Relay communication method and apparatus, and terminal and network-side device

Abstract

The present application belongs to the technical field of communications. Disclosed are a relay communication method and apparatus, and a terminal and a network-side device. The relay communication method in the embodiments of the present application comprises: a terminal receiving first data from an AIoT device; and the terminal sending the first data and a first identifier to a network-side device, wherein the network-side device comprises an access network device or a core network device, and the first identifier is used for indicating at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and information related to the first data.

Description

Relay communication method and apparatus, terminal, and network-side device

[0001] Cross-reference to Related Applications

[0002] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application No. 202411086391.3 filed on August 08, 2024 in China, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0003] The present application belongs to the field of communication technology, and specifically relates to a relay communication method, apparatus, terminal and network-side device. BACKGROUND

[0004] Currently, in order to provide large-scale cellular network deployment and seamless coverage, Ambient Internet of Things (AIoT) technology is being researched. In the AIoT technology, the scale of cellular network deployment and seamless coverage can be expanded through communication between a large number of AIoT devices and external nodes such as core network nodes or servers.

[0005] However, in the above AIoT technology, the AIoT devices usually directly communicate with the external nodes, and the deployment status of the external nodes makes the distance between the external nodes and the AIoT devices far, thereby resulting in poor communication efficiency and latency overhead performance. SUMMARY

[0006] The embodiments of the present application provide a relay communication method, apparatus, terminal and network-side device, which can improve the communication efficiency and latency overhead performance.

[0007] In a first aspect, a relay communication method is provided, which is executed by a terminal, and the method comprises: receiving, by the terminal, first data from an AIoT device; and sending, by the terminal, the first data and a first identifier to a network-side device, wherein the network-side device comprises an access network device or a core network device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0008] In a second aspect, a relay communication method is provided, which is executed by a network-side device, and the method comprises: receiving, by the network-side device, first data and a first identifier sent by a terminal; wherein the network-side device comprises an access network device or a core network device, the first data is data from an AIoT device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0009] In a third aspect, a relay communication apparatus is provided, which comprises: a first receiving module and a first sending module; the first receiving module is configured to receive first data from an AIoT device; and the first sending module is configured to send the first data and a first identifier to a network-side device, wherein the network-side device comprises an access network device or a core network device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0010] In a fourth aspect, a relay communication apparatus is provided, which comprises: a second receiving module; and the second receiving module is configured to receive first data and a first identifier sent by a terminal, wherein the first data is data from an AIoT device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0011] In a fifth aspect, a relay communication apparatus is provided, which is configured to perform the steps of the method according to the first aspect, or implement the steps of the method according to the second aspect.

[0012] In a sixth aspect, a terminal is provided, which comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions executable on the processor, and the programs or instructions are executed by the processor to implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect.

[0013] In a seventh aspect, a terminal is provided, which comprises a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to receive first data from an AIoT device, and send the first data and a first identifier to a network-side device, wherein the network-side device comprises an access network device or a core network device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0014] In an eighth aspect, a network-side device is provided, which comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores programs or instructions executable on the processor, and the programs or instructions are executed by the processor to implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect.

[0015] In a ninth aspect, a network-side device is provided, which comprises a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is configured to receive first data and a first identifier sent by a terminal, wherein the first data is data from an AIoT device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0016] In a tenth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, which stores programs or instructions, wherein the programs or instructions are executed by a processor to implement the steps of the method according to the first aspect, or implement the steps of the method according to the second aspect.

[0017] In an eleventh aspect, a wireless communication system is provided, comprising: a terminal configured to perform the steps of the method of the first aspect, and a network-side device configured to perform the steps of the method of the second aspect.

[0018] In a twelfth aspect, a chip is provided, comprising a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface being coupled to the processor, the processor being configured to run programs or instructions to implement the method of the first aspect or the method of the second aspect.

[0019] In a thirteenth aspect, a computer program / program product is provided, stored in a storage medium, and executed by at least one processor to implement the steps of the method of the first aspect or the method of the second aspect.

[0020] In the embodiments of the present application, the terminal receives first data from an AIoT device, and sends the first data and a first identifier to a network-side device, the network-side device comprising an access network device or a core network device, the first identifier being used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data. Through the scheme, since the terminal can send the first data and the first identifier used to indicate at least one of the AIoT device and the related information of the first data to the access network device or the core network device after receiving the first data from the AIoT device, when the distance between an external node such as a core network node or a server and the AIoT device is far, the terminal can be used for relay communication, thereby improving the communication efficiency and the latency performance. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0021] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system to which embodiments of the present application can be applied;

[0022] FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a relay communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0023] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a forwarding protocol stack to which the relay communication method according to an embodiment of the present application can be applied;

[0024] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of another forwarding protocol stack to which the relay communication method according to an embodiment of the present application can be applied;

[0025] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a third forwarding protocol stack to which the relay communication method according to an embodiment of the present application can be applied;

[0026] FIG. 6 is a flowchart of another relay communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of a relay communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] FIG. 8 is a structural schematic diagram of another relay communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] FIG. 10 is a hardware structural schematic diagram of a terminal provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] FIG. 11 is a hardware structural schematic diagram of a network side device provided by an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some of the embodiments of the present application, but not all of them. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art belong to the scope of protection of the present application.

[0033] The terms "first", "second", and the like in the present application are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that the terms used in this way can be interchanged under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments of the present application can be implemented in an order other than that illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first", "second" are usually a category and do not limit the number of objects, for example, the first object can be one or more. In addition, "or" in the present application means at least one of the connected objects. For example, the protection scope of "A or B" at least covers three schemes, namely, scheme one: including A and not including B; scheme two: including B and not including A; scheme three: including A and B. In addition, the terms "A and / or B", "at least one of A and B", "at least one of A or B" also at least cover the above three schemes, respectively. The character " / " generally represents that the objects before and after are in an "or" relationship.

[0034] The term "indication" in the present application can be a direct indication (or explicit indication) or an indirect indication (or implicit indication). Among them, the direct indication can be understood as that the sender explicitly informs the receiver of the specific information, the operation to be performed or the request result, etc. in the indication sent by the sender; the indirect indication can be understood as that the receiver determines the corresponding information according to the indication sent by the sender, or judges and determines the operation to be performed or the request result, etc. according to the judgment result.

[0035] It is worth noting that the technology described in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to Long Term Evolution (LTE) / LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, but can also be used in other wireless communication systems, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) or other systems. The terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application are often used interchangeably, and the described technology can be used in the above-mentioned systems and radio technologies, as well as in other systems and radio technologies. The following description describes a New Radio (NR) system for example purposes, and NR terminology is used in most of the following description, but these technologies can also be applied to systems other than NR systems, such as 6th Generation (6G) communication systems. th

[0036] ​FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a wireless communication system to which embodiments of the present application can be applied. The wireless communication system includes a terminal 11 and a network-side device 12. The terminal 11 can be a terminal-side device such as a mobile phone, a Tablet Personal Computer, a Laptop Computer, a notebook computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a palmtop computer, a netbook, an Ultra-mobile Personal Computer (UMPC), a Mobile Internet Device (MID), an Augmented Reality (AR) device, a Virtual Reality (VR) device, a robot, a wearable device, a flight vehicle, a Vehicle User Equipment (VUE), a shipboard device, a Pedestrian User Equipment (PUE), a smart home (a home device with a wireless communication function such as a refrigerator, a television, a washing machine, or furniture), a game console, a Personal Computer (PC), a kiosk, or a self-service machine. The wearable device includes a smart watch, a smart bracelet, a smart earphone, smart glasses, smart jewelry (a smart bracelet, a smart necklace, a smart ring, a smart necklace, a smart anklet, a smart necklace, etc.), a smart wristband, smart clothes, etc. The vehicle-mounted device can also be referred to as a vehicle-mounted terminal, a vehicle-mounted controller, a vehicle-mounted module, a vehicle-mounted component, a vehicle-mounted chip, or a vehicle-mounted unit, etc. It should be noted that the specific type of the terminal 11 is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. The network-side device 12 can include an access network device or a core network device. The access network device can also be referred to as a Radio Access Network (RAN) device, a radio access network function, or a radio access network unit. The access network device can include a base station, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) Access Point (AP), or a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) node, etc.The base station can be referred to as a Node B (NB), an evolved Node B (eNB), a next generation Node B (gNB), a New Radio Node B (NR Node B), an access point, a relay station (RBS), a serving base station (SBS), a base transceiver station (BTS), a radio base station, a radio transceiver, a basic service set (BSS), an extended service set (ESS), a home Node B (HNB), a home evolved Node B, a transmit / receive point (TRP), or some other suitable terminology in the art, and is not limited to a particular technical terminology, provided that the same technical effect is achieved. It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, only the base station in the NR system is taken as an example for introduction, and the specific type of the base station is not limited.

