Communication method and apparatus, storage medium, and program product

Abstract

Provided are a communication method and apparatus, a storage medium, and a program product. The method comprises: a terminal device receiving first indication information from a network device; and sending first information to the network device on the basis of the first indication information, the first information being used for indicating related information for transmitting a data flow, and the data flow comprising a quality of service (QoS) flow and / or a service data flow.

Description

Communication methods, devices, storage media and software products

[0001] This disclosure claims priority to Chinese patent application No. 202510070329.3, filed on January 15, 2025, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, apparatus, storage medium, and program product. Background Technology

[0003] With the development of communication technology, the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) introduced access traffic steering, switching, splitting (ATSSS) rules in Release 16 of the 5th-generation (5G) standard. These rules are used for network optimization, seamless handover, and network aggregation between the mobile network and non-3GPP access for user equipment (UE). Summary of the Invention

[0004] In a first aspect, this disclosure provides a communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising:

[0005] The terminal device receives the first instruction information from the network device;

[0006] Based on the first indication information, first information is sent to the network device. The first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, including quality of service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0007] Secondly, this disclosure also provides another communication method applied to a network device, the method comprising:

[0008] Send the first instruction information to the terminal device;

[0009] Receive first information from the terminal device based on first indication information, the first information being used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams from the terminal device, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0010] Thirdly, this disclosure provides another communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising:

[0011] Receive data packets from network devices;

[0012] Receive second information from a network device; wherein the second information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data packets from the network device, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream;

[0013] Based on the second information, data flow detection information is sent to the network device; wherein, the data flow detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data flow.

[0014] Fourthly, this disclosure also provides another communication method applied to a network device, the method comprising:

[0015] Send data packets to the terminal device;

[0016] Send a second message to the terminal device; wherein the second message is used to indicate relevant information about the data stream used to transmit data packets from the network device, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream;

[0017] Receive data stream detection information from the terminal device; wherein, the data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data stream.

[0018] Fifthly, this disclosure provides another communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising:

[0019] Receive third information from network devices; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams;

[0020] Based on third-party information, a data stream is sent to the network device.

[0021] Sixthly, this disclosure also provides another communication method applied to a network device, the method comprising:

[0022] Send third information to the terminal device; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams;

[0023] Receive data streams sent by terminal devices.

[0024] In a seventh aspect, this disclosure also provides a communication device for use in a terminal device, comprising:

[0025] The receiving module is used to receive the first indication information from the network device;

[0026] The sending module is configured to send first information to the network device based on first indication information. The first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0027] Eighthly, this disclosure also provides a communication device for use in network equipment, comprising:

[0028] The sending module is used to send the first indication information to the terminal device;

[0029] The receiving module is configured to receive first information sent by the terminal device based on first indication information. The first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams from the terminal device, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0030] Ninthly, this disclosure also provides another communication device for use in terminal equipment, including:

[0031] The receiving module is used to receive data packets from network devices;

[0032] The receiving module is further configured to receive second information from the network device; wherein the second information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data packets from the network device, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream;

[0033] The sending module is used to send data stream detection information to the network device based on the second information; wherein the data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data stream.

[0034] Tenthly, this disclosure also provides another communication method applied to a network device, the method comprising:

[0035] The sending module is used to send data packets to the terminal device;

[0036] The sending module is further configured to send second information to the terminal device; wherein the second information is used to indicate relevant information about the data stream used to transmit data packets from the network device, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream;

[0037] The receiving module is used to receive data stream detection information from the terminal device; wherein, the data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data stream.

[0038] In an eleventh aspect, this disclosure also provides another communication device for use in terminal equipment, comprising:

[0039] A receiving module is configured to receive third information from a network device; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams;

[0040] The sending module is used to send data streams to network devices based on third-party information.

[0041] In a twelfth aspect, this disclosure also provides another communication method applied to a network device, the method comprising:

[0042] The sending module is used to send third information to the terminal device; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams;

[0043] The receiving module is used to receive data streams sent by terminal devices.

[0044] In a thirteenth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory storing processor-executable instructions; when the processor is configured to execute the instructions, causing the communication device to implement any of the methods provided in the first to sixth aspects described above.

[0045] In a fourteenth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, including a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform any of the methods provided in the first to sixth aspects.

[0046] In a fifteenth aspect, a computer program product comprising computer instructions is provided, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform any of the methods provided in the first to sixth aspects. Attached Figure Description

[0047] The accompanying drawings are provided to further understand the technical solutions of this disclosure and constitute a part of the specification. They are used together with the embodiments of this disclosure to explain the technical solutions of this disclosure and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions of this disclosure.

[0048] Figure 1 is an architecture diagram of a communication system according to some embodiments.

[0049] Figure 2 is an architecture diagram of another communication system according to some embodiments.

[0050] Figure 3 is a flowchart of a communication method according to some embodiments.

