Information sending method and apparatus

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application provide an information sending method and apparatus. The method comprises: a PDCP layer or an MAC layer of a terminal device triggers a delay information report; and by means of an MAC CE or a PDCP, the terminal device controls a PDU to send the delay information report to a network device. Therefore, the terminal device can send the delay information report to the network device in time. In addition, on the basis of the content of the delay information report, the network device can timely distribute appropriate uplink resources for the transmission of an XR service, so that the delay requirements of the XR service can be met, the QoS of the XR service is ensured, and the utilization rate of radio resources can also be improved.

Description

Information sending method and device Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communication technologies. Background Art

[0002] In Release 18, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) began researching enhancements to Extended Reality (XR) services. XR services refer to all combined real and virtual environments and human-computer interactions enabled by computing technology and wearable devices. XR services can include Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), and Mixed Reality (MR).

[0003] It should be noted that the above introduction to the technical background is merely intended to provide a clear and complete description of the technical solutions of this application and facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art. Simply because these solutions are described in the background technology section of this application, it should not be assumed that the above technical solutions are well known to those skilled in the art.

[0004] Summary of the Invention

[0005] The inventors found that XR services have strict latency constraints. In order to meet the QoS (Quality of Service) requirements of XR services, a scheduler with latency information is needed. A scheduler with latency information is feasible in the downlink because the network equipment knows the user QoS characteristics (for example, indicated by 5QI (5G QoS Identifier)) and also knows the arrival time of XR frames (frames, packets), and therefore knows the urgency of scheduling cached data. However, for the uplink, since the current BSR (Buffer Status Report) only provides the size of the cached data but does not pass information on how long the data in the UE (User Equipment) has been cached, the scheduler on the network equipment side cannot accurately know the cache time of the data in the UE. It may happen that the XR service will exceed its latency requirements and the uplink resources have not yet been configured, resulting in failure to meet the QoS requirements of the XR service or data loss, which reduces the user experience.

[0006] In response to at least one of the above problems or other similar problems, embodiments of the present application provide an information sending method and apparatus to meet the latency requirements of XR services, thereby ensuring the QoS of XR services.

[0007] According to one aspect of an embodiment of the present application, there is provided an information sending apparatus, configured in a terminal device, the apparatus comprising:

[0008] a triggering unit configured to trigger a delay information report at a packet data convergence protocol layer or a media access control layer of the terminal device;

[0009] A sending unit is configured to send the delay information report to a network device via a media access control control element or a packet data convergence protocol control protocol data unit.

[0010] According to another aspect of an embodiment of the present application, a communication apparatus is provided, configured in a terminal device, wherein the apparatus includes:

[0011] an indication unit, which indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time, and / or

[0012] A receiving unit receives configuration information from a network device, where the configuration information is used to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device.

[0013] According to another aspect of an embodiment of the present application, there is provided an information sending apparatus, configured in a terminal device, wherein the apparatus includes:

[0014] a sending unit configured to send a delay information report to a network device;

[0015] A processing unit is configured to perform processing related to the delay information report being deprioritized.

[0016] According to another aspect of an embodiment of the present application, a communication device is provided, configured in a network device, wherein the device includes:

[0017] a receiving unit configured to receive indication information from a terminal device, wherein the indication information is used to indicate to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information, and / or

[0018] A configuration unit is configured to calculate, trigger or report delay information for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device.

[0019] According to another aspect of an embodiment of the present application, a communication system is provided, including a terminal device and a network device, wherein the terminal device is configured to perform the following method:

[0020] Triggering delay information reporting at the packet data convergence protocol layer or the media access control layer;

[0021] The delay information report is sent to the network device via a media access control control element or a packet data convergence protocol control protocol data unit.

[0022] One of the beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present application is that: according to the embodiments of the present application, the PDCP layer or MAC layer of the terminal device triggers a delay information report, and sends the delay information report through the MAC CE or PDCP control PDU, which helps the terminal device to send the delay information report to the network device in a timely manner. In addition, the network device can allocate appropriate uplink resources for the transmission of XR services in a timely manner according to the content of the delay information report, which is conducive to meeting the delay requirements of the XR service, thereby ensuring the QoS of the XR service, and also improving the utilization of wireless resources.

[0023] With reference to the following description and accompanying drawings, specific embodiments of the present application are disclosed in detail, indicating the manner in which the principles of the present application can be employed. It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application are not limited in scope. Within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, the embodiments of the present application include many variations, modifications and equivalents.

[0024] Features described and / or illustrated with respect to one embodiment may be used in the same or similar manner in one or more other embodiments, combined with features in other embodiments, or substituted for features in other embodiments.

[0025] It should be emphasized that the term "include / comprising" when used herein refers to the presence of features, integers, steps or components, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps or components. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The elements and features described in one figure or one embodiment of the present application can be combined with the elements and features shown in one or more other figures or embodiments. In addition, in the accompanying drawings, similar reference numerals represent corresponding parts in several figures and can be used to indicate corresponding parts used in more than one embodiment.

[0027] FIG1 is a schematic diagram of configuring a PDCP discard timer for a UE;

[0028] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of an information sending method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a terminal device triggering and sending a delay information report according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] FIG4 is another schematic diagram of a terminal device triggering and sending a delay information report according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] FIG5 is another schematic diagram of a terminal device triggering and sending a delay information report according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0032] FIG6 is another schematic diagram of a terminal device triggering and sending a delay information report according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0033] FIG7 is another schematic diagram of the information sending method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0034] FIG8 is a schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0035] FIG9 is a schematic diagram of priority processing within a UE;

[0036] FIG10 is a schematic diagram of a method for sending information according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0037] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0038] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of an example of an information sending device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] FIG13 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0040] FIG14 is a schematic diagram of an example of an information sending device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0041] FIG15 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0042] FIG16 is a schematic diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0043] FIG17 is a schematic diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0044] The above and other features of the present application will become apparent through the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description and the accompanying drawings, specific embodiments of the present application are disclosed in detail, which illustrate some embodiments in which the principles of the present application can be adopted. It should be understood that the present application is not limited to the described embodiments. On the contrary, the present application includes all modifications, variations and equivalents that fall within the scope of the appended claims.

[0045] In the embodiments of the present application, the terms "first", "second", etc. are used to distinguish different elements from the name, but do not indicate the spatial arrangement or temporal order of these elements, and these elements should not be limited by these terms. The term "and / or" includes any one and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed terms. The terms "comprising", "including", "having", etc. refer to the presence of the stated features, elements, components or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components or components.

[0046] In the embodiments of this application, the singular forms "a," "the," etc. include plural forms and should be broadly understood to mean "a" or "a type" rather than being limited to "one." Furthermore, the term "said" should be understood to include both singular and plural forms, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Furthermore, the term "according to" should be understood to mean "at least in part based on...", and the term "based on" should be understood to mean "at least in part based on...", unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

[0047] In the embodiments of the present application, the term "communication network" or "wireless communication network" may refer to a network that complies with any of the following communication standards, such as Long Term Evolution (LTE), enhanced Long Term Evolution (LTE-A, LTE-Advanced), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High-Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), etc.

[0048] Furthermore, communication between devices in the communication system may be carried out according to communication protocols of any stage, for example, including but not limited to the following communication protocols: 1G (generation), 2G, 2.5G, 2.75G, 3G, 4G, 4.5G and 5G, New Radio (NR), etc., and / or other communication protocols currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0049] In the embodiments of the present application, the term "network device" refers to, for example, a device in a communication system that connects a terminal device to the communication network and provides services to the terminal device. Network devices may include, but are not limited to, the following devices: base station (BS), access point (AP), transmission reception point (TRP), broadcast transmitter, mobile management entity (MME), gateway, server, radio network controller (RNC), base station controller (BSC), etc.

[0050] Base stations may include, but are not limited to, NodeBs (NBs), evolved NodeBs (eNodeBs or eNBs), and 5G base stations (gNBs), among others. They may also include remote radio heads (RRHs), remote radio units (RRUs), relays or low-power nodes (e.g., femeto, pico, etc.), IAB (Integrated Access and Backhaul) nodes, IAB-DUs, or IAB-donors. The term "base station" may include some or all of these functions, and each base station may provide communication coverage for a specific geographic area. The term "cell" may refer to a base station and / or its coverage area, depending on the context in which the term is used. The terms "cell" and "base station" are interchangeable to avoid confusion.

[0051] In the embodiments of the present application, the term "user equipment" (UE) or "terminal equipment" (TE) refers to, for example, a device that accesses a communication network through a network device and receives network services. A terminal device can be fixed or mobile and may also be referred to as a mobile station (MS), a terminal, a subscriber station (SS), an access terminal (AT), an IAB-MT (Mobile Terminal), a station, and so on.

[0052] Terminal devices may include, but are not limited to, the following devices: cellular phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless modems, wireless communication devices, handheld devices, machine-type communication devices, laptop computers, cordless phones, smartphones, smart watches, digital cameras, wearable devices, etc.

[0053] For another example, in scenarios such as the Internet of Things (IoT), the terminal device can also be a machine or device for monitoring or measurement, including but not limited to: machine type communication (MTC) terminal, vehicle-mounted communication terminal, device-to-device (D2D) terminal, machine-to-machine (M2M) terminal, and so on.

[0054] In addition, the term "network side" or "network device side" refers to one side of the network, which can be a base station, one or more network devices as described above, or a device in the core network. The term "user side" or "terminal side" or "terminal device side" refers to the side of the user or terminal, which can be a UE, one or more terminal devices as described above. Unless otherwise specified herein, "device" can refer to either network equipment or terminal equipment.

[0055] The MAC (Media Access Control) specification describes the triggering of a BSR as follows:

[0056] In addition, the MAC specification describes the BSR as follows:

[0057] In addition, for XR services, the UE calculates the remaining time based on the value of the PDCP (Packet Data Convergence Protocol) discard timer. Each PDCP SDU (Service Data Unit) is associated with a discard timer. If the UE's transmitting PDCP entity receives a PDCP SDU from the upper layer, the UE's transmitting PDCP entity starts the discard timer associated with the SDU.

[0058] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of configuring a PDCP discard timer for a UE. In an embodiment of the present application, at least one XR service may be established in the UE, and therefore at least one data radio bearer (DRB) may be established, and at least one DRB corresponds to at least one PDCP entity and at least one RLC entity. Figure 1 illustrates the establishment of two DRBs as an example. The initial value of discardTimer is configured in the relevant configuration of the DRB when the network device configures the DRB for the UE. In addition, the initial value of discardTimer can be configured by the network device according to the delay requirements of the PDCP SDU, and the embodiment of the present application does not impose any restrictions on this.

[0059] As shown in Figure 1, upon receiving a PDCP SDU from an upper layer (e.g., the SDAP layer, Service Data Adaptation Protocol), the UE's PDCP entity starts the discardTimer associated with the PDCP SDU if a discardTimer is configured. When the discardTimer associated with a PDCP SDU expires, the UE's PDCP entity discards the PDCP SDU and the corresponding PDCP data PDU (Protocol Data Unit).

[0060] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal device sends a delay information report (DIR) to the network device. The delay information report can be sent in a MAC control element (MAC Control Element, MAC CE), for example, using a BSR MAC CE or other MAC CE. The delay information report can also be sent in a PDCP control PDU, which is not limited in this application.

[0061] The embodiments of the present application are described below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific implementation methods.

[0062] In the following description, if no confusion is caused, "if..." can be replaced by "in case of..." or "when..."; "the value of the discard timer" and "the value of the first remaining time" can be interchanged.

[0063] Embodiments of the first aspect

[0064] An embodiment of the present application provides a method for sending information, which is described from the perspective of a terminal device.

