Method and apparatus for small data transmission - Patents.com

Abstract

An embodiment of the present application relates to a method and apparatus for small data transmission of a user equipment (UE) in an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state. According to one embodiment of the present application, the method may include maintaining a priority variable for each logical channel of at least one logical channel, determining a value of the priority variable for each logical channel after performing a first logical channel prioritization (LCP) procedure, receiving a message indicating a MAC reset, and using the value as an initial value of the priority variable for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel in a second LCP procedure following the first LCP procedure after receiving the message. The embodiment of the present application can satisfy QoS requirements and fairness for traffic transmitted on the logical channels in an NR system.

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0002] Embodiments of the present application generally relate to wireless communication technologies, and more particularly, to a method and apparatus for small data transmission for a user equipment (UE) in an RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state. [Background technology]

[0002] In Long Term Evolution (LTE), when a UE wants to transmit data, it may initiate an Early Data Transmission (EDT) procedure. The EDT procedure may include an EDT procedure for Control Plane (CP) Cellular Internet of Things (CIoT) Evolved Packet System (EPS) optimization and an EDT procedure for User Plane (UP) CIoT EPS optimization. In the EDT procedure for CP CIoT EPS optimization, the data may be transmitted through a Radio Resource Control (RRC) Early Data Request message. In the EDT procedure for UP CIoT EPS optimization, the data may be transmitted through an RRC Connection Resume Request message.

[0003] New radio (NR) supports the RRC_INACTIVE state. If a UE wants to transmit data in the RRC_INACTIVE state, the NR work item states that the data may be transmitted through a random access channel (RACH)-based scheme (e.g., a two-step RACH scheme or a four-step RACH scheme) over preconfigured physical uplink shared channel (PUSCH) resources.

[0004] All of the above schemes for transmitting data in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state may involve a Medium Access Control (MAC) reset operation after transmitting the data. However, the MAC reset operation may affect the fairness to traffic in some logical channels, such as low priority logical channels. In addition, how to manage Quality of Service (QoS) is another issue for data transmission using EDT procedures for CP CIoT EPS optimization. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Therefore, improved techniques for small data transmission are desired in the industry to meet QoS requirements and fairness to traffic transmitted on logical channels in NR systems. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] Some embodiments of the present application provide technical solutions for at least small data transmission of a UE.

[0007] According to some embodiments of the present application, a method may include maintaining a priority variable for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel, determining a value of the priority variable for each logical channel after performing a first logical channel prioritization (LCP) procedure, receiving a message indicating a MAC reset, and using the value as an initial value of the priority variable for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel in a second LCP procedure following the first LCP procedure after receiving the message.

[0008] In one embodiment of the present application, the message indicating a MAC reset may be one of an RRC release message including an suspend configuration information element (IE), an RRC early data complete message, and a MAC reset message following a small data transmission.

[0009] In another embodiment of the present application, at least one logical channel may be used for small data transmission, and the at least one logical channel may be determined based on configuration information from a base station (BS) and / or a logical channel selection procedure for an uplink (UL) grant.

[0010] Some embodiments of the present application also provide an apparatus including at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions stored thereon, at least one receiver, at least one transmitter, and at least one processor coupled to the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium, the at least one receiver, and the at least one transmitter, the computer-executable instructions being programmed to cause the at least one receiver, the at least one transmitter, and the at least one processor to implement any of the methods described above.

[0011] The embodiments of the present application provide a technical solution for small data transmission of a UE, such as a UE that is not in an RRC_CONNECTED state. For example, the UE may be in an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state. Accordingly, the embodiments of the present application can meet QoS requirements and fairness for traffic transmitted on logical channels in an NR system.

[0012] To describe the manner in which the advantages and features of the present application can be obtained, the description of the present application has been given by reference to specific embodiments thereof, which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. These drawings merely illustrate example embodiments of the present application and therefore should not be considered as limiting its scope. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary wireless communication system 100 according to some embodiments of the present application. [Diagram 2] FIG. 1 illustrates an LCP procedure in NR according to some embodiments of the present application. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 illustrates an LCP procedure for small data transmission according to some embodiments of the present application. [Figure 4] 4 is a flow chart illustrating a method for small data transmission according to some other embodiments of the present application. [Diagram 5] 5 is a simplified block diagram of an apparatus 500 for small data transmission according to some embodiments of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] The detailed description of the accompanying drawings is intended as an illustration of a preferred embodiment of the present application, and is not intended to represent the only form in which the present application may be practiced. It should be understood that the same or equivalent functions may be accomplished by different embodiments that are intended to be encompassed within the spirit and scope of the present application.

[0015] Reference will now be made in detail to certain embodiments of the present application, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

[0016] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating an exemplary wireless communication system 100 according to one embodiment of the present application.

[0017] 1, the wireless communication system 100 may include at least one base station (BS) 101 and at least one UE 103. Although only a particular number of BSs 101 and UEs 103, e.g., one BS 101 and one UE 103, are depicted in FIG 1, those skilled in the art will recognize that any number of BSs 101 and UEs 103 may be included in the wireless communication system 100.

[0018] The BSs 101 may be part of a radio access network that may be distributed across a geographic region and may typically include one or more controllers communicatively coupled to one or more corresponding BSs. In some embodiments of the present application, each BS may be referred to as an access point, access terminal, base, macro cell, Node B, evolved Node B (eNB), gNB, Home Node B, relay node, device, or described using other terminology used in the art.