[0037] The core network device can also be referred to as a core network node, a core network function, or a core network network element, etc., which includes but is not limited to at least one of the following: a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management function (AMF), a session management function (SMF), a user plane function (UPF), a policy control function (PCF), a policy and charging rules function (PCRF), an edge application server discovery function (EASDF), a unified data management (UDM), a unified data repository (UDR), a home subscriber server (HSS), a centralized network configuration (CNC), a network repository function (NRF), a network exposure function (NEF), a local NEF (L-NEF), a binding support function (BSF), an application function (AF), a location management function (LMF), a gateway mobile location center (GMLC), a network data analytics function (NWDAF), etc. It should be noted that only the core network device in the NR system is taken as an example for introduction in the embodiments of the present application, and the specific type of the core network device is not limited. If the name of the core network device mentioned in the embodiments of the present application changes in the subsequent protocol version (for example, 6G), it is also within the protection scope of the present application.

[0038] Optionally, the core network device can be implemented by one or more function modules in one device, or can be implemented by multiple devices together, and the embodiments of the present application do not make a specific limitation here. It can be understood that the above function modules can be network elements in a hardware device, can be software function modules running on a special hardware, or can be virtualized function modules instantiated on a platform (for example, a cloud platform).

[0039] The relay communication method, device, terminal and network side device provided by the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail in combination with the accompanying drawings and some embodiments and application scenarios.

[0040] AIoT, also known as environment energy enabled Internet of Things, is an Internet of Things (Internet of Things, IoT) service. IoT devices are powered by energy harvesting, i.e. energy harvesting. IoT devices do not have batteries, or IoT devices have limited energy storage capabilities, for example, using a capacitor. The energy source of energy harvesting includes radio waves, light, motion, heat or other suitable energy sources.

[0041] Low-power IoT devices are a kind of IoT devices, which have low overall power consumption, including low-power signal reception and low-power signal transmission. Due to the low overall power consumption, the communication energy can come from the environment, such as wind energy, kinetic energy, thermal energy or radio frequency signals, so the low-power IoT device can also be called AIoT device, passive IoT (passive IoT) device or responder device, etc.

[0042] The signal transmission mode of such devices can be backscattering radio frequency signals for signal transmission, and such devices can also be called electronic tags or radio frequency tags. Some active tags have the ability to generate signals actively, but in order to achieve low power consumption of the device, it is generally less than 0 dBm, for example, less than or equal to -10 dBm.

[0043] AIoT devices can be classified based on energy sources (energy sources), energy storage capabilities (energy storage capabilities), passive or active transmission, etc. Specifically, it can include three types of devices:

[0044] 1. Device Type A (Device Type A): Passive device, no energy storage, no independent signal generation or amplification, i.e. backscattering transmission.

[0045] 2. Device Type B: a semi-passive device, also belonging to the large category of passive devices. It has energy storage, no independent signal generation, i.e., backscatter transmission. The use of stored energy can include amplification of the reflected signal.

[0046] 3. Device Type C: an active device, with energy storage, with independent signal generation, i.e., active RF components for transmission.

[0047] RF tags are a traditional backscatter communication system, and the main design goal is to identify and read data from the backscatter devices (i.e., Tags) within the coverage of the reader. Since RF tags are initially applied to the automatic inventory of a large number of goods, the process of identifying and reading data from the Tag is also called inventory.

[0048] After the reader sends a query instruction (i.e., Query), the Tag responds with a reply (i.e., Reply). Taking the Reply RN16 as an example, the Tag generates a 16-bit random number and sends it to the reader. Then the reader sends the sequence to the Tag through an acknowledgement (ACK) instruction, and after the Tag successfully verifies the RN16 in the ACK, it sends subsequent data to the reader.

[0049] Among them, the instructions operated by the reader (i.e., Reader) are shown in Table 1:

[0050] Table 1

[0051] At present, in order to provide large-scale cellular network deployment and seamless coverage, in the AIoT technology, the scale of cellular network deployment and seamless coverage can be expanded through communication between a large number of AIoT devices and external nodes such as core network nodes or servers. However, AIoT devices usually communicate directly with external nodes, and the current deployment status of external nodes makes the distance between external nodes and AIoT devices far, thereby causing poor communication efficiency and latency overhead performance.

[0052] In order to solve the above problems, the embodiments of the present application provide a relay communication method and device, a terminal and a network side device. The relay communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be applied to the scenario of communication between AIoT devices and external nodes.

[0053] In the relay communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application, since the terminal can send the first data and the first identifier indicating at least one of the AIoT device and the related information of the first data to the access network device or the core network device after receiving the first data from the AIoT device, when the distance between the external node such as the core network node or the server and the AIoT device is far, the relay communication can be performed through the terminal, thereby improving the communication efficiency and the delay overhead performance.

[0054] Exemplarily, when the external node such as the core network node or the server initiates transmission of inventory or command to one or more AIoT devices, the terminal and the AIoT device perform direct communication, and then the terminal relays the data of the AIoT device in the serving cell and performs device identification, thereby expanding the coverage of the network, improving the success rate of communication, ensuring the signaling overhead and processing complexity of the network side, and improving the overall efficiency and coverage of the network.

[0055] The embodiments of the present application provide a relay communication method, and FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of the relay communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2, the relay communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application can include the following steps 201 and 202.

[0056] Step 201: The terminal receives first data from an AIoT device.

[0057] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the AIoT device communicates with the external node such as the core network node or the server through the terminal, and can adopt an L2 architecture or an L3 architecture.

[0058] The L2 architecture is end-to-end communication between the AIoT device and the external node, and the terminal only plays the role of a transmission pipeline; the L3 architecture is characterized in that the terminal can analyze the data of the AIoT device, and send the analyzed data of the AIoT device as part of the terminal's own data to the external node through the pipeline of the terminal.

[0059] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the terminal is a reader of the AIoT device.

[0060] Step 202: The terminal sends the first data and the first identifier to the network side device.

[0061] The network side device includes an access network device or a core network device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the AIoT device and the related information of the first data.

[0062] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the related information of the first data can include at least one of the following: a data type of the first data, a bearer of the first data, an AIoT paging or service request corresponding to the first data.

[0063] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the access network device can be a gNB.

[0064] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the core network device can be any core network element such as an AMF, an SMF or a UPF.

[0065] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, when the network side device is an access network device, the terminal can send the first data and the first identifier to the access network device through a Uu interface; when the network side device is a core network device, the terminal can send the first data and the first identifier to the core network device through a non-access layer (Non-Access Stratum, NAS) interface.

[0066] It should be noted that the first identifier sent by the terminal to the access network device and the first identifier sent to the core network device are different in terms of function or effective range. For example, the same domain of device ID (i.e. device ID) is assigned device ID = 1 on the Uu interface for identification between the terminal and the gNB; device ID = 1 can also be assigned on the NAS interface for identification between the UE and the CN.

[0067] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the first identifier is used to indicate an AIoT device. The first identifier can include at least one of the following 1.1 to 1.3:

[0068] 1.1, a temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device;

[0069] 1.2, a local temporary identifier allocated by the terminal for the AIoT device;

[0070] 1.3, a local temporary identifier allocated by the network side device for the AIoT device.