[0065] FIG2 is a schematic diagram of a method for sending information according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG2 , the method includes:

[0066] 201: The PDCP layer or MAC layer of the terminal device triggers a delay information report;

[0067] 202: The terminal device sends the delay information report to the network device via MAC CE or PDCP control PDU.

[0068] It is worth noting that FIG2 above only schematically illustrates an embodiment of the present application, and the present application is not limited thereto. For example, other operations may be added or some operations may be reduced. Those skilled in the art may make appropriate modifications based on the above content, and are not limited to the description of FIG2 above.

[0069] According to the above embodiment, the PDCP layer or MAC layer of the terminal device triggers a delay information report, and sends the delay information report through MAC CE or PDCP control PDU, which helps the terminal device to send a delay information report to the network device in a timely manner. In addition, the network device can allocate appropriate uplink resources for the transmission of XR services in a timely manner according to the content of the delay information report, which is conducive to meeting the delay requirements of the XR service, thereby ensuring the QoS of the XR service and improving the utilization of wireless resources.

[0070] The following describes the case where the UE triggers a delay information report at the PDCP layer and the case where the UE triggers a delay information report at the MAC layer respectively.

[0071] In 201, in some embodiments, the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information reporting, including at least one of the following:

[0072] If a value of a discard timer or a value of a first remaining time associated with a PDCP SDU in a PDCP entity is lower than a first threshold, the PDCP entity triggers the delay information reporting;

[0073] If the minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs in a PDCP entity is lower than a second threshold, the PDCP entity triggers the delay information reporting;

[0074] If the value of the discard timer associated with all PDCP SDUs in the PDCP entity associated with the DRB established or configured by the terminal device or the minimum value of the first remaining time is lower than a third threshold, the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report;

[0075] The PDCP layer of the terminal device periodically triggers the delay information report;

[0076] When a new PDU set arrives at the PDCP layer, the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report.

[0077] In the above embodiment, a PDCP entity processes at least one PDCP SDU, each PDCP SDU is associated with a discard timer, an initial value of the discard timer is configured by a network device, and after the discard timer is started, the value of the discard timer decreases over time.

[0078] In the above embodiment, the value of the first remaining time may be the value of the discard timer. In order to distinguish it from the "initial value of the discard timer", the "value of the discard timer" is sometimes referred to as the "current value of the discard timer" or the "remaining value of the discard timer". In addition, the value of the first remaining time may also be determined by the UE based on the value of the discard timer, for example, by the PDCP entity corresponding to a DRB of the UE, that is, a PDCP entity determines a value of the first remaining time, and different PDCP entities may determine different values ​​of the first remaining time. For example, a PDCP entity may determine the minimum value of the discard timers associated with its PDCP SDUs or a value below a predetermined threshold as the value of the first remaining time.

[0079] For another example, the PDCP entities corresponding to all established or configured DRBs of the UE, that is, the PDCP layer of the UE, determines a first remaining time value. For example, the minimum value of the values ​​of the discard timers associated with the PDCP SDUs or a value lower than a predetermined threshold among the PDCP entities corresponding to all established or configured DRBs is determined as the first remaining time value.

[0080] For another example, the UE determines the first remaining time based on the PDU set. For example, the minimum value of the discard timer associated with the PDCP SDU corresponding to the PDU in a PDU set or a value lower than a predetermined threshold is determined as the value of the first remaining time.

[0081] In the above embodiment, the value of the predetermined threshold may be predefined or network configured, and the embodiment of the present application does not impose any limitation on this.

[0082] When the value of a discard timer or a first remaining time associated with a PDCP SDU in a PDCP entity is lower than a first threshold, the PDCP entity may trigger at least one delay information report. For example, when there are multiple PDCP SDUs in the PDCP entity whose associated discard timer values ​​or first remaining time values ​​are lower than the first threshold, the PDCP entity may trigger multiple delay information reports corresponding to the multiple PDCP SDUs respectively.

[0083] When the value of the discard timer associated with all PDCP SDUs in a PDCP entity or the minimum value of the first remaining time is lower than the second threshold, the PDCP entity triggers a delay information report corresponding to the PDCP entity; in addition, when the value of the discard timer associated with all PDCP SDUs in each PDCP entity of multiple PDCP entities or the minimum value of the first remaining time is lower than the second threshold, each PDCP entity of the multiple PDCP entities can trigger a delay information report corresponding to it.

[0084] When the values ​​of the discard timers or the minimum values ​​of the first remaining times associated with all PDCP SDUs in the PDCP entity associated with the DRB established or configured by the UE are lower than the third threshold, the PDCP layer of the UE triggers a delay information report.

[0085] The above threshold values ​​(the values ​​of the first threshold to the third threshold) can be pre-set or configured by the network device (for example, configured through an RRC reconfiguration message), and this application does not limit their values ​​and configuration methods.

[0086] In the above embodiment, the delay information report may also be periodically triggered by the PDCP layer of the UE, and the triggering period may be predefined or configured by the network device (eg, configured via an RRC reconfiguration message).

[0087] In the above example, a PDU set consists of one or more PDUs (Protocol Data Units) that carry a payload of a unit of information generated by the application layer, such as a frame of service or a video slice. The PDU set (PDU group or PDU set) is delay-sensitive. If a new PDU set arrives at the PDCP layer, the UE triggers a delay information report and sends it to the network device. The network device can allocate appropriate uplink resources for the transmission of the XR service in a timely manner according to the content of the delay information report, which is conducive to meeting the delay requirements of the XR service, thereby ensuring the QoS of the XR service and improving the utilization of wireless resources.

[0088] The following describes a method for sending a delay information report when the delay information report is triggered at the PDCP layer.

[0089] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends the delay information report through a MAC CE, including:

[0090] The PDCP layer transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0091] The MAC layer determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time;

[0092] The MAC layer generates a delay information report MAC CE and sends the delay information report MAC CE to the network device, where the delay information report MAC CE includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0093] In the above embodiment, the PDCP layer may pass one or more discard timer values ​​or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer, wherein the discard timer value may correspond to the discard timer value at the moment when the delayed information report is triggered, or the discard timer value at the moment when the triggering of the delayed information report is passed from the PDCP layer to the MAC layer.

[0094] In the above embodiment, the value of the second remaining time is the value of the remaining time corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

[0095] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer determines the value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time, including:

[0096] The MAC layer starts a first timer upon receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the first timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer.

[0097] The MAC layer determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the first timer, where the value of the second remaining time is the value of the first timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

[0098] Thus, the remaining time corresponding to the time when the delay information report is first sent is obtained through the first timer.

[0099] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the terminal device triggering and sending a delay information report in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 3 shows the interaction process between the PDCP layer and the MAC layer when the delay information report is triggered at the PDCP layer and the delay information report is sent through the MAC CE at the MAC layer.

[0100] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 3, after triggering the delay information report, the PDCP layer may indicate to the MAC layer that the delay information report has been triggered. Furthermore, after triggering the delay information report, the PDCP layer may also instruct the MAC layer to generate a delay information report MAC CE. Upon receiving the instruction, the MAC layer generates the delay information report MAC CE. Furthermore, in the above example, the value of the second remaining time is, for example, the value of the remaining time corresponding to the moment when the delay information report MAC CE is first transmitted.

[0101] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 3, the MAC layer may further determine the uplink resources before generating the delay information report MAC CE. For example, when the MAC layer determines that the uplink shared channel (UL-SCH) resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report, it generates the delay information report MAC CE.

[0102] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, wherein the remaining time in the delay information report can be determined at the PDCP layer or at the MAC layer.

[0103] In some embodiments, the UE may determine the remaining time in the delay information report at the PDCP layer, e.g.

[0104] The MAC layer notifies the PDCP layer of the time at which the UL-SCH resources that can be used for initial transmission or new transmission of the delay information report are located;

[0105] The PDCP layer determines a value of the second remaining time according to the time at which the UL-SCH resource is located;

[0106] The PDCP layer generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0107] In some embodiments, the UE may determine the remaining time in the delay information report at the MAC layer, e.g.

[0108] The MAC layer determines a value of a second remaining time included in the delay information report;

[0109] The MAC layer notifies the PDCP layer of the value of the second remaining time;

[0110] The PDCP layer generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0111] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer may determine the value of the second remaining time through a timer, for example,

[0112] The PDCP layer transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0113] The MAC layer starts a second timer upon receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the second timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer.

[0114] The MAC layer determines a value of the second remaining time according to a value of the second timer, where the value of the second remaining time is a value of the second timer corresponding to a moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

[0115] Figure 4 is another schematic diagram of the terminal device triggering and sending the delay information report in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 4 shows the interaction process between the PDCP layer and the MAC layer when the PDCP layer triggers the delay information report and sends the delay information report through the PDCP control PDU.

[0116] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 4, the MAC layer may further determine the uplink resources before notifying the PDCP layer of the moment at which the UL-SCH resources available for initial or new transmission of the delay information report are located. For example, when the MAC layer determines that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report, it notifies the PDCP layer of the moment at which the UL-SCH resources available for initial or new transmission are located.

[0117] In the above embodiment, as shown in FIG4 , after triggering the delay information report, the PDCP layer may indicate to the MAC layer that the delay information report is triggered.

[0118] In the above embodiment, the case where the UE triggers the delay information report at the PDCP layer is described. The following will describe the case where the UE triggers the delay information report at the MAC layer.

[0119] In 201, in some embodiments, the MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report, including:

[0120] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time associated with the PDCP SDU in the PDCP entity to the MAC layer;

[0121] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0122] In the above embodiment, the PDCP layer can directly pass the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time associated with the PDCP SDU in the PDCP entity to the MAC layer, and the MAC layer triggers the delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the eleventh threshold.

[0123] In the above embodiment, the PDCP layer may also first compare the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time associated with the PDCP SDU in the PDCP entity, and pass the smaller value or minimum value of these values ​​to the MAC layer, and the MAC layer determines whether to trigger the delay information report based on the smaller value or minimum value.

[0124] For example, the PDCP entity obtains the value of the discard timer associated with all PDCP SDUs in the PDCP entity or the minimum value of the first remaining time, and passes the minimum value to the MAC layer; when the minimum value among the minimum values ​​passed by all PDCP entities is less than the fourth threshold, the MAC layer triggers a delay information report.

[0125] For another example, the PDCP layer transmits the values ​​of the discard timers associated with all PDCP SDUs or the minimum value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer; when the minimum value is less than the fifth threshold, the MAC layer triggers a delay information report.

[0126] For another example, the PDCP entity or the PDCP layer passes the values ​​of more than one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer. For example, a PDCP entity or the PDCP layer can pass the values ​​of the discard timers or the values ​​of the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs, or can pass the values ​​of the lowest N discard timers or the values ​​of the first remaining time, where N is an integer greater than 1; the MAC layer triggers a delay information report when the minimum value of the more than one discard timer values ​​or the first remaining time values ​​is less than the sixth threshold.

[0127] The above threshold values ​​(the values ​​of the fourth threshold to the sixth threshold and the eleventh threshold) can be pre-set or configured by the network device, and this application does not limit their values ​​and configuration methods.

[0128] In 201, in some embodiments, the MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report, including:

[0129] The MAC layer of the terminal device obtains at least one discard timer value or a first remaining time value;

[0130] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0131] In the above embodiment, the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is not required to be passed to the MAC layer through the PDCP layer. It can be obtained by the MAC layer through a predetermined policy, for example, it can be obtained by the MAC layer according to the internal implementation of the UE.