[0019] The UE 103 may be a legacy UE (or regular UE) that is compatible with existing technology, or a normal NR UE. For example, the UE 103 may be a computing device, such as a desktop computer, a laptop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a smart TV (e.g., a TV connected to the Internet), a set-top box, a game console, a security system (including security cameras), a vehicle on-board computer, a network device (e.g., a router, a switch, and a modem), etc. According to an embodiment of the present application, the UE 103 may be a portable wireless communication device, a smartphone, a cellular phone, a flip phone, a device with a subscriber identity module, a personal computer, a selective call receiver, or any other device capable of sending and receiving communication signals over a wireless network. In some embodiments of the present application, the UE 103 may be a wearable device, such as a smart watch, a fitness band, an optical head-mounted display, etc. Additionally, the UE 103 may be referred to as a subscriber unit, mobile, mobile station, user, terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, fixed terminal, subscriber station, user terminal, or device, or may be described using other terms used in the art.

[0020] The UE 103 may be a reduced capability UE, such as a narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) UE or an enhanced machine-based communication (eMTC) UE. The reduced capability UE may be an industrial wireless sensor, a video surveillance, a wearable device, or another device with characteristics of a reduced capability UE. Compared to a legacy UE, the reduced capability may have a small bandwidth to enable a throughput of a few Kbps to a few Mbps, and achieve low power consumption to enable a long UE battery life, reduced cost, flexible latency requirements, flexible UE processing time and flexible UE processing capabilities, etc.

[0021] In Long Term Evolution (LTE), when a UE wants to transmit uplink data, it may initiate an EDT procedure.

[0022] According to some embodiments of the present application, the EDT procedure may include an EDT procedure for CP CIoT EPS optimization. In this procedure, the uplink data may be included in a non-access stratum (NAS) message, and the UE may send an RRC Early Data Request message including the NAS message to the BS. In response to the RRC Early Data Request message, the BS may send an RRC Early Data Complete message. After receiving the RRC Early Data Complete message, the UE may reset the MAC and release the MAC configuration. In one embodiment of the present application, an uplink (UL) grant for transmitting the uplink data may be indicated in the random access response message. In one embodiment of the present application, the UL grant for transmitting the uplink data may be a pre-configured uplink resource (PUR).

[0023] According to some other embodiments of the present application, the EDT procedure may include an EDT procedure for UP CIoT EPS optimization. In this procedure, the UE may send an RRC Connection Resume Request message including uplink data to the BS. In response to the RRC Connection Resume Request message, the BS may send an RRC Disconnect message including a Suspend Configuration IE to the UE to keep the UE in an RRC_IDLE state. After receiving the RRC Disconnect message, the UE may reset the MAC. In one embodiment of the present application, an uplink (UL) grant for transmitting uplink data may be indicated in the random access response message. In one embodiment of the present application, the UL grant for transmitting uplink data may be a pre-configured uplink resource (PUR).

[0024] NR supports the RRC_INACTIVE state. Until Rel-16, the RRC_INACTIVE state does not support data transmission. Therefore, if a UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state has data to be transmitted, it must resume the connection for any downlink and uplink data transmission (i.e., move to the RRC_CONNECTED state). An RRC connection setup and subsequent release to the RRC_INACTIVE state occurs for each data transmission, leading to unnecessary power consumption and signaling overhead. To enable data transmission in the RRC_INACTIVE state, the NR work item states that small data transmission in the RRC_INACTIVE state may be implemented through a random access channel (RACH)-based scheme (e.g., the two-step RACH scheme or the four-step RACH scheme as specified in the 3GPP standard document) without changing the UE's RRC state to the RRC_CONNECTED state. For example, small data may be transmitted using MSGA in the two-step RACH scheme or MSG3 in the four-step RACH scheme. In these schemes, the small data may be transmitted over a pre-configured PUSCH resource (e.g., reusing a configured grant type 1 as specified in the 3GPP standard documents). After transmitting the small data, the UE may receive a MAC reset message. If a reset of the MAC entity is requested by upper layers of the UE, the MAC entity may initialize a priority variable (e.g., Bj as specified in the 3GPP standard documents) for each logical channel to zero.

[0025] Small data may include small and infrequent data traffic. Examples of small and infrequent data traffic include the following use cases: 1) smartphone applications, and 2) non-smartphone applications. Smartphone applications may include traffic from instant messaging services (whatsapp, QQ, wechat, etc.), heartbeat / keep-alive traffic from instant messaging (IM) / email clients and other apps, and push notifications from various applications. Non-smartphone applications may include traffic from wearables (e.g., periodic positioning information, etc.), sensors (e.g., industrial wireless sensor networks that transmit temperature, pressure readings periodically or in an event-triggered manner, etc.), and smart meters and smart meter networks that send periodic meter readings. Those skilled in the art can understand that the above use cases are merely illustrative, and that according to some other embodiments, the same data may include data in other use cases with the same amount and infrequent transmission.