[0071] Optionally, for 1.1 above, when the AIoT device performs random access or responds to the reader, it needs to identify its own identity. One possible method is that the AIoT device randomly selects a random number, for example, a 16-bit random number (RN16), as a temporary device identifier for this service in Msg1. If the reader confirms receipt and determines the uniqueness of the RN16, that is, it is not repeated with other AIoT devices, the subsequent AIoT communication between the reader and the AIoT device can use the RN16 for device identification. Therefore, the first identifier above can directly reuse the temporary device identifier of the AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device.

[0072] Then, since the RN16 above can uniquely identify an AIoT device within the range of the reader, it can be directly reused as the identifier of the AIoT device in the radio resource control (RRC) signaling or radio link control (RLC) pipe of the Uu interface, or as the identifier of the AIoT device in the NAS or AIoT signaling of the UE-CN interface. Moreover, since the RN16 is selected by the AIoT device and sent to the reader for confirmation, and then used by the reader on the Uu interface or the user equipment (UE)-core network (CN) interface, on the Uu interface or the UE-CN interface, it is equivalent to the reader sending the RN16 and the correspondence between the RN16 and the AIoT device data to the gNB or CN through the uplink data of the first AIoT device, so that the gNB or CN can use the RN16 to identify the downlink data packet. The subsequent uplink and downlink transmission identifies the AIoT device by the RN16.

[0073] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, for the above 1.2, since the terminal can master the situation of all AIoT devices under itself, the terminal can allocate a unique identifiable local temporary identifier for each AIoT device. And the behavior of different terminals allocating local temporary identifiers is independent of each other, even if the same local temporary identifier is allocated, it can be naturally distinguished due to the jurisdiction of different terminals. The local temporary identifier allocated by the terminal can also be used for the AIoT interface in reverse as the A-RNTI of the AIoT interface, uniquely identifying an AIoT device, and performing subsequent transceiving operations. On the Uu interface, the data of the AIoT device is distinguished by A-RNTI. Further, since it is allocated by the terminal, it is directly carried in the first uplink packet, and after receiving, the gNB or CN can bind the uplink packet content and A-RNTI, and the subsequent downlink data about the AIoT device can also be issued using the same A-RNTI. After receiving, the terminal knows which AIoT device data it is, so as to transmit on the AIoT interface. If the first data of the AIoT device is downlink data, the gNB or CN can first request the terminal to allocate a local temporary identifier, or directly carry an unoccupied local temporary identifier waiting for the terminal to confirm.

[0074] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, for the above 1.3, since the network side device has the responsibility of managing and controlling the terminal or the terminal and the AIoT device, the network side device can allocate a local temporary identifier to the AIoT device. The terminal sends a request for serving a new AIoT device to the network side device, and the network side device allocates a local temporary identifier to it, which is then used by the terminal. Alternatively, when the AIoT device performs registration attach (i.e. attachment) to the core network device to establish a basic context, the CN can allocate a temporary unique identifier within the AMF to the AIoT device, similar to the System Architecture Evolution (SAE) Temporary Mobile Subscription Identifier (TMSI) (referred to as S-TMSI). This identifier can be used as the identifier of the AIoT device in the subsequent CN-UE interface, to uniquely identify an AIoT device, because the AIoT device registration attach process is similar to the ordinary terminal power-on or network access process, which is the most initial stage of all communications, before the service occurs, so it does not occupy the subsequent signaling overhead and delay, and it is a more convenient way.

[0075] In the embodiments of the present application, when the first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device, the first identifier can include at least one of 1.1 to 1.3, so that the AIoT device can be indicated by different identifiers, and thus the flexibility of the first identifier indicating the AIoT device can be improved.

[0076] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the first identifier is used to indicate the related information of the first data. The first identifier includes at least one of 2.1 to 2.3.

[0077] 2.1, a data type identifier of the first data, the data type identifier of the first data being used to indicate the data type of the first data;

[0078] 2.2, a bearer identifier of the first data, the bearer identifier of the first data being used to indicate the bearer of the first data;

[0079] 2.3, a session identifier corresponding to the first data, the session identifier corresponding to the first data being used to indicate the AIoT paging or service request corresponding to the first data.

[0080] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the data type identifier can be a service domain carried in the RLC pipe. If necessary, the service domain can adopt a default or agreed classification manner, in order to ensure flexibility, a configured manner can also be adopted, for example, the inventory type service domain is 0, the read service domain and the write service domain are both 1, etc. Generally, if different services do not have special QoS or other distinguishing needs, the domain can also not be carried.

[0081] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the session identifier can be a session identifier carried in the RLC pipe, which is mainly used to distinguish different batches of AIoT paging or service requests in the same RLC pipe. Generally, the service request of AIoT air interface or CN carries different session identifiers to distinguish, so the session identifier can be directly used in the RLC pipe header (i.e. header), or the session identifier domain is agreed or configured in the RRC process of the UE and the gNB.

[0082] In the embodiments of the present application, when the first identifier is used to indicate the related information of the first data, the first identifier can include at least one of 2.1 to 2.3, so that the related information of the first data can be indicated by different identifiers, and thus the flexibility of the first identifier indicating the related information of the first data can be improved.

[0083] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the network side device includes an access network device. For example, the step 202 can be implemented by the following step 202a.

[0084] Step 202a, the terminal sends the first data and the first identifier to the access network device through RRC signaling or an RLC pipe on the Uu interface.

[0085] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the AIoT device communicates with the core network node or the external node such as a server through the terminal, and can adopt an L2 architecture.

[0086] Next, taking the terminal sending the first data and the first identifier to the access network device through RRC signaling on the Uu interface as an example, the specific process of the terminal sending the first data and the first identifier to the access network device is exemplarily described in combination with FIG. 3.

[0087] Exemplarily, FIG. 3 shows a typical protocol stack diagram of L2 forwarding. As shown in FIG. 3, the external node CN can communicate with the AIoT device in an end-to-end manner and control, that is, two peers of the AIoT layer are directly located at the AIoT device and the CN, and other nodes and corresponding protocol layers are all for serving the end-to-end communication, that is, as a transmission pipe. The feature of this architecture is that the data of the AIoT device is carried through RRC signaling on the Uu interface. In this architecture, the AIoT device and the terminal are a new AIoT wireless interface, and perform protocol behaviors (in actual implementation, it is not limited to these two layers, and the protocol layers and behaviors introduced by the AIoT new interface can all be included) such as AIoT Media Access Control (MAC) and AIoT Physical (PHY) defined by the interface, to complete basic communication and data transmission of the AIoT interface.

[0088] Between the terminal and the serving base station of the terminal, the traditional Uu interface operation is performed. The terminal uses its own RRC process to forward the first data of the AIoT device, for example, introduces new signaling processes such as UL / D2R AIoT Relay Transfer and DL / R2D AIoT Relay Transfer as signaling for forwarding the AIoT data in uplink and downlink respectively, and of course, the existing RRC signaling can also be extended to complete the related functions.

[0089] However, when forwarding data of AIoT devices through the Uu interface, the identification of data of multiple AIoT devices needs to be solved. Although the UE RRC information and the data of AIoT devices can be distinguished by introducing a new signaling format or adding a new field in the existing signaling, since one terminal can simultaneously forward data of multiple AIoT devices, the most typical inventory process, the qualified AIoT devices can be multiple, and multiple AIoT devices will respond to the terminal, which means that the data of multiple AIoT devices will be forwarded through the same terminal. Therefore, in order to accurately distinguish AIoT devices in the subsequent transmission process, the AIoT devices need to be distinguished when forwarding through the Uu interface, that is, the first identifier mentioned above is forwarded together.