[0051] Figure 4 is a flowchart of another communication method according to some embodiments.

[0052] Figure 5 is a flowchart of another communication method according to some embodiments.

[0053] Figure 6 is a flowchart of another communication method according to some embodiments.

[0054] Figure 7 is a flowchart of another communication method according to some embodiments.

[0055] Figure 8 is a flowchart of another communication method according to some embodiments.

[0056] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of a protocol stack according to some embodiments.

[0057] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of another protocol stack according to some embodiments.

[0058] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of an SDAP protocol layer format according to some embodiments.

[0059] Figure 12 is a block diagram of a communication device according to some embodiments.

[0060] Figure 13 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments.

[0061] Figure 14 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments.

[0062] Figure 15 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments.

[0063] Figure 16 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments.

[0064] Figure 17 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments.

[0065] Figure 18 is a block diagram of a communication device according to some embodiments. Detailed Implementation

[0066] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this disclosure, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this disclosure.

[0067] Unless the context otherwise requires, throughout the specification and claims, the term "comprise" and its other forms, such as the third-person singular "comprises" and the present participle "comprising," are interpreted as open-ended and encompassing, meaning "including, but not limited to." In the description of the specification, terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "exemplary embodiments," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., are intended to indicate that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic associated with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of this disclosure. The illustrative representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics mentioned may be included in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

[0068] The terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number of technical features indicated. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this disclosure, unless otherwise stated, "a plurality of" means two or more.

[0069] In this disclosure, the terms "exemplarily" or "for example" are used to indicate that something is an example, illustration, or description. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplarily" or "for example" in this disclosure should not be construed as being more preferred or advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of the terms "exemplarily" or "for example" is intended to present the relevant concepts in a specific manner.

[0070] In addition, the use of “based on” implies openness and inclusivity, because processes, steps, calculations or other actions “based on” one or more of the stated conditions or values ​​may in practice be based on additional conditions or values ​​beyond those stated.

[0071] In the description of this disclosure, unless otherwise stated, " / " means "or", for example, A / B can mean A or B. "And / or" in this disclosure is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can mean: only A, only B, and A and B.

[0072] ATSSS includes traffic redirection (directing a specific data flow entirely to a particular access network), traffic switching (switching data flows between non-access networks), and traffic splitting (splitting a single data flow across multiple access networks for simultaneous transmission). Here, the user plane function (UPF) anchor point, which performs the actual traffic operations, needs to determine how to allocate downlink traffic between the two access networks based on the policies provided by the application network and feedback information received from the UE. Therefore, in addition to obtaining the policies configured at the application layer, the UPF also needs to determine the current network performance information for 3GPP radio access technology (RAT) and non-3GPP RAT, thereby determining the appropriate RAT (e.g., 3GPP RAT or non-3GPP RAT) for each service flow of the UE. To obtain the current network performance, 5G networks introduce a performance measurement function protocol (PMFP). The PMFP is used to collect, process, and report key network performance indicators such as latency, bandwidth, and packet loss rate. Taking latency measurement as an example, the UPF can create specific probe packets carrying timestamp information to accurately calculate round-trip time. Furthermore, the UPF can send probe packets to the target UE via the user plane interface. After receiving the probe packets, the target UE can generate a response packet containing the timestamp information of the probe packets and the time information of the time the target UE processed the probe packets. Thus, after receiving the response packet returned by the UE, the UPF can calculate the round-trip time (RTT) based on the sending and receiving timestamps, thereby allowing the UPF to know the latency of the relevant path.

[0073] However, the priority of probe packet transmission differs from the priority of the actual data transmitted by the UE, causing the measurement results of probe packets to fail to accurately reflect the latency of the actual data stream. In other words, the measurement accuracy of this method is not high.

[0074] In view of this, this disclosure provides a communication method, comprising: a terminal device receiving first indication information from a network device, and sending first information to the network device based on the first indication information, the first information indicating relevant information for transmitting a data stream, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream. Thus, the technical solution provided by this disclosure can send first information, which directly reflects the relevant information of the transmitted data stream, thereby enabling more accurate network performance detection based on the first information. Compared to performance detection mechanisms that use additional probe data packets, the transmission priority of the additional probe data packets is usually different from that of the actual transmitted data stream. This disclosure can accurately reflect the transmission priority of the data stream through first information, such as a sequence number, to determine a more accurate latency. Furthermore, by using the first information of multiple data packets over a period of time, the packet loss rate can be reflected more accurately. Therefore, this technical solution can improve the accuracy of network service quality determination.

[0075] The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of this disclosure can be applied to various communication systems. For example, the communication system can be a Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, a 5th generation mobile communication technology (5G) communication system, a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) system, a 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) related communication system, a future evolution communication system (such as a future 6th generation mobile communication technology (6G) communication system), or a system integrating multiple systems, etc., without limitation.