[0026] When performing uplink data transmission, a logical channel prioritization (LCP) procedure may be applied. In the LCP procedure, the RRC controls the scheduling of uplink data by signaling for each logical channel per MAC entity: priority, with increasing priority values ​​indicating lower priority levels, prioritized bit rate (PBR), and bucket size period (BSD). The UE may maintain a priority variable (e.g., Bj) for each logical channel j. The UE's MAC entity may initialize the logical channel's Bj to zero when the logical channel is established. For each logical channel j, the UE's MAC entity may increment Bj by the product PBR×T before every instance of the LCP procedure, where T is the time elapsed since Bj was last incremented, and if the increment causes the value of Bj to exceed the bucket size (i.e., PBR×BSD), the UE may set Bj to the bucket size. Logical channels with Bj>0 are allocated resources in descending priority order. After the LCP procedure, the UE may decrement Bj by the total size of MAC service data units (SDUs) sent on logical channel j in the LCP procedure.

[0027] For example, FIG. 2 illustrates an LCP procedure in NR according to some embodiments of the present application. Referring to FIG. 2, assume that a UE has two logical channels, e.g., LCH1 and LCH2. The priority of LCH1 is higher than LCH2. The UE may maintain a priority variable (e.g., Bj) for each logical channel j. For example, the UE may maintain a priority variable B1 for LCH1 and a priority variable B2 for LCH2. The bucket size of LCH1 is PBR1×BSD1. The bucket size of LCH2 is PBR2×BSD2.

[0028] At time t0, the UE MAC entity may initialize both B1 and B2 to zero. Thereafter, the UE MAC entity may increment Bj by the product of PBR and T, where T is the elapsed time since Bj was last incremented, before every instance of the LCP procedure. At time period TP1, UL grant 1 may be available for the UE to transmit uplink user data, so the UE may allocate UL grants in descending priority order to data in logical channels with Bj>0.

[0029] As shown in Figure 2, assuming that the total elapsed time from time t0 to the time UL grant 1 appears is N x T, B1 of LCH1 may be PBR1 x N x T, and B2 of LCH2 may be PBR2 x N x T. Since the priority of LCH1 is higher than that of LCH2, the data in LCH1 should be allocated the resources of the UL grant first. As shown in Figure 2, not all the data in LCH1 can be transmitted in UL grant 1, and only part 1 of the data in LCH1 is included in MAC SDU1 for transmission in UL grant 1.

[0030] After forming MAC SDU1, the MAC entity of the UE may decrement B1 by the size of MAC SDU1, so the value of B1 may be (PBR1×N×T)−the size of MAC SDU1, which is negative as shown in Figure 2. In another aspect, no data in LCH2 is transmitted, so the MAC entity of the UE does not subtract from B2.

[0031] After that, at time TP2, UL grant 2 may be available for the UE to transmit uplink user data. The UE may allocate UL grants to data in logical channels with Bj>0 in descending priority order. Both B1 and B2 are incremented from the time MAC SDU1 is transmitted until UL grant 2 appears. However, at the time UL grant 2 appears, B1 is still negative, so the data in CH2 should be allocated resources of UL grant 2. As shown in FIG. 2, all data in LCH2 is included in MAC SDU2 for transmission in UL grant 2. After forming MAC SDU2, the MAC entity of the UE may decrement B2 by the size of MAC SDU2. B2 may be zero as shown in FIG. 2.

[0032] Then, at time TP3, UL grant 3 may be available for the UE to transmit uplink user data. The UE may allocate UL grants to data in logical channels with Bj>0 in descending priority order. From the time MAC SDU2 is transmitted until UL grant 3 appears, both B1 and B2 are incremented. At the time UL grant 3 appears, B1 is positive, so the data in LCH1 should be allocated resources of UL grant 3 first. As illustrated in FIG. 2, part 2 of the data in LCH1 is included in MAC SDU3 for transmission in UL grant 3. After forming MAC SDU3, the MAC entity of the UE may decrement B1 by the size of MAC SDU3. The above process is performed continuously over time. Those skilled in the art can understand that the two logical channels are just for illustrative purposes, and according to some other embodiments, the UE may include one or more logical channels, and the procedure is similar as described above.

[0033] The LCP procedure in Figure 2 ensures the fairness of data transmission on different logical channels, especially for low priority logical channels. However, the LCP procedure used for small data transmission of UEs in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state may bring some problems. For example, Figure 3 shows the LDP procedure for small data transmission according to some embodiments of the present application.

[0034] Referring to FIG. 3, each of UL Grant 1, UL Grant 2, and UL Grant 3 may be obtained based on an EDT procedure, may be obtained based on a RACH procedure, may be a configured grant type 1 resource, or may be a resource obtained from any other procedure for small data transmission. For example, UL Grant 1 may be obtained based on a RACH procedure, while UL Grant 2 and UL Grant 3 may be similar to or reuse the configured grant type 1 resource specified in the 3GPP standard document. The operation before transmitting MAC SDU1 is the same as that shown in FIG. 2. The difference is that FIG. 3 involves a small data transmission of a UE in RRC_IDLE or RRC_INACTIVE state. That is, after transmitting MAC SDU1 in UL Grant 1, at time t1, the UE may receive an RRC Release message including an Abort Configuration IE, an RRC Early Data Complete message, or a MAC Reset message followed by a small data transmission. All of these messages may indicate to reset the MAC. With this in mind, B1 is negative after transmitting MAC SDU1, but it will be initialized to zero after receiving a message indicating to reset the MAC.