[0090] It should be noted that from the service base station to the CN, the AIoT device data is carried in a manner similar to the NG interface. One implementation is to reuse the NG interface in Topo 1 (i.e., Topology 1), because in Topo 1, the base station acts as a reader, and the base station can directly identify each AIoT device and establish an independent NG pipeline for each AIoT device. The NG pipeline identifies the AIoT device by assigning a RAN UE NGAP ID to the pipeline on the gNB side when establishing the NG pipeline, which is uniquely bound to an AIoT device, and the CN side identifies the AMF UE NGAP ID in the returned NG message, which is also uniquely bound to the AIoT device. In this way, an independent pipeline is established between the gNB and the CN for the AIoT device for data transmission of the AIoT device. Another implementation, Topo 2 has a speciality, AIoT devices transmit data through terminals, terminals are in connected state, and the serving base station has established a dedicated NG pipeline for the terminal, then the data of AIoT devices can also be transmitted on the NG pipeline of the terminal, for example, introducing a new NGAP signaling, UL / DL AIoT Relay Message, or reusing the existing NG Application Protocol (NGAP) message format to carry the data of AIoT devices. Since the AIoT device reuses the NG pipeline of the terminal, the terminal identifier in the basic NG signaling, such as RAN UE NGAP ID or AMF UE NGAP ID, is used to identify the terminal, so an additional identifier is needed to distinguish the AIoT device. A typical approach is to display the identifier of the AIoT device for each AIoT device data, where the identifier is unique to identify an AIoT device in the terminal NGAP.

[0091] The identifier of the AIoT device (e.g., the first identifier described above) can be allocated by the gNB or the AMF, for example, if the first data packet of the AIoT device is downlink, the AMF allocates the identifier of the AIoT device, if the first data packet of the AIoT device is uplink, the gNB allocates the identifier of the AIoT device; or, when there is no security problem, the AIoT device can be directly identified by a fixed identifier of the AIoT device, such as an EPC ID, in an NGAP message; or, the core network node allocates a temporary identifier within the CN for the AIoT device when the AIoT device establishes a context with the core network in a previous process such as attach.

[0092] In particular, in a terminal NGAP message, multiple AIoT device data can be carried in a list form, and each data packet carries the identifier of the AIoT device, which is used for data differentiation by the CN.

[0093] The following takes an example of a terminal sending the first data and the first identifier described above to the access network device through an RLC pipe on a Uu interface, and illustrates the specific process of the terminal sending the first data and the first identifier to the access network device in combination with FIG. 4.

[0094] Illustratively, FIG. 4 shows another typical protocol stack diagram for L2 forwarding, as shown in FIG. 4, the external node CN can perform end-to-end communication and control with the AIoT device, i.e., the two peers of the AIoT layer are directly located at the AIoT device and the CN, and other nodes and corresponding protocol layers are used to serve the end-to-end communication, i.e., as a transmission pipe. The feature of this architecture is that the AIoT device data is carried by an RLC pipe on a Uu interface. In this architecture, the AIoT device and the terminal are a new AIoT wireless interface, and perform the protocol behaviors (in actual implementation, it is not limited to these two layers, the protocol layers and behaviors introduced by the AIoT new interface can be included) of the newly defined AIoT MAC and AIoT PHY of the interface, to complete the basic communication and data transmission of the AIoT interface.

[0095] The conventional Uu interface operation is performed between the terminal and the serving base station of the terminal. The terminal uses its own RLC pipe to forward the first data of the AIoT device, for example, introduces one or more new RLC pipe configurations as the forwarding RLC pipe bearer of the uplink and downlink AIoT device data, which is explicitly indicated as the AIoT device data relay at the time of establishment, and is distinguished from the existing terminal data. Of course, the existing data format can also be extended to complete the multiplexing of terminal data and AIoT device data, but since the general AIoT device data has unique quality of service (QoS) requirements, and the AIoT device data has new forwarding format requirements, it is a better choice to use independent and different RLC pipes to carry terminal data and AIoT device data respectively.

[0096] The RLC pipe is a typical user plane pipe, and in this pipe, the data of different AIoT devices also needs to be distinguished, so that the receiver can know which AIoT device data is uplink data arriving at the gNB or downlink data arriving at the terminal, and then perform subsequent forwarding. Therefore, when forwarding on the Uu interface, AIoT device differentiation is required, that is, the first identifier mentioned above is forwarded together.

[0097] The RLC pipe of the Uu interface for AIoT device data forwarding is usually newly established, and a new RLC pipe or multiple RLC pipes are established using the traditional RRC reconfiguration for AIoT device data forwarding. Specifically, it can be established in at least one of the following a to f:

[0098] a. If the gNB or CN selects a terminal as a reader, the gNB can send an RLC pipe establishment command to the terminal at the same time when initiating an AIoT device paging or service request to the terminal, and additionally indicate the mapping relationship between this AIoT device paging or service request and the RLC pipe, for example, one paging or service request corresponds to a newly established RLC pipe.

[0099] b. If the gNB or CN does not determine whether a terminal can be selected as a reader, the gNB can first initiate an AIoT device paging or service request to the terminal, and then the terminal attempts to use the AIoT interface to perform AIoT paging or service request; if there is a qualified AIoT device responding, the terminal reports to the gNB, and the gNB sends an RLC pipe establishment command to the terminal, and additionally indicates the mapping relationship between this AIoT device paging or service request and the RLC pipe, for example, one paging or service request corresponds to a newly established RLC pipe.

[0100] c. In particular, in the process of configuring the RLC pipe, the length of the relevant header field can also be configured, such as the size of the identifier of the AIoT device being 16 bits, 12 bits, or other values, and whether there is a different service domain, etc.

[0101] d. If a new header field is not configured or specified, the default header format can be adopted, such as the length of the identifier of the AIoT device being 16 bits, there being no different service domain, and there being no session identifier domain, etc.

[0102] e. In particular, in the case of a one-time AIoT device paging for only one specific terminal, the RLC pipe can not carry any additional header field, i.e., the identifier of the AIoT device is not needed, because there is only one specific terminal, and the data can only be for it.

[0103] f. In particular, the previous paging or service request can also overlap with the subsequent paging or service request, in order to distinguish them, different RLC pipes can be configured to carry the data of AIoT devices with different requests, or RLC pipe multiplexing can be adopted, only the identifier of the AIoT device requesting is needed, or a service request session identifier is added for identification.

[0104] The data of different AIoT devices in the RLC pipe can be distinguished in at least one of the following ways:

[0105] A new routing layer is added, such as above the RLC, and the identifier of the AIoT device is carried in the header field of the new routing layer; further domains can also be carried to continue to distinguish the different service data of the AIoT device, such as different types of commands of the AIoT device, or data with different QoS requirements, or data with different security levels, etc.

[0106] A new header structure is added in the RLC layer, and the identifier of the AIoT device is carried in the new header field; further domains can also be carried to continue to distinguish the different service data of the AIoT device, as described above.

[0107] It should be noted that from the serving base station to the CN, the AIoT device data is carried in a manner similar to the NG interface. For details, reference can be made to the related description in the above example of FIG. 3, and details are not repeated here.

[0108] In the embodiment of the application, since the terminal sends the first data and the first identifier to the access network device through the RRC signaling or the RLC pipe on the Uu interface, the terminal and the access network device can establish a synchronous identification for the AIoT device, thereby completing the accurate forwarding of the data of the AIoT device.

[0109] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the RLC pipe can be established according to an indication of the access network device.

[0110] The RLC pipe satisfies any one of the following conditions:

[0111] carries a header field of a specified length;

[0112] carries a header field of a default length;

[0113] does not carry a header field.

[0114] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the RLC pipe can be used to transmit at least one of the following 3.1 to 3.4:

[0115] 3.1, data of at least one AIoT device;

[0116] 3.2, data corresponding to at least one data type identifier;

[0117] 3.3, data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier;

[0118] 3.4, data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate a batch of AIoT paging or service requests in the RLC pipe.

[0119] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the first identifier can be an identifier carried in a newly added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or an identifier carried in a newly added header field in the RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

[0120] For other descriptions in embodiments of the present application, reference can be made to the related descriptions in the above-mentioned example of FIG. 4, and details are not described here to avoid repetition.

[0121] Optionally, in embodiments of the present application, the network side device includes a core network device. Illustratively, the above-mentioned step 202 can be implemented by the following step 202b.

[0122] Step 202b, the terminal sends the first data and the first identifier to the core network device through NAS signaling or a user plane pipe.

[0123] The specific process of the terminal sending the first data and the first identifier to the core network device will be described illustratively below in conjunction with FIG. 5.