[0076] Figure 1 is an architecture diagram of a communication system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 1, the system can be divided into two parts: a core network (CN) and an access network (e.g., a radio access network (RAN)). The core network mainly includes the following key logical network elements: unified data management (UDM), network repository function (NRF), network data analytics function (NWDAF), network exposure function (NEF), policy control function (PCF), access and mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), and user plane function (UPF). The access network is used to implement functions related to radio access and mainly includes access network (AN) equipment, such as Non-3GPP AN. In some embodiments, the system may also include a data network (DN), also known as a packet data network (PDN). The DN can be an external network of the operator or a network controlled by the operator, used to provide service to users.

[0077] UDM has functions such as managing user contract data and generating user authentication information.

[0078] NRF provides network element discovery capabilities, offering network element information corresponding to the network element type based on requests from other network elements. NRF also provides network element management services, such as network element registration, updates, deregistration, and network element status subscription and push notifications.

[0079] NWDAF has the ability to collect data such as terminal device data, access network device data, core network metadata, and third-party application device data for data analysis.

[0080] NEF has the capability and event openness features.

[0081] PCF has the ability to provide policy rules to control plane functional entities.

[0082] AMF has functions such as mobility management and access authentication / authorization.

[0083] SMF has functions such as performing session management, executing control policies issued by PCF, selecting UPF, and allocating Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to terminal devices.

[0084] UPF, as the interface with DN, has the functions of user plane data forwarding, session / flow-level billing statistics, and bandwidth limiting.

[0085] An AN device is a device that connects terminal devices to a wireless network; for example, it can be a base station of various types.

[0086] In some embodiments, the system may further include user equipment (UE), also known as terminal equipment, terminal, mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Exemplarily, the user equipment may be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, virtual reality terminal, augmented reality terminal, wireless terminal in industrial control, wireless terminal in autonomous driving, wireless terminal in remote surgery, wireless terminal in transportation safety, wireless terminal in smart cities, wireless terminal in smart homes, etc. The embodiments of this disclosure do not limit the specific device form adopted by the user equipment.

[0087] Access network equipment may include Radio Access Network (RAN) equipment, such as: base stations, evolved NodeBs (eNodeBs), transmission reception points (TRPs), next-generation NodeBs (gNBs) in 5G mobile communication systems, next-generation base stations in the 6th generation (6G) mobile communication systems, base stations in future mobile communication systems, or access nodes in WiFi systems; it may also be a module or unit that performs some of the functions of a base station, for example, a central unit (CU) or a distributed unit (DU). RAN equipment may be macro base stations, micro base stations, indoor stations, relay nodes, or donor nodes. The embodiments of this disclosure do not limit the specific technologies or equipment forms used in the RAN equipment.

[0088] The RAN is responsible for UE access. As shown in Figure 1, the UE can access the network through different RAN nodes. For example, the UE can access the 5G RAN through 5G 3GPP air interface technology, and access the 6G RAN through 6G 3GPP air interface technology. Furthermore, the 5G RAN and 6G RAN can be connected to the same UPF.

[0089] For example, when the UPF sends downlink data to the UE, it needs to choose between sending data via 5G RAT RAN or 6G RAT RAN. Furthermore, for the same PDU session of the same UE, if it contains multiple data flows, different RATs can be selected for transmission for different data flows.

[0090] Alternatively, as shown in Figure 2, the UE can access the 5G radio unit (RU) / DU via 5G 3GPP air interface technology, and access the 6G RU / DU (supporting 5G) via 6G 3GPP air interface technology. These two RU / DUs are also connected to the same CU that supports both 5G and 6G functions, and this CU can be connected to the UPF of the core network.

[0091] In some embodiments, the UPF can also be responsible for key functions such as traffic forwarding, policy enforcement, quality of service management and billing monitoring in the ATSSS, thereby achieving optimized management of multi-access networks.

[0092] It should be noted that the aforementioned network elements can be network components implemented on dedicated hardware, software instances running on dedicated hardware, or instances of virtualized functions on appropriate platforms.

[0093] It should be noted that Figure 1 or Figure 2 is only an exemplary framework diagram. The number of devices or nodes included in Figure 1 or Figure 2 and the names of each device are not limited. In addition to the functional nodes shown in Figure 1 or Figure 2, the communication system may also include other nodes or devices, such as core network devices.

[0094] The system architecture and business scenarios described in the embodiments of this disclosure are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this disclosure, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this disclosure. As those skilled in the art will know, with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this disclosure are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0095] The embodiments provided in this disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0096] As shown in Figure 3, this disclosure provides a communication method applied to a terminal device, the method comprising the following steps:

[0097] S101, Receive the first instruction information from the network device.

[0098] Here, the first instruction information can be used to instruct the terminal device to send relevant information for transmitting data streams.

[0099] For example, the terminal device can receive a first indication message sent by the network device when it is necessary to determine whether there is packet loss and to calculate the uplink packet loss rate, and send relevant information about the transmission data stream to the network device based on the first indication message.