[0132] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer can directly compare the obtained value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time with the threshold value to determine whether to trigger a delay information report. For example, the MAC layer triggers a delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold. The MAC layer can also first compare the obtained value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to obtain a minimum value, and then compare the minimum value with the threshold value to determine whether to trigger a delay information report. For example, the MAC layer triggers the delay information report when the minimum value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold.

[0133] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer can also determine whether to trigger a delay information report by starting a timer. For example, the MAC layer starts a third timer when it receives the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time transmitted by the PDCP layer. The value of the third timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time transmitted by the PDCP layer; when the value of the third timer is lower than the eighth threshold, a delay information report is triggered.

[0134] The values ​​of the seventh threshold and the eighth threshold may be pre-set or configured by the network device, and this application does not impose any restrictions on their values ​​and configuration methods.

[0135] The following describes a method for sending a delay information report when the delay information report is triggered at the MAC layer.

[0136] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends the delay information report through a MAC CE, including:

[0137] The MAC layer determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time;

[0138] The MAC layer generates a delay information report MAC CE and sends the delay information report MAC CE to the network device, where the delay information report MAC CE includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0139] In the above embodiment, the value of the second remaining time is the value of the remaining time corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is first sent; or

[0140] The value of the second remaining time is the value of the third timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time, and the third timer is a timer started when the MAC layer of the terminal device receives the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time passed by the PDCP layer.

[0141] Figure 5 is another schematic diagram of the terminal device triggering and sending the delay information report in an embodiment of the present application. Figure 5 shows the interaction process between the PDCP layer and the MAC layer when the MAC layer triggers the delay information report and sends the delay information report through the MAC CE.

[0142] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 5, before the PDCP layer transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer, the MAC layer optionally requests the PDCP layer to transmit the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0143] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 5, the MAC layer may further judge the uplink resources before generating the delay information report MAC CE. For example, when the MAC layer judges that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the sub-header of the delay information report, it generates the delay information report MAC CE.

[0144] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends the delay information report through a PDCP control PDU, including:

[0145] The MAC layer determines a value of a second remaining time included in the delay information report;

[0146] The MAC layer notifies the PDCP layer of the value of the second remaining time;

[0147] The PDCP layer generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0148] In the above embodiment, the value of the second remaining time is the value of the third timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time, and the third timer is a timer started when the MAC layer of the terminal device receives the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time passed by the PDCP layer.

[0149] In this embodiment of the present application, the value of the second remaining time included in the delay information report may be one or more than one.

[0150] FIG6 is another schematic diagram of a terminal device triggering and sending a delay information report according to an embodiment of the present application. FIG6 shows the interaction process between the PDCP layer and the MAC layer when the MAC layer triggers a delay information report and sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU. As shown in FIG6,

[0151] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 6, before the PDCP layer transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer, the MAC layer may also request the PDCP layer to transmit the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0152] In the above embodiment, as shown in Figure 6, the MAC layer can also judge the uplink resources. For example, when the MAC layer judges that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the sub-header of the delay information report, it notifies the PDCP layer of the time at which the UL-SCH resources that can be used for initial transmission or new transmission are located.

[0153] In the above embodiment, the method for the UE to trigger and send the delay information report is described. In addition, in some cases, the UE may not trigger or send the delay information report.

[0154] FIG7 is another schematic diagram of the information sending method according to an embodiment of the present application, and FIG7 shows a case where the UE does not trigger or send a delay information report. As shown in FIG7 , the method includes:

[0155] 701: The terminal device starts or restarts a fourth timer when triggering or sending a delay information report;

[0156] 702: The terminal device does not trigger or send the delay information report during the running of the fourth timer;

[0157] 703: When the delay information report is canceled, the terminal device considers that the fourth timer has timed out.

[0158] It is worth noting that FIG7 above only schematically illustrates an embodiment of the present application, and the present application is not limited thereto. For example, other operations may be added or some operations may be reduced. Those skilled in the art may make appropriate modifications based on the above content, and are not limited to the description of FIG7 above.

[0159] In the above embodiment, the fourth timer may also be referred to as a "prohibit timer," and is used by the terminal device to perform operations related to delay information reporting. For example, the UE starts the fourth timer when triggering or sending a delay information report. While the fourth timer is running, the delay information report is not triggered or sent. When the fourth timer expires, the delay information report may be triggered or sent again, and when the delay information report is triggered or sent again, the fourth timer may be restarted.

[0160] In the above embodiment, the value of the fourth timer is predefined or configured by the network device.

[0161] In the above embodiment, the above operations 702 and 703 are optional and are described below respectively.

[0162] For example, the information sending method of an embodiment of the present application may only include operation 701, using the fourth timer to time the triggering or sending of the delayed information report, and when the timeout expires, canceling or discarding the triggering or sending of the delayed information report.

[0163] For another example, the information sending method of an embodiment of the present application may include operations 701 and 702, using a fourth timer to limit the triggering period or sending period of the delay information report. For example, the fourth timer is started when a delay information report is triggered or sent, and while the fourth timer is running, it is prohibited to trigger or send other delay information reports.

[0164] For another example, the information sending method of an embodiment of the present application may also include operations 701 and 703, using the fourth timer to limit the triggering or sending of the delay information report. For example, the fourth timer is started when a delay information report is triggered. If the delay information report is canceled within the time of the fourth timer, regardless of whether the fourth timer has timed out, the fourth timer will be reset to timeout so that the delay information report can be triggered again as soon as possible.

[0165] For another example, the information sending method of an embodiment of the present application may also include operations 701, 702 and 703, using the fourth timer as a prohibition timer to limit the triggering or sending of the delay information report. For example, when a delay information report is triggered, the fourth timer is started. During the operation of the fourth timer, the triggering or sending of other delay information reports is prohibited. If the delay information report is canceled within the time of the fourth timer, the fourth timer is reset to timeout.

[0166] The above describes how the terminal device triggers a delay information report and sends the delay information report to the network device. According to the above embodiment, the PDCP layer or MAC layer of the terminal device triggers a delay information report, and sends the delay information report through MAC CE or PDCP control PDU, which helps the terminal device to send a delay information report to the network device in a timely manner.

[0167] The following describes whether a terminal device supports calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information. The delay information in this embodiment of the application may be delay information included in a delay information report, such as the remaining time. Unless otherwise specified, the "delay information" described below refers to the delay information included in a delay information report.

[0168] In some embodiments, the UE may actively report to let the network device know that the UE supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, or the network device may configure the UE to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time.

[0169] The following explains them separately.

[0170] In some embodiments, the UE actively reports that it supports calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time, for example, the terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time;

[0171] In the above embodiment, the terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0172] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0173] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0174] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0175] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below the ninth threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer (Extended Discard Timer), or by indicating support for timer based SDU discard (Timer based SDU discard).

[0176] In the above embodiment, the UE may directly indicate support for calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time by sending indication information to the network device; the UE may also indirectly indicate support for calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service.

[0177] The following explains them separately.

[0178] In some embodiments, the UE indicates through indication information that the UE supports calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time, for example, indicating in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message.

[0179] For example, support for calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time may be indicated in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message. A 1-bit indication may be used, for example, "1" indicates support, "0" indicates non-support, and vice versa, or the presence of 1 bit indicates support, and / or the absence of the bit indicates non-support, and vice versa. In addition, the calculation, triggering, and reporting of the delay information or remaining time may be indicated separately or combined.

[0180] For another example, the UE may indicate the terminal type of the UE in the indication information, where the terminal type includes, for example, an XR UE. When the terminal type is an XR UE, it indicates that the UE supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time. For example, the terminal type may be indicated in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message, and a 1-bit indication may be used. For example, "1" indicates that the UE is an XR UE, that is, it supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, and "0" indicates that the UE is a non-XR UE, that is, it does not support the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, or the presence of 1 bit indicates that the UE is an XR UE, that is, it supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, and the absence of this bit indicates that the UE is a non-XR UE, that is, it does not support the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time.

[0181] For another example, the UE may indicate in the indication information that it supports a PDCP discard timer lower than the ninth threshold, or supports an extended discard timer, or supports timer-based SDU discard, and when it supports a PDCP discard timer lower than the ninth threshold, or supports an extended discard timer, or supports timer-based SDU discard, it indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time. For example, the indication may be made in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message, and a 1-bit indication may be used, for example, "1" indicates support, "0" indicates non-support, and vice versa, or the presence of 1 bit indicates support, and the absence of 1 bit indicates non-support, and vice versa.

[0182] In the above embodiment, when support for the extended discard timer is indicated, the supported values ​​of the extended discard timer include, for example, 0.5 ms, 1 ms, 2 ms, 4 ms, 6 ms, and 8 ms.

[0183] In some embodiments, the UE indirectly indicates support for calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating specific services. Specific services include, for example, XR services and delay-sensitive services, such as when the PDU Set Delay Budget (PSDB) or Packet Delay Budget (PDB) corresponding to the QoS of the service is lower than a predetermined threshold.

[0184] Therefore, by actively reporting that the UE supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, the network device and the UE have a consistent understanding of whether the UE supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, thereby avoiding the inconsistency between the network's expectations for delay information reporting and the UE's capabilities, or configuring the relevant configuration of this feature for a UE that does not support this feature and failing to achieve the expected effect.

[0185] In some embodiments, the network device configures the UE to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time, for example, at least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by the network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time.

[0186] In the above embodiment, at least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by the network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0187] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time;

[0188] At least one radio bearer (e.g., DRB) of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (PDCP discardTimer) that is not infinity;

[0189] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer that is lower than the tenth threshold.

[0190] In the above embodiment, for example, the network can use 1 bit for configuration. When the bit is configured to 1, it indicates that the wireless bearer calculates, triggers, or reports the delay information or the remaining time. When the bit is configured to 0, it indicates that the wireless bearer does not calculate, trigger, or report the delay information or the remaining time, and vice versa. Alternatively, the presence of the bit (for example, the value is true) indicates that the wireless bearer calculates, triggers, or reports the delay information or the remaining time. Otherwise, it indicates that the wireless bearer does not calculate, trigger, or report the delay information or the remaining time.

[0191] Therefore, the network device configures the UE to calculate, trigger, or report the delay information or remaining time, so that the network device and the UE have a consistent understanding of whether the UE supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of the delay information or remaining time, thereby avoiding the inconsistency between the network's expectations for delay information reporting and the UE's capabilities, or configuring the relevant configuration of this feature for a UE that does not support this feature and failing to achieve the expected effect.

[0192] In some embodiments, the delay information report may be deprioritized due to the priority processing within the UE. When the UE is configured with autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTX) or configured with a configured grant (CG) and the CG is configured for autonomous transmission, the deprioritization processing may cause the UE's understanding of the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report to be inconsistent with the network device's understanding of the reference time of the remaining time in the received delay information report, thereby affecting the scheduling of the network device. To solve this problem, the terminal device may also send relevant information about the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report to the network device. For example, the method may further include:

[0193] The terminal device sends instruction information to the network device, where the instruction information includes at least one of the following information:

[0194] The time point at which the delay information report is to be sent for the first time;

[0195] The delay information report is deprioritized in the previous physical resource;

[0196] The delay information report is a retransmission;

[0197] The time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first sent to the current moment.

[0198] Therefore, the network device can correctly understand the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report through the indication information.

[0199] In the above embodiment, the indication information is, for example, uplink control information (UCI).

[0200] In the above embodiment, the time point when the delay information report is first sent is the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report, so that regardless of whether the delay information report is deprioritized, the network device can obtain the correct scheduling deadline based on this time point when receiving the delay information report.

[0201] In the above embodiment, the network device is indicated that the delay information report was deprioritized in the previous physical resources or the delay information report was retransmitted. Since the network device can infer the time point of the physical resources of the CG of the previous same HARQ process, the network device can correctly understand the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report, thereby obtaining the correct scheduling deadline.