[0035] Thereafter, at time TP2, UL grant 2 may be available for the UE to transmit uplink user data. The UE may allocate UL grants to data in logical channels with Bj>0 in descending priority order. From the time MAC SDU1 is transmitted until UL grant 2 appears, both B1 and B2 are incremented. At the time UL grant 2 appears, B1 is incremented to a positive value, so that data in LCH1 should be transmitted first in UL grant 2. As illustrated in FIG. 3, part 2 of data in LCH1 and part 1 of data in LCH2 are multiplexed into MAC PDU2 for transmission in UL grant 2. MAC PDU2 may include MAC SDU2 and at least one subheader. MAC SDU2 may include part 2 of data in LCH1 and part 1 of data in LCH2. After forming MAC SDU2, the values ​​of B1 and B2 are updated according to the size of the MAC SDU, which may be positive or negative. However, both B1 and B2 may be initialized to zero after receiving a message indicating to reset the MAC at time t2.

[0036] Considering the above, it can be seen from Figure 3 that the priority of the logical channels determines the order for combining data in the UL grant, and Bj has no effect. It is unfair to the low priority logical channels, since the high priority logical channels always transmit data first. For example, data part 2 in LCH2, which should be transmitted in UL grant 2, has to wait for UL grant 3 to transmit.

[0037] In addition, for the EDT procedure for CP CIoT EPS optimization, the uplink user data may be encapsulated as a NAS protocol data unit (PDU) in an uplink RRC message. The UE may send an RRC Early Data Request message concatenated with the uplink user data. There are no QoS-related procedures in the Access Stratum (AS) layer. However, all traffic in NR may be configured with QoS parameters. Therefore, a technical solution that satisfies QoS in the procedure for CP optimization is needed.

[0038] Accordingly, the embodiments of the present application can manage QoS when uplink user data is transmitted using a CP solution (e.g., including the uplink user data in a NAS message that is concatenated with an RRC message), in addition to keeping data fairness in all logical channels when the data is transmitted as small data transmissions. Further details regarding the embodiments of the present application will be provided in the following text in combination with the accompanying drawings.

[0039] 4 is a flow chart illustrating a method for small data transmission according to some embodiments of the present application, which may be performed by a UE 103 in an RRC_IDLE state or in an RRC_INACTIVE state as illustrated in FIG.

[0040] 4, in step 402, the UE 103 may maintain a priority variable for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel. The at least one logical channel may be used by the UE 103 for small data transmission.

[0041] According to some embodiments of the present application, the at least one logical channel may be all logical channels of the UE. In these embodiments, the UE may consider all logical channels to be available for small data transmission.

[0042] According to some embodiments of the present application, the at least one logical channel may be determined based on configuration information from the BS and / or a logical channel selection procedure for the UL grant. For example, assuming that the UE has five logical channels numbered as 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4, in one embodiment of the present application, the configuration information from the BS may indicate that logical channels 0, 1, and 2 can be used for small data transmission, so the at least one logical channel may be logical channels 0, 1, and 2. In another embodiment of the present application, the at least one logical channel may be logical channels 1, 2, and 3, which are determined by a logical channel selection procedure as specified in the 3GPP standard document. In yet another embodiment of the present application, the configuration information from the BS may indicate that logical channels 1, 2, 3, and 4 can be used for small data transmission, and the UE may perform a logical channel selection procedure as specified in the 3GPP standard document to select logical channels 1, 2, and 3 for small data transmission. In this case, the at least one logical channel may be logical channels 1, 2, and 3, which are determined based on configuration information from the BS and a logical channel selection procedure.

[0043] According to some embodiments of the present application, the small data transmission may include UP-based small data transmission and CP-based small data transmission. The UP-based small data transmission may include transmitting the small data multiplexed with an RRC message. The CP-based small data transmission may include transmitting the small data in a NAS message concatenated with an RRC message.

[0044] According to some embodiments of the present application, the UE 103 may transmit small data via a RACH-based scheme (e.g., a two-step RACH scheme or a four-step RACH scheme as specified in the 3GPP standard documents). For example, the small data may be transmitted using MSGA in the two-step RACH scheme or MSG3 in the four-step RACH scheme. In one embodiment of the present application, the BS 101 may transmit a broadcast message indicating that the network supports small data transmission.

[0045] According to some embodiments of the present application, the UL grant for transmitting small data may be a pre-configured resource (e.g., a pre-configured grant type 1 resource as specified in the 3GPP standard document). In one embodiment of the present application, when the network releases the UE to the RRC_INACTIVE state, a release message for small data transmission may be configured in the pre-configured resource.

[0046] According to some embodiments of the present application, the UE may support UP-based small data transmission. In these embodiments of the present application, the priority variable maintained for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel may be Bj as specified in the 3GPP standard document. For example, assuming that the at least one logical channel used for small data transmission is logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, the UE may maintain B1, B2, B3 and B4 for logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively.

[0047] The initialization procedure for Bj may be the same as that specified in the 3GPP standard documents. For example, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may initialize Bj of a logical channel to zero when the logical channel is established.

[0048] For each logical channel j, the MAC entity of the UE may determine a first value before every instance of the LCP procedure by incrementing Bj by the product PBR×T, where T is the elapsed time since Bj was last incremented, and if the first value is greater than the bucket size (i.e., PBR×BSD) for logical channel j, then the UE 103 may set Bj to the bucket size.