[0100] It should be understood that the first instruction information in this disclosure may also be other possible names, such as first configuration information, and this disclosure does not limit it.

[0101] In some embodiments, the first indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0102] a1. Report the sequence number of the data packets in the data stream;

[0103] a2. The maximum value of the sequence number of the data packet;

[0104] a3. The maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of the data packet;

[0105] a4. Report the QoS flow identifier (QFI) of the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs;

[0106] a5. The service data flow identifier (SDFI) to which the reported data packet belongs;

[0107] a6. Mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0108] a7. Mapping relationship between service data flow and access network standard;

[0109] a8. The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and access network standard identifier lists;

[0110] a9. The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier lists of access network standards;

[0111] a10. Identification information for the recommended access network standard;

[0112] a11. Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information;

[0113] a12. The first condition that must be met when using various access network standards to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0114] That is, the terminal device can receive at least one of a1-a12 above from the network device, and send relevant information about the transmission data stream to the network device based on the received at least one of a1-a12.

[0115] In one example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the sequence number of data packets in the data stream reported by the terminal device. The sequence number of the data packet can be used to uniquely identify the data packet, and the sequence number helps in the orderly transmission and reception of each data packet. Indicating the sequence number reported by the terminal device helps to statistically analyze the flow of sequence number data packets, such as determining whether packet loss has occurred, calculating the uplink packet loss rate, thereby determining whether to update the QoS mapping mechanism, or requesting the UE to change the transmission path, etc.

[0116] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the maximum sequence number of data packets in the data stream, i.e., the maximum sequence number. It should be understood that by specifying the maximum sequence number of data packets, the terminal device can better manage its buffering and resource allocation, avoiding resource waste.

[0117] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of the data packet. It should be understood that the maximum value that the sequence number can represent can be determined by the maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of the data packet.

[0118] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the QoS flow identifier (QFI) of the QoS flow to which the data packet reported by the terminal device belongs. Here, a QoS flow identifier can be used to identify a QoS flow. The QoS flow identifier indicating the QoS flow to which the data packet reported by the terminal device belongs helps to determine the service level of the data packet based on the identification of the QoS flow, thereby facilitating network performance testing.

[0119] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the service data stream identifier of the service data stream to which the data packet reported by the terminal device belongs. Here, a service data stream identifier can be used to identify a service data stream. The service data stream identifier indicating the service data stream to which the data packet reported by the terminal device belongs helps to determine the service data stream and the service level of the data packet based on the service data stream, thereby facilitating network performance testing.

[0120] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards, and to describe to the terminal device how different QoS flows are mapped to different access network standards (such as 6G, 5G, etc.). Different QoS flows may require or be applicable to different access network standards, so that the terminal device can determine the access network standard based on the mapping relationship and QoS flows.

[0121] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between service data streams and access network standards, and to describe to the terminal device how different service data streams are mapped to different access network standards (such as 6G, 5G, etc.). Different service data streams may require or be applicable to different access network standards, so that the terminal device can determine the access network standard based on the mapping relationship and service data streams.

[0122] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between the identifier of the QoS flow and the identifier list of the access network standard, so that the terminal device can determine the access network standard based on the mapping relationship and the QoS flow.

[0123] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between the identifier of the service data stream and the identifier list of the access network standard, so that the terminal device can determine the access network standard based on the mapping relationship and the service data stream.

[0124] In another example, the first indication information can be used to directly indicate the identification information of the suggested access network standard.

[0125] In another example, the first indication information can be used to instruct the terminal device to determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information.

[0126] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the first condition that needs to be met for transmitting QoS streams and / or service data streams using various access network standards.

[0127] In some embodiments, the first indication information can also be used to indicate a13, the identification information of the Protocol Data Unit (PDU) set to which the data packet belongs. That is, the terminal device can receive at least one of a1-a13 from the network device and send relevant information about the transmission data stream to the network device based on the received at least one of a1-a13.

[0128] For example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the identification information of the protocol data unit (PDU) set to which the data packet belongs. Here, a PDU is the basic unit for transmitting data in a network, and each PDU contains information required by a specific protocol. The identification information of this PDU set facilitates the correct parsing and processing of the data packet.

[0129] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the first indication information is further used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0130] a14. Mapping relationship between QoS flow and transmission link;

[0131] a15. The mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0132] a16. The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and the identifier list of transmission links;

[0133] a17. The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier lists of transmission links;

[0134] a18. Identification information for the recommended transmission link;

[0135] a19. Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information;

[0136] a20. The second condition that must be met when using various transmission links to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0137] That is, when a terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the terminal device can receive at least one of the above a1-a20 from the network device, and send relevant information about the transmission data stream to the network device based on the received at least one of a1-a20.

[0138] In one example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between QoS flows and transmission links. Different QoS flows may require or be applicable to different transmission links, so that the terminal device can determine the transmission link based on the mapping relationship and QoS flows.