[0124] Exemplarily, FIG. 5 shows a schematic diagram of a typical L3 forwarding protocol stack. As shown in FIG. 5, the external node CN does not perform end-to-end communication and control with the AIoT device, but interacts with the terminal for AIoT signaling and data, and the terminal interacts with the AIoT device on the AIoT interface, that is, the terminal acts as an important node for planning AIoT signaling and data, and it not only acts as a transmission pipeline, but also can perform identification, reading, statistics and other operations on AIoT signaling and data. The feature of this architecture is that the terminal itself AIoT layer carries the data information of the AIoT device on the Uu interface. In this architecture, the AIoT device and the terminal are a new AIoT wireless interface, and the AIoT layer, AIoT MAC and AIoT PHY and other protocol behaviors newly defined for the interface are executed (in actual implementation, it is not limited to these three layers, the protocol layers and behaviors introduced by the AIoT new interface can be included, and the AIoT layer of the AIoT device is kept uniform in the gNB and terminal scenarios to reduce the complexity and cost of the AIoT device), to complete the basic communication and data transmission of the AIoT interface.

[0125] Between the terminal and the serving base station of the terminal, the traditional Uu interface operation is performed. The terminal uses its own AIoT process to forward the first data of the AIoT device, for example, a new signaling process is introduced in the terminal AIoT layer, such as UL / D2R AIoT Relay Transfer and DL / R2D AIoT Relay Transfer, which are respectively used as the signaling of the AIoT data forwarding bearer of the uplink and downlink. Of course, the existing NAS or AIoT signaling can also be extended to complete the related functions.

[0126] Because the data of the AIoT device is directly carried on the NAS-like interface of the terminal, when the data of the AIoT device is forwarded between the terminal and the CN, the identification problem of the data of multiple AIoT devices needs to be solved. Although the UE NAS information and the data of the AIoT device can be distinguished by introducing a new signaling format or adding a new field in the existing signaling, since one terminal can simultaneously forward data for multiple AIoT devices, the most typical inventory process may have multiple eligible AIoT devices, and multiple AIoT devices will respond to the terminal, which means that the data of multiple AIoT devices will be forwarded through the same terminal. Therefore, in order to accurately distinguish the AIoT device in the subsequent transmission process, the AIoT device needs to be distinguished during Uu interface forwarding, that is, the first identifier is forwarded together.

[0127] Another way to distinguish different AIoT device information is not to distinguish in the pipeline of the terminal, but to carry the AIoT device identifier between the CN and the AIoT device in each AIoT device data, which can be a fixed identifier such as an EPC ID, or a temporary identifier such as a unique temporary identifier within the CN assigned by the CN to the AIoT device at registration or initial context establishment, similar to S-TMSI. This way does not need to change the AIoT signaling of the terminal, only needs to display the data identifying the AIoT device being relayed, and the CN node of the AIoT device can identify it from the AIoT device identifier. Alternatively, the terminal adds the identifier when packetizing.

[0128] In the L3 architecture, since the data of the AIoT device is carried in the signaling of the UE-CN, for the Uu interface, it is equivalent to the NAS signaling or new AIoT (between UE and CN) signaling, the transmission of such signaling is carried out in the default or configured manner, and the Uu interface does not need to distinguish the AIoT device, and the gNB cannot see the data of the AIoT device, so the Uu interface basically does not need to be changed for this. Similarly, the NG interface between the gNB and the CN is also a multiplexing of the NAS signaling or the new AIoT (between UE and CN) signaling, and such pipeline establishment and maintenance are carried out in the default or configured manner, similar to the traditional NAS pipeline, and the NG interface does not need to distinguish the AIoT device, and the gNB cannot see the data of the AIoT device, so the NG interface also basically does not need to be changed for this.

[0129] In this way, the AIoT device and the terminal directly communicate through the AIoT interface, the AIoT device is identified through the RN16 or A-RNTI on the AIoT interface, and the AIoT device identifier recognizable by an external node, such as an Electronic Product Code (EPC) ID, is carried in the high-layer data. The terminal needs to store the mapping relationship between the two identifiers, and then distinguish and identify the subsequent AIoT device data, and carry the EPC ID in its own transmission, such as the NAS signal, to facilitate the core network node or the external node to identify the AIoT device, so as to accurately and correctly communicate.

[0130] In the relay communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application, since the terminal can send the first data from the AIoT device and the first identifier indicating at least one of the related information of the AIoT device and the first data to the access network device or the core network device after receiving the first data from the AIoT device, when the distance between the core network node or the server and the AIoT device is far, the terminal can be used for relay communication, so as to improve the communication efficiency and the delay cost performance.

[0131] The embodiment of the present application provides another relay communication method, and a flow chart of the relay communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application is shown in FIG. 6. As shown in FIG. 6, the relay communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application can include the following step 601.

[0132] The step 601, the network side device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal.

[0133] The network side device includes an access network device or a core network device, the first data is data from an AIoT device, and the first identifier is used for indicating at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0134] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present application, the first identifier is used for indicating the AIoT device. The first identifier can include at least one of the following:

[0135] A temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device;

[0136] A local temporary identifier allocated by the terminal to the AIoT device;

[0137] A local temporary identifier allocated by the network side device to the AIoT device.

[0138] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present application, the first identifier is used for indicating the related information of the first data. The first identifier includes at least one of the following:

[0139] A data type identifier of the first data, the data type identifier of the first data being used for indicating a data type of the first data;

[0140] A bearer identifier of the first data, the bearer identifier of the first data being used for indicating a bearer of the first data;

[0141] A session identifier corresponding to the first data, the session identifier corresponding to the first data being used for indicating an AIoT paging or a service request corresponding to the first data.

[0142] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present application, the network side device includes an access network device. Exemplarily, the step 601 can be implemented through the following step 601a.

[0143] The step 601a, the access network device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through RRC signaling or an RLC pipe on a Uu interface.

[0144] Optionally, in the embodiment of the present application, the RLC pipe can be established according to an indication of the access network device.

[0145] The RLC pipe satisfies any one of the following:

[0146] carrying a header field of a specified length;

[0147] carrying a header field of a default length;

[0148] without carrying a header field.

[0149] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the RLC pipe can be used to transmit at least one of the following:

[0150] data of at least one AIoT device;

[0151] at least one data type identifier corresponding to the data;

[0152] at least one bearer identifier corresponding to the data;

[0153] at least one session identifier corresponding to the data, each session identifier being used to indicate a batch of AIoT paging or service requests in the RLC pipe.

[0154] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the first identifier can be an identifier carried in a newly added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or an identifier carried in a newly added header field in the RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

[0155] In the relay communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application, since the access network device or the core network device can receive first data from an AIoT device sent by a terminal and a first identifier indicating at least one of the AIoT device and related information of the first data, when the distance between an external node such as a core network node or a server and the AIoT device is far, the terminal can be used for relay communication, thereby improving the communication efficiency and the latency performance.

[0156] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the network side device includes an access network device. Illustratively, after the step 601, the relay communication method provided in the embodiments of the present application can further include the following step 602.

[0157] In step 602, the access network device sends the first data and a second identifier to the core network device through an NG pipe.

[0158] The second identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and the related information of the first data.

[0159] Optionally, in the embodiments of the present application, the network side device includes a core network device. Illustratively, the step 601 can be implemented by the following step 601b.

[0160] In step 601b, the core network device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through NAS signaling or a user plane pipe.

[0161] For other descriptions of the relay communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application, refer to the related descriptions in the above terminal-side method embodiments. To avoid repetition, no further description is given here.

[0162] The above method embodiments or various possible implementation manners of the method embodiments can be executed individually or in combination with each other without contradiction. The actual use requirements can be determined, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0163] The execution subject of the relay communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application can be a relay communication device. The embodiments of the present application take the relay communication device as an example to illustrate the relay communication device provided by the embodiments of the present application.

[0164] The embodiments of the present application provide a relay communication device. As an example, the relay communication device can be a communication device or a component in the communication device, such as a chip. The communication device can be a terminal, a network-side device, a server, or the like. For example, the terminal can include but is not limited to the types of the terminal 11 listed above, and the network-side device can include but is not limited to the types of the network-side device 12 listed above. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations.