[0202] In the above embodiment, the time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first to be sent to the current moment is indicated to the network device, so that the network device can obtain the time point when the delay information report is first to be sent based on the time difference, that is, the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report, thereby obtaining the correct scheduling deadline.

[0203] In some embodiments, the MAC PDU including the delay information report or the delay information report MAC CE has the highest priority, for example, a value of 1; or the delay information report has the highest priority. In this way, the MAC PDU including the delay information report MAC CE will not be deprioritized.

[0204] Therefore, the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report is the time when the delay information report is sent, and the scheduling deadline understood by the network device based on the remaining time in the delay information report is consistent with the deadline for UE service transmission.

[0205] In addition, when the MAC PDU containing the delay information report MAC CE has the same priority as other MAC PDUs, for example, the other MAC PDU contains data of logical channels, where the priority of the logical channel with the highest priority is the same as the priority of the MAC PDU containing the delay information report MAC CE, or the same as the priority of the delay information report MAC CE, the terminal device can give priority to sending the other MAC PDU to prioritize the transmission of user services, or the terminal device can also give priority to sending the MAC PDU containing the delay information report MAC CE to obtain uplink authorization for network scheduling of XR-related data transmission as soon as possible.

[0206] In some embodiments, if the sum of the remaining time included in the delay information report and the time point of the next transmission of the delay information report exceeds the delay requirement of the service, the terminal device abandons sending the MAC PDU including the delay information report.

[0207] In some embodiments, if the delay information report is deprioritized, the terminal device discards or cancels the delay information report.

[0208] This prevents the network device from allocating resources to the UE that exceed the service's latency requirement, thereby wasting resources.

[0209] In some embodiments, the method may further include:

[0210] The terminal device regenerates a delay information report for the next UL-SCH resource or uplink authorization, and the time reference point of the remaining time included in the regenerated delay information report is the next UL-SCH resource.

[0211] In the above embodiment, the next UL-SCH resource or uplink grant refers to the next UL-SCH resource or uplink grant with the same HARQ process identifier (HARQ process ID) as the UL-SCH resource or uplink grant for which the delayed information report was to be sent for the first time but was not sent, for example, the next configured grant (CG) with the same HARQ process ID.

[0212] In some embodiments, the terminal device is not configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), the terminal device is a terminal device that calculates, triggers, or reports delay information or remaining time, or the terminal device is configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), and the terminal device does not apply autonomous transmission to delay information reporting.

[0213] In some embodiments, the CG configured with the terminal device is not configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), or the CG configured with the terminal device is configured for autonomous transmission, but the terminal device does not send a delay information report in the CG configured for autonomous transmission, or the terminal device does not send a delay information report in the CG configured for autonomous transmission.

[0214] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends the delay information report in a dynamically scheduled uplink grant (dynamic grant, DG). The dynamically scheduled uplink grant may be indicated in a PDCCH addressing the C-RNTI of the terminal device. For example, the terminal device may not use the CG to send the delay information report, but may only use the DG to send the delay information report.

[0215] In the above embodiments, it may be stipulated in the standard that the terminal device that calculates, triggers or reports the delay information or remaining time is not configured to be autonomously sent or is not configured to use the CG for autonomous sending, or it may be stipulated in the standard that the UE configured for autonomous sending does not apply autonomous sending for the delay information report, or it may be stipulated in the standard that the UE does not use the CG configured for autonomous sending to send the delay information report, or the UE uses the dynamically scheduled uplink authorization to send the delay information report.

[0216] The above embodiments are merely exemplary of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above embodiments. For example, the above embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above embodiments may be combined.

[0217] According to the method of the embodiment of the present application, the PDCP layer or MAC layer of the terminal device triggers a delay information report, and sends the delay information report through the MAC CE or PDCP control PDU, which helps the terminal device to send the delay information report to the network device in a timely manner. In addition, the network device can allocate appropriate uplink resources for the transmission of XR services in a timely manner according to the content of the delay information report, which is conducive to meeting the delay requirements of the XR service, thereby ensuring the QoS of the XR service, and also improving the utilization of wireless resources.

[0218] Embodiments of the second aspect

[0219] The inventors found that in practice the following application scenarios may exist: the network device expects the UE to send a delay information report to it, so when configuring the DRB for the UE, a discard timer is configured in the DRB. However, some UEs may not support triggering or sending delay information reports. Therefore, the network device may not receive the expected delay information report, resulting in a waste of resources.

[0220] In order to solve the above technical problems, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method to determine whether a terminal device supports calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time, thereby helping to improve the utilization of wireless resources.

[0221] The method is described below from the perspective of the terminal device. FIG8 is a schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG8 , the method includes:

[0222] 801: The terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time;

[0223] 802: At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time.

[0224] It is worth noting that FIG8 above only schematically illustrates the embodiment of the present application, and the present application is not limited thereto. For example, other operations may be added or some operations may be reduced. Those skilled in the art may make appropriate modifications based on the above content, and are not limited to the description of FIG8 above.

[0225] According to the above embodiment, the network device and the UE have a consistent understanding of whether the UE supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, thereby avoiding the inconsistency between the network's expectations for delay information reporting and the UE's capabilities, or configuring the relevant configuration of this feature for a UE that does not support this feature and failing to achieve the expected effect.

[0226] The delay information of the embodiment of the present application may be the delay information included in the delay information report, for example, may include the remaining time. Unless otherwise specified, the "delay information" described below refers to the delay information included in the delay information report.

[0227] In the above embodiment, the UE may proactively report to the network device that the UE supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, or the network device may configure the UE to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time. In other words, operations 801 and 802 may be performed separately or in combination, and this is not limited in the present embodiment.

[0228] The details are explained below.

[0229] In 801, the terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0230] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0231] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0232] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0233] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below the ninth threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer (Extended Discard Timer), or by indicating support for timer based SDU discard (Timer based SDU discard).

[0234] In the above embodiment, the UE may directly indicate support for calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time by sending indication information to the network device; the UE may also indirectly indicate support for calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service.

[0235] The following explains them separately.

[0236] In some embodiments, the UE indicates through indication information that the UE supports calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time, for example, indicating in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message.

[0237] For example, support for calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time may be indicated in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message. A 1-bit indication may be used, for example, "1" indicates support, "0" indicates non-support, and vice versa, or the presence of 1 bit indicates support, and / or the absence of the bit indicates non-support, and vice versa. In addition, the calculation, triggering, and reporting of the delay information or remaining time may be indicated separately or combined.

[0238] For another example, the UE may indicate the terminal type of the UE in the indication information, where the terminal type includes, for example, an XR UE. When the terminal type is an XR UE, it indicates that the UE supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time. For example, the terminal type may be indicated in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message, and a 1-bit indication may be used. For example, "1" indicates that the UE is an XR UE, that is, it supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, and "0" indicates that the UE is a non-XR UE, that is, it does not support the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, or the presence of 1 bit indicates that the UE is an XR UE, that is, it supports the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, and the absence of this bit indicates that the UE is a non-XR UE, that is, it does not support the calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time.

[0239] For another example, the UE may indicate in the indication information that it supports a PDCP discard timer lower than the ninth threshold, or supports an extended discard timer, or supports timer-based SDU discard, and when it supports a PDCP discard timer lower than the ninth threshold, or supports an extended discard timer, or supports timer-based SDU discard, it indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time. For example, the indication may be made in a UE capability information message or an RRC setup complete message, and a 1-bit indication may be used, for example, "1" indicates support, "0" indicates non-support, and vice versa, or the presence of 1 bit indicates support, and the absence of 1 bit indicates non-support, and vice versa.

[0240] In the above embodiment, when indicating support for an extended discard timer, the supported extended discard timer values ​​include, for example, 0.5 ms, 1 ms, 2 ms, 4 ms, 6 ms, and 8 ms, which are not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

[0241] In some embodiments, the UE indirectly indicates support for calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating specific services. Specific services include, for example, XR services and delay-sensitive services, such as when the PDU Set Delay Budget (PSDB) or Packet Delay Budget (PDB) corresponding to the QoS of the service is lower than a predetermined threshold.

[0242] In 802, at least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0243] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time;

[0244] At least one radio bearer (e.g., DRB) of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (PDCP discardTimer) that is not infinity;

[0245] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer that is lower than the tenth threshold.

[0246] In the above embodiment, for example, the network can use 1 bit for configuration. When the bit is configured to 1, it indicates that the wireless bearer calculates, triggers, or reports the delay information or the remaining time. When the bit is configured to 0, it indicates that the wireless bearer does not calculate, trigger, or report the delay information or the remaining time, and vice versa. Alternatively, the presence of the bit (for example, the value is true) indicates that the wireless bearer calculates, triggers, or reports the delay information or the remaining time. Otherwise, it indicates that the wireless bearer does not calculate, trigger, or report the delay information or the remaining time.

[0247] The value of the tenth threshold may be pre-set or configured by the network device, and this application does not impose any restrictions on its value and configuration method.

[0248] The above embodiments are merely exemplary of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above embodiments. For example, the above embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above embodiments may be combined.

[0249] According to the method of the embodiment of the present application, the network device and the UE have a consistent understanding of whether the UE supports the calculation, triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time, thereby avoiding the network's expectations for delay information reporting being inconsistent with the UE capabilities, or configuring the relevant configuration of this feature for a UE that does not support this feature and failing to achieve the expected effect.

[0250] Embodiments of the third aspect

[0251] The inventors have found that the priority processing within the UE may affect the accuracy of the remaining time included in the delay information report. Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of the priority processing within the UE.

[0252] As shown in Figure 9, the MAC PDU including the delay information report will be sent in the first physical resource 1 (e.g., PUSCH), for example, the physical resource 1 using HARQ process ID 0. The reference time of the remaining time included in the delay information report is the time when the remaining time is first sent, that is, the time of the first physical resource 1. The physical resource may be the physical resource corresponding to the configured grant (CG).

[0253] Assume that there is another physical resource 3 that overlaps with the first physical resource 1. A high-priority transmission is to be sent in physical resource 3. Therefore, the MAC PDU in the first physical resource 1 is considered to be a low-priority (deprioritized) transmission and is not actually sent. In addition, assume that the MAC PDU can be initially sent in the second physical resource 1 corresponding to the next HARQ process ID 0.

[0254] Then, when the gNB receives the MAC PDU in the second physical resource 1, since it does not know that the MAC PDU has been deprioritized, the gNB considers the reference time of the remaining time included in the MAC PDU to be the time corresponding to the second physical resource 1.

[0255] That is, when the MAC PDU is received by the network device via the second physical resource 1, the gNB understands that the scheduling deadline is the time point of the second physical resource 1 plus the remaining time included in the delay information report. However, on the UE side, the actual service delivery deadline is the time point of the first physical resource 1 plus the remaining time included in the delay information report. Therefore, the gNB may allocate an uplink grant (UL grant) that is later than the service delivery deadline on the UE side, resulting in failure to meet the QoS requirements of the XR service or data loss, resulting in a degraded user experience. Therefore, ensuring that the network device correctly understands the reference time of the remaining time included in the delay information report helps the network device perform correct scheduling.

[0256] In order to solve the above technical problems, an embodiment of the present application provides an information sending method so that the network device can correctly understand the reference time of the remaining time included in the delay information report.

[0257] The method is described below from the perspective of the terminal device. FIG10 is a schematic diagram of the information sending method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG10 , the method includes:

[0258] 1001: The terminal device sends a delay information report to the network device;

[0259] 1002: The terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report.

