and is not used to define the order between steps. For example, S601 can occur before S602, or after S602, or at the same time as S602.

[0075] Below, some terms or concepts in the embodiments of the present application are explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0076] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal device is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities, which can be a fixed device, a mobile device, a handheld device (such as a mobile phone), a wearable device, a vehicle-mounted device, or a wireless device built into the above devices (for example, a communication module, a modem, or a chip system, etc.). The terminal device is used to connect people, objects, machines, etc., and can be widely used in various scenarios, such as but not limited to the following scenarios: perception scenarios, cellular communications, device-to-device communication (D2D), vehicle to everything (V2X), machine-to-machine / machine-type communications (M2M / MTC), Internet of Things (IoT), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), industrial control, self-driving, remote medical, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearable, smart transportation, smart city, drones, robots, indoor commercial scenarios (such as mobile phone screen projection, file sharing, mobile phone to VR glasses video transmission) and other scenarios. When the terminal device is applied to V2X, it can also be called a V2X device, for example, a smart car (or intelligent car), a digital car, an unmanned car (or driverless car or pilotless car or automobile), a self-driving car (or autonomous car), a pure electric vehicle (or battery EV), a hybrid electric vehicle (HEV), a range-extended EV (REEV), a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV), a new energy vehicle (new energy vehicle), or a roadside unit (RSU). The terminal device can also be a device used in D2D communication, such as an electricity meter or water meter.

[0077] In addition, in the embodiment of the present application, the terminal device can also be a terminal device in the Internet of Things (IoT) system. IoT is an important part of the future development of information technology. Its main technical feature is to connect objects to the network through communication technology, thereby realizing an intelligent network of human-machine interconnection and object-to-object interconnection.

[0078] The various terminal devices described above, if located on a vehicle (e.g., placed in or installed in a vehicle), can be considered as vehicle-mounted terminal devices, which are also referred to as on-board units (OBUs). The terminal device of the present application can also be an on-board module, on-board module, on-board component, on-board chip, or on-board unit built into a vehicle as one or more components or units, and the vehicle can implement the method of the present application through the built-in on-board module, on-board module, on-board component, on-board chip, or on-board unit.

[0079] The terminal device may sometimes be referred to as UE, terminal, access station, UE station, remote station, wireless communication device, or user equipment, etc.

[0080] In the embodiments of the present application, the communication device for implementing the terminal device function may be a terminal device, or may be a device capable of supporting the terminal device to implement the function, such as a chip system, which may be installed in the terminal device. In the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application are described by taking the terminal device as an example in which the device for implementing the terminal device function is a terminal device. In addition, for ease of description, the terminal device in the embodiments of the present application is described by taking a UE as an example.

[0081] The network devices in the embodiments of the present application include, for example, access network devices and / or core network devices. The access network device is a device with wireless transceiver functions, which is used to communicate with the terminal device. The access network devices include but are not limited to base stations (base transceiver station (BTS), node B (Node B), evolved node B (eNodeB) / eNB, or the next generation node B (gNodeB) / gNB), transmission reception points (TRP), base stations subsequently evolved by the third generation partnership project (3GPP), access nodes in wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) systems, wireless relay nodes, wireless backhaul nodes, etc. The base station can be: a macro base station, a micro base station, a pico base station, a small station, a relay station, etc. Multiple base stations can support networks with the same access technology, or they can support networks with different access technologies. A base station can include one or more co-station or non-co-station transmission and receiving points. The access network device may also be a wireless controller, a centralized unit (CU), and / or a distributed unit (DU) in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. The access network device may also be a server, etc. For example, the network device in the V2X technology may be a road side unit (RSU). The following describes the access network device using a base station as an example. The base station can communicate with the terminal device, or it can communicate with the terminal device through a relay station. The terminal device can communicate with multiple base stations in different access technologies. The core network device is used to implement functions such as mobility management, data processing, session management, policy and billing. The names of the devices that implement core network functions in systems with different access technologies may be different, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this. Taking the fifth generation mobile communication technology (5G) system as an example, the core network equipment includes, for example, access and mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), policy control function (PCF) or user plane function (UPF), etc.

[0082] In the CU-DU architecture, the access network equipment may include a centralized unit (CU), a distributed unit

[0083] The CU and DU may be configured separately or in the same network element, such as a baseband unit (BBU). The RU may be configured in a radio frequency device or radio unit, such as a remote radio unit (RRU), an active antenna unit (AAU), or a remote radio head (RRH).

[0084] In different systems, CU (or CU-CP and CU-UP), DU or RU may also have different names, but those skilled in the art can understand their meanings. For example, in an open RAN (ORAN) system, CU may also be called an open CU (open CU, O-CU), DU may also be called an open DU (open DU, O-DU), CU-CP may also be called an open CU-CP (open CU-CP, O-CU-CP), CU-UP may also be called an open CU-UP (open CU-CP, O-CU-UP), and RU may also be called an open RU (open RU, O-RU). For convenience of description, the embodiments of the present application are described by taking CU, CU-CP, CU-UP, DU and RU as examples. Any of the CU (or CU-CP, CU-UP), DU and RU in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented by a software module, a hardware module, or a combination of a software module and a hardware module.

[0085] Optionally, in various embodiments of the present application, if the network device is a distributed architecture, for example, the network device includes a CU and a DU, or includes a CU-CP, a CU-UP and a DU, then the network device sends information to the UE, specifically, the DU included in the network device sends information to the UE; the network device receives information from the UE, specifically, the DU included in the network device receives information from the UE.

[0086] In the embodiments of the present application, the communication device for implementing the function of the network device may be a network device, or may be a device capable of supporting the network device to implement the function, such as a chip system, which may be installed in the network device. In the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application are described by taking the device for implementing the function of the network device as an example (for example, the device for implementing the function of the access network device is an access network device, and the device for implementing the function of the core network device is a core network device).

[0087] The following describes the technical features involved in the embodiments of the present application. In the embodiments of the present application, a protocol layer may also be referred to as a protocol entity, for example, the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer may also be referred to as a PDCP entity, and the radio link control (RLC) layer may also be referred to as an RLC entity.

[0088] NTN is a wireless communication system operating above the Earth's surface. A typical NTN network provides communication services via satellite. Satellite communications offer advantages such as wide coverage, long communication distances, high reliability, flexibility, and high throughput. Unaffected by factors such as geography, climate, and natural disasters, they have been widely used in aviation, maritime, and military communications. The integration of satellites into future 5G systems will enable communication services in areas difficult to reach by terrestrial networks, such as oceans and forests. This will enhance the reliability of 5G communications, for example, providing more stable and high-quality communication services for users on trains and airplanes. It will also provide more data transmission resources and support a greater number of connections. Thanks to the current concept of "anytime, anywhere" communication, the importance of satellite communication networks will continue to rise in the future.

[0089] Generally speaking, the higher the satellite's orbit, the larger the coverage area, but the longer the communication latency. Generally speaking, satellite orbits can be categorized by altitude into low Earth orbit (LEO), medium Earth orbit (MEO), and geostationary Earth orbit (GEO). MEO and LEO can also fall into non-geosynchronous orbits (NGSO). For example, NGEO can include LEOs with altitudes of approximately 300 to 1,500 kilometers and MEOs with altitudes of approximately 7,000 to 25,000 kilometers.

[0090] Satellites use beams to provide ground coverage. Because satellites have a large coverage area and a single beam has limited coverage, they need to provide multiple beams. However, due to limitations in satellite components (for example, the number of simultaneously active beams may be limited by the satellite's transmit power), to provide service to all UEs within the satellite's coverage area, satellites can use "beam hopping." For example, beams are scanned, and within a scanning cycle, different beams sequentially cover different areas of the ground. For example, during a certain time period within a scanning cycle, beam 1 is activated, covering area 1. During the next time period within the same scanning cycle, beam 1 is deactivated, and beam 2 is activated, covering area 2. Thus, the same beam has active and inactive periods within a scanning cycle. For a UE within a certain area, if the beam covering that area is activated, the UE can communicate with the network through that beam; however, if the beam covering that area is deactivated, the UE cannot communicate with the network.

[0091] The UE may maintain certain timers to implement various functions. For example, some timers may be used to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive, while others may be used to monitor link quality. If a UE starts a timer during the active period of a beam covering the UE and then enters the inactive period of that beam, the timer may expire during the inactive period. The UE will then follow the timeout process, which may affect current services. The following describes the timers maintained by the UE, which can be used to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive. These timers may also include multiple different timers, each of which is described below.

[0092] 1. Timer maintained by the UE's PDCP layer.

[0093] In existing cellular transmission, the PDCP layer at the transmitter can send data packets in the order of the packet count value (COUNT). However, due to the underlying parallel transmission technology, when the PDCP layer at the receiver receives data packets, the first data packet sent may enter retransmission due to transmission failure, while the later data packet is received first. In this case, the data packets received by the receiver will have discontinuous COUNT values, that is, out-of-order data packets will appear.

[0094] When the PDCP layer at the receiving end receives an out-of-order data packet, it can start a reordering timer, such as a t-reordering timer, and record the COUNT of data packet A through the RX_REORD parameter. Data packet A is the next data packet expected to be received, and the next data packet expected to be received is the next data packet of the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reordering timer, and the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reordering timer is the data packet with the latest COUNT received; alternatively, data packet A can also be regarded as the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reordering timer, and in this case, the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reordering timer is the next data packet of the data packet with the latest COUNT received. After receiving the out-of-order data packet, the PDCP layer at the receiving end can stop the t-reordering timer. If the t-reordering timer times out, it means that the currently waiting out-of-order data packet will no longer be received, and the PDCP layer at the receiving end can deliver all data packets with a COUNT before RX_REORD to the upper layer of the PDCP layer. The upper layer of PDCP is, for example, a service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer.

[0095] For example, the receiving end has received data packet 1 and delivered it to the upper layer of the PDCP layer. Then, the receiving end receives data packet 4 but does not receive data packets 2 and 3. At this time, out-of-order data packets appear. The PDCP layer at the receiving end can start the reordering timer and record the value of RX_REORD as 5 (the last data packet in the received COUNT is data packet 4, and the next data packet expected to be received is data packet 5). During the operation of the t-reordering timer, if the PDCP layer receives data packets 2 and 3, the PDCP layer stops the t-reordering timer. If the t-reordering timer times out, the PDCP layer can deliver all data packets with a COUNT before 5 to the upper layer.

[0096] The reordering process of the PDCP layer involves some parameters, which are introduced below.

[0097] RX_DELIV indicates the first COUNT that has not been submitted to the upper layer.

[0098] RX_NEXT indicates the count of the next packet currently expected (or anticipated). The next packet currently expected is the packet following the packet with the latest count received. For example, if the packet with the latest count received is packet 4, the next packet currently expected is packet 5.

[0099] RX_REORD, the RX_NEXT value when the t-reordering timer is turned on.