[0049] When performing a first small data transmission, a first LCP procedure may be applied. In the first LCP procedure, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may allocate resources to at least one logical channel as follows: all allowed logical channels with Bj>0 of the at least one logical channel are allocated resources in descending priority order. Those skilled in the art can understand that the first small data transmission may refer to an initial small data transmission after an initialization procedure or any other small data transmission after an initial small data transmission. Similarly, the first LCP procedure may refer to an initial LCP procedure after an initialization procedure or any other LCP procedure after an initial LCP procedure.

[0050] After performing the first LCP procedure, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may determine a value of Bj for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel in step 404. Determining the value of Bj for each logical channel j may include decrementing Bj for each logical channel by the total size of MAC SDUs sent on logical channel j, where the value of Bj before decrementing may be determined based on the increment procedure as described above.

[0051] In step 406, the UE 103 may receive a message indicating a MAC reset. According to some embodiments of the present application, the message indicating a MAC reset may include one of an RRC release message including a suspend configuration IE, an RRC early data complete message, and a MAC reset message following a small data transmission.

[0052] In step 408, after receiving the message, in a second LCP procedure following the first LCP procedure, the UE may use the value of Bj determined after the first LCP procedure as an initial value of Bj for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel. In these embodiments, step 408 may be implemented by the following procedure. For example, in response to receiving the message, the UE 103 may store the value of Bj for each logical channel determined after the first LCP procedure in the RRC layer or the MAC layer as a temporary value Bj_temp for each logical channel. In one embodiment of the present application, at the moment of receiving the message or when receiving the message, the UE 103 may store the value of Bj for each logical channel in the RRC layer or the MAC layer as a temporary value Bj_temp for each logical channel. After resetting the MAC, the UE 103 may set a temporary value Bj_temp (e.g., set Bj=Bj_temp) as the initial value of Bj for each logical channel or for a configured logical channel that is configured to allow small data transmission, so that Bj may be used in a subsequent second LCP procedure for a second small data transmission. In one embodiment of the present application, the exact moment at which the UE updates Bj during the LCP procedure is up to the UE implementation as long as Bj is up to date at the time a grant is processed by the LCP procedure or after the MAC is reset.

[0053] According to some other embodiments of the present application, the UE may support UP-based small data transmission. In these embodiments of the present application, the priority variable maintained for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel may be a new priority variable (e.g., Bj_smalldata) different from Bj as specified in the 3GPP standard document. The new priority variable (e.g., Bj_smalldata) is not affected by the MAC reset operation. The new priority variable may be configured or predefined for small data transmission, for example, CP-based small data transmission and / or UP-based small data transmission. In one embodiment of this embodiment of the present application, the 3GPP standard document may specify that the new priority variable is used for small data transmission. In one embodiment of this embodiment of the present application, the new priority variable may be a MAC parameter.

[0054] For example, assuming that at least one logical channel used for small data transmission is logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, the UE may maintain B1_smalldata, B2_smalldata, B3_smalldata and B4_smalldata for logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively.

[0055] The MAC entity of the UE 103 may initialize Bj_smalldata for a logical channel to zero when the UE 103 starts small data transmission, or when the UE 103 is released from an INACTIVE state with a small data transmission configuration, or when the logical channel is established.

[0056] For each logical channel j, the MAC entity of the UE may increment Bj_smalldata by the product PBR×T to determine a first value before every instance of an LCP procedure, where T is the time elapsed since Bj_smalldata was last incremented, and if the first value is greater than the bucket size (i.e., PBR×BSD) of logical channel j, the UE 103 may set Bj_smalldata to the bucket size. In one embodiment of the present application, the exact moment at which the UE updates Bj_smalldata during an LCP procedure is up to the UE implementation, as long as Bj_smalldata is up to date by the time a grant is processed by the LCP procedure or after the MAC has been reset.

[0057] When performing a first small data transmission, a first LCP procedure may be applied. In the first LCP procedure, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may allocate resources to at least one logical channel as the following steps: Step 1: All allowed logical channels with Bj_smalldata>0 of the at least one logical channel are allocated resources in descending priority order. If the PBR of a logical channel is set to infinity, the MAC entity shall allocate resources for all data available for transmission on the logical channel before satisfying the PBR of a lower priority logical channel. Those skilled in the art can understand that the first small data transmission may refer to an initial small data transmission after an initialization procedure or any other small data transmission after an initial small data transmission. Similarly, the first LCP procedure may refer to an initial LCP procedure after an initialization procedure or any other LCP procedure after an initial LCP procedure.

[0058] Step 2: After performing the first LCP procedure, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may determine a value of Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel (i.e., step 404 shown in FIG. 4). Determining the value of Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j may include decrementing Bj_smalldata for each logical channel by the total size of MAC SDUs sent on logical channel j, where the value of Bj_smalldata before decrementing may be determined based on the increment procedure as described above. Bj_smalldata may be negative after performing the first LCP procedure.

[0059] Step 3: If there are any resources remaining, all logical channels of at least one logical channel are served in strict descending priority order, regardless of the value of Bj_smalldata, until either data or UL grant for that logical channel is exhausted, whichever comes first. Logical channels configured with equal priority should be served equally. According to some embodiments of the present application, steps 1 and 2 may not be performed by the UE 103.

[0060] In step 406, the UE 103 may receive a message indicating a MAC reset. According to some embodiments of the present application, the message indicating a MAC reset may include one of an RRC release message including a suspend configuration IE, an RRC early data complete message, and a MAC reset message following a small data transmission.