[0260] It is worth noting that FIG10 above only schematically illustrates the embodiment of the present application, and the present application is not limited thereto. For example, other operations may be added or some operations may be reduced. Those skilled in the art may make appropriate modifications based on the above content, and are not limited to the description of FIG10 above.

[0261] In the above embodiment, in 1002, the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including:

[0262] The terminal device sends first indication information to the network device, where the first indication information includes at least one of the following information:

[0263] The time point at which the delay information report is to be sent for the first time;

[0264] The delay information report is deprioritized in the previous physical resource;

[0265] The delay information report is a retransmission;

[0266] The time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first sent to the current moment.

[0267] Therefore, the network device can correctly understand the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report through the indication information.

[0268] In the above embodiment, the time point when the delay information report is first sent is the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report. For example, this time point is the time of the first physical resource 1 shown in Figure 9, so that regardless of whether the delay information report is deprioritized, the network device can obtain the correct scheduling deadline based on this time point when receiving the delay information report.

[0269] In the above embodiment, the network device is indicated that the delay information report was deprioritized in the previous physical resources or the delay information report was retransmitted. Since the network device can infer the time point of the physical resources of the CG of the previous same HARQ process, the network device can correctly understand the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report, thereby obtaining the correct scheduling deadline.

[0270] In the above embodiment, the time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first to be sent to the current moment is indicated to the network device, so that the network device can obtain the time point when the delay information report is first to be sent based on the time difference, that is, the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report, thereby obtaining the correct scheduling deadline.

[0271] In some embodiments, in 1002, the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including:

[0272] The terminal device considers that the MAC PDU including the delay information report or the delay information report MAC CE has the highest priority, for example, a value of 1; or the delay information report has the highest priority. In this way, the MAC PDU including the delay information report MAC CE will not be deprioritized.

[0273] Therefore, the reference time of the remaining time in the delay information report is the time when the delay information report is sent, and the scheduling deadline understood by the network device based on the remaining time in the delay information report is consistent with the deadline for UE service transmission.

[0274] In addition, when the MAC PDU containing the delay information report MAC CE has the same priority as other MAC PDUs, for example, the other MAC PDU contains data of logical channels, where the priority of the logical channel with the highest priority is the same as the priority of the MAC PDU containing the delay information report MAC CE, or the same as the priority of the delay information report MAC CE, the terminal device can give priority to sending the other MAC PDU to prioritize the transmission of user services, or the terminal device can also give priority to sending the MAC PDU containing the delay information report MAC CE to obtain uplink authorization for network scheduling of XR-related data transmission as soon as possible.

[0275] In some embodiments, in 1002, the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including:

[0276] When the sum of the remaining time included in the delay information report and the time point for the next transmission of the delay information report exceeds the delay requirement of the service, the terminal device abandons sending the MAC PDU including the delay information report.

[0277] In some embodiments, in 1002, the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including:

[0278] The terminal device discards or cancels the delay information report when the delay information report is deprioritized.

[0279] This prevents the network device from allocating resources to the UE that exceed the service's latency requirement, thereby wasting resources.

[0280] In some embodiments, the method further comprises:

[0281] The terminal device regenerates a delay information report for the next UL-SCH resource or uplink authorization, and the time reference point of the remaining time included in the regenerated delay information report is the next UL-SCH resource.

[0282] In the above embodiment, the next UL-SCH resource or uplink grant refers to the next UL-SCH resource or uplink grant with the same HARQ process identifier (HARQ process ID) as the UL-SCH resource or uplink grant for which the delayed information report was to be sent for the first time but was not sent, for example, the next configured grant (CG) with the same HARQ process ID.

[0283] In some embodiments, in 1002, the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including:

[0284] The terminal device considers that it is not configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), or,

[0285] The terminal device considers that it is configured to send autonomously and the terminal device does not apply autonomous sending to the delay information report.

[0286] In some embodiments, in 1002, the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including:

[0287] The terminal device believes that the configured grant is not configured to be sent autonomously, or

[0288] The terminal device does not send a delay information report in the configuration authorization that it is configured to send autonomously.

[0289] In some embodiments, the terminal device considers that the configured configuration grant is configured to be sent autonomously and the terminal device does not send a delay information report in the configuration grant that is configured to be sent autonomously.

[0290] In some embodiments, in 1001, the terminal device sends a delay information report in a dynamically scheduled uplink grant (dynamic grant, DG). The dynamically scheduled uplink grant may be indicated in a PDCCH addressing a C-RNTI of the terminal device. For example, the terminal device may not use a CG to send a delay information report, but may only use a DG to send a delay information report.

[0291] In the above embodiments, it may be stipulated in the standard that the terminal device that calculates, triggers or reports the delay information or remaining time is not configured to be autonomously sent or is not configured to use the CG for autonomous sending, or it may be stipulated in the standard that the UE configured for autonomous sending does not apply autonomous sending for the delay information report, or it may be stipulated in the standard that the UE does not use the CG configured for autonomous sending to send the delay information report, or the UE uses the dynamically scheduled uplink authorization to send the delay information report.

[0292] The above embodiments are merely exemplary of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above embodiments. For example, the above embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above embodiments may be combined.

[0293] According to the method of the embodiment of the present application, the network device correctly understands the reference time of the remaining time included in the delay information report sent by the terminal device, thereby helping the network device to perform correct scheduling.

[0294] Embodiments of the fourth aspect

[0295] An embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which is described from the perspective of a network device, and the contents that are repeated in the embodiment of the second aspect are not repeated here.

[0296] FIG11 is a schematic diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG11 , the communication method includes:

[0297] 1101: The network device is instructed by the terminal device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time;

[0298] 1102: The network device calculates, triggers, or reports delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device.

[0299] The delay information of the embodiment of the present application may be the delay information included in the delay information report, for example, may include the remaining time. Unless otherwise specified, the "delay information" described below refers to the delay information included in the delay information report.

[0300] In some embodiments, in 1101, the network device is instructed by the terminal device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0301] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0302] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0303] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0304] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below a first threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer, or by indicating support for timer-based SDU discard.

[0305] In some embodiments, in 1102, the network device calculates, triggers, or reports delay information for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device, including at least one of the following:

[0306] The network device calculates, triggers or reports delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device; and / or,

[0307] The network device configures an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) that is not infinity for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device; and / or,

[0308] The network device configures an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) lower than a second threshold for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device.

[0309] In addition, operation 1101 and operation 1102 can be performed separately or combined, and this embodiment of the present application does not limit this.

[0310] The above embodiments are merely exemplary of the present invention, but the present invention is not limited thereto. Appropriate modifications may be made based on the above embodiments. For example, the above embodiments may be used alone, or one or more of the above embodiments may be combined.

[0311] According to the method of the embodiment of the present application, the network device and the UE have a consistent understanding of whether the UE supports the calculation, triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time, thereby avoiding the network's expectations for delay information reporting being inconsistent with the UE capabilities, or configuring the relevant configuration of this feature for a UE that does not support this feature and failing to achieve the expected effect.

[0312] Embodiments of the fifth aspect

[0313] The present application provides an information transmission device. The device may be, for example, a terminal device, or one or more components or assemblies configured on the terminal device. The device of the present application corresponds to the method of the first aspect of the embodiment, and the contents that are the same as those of the first aspect of the embodiment are not repeated here.

[0314] FIG12 is a schematic diagram of an example of an information sending device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG12 , the information sending device 1200 according to the embodiment of the present application includes:

[0315] A triggering unit 1201, which triggers a delay information report at the PDCP layer or MAC layer of the terminal device;

[0316] The sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report to the network device through a MAC CE or a PDCP control PDU.

[0317] In some embodiments, the triggering unit 1201 triggers the delay information report at the PDCP layer of the terminal device, including at least one of the following:

[0318] If a value of a discard timer or a value of a first remaining time associated with a PDCP SDU in a PDCP entity is lower than a first threshold, the PDCP entity triggers the delay information reporting;

[0319] If a minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs in a PDCP entity is lower than a second threshold, the PDCP entity triggers the delay information reporting;

[0320] If the minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs in the PDCP entity associated with the DRB established or configured by the terminal device is lower than a third threshold, the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report;

[0321] The PDCP layer of the terminal device periodically triggers the delay information report;

[0322] When a new PDU set arrives at the PDCP layer, the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report.

[0323] In the above embodiment, the period for the PDCP layer of the terminal device to trigger the delay information report is predefined or configured by the network device.

[0324] In some embodiments, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the MAC CE, including:

[0325] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0326] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time;

[0327] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates a delay information report MAC CE and sends the delay information report MAC CE to the network device, where the delay information report MAC CE includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0328] In the above embodiment, the value of the second remaining time is the value of the remaining time corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is first sent.

[0329] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time, including:

[0330] The MAC layer of the terminal device starts a first timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the first timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer.

[0331] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time based on the value of the first timer, and the value of the second remaining time is the value of the first timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

[0332] In some embodiments, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through a MAC CE, further comprising:

[0333] The PDCP layer of the terminal device indicates to the MAC layer that a delay information report has been triggered, and / or,

[0334] The PDCP layer of the terminal device instructs the MAC layer to generate a delay information report MAC CE.

[0335] In the above embodiment, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the MAC CE, further comprising:

[0336] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates the delay information report MAC CE when it is determined that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report.

[0337] In some embodiments, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, including:

[0338] The MAC layer of the terminal device notifies the PDCP layer of the time at which the UL-SCH resource that can be used for initial transmission or new transmission of the delay information report is located;

[0339] The PDCP layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the moment when the UL-SCH resource is located;

[0340] The PDCP layer of the terminal device generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0341] In the above embodiment, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0342] When the MAC layer of the terminal device determines that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report, it notifies the PDCP layer of the time when the UL-SCH resources that can be used for initial transmission or new transmission are located.

[0343] In some embodiments, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, including:

[0344] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of a second remaining time included in the delay information report;

[0345] The MAC layer of the terminal device notifies the PDCP layer of the value of the second remaining time;

[0346] The PDCP layer of the terminal device generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0347] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time included in the delay information report, including:

[0348] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0349] The MAC layer of the terminal device starts a second timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the second timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer.

[0350] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time based on the value of the second timer, where the value of the second remaining time is the value of the second timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

[0351] In the above embodiment, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0352] The PDCP layer of the terminal device indicates to the MAC layer that a delay information report has been triggered.

[0353] In some embodiments, the triggering unit 1201 triggers the delay information report at the MAC layer of the terminal device, including:

[0354] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time associated with the PDCP SDU in the PDCP entity to the MAC layer;

[0355] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0356] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the eleventh threshold.

[0357] In the above embodiment, the PDCP entity of the terminal device obtains the minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs in the PDCP entity, and passes the minimum value to the MAC layer;

[0358] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value among the minimum values ​​transmitted by all PDCP entities is less than a fourth threshold.

[0359] In the above embodiment, the PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs to the MAC layer;

[0360] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value is less than the fifth threshold.

[0361] In the above embodiment, the PDCP entity or the PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the values ​​of more than one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0362] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value of the more than one discard timer values ​​or the first remaining time values ​​is less than a sixth threshold.

[0363] In some embodiments, the triggering unit 1201 triggers the delay information report at the MAC layer of the terminal device, including:

[0364] The MAC layer of the terminal device obtains at least one discard timer value or a first remaining time value;

[0365] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0366] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold.

[0367] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold.

[0368] In the above embodiment, the MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time, including:

[0369] The MAC layer of the terminal device starts a third timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the third timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer;

[0370] When the value of the third timer is lower than an eighth threshold, the delay information report is triggered.