[0100] Conditions for starting the t-reordering timer: When the t-reordering timer is not running, if RX_NEXT>RX_DELIV, the t-reordering timer is started and RX_REORD=RX_NEXT is updated.

[0101] Conditions for shutting down (or stopping) the t-reordering timer: When the t-reordering timer is running, if RX_DELIV ≥ RX_REORD, stop and reset the t-reordering timer.

[0102] When the t-reordering timer times out, all packets whose COUNT is before RX_REORD are delivered to the upper layer.

[0103] If this reordering process is applied to NTN, if a UE starts the t-reordering timer during the active time of a beam covering the UE and then enters the inactive time of the beam, the t-reordering timer may time out during the inactive time. For this, refer to Figure 1 If the t-reordering timer expires, the UE will deliver all packets with a COUNT before RX_REORD to the upper layer. However, it will not receive any packets with a COUNT before RX_REORD that it has not received, and these packets will be lost. The expiration of the t-reordering timer during the inactive period should be considered an abnormal timeout, as it increases the packet loss rate and affects service transmission.

[0104] In addition, according to Figure 1It can be seen that there is a certain time interval from the start time of the inactive time to the expiration of the t-reordering timer. During this time, the PDCP layer of the UE is always waiting for out-of-order data packets, but in fact, since the UE can no longer communicate with the network, it will not receive out-of-order data packets. Therefore, this period is an invalid waiting time, and the data packets that have not been delivered to the upper layer during this period are accumulated in the PDCP layer. In addition, after the t-reordering timer times out, if the UE still has out-of-order data packets (for example, the UE receives data packets 1 and 4, but not data packets 2 and 3, then the UE starts the t-reordering timer. During the operation of the t-reordering timer, the UE receives data packet 7. Later, the t-reordering timer times out, but the UE has not received data packets 5 and 6, which is equivalent to the UE still having out-of-order data packets when the t-reordering timer times out), the UE can start the t-reordering timer again to wait for the out-of-order data packets to arrive. But from the time the t-reordering timer is turned on again ( Figure 1 For example, the t-reordering timer expires and is restarted at the same time until the end of the inactivity period. The UE will not receive any data packets during this period, which is also an ineffective waiting time. This ineffective waiting time increases the power consumption of the UE.

[0105] 2. Timer maintained by the UE's RLC layer.

[0106] In cellular transmission, when the transmitting end sends a data packet, it may not be able to carry a complete data packet due to insufficient transmission resources. In this case, the RLC layer of the transmitting end will split a data packet (for example, the data packet of the RLC layer is also called the RLC service data unit (SDU)) into multiple sub-data packets (for example, the complete data packet of the RLC layer is the RLC SDU, and the sub-data packets of the RLC layer are also called RLC SDU segments) and then send the sub-data packets. The RLC layer of the receiving end can receive the sub-data packets. Among them, the RLC layer (or RLC entity) of the receiving end can receive the sub-data packets in different ways according to the type of the RLC entity. RLC entity types include, for example, acknowledge mode (AM) or unacknowledge mode (UM), and the RLC entity types of the transmitting end and the receiving end are the same. The following is an introduction to different RLC entity types.

[0107] (1)UM RLC entity.

[0108] The transmission of the UM RLC entity can tolerate packet loss, so no retransmission occurs at the RLC layer. The RLC layer at the transmitting end can segment some or all of the data packets to be transmitted. For unsegmented data packets, the packet header does not carry a sequence number (SN). The RLC layer at the receiving end can directly deliver data packets without SNs to the upper layer of the RLC layer (e.g., the PDCP layer). For segmented data packets, the transmitting end assigns a SN to the data packet, and each sub-packet of the data packet carries the SN of the data packet. After receiving the sub-packets, the RLC entity at the receiving end can reassemble the sub-packets to obtain a complete data packet. When the segmented sub-packets arrive out of order, the RLC layer at the receiving end starts a timer (e.g., the t-reassembly timer) to wait for the out-of-order sub-packets. For example, data packet 1 is segmented into three sub-packets, each of which includes the first 50 bits, the middle 100 bits, and the last 100 bits of data packet 1. These three sub-packets are respectively referred to as the first sub-packet, the middle sub-packet, and the last sub-packet. If the receiving RLC layer first receives the last 100 bits, it can start the t-reassembly timer to wait for the remaining sub-packets of Data Packet 1. During the t-reassembly period, if the receiving RLC layer receives the first 50 bits and the middle 100 bits of Data Packet 1, it can stop the t-reassembly timer. When the t-reassembly timer expires, indicating that Data Packet 1 can no longer be successfully assembled, the receiving RLC layer can discard the sub-packets of Data Packet 1 that it has received.

[0109] The reordering process of the RLC layer involves some parameters, which are introduced below.

[0110] RX_Next_Highest indicates the farthest SN+1 among the SNs corresponding to the currently received data packet, where the farthest SN is, for example, the last SN or the largest SN.

[0111] RX_Next_Reassembly indicates the SN of the next data packet that needs to be reassembled.

[0112] RX_Timer_Trigger, the value of RX_Next_Highest when the t-reassembly timer is turned on.

[0113] The t-reassembly timer is enabled when RX_Next_Highest > RX_Next_Reassembly+1. Alternatively, when RX_Next_Highest = RX_Next_Reassembly+1 and SN = RX_Next_Reassembly and a lost RLC SDU segment occurs, the t-reassembly timer is enabled. When enabling the t-reassembly timer, the value of RX_Timer_Trigger can be set to the value of RX_Next_Highest.

[0114] For example, reference Figure 2A , where the numbers represent the SNs of the data packets. For example, these data packets are all segmented data packets (divided into segments). For example, previously RX_Next_Reassembly = 12, and the t-reassembly timer of the RLC layer at the current receiving end is stopped and reset due to the completion of the assembly of data packet 12. Before submitting data packet 12 to the upper layer, the receiving end received some sub-data packets of data packet 13 (for example, the latter sub-data packet of data packet 13), and then received some sub-data packets of data packet 16 (for example, the former sub-data packet) before receiving the remaining sub-data packets of data packet 13. At this time, the value of RX_Next_Highest is 17, and the value of RX_Next_Reassembly is 13. The operating conditions of t-reassembly are met, and the RLC layer can start the t-reassembly timer.

[0115] For example, refer to Figure 2B , where the numbers represent the packet SNs. For example, these packets are all segmented packets. For example, if the RLC layer at the receiving end receives the last subpacket of packet 16 but misses the first and middle subpackets of packet 16, the RX_Next_Highest value is 17 and the RX_Next_Reassembly value is 16. However, packet 16 has lost subpackets (the first and middle subpackets of packet 16), and the t-reassembly operating conditions are met, the RLC layer can start the t-reassembly timer.

[0116] Conditions for the t-reassembly timer to be closed (or stopped): when RX_Timer_Trigger≤RX_Next_Reassembly, stop and reset the t-reassembly timer; or, when RX_Timer_Trigger is outside the UM receiving window and RX_Timer_Trigger is not RX_Next_Highest, stop and reset the t-reassembly timer; or, when RX_Next_Highest=RX_Next_Reassembly+1 and no lost RLC SDU segment occurs, stop and reset the t-reassembly timer. Among them, the UM RLC can maintain a receiving window, which is pulled by the farthest received data packet. For example, each time the RLC layer at the receiving end receives a new data packet, it moves the upper edge of the receiving window upward to the received SN, and the SN of the new data packet is located after the data packet that the t-reassembly timer is waiting for. For example Figure 2A The dotted box in the figure represents the receiving window. If the RLC layer receives data packet 17, the receiving window can be moved upward so that the lower edge of the receiving window is located at data packet 12. If the RLC layer receives data packet 20, the receiving window can be moved upward again so that the lower edge of the receiving window is located at data packet 15, and so on.

[0117] When t-Reassembly times out, the RLC layer may update RX_Next_Reassembly to the first SN with SN ≥ RX_Timer_Trigger that has not been assembled yet. In addition, the RLC layer may discard all RLC SDU segments with SN < the updated RX_Next_Reassembly.

[0118] by Figure 2A For example, if the t-reassembly timer times out and RX_Timer_Trigger is 17, and if the RLC layer also receives some sub-packets of data packet 17 during the running of the t-reassembly timer, the RLC layer may update RX_Next_Reassembly to 17. In addition, the RLC layer may discard all unassembled sub-packets with SNs before 17. For example, the RLC layer may discard the received sub-packets of data packet 13, data packet 15, and data packet 16.

[0119] (2)AM RLC entity.

[0120] Packet loss is not allowed in the transmission of AM's RLC entity. Therefore, the RLC layer at the receiving end can send a status report to the RLC layer at the transmitting end to provide feedback on the reception status, and the RLC layer at the transmitting end can perform retransmission. During transmission, the RLC layer at the transmitting end can segment some or all of the data packets to be transmitted. The RLC layer at the transmitting end can assign SNs to both unsegmented and segmented data packets. For both segmented and unsegmented RLC data packets, the RLC layer at the receiving end will start the t-reassembly timer based on the out-of-order data packets to wait for the out-of-order data packets to arrive. If the t-reassembly timer expires, the RLC layer at the receiving end will not delete the unassembled sub-data packets, but will generate a status report and send it to the RLC layer at the transmitting end, thereby triggering the RLC layer at the transmitting end to retransmit the data packets that the receiving end did not receive.

[0121] The reordering process of the RLC layer involves some parameters, which are introduced below.

[0122] RX_Next_Highest indicates the farthest SN+1 among the SNs corresponding to the currently received data packet, where the farthest SN is, for example, the last SN or the largest SN.

[0123] RX_Next indicates the SN of the lower edge of the current receive window, which is also the SN of the next packet expected to be delivered to the upper layer. For example, if the current receive window ranges from packet 11 to packet 16, RX_Next is 11.

[0124] RX_Next_Status_Trigger, the value of RX_Next_Highest when the t-reassembly timer is turned on.

[0125] The t-reassembly timer is enabled when RX_Next_Highest > RX_Next+1. Alternatively, the t-reassembly timer is enabled when RX_Next_Highest = RX_Next+1 and a missing RLC SDU segment occurs in the RLC SDU with SN = RX_Next. When enabling the t-reassembly timer, the value of RX_Next_Status_Trigger can be set to the value of RX_Next_Highest.

[0126] For example, reference Figure 3A, where the numbers represent the packet SNs. These packets may include segmented packets or both unsegmented and segmented packets. For example, the receiving RLC layer receives packet 10 and delivers it to the upper layer. The RLC layer then receives a subpacket of packet 15 (e.g., the last subpacket). At this point, the RX_Next_Highest value is 16, and the RX_Next value is 11. These meet the t-reassembly requirements, and the RLC layer can start the t-reassembly timer.

[0127] For example, refer to Figure 3B , where the numbers represent the SNs of the packets. These packets may include segmented packets or unsegmented packets and segmented packets. For example, if the RLC layer at the receiving end receives the last subpacket of packet 15 but misses the first and middle subpackets of packet 15, the RX_Next_Highest value is 16 and the RX_Next value is 15. However, packet 15 has lost subpackets (the first and middle subpackets of packet 15), and the t-reassembly operating conditions are met, the RLC layer can start the t-reassembly timer.