[0061] In step 408, after receiving the message, in a second LCP procedure following the first LCP procedure, the UE may use the value of Bj_smalldata determined after the first LCP procedure as an initial value of Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel. As mentioned above, Bj_smalldata is a new priority variable that is not affected by a MAC reset operation. That is, in response to receiving the message, the UE 103 may not initialize the priority variable Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j to zero, so that the value of Bj_smalldata determined after the first LCP procedure may be used in the subsequent second LCP procedure for the second small data transmission.

[0062] According to some embodiments of the present application, the UE may support CP-based small data transmission. In one embodiment of the present application, according to the flow-to-DRB and DRB-to-logical channel mapping rules, the AS layer may find a logical channel j corresponding to the NAS flow through which the NAS data is transmitted. In one embodiment of the present application, the CP-based small data transmission may be limited to some flows configured by the mobility management entity (MME) or the access and mobility management function (AMF).

[0063] In these embodiments, the priority variable maintained for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel may be Bj as specified in the 3GPP standard documents. For example, given that the at least one logical channel used for small data transmission is logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, the UE may maintain B1, B2, B3 and B4 for logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively.

[0064] The initialization procedure for Bj may be the same as that specified in the 3GPP standard documents. For example, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may initialize Bj of a logical channel to zero when the logical channel is established.

[0065] For each logical channel j, the MAC entity of the UE may determine a second value before every instance of the LCP procedure by incrementing Bj by the product PBR×T, where T is the elapsed time since Bj was last incremented, and if the second value is greater than the bucket size (i.e., PBR×BSD) for logical channel j, then the UE 103 may set Bj to the bucket size.

[0066] When performing a first small data transmission, a first LCP procedure may be applied. In a CP-based small data transmission, the first small data may be included in a NAS message that is concatenated with an RRC message for transmission via a logical channel. In the first LCP procedure, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may allocate resources to a logical channel for the small data transmission. Those skilled in the art can understand that the first small data transmission may refer to an initial small data transmission after an initialization procedure or any other small data transmission after an initial small data transmission. Similarly, the first LCP procedure may refer to an initial LCP procedure after an initialization procedure or any other LCP procedure after an initial LCP procedure.

[0067] After performing the first LCP procedure, in step 404, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may determine a value of Bj for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel. Before determining the value of Bj, the lower layer of the UE 103 may retrieve from the upper layer the size of the data sent by the upper layer to each logical channel. In one embodiment of the present application, the lower layer may be an AS layer. The AS layer may include one or more of the following: an RRC layer, a MAC layer, a Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), a Radio Link Control (RLC) layer, and a Physical (PHY) layer. In one embodiment of the present application, the upper layer may be a NAS layer.

[0068] The UE 103 may then determine a total size of the MAC SDUs sent for each logical channel based on at least one of the following: a size of data sent by higher layers for the logical channel, a size of a PDCP header, a size of an RLC header, and a size of a Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) header. For example, if an SDAP layer is configured for the UE, the total size of the MAC SDUs sent for each logical channel is equal to the sum of the size of data sent by higher layers, the size of a PDCP header, the size of an RLC header, and the size of an SDAP header. The UE may then determine a value of a priority variable Bj based on the total size of the MAC SDUs sent for each logical channel. For example, determining the value of Bj for each logical channel j may include decrementing Bj for each logical channel by the total size of the MAC SDUs sent for logical channel j, where the value of Bj before decrementing may be determined based on the increment procedure as described above.

[0069] In one embodiment of the present application, in response to the value of the priority variable Bj being negative, the lower layer of the UE 103 may send a first indication to the upper layer to suspend small data transmission. After a certain time, the UE 103 may send a second indication to the upper layer to allow small data transmission when Bj>0.

[0070] In another embodiment of the present application, in response to the value of the priority variable Bj being positive, the lower layer of the UE 103 may send a second indication to the upper layer to allow the small data transmission.

[0071] In step 406, the UE 103 may receive a message indicating a MAC reset. According to some embodiments of the present application, the message indicating a MAC reset may be one of an RRC release message including a suspend configuration IE, an RRC early data complete message, and a MAC reset message following a small data transmission.

[0072] In step 408, after receiving the message, in a second LCP procedure following the first LCP procedure, the UE may use the value of Bj determined after the first LCP procedure as an initial value of Bj for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel. In these embodiments, step 408 may be implemented by the following procedure. For example, in response to receiving the message, the UE 103 may store the value of Bj for each logical channel determined after the first LCP procedure as a temporary value Bj_temp for each logical channel in the RRC layer or the MAC layer. After resetting the MAC, the UE 103 may set the temporary value Bj_temp (e.g., set Bj=Bj_temp) as an initial value of Bj for each logical channel, so that Bj may be used in a subsequent second LCP procedure for a second small data transmission.

[0073] According to some other embodiments of the present application, the UE may support CP-based small data transmission. In one embodiment of the present application, according to a flow-to-logical channel mapping rule, the AS layer may find a logical channel j corresponding to the NAS flow through which the NAS data is transmitted. In one embodiment of the present application, the CP-based small data transmission may be limited to some flows configured by a mobility management entity (MME) or an access and mobility management function (AMF).