[0371] In some embodiments, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the MAC CE, including:

[0372] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time;

[0373] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates a delay information report MAC CE and sends the delay information report MAC CE to the network device, where the delay information report MAC CE includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0374] In the above embodiment, the value of the second remaining time is the value of the remaining time corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is first sent; or

[0375] The value of the second remaining time is the value of the third timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time, and the third timer is a timer started when the MAC layer of the terminal device receives the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time passed by the PDCP layer.

[0376] In the above embodiment, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the MAC CE, further comprising:

[0377] The MAC layer of the terminal device requests the PDCP layer to transfer the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0378] In the above embodiment, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the MAC CE, further comprising:

[0379] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates the delay information report MAC CE when it is determined that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report.

[0380] In some embodiments, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, including:

[0381] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of a second remaining time included in the delay information report;

[0382] The MAC layer of the terminal device notifies the PDCP layer of the value of the second remaining time;

[0383] The PDCP layer of the terminal device generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0384] In the above embodiment, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0385] The MAC layer of the terminal device requests the PDCP layer to transfer the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0386] In the above embodiment, the value of the second remaining time is the value of the third timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time, and the third timer is a timer started when the MAC layer of the terminal device receives the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time passed by the PDCP layer.

[0387] In the above embodiment, the sending unit 1202 sends the delay information report through the PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0388] When the MAC layer of the terminal device determines that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report, it notifies the PDCP layer of the time at which the UL-SCH resources can be used for initial transmission or new transmission.

[0389] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG12 , the apparatus 1200 further includes a processing unit 1203. The processing unit 1203 starts or restarts a fourth timer when the triggering unit 1201 triggers a delay information report or when the sending unit 1202 sends a delay information report; and / or,

[0390] During the running of the fourth timer, the delay information report is not triggered or sent; and / or,

[0391] When the delay information report is canceled, it is considered that the fourth timer has timed out.

[0392] In the above embodiment, the value of the fourth timer is predefined or configured by the network device.

[0393] In some embodiments, the device 1200 also includes an indication unit 1204 and / or a configuration unit 1205, the indication unit 1204 indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time; the configuration unit 1205 is configured by the network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time with at least one wireless bearer.

[0394] In some embodiments, the instructing unit 1204 indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0395] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0396] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0397] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0398] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below a ninth threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer, or by indicating support for timer-based SDU discard.

[0399] In some embodiments, the configuration unit 1205 is configured by the network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time of at least one radio bearer, including at least one of the following:

[0400] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time;

[0401] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) that is not infinity;

[0402] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) lower than the tenth threshold.

[0403] In some embodiments, the sending unit 1202 further sends indication information to the network device, where the indication information includes at least one of the following information:

[0404] The time point at which the delay information report is to be sent for the first time;

[0405] The delay information report is deprioritized in the previous physical resource;

[0406] The delay information report is a retransmission;

[0407] The time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first sent to the current moment.

[0408] In some embodiments, the MAC PDU including the delay information report or the MAC CE including the delay information report has the highest priority; or the delay information report has the highest priority.

[0409] In some embodiments, if the sum of the remaining time included in the delay information report and the time point of the next transmission of the delay information report exceeds the delay requirement of the service, the terminal device abandons sending the MAC PDU including the delay information report.

[0410] In some embodiments, if the delay information report is deprioritized, the terminal device discards or cancels the delay information report.

[0411] In the above embodiment, the apparatus 1100 further includes:

[0412] The generating unit 1206 is configured to regenerate a delay information report for a next UL-SCH resource or uplink grant, wherein a time reference point of the remaining time included in the regenerated delay information report is the next UL-SCH resource.

[0413] In some embodiments, the terminal device is not configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), the terminal device is a terminal device that performs delay information calculation, triggering, or reporting, or the terminal device is configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), and the terminal device does not apply autonomous transmission to delay information reporting.

[0414] In some embodiments, the CG configured with the terminal device is not configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), or the CG configured with the terminal device is configured for autonomous transmission, but the terminal device does not send a delay information report in the CG configured for autonomous transmission, or the terminal device does not send a delay information report in the CG configured for autonomous transmission.

[0415] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends the delay information report in a dynamically scheduled uplink grant (dynamic grant, DG). The dynamically scheduled uplink grant may be indicated in a PDCCH of a C-RNTI addressed to the terminal device. For example, the terminal device may not send the delay information report in the CG, but only in the DG.

[0416] The present application also provides a communication device. The device may be, for example, a terminal device, or one or more components or assemblies configured on the terminal device. The device of the present application corresponds to the method of the second aspect of the embodiment, and the contents that are the same as those of the second aspect of the embodiment are not repeated here.

[0417] FIG13 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG13 , the communication device 1300 according to the embodiment of the present application includes an indication unit 1301 and / or a receiving unit 1302. The indication unit 1301 indicates to a network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time. The receiving unit 1302 receives configuration information from the network device, which is used to configure calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device.

[0418] In some embodiments, the instructing unit 1301 indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculating, triggering, or reporting delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0419] Instructions support calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time;

[0420] Indicating support for calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time by indicating the terminal type;

[0421] Initiate specific services to indicate support for calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time;

[0422] Support for calculating or triggering or reporting the delay information or the remaining time is indicated by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below a first threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer, or by indicating support for timer-based SDU discard.

[0423] In some embodiments, the configuration information configures calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device, including at least one of the following:

[0424] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured to calculate, trigger or report delay information or remaining time; and / or,

[0425] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) that is not infinity; and / or,

[0426] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) that is lower than a second threshold.

[0427] The present application also provides an information sending device. This device may be, for example, a terminal device, or one or more components or assemblies configured on the terminal device. The device of the present application corresponds to the method of the third aspect of the embodiment, and the contents that are the same as those of the third aspect of the embodiment will not be repeated.

[0428] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of an example of an information sending device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 14, the device 1400 includes a sending unit 1401 and a processing unit 1402. The sending unit 1401 sends a delay information report to a network device; the processing unit 1402 performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report.

[0429] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1402 performs the processing related to the delay information report being deprioritized, including:

[0430] Sending first indication information to the network device, where the first indication information includes at least one of the following information:

[0431] The time point at which the delay information report is to be sent for the first time;

[0432] The delay information report is deprioritized in the previous physical resource;

[0433] The delay information report is a retransmission;

[0434] The time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first sent to the current moment.

[0435] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1402 performs the processing related to the delay information report being deprioritized, including:

[0436] The MAC PDU including the delay information report or the delay information report MAC CE is considered to have the highest priority; or the delay information report has the highest priority.

[0437] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1402 performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including: when the sum of the remaining time included in the delay information report and the time point of the next transmission of the delay information report exceeds the delay requirement of the service, giving up sending the MAC PDU including the delay information report.

[0438] In some embodiments, the processing performed by the processing unit 1402 related to the delay information report being deprioritized includes: discarding or canceling the delay information report in the case where the delay information report is deprioritized.

[0439] In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 14, the device 1400 also includes a generation unit 1403, which is used by the terminal device to regenerate a delay information report for the next UL-SCH resource or uplink authorization, and the time reference point of the remaining time included in the regenerated delay information report is the next UL-SCH resource.

[0440] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1402 performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including: considering that it is not configured for autonomous transmission, or considering that it is configured for autonomous transmission and autonomous transmission is not applied to the delay information report.

[0441] In some embodiments, the processing unit 1402 performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, including: considering that the configured configuration authorization (configured grant) is not configured to be sent autonomously, or considering that the configured configuration authorization is configured to be sent autonomously and the terminal device does not send the delay information report in the configuration authorization configured to be sent autonomously, or does not send the delay information report in the CG configured to be sent autonomously.

[0442] In some embodiments, the transmitting unit 1401 transmits the delay information report in a dynamically scheduled uplink grant (dynamic grant, DG). The dynamically scheduled uplink grant may be indicated in a PDCCH of a C-RNTI addressing a terminal device. For example, the terminal device may not transmit the delay information report in a CG, but may only transmit the delay information report in a DG.

[0443] The present application also provides a communication device. The device may be, for example, a network device, or one or more components or assemblies configured on the network device. The device of the present application corresponds to the method of the fourth aspect, and the contents that are the same as those in the first and fourth aspects are not repeated here.

[0444] FIG15 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG15 , the communication device 1500 according to the embodiment of the present application includes a receiving unit 1501 and / or a configuration unit 1502 .

[0445] The receiving unit 1501 receives indication information from the terminal device, and the indication information is used to indicate to the network device that the terminal device supports calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time; the configuration unit 1502 is used to configure the calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time for at least one wireless bearer of the terminal device.

[0446] In some embodiments, the terminal device indicates to the network device through indication information that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0447] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0448] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0449] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0450] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below a first threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer, or by indicating support for timer-based SDU discard.

[0451] In some embodiments, the configuration unit 1502 configures calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device, including at least one of the following:

[0452] Calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device; and / or,

[0453] Configuring an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) that is not infinity for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device; and / or,

[0454] An initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) lower than a second threshold is configured for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device.

[0455] The above embodiments of the present application are illustrative, but the present application is not limited thereto, and appropriate modifications can be made based on the above embodiments. For example, the above embodiments can be used alone, or one or more of the above embodiments can be combined.

[0456] It is worth noting that the above only describes the components or modules related to the present application, but the present application is not limited thereto. The devices 1200 to 1500 of the embodiments of the present application may also include other components or modules. For the specific contents of these components or modules, reference may be made to the relevant art. In addition, the above components or modules may be implemented by hardware facilities such as processors, memories, transmitters, and receivers; the implementation of the present application is not limited to this.

[0457] The device according to the embodiment of the present application is conducive to meeting the latency requirements of XR services, thereby ensuring the QoS of XR services and improving the utilization of wireless resources.

[0458] Embodiments of the sixth aspect

[0459] An embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, including a network device and a terminal device.

[0460] In an embodiment of the present application, the terminal device includes the apparatus shown in FIG12 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect, and is configured to execute the method of the embodiment of the first aspect. Since the method has been described in detail in the embodiment of the first aspect, its content is incorporated herein and will not be repeated.

[0461] In an embodiment of the present application, a network device includes the apparatus shown in FIG15 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect, and is configured to perform the method of the embodiment of the fourth aspect. Since the method has been described in detail in the embodiment of the fourth aspect, its content is incorporated herein and will not be repeated. In addition, the network device performs conventional operations of the network device, and the network device may also perform operations corresponding to the operations of the terminal device, such as the network device receiving information / signals from the terminal device and / or the network device sending information / signals to the terminal device, which are omitted here.

[0462] An embodiment of the present application further provides a terminal device, which may be, for example, a UE, but the present application is not limited thereto and may also be other terminal devices.

[0463] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 16 , terminal device 1600 may include a processor 1601 and a memory 1602. Memory 1602 stores data and programs and is coupled to processor 1601. It should be noted that this diagram is exemplary; other types of structures may be used to supplement or replace this structure to implement telecommunication or other functions.

[0464] In some embodiments, the functions of the device 1200 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect can be integrated into the processor 1601, wherein the processor 1601 can be configured to execute a program to implement the method described in the embodiment of the first aspect, the content of which is incorporated herein and will not be repeated here.

[0465] In other embodiments, the device 1200 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect can be configured separately from the processor 1601. For example, the device 1200 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect can be configured as a chip connected to the processor 1601, and the functions of the device 1200 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect can be realized through the control of the processor 1601.

[0466] As shown in Figure 16 , the terminal device 1600 may further include: a communication module 1603, an input unit 1604, a display 1605, and a power supply 1606. The functions of these components are similar to those in the prior art and are not described in detail here. It is worth noting that the terminal device 1600 does not necessarily include all of the components shown in Figure 16 , and the above components are not essential. Furthermore, the terminal device 1600 may also include components not shown in Figure 16 , for which reference may be made to the relevant art.