[0165] The relay communication device includes a receiving module, a sending module, and a processing module. The receiving module, the sending module, and the processing module can be implemented by software or hardware. When implemented by hardware, the processing module can be implemented by a processor. For example, the processor can include a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, or the like, such as a central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an artificial intelligent (AI) processor, a graphics processing unit (GPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a network processor (NP), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, gate circuits, transistors, discrete hardware components, or the like. The receiving module and the sending module can be implemented by a communication interface, which can include one or more of a transceiver, a pin, a circuit, a bus, a radio frequency unit, or the like.

[0166] Specifically, referring to FIG. 7, when the relay communication apparatus is a terminal or a component in the terminal, the relay communication apparatus 70 includes a first receiving module 71 and a first sending module 72.

[0167] The first receiving module 71 can be configured to receive first data from an AIoT device. The first sending module 72 can be configured to send the first data and a first identifier to a network-side device, where the network-side device includes an access network device or a core network device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0168] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the terminal; and a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the network-side device.

[0169] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used to indicate the related information of the first data. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a data type identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate a data type of the first data; a bearer identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate a bearer of the first data; and a session identifier corresponding to the first data, which is used to indicate an AIoT paging or a service request corresponding to the first data.

[0170] In a possible implementation, the network-side device includes an access network device. The first sending module 72 can be specifically configured to send the first data and the first identifier to the access network device through RRC signaling or an RLC pipe on a Uu interface.

[0171] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be established according to an indication of the access network device. The RLC pipe satisfies any one of the following: carries a header field of a specified length; carries a header field of a default length; and does not carry a header field.

[0172] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be used to transmit at least one of the following: data of at least one AIoT device; data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; and data corresponding to at least one session identifier, where each session identifier is used to indicate one batch of AIoT paging or service request in the RLC pipe.

[0173] In a possible implementation, the first identifier can be an identifier carried in a newly-added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or an identifier carried in a newly-added header field in an RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

[0174] In a possible implementation, the network-side device includes a core network device. The first sending module 72 can be specifically configured to send the first data and the first identifier to the core network device through NAS signaling or a user plane pipe.

[0175] In the relay communication device provided in the embodiments of the present application, since the relay communication device can send the first data and the first identifier used for indicating at least one of the AIoT device and the related information of the first data to the access network device or the core network device after receiving the first data from the AIoT device, when the distance between the core network node or the server and the AIoT device is far, the relay communication device can be used for relay communication, thereby improving the communication efficiency and the delay cost performance.

[0176] The relay communication device provided in the embodiments of the present application can implement each process of the terminal-side method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0177] Referring to FIG. 8, when the relay communication device is a network-side device or a component in the network-side device, the relay communication device 80 includes a second receiving module 81.

[0178] The second receiving module 81 can be configured to receive the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal, wherein the first data is data from the AIoT device, and the first identifier is used for indicating at least one of the AIoT device and the related information of the first data.

[0179] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used for indicating the AIoT device. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; a local temporary identifier allocated by the terminal for the AIoT device; and a local temporary identifier allocated by the network-side device for the AIoT device.

[0180] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used for indicating the related information of the first data. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a data type identifier of the first data, which is used for indicating the data type of the first data; a bearer identifier of the first data, which is used for indicating the bearer of the first data; and a session identifier corresponding to the first data, which is used for indicating an AIoT paging or a service request corresponding to the first data.

[0181] In a possible implementation, the second receiving module 81 can be specifically configured to receive the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through RRC signaling or an RLC pipe on a Uu interface.

[0182] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be established according to an indication of the access network device. The RLC pipe satisfies any of the following conditions: carries a header field of a specified length; carries a header field of a default length; does not carry a header field.

[0183] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be used to transmit at least one of the following: data of at least one AIoT device; data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate a batch of AIoT paging or service requests in the RLC pipe.

[0184] In a possible implementation, the first identifier can be an identifier carried in a newly added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or an identifier carried in a newly added header field of an RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

[0185] In a possible implementation, the relay communication apparatus 80 can further include a second sending module. The second sending module can be configured to send, to the core network device, the first data and a second identifier through an NG pipe after the second receiving module 81 receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal, where the second identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: an AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0186] In a possible implementation, the second receiving module 81 can be specifically configured to receive, through NAS signaling or a user plane pipe, the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal.

[0187] In the relay communication apparatus provided in the embodiments of the present application, since the relay communication apparatus can receive first data from an AIoT device sent by a terminal, and a first identifier used to indicate at least one of the following: an AIoT device and related information of the first data, when a distance between a core network node or a server and the AIoT device is relatively far, the terminal can be used for relay communication, thereby improving communication efficiency and latency performance.

[0188] The relay communication apparatus provided in the embodiments of the present application can implement each process achieved by the network side device method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0189] As shown in FIG. 9, the embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device 100, comprising a processor 101 and a memory 102, wherein the memory 102 stores programs or instructions executable on the processor 101. For example, when the communication device 100 is a terminal, the programs or instructions are executed by the processor 101 to implement each step of the terminal-side method embodiment described above and achieve the same technical effects. When the communication device 100 is a network-side device, the programs or instructions are executed by the processor 101 to implement each step of the network-side device method embodiment described above and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0190] The embodiment of the present application further provides a terminal, comprising a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is configured to run programs or instructions to implement the steps in the terminal-side method embodiment described above. The terminal embodiment corresponds to the terminal-side method embodiment described above, and each implementation process and implementation manner of the method embodiment can be applied to the terminal embodiment and achieve the same technical effects. The terminal can be the relay communication apparatus shown in FIG. 7. Specifically, FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present application.

[0191] The terminal 1000 includes, but is not limited to, at least part of the following components: a radio frequency unit 1001, a network module 1002, an audio output unit 1003, an input unit 1004, a sensor 1005, a display unit 1006, a user input unit 1007, an interface unit 1008, a memory 1009, and a processor 1010.

[0192] Those skilled in the art can understand that the terminal 1000 can further include a power supply (such as a battery) for supplying power to each component, and the power supply can be logically connected to the processor 1010 through a power management system, so as to realize functions such as power management, discharge management, and power consumption management through the power management system. The terminal structure shown in FIG. 10 does not constitute a limitation on the terminal, and the terminal can include more or fewer components than those shown, or combine certain components, or have a different component arrangement, which is not described herein.

[0193] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the input unit 1004 can include a graphics processor 10041 and a microphone 10042, and the graphics processor 10041 processes image data of a still picture or a video obtained by an image capture device (such as a camera) in a video capture mode or an image capture mode. The display unit 1006 can include a display panel 10061, which can be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode, etc. The user input unit 1007 includes at least one of a touch panel 10071 and other input devices 10072. The touch panel 10071 is also called a touch screen. The touch panel 10071 can include two parts of a touch detection device and a touch controller. The other input devices 10072 can include, but are not limited to, a physical keyboard, function keys (such as volume control keys, on-off keys, etc.), a trackball, a mouse, a joystick, and the like, which will not be described here.

[0194] In the embodiments of the present application, after the radio frequency unit 1001 receives the downlink data from the network side device, it can be transmitted to the processor 1010 for processing. In addition, the radio frequency unit 1001 can send uplink data to the network side device. Generally, the radio frequency unit 1001 includes, but is not limited to, an antenna, an amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low noise amplifier, a duplexer, etc.

[0195] The memory 1009 can be used to store software programs or instructions and various data. The memory 1009 can mainly include a first storage area storing programs or instructions and a second storage area storing data, wherein the first storage area can store an operating system, application programs or instructions required by at least one function (such as a sound playing function, an image playing function, etc.), and the like. In addition, the memory 1009 can include a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory can be a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Programmable ROM (PROM), an Erasable PROM (EPROM), an Electrically EPROM (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a Random Access Memory (RAM), a Static RAM (SRAM), a Dynamic RAM (DRAM), a Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), a Double Data Rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), an Enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), a Synch link DRAM (SLDRAM), and a Direct Rambus RAM (DRRAM). The memory 1009 in the embodiments of the present application includes but is not limited to these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0196] The processor 1010 can include one or more processing units; optionally, the processor 1010 integrates an application processor and a modem processor, wherein the application processor mainly processes operations related to an operating system, a user interface, and an application program, and the modem processor mainly processes wireless communication signals, such as a baseband processor. It can be understood that the above-mentioned modem processor can also not be integrated into the processor 1010.