[0128] Conditions for shutting down (or stopping) the t-reassembly timer: When RX_Next_Status_Trigger = RX_Next, the t-reassembly timer is stopped and reset; or, when RX_Next_Status_Trigger = RX_Next+1 and the RLC SDU with SN = RX_Next has no missing RLC SDU segments, the t-reassembly timer is stopped and reset; or, when RX_Next_Status_Trigger is outside the AM receive window and RX_Next_Status_Trigger is not RX_Next+AM_Window_Size, the t-reassembly timer is stopped and reset. AM_Window_Size represents the length of the receive window, or the number of SNs included in the receive window. AM RLC can maintain a receive window driven by the delivery of packets corresponding to the lower edge of the receive window. For example, the RLC layer at the receiving end delivers the data packet corresponding to the lower edge of the receiving window to the upper layer, and moves the receiving window upward by one SN. The SN of the delivered data packet may be before the data packet that the t-reassembly timer is waiting for. Figure 3AThe dotted box in the figure represents the receiving window. If the RLC layer delivers data packet 11 to the upper layer, the receiving window can be moved upward so that the lower edge of the receiving window is located at data packet 12. If the RLC layer delivers data packet 12 to the upper layer again, the receiving window can be moved upward again so that the lower edge of the receiving window is located at data packet 13, and so on.

[0129] When the t-reassembly timer expires, the value of RX_Highest_Status is updated to the SN of the first incomplete packet whose SN is ≥ RX_Next_Status_Trigger. In AM, the RLC layer does not discard incomplete sub-packets. For example, when the t-reassembly timer expires, the RLC layer at the receiving end can generate a status report and send it to the transmitting end. This status report can indicate the receiving end failed to receive the packet, so that the RLC layer at the transmitting end can perform retransmission based on the status report.

[0130] If the above-mentioned reordering process of the RLC layer of AM or UM is applied to NTN, if the UE starts the t-reassembly timer during the activation time of the beam covering the UE and then enters the inactivation time of the beam, the t-reassembly timer may time out during the inactivation time. For this, please refer to Figure 4 If the t-reassembly timer times out, for UM RLC, the UE will discard the unassembled sub-packets, and these sub-packets will no longer be received, resulting in packet loss; for AM RLC, the UE will generate a status report, and the unreceived data packets indicated by the status report will enter retransmission. The expiration of the t-reassembly timer during the inactive period should be regarded as an abnormal timeout, which leads to an increase in the packet loss rate or an increase in the amount of retransmitted data, affecting service transmission.

[0131] In addition, according to Figure 4It can be seen that there is a certain time interval from the start time of the inactive time to the expiration of the t-reassembly timer. During this time, the UE's RLC layer is always waiting for out-of-order data packets or waiting for packet assembly. However, in fact, since the UE can no longer communicate with the network, it will not receive out-of-order data packets. Therefore, this period of time can be considered as invalid waiting time. In addition, after the t-reassembly timer expires, if the UE still has out-of-order data packets (taking UM RLC as an example. For example, the UE receives the middle sub-data packet of data packet 1, but does not receive the front sub-data packet and the back sub-data packet of data packet 1, then the UE starts the t-reassembly timer. During the operation of the t-reassembly timer, the UE receives the back sub-data packet of data packet 2. Later, the t-reassembly timer times out, but the UE has not received the front sub-data packet and the middle sub-data packet of data packet 2, which is equivalent to the UE still having out-of-order data packets when the t-reassembly timer times out), the UE can start the t-reassembly timer again to wait for the out-of-order data packets to arrive. But from this t-reassembly open again ( Figure 4 For example, the t-reassembly timer expires and is restarted at the same time. During this period, the UE will not receive any data packets until the end of the inactivity period, and this can also be considered as ineffective waiting time. This ineffective waiting time increases the power consumption of the UE.

[0132] In view of this, in an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE can stop and not reset the timer, so that the timer will not time out during the inactive time; and when the activation time of the first beam is reached, the UE can start the timer again, so that the timer can continue to wait for out-of-order data packets. The embodiment of the present application reduces the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the UE will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the UE executes the timeout processing process, it may cause packet loss, or lead to an increase in the amount of retransmitted data. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to reduce the packet loss rate, or helps to reduce the amount of retransmitted data, saving transmission resources.

[0133] The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can be applied to the fourth generation mobile communication technology (the 4th generation, 4G) system, such as the long term evolution (long term evolution, LTE) system, or can be applied to the 5G system, such as the new radio (new radio, NR) system, or can also be applied to the next generation mobile communication system or other similar communication systems, such as the sixth generation mobile communication technology (the 6th generation, 6G) system, etc., or applied to the existing satellite mobile communication technology system, without specific limitation. In addition, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to D2D scenarios, such as NR-D2D scenarios, etc., or to V2X scenarios, such as NR-V2X scenarios, etc. For example, the embodiments of the present application can be used in the fields of factory manufacturing, whole house intelligence, intelligent driving, assisted driving, intelligent networked vehicles, or indoor commercial scenarios.

[0134] Please refer to Figures 5A to 5C , which is a schematic diagram of several application scenarios of the embodiments of the present application. Among them, according to the deployment scenario of satellite and terrestrial network, the satellite network architecture can be divided into three categories: transparent satellite architecture, satellite backhaul architecture, and regenerative satellite architecture. The architecture in which UE is connected to the terrestrial access network via satellite can be called transparent satellite architecture (for example Figure 5A ), the architecture where the UE is connected to the terrestrial access network and then connected to the terrestrial network via satellite can be called a satellite backhaul architecture (e.g. Figure 5B ), and the architecture in which the access network equipment is set on the satellite (or the satellite has the function of the access network equipment) is called the regenerative satellite architecture (for example Figure 5C ).

[0135] exist Figure 5A In the system, network equipment used to transmit services (such as access network equipment and / or core network equipment, etc.) are all located on the ground. The UE accesses the access network equipment located on the ground through a satellite, thereby accessing the network. The satellite has a transparent transmission function.

[0136] exist Figure 5B In the LTE, the access network equipment is located on the ground, and the UE communicates with the satellite through the ground access network, and then connects to the ground network through the satellite.

[0137] exist Figure 5C In this scenario, the access network equipment is located on the satellite, or the underlying processing modules of the access network equipment are located on the satellite, or the satellite has some or all of the functions of the access network equipment. In addition to the access network equipment, other network equipment used to transmit services (such as core network equipment) is located on the ground. Alternatively, some or all of the core network equipment can be located on the satellite, or the satellite can have some or all of the functions of the core network equipment.

[0138] Figures 5A to 5C All shown are NTN scenarios, that is, the embodiments of the present application can be applied to NTN, or the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to non-NTN scenarios. In addition, in the following introduction, the activation and deactivation of the beam are used for description, that is, if the beam is activated, the UE can communicate with the network, and if the beam is deactivated, the UE cannot communicate with the network. In addition, if the UE is sometimes able to communicate with the network device and sometimes cannot communicate with the network device due to other reasons, the technical solution of the embodiments of the present application can also be used. For example, for a certain network, the UE may sometimes be able to communicate with the network (the reason for being able to communicate may be because the beam covering the UE is activated, or it may be due to other reasons), and sometimes cannot communicate with the network (the reason for being unable to communicate may be because the beam covering the UE is deactivated, or it may be due to other reasons). In this case, the method provided by the embodiments of the present application can also be applied, wherein the network may be NTN, or it may be other non-NTN networks, such as terrestrial cellular networks.

[0139] The method provided by the embodiment of the present application is described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. In various embodiments of the present application, the duration of the activation period of the first beam may be greater than or equal to the timing duration of the timer, or may be less than the timing duration of the timer. In various embodiments of the present application, "when the activation time of the first beam is reached" or other similar descriptions may also be replaced with "when entering the activation time of the first beam", or replaced with "when the start time of the activation time of the first beam is reached"; "when the inactivation time of the first beam is reached" or other similar descriptions may also be replaced with "when entering the inactivation time of the first beam", or replaced with "when the start time of the inactivation time of the first beam is reached". In the accompanying drawings corresponding to various embodiments of the present application, all steps represented by dotted lines are optional steps. The various embodiments of this article can be applied to Figures 5A to 5C For example, the UE described in each embodiment of this document may be Figures 5A to 5C The network device described in each embodiment of this document may be a UE shown in any of the figures. Figures 5A to 5C The access network device and / or core network device shown in any of the accompanying drawings.

[0140] This application embodiment provides a first communication method, please refer to Figure 6 , which is a flowchart of the method.

[0141] S601: When the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE stops and does not reset the timer.

[0142] Among them, the first beam is a beam covering the UE, or a beam serving the UE, or a beam used by the UE to receive data packets, or a beam used by the UE to communicate with a network device, or a synchronization signal and physical broadcast channel (PBCH) block (SSB) covering the UE, or a cell covering the UE, etc. This article mainly uses "beam" as an example for introduction. The UE can communicate with the network device through the first beam, for example, the UE and the network device are in an NTN. Due to the limitations of satellite devices (for example, the number of beams activated at the same time may be limited by the satellite transmission power), in order to provide services to all UEs within the satellite coverage area, the satellite can provide services through "beam hopping", wherein the satellite coverage area may include one or more cells. Accordingly, a cell may include one or more beams. Taking one beam corresponding to one cell as an example, due to the limitation on the number of beams that a satellite can turn on at the same time, a certain area (such as a cell) covered (or served) by a satellite will have an activation time (when the beam covering the cell is activated, both the cell and the beam enter the activation time. In the various embodiments of the present application, the activation time may also be referred to as the service time or communication time, etc., without any restriction on the name) and a non-activation time (when the beam covering the cell is deactivated, both the cell and the beam enter the non-activation time. In the various embodiments of the present application, the non-activation time may also be referred to as the non-service time or non-communication time, etc., without any restriction on the name). For another example, taking a cell including multiple beams as an example, different beams among the multiple beams cover different areas of the cell.

[0143] The satellite can scan by switching beams. In one scanning cycle, different beams will cover different areas of the ground in turn (for example, the different areas belong to the same cell or different cells). Then the same beam will have an activation time (for example, when a beam is activated, the beam enters the activation time) and a non-activation time (for example, when a beam is deactivated, the beam enters the non-activation time) in one scanning cycle. The scanning cycle can also be called the activation cycle of the beam. The activation cycles of different beams provided by a satellite can be the same, but the activation time and / or non-activation time of different beams in the activation cycle may be different. For example, a satellite can provide m beams, and these m beams scan according to the same activation cycle, wherein in one activation cycle, the activation times corresponding to different beams in the m beams are the same or different, and the non-activation times corresponding to different beams in the m beams are the same or different.