[0467] An embodiment of the present application further provides a network device, which may be, for example, a base station, but the present application is not limited thereto and may also be other network devices.

[0468] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram of a network device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 14 , network device 1700 may include a processor 1701 and a memory 1702 ; the memory 1702 is coupled to the processor 1701 . The memory 1702 may store various data and information processing programs, which are executed under the control of the processor 1701 .

[0469] In some embodiments, the functions of the device 1500 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect can be integrated into the processor 1701, wherein the processor 1701 can be configured to execute a program to implement a method as in the embodiment of the fourth aspect, the content of which is incorporated herein and will not be repeated here.

[0470] In other embodiments, the apparatus 1500 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect may be configured separately from the processor 1701. For example, the apparatus 1500 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect may be configured as a chip connected to the processor 1701, and the functions of the apparatus 1500 of the embodiment of the fifth aspect may be implemented through the control of the processor 1701.

[0471] Furthermore, as shown in FIG17 , network device 1700 may further include transceivers 1703 and 1704. The functions of these components are similar to those in the prior art and are not described in detail here. It is worth noting that network device 1700 does not necessarily include all of the components shown in FIG17 ; furthermore, network device 1700 may also include components not shown in FIG17 , for which reference may be made to the prior art.

[0472] An embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program, wherein when the program is executed in a terminal device, the program causes the terminal device to execute the method described in the embodiment of the first aspect.

[0473] An embodiment of the present application further provides a storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program enables a terminal device to execute the method described in the embodiment of the first aspect.

[0474] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer program, wherein when the program is executed in a network device, the program causes the network device to execute the method described in the embodiment of the fourth aspect.

[0475] An embodiment of the present application further provides a storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program enables a network device to execute the method described in the embodiment of the fourth aspect.

[0476] The above devices and methods of the present application can be implemented by hardware or by a combination of hardware and software. The present application relates to such a computer-readable program that, when executed by a logic component, enables the logic component to implement the devices or components described above, or enables the logic component to implement the various methods or steps described above. The present application also relates to a storage medium for storing the above program, such as a hard disk, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, a DVD, a flash memory, etc.

[0477] The method / device described in conjunction with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as hardware, a software module executed by a processor, or a combination of the two. For example, one or more of the functional block diagrams shown in the figure and / or one or more combinations of functional block diagrams can correspond to various software modules of the computer program flow or to various hardware modules. These software modules can respectively correspond to the various steps shown in the figure. These hardware modules can be implemented by solidifying these software modules, for example, using a field programmable gate array (FPGA).

[0478] The software module may be located in RAM memory, flash memory, ROM memory, EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, a hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. A storage medium may be coupled to a processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium; or the storage medium may be an integral part of the processor. The processor and the storage medium may be located in an ASIC. The software module may be stored in the memory of the mobile terminal or in a memory card that can be inserted into the mobile terminal. For example, if the device (such as a mobile terminal) uses a large-capacity MEGA-SIM card or a large-capacity flash memory device, the software module may be stored in the MEGA-SIM card or the large-capacity flash memory device.

[0479] One or more of the functional blocks and / or one or more combinations of functional blocks described in the accompanying drawings may be implemented as a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, or any appropriate combination thereof for performing the functions described in this application. One or more of the functional blocks and / or one or more combinations of functional blocks described in the accompanying drawings may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, such as a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in communication with a DSP, or any other such configuration.

[0480] The present application has been described above in conjunction with specific embodiments. However, those skilled in the art should understand that these descriptions are merely illustrative and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present application. Those skilled in the art may make various modifications and variations to the present application based on the spirit and principles of the present application, and such modifications and variations are also within the scope of the present application.

[0481] Regarding the implementation methods including the above embodiments, the following additional notes are also disclosed:

[0482] 1. A method for sending information, applied to a terminal device, wherein the method comprises:

[0483] The PDCP layer or MAC layer of the terminal device triggers a delay information report;

[0484] The terminal device sends the delay information report to the network device via MAC CE or PDCP control PDU.

[0485] 2. The method according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report, including at least one of the following:

[0486] If a value of a discard timer or a value of a first remaining time associated with a PDCP SDU in a PDCP entity is lower than a first threshold, the PDCP entity triggers the delay information reporting;

[0487] If the minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs in a PDCP entity is lower than a second threshold, the PDCP entity triggers the delay information reporting;

[0488] If the value of the discard timer associated with all PDCP SDUs in the PDCP entity associated with the DRB established or configured by the terminal device or the minimum value of the first remaining time is lower than a third threshold, the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report;

[0489] The PDCP layer of the terminal device periodically triggers the delay information report;

[0490] When a new PDU set arrives at the PDCP layer, the PDCP layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report.

[0491] 3. The method according to Supplementary Note 2, wherein:

[0492] The period for the PDCP layer of the terminal device to trigger the delay information report is predefined or configured by the network device.

[0493] 4. The method according to Supplementary Note 2, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report through a MAC CE, comprising:

[0494] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0495] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time;

[0496] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates a delay information report MAC CE and sends the delay information report MAC CE to the network device, where the delay information report MAC CE includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0497] 5. The method according to Supplement 4, wherein:

[0498] The value of the second remaining time is the value of the remaining time corresponding to the time when the delay information report is first sent.

[0499] 6. The method according to Supplementary Note 4, wherein the MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time, comprising:

[0500] The MAC layer of the terminal device starts a first timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the first timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer.

[0501] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time based on the value of the first timer, and the value of the second remaining time is the value of the first timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

[0502] 7. The method according to Note 4, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a MAC CE, further comprising:

[0503] The PDCP layer of the terminal device indicates to the MAC layer that a delay information report has been triggered, and / or,

[0504] The PDCP layer of the terminal device instructs the MAC layer to generate a delay information report MAC CE.

[0505] 8. The method according to Supplementary Note 4, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a MAC CE, further comprising:

[0506] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates the delay information report MAC CE when it is determined that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report.

[0507] 9. The method according to Supplementary Note 2, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, comprising:

[0508] The MAC layer of the terminal device notifies the PDCP layer of the time at which the UL-SCH resource that can be used for initial transmission or new transmission of the delay information report is located;

[0509] The PDCP layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the moment when the UL-SCH resource is located;

[0510] The PDCP layer of the terminal device generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0511] 10. The method according to Supplementary Note 9, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0512] When the MAC layer of the terminal device determines that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report, it notifies the PDCP layer of the time when the UL-SCH resources that can be used for initial transmission or new transmission are located.

[0513] 11. The method according to Supplementary Note 2, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, comprising:

[0514] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of a second remaining time included in the delay information report;

[0515] The MAC layer of the terminal device notifies the PDCP layer of the value of the second remaining time;

[0516] The PDCP layer of the terminal device generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0517] 12. The method according to supplementary note 11, wherein the MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time included in the delay information report, comprising:

[0518] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0519] The MAC layer of the terminal device starts a second timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the second timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer.

[0520] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time based on the value of the second timer, where the value of the second remaining time is the value of the second timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

[0521] 13. The method according to note 9 or 11, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0522] The PDCP layer of the terminal device indicates to the MAC layer that a delay information report has been triggered.

[0523] 14. The method according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein the MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report, comprising:

[0524] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time associated with the PDCP SDU in the PDCP entity to the MAC layer;

[0525] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0526] 15. The method according to Supplement 14, wherein:

[0527] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the eleventh threshold.

[0528] 16. The method according to Supplement 14, wherein:

[0529] The PDCP entity of the terminal device obtains the value of the discard timer associated with all PDCP SDUs or the minimum value of the first remaining time in the PDCP entity, and transmits the minimum value to the MAC layer;

[0530] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value among the minimum values ​​transmitted by all PDCP entities is less than a fourth threshold.

[0531] 17. The method according to Supplement 14, wherein:

[0532] The PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits a minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all PDCP SDUs to the MAC layer;

[0533] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value is less than the fifth threshold.

[0534] 18. The method according to Supplement 14, wherein:

[0535] The PDCP entity or the PDCP layer of the terminal device transmits the values ​​of more than one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the MAC layer;

[0536] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value of the more than one discard timer values ​​or the first remaining time values ​​is less than a sixth threshold.

[0537] 19. The method according to Supplementary Note 1, wherein the MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report, comprising:

[0538] The MAC layer of the terminal device obtains at least one discard timer value or a first remaining time value;

[0539] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0540] 20. The method according to Supplement 19, wherein:

[0541] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold.

[0542] 21. The method according to Supplement 19, wherein:

[0543] The MAC layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold.

[0544] 22. The method according to any one of Notes 14 to 21, wherein the MAC layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report based on the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time, including:

[0545] The MAC layer of the terminal device starts a third timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer, and the value of the third timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time delivered by the PDCP layer;

[0546] When the value of the third timer is lower than an eighth threshold, the delay information report is triggered.

[0547] 23. The method according to any one of Notes 14 to 21, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report through a MAC CE, comprising:

[0548] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time;

[0549] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates a delay information report MAC CE and sends the delay information report MAC CE to the network device, where the delay information report MAC CE includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0550] 24. The method according to Note 23, wherein:

[0551] The value of the second remaining time is the value of the remaining time corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is first sent; or

[0552] The value of the second remaining time is the value of the third timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time, and the third timer is a timer started when the MAC layer of the terminal device receives the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time passed by the PDCP layer.

[0553] 25. The method according to note 23, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a MAC CE, further comprising:

[0554] The MAC layer of the terminal device requests the PDCP layer to transfer the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0555] 26. The method according to note 23, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a MAC CE, further comprising:

[0556] The MAC layer of the terminal device generates the delay information report MAC CE when it is determined that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report.

[0557] 27. The method according to any one of Notes 14 to 21, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report through a PDCP control PDU, comprising:

[0558] The MAC layer of the terminal device determines a value of a second remaining time included in the delay information report;

[0559] The MAC layer of the terminal device notifies the PDCP layer of the value of the second remaining time;

[0560] The PDCP layer of the terminal device generates a PDCP control PDU and sends the delay information report to the network device through the PDCP control PDU, where the delay information report includes the value of the second remaining time.

[0561] 28. The method according to supplementary note 27, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0562] The MAC layer of the terminal device requests the PDCP layer to transfer the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

[0563] 29. The method according to Supplementary Note 27, wherein:

[0564] The value of the second remaining time is the value of the third timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time, and the third timer is a timer started when the MAC layer of the terminal device receives the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time passed by the PDCP layer.

[0565] 30. The method according to Supplementary Note 27, wherein the terminal device sends the delay information report via a PDCP control PDU, further comprising:

[0566] When the MAC layer of the terminal device determines that the UL-SCH resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report, it notifies the PDCP layer of the time at which the UL-SCH resources can be used for initial transmission or new transmission.

[0567] 31. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 30, further comprising:

[0568] The terminal device starts or restarts a fourth timer when triggering or sending a delay information report; and / or,

[0569] The terminal device does not trigger or send the delay information report during the operation of the fourth timer; and / or

[0570] When the delay information report is canceled, the terminal device considers that the fourth timer has timed out.

[0571] 32. The method according to Note 31, wherein:

[0572] The value of the fourth timer is predefined or configured by the network device.

[0573] 33. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 32, wherein the method further comprises:

[0574] The terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time; and / or,

[0575] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time.

[0576] 34. The method according to note 33, wherein the terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0577] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0578] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0579] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0580] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below a ninth threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer, or by indicating support for timer-based SDU discard.

[0581] 35. The method according to note 33, wherein at least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0582] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time;

[0583] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) whose value is not infinity;

[0584] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) lower than the tenth threshold.