[0197] Among them, the radio frequency unit 1001 can be used to receive the first data from the AIoT device; and send the first data and the first identifier to the network side device, the network side device includes an access network device or a core network device, the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: AIoT device, related information of the first data.

[0198] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the terminal; or a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the network-side device.

[0199] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used to indicate the related information of the first data. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a data type identifier of the first data, used to indicate the data type of the first data; a bearer identifier of the first data, used to indicate the bearer of the first data; or a session identifier corresponding to the first data, used to indicate an AIoT paging or service request corresponding to the first data.

[0200] In a possible implementation, the network-side device includes an access network device. The radio frequency unit 1001 can be specifically configured to send the first data and the first identifier to the access network device through RRC signaling or an RLC pipe on a Uu interface.

[0201] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be established according to an indication of the access network device. The RLC pipe satisfies any one of the following: carries a header field of a specified length; carries a header field of a default length; or does not carry a header field.

[0202] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be used to transmit at least one of the following: data of at least one AIoT device; data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; or data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate an AIoT paging or service request in a batch in the RLC pipe.

[0203] In a possible implementation, the first identifier can be an identifier carried in a newly added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or an identifier carried in a newly added header field in an RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

[0204] In a possible implementation, the network-side device includes a core network device. The radio frequency unit 1001 can be specifically configured to send the first data and the first identifier to the core network device through NAS signaling or a user plane pipe.

[0205] In the terminal provided in the embodiments of the present application, since the terminal can send, after receiving first data from an AIoT device, the first data to an access network device or a core network device, and a first identifier indicating at least one of the AIoT device and related information of the first data, when the distance between an external node such as a core network node or a server and the AIoT device is far, the terminal can be used for relaying communication, thereby improving the communication efficiency and the latency overhead performance.

[0206] It can be understood that the implementation processes of the implementation manners mentioned in the embodiments can refer to the related descriptions of the terminal side method embodiments, and achieve the same or corresponding technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described here again.

[0207] The embodiments of the present application also provide a network side device, which includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface and the processor are coupled, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to realize the steps of the network side device method embodiments. The network side device embodiments correspond to the network side device method embodiments, and each implementation process and implementation manner of the method embodiments can be applied to the network side device embodiments and achieve the same technical effects.

[0208] Specifically, the embodiments of the present application also provide a network side device, which can be a relay communication device shown in FIG. 8. As shown in FIG. 11, the network side device 1100 includes an antenna 111, a radio frequency device 112, a baseband device 113, a processor 114 and a memory 115. The antenna 111 is connected with the radio frequency device 112. In the uplink direction, the radio frequency device 112 receives information through the antenna 111, and sends the received information to the baseband device 113 for processing. In the downlink direction, the baseband device 113 processes the information to be sent and sends it to the radio frequency device 112, and the radio frequency device 112 processes the received information and sends it out through the antenna 111.

[0209] The method performed by the network side device in the above embodiments can be implemented in the baseband device 113, which includes a baseband processor.

[0210] The baseband device 113 may, for example, include at least one baseband board, and a plurality of chips are arranged on the baseband board, as shown in FIG. 11. One of the chips is, for example, a baseband processor, which is connected with the memory 115 through a bus interface to call programs in the memory 115 and perform the network device operations shown in the above method embodiments.

[0211] The network side device can also include a network interface 116, which is, for example, a common public radio interface (CPRI).

[0212] Specifically, the network side device 1100 of the embodiment of the present application further includes instructions or programs stored on the memory 115 and executable on the processor 114, the processor 114 invokes the instructions or programs in the memory 115 to execute the method performed by the network side device described above and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described here.

[0213] The radio frequency device 112 can be configured to receive the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal. The first data is data from the AIoT device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0214] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the terminal; and a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the network side device.

[0215] In a possible implementation, the first identifier is used to indicate the related information of the first data. The first identifier can include at least one of the following: a data type identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate the data type of the first data; a bearer identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate the bearer of the first data; and a session identifier corresponding to the first data, which is used to indicate an AIoT paging or a service request corresponding to the first data.

[0216] In a possible implementation, the radio frequency device 112 can be configured to receive the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through RRC signaling or an RLC pipe on a Uu interface.

[0217] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be established according to an indication of the access network device. The RLC pipe satisfies any one of the following: carries a header field of a specified length; carries a header field of a default length; and does not carry a header field.

[0218] In a possible implementation, the RLC pipe can be used to transmit at least one of the following: data of at least one AIoT device; data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; and data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate one batch of AIoT paging or service requests in the RLC pipe.

[0219] In a possible implementation, the first identifier can be an identifier carried in a routing layer newly added in the RLC pipe, or an identifier carried in a header field newly added in the RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

[0220] In a possible implementation, the radio frequency device 112 can also be configured to, after receiving the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal, send the first data and a second identifier to the core network device through an NG pipe, where the second identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

[0221] In a possible implementation, the radio frequency device 112 can be specifically configured to receive the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through NAS signaling or a user plane pipe.

[0222] In the network side device provided in the embodiments of the present application, since the network side device can receive first data sent by a terminal from an AIoT device, and a first identifier used to indicate at least one of the AIoT device and related information of the first data, when the distance between an external node such as a core network node or a server and the AIoT device is relatively far, the terminal can be used to relay communication, so that the communication efficiency and the time delay cost performance can be improved.

[0223] It can be understood that the implementation processes of the implementation modes mentioned in the embodiments can refer to the related descriptions of the network side device method embodiments, and achieve the same or corresponding technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described here again.

[0224] The embodiments of the present application also provide a readable storage medium, which stores a program or instructions, and the program or instructions are executed by a processor to implement various processes of the above-mentioned relay communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described here again.

[0225] The processor is the processor in the terminal in the above-mentioned embodiments. The readable storage medium includes a computer readable storage medium, such as a computer readable only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, etc. In some examples, the readable storage medium can be a non-transitory readable storage medium.

[0226] The embodiments of the present application also provide a chip, which includes a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface is coupled with the processor, and the processor is used to run a program or instructions to implement various processes of the above-mentioned relay communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described here again.

[0227] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can also be referred to as a system chip, a system chip, a chip system or a system on chip, etc.

[0228] The embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program / program product stored in a storage medium, which is executed by at least one processor to implement the processes of the above-mentioned relay communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein.

[0229] The embodiments of the present application further provide a communication system, including a terminal and a network side device. The terminal can be used to execute the steps of the terminal side method as described above. The network side device can be used to execute the steps of the network side device method as described above.

[0230] It should be noted that in this document, the terms "comprising", "containing", or any other variant thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that processes, methods, articles or devices that include a series of elements not only include those elements, but also include other elements not explicitly listed, or include elements inherent to such processes, methods, articles or devices. Without more limitations, the element defined by the statement "comprising a" does not exclude the presence of additional identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element. In addition, it should be pointed out that the scope of the methods and devices in the embodiments of the present application is not limited to the order of performing the functions shown or discussed, but can also include performing the functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in reverse order, for example, the described method can be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps can be added, omitted or combined. In addition, the features described with reference to certain examples can be combined in other examples.

[0231] From the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above-mentioned method embodiments can be realized by means of computer software product and general hardware platform, of course, it can also be realized by hardware. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disc, optical disc, etc.), including a plurality of instructions, used to make the terminal or network side device execute the method described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0232] The embodiments of the present application are described above in combination with the drawings, but the present application is not limited to the above-mentioned specific embodiments, which are only illustrative and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art can make many forms of embodiments under the inspiration of the present application without departing from the scope of the present application and the protection scope of the claims. These embodiments all belong to the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for relaying communication, the method comprising: receiving, by a terminal, first data from an ambient Internet of Things (AIoT) device; sending, by the terminal, the first data and a first identifier to a network-side device, the network-side device comprising an access network device or a core network device, the first identifier being used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, related information of the first data.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, the first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device. the first identifier comprises at least one of the following: a temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the terminal; a local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the network-side device.