[0144] Optionally, a timer can be used to control the activation and inactivation times of a beam. For example, a network device can maintain separate timers for different beams provided by the network device. Taking the first beam as an example, the network device can maintain timer A and timer B for the first beam. Timer A is also called an activation timer (or an on-duration timer, etc., without limitation), and timer B is also called an inactivation timer (or an inactivation timer, etc., without limitation). For example, when timer A starts, the first beam enters the activation time; when timer A times out, timer B starts, and the first beam enters the inactivation time; when timer B times out, timer A starts again, and the cycle repeats. Alternatively, one or more timers can be used to determine the activation and deactivation of a beam. For example, the network device maintains a timer for the first beam, such as an activation timer (or an activation duration timer, etc., without limitation). The UE can determine the start time of the configured activation duration timer based on the activation period corresponding to the first beam and the start time of the activation period. When the activation duration timer starts, the first beam is considered activated. When the activation time timer times out, the inactive time is entered and the first beam is considered to be deactivated. At the start time of the next activation period, the activation time timer is started again to determine the activation time.

[0145] For the UE, it is possible to know the activation period (such as network device indication, or protocol pre-defined, etc.), and to know the activation time and inactivation time of the beam serving the UE within an activation period. For example, the UE may also maintain a corresponding timer for the beam covering the UE to determine the activation time and inactivation time of the beam, and the way the UE maintains the timer may be the same or similar to that of the network device. If the first beam is activated, the UE can communicate with the network device through the first beam; and if the first beam is deactivated, the UE cannot communicate with the network device. The inactivation time of the first beam described in S601 may be the inactivation time of the first beam within any activation period of the first beam.

[0146] This timer can be used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets. For example, the timer is the t-reordering timer introduced above, which can be maintained by the PDCP layer of the UE; for another example, the timer is the t-reassembly timer introduced above, which can be maintained by the RLC layer of the UE. In addition, the mode of the RLC layer of the UE can be AM or UM, for example, the t-reassembly timer can be the t-reassembly timer under AM or the t-reassembly timer under UM; for another example, the mode of the lower layer (RLC layer) of the PDCP layer that maintains the t-reordering timer can be AM or UM.

[0147] For example, before S601, the timer is in an enabled or running state, and the UE is also in the active time of the first beam and can communicate with the network device. Therefore, the UE can wait for out-of-order data packets (e.g., out-of-order complete data packets or out-of-order sub-data packets) to arrive during the running timer. However, when the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE cannot communicate with the network device. Therefore, during this inactive time, the UE cannot wait for out-of-order data packets. There may be a certain time interval between the start time of the inactive time and the timer expiration time. If the UE continues to keep the timer enabled during this time interval to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive, it is actually an invalid waiting state, which unnecessarily increases the UE's power consumption. In addition, if the UE still has out-of-order data packets (e.g., out-of-order complete data packets or out-of-order sub-data packets) when the timer times out, the UE may restart the timer. There may also be a certain time interval between the time the timer is restarted and the end time of the inactive time. The UE's waiting for out-of-order data packets during this time interval is also an invalid waiting state. Therefore, in this embodiment of the present application, if the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE can stop the timer. During this inactivity time, the UE does not need to wait for out-of-order data packets, thereby reducing the power consumption of the UE due to maintaining the timer. Furthermore, the UE does not need to reset the timer, so the UE does not need to follow the timeout process.

[0148] Optionally, for example, if the timer is a t-reordering timer, if the UE processes according to the timeout procedure, the UE shall submit at least one data packet to the upper layer. The at least one data packet may include all data packets received by the UE and whose COUNT is before the first COUNT. The first COUNT is, for example, determined based on the COUNT of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reordering timer. For example, if it is considered that the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reordering timer is the last data packet received, the first COUNT may be a value of 1 plus the COUNT of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reordering timer; or, if it is considered that the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reordering timer is the next data packet of the last data packet received, the first COUNT may be the COUNT of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reordering timer. According to the above introduction, the at least one data packet may include all data packets whose COUNT is before RX_REORD, and the first COUNT is, for example, the value of RX_REORD, and the value of RX_REORD is the next data packet expected to be received, and the next data packet expected to be received is the next data packet of the data packet with the latest COUNT received. For data packets that the UE has not received and whose COUNT is before the first COUNT (for example, RX_REORD), they will no longer be received and these data packets will be lost. In the embodiment of the present application, if the UE does not process according to the timeout process, the UE will not submit all data packets whose COUNT is before RX_REORD to the upper layer. Therefore, for the data packets whose COUNT is before RX_REORD that have not been received, the UE still has the opportunity to wait for reception, thereby reducing the packet loss rate.

[0149] For another example, the timer is a t-reassembly timer. If the RLC layer of the UE is UM and the UE processes according to the timeout procedure, the UE has to discard at least one data packet. The at least one data packet may include all the unpacked data packets received by the UE with SNs before the first SN (the at least one data packet may be at least one sub-data packet). The first SN is determined, for example, based on the SN of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reassembly timer. According to the foregoing description, the at least one data packet may include all the unpacked sub-data packets with SN < updated RX_Next_Reassembly, and the first SN is, for example, updated RX_Next_Reassembly. Among them, updated RX_Timer_Trigger is the SN of the first data packet that has not been packed and has a SN greater than or equal to RX_Timer_Trigger. RX_Timer_Trigger is the value of RX_Next_Highest when the t-reassembly timer is started, and RX_Next_Highest can be regarded as the SN of the next data packet of the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reassembly timer, or RX_Next_Highest can be regarded as the SN of the data packet that triggers the start of the t-reassembly timer. Therefore, it is considered that the first SN is determined based on the SN of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reassembly timer. In the embodiment of the present application, if the UE does not process according to the timeout procedure, the UE will not discard the unpacked sub-data packets with SN < updated RX_Next_Reassembly, thereby reducing the packet loss rate.

[0150] For another example, if the timer is a t-reassembly timer, and the UE's RLC layer is AM, the UE's RLC layer may generate a status report and send it to the network device according to the timeout process. However, since the first beam is inactive at this time, the status report will fail to be sent. In this embodiment of the present application, if the UE does not follow the timeout process, the UE may not send the status report to the network device, reducing the probability of information transmission failure. Furthermore, since the UE does not send the status report, the unreceived data packets indicated by the status report will not be retransmitted, reducing the amount of retransmitted data. Optionally, before executing S601, the UE may first determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive period of the first beam. The UE can determine the remaining duration of the timer and the duration of the inactive period of the first beam. Therefore, the UE can determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive period of the first beam. If the timer will time out within the inactive period of the first beam, the UE may stop the timer without resetting it. Alternatively, if the timer does not time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may stop and not reset the timer in order to extend the timing duration of the timer; or, if the timer does not time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may not stop the timer, but allow the timer to continue running, thereby simplifying the UE's processing process.

[0151] S602. When the activation time of the first beam is reached, the UE starts (or continues; or restarts) the timer.

[0152] The activation time of the first beam described in S602 may be the activation time of the first beam within any activation period of the first beam. Optionally, the inactivity time of the first beam in S601 and the activation time of the first beam in S602 may be within the same activation period. That is, if the UE stops the timer during the inactivity time of the first beam within an activation period, the UE may restart the timer when the activation time of the first beam within the activation period arrives.

[0153] Alternatively, the inactive time of the first beam in S601 and the active time of the first beam in S602 may also be in different activation periods. For example, the inactive time is in activation period A, and the active time is in activation period B. Temporally, activation period B may be after activation period A. Optionally, activation period B may be the next activation period of activation period A. For example, the UE stops the timer during the inactive time of the first beam in an activation period A, and there is no longer an active time for the first beam in the activation period A. After the activation period A passes, the next activation period B arrives. When the activation time of the first beam arrives in activation period B, the UE may start the timer again.

[0154] Alternatively, the deactivation time of the first beam in S601 and the activation time of the first beam in S602 may also correspond to different activation periods. For example, the UE is initially in the deactivation time of the first beam. Due to the movement of the UE or the satellite, the first beam of the UE changes (in the embodiments of this application, the first beam is understood as the beam serving the UE or covering the UE. As the UE moves or the satellite moves, the beam serving or covering the UE may change, so the first beam may change. For example, the first beam before the movement of the UE or the satellite and the first beam after the movement may be the same beam or different beams). The time domain position of the activation time of the changed first beam may be different from the time domain position of the activation time of the original first beam. For example, before the first beam changes, the corresponding activation period is activation period A. During an activation period A, the UE stops the timer during the deactivation time of the first beam, and there is no activation time of the first beam in this activation period A anymore; then the first beam changes. After the first beam changes, the activation period also changes to activation period B (activation period B refers to the activation period corresponding to the changed first beam). When the activation time of the changed first beam is reached during activation period B, the UE can start the timer again. Among them, the time domain position corresponding to the activation time of the first beam in an activation period A before the change is the same or different from the time domain position corresponding to the activation time of the changed first beam in an activation period B.

[0155] In S601, the timer is not reset. Therefore, after the UE starts the timer, the timing duration of the timer is the remaining duration when the timer was stopped. After the UE starts the timer, it can continue to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive. It is equivalent to the timer being extended according to the time when the UE can actually be served. For example, the timer is a t-reordering timer. During the operation of the timer, the UE can continue to wait for data packets that have not been received and whose COUNT is before the first COUNT (such as RX_REORD).

[0156] For another example, the timer is a t-reassembly timer, the RLC of the UE is UM RLC, and during the operation of the timer, the UE can continue to wait for unassembled sub-data packets that have not been received and whose SN < updated RX_Next_Reassembly.

[0157] For another example, if the timer is a t-reassembly timer and the UE's RLC is an AM RLC, the UE can send a status report to the network device during the timer's operation. Since the UE and the network device are already able to communicate at this time, the success rate of sending the status report is improved.

[0158] For reference Figure 7 , which is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present application. Figure 7 In the case of a UE starting a timer, when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the timer is still running. In this case, the UE can stop the timer without resetting it. When the activation time of the first beam is reached again, the UE starts the timer again, and the timer continues to run.

[0159] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present application, a data packet that fails to be transmitted within the activation time of the first beam within an activation cycle may be retransmitted within the activation time of the first beam within the next activation cycle. Alternatively, the UE in the embodiment of the present application may not clear or retain the HARQ retransmission information corresponding to the activation time of the first beam, or retain the cache information of the data packet that fails to be transmitted within the activation time of the first beam, so that when the next activation time of the first beam is reached (for example, the activation time is within the next activation cycle), the data packet that fails to be transmitted within the last activation time can be retransmitted. For example, the above behavior may be referred to as a hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) behavior of the media access control (MAC) layer, and the HARQ behavior may be determined by negotiation between the UE and the network device, or indicated by the network device, or predefined by the protocol. Through this HARQ behavior, the network device can perform retransmission within the activation time of the first beam, reducing the probability of retransmission failure.