[0585] 36. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 35, further comprising:

[0586] Sending instruction information to the network device, where the instruction information includes at least one of the following information:

[0587] The time point at which the delay information report is to be sent for the first time;

[0588] The delay information report is deprioritized in the previous physical resource;

[0589] The delay information report is a retransmission;

[0590] The time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first sent to the current moment.

[0591] 37. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 35, wherein:

[0592] The MAC PDU including the delay information report or the MAC CE including the delay information report has the highest priority; or,

[0593] The delay information report has the highest priority.

[0594] 38. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 35, wherein:

[0595] If the sum of the remaining time included in the delay information report and the time point for the next transmission of the delay information report exceeds the delay requirement of the service, the terminal device abandons sending the MAC PDU including the delay information report.

[0596] 39. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 35, wherein:

[0597] If the delay information report is deprioritized, the terminal device discards or cancels the delay information report.

[0598] 40. The method according to Supplementary Note 39, further comprising:

[0599] The terminal device regenerates a delay information report for the next UL-SCH resource or uplink authorization, and the time reference point of the remaining time included in the regenerated delay information report is the next UL-SCH resource.

[0600] 41. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 35, wherein:

[0601] The terminal device is not configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), and the terminal device is a terminal device that calculates, triggers, or reports delay information, or

[0602] The terminal device is configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), and the terminal device does not apply autonomous transmission to delay information reporting.

[0603] 42. The method according to any one of Notes 1 to 35, wherein:

[0604] The terminal device is configured with a configured grant that is not configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), and the terminal device is a terminal device that calculates, triggers, or reports delay information, or

[0605] The terminal device is configured with a configuration authorization configured for autonomous transmission (autonomous transmission or autonomousTx), and the terminal device does not send a delay information report in the configuration authorization configured for autonomous transmission, or

[0606] The terminal device does not send a delay information report in the configuration authorization that it is configured to send autonomously.

[0607] 43. A communication method, applied to a terminal device, wherein the method comprises:

[0608] The terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time.

[0609] 44. The method according to note 43, wherein the terminal device indicates to the network device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0610] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0611] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0612] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0613] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below a first threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer, or by indicating support for timer-based SDU discard.

[0614] 45. A communication method, applied to a terminal device, wherein the method comprises:

[0615] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time.

[0616] 46. ​​The method according to note 45, wherein at least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate, trigger, or report delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0617] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device to calculate or trigger or report delay information or remaining time; and / or,

[0618] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) that is not infinity; and / or,

[0619] At least one radio bearer of the terminal device is configured by a network device with an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) lower than a second threshold.

[0620] 47. A method for sending information, applied to a terminal device, wherein the method comprises:

[0621] The terminal device sends a delay information report to the network device;

[0622] The terminal device performs processing related to the delay information report being deprioritized.

[0623] 48. The method according to supplementary note 47, wherein the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, comprising:

[0624] The terminal device sends first indication information to the network device, where the first indication information includes at least one of the following information:

[0625] The time point at which the delay information report is to be sent for the first time;

[0626] The delay information report is deprioritized in the previous physical resource;

[0627] The delay information report is a retransmission;

[0628] The time difference from the time point when the delay information report is first sent to the current moment.

[0629] 49. The method according to supplementary note 47, wherein the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, comprising:

[0630] The terminal device considers that the MAC PDU including the delay information report or the MAC CE including the delay information report has the highest priority; or, the delay information report has the highest priority.

[0631] 50. The method according to supplementary note 47, wherein the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, comprising:

[0632] When the sum of the remaining time included in the delay information report and the time point for the next transmission of the delay information report exceeds the delay requirement of the service, the terminal device abandons sending the MAC PDU including the delay information report.

[0633] 51. The method according to supplementary note 47, wherein the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, comprising:

[0634] The terminal device discards or cancels the delay information report when the delay information report is deprioritized.

[0635] 52. The method according to Supplementary Note 51, further comprising:

[0636] The terminal device regenerates a delay information report for the next UL-SCH resource or uplink authorization, and the time reference point of the remaining time included in the regenerated delay information report is the next UL-SCH resource.

[0637] 53. The method according to supplementary note 47, wherein the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, comprising:

[0638] The terminal device believes that it is not configured to send autonomously, or

[0639] The terminal device considers that it is configured to send autonomously and the terminal device does not apply autonomous sending to the delay information report.

[0640] 54. The method according to supplementary note 47, wherein the terminal device performs processing related to the deprioritization of the delay information report, comprising:

[0641] The terminal device believes that the configured grant is not configured to be sent autonomously, or

[0642] The terminal device does not send a delay information report in the configuration authorization that it is configured to send autonomously.

[0643] 55. A communication method, applied to a network device, wherein the method comprises:

[0644] The network device is instructed by the terminal device that the terminal device supports calculation or triggering or reporting of delay information or remaining time.

[0645] 56. The method according to note 55, wherein the network device is instructed by the terminal device that the terminal device supports calculation, triggering, or reporting of delay information or remaining time, including at least one of the following:

[0646] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time;

[0647] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating a terminal type;

[0648] The terminal device indicates support for calculating, triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by initiating a specific service;

[0649] The terminal device indicates support for calculating or triggering or reporting delay information or remaining time by indicating support for a PDCP discard timer below a first threshold, or by indicating support for an extended discard timer, or by indicating support for timer-based SDU discard.

[0650] 57. A communication method, applied to a network device, wherein the method comprises:

[0651] The network device calculates, triggers, or reports delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device.

[0652] 58. The method according to note 57, wherein the network device calculates, triggers, or reports delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device, including at least one of the following:

[0653] The network device calculates, triggers or reports delay information or remaining time for at least one radio bearer configuration of the terminal device; and / or,

[0654] The network device configures an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) that is not infinity for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device; and / or,

[0655] The network device configures an initial value of a PDCP discard timer (discardTimer) lower than a second threshold for at least one radio bearer of the terminal device.

[0656] 59. A terminal device comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the computer program to implement the method as described in any one of Notes 1 to 54.

[0657] 60. A network device comprising a memory and a processor, wherein the memory stores a computer program, and the processor is configured to execute the computer program to implement the method as described in any one of Notes 55 to 58.

[0658] 61. A communication system comprising the network device described in Note 60 and the terminal device described in Note 59.

Claims

1. An information sending device, configured in a terminal device, wherein: The device comprises: A triggering unit, which triggers a delay information report at a packet data convergence protocol layer or a media access control layer of the terminal device; A sending unit is configured to send the delay information report to a network device via a media access control control element or a packet data convergence protocol control protocol data unit.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The triggering unit triggering the delay information report at the packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device includes at least one of the following: If a value of a discard timer or a value of a first remaining time associated with a packet data convergence protocol service data unit in a packet data convergence protocol entity is lower than a first threshold, the packet data convergence protocol entity triggers the delay information report; If the value of the discard timer associated with all packet data convergence protocol service data units in a packet data convergence protocol entity or the minimum value of the first remaining time is lower than a second threshold, the packet data convergence protocol entity triggers the delay information report; If the value of the discard timer associated with all packet data convergence protocol service data units in the packet data convergence protocol entity associated with the data radio bearer established or configured by the terminal device or the minimum value of the first remaining time is lower than the third threshold, the packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report; The packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device periodically triggers the delay information report; When a new protocol data unit set arrives at the packet data convergence protocol layer, the packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein: The period at which the packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report is predefined or configured by a network device.

4. The device according to claim 2, wherein: The sending unit sending the delay information report through a media access control control element includes: The packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device transmits the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the media access control layer; The media access control layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time; The media access control layer of the terminal device generates a delay information report media access control control element and sends the delay information report media access control control element to the network device, where the delay information report media access control control element includes the value of the second remaining time.

5. The device according to claim 4, wherein: The media access control layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time according to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time, including: The media access control layer of the terminal device starts a first timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time transmitted by the packet data convergence protocol layer, and the value of the first timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time transmitted by the packet data convergence protocol layer, The media access control layer of the terminal device determines the value of the second remaining time according to the value of the first timer, and the value of the second remaining time is the value of the first timer corresponding to the moment when the delay information report is sent for the first time.

6. The device according to claim 4, wherein: The sending unit sends the delay information report through a media access control control element, and further includes: The packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device indicates to the media access control layer that a delay information report is triggered, and / or, The packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device instructs the media access control layer to generate a delay information report media access control control element.

7. The device according to claim 4, wherein: The sending unit sends the delay information report through a media access control control element, and further includes: The media access control layer of the terminal device generates the delay information report media access control control element when it is determined that the uplink shared channel resources are available and can accommodate the delay information report and the subheader of the delay information report.

8. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The triggering unit triggers the delay information report at the media access control layer of the terminal device, including: The packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device transmits the value of at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time associated with the packet data convergence protocol service data unit in the packet data convergence protocol entity to the media access control layer; The media access control layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

9. The device according to claim 8, wherein: The media access control layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than an eleventh threshold.

10. The device according to claim 8, wherein: The packet data convergence protocol entity of the terminal device obtains the value of the discard timer associated with all packet data convergence protocol service data units in the packet data convergence protocol entity or the minimum value of the first remaining time, and transmits the minimum value to the media access control layer; The media access control layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value among the minimum values ​​transmitted by all packet data convergence protocol entities is less than a fourth threshold.

11. The device according to claim 8, wherein: The packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device transmits the minimum value of the discard timer or the first remaining time associated with all packet data convergence protocol service data units to the media access control layer; The media access control layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value is less than the fifth threshold.

12. The device according to claim 8, wherein: The packet data convergence protocol entity or the packet data convergence protocol layer of the terminal device transmits the value of more than one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time to the media access control layer; The media access control layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value of the more than one discard timer values ​​or the first remaining time values ​​is less than a sixth threshold.

13. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The triggering unit triggers the delay information report at the media access control layer of the terminal device, including: The media access control layer of the terminal device obtains at least one discard timer value or a first remaining time value; The media access control layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time.

14. The device according to claim 13, wherein: The media access control layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the minimum value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold.

15. The device according to claim 13, wherein: The media access control layer of the terminal device triggers the delay information report when the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time is less than the seventh threshold.

16. The device according to any one of claims 8 to 15, wherein: The media access control layer of the terminal device determines whether to trigger the delay information report according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time, including: The media access control layer of the terminal device starts a third timer when receiving the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time transmitted by the packet data convergence protocol layer, and the value of the third timer is set to the value of the discard timer or the value of the first remaining time transmitted by the packet data convergence protocol layer; When the value of the third timer is lower than an eighth threshold, the delay information report is triggered.

17. The device according to any one of claims 8 to 15, wherein: The sending unit sending the delay information report through a media access control control element includes: The media access control layer of the terminal device determines a value of the second remaining time according to the value of the at least one discard timer or the value of the first remaining time; The media access control layer of the terminal device generates a delay information report media access control control element and sends the delay information report media access control control element to the network device, where the delay information report media access control control element includes the value of the second remaining time.

18. The device according to claim 1, wherein: The device also includes: a processing unit, which starts or restarts a fourth timer when the triggering unit triggers a delay information report or when the sending unit sends a delay information report, The processing unit does not trigger or send the delay information report during the operation of the fourth timer; and / or the processing unit considers that the fourth timer has timed out when the delay information report is canceled.

19. The device according to claim 18, wherein: The value of the fourth timer is predefined or configured by the network device.

20. A communication system, comprising a terminal device and a network device, wherein: The terminal device is configured to perform the following method: Triggering delay information reporting at the packet data convergence protocol layer or the media access control layer; The delay information report is sent to the network device via a media access control control element or a packet data convergence protocol control protocol data unit.

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