[0139] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links. Different service data streams may require or be suitable for different transmission links, so that the terminal device can determine the transmission link based on the mapping relationship and the service data stream.

[0140] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between the identifier of the QoS flow and the identifier list of the transmission link, so that the terminal device can determine the identifier of the transmission link based on the mapping relationship and the QoS flow in the identifier list of the transmission link, and thus determine the transmission link.

[0141] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the mapping relationship between the identifier of the service data stream and the identifier list of the transmission link, so that the terminal device can determine the identifier of the transmission link based on the mapping relationship and the identifier list of the service data stream, and thus determine the transmission link.

[0142] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate the determination of the transmission link based on QoS detection information.

[0143] In another example, the first indication information can be used to indicate a second condition that needs to be met to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams using various transmission links.

[0144] In some embodiments, the second condition includes the link measurement results meeting a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the link's signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate.

[0145] In some embodiments, the network device in this embodiment may be a base station, a core network user plane network element, a core network control plane network element, etc., or other possible devices or network elements as shown in Figure 1 or Figure 2.

[0146] It should be understood that the data stream in this embodiment is an uplink data stream, that is, a data stream transmitted from the terminal device to the network device. The aforementioned data packets are also uplink data packets, that is, data packets transmitted from the terminal device to the network device.

[0147] S102. Based on the first instruction information, send the first information to the network device.

[0148] Here, the first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0149] In some embodiments, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0150] A list of QoS Flow Identifiers (QFIs) for the sequence numbers of the data packets to be sent;

[0151] A list of service data stream identifiers for the data packet sequence numbers that need to be sent.

[0152] In one example, the list of QoS flow identifiers for the data packet sequence numbers to be sent may include identifiers or a list of identifiers for the QoS flows for the data packet sequence numbers to be sent, such as uplink identifiers indicating the QoS flow corresponding to each QoS flow identifier (id). Each QoS flow id may correspond to one or more uplinks for the QoS flow. In some embodiments, it may also include QoS flow sequence numbers (QFSNs) for the data packet sequence numbers to be sent, or a list of such sequence numbers.

[0153] Here, the QoS flow identifier represents the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow to which the transmitted data packet belongs. The QFSN represents the sequence number of the transmitted data packet within its respective QoS flow.

[0154] In some embodiments, when the network device indicates that the QoS flow corresponding to the QFI needs to be sent, the UE needs to send the QFSN. That is, the first information also includes the QFSN, or the QoS flow identifier list of the data packet sequence number to be sent in the first information includes the QFSN or a list of such sequence numbers.

[0155] In another example, the list of service data flow identifiers for the data packet sequence numbers to be sent may include identifiers of the service data flows for which the data packet sequence numbers to be sent, or a list of such identifiers. For example, it may be used to indicate the uplink identifier that can transmit the data flow corresponding to each service data flow identifier. Each data flow may correspond to one or more uplinks. In some embodiments, it may also include service data flow sequence numbers (SDFSNs) for the data packet sequence numbers to be sent, or a list of such sequence numbers.

[0156] Here, the identifier of the service data stream indicates the service data stream identifier to which the transmitted data packet belongs. The SDFSN indicates the sequence number of the transmitted data packet within its service data stream.

[0157] In some embodiments, when the network device indicates that the service data stream corresponding to SDFI needs to be sent, the UE needs to send SDFSN, that is, the first information also includes QFSN, or the service data stream identifier list of the data packet sequence number to be sent in the first information includes SDFSN or a list of such sequence numbers.

[0158] In some embodiments, the QoS flow sequence number is reset when the QoS flow mapping rules change or when the user plane network element connected to the terminal device changes.

[0159] In one example, after a UE handover or link change, if the User Plane Function (UPF) remains unchanged and the QoS flow mapping rules are the same, the UE and UPF connection can be maintained, and the QoS Flow Sequence Number (QFSN) can continue to accumulate (without resetting). Therefore, during UE handover or link change, the network needs to ensure the stability of the QoS flow mapping rules and the UPF to minimize the impact on the Quality of Service Flow Sequence Number (QFSN).

[0160] In another example, if it is necessary to adjust the QoS flow mapping rules or replace the UPF due to business needs or network optimization, the QoS flow sequence number can be reset. In this way, the changes to the QoS flow mapping rules and UPF can be flexibly applied.

[0161] In some embodiments, data stream detection information may be received from network devices.

[0162] Here, the aforementioned data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0163] For example, the data flow detection information may include the network device determining the packet loss rate or other possible detection information of the QoS flow or service data flow over a period of time based on the first information mentioned above, such as QoS flow or service data flow sequence number information.

[0164] Based on the received data stream detection information, the terminal device can perform corresponding network quality adjustment operations, including at least one of the following implementation methods:

[0165] In one possible implementation, QoS flow mapping rules can be updated based on data flow detection information.