[0160] Optionally, the embodiments of the present application can be applied to PDCP corresponding to an AM data radio bearer (DRB), or PDCP corresponding to an AM signaling radio bearer (SRB), or PDCP corresponding to a UM SRB. For example, in an area where the service time of a beam changes dynamically, the UE can wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets according to the actual serviceable time of the network, thereby reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the t-reordering timer and reducing the packet loss rate.

[0161] Optionally, the embodiments of the present application may also be applied to AM RLC or UM RLC. For example, in areas where the service time of a beam changes dynamically, the UE may wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets according to the actual serviceable time of the network, thereby reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the t-reassembly timer, reducing the packet loss rate of the UM RLC, or reducing the amount of retransmitted data in the UM RLC.

[0162] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE can stop and not reset the timer, so that the timer will not time out during the inactive time; and when the activation time of the first beam is reached, the UE can start the timer again, so that the UE can continue to wait for out-of-order data packets through the timer. The embodiment of the present application is equivalent to extending the time the UE waits for out-of-order data packets, reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the UE will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the UE executes the timeout processing process, it may cause packet loss, or cause an increase in the amount of retransmitted data. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to reduce the packet loss rate, or helps to reduce the amount of retransmitted data and save transmission resources.

[0163] This application embodiment provides a second communication method, please refer to Figure 8 , which is a flowchart of the method.

[0164] S801: When the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE extends the timing duration of the timer. Alternatively, since the current timer may have started running, S801 may be replaced by: when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE extends the remaining timing duration of the timer.

[0165] For an introduction to the first beam, its inactive time, its active time, its active period, and how to implement it, see Figure 6 The embodiment shown.

[0166] For example, before S801, the timer is in an enabled or running state, and the UE is also in the active time of the first beam and can communicate with the network device. Therefore, the UE can wait for out-of-order data packets (e.g., out-of-order complete data packets or out-of-order sub-data packets) to arrive during the running time of the timer. However, when the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE cannot communicate with the network device. Therefore, during this inactive time, the UE cannot wait for out-of-order data packets. There may be a certain time interval between the start time of the inactive time and the timer expiration time. If the UE continues to keep the timer enabled during this time interval to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive, it is actually an invalid waiting state, which unnecessarily increases the UE's power consumption. In addition, if the UE still has out-of-order data packets (e.g., out-of-order complete data packets or out-of-order sub-data packets) when the timer expires, the UE may restart the timer. There may also be a certain time interval between the time the timer is restarted and the end time of the inactive time. The UE's waiting for out-of-order data packets during this time interval is also an invalid waiting state. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE can extend the timing duration of the timer. For example, after the extension, the timeout time of the timer is within the active time of the first beam, or it can be understood that after the extension, the timer will not time out within the inactive time of the first beam. Therefore, the UE does not need to handle it according to the timeout process. For relevant content about timeout handling, please refer to Figure 6 Description of the illustrated embodiment.

[0167] Optionally, the extension amount of the timing duration is called, for example, a first duration, or may also be called an offset, or may have other names. The first duration may be predefined by a protocol, or may be pre-indicated by a network device (for example, the network device indicates to the UE within the activation time of the first beam), or may be determined by the UE itself. For example, the first duration may be determined based on the activation period of the first beam. For example, the first duration may be greater than or equal to the second duration, and the second duration may be, for example, the duration of the inactive time of the first beam within an activation period, or the sum of the duration of the inactive time of the first beam within an activation period and the current remaining timing duration of the timer, or the second duration may also be other values.

[0168] Optionally, based on the first duration, the timer may not timeout during the inactive time of the first beam. For example, the timeout time of the extended timer may be within the active time of the first beam. For example, after extending the timing duration of the timer, the timer may timeout within the active time of the first beam in activation period A, or may also timeout within the active time of the first beam in activation period B. Here, activation period A is the activation period in which the inactive time of the first beam described in S801 is located, and activation period B may be temporally after activation period A. For example, activation period B is the next activation period after activation period A.

[0169] Optionally, before executing S801, the UE may first determine whether the timer will timeout during the inactive time of the first beam. The UE can determine the remaining timing duration of the timer and the duration of the inactive time of the first beam. Therefore, the UE can determine whether the timer will timeout during the inactive time of the first beam. If the timer will timeout during the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may extend the timing duration of the timer. Alternatively, if the timer will not timeout during the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may extend the timing duration of the timer for the purpose of extending the timer; or, if the timer will not timeout during the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may not extend the timing duration of the timer but let the timer continue to run, which simplifies the processing procedure of the UE.

[0170] When the active time of the first beam arrives, the timer is still running. Therefore, the UE can continue to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive. For example, the timer is a t-reordering timer. During the running of the timer, the UE can continue to wait for data packets that have not been received and whose COUNT is before the first COUNT (such as RX_REORD).

[0171] For another example, the timer is a t-reassembly timer, and the RLC of the UE is UM RLC. During the running of the timer, the UE can continue to wait for unassembled sub-data packets that have not been received and whose SN < updated RX_Next_Reassembly.

[0172] For still another example, the timer is a t-reassembly timer, and the RLC of the UE is AM RLC. During the running of the timer, the UE can send a status report to the network device. Since the UE and the network device can communicate at this time, the success rate of sending the status report is improved.

[0173] Reference may be made to Figure 9 , which is a schematic diagram of the solution of the embodiment of this application. Figure 9In the case of a UE starting a timer, when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the timer is still running. In this case, the UE can extend the timer. When the activation time of the first beam is reached again, the timer is still running.

[0174] Optionally, in an embodiment of the present application, a data packet that fails to be transmitted within the activation time of the first beam within an activation cycle can be retransmitted within the activation time of the first beam within the next activation cycle. Alternatively, the UE in an embodiment of the present application may not clear or retain the HARQ retransmission information corresponding to the activation time of the first beam, or may retain the cache information of the data packet that fails to be transmitted within the activation time of the first beam, thereby, when the next activation time of the first beam is reached (for example, the activation time is within the next activation cycle), the data packet that fails to be transmitted within the last activation time can be retransmitted. For this, please refer to Figure 6 Related introduction of the embodiment shown.

[0175] Optionally, the embodiments of the present application can be applied to PDCP corresponding to AM DRB, or PDCP corresponding to AM SRB, or PDCP corresponding to UM SRB, etc. For example, in an area where the service time of a beam changes dynamically, the UE can wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets according to the actual serviceable time of the network, thereby reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the t-reordering timer and reducing the packet loss rate.

[0176] Optionally, the embodiments of the present application may also be applied to AM RLC or UM RLC. For example, in areas where the service time of a beam changes dynamically, the UE may wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets according to the actual serviceable time of the network, thereby reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the t-reassembly timer, reducing the packet loss rate of the UM RLC, or reducing the amount of retransmitted data in the UM RLC.

[0177] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE can extend the timing duration of the timer, so that the timer will not time out during the inactive time; when the activation time of the first beam is reached, the timer is still in a running state, so that the UE can continue to wait for out-of-order data packets through the timer. The embodiment of the present application is equivalent to extending the time the UE waits for out-of-order data packets, reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the UE will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the UE executes the timeout processing process, it may cause packet loss, or cause an increase in the amount of retransmitted data. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to reduce the packet loss rate, or helps to reduce the amount of retransmitted data and save transmission resources.

[0178] This application embodiment provides a third communication method, please refer to Figure 10 , which is a flowchart of the method.

[0179] S1001. When the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE stops and resets the timer. Alternatively, S1001 may be replaced by: when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE handles the timeout process of the timer. Alternatively, S1001 may be replaced by: when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE controls (or causes) the timer to time out.

[0180] For an introduction to the first beam, the inactive time of the first beam, the active time of the first beam, the activation period, and the implementation of the timer, please refer to Figure 6 The embodiment shown.

[0181] For example, before S1001, the timer is in an enabled or running state, and the UE is also in the active time of the first beam and can communicate with the network device. Therefore, the UE can wait for out-of-order data packets (e.g., out-of-order complete data packets or out-of-order sub-data packets) to arrive during the running time of the timer. However, when the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE cannot communicate with the network device. Therefore, during this inactive time, the UE cannot wait for out-of-order data packets. There may be a certain time interval between the start time of the inactive time and the timer expiration time. If the UE continues to keep the timer enabled during this time interval to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive, it is actually an invalid waiting state, which unnecessarily increases the UE's power consumption. In addition, if the UE still has out-of-order data packets (e.g., out-of-order complete data packets or out-of-order sub-data packets) when the timer times out, the UE may start the timer again. There may also be a certain time interval between the time the timer is enabled again and the end time of the inactive time. The UE's waiting for out-of-order data packets during this time interval is also an invalid waiting state. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, if the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE can stop and reset the timer, so that the UE no longer waits for out-of-order data packets, thereby reducing the power consumption of the UE due to maintaining the timer. Optionally, since the UE stops and resets the timer, the UE can be processed according to the timeout process.

[0182] For example, if the timer is a t-reordering timer, and the UE processes the timeout process, the UE may submit at least one data packet to the upper layer. The at least one data packet may include all data packets received by the UE and whose COUNT is located before the first COUNT. The first COUNT is determined, for example, based on the COUNT of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reordering timer. For an introduction to the first COUNT, etc., please refer to Figure 6 Relevant content of the embodiment shown. For the data packets that the UE has not received and whose COUNT is before the first COUNT (for example, RX_REORD), they are no longer received and are lost. Alternatively, the UE may also update the value of the first parameter to the COUNT of the first data packet, where the first data packet is, for example, the first data packet that has not been delivered to the upper layer of the PDCP layer. For example, the first parameter is, for example, RX_DELIV. Optionally, for the PDCP entity of the UM DRB, when entering the inactive time of the first beam, if it is determined that some data packets cannot be received, the backlog of continuous data packets whose corresponding COUNT is after the first COUNT may be delivered to the upper layer to reduce the delay.

[0183] For another example, the timer is a t-reassembly timer. If the RLC layer of the UE is UM, the UE may discard at least one data packet according to the timeout process. The at least one data packet may include all unassembled data packets received by the UE and whose SN is before the first SN (the at least one data packet may be at least one sub-data packet). The first SN is, for example, determined based on the SN of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reassembly timer. For an introduction to the first SN, etc., please refer to Figure 6 The relevant content of the embodiment shown.

[0184] For another example, if the timer is a t-reassembly timer, and the RLC layer of the UE is AM, the UE is processed according to the timeout process, and the RLC layer of the UE can determine a status report, for example, the status report indicates all unassembled data packets that the UE has not received and whose SN is before the first SN. The first SN is, for example, determined based on the SN of the data packet used to trigger the start of the t-reassembly timer. For an introduction to the first SN, etc., please refer to Figure 6Related content of the embodiment shown. Optionally, when the UE stops and resets the t-reassembly timer, it may determine the status report, but may not send the status report to the network device temporarily, but wait until the activation time of the first beam to send the status report to the network device, for example, send the status report to the network device when the activation time of the first beam arrives, or send the status report to the network device after the activation time of the first beam arrives. Alternatively, when the UE stops and resets the t-reassembly timer, it may not determine the status report, but determine the status report within the activation time of the first beam (for example, the UE determines the status report when the activation time of the first beam arrives, or the UE determines the status report after the activation time of the first beam arrives), and send the status report to the network device. It can be seen that in the embodiment of the present application, the UE will not send the status report during the non-activation time of the first beam, thereby reducing the probability of information transmission failure. Moreover, since the UE does not send the status report, the unreceived data packet indicated by the status report will not enter retransmission, thereby reducing the amount of retransmitted data. In addition, the UE may also update the value of RX_Highest_Status to the SN of the first data packet for which SN≥RX_Next_Status_Trigger and which has not been completely assembled.