[0074] In these embodiments of the present application, the priority variable maintained for each logical channel of the at least one logical channel may be a new priority variable (e.g., Bj_smalldata) different from Bj as specified in the 3GPP standard document. The new priority variable (e.g., Bj_smalldata) is not affected by the MAC reset operation. The new priority variable may be configured or predefined for small data transmission, for example, CP-based small data transmission and / or UP-based small data transmission. In one embodiment of this embodiment of the present application, the 3GPP standard document may specify that the new priority variable is used for small data transmission. In one embodiment of this embodiment of the present application, the new priority variable may be a MAC parameter.

[0075] For example, assuming that at least one logical channel used for small data transmission is logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, the UE may maintain B1_smalldata, B2_smalldata, B3_smalldata and B4_smalldata for logical channels 1, 2, 3 and 4, respectively.

[0076] The MAC entity of the UE 103 may initialize Bj_smalldata for a logical channel to zero when the UE 103 starts small data transmission, or when the UE 103 is released from an INACTIVE state with a small data transmission configuration, or when the logical channel is established.

[0077] For each logical channel j, the MAC entity of the UE may determine a second value by incrementing Bj_smalldata by the product PBR×T before every instance of the LCP procedure, where T is the time elapsed since Bj_smalldata was last incremented, and if the second value is greater than the bucket size (i.e., PBR×BSD) for logical channel j, the UE 103 may set Bj_smalldata to the bucket size. In one embodiment of the present application, the exact moment at which the UE updates Bj_smalldata during an LCP procedure is up to the UE implementation, as long as Bj_smalldata is up to date by the time a grant is processed by the LCP procedure or after the MAC has been reset.

[0078] When performing a first small data transmission, a first LCP procedure may be applied. In a CP-based small data transmission, the first small data may be included in a NAS message that is concatenated with an RRC message for transmission via a logical channel. In the first LCP procedure, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may allocate resources to a logical channel for the small data transmission. Those skilled in the art can understand that the first small data transmission may refer to an initial small data transmission after an initialization procedure or any other small data transmission after an initial small data transmission. Similarly, the first LCP procedure may refer to an initial LCP procedure after an initialization procedure or any other LCP procedure after an initial LCP procedure.

[0079] After performing the first LCP procedure, in step 404, the MAC entity of the UE 103 may determine a value of Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel. Before determining the value of Bj_smalldata, the lower layer of the UE 103 may retrieve from the upper layer the size of the data sent by the upper layer to each logical channel. In one embodiment of the present application, the lower layer may be an AS layer. The AS layer may include one or more of the following: an RRC layer, a MAC layer, a PDCP, an RLC layer, and a PHY layer. In one embodiment of the present application, the upper layer may be a NAS layer.

[0080] The UE 103 may then determine a total size of the MAC SDUs sent for each logical channel based on at least one of the following: a size of data sent by higher layers for the logical channel, a size of a PDCP header, a size of an RLC header, and a size of an SDAP header. For example, if an SDAP layer is configured for the UE, the total size of the MAC SDUs sent for each logical channel is equal to the sum of a size of data sent by higher layers, a size of a PDCP header, a size of an RLC header, and a size of an SDAP header. The UE may then determine a value of the priority variable Bj_smalldata based on the total size of the MAC SDUs sent for each logical channel. For example, determining the value of Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j may include decrementing Bj_smalldata for each logical channel by the total size of the MAC SDUs sent for logical channel j, where the value of Bj_smalldata before decrementing may be determined based on the increment procedure as described above.

[0081] In one embodiment of the present application, in response to the value of the priority variable Bj_smalldata being negative, the lower layer of the UE 103 may send a first indication to the upper layer to suspend small data transmission. After a certain time, the UE 103 may send a second indication to the upper layer to allow small data transmission when Bj_smalldata>0.

[0082] In another embodiment of the present application, in response to the value of the priority variable Bj_smalldata being positive, the lower layer of the UE 103 may send a second indication to the upper layer to allow the small data transmission.

[0083] If any resources remain, all logical channels of at least one logical channel are served in strict descending priority order, regardless of the value of Bj_smalldata, until either data or UL grants for that logical channel are exhausted, whichever comes first. Logical channels of equal priority should be served equally.

[0084] In step 406, the UE 103 may receive a message indicating a MAC reset. According to some embodiments of the present application, the message indicating a MAC reset may be one of an RRC release message including a suspend configuration IE, an RRC early data complete message, and a MAC reset message following a small data transmission.

[0085] In step 408, after receiving the message, in a second LCP procedure following the first LCP procedure, the UE may use the value of Bj_smalldata determined after the first LCP procedure as an initial value of Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j of the at least one logical channel. As mentioned above, Bj_smalldata is a new priority variable that is not affected by a MAC reset operation. That is, in response to receiving the message, the UE 103 may not initialize the priority variable Bj_smalldata for each logical channel j to zero, so that the value of Bj_smalldata determined after the first LCP procedure may be used in the subsequent second LCP procedure for the second small data transmission.

[0086] 5 shows a simplified block diagram of an apparatus 500 for small data transmission according to some embodiments of the present application. The apparatus 500 may be a UE 103 as shown in FIG.

[0087] Referring to FIG. 5, the device 500 may include at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium 502, at least one receiving circuit 504, at least one transmitting circuit 506, and at least one processor 508. In some embodiments of the present application, the at least one receiving circuit 504 and the at least one transmitting circuit 506 may be integrated into at least one transceiver. The at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium 502 may store computer-executable instructions. The at least one processor 508 may be coupled to the at least one non-transitory computer-readable medium 502, the at least one receiving circuit 504, and the at least one transmitting circuit 506. The computer-executable instructions may be programmed to perform a method on the at least one receiving circuit 504, the at least one transmitting circuit 506, and the at least one processor 508. The method may be a method according to an embodiment of the present application, for example, the method illustrated in FIG. 4.