[0166] For example, QoS flow mapping rules refer to rules in network communication that map data packets to different QoS flows based on different traffic types and priorities, in order to ensure the transmission quality and priority of critical service traffic. QoS flow mapping rules are typically configured in network devices (such as routers and switches) to ensure that different types of traffic (such as voice, video, and data) receive appropriate bandwidth and priority. Therefore, updating QoS flow mapping rules based on data flow detection information can make the updated QoS flow mapping rules more suitable for the current network transmission performance.

[0167] In another possible implementation, if the data flow detection information indicates that the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or the service data flow is greater than a preset threshold, the transmission link of the QoS flow is replaced, and / or the transmission link of the service data flow is replaced.

[0168] For example, when a UE corresponds to multiple links, the QoS stream or service data stream can be switched from the current transmission link to the first transmission link.

[0169] In another possible implementation, an alarm indication sent by a network device can be received. Based on the alarm indication, if the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the QoS stream or service data stream can be switched from the current transmission link to the first transmission link. Here, the transmission links of the terminal device can include 3GPP 5G, 3GPP 6G, and Wi-Fi.

[0170] Here, the alarm indication is used to indicate that the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or service data flow exceeds a preset threshold. The first transmission link is any link other than the current transmission link among multiple transmission links.

[0171] For example, the alarm information can be sent by a network device when the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or service data flow exceeds a certain threshold (preset threshold) or does not meet the packet loss rate requirement (preset threshold) corresponding to the QoS flow or service data flow. When the UE receives the alarm information, if the UE has multiple links for transmission, it can map the QoS flow or service data flow to other links for transmission.

[0172] In another possible implementation, a second instruction message sent by a network device can also be received.

[0173] Here, the second indication information is used to indicate the updated identifier of the uplink transmission link and / or the identifier of the downlink transmission link.

[0174] In another possible implementation, a third indication message can be sent when establishing or updating a communication connection. This third indication message is used to indicate the identifiers of multiple transmission links corresponding to the terminal device.

[0175] In another possible implementation, if the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or service data flow is greater than a preset threshold, a first update information from the network device can be received. The first update information is used to indicate the updated QoS flow mapping rules.

[0176] In some embodiments, the first update information described above includes at least one of the following:

[0177] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and transmission links;

[0178] The updated mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0179] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0180] The updated mapping relationship between service data streams and access network standards;

[0181] Updated mapping rules between QoS streams and service data streams;

[0182] Updated mapping rules for QoS streams and wireless data bearers.

[0183] In one example, the terminal device can receive an updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and transmission links sent by the network device. For instance, the network device can statistically analyze packet loss rate information of QoS flows or service data flows, and combine this with other link status information, such as congestion information and transmission delay information, to determine whether to reconfigure the mapping relationship between QoS flows or service data flows and link identifiers for the terminal device. If an update is determined to be necessary, for example, if the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or service data flow exceeds a preset threshold, the network device can send the updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and transmission links, or the updated mapping relationship between service data flows and transmission links, to the terminal device.

[0184] In another example, the terminal device can receive an updated mapping relationship between the service data stream and the transmission link sent by the network device. For instance, the network device can statistically analyze the packet loss rate of the QoS stream or service data stream, and combine this information with other link status information, such as congestion information and transmission delay information, to determine whether to reconfigure the mapping relationship between the QoS stream or service data stream and the standard identifier for the terminal device. If an update is determined to be necessary, for example, if the packet loss rate of the QoS stream or service data stream exceeds a preset threshold, the network device can send the updated mapping relationship between the QoS stream and the access network standard, or the updated mapping relationship between the service data stream and the access network standard, to the terminal device.

[0185] In another example, the terminal device can receive updated mapping rules between QoS flows and service data flows sent by the network device. For instance, if the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or service data flow exceeds a preset threshold (or does not meet the packet loss rate requirement corresponding to the QoS flow or service data flow), the network device can send updated mapping rules between the QoS flow and service data flow to the terminal device.

[0186] In another example, the terminal device can receive updated mapping rules between QoS flows and service data flows sent by the network device. For instance, if the packet loss rate of a QoS flow or service data flow exceeds a preset threshold (or does not meet the packet loss rate requirement corresponding to the QoS flow or service data flow), the network device can adjust the mapping rules between the QoS flow and service data flow and send the updated mapping rules to the terminal device.

[0187] In another example, the terminal device can receive updated mapping rules between QoS streams and wireless data bearers sent by the network device. For instance, if the packet loss rate of a QoS stream or service data stream exceeds a preset threshold (or does not meet the packet loss rate requirement corresponding to the QoS stream or service data stream), the network device can adjust the mapping rules between the QoS stream and the wireless data bearer and send the updated mapping rules to the terminal device.