[0185] Optionally, before executing S1001, the UE may first determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam. The UE can determine the remaining timing duration of the timer and the duration of the inactive time of the first beam, so the UE can determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam. If the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may extend the timing duration of the timer. Alternatively, if the timer will not time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE does not need to stop and reset the timer, but allows the timer to continue running, which simplifies the UE's processing process and reduces the packet loss rate.

[0186] For reference Figure 11 , which is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present application. Figure 11 In the example, the UE starts a timer. When the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the timer is still running. The UE can stop and reset the timer. When the activation time of the first beam is reached again, the UE can decide whether to start the timer based on whether there are out-of-sequence packets.

[0187] Optionally, the embodiments of the present application can be applied to PDCP corresponding to UM DRBs, etc. For example, for PDCP corresponding to UM SRBs, packet loss can be tolerated. Therefore, the technical solution of the embodiments of the present application has little impact on the PDCP corresponding to UM SRBs, and can reduce the delay in delivering data packets to upper layers and reduce UE power consumption.

[0188] Optionally, the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to AM RLC or UM RLC. For example, in UM RLC, packet loss can be tolerated. Therefore, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application have a minimal impact on UM RLC, reduce the delay in delivering data packets to upper layers, and reduce UE power consumption. For another example, in AM RLC, the embodiments of the present application can avoid sending status reports during the inactive period of the first beam, reducing the probability of status report transmission failure.

[0189] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE can stop and reset the timer, thereby reducing the delay in delivering the data packet to the upper layer and reducing the power consumption caused by the UE maintaining the timer.

[0190] Figure 6 、 Figure 8 or Figure 10 The embodiments shown can be applied separately or in combination. For example, if the timing duration of the timer is greater than the duration of the activation period of the first beam, and the timing duration can cover multiple activation periods, then any of the above embodiments can be used for different activation periods, or different activation periods can also use different embodiments. For example, for different activation periods covered by the timing duration, Figure 6 The embodiment shown or Figure 8 In the embodiment shown, no matter which activation period, the timer will not time out during the inactive time of the first beam. Alternatively, for the partial activation period covered by the timing duration (for example, the activation period earlier in time), you can use Figure 6 The embodiment shown or Figure 8 In the embodiment shown, for the remaining activation period covered by the timing duration (for example, the activation period later in time), if the corresponding timer is the t-assembly timer corresponding to the UM RLC, you can use Figure 10 If the corresponding timer is the t-assembly timer corresponding to AM RLC, you can use Figure 6 The embodiment shown or Figure 8 In addition to the above embodiments, there are other combined application methods, which are not limited to this.

[0191] The UE can maintain multiple timers. For example, in addition to the timer for waiting for out-of-order data packets involved in the aforementioned embodiment, the UE can also maintain a timer for detecting link quality, such as timer T310. A UE can simultaneously maintain a timer for waiting for out-of-order data packets to arrive and timer T310, or a UE can maintain only one of these two timers, without limitation. Currently, the radio resource control (RRC) layer of the UE determines the current link status based on feedback from the lower layer (e.g., the physical layer) of the UE. The RRC layer can determine whether there is a problem with the current link quality based on a synchronization indication or an asynchronous indication (or out-of-sync indication) reported by the lower layer. The synchronization indication is, for example, an "in-of-sync signal" and the asynchronous indication is, for example, an "out-of-sync signal or out-of-sync signal." The RRC layer can perform link quality judgment using two counters N310 and N311 and a timer T310. For example, if the RRC layer receives consecutive "in-of-sync" from the bottom layer, it indicates that the current link quality is good; if the RRC layer receives N310 consecutive "out-of-sync" from the bottom layer, it indicates that the link quality is poor, and the RRC layer can start timer T310. After starting timer T310, if the RRC layer receives N311 consecutive "in-of-sync" from the bottom layer, it indicates that the link quality has recovered, and the RRC layer can stop timer T310. For this, please refer to Figure 12A If the timer T310 times out, the UE may determine that a radio link failure (RLF) has occurred. At this time, the UE may trigger the RRC reestablishment process. For this, please refer to Figure 12B .

[0192] If the above link quality detection process is applied to an NTN, if a UE starts timer T310 during the active period of a beam covering it and then enters the inactive period of that beam, the network cannot provide service to the UE during this period. This may cause the UE's lower layer to continuously send "out-of-sync" messages to the UE's RRC layer, causing timer T310 to expire during the inactive period. The UE will then mistakenly detect an RLF. This means that a link that could have been recovered may be mistakenly detected as an RLF by the UE, requiring the UE to perform an RRC re-establishment procedure. This increases the UE's power consumption, service latency, and transmission resources.

[0193] In view of this, the embodiment of the present application provides a fourth communication method for reducing the process of UE performing RRC re-establishment. Figure 13, which is a flowchart of the method.

[0194] S1301. When the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE stops the timer.

[0195] The timer can be used to determine the link quality, for example, the timer is timer T310. For an introduction to the concepts of the first beam, the activation time of the first beam, the inactivation time of the first beam, and the activation period, please refer to Figure 6 The embodiment shown.

[0196] For example, before S1301, the timer is in the on state or running state, and the UE is also in the activation time of the first beam and can communicate with the network device. Therefore, the RRC layer of the UE can detect the link quality according to the synchronization indication or asynchronous indication from the bottom layer during the operation of the timer. When the inactivation time of the first beam is reached, the UE cannot communicate with the network device. Therefore, during the inactivation time, the bottom layer of the UE may continue to send asynchronous indications to the RRC layer, which may cause the timer to time out, and the UE will mistakenly judge it as RLF. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, if the inactivation time of the first beam is reached (wherein the inactivation time can be based on Figure 6 If the UE determines the timer by the method provided in the illustrated embodiment, the UE can stop the timer so that the timer does not time out during the inactivity period, thereby reducing the probability of the UE misjudging an RLF. Since the UE does not misjudge an RLF, the UE does not perform RRC re-establishment with the network device. This reduces the number of RRC re-establishment procedures for the UE, saves transmission overhead, reduces UE power consumption, and reduces service latency.

[0197] After stopping the timer, or when stopping the timer, the UE may optionally stop detecting the reference signal. At this point, the timer has stopped, and the first beam is also in the inactive time. The UE cannot communicate with the network device and cannot receive the reference signal from the network device. In this case, the UE may stop detecting the reference signal, thereby reducing the power consumption of the UE due to detecting the reference signal. The reference signal from the network device includes, for example, a synchronization signal and a physical broadcast channel (PBCH) block (SSB) and / or a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS).

[0198] Optionally, the UE may or may not reset the value of the second parameter. For example, after stopping the timer, or when stopping the timer, the UE may or may not reset the value of the second parameter. The second parameter may indicate the number of consecutive synchronization indications received during the timer's operation. If the UE resets the value of the second parameter, then after restarting the timer, the UE still needs to detect N311 consecutive synchronization indications to determine the occurrence of RLF. Because the UE's determination time is longer, the determination result is more accurate and stable. Alternatively, the UE may not reset the value of the second parameter. In this case, H consecutive synchronization indications may have been received before the timer stopped. After restarting the timer, the UE only needs to detect whether N311-H consecutive synchronization indications have been received. This allows the UE to reach a determination result earlier, thereby restoring the link as soon as possible. N311 represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications used to determine whether the link quality has recovered. For example, if the UE's RRC layer receives N311 consecutive synchronization indications from the lower layer during the timer's operation, it indicates that the link quality has recovered, and the RRC layer may stop the timer.

[0199] As an optional implementation, the UE may maintain the second parameter through a counter. When the timer is started, the initial value of the counter is, for example, N311. During the operation of the timer, each time the RRC layer of the UE receives a continuous synchronization indication from the bottom layer, the value of the counter may be reduced by 1. At this time, the value of the counter represents the number of continuous synchronization indications that the RRC layer has not received from the bottom layer during the operation of the timer. Based on the value of the counter, the number of continuous synchronization indications that the RRC layer has received from the bottom layer during the operation of the timer can be determined. This is equivalent to determining the value of the second parameter based on the value of the counter, for example, the value of the second parameter is the difference between N311 and the value of the counter. After or when the timer is stopped, the value of the counter is, for example, Y, where Y represents the number of continuous synchronization indications that the RRC layer has not received from the bottom layer after or when the timer is stopped. The value of the second parameter is N311-Y, where Y is an integer greater than or equal to 0. If the UE does not reset the value of the second parameter, the value of the second parameter remains N311-Y; if the UE resets the value of the second parameter, the value of the second parameter may be reset to 0. Optionally, the UE may reset the value of the second parameter by resetting the value of a counter. For example, if the UE wants to reset the value of the second parameter to 0, it may be achieved by resetting the value of the counter to N311.

[0200] Alternatively, when the timer is started, the initial value of the counter is, for example, 0. During the timer's operation, the UE's RRC layer may increment the counter by 1 each time it receives a consecutive synchronization indication from the lower layer. The number of consecutive synchronization indications received by the RRC layer from the lower layer during the timer's operation can be determined based on the counter value. The upper limit of the counter value is, for example, N311. When the counter value reaches N311, the counter may time out, and RLF is considered to have occurred. After or at the time the timer is stopped, the counter value is, for example, X, where X represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications received by the RRC layer from the lower layer after or at the time the timer is stopped. The value of the second parameter is X, where X is an integer greater than or equal to 0. If the UE does not reset the value of the second parameter, the value of the second parameter remains X. If the UE resets the value of the second parameter, the value of the second parameter may be reset to 0. Optionally, the UE may reset the value of the second parameter by resetting the value of the counter. For example, if the UE wants to reset the value of the second parameter to 0, it may reset the value of the counter to 0.

[0201] Optionally, before executing S1301, the UE may first determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam. The UE can determine the remaining timing duration of the timer and the duration of the inactive time of the first beam, so the UE can determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam. If the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may stop the timer. Alternatively, if the timer will not time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE does not need to stop the timer, but allows the timer to continue running, which simplifies the UE's processing process and reduces the packet loss rate.

[0202] S1302. When the activation time of the first beam is reached, the UE starts (or continues; or restarts) the timer.

[0203] The relationship between the inactive time of the first beam described in S1301 and the active time of the first beam described in S1302 can be referred to Figure 6 The relevant introduction of S602 in the embodiment shown is shown.