3. The method of claim 1 or 2, wherein, the first identifier is used to indicate related information of the first data. the first identifier comprises at least one of the following: a data type identifier of the first data, the data type identifier of the first data being used to indicate a data type of the first data; a bearer identifier of the first data, the bearer identifier of the first data being used to indicate a bearer of the first data; a session identifier corresponding to the first data, the session identifier corresponding to the first data being used to indicate an AIoT paging or a service request corresponding to the first data.

4. The method of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, the network-side device comprises the access network device. sending, by the terminal, the first data and the first identifier to the network-side device comprises: sending, by the terminal, the first data and the first identifier to the access network device through a radio resource control (RRC) signaling or a radio link control (RLC) pipe on a Uu interface.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein, the RLC pipe is established according to an indication of the access network device. wherein the RLC pipe satisfies at least one of the following: carrying a header field of a specified length; carrying a header field of a default length; not carrying a header field.

6. The method of claim 4 or 5, wherein, the RLC pipe is used to transmit at least one of the following: data of at least one AIoT device; data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate a batch of AIoT pings or service requests in the RLC pipe.

7. The method of any one of claims 4 to 6, wherein, the first identifier is an identifier carried in a newly added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or is an identifier carried in a newly added header field in an RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

8. The method of any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein, the network-side device comprises the core network device. sending, by the terminal, the first data and the first identifier to the network-side device comprises: sending, by the terminal, the first data and the first identifier to the core network device through a non-access stratum (NAS) signaling or a user plane pipe. 9.A method for relaying communication, the method comprising: receiving, by a network-side device, first data and a first identifier sent by a terminal, wherein the network-side device comprises an access network device or a core network device, the first data is data from an AIoT device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, related information of the first data. the first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, the first identifier comprises at least one of the following: ​ The temporary device identifier of the AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; The local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the terminal; The local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the network side device.

11. The method of claim 9 or 10, wherein, The first identifier is used to indicate the relevant information of the first data; The first identifier includes at least one of the following: The data type identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate the data type of the first data; The bearer identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate the bearer of the first data; The session identifier corresponding to the first data, which is used to indicate the AIoT paging or service request corresponding to the first data.

12. The method of any one of claims 9-11, wherein, The network side device includes the access network device; The network side device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal, including: The access network device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through RRC signaling or RLC pipe on the Uu interface.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein, The RLC pipe is established according to the indication of the access network device; Among them, the RLC pipe meets any of the following conditions: Carrying a header field of a specified length; Carrying a header field of a default length; Not carrying a header field.

14. The method of claim 12 or 13, wherein, The RLC pipe is used to transmit at least one of the following: Data of at least one AIoT device; Data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; Data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; Data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate a batch of AIoT paging or service requests in the RLC pipe.

15. The method of any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein, The first identifier is an identifier carried in a newly added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or an identifier carried in a newly added header field in the RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

16. The method of any one of claims 9 to 15, wherein, The network side device includes the access network device; After the network side device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal, the method further includes: The access network device sends the first data and the second identifier to the core network device through the NG pipe; Among them, the second identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, the relevant information of the first data.

17. The method of any one of claims 9 to 11, wherein, The network side device includes the core network device; The network side device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal, including: The core network device receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through NAS signaling or user plane pipe.

18. A relay communication device, the device comprising: First receiving module and first sending module; The first receiving module is used to receive the first data from the AIoT device; The first sending module is used to send the first data and the first identifier to the network side device, the network side device including the access network device or the core network device, and the first identifier being used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, the relevant information of the first data.

19. The apparatus of claim 18, wherein, The first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device; The first identifier includes at least one of the following: The temporary device identifier of the AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; The local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the terminal; The local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the network side device. The network-side device allocates a local temporary identifier to the AIoT device.

20. The apparatus of claim 18 or 19, wherein, The first identifier is used to indicate relevant information of the first data. The first identifier includes at least one of the following: A data type identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate a data type of the first data; A bearer identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate a bearer of the first data; A session identifier corresponding to the first data, which is used to indicate an AIoT paging or service request corresponding to the first data.

21. The apparatus of any one of claims 18-20, wherein, The network-side device includes the access network device; The first sending module is specifically configured to send, to the access network device, the first data and the first identifier through RRC signaling or an RLC pipe on a Uu interface.

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein, The RLC pipe is established according to an indication of the access network device. The RLC pipe satisfies any one of the following: Carries a header field of a specified length; Carries a header field of a default length; Does not carry a header field.

23. The apparatus of claim 21 or 22, wherein, The RLC pipe is used to transmit at least one of the following: Data of at least one AIoT device; Data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; Data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; Data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate one batch of AIoT paging or service requests in the RLC pipe.

24. The apparatus of any one of claims 21-23, wherein, The first identifier is an identifier carried in a newly added routing layer in the RLC pipe, or is an identifier carried in a newly added header field in an RLC layer in the RLC pipe.

25. The apparatus of any one of claims 18-20, wherein, The network-side device includes the core network device; The first sending module is specifically configured to send, to the core network device, the first data and the first identifier through NAS signaling or a user plane pipe.

26. A relay communication device, the device comprising: A second receiving module; The second receiving module is configured to receive first data and a first identifier sent by a terminal. The first data is data from an AIoT device, and the first identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device and relevant information of the first data.

27. The apparatus of claim 26, wherein, The first identifier is used to indicate the AIoT device. The first identifier includes at least one of the following: A temporary device identifier of an AIoT interface corresponding to the AIoT device; A local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by the terminal; A local temporary identifier allocated to the AIoT device by a network-side device.

28. The apparatus of claim 26 or 27, wherein, The first identifier is used to indicate relevant information of the first data. The first identifier includes at least one of the following: A data type identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate a data type of the first data; A bearer identifier of the first data, which is used to indicate a bearer of the first data; A session identifier corresponding to the first data, which is used to indicate an AIoT paging or service request corresponding to the first data.

29. The apparatus of any one of claims 26-28, wherein, The second receiving module is specifically configured to receive the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through RRC signaling or an RLC channel on a Uu interface.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein, The RLC channel is established according to an indication of the access network device. The RLC channel satisfies any one of the following conditions: Carrying a header field of a specified length; Carrying a header field of a default length; Not carrying a header field.

31. The apparatus of claim 29 or 30, wherein, The RLC channel is used to transmit at least one of the following: Data of at least one AIoT device; Data corresponding to at least one data type identifier; Data corresponding to at least one bearer identifier; Data corresponding to at least one session identifier, each session identifier being used to indicate a batch of AIoT paging or service requests in the RLC channel.

32. The apparatus of any one of claims 29-31, wherein, The first identifier is an identifier carried in a routing layer newly added in the RLC channel, or is an identifier carried in a header field newly added in an RLC layer in the RLC channel.

33. The apparatus of any one of claims 26-32, wherein, The apparatus further includes a second sending module. The second sending module is configured to send the first data and a second identifier to a core network device through an NG channel after the second receiving module receives the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal. The second identifier is used to indicate at least one of the following: the AIoT device, and related information of the first data.

34. The apparatus of any one of claims 26-28, wherein, The second receiving module is specifically configured to receive the first data and the first identifier sent by the terminal through NAS signaling or a user plane channel. 35.A terminal comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing programs or instructions executable on the processor, the programs or instructions being executed by the processor to implement steps of the relaying communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 8. 36.A network-side device comprising a processor and a memory, the memory storing programs or instructions executable on the processor, the programs or instructions being executed by the processor to implement steps of the relaying communication method according to any one of claims 9 to 17. 37.A readable storage medium, the readable storage medium storing programs or instructions, the programs or instructions being executed by a processor to implement the relaying communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, or to implement steps of the relaying communication method according to any one of claims 9 to 17.

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