[0188] Based on the technical solution provided in this disclosure, relevant information (i.e., first information) that directly reflects the transmitted data stream can be sent, thereby enabling more accurate network performance detection. Compared to performance detection mechanisms that use additional probe data packets, the transmission priority of these packets is usually different from that of the actual transmitted data stream. This disclosure, through first information such as sequence numbers, can accurately reflect the transmission priority of the data stream, thus determining a more accurate latency. Furthermore, by using the first information of multiple data packets over a period of time, the packet loss rate can be more accurately reflected. Therefore, this technical solution can improve the accuracy of network service quality determination. Moreover, the technical solution provided in this disclosure eliminates the need to generate and transmit additional probe data packets, saving network traffic associated with generating and transmitting these packets and reducing network load.

[0189] In some embodiments, based on the communication method shown in FIG3, this disclosure also provides another communication method, as shown in FIG4, applied to a network device, including:

[0190] S201. Send the first instruction information to the terminal device.

[0191] In some embodiments, the network device may be a base station, a core network user plane element, a core network control plane element, etc., or other possible devices or network elements as shown in Figure 1 or Figure 2.

[0192] In some embodiments, the first indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0193] Report the sequence number of the data packets in the data stream;

[0194] The maximum value of the sequence number of the data packet;

[0195] The maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of a data packet;

[0196] Report the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs;

[0197] The service data stream identifier to which the reported data packet belongs;

[0198] Mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0199] Mapping relationship between service data streams and access network standards;

[0200] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and access network standard identifier lists;

[0201] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier list of access network standards;

[0202] Recommended access network standard identification information;

[0203] Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information;

[0204] The first condition that must be met when using various access network standards to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0205] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the first indication information is further used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0206] Mapping relationship between QoS streams and transmission links;

[0207] The mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0208] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and the identifier list of transmission links;

[0209] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier lists of transmission links;

[0210] Recommended identification information for the transmission link;

[0211] Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information;

[0212] The second condition that must be met when using various transmission links to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0213] In some embodiments, the second condition includes the link's measurement results meeting a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the link's signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate.

[0214] S202, Receive first information sent from the terminal device based on first instruction information.

[0215] Here, the first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams from terminal devices, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0216] For example, the terminal device can determine the packet loss rate or other possible detection information of the QoS stream or service data stream over a period of time based on first information, such as QoS stream or service data stream sequence number information, that is, determine data stream detection information.

[0217] In some embodiments, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0218] A list of QoS flow identifiers for the sequence numbers of the data packets to be sent;

[0219] A list of service data stream identifiers for the data packet sequence numbers that need to be sent.

[0220] In some embodiments, data stream detection information may also be sent to the terminal device, which is used to indicate the transmission quality of QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0221] In some embodiments, an alarm indication may also be sent to the terminal device, which is used to indicate that the packet loss rate of the QoS stream or service data stream is greater than a preset threshold.

[0222] In some embodiments, a second indication information may also be sent to the terminal device, the second indication information being used to indicate the identifier of the updated uplink transmission link and / or the identifier of the downlink transmission link.

[0223] In some embodiments, when establishing or updating a communication connection with a terminal device, a third indication information may also be received, which is used to indicate the identifiers of multiple transmission links corresponding to the terminal device.

[0224] In some embodiments, if the packet loss rate of a QoS stream or service data stream exceeds a preset threshold, a first update information may be sent to the terminal device. The first update information is used to indicate the updated QoS stream mapping rules.

[0225] In some embodiments, the first update information includes at least one of the following:

[0226] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and transmission links;

[0227] The updated mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0228] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0229] The updated mapping relationship between service data streams and access network standards;

[0230] Updated mapping rules between QoS streams and service data streams;

[0231] Updated mapping rules for QoS streams and wireless data bearers.

[0232] For a detailed description of steps S201-S202, please refer to the relevant descriptions of steps S101-S102 above, which will not be repeated here.

[0233] Based on the above embodiments, first information can be received, which can directly reflect the relevant information of the data stream, thereby enabling more accurate network performance detection based on the first information.

[0234] In some embodiments, this disclosure also provides another communication method, as shown in FIG5, the method comprising:

[0235] S301, Receive data packets from network devices.

[0236] It should be understood that the data stream in this embodiment is a downlink data stream, that is, a data stream transmitted from the network device to the terminal device. The aforementioned data packets are also downlink data packets, that is, data packets transmitted from the network device to the terminal device.

[0237] In some embodiments, the network device in this embodiment may be a base station, a core network user plane network element, a core network control plane network element, etc., or other possible devices or network elements as shown in Figure 1 or Figure 2.

[0238] S302, Receive second information from network device.

[0239] Here, the second information is used to indicate relevant information about the data stream used to transmit data packets from the network device, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0240] In some embodiments, the second information includes or is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0241] The QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow associated with a data packet in the data flow;

[0242] The sequence number of the data packet in the QoS stream;

[0243] The service data stream identifier associated with the service data stream of the data packet;

[0244] The sequence number of the data packet in the service data stream.