[0204] In S1301, if the second parameter is reset, then after the UE starts the timer, if the RRC layer of the UE receives N311 consecutive synchronization indications from the lower layer, it indicates that the link quality has recovered, and the RRC layer may stop the timer. Alternatively, if the second parameter is not reset, then after the UE starts the timer, if the RRC layer of the UE receives Y consecutive or N311-X consecutive synchronization indications from the lower layer, it indicates that the link quality has recovered, and the RRC layer may stop the timer.

[0205] If the timer expires, the UE may determine that an RLF has occurred. Alternatively, if an RLF has occurred, the UE may send an RRC message to the network device, which may request RRC re-establishment. For example, the UE may send the RRC message to the network device within the activation time of the first beam to improve the success rate of RRC re-establishment.

[0206] For reference Figure 14 , which is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present application. Figure 14 In the case of a UE starting a timer, when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the timer is still running. At this point, the UE can stop the timer. When the activation time of the first beam is reached again, the UE starts the timer again, and the timer continues to run.

[0207] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE can stop the timer, and the timer will not time out during the inactive time; and when the activation time of the first beam is reached, the UE can start the timer again, so that the UE can continue to detect the link quality through the timer. The embodiment of the present application is equivalent to extending the time for the UE to detect the link quality, reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the UE will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the UE executes the timeout processing process, it may execute RRC re-establishment. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to save transmission resources, reduce the power consumption of the UE, and reduce the service delay caused by RRC re-establishment.

[0208] The present application embodiment provides a fifth communication method, which can also reduce the process of UE performing RRC re-establishment. Figure 15 , which is a flowchart of the method.

[0209] S1501: When the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE extends the timing duration of the timer. Alternatively, since the current timer may have started running, S1501 may be replaced by: when the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, the UE extends the remaining timing duration of the timer.

[0210] The timer can be used to determine the link quality, for example, the timer is timer T310. For an introduction to the concepts of the first beam, the activation time of the first beam, the inactivation time of the first beam, and the activation period, please refer to Figure 6 The embodiment shown.

[0211] For example, before S1501, the timer is in an on or running state, and the UE is also in the activation time of the first beam and can communicate with the network device. Therefore, the RRC layer of the UE can detect the link quality based on the synchronization indication or asynchronous indication from the bottom layer during the operation of the timer. When the inactivation time of the first beam is reached, the UE cannot communicate with the network device. Therefore, during the inactivation time, the bottom layer of the UE may continue to send asynchronous indications to the RRC layer, which may cause the timer to time out, and the UE will mistakenly judge it as RLF. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, if the inactivation time of the first beam is reached, the UE can extend the timing duration of the timer so that the timer will not time out during the inactivation time, thereby reducing the probability of the UE mistakenly judging it as RLF. Since the UE will not mistakenly judge it as RLF, the UE will not perform RRC re-establishment with the network device, thereby reducing the process of the UE performing RRC re-establishment, saving transmission overhead, saving UE power consumption, and reducing service delay.

[0212] Optionally, the UE may stop detecting the reference signal during the inactive time of the first beam. For example, after extending the timing duration of the timer, or when extending the timing duration of the timer, the UE may stop detecting the reference signal. At this time, the first beam is in the inactive time, the UE cannot communicate with the network device, and cannot receive the reference signal from the network device. In this case, the UE can stop detecting the reference signal, thereby reducing the power consumption of the UE due to detecting the reference signal. Alternatively, the UE may detect (or continue to detect) the reference signal during the inactive time of the first beam, and there is no restriction on this. The reference signal from the network device includes, for example, SSB and / or CSI-RS.

[0213] Optionally, the UE may reset the value of the second parameter, or may not reset the value of the second parameter. For example, after stopping the timer, or when stopping the timer, the UE may reset the value of the second parameter, or may not reset the value of the second parameter. For more information about this part, please refer to Figure 13 The embodiment shown.

[0214] Optionally, before executing S1501, the UE may first determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam. The UE can determine the remaining timing duration of the timer and the duration of the inactive time of the first beam, so the UE can determine whether the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam. If the timer will time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may extend the timing duration of the timer. Alternatively, if the timer will not time out within the inactive time of the first beam, the UE does not need to extend the timing duration of the timer, which simplifies the UE's processing process and reduces the packet loss rate.

[0215] In S1501, if the second parameter is reset, then if the RRC layer of the UE receives N311 consecutive synchronization indications from the lower layer, it indicates that the link quality has recovered, and the RRC layer may stop the timer. Alternatively, if the second parameter is not reset, then if the RRC layer of the UE receives Y consecutive or N311-X consecutive synchronization indications from the lower layer, it indicates that the link quality has recovered, and the RRC layer may stop the timer.

[0216] If the timer expires, the UE may determine that an RLF has occurred. Alternatively, if an RLF has occurred, the UE may send an RRC message to the network device, which may request RRC re-establishment. For example, the UE may send the RRC message to the network device within the activation time of the first beam to improve the success rate of RRC re-establishment.

[0217] For reference Figure 16 , which is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present application. Figure 16 In the process, the UE first starts the timer. When the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the timer is still in running state. At this time, the UE can extend the timing duration of the timer, so that the timer may not time out during the inactive time, or the timeout time of the timer will be within the activation time of the first beam.

[0218] In an embodiment of the present application, if the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the UE can extend the timing duration of the timer. Then, during the inactive time, the timer will not time out, so that the UE can continue to detect the link quality through the timer. The embodiment of the present application is equivalent to extending the time for the UE to detect the link quality, reducing the probability of abnormal timeout of the timer. Since the timer will not time out during the inactive time, the UE will not execute the timeout processing process, thereby reducing the impact on the service. For example, if the UE executes the timeout processing process, it may execute RRC re-establishment. It can be seen that the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application helps to save transmission resources, reduce the power consumption of the UE, and also reduce the service delay caused by RRC re-establishment.

[0219] This embodiment of the application provides a sixth communication method, please refer to Figure 17 , which is a flowchart of the method.

[0220] S1701. The UE determines that the third duration is insufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications.

[0221] Among them, Y represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications received during the operation of the timer of the UE, and the timer can be used to determine the link quality. For example, the timer is timer T310. Y is an integer greater than or equal to 0, N311 represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications used to determine whether the link quality has recovered, and the third duration represents the duration until the inactive time of the first beam arrives, or represents the time interval between the current time (for example, the time when the UE executes S1701. The time when the UE executes S1701 may be within the activation time of the first beam, or the time when the UE executes S1701 may be the start time of the inactive time of the first beam) and the start time of the inactive time of the first beam, or represents the remaining time of the activation time of the first beam. For an introduction to the concepts of the first beam, the activation time of the first beam, the inactive time of the first beam, the activation period, the synchronization indication, etc., please refer to Figure 6 The embodiment shown.

[0222] In an embodiment of the present application, the UE may determine in real time whether the third duration is sufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, or may periodically determine whether the third duration is sufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, or may determine whether the third duration is sufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications when triggered by something (for example, the timer is turned on). When the UE determines whether the third duration is sufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, the timer may be in a running state or may not be turned on. S1701 can be understood as the UE determining that the duration from the current time to the arrival of the inactive time of the first beam is insufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, and therefore is insufficient to determine whether the link quality has recovered.

[0223] S1702: The UE stops or does not start the timer.

[0224] If the timer is in a running state before the UE executes S1701, the UE may stop or disable the timer; alternatively, if the timer is not enabled or is in a disabled or stopped state before the UE executes S1701, the UE may not enable the timer. Because the UE cannot determine whether the link quality has recovered during the period from the current time to the arrival of the inactive time of the first beam, the UE may stop or disable the timer, thereby reducing the power consumption of the UE in maintaining the timer.

[0225] Optionally, the UE may send a first message to the network device, and the first message may be used to request RRC re-establishment. The first message is, for example, an RRC message. If the UE stops the timer or does not start the timer, the UE may deem that RLF has occurred, so the UE may perform RRC re-establishment. For example, the UE sends a first message to the network device when stopping or not starting the timer, or after stopping or not starting the timer. Because the time when the UE executes S1701 and S1702 may both be within the activation time of the first beam, the UE may also send the first message to the network device within the activation time of the first beam, and the UE may perform RRC re-establishment with the network device within the activation time of the first beam, thereby reducing the delay of the RRC re-establishment process and enabling the link to be restored as soon as possible.

[0226] For reference Figure 18 , which is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the present application. Figure 18 For example, if the UE starts the timer first, within the activation time of the first beam, if the UE determines that the third duration is insufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, the UE may turn off or stop the timer.

[0227] In this embodiment of the present application, the UE can promptly determine whether the remaining time is sufficient to perform a link quality assessment. If the remaining time is insufficient, the UE can stop the timer as soon as possible to save UE power consumption. The UE can also promptly perform an RRC re-establishment with the network device to accelerate the link recovery process.

[0228] Figure 13 、 Figure 15 or Figure 17 The embodiments shown can be applied separately or in combination. For example, if the timing duration of the timer is greater than the duration of the activation period of the first beam, and the timing duration can cover multiple activation periods, then any of the above embodiments can be used for different activation periods, or different activation periods can also use different embodiments. For example, for different activation periods covered by the timing duration, Figure 13 The embodiment shown or Figure 15 In the embodiment shown, no matter which activation period, the timer will not time out during the inactive time of the first beam. Alternatively, for an activation period covered by the timing duration, the UE may first determine whether the third duration is sufficient to receive N311-Y (the meaning of N311-Y here can be referred to Figure 17 If the third duration corresponding to the activation period is sufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, the UE may use the activation period to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications. Figure 13 The embodiment shown or Figure 15Alternatively, if the third duration corresponding to the activation period is insufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, the UE may use the activation period. Figure 17 In addition to the above embodiments, there are other combined application methods, which are not limited to this.

[0229] Figure 19 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application is given. The communication device 1900 may be Figure 6 、 Figure 8 、 Figure 10 、 Figure 13 、 Figure 15 、 Figure 17 The UE or the circuit system of the UE described in any of the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings is used to implement the method corresponding to the UE in the above method embodiments. For example, one circuit system is a chip system.

[0230] The communication device 1900 includes at least one processor 1901. Processor 1901 can be used for internal processing of the device, implementing certain control processing functions. Optionally, processor 1901 includes instructions. Optionally, processor 1901 can store data. Optionally, different processors can be independent devices, located in different physical locations, or on different integrated circuits. Optionally, different processors can be integrated into one or more processors, for example, on one or more integrated circuits.

[0231] Optionally, the communication device 1900 includes one or more memories 1903 for storing instructions. Optionally, data may also be stored in the memories 1903. The processor and memory may be provided separately or integrated together.

[0232] Optionally, the communication device 1900 includes a communication line 1902 and at least one communication interface 1904. Since the memory 1903, the communication line 1902 and the communication interface 1904 are all optional, Figure 19 Indicated by dotted lines.