[0088] The method according to the embodiment of the present application can also be implemented on a programmed processor. However, the controller, the flow chart and the modules may also be implemented on a general purpose or dedicated computer, a programmed microprocessor or microcontroller and peripheral integrated circuit elements, integrated circuits, discrete element circuits, and other hardware electronic or logical circuits, programmable logic devices, and the like. In general, any device on which a finite state machine capable of implementing the flow charts shown in the figures resides may be used to implement the processor functions of the present application. For example, an embodiment of the present application provides an apparatus for emotion recognition from speech, including a processor and a memory. Computer programmable instructions for implementing the method for emotion recognition from speech are stored in the memory, and the processor is configured to execute the computer programmable instructions to implement the method for emotion recognition from speech. The method may be as described above or another method according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0089] An alternative embodiment preferably implements the method according to an embodiment of the present application in a non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium having computer programmable instructions stored thereon. The instructions are preferably executed by a computer-executable component that is preferably integrated with the network security system. The non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium may be stored in any suitable computer-readable medium, such as a RAM, a ROM, a flash memory, an EEPROM, an optical storage device (CD or DVD), a hard drive, a floppy drive, or any suitable device. The computer-executable component is preferably a processor, but the instructions may alternatively or additionally be executed by any suitable dedicated hardware device. For example, an embodiment of the present application provides a non-transitory, computer-readable storage medium having computer programmable instructions stored thereon. The computer programmable instructions are configured to implement the method for emotion recognition from speech described above or other methods according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0090] Although the present application has been described with its specific embodiments, it is apparent that many alternatives, modifications and variations may be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, various components of the embodiments may be exchanged, added or substituted in other embodiments. Also, not all elements in each figure are required for the operation of the disclosed embodiments. For example, a person skilled in the art of the disclosed embodiments will be enabled to make and use the teachings of the present application by simply utilizing the elements of the independent claims. Thus, the embodiments of the present application described herein are intended to be illustrative and not limiting. Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. [Explanation of symbols]

[0091] 100 Wireless communication system 101 Base station (BS) 103UE 500 devices 502 Non-transitory computer readable medium 504 Receiving circuit 506 Transmitting Circuit 508 Processor

Claims

1. 1. A user equipment (UE) in an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state, the user equipment (UE) comprising at least a transmitting circuit, a receiving circuit, at least one memory, and a processor coupled to the at least one memory, The processor: Determine whether to perform small data transmission (SDT), Applying the initial Logical Channel Prioritization (LCP) procedure for SDT on UL-granted resources It is configured as follows: the receiving circuitry is configured to receive a message indicating a media access control (MAC) reset; the processor is further configured to reset a MAC in response to receiving the message; The message indicating the MAC reset includes a Radio Resource Control (RRC) Release message that includes a suspend configuration information element (IE). User equipment.

2. The processor is further configured to apply another LCP procedure after the initial LCP procedure for the SDT. The user equipment of claim 1 .

3. The processor is further configured to apply an initial priority control (LCP) procedure for SDT on UL-granted resources according to an initial value of a priority variable for the logical channel configured for the small data transmission. The user equipment of claim 1 .

4. The UL granted resources are obtained through a random access channel (RACH) based scheme. The user equipment of claim 1 .

5. The UL grant is a pre-configured resource The user equipment of claim 1 .

6. The SDT includes transmitting the small data multiplexed with an RRC message, or transmitting the small data in a NAS message concatenated within an RRC message. The user equipment of claim 1 .

7. The message indicating the MAC reset includes one of an RRC Early Data Complete message and a MAC Reset message following a small data transmission. The user equipment of claim 1 .

8. The processor is further configured to use a predefined value as the initial value of a priority variable for the logical channel configured for the small data transmission.

4. The user equipment of claim 3.

9. 1. A method performed when a user equipment is in an RRC_IDLE state or an RRC_INACTIVE state, comprising: determining whether to perform a small data transmission (SDT); applying an initial Logical Channel Prioritization (LCP) procedure for SDT on the UL granted resources; receiving a message indicating a media access control (MAC) reset; resetting a MAC in response to receiving the message; The message indicating the MAC reset includes a Radio Resource Control (RRC) Release message that includes a suspend configuration information element (IE). method.

10. apply another LCP procedure after the initial LCP procedure for the SDT The method of claim 9.

11. apply an initial priority control (LCP) procedure for SDT on the UL-granted resources according to the initial value of a priority variable for the logical channel configured for the small data transmission; The method of claim 9.

12. The UL granted resources are obtained through a random access channel (RACH) based scheme. The method of claim 9.

13. The UL grant is a pre-configured resource The method of claim 9.

14. The SDT includes transmitting the small data multiplexed with an RRC message, or transmitting the small data in a NAS message concatenated within an RRC message. The method of claim 9.

15. The message indicating the MAC reset includes one of an RRC Early Data Complete message and a MAC Reset message following a small data transmission. The method of claim 9.

16. using a predefined value as the initial value of a priority variable for the logical channel configured for the small data transmission; The method of claim 11.

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