[0233] Optionally, the communication device 1900 may further include a transceiver and / or an antenna. The transceiver may be used to send information to or receive information from other devices. The transceiver may be referred to as a transceiver, a transceiver circuit, an input / output interface, etc., and is used to implement the transceiver function of the communication device 1900 via an antenna. Optionally, the transceiver includes a transmitter and a receiver. For example, the transmitter may be used to generate a radio frequency signal from a baseband signal, and the receiver may be used to convert the radio frequency signal into a baseband signal.

[0234] The processor 1901 may include a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of the present application.

[0235] Communication link 1902 may include a pathway for transmitting information between the aforementioned components.

[0236] The communication interface 1904 uses any transceiver or other device for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), wired access network, etc.

[0237] The memory 1903 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, an optical disc storage (including a compact disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), a magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory 1903 may exist independently and be connected to the processor 1901 via the communication line 1902. Alternatively, the memory 1903 may be integrated with the processor 1901.

[0238] The memory 1903 is used to store computer-executable instructions for executing the solution of the present application, and the processor 1901 controls the execution. The processor 1901 is used to execute the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 1903, thereby achieving Figure 6 、 Figure 8 、 Figure 10 、 Figure 13 、 Figure 15 、 Figure 17The steps performed by the UE in the embodiments shown in any of the accompanying drawings.

[0239] Optionally, the computer-executable instructions in the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as application code, which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0240] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 1901 may include one or more CPUs, such as Figure 19 CPU0 and CPU1 in.

[0241] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the communication device 1900 may include multiple processors, such as Figure 19 1 and 1905. Each of these processors can be a single-CPU processor or a multi-CPU processor. A processor herein can refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0242] when Figure 19 When the device shown is a chip, such as a UE chip, the chip includes a processor 1901 (which may also include a processor 1905), a communication circuit 1902, and a communication interface 1904. Optionally, the chip may include a memory 1903. Specifically, the communication interface 1904 may be an input interface, a pin, or a circuit. The memory 1903 may be a register, a cache, or the like. The processor 1901 and the processor 1905 may be a general-purpose CPU, a microprocessor, an ASIC, or one or more integrated circuits for controlling the execution of the program of any of the above-described embodiments of the communication method.

[0243] The embodiment of the present application can divide the functional modules of the device according to the above method example. For example, each functional module can be divided according to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present application is schematic and is only a logical functional division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. For example, in the case of dividing each functional module according to each function, Figure 20 2000 is a schematic diagram of a device, and the device 2000 may be the UE involved in the above-mentioned various method embodiments, or a chip in the UE. The device 2000 includes a processing unit 2002 and a transceiver unit 2001.

[0244] It should be understood that the apparatus 2000 can be used to implement the steps performed by the UE in the communication method of the embodiment of the present application, and the relevant features can be referred to above. Figure 6 、 Figure 8 、 Figure 10 、 Figure 13 、 Figure 15 、 Figure 17 The embodiments shown in any of the accompanying drawings will not be described in detail here.

[0245] Optional, Figure 20 The functions / implementation processes of the transceiver unit 2001 and the processing unit 2002 can be realized by Figure 19 The processor 1901 in the embodiment calls the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 1903 to implement. Or, Figure 20 The function / implementation process of the processing unit 2002 can be achieved by Figure 19 The processor 1901 in the embodiment calls the computer execution instruction stored in the memory 1903 to implement the above. Figure 20 The function / implementation process of the transceiver unit 2001 can be achieved by Figure 19 This is achieved by the communication interface 1904 in .

[0246] Optionally, when the device 2000 is a chip or circuit, the functions / implementation processes of the transceiver unit 2001 may also be implemented via pins or circuits. Optionally, the transceiver unit 2001 may include a transmitting unit and / or a receiving unit, where the transmitting unit is configured to implement the transmitting function and the receiving unit is configured to implement the receiving function. Alternatively, the transceiver unit 2001 may be an integral module capable of implementing the transmitting function and / or the receiving function. Optionally, the transceiver unit 2001 may be implemented via a transceiver.

[0247] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a computer program or instruction. When the computer program or instruction is executed, the method performed by the UE in the aforementioned method embodiment is implemented. In this way, the functions described in the above embodiments can be implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application can be essentially or in other words, the part that contributes or the part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. Storage media include various media that can store program codes, such as USB flash drives, mobile hard drives, ROM, RAM, magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0248] The present application also provides a computer program product, which includes: computer program code, which, when running on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method executed by the UE in any of the aforementioned method embodiments.

[0249] An embodiment of the present application further provides a processing device, including a processor and an interface; the processor is used to execute the method executed by the UE involved in any of the above method embodiments.

[0250] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When software is used for implementation, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that includes one or more available media integrations. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (e.g., a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid-state drive (SSD)).

[0251] The various illustrative logic units and circuits described in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or operated by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an ASIC, a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, and optionally, the general-purpose processor can also be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller or state machine. The processor can also be implemented by a combination of computing devices, such as a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

[0252] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embedded in hardware, software units executed by a processor, or a combination of the two. The software unit can be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), EEPROM, registers, hard disks, removable disks, CD-ROMs, or other storage media in any form known in the art. Exemplarily, the storage medium can be connected to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Alternatively, the storage medium can also be integrated into the processor. The processor and storage medium can be provided in an ASIC, which can be provided in a terminal device. Alternatively, the processor and storage medium can also be provided in different components in the terminal device.

[0253] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operational steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing the instructions executed on the computer or other programmable device for implementing the process. Figure 1 a process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A step that specifies a function in one or more boxes.

[0254] The contents of the various embodiments of this application can refer to each other. If there is no special explanation and logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their internal logical relationships.

[0255] It is understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the UE may perform some or all of the steps in the embodiments of the present application. These steps or operations are merely examples. In the embodiments of the present application, other operations or variations of various operations may also be performed. In addition, the steps may be performed in a different order than those presented in the embodiments of the present application, and it is possible that not all operations in the embodiments of the present application need to be performed.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: When the inactive time of the first beam is reached, stopping and not resetting a timer, the timer being used to wait for out-of-order data packets to arrive, the first beam being a beam covering the terminal device; When the activation time of the first beam arrives, the timer is started.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: At least one data packet is not delivered to an upper layer, where the at least one data packet is all received data packets whose count value is before a first count value, wherein the first count value is determined based on the count value of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises: At least one data packet is not discarded, and the at least one data packet is all received unassembled data packets whose sequence numbers are before a first sequence number, wherein the first sequence number is determined based on the sequence number of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that A data packet that fails to be transmitted within the activation time of an activation cycle of the first beam will be retransmitted within the activation time of the next activation cycle of the first beam.

5. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: When the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the timing duration of the timer is extended, wherein the timeout time of the extended timer is within the activation time of the first beam, the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer is used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The extension amount of the timing duration is determined according to the activation period of the first beam.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that A data packet that fails to be transmitted within the activation time of an activation cycle of the first beam will be retransmitted within the activation time of the next activation cycle of the first beam.

8. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: When the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the timer is stopped and reset, wherein the timer is used to wait for the arrival of out-of-order data packets, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: Submit at least one data packet to an upper layer, where the at least one data packet is a received data packet whose count value is before a first count value, wherein the first count value is determined according to the count value of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The method further comprises: The value of the first parameter is updated to the count value of the first data packet, where the first data packet is the first data packet that has not been delivered to the upper layer.

11. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: Delete at least one data packet, where the at least one data packet is a received, unassembled data packet whose sequence number is before a first sequence number, wherein the first sequence number is determined based on the sequence number of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer.

12. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The method further comprises: Determine status report; or, determining a status report during an activation time of the first beam; The status report is used to indicate unreceived, unassembled data packets whose sequence numbers are before a first sequence number, and the first sequence number is determined according to the sequence number of the data packet used to trigger the start of the timer.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that The method further comprises: The status report is sent within the activation time of the first beam.

14. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: When the inactivity time of the first beam is reached, stopping a timer, the timer being used to determine link quality, the first beam being a beam covering the terminal device; When the activation time of the first beam arrives, the timer is started.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that After stopping the timer, the method further includes: Stop detecting the reference signal.

16. The method according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that The method further comprises: Reset the value of the second parameter; or, The value of the second parameter is not reset; The second parameter is used to indicate the number of consecutive synchronization indications received during the running period of the timer.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that After starting the timer, the method further includes: It is determined whether the link quality is restored according to the second parameter.

18. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, characterized in that After starting the timer, the method further includes: If the timer times out, it is determined that a wireless link failure occurs.

19. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: When the inactive time of the first beam is reached, the timing duration of the timer is extended, wherein the timeout time of the extended timer is within the activation time of the first beam, the timer is used to determine the link quality, and the first beam is a beam covering the terminal device.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that The extension amount of the timing duration is determined according to the activation period of the first beam.

21. The method according to claim 19 or 20, characterized in that The method further comprises: During the inactive time of the first beam, detection of the reference signal is stopped, or detection of the reference signal is stopped.

22. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 21, characterized in that The method further comprises: Reset the value of the second parameter; or, The value of the second parameter is not reset; The second parameter is used to indicate the number of consecutive synchronization signals received during the running period of the timer.

23. The method according to claim 22, characterized in that After starting the timer, the method further includes: It is determined whether the link quality is restored according to the second parameter.

24. The method according to any one of claims 19 to 23, characterized in that: The method further comprises: If the timer times out, it is determined that a wireless link failure occurs.

25. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: determining that a third duration is insufficient to receive N311-Y consecutive synchronization indications, where Y represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications received during the timer operation, Y is an integer greater than or equal to 0, and N311 represents the number of consecutive synchronization indications used to determine whether link quality is restored, the third duration being the duration until the inactivation time of the first beam, the first beam being a beam covering the terminal device, and the timer being used to detect link quality; Stop or do not start the timer.

26. The method according to claim 25, characterized in that The method further comprises: During the activation time of the first beam, a first message is sent to the network device, where the first message is used to request RRC re-establishment.

27. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device includes a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, or a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 5 to 7, or a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 8 to 13, or a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 14 to 18, or a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 19 to 24, or a module for executing the method according to any one of claims 25 to 26.

28. A communication device, characterized in that: The communication device includes a processor, which is used to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, or the method according to any one of claims 5 to 7, or the method according to any one of claims 8 to 13, or the method according to any one of claims 14 to 18, or the method according to any one of claims 19 to 24, or the method according to any one of claims 25 to 26.

29. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that The computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program. When the computer program is run on a computer, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 5 to 7 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 8 to 13 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 14 to 18 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 19 to 24 is executed, or the method according to any one of claims 25 to 26 is executed.

30. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product comprises a computer program, which, when run on a computer, causes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4 to be executed, or causes the method according to any one of claims 5 to 7 to be executed, or causes the method according to any one of claims 8 to 13 to be executed, or causes the method according to any one of claims 14 to 18 to be executed, or causes the method according to any one of claims 19 to 24 to be executed, or causes the method according to any one of claims 25 to 26 to be executed.

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