[0245] Here, the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow associated with the data packet in the data flow is used to represent the QoS flow identifier QFI of the QoS flow to which the transmitted data packet belongs.

[0246] The sequence number of a data packet in a QoS flow is used to represent the sequence number (QFSN) of the current data packet in its QoS flow.

[0247] The Service Stream Identifier (SDFI) associated with a data packet is used to indicate the Service Stream Identifier to which the transmitted data packet belongs.

[0248] The sequence number of a data packet in the service data stream is used to represent the sequence number SDFSN of the current data packet in the service data stream to which it belongs.

[0249] It should be understood that, based on the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow associated with the data packet in the data stream, the sequence number of the data packet in the QoS flow, the service data flow identifier of the service data stream associated with the data packet, and the sequence number of the data packet in the service data stream, the terminal device can more accurately perform network performance detection on the transmission of the data packet. For example, it can more accurately determine the transmission priority of the data packet, so as to determine a more accurate delay and accurately determine the packet loss rate.

[0250] In some embodiments, the second information may further include identification information of the PDU set to which the data packet belongs.

[0251] Here, PDU is the basic unit for transmitting data in the network. Each PDU contains information required by a specific protocol. The second information includes the identification information of the PDU set to facilitate the correct parsing and processing of the data packet.

[0252] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the second information may further include the mapping relationship between QoS streams or data streams and uplinks, and / or the mapping relationship between QoS streams or data streams and downlinks.

[0253] Here, the mapping relationship between QoS streams or data streams and uplinks is used to indicate which uplink the terminal device sends its QoS streams or data streams through.

[0254] The mapping relationship between QoS streams or data streams and downlinks is used to indicate which downlink the terminal device sends its QoS streams or data streams through.

[0255] In some embodiments, before performing step S302 described above, the terminal device may also receive second configuration information from the network device.

[0256] Here, the second configuration information is used to configure the reporting period and the triggering conditions for the data flow detection information.

[0257] For example, the second configuration information can be used to instruct the terminal device to activate the QoS flow or data flow reporting function. The reporting period is used to define the time interval at which the terminal device periodically sends QoS flow or data flow reports to the network side. The triggering condition is used to indicate the specific event or condition that triggers the terminal device to send the report. For example, when the packet loss rate exceeds a certain threshold, the latency exceeds an acceptable range, or the data transmission rate drops significantly, the terminal device may trigger and send a data flow detection information report.

[0258] S303. Based on the second information, send data flow detection information to the network device.

[0259] Here, data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data stream.

[0260] Here, the data flow detection information in this disclosure may also be referred to as network performance detection information, QoS detection information, or other terms with the same or similar meanings.

[0261] In some embodiments, the data stream detection information includes at least one of the following:

[0262] QoS flow identifier used for transmitting data packets in a QoS flow;

[0263] Service data stream identifier used to transmit data packets;

[0264] Packet loss rate;

[0265] The identification information of the first data packet lost within the preset time window;

[0266] Indication information used to indicate whether packet loss has occurred for each data packet;

[0267] Data stream latency information.

[0268] Here, the QoS flow identifier used to transmit data packets represents the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow to which the transmitted data packets belong.

[0269] The service data stream identifier used to transmit data packets is used to indicate the service data stream to which the transmitted data packets belong.

[0270] Packet loss rate refers to the proportion of data packets lost during data transmission, or the number or proportion of packets lost within a set time window. A high packet loss rate usually indicates problems such as network congestion, signal interference, or equipment failure, which may lead to increased data transmission latency and decreased service quality.

[0271] The identifier information for the first lost data packet within a preset time window is displayed within the designated window, indicating whether each data packet was correctly received or lost. For example, a correctly received packet is identified as 1, and a packet not correctly received is identified as 0. This helps to quickly pinpoint the time and specific location of packet loss issues.

[0272] Indication information used to indicate whether packet loss has occurred. Whether each packet was successfully transmitted to its destination can be confirmed using this indication information, and it can be used to determine the integrity of data transmission, etc.

[0273] Data stream latency information can include the total latency taken for the data stream to reach the terminal device, or the ratio of the total latency taken for the data stream to reach the terminal device to the latency requirement. Latency is one of the key indicators for measuring network performance.

[0274] It should be understood that through the above data stream detection information, the terminal device can fully understand the transmission performance of data transmission, including the performance of QoS streams, priority processing of service data streams, packet loss, latency, etc.

[0275] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the data stream detection information further includes at least one of the following:

[0276] Recommended uplink transmission link identification information;

[0277] Recommended identification information for downlink transmission links;

[0278] Recommended uplink access network standard identification information;

[0279] Recommended downlink access network standard identification information.

[0280] Here, the transmission link of the terminal device may include 3GPP 5G, 3GPP 6G, WIFI, etc.

[0281] The suggested uplink transmission link identification information is used to indicate which link the terminal device (UE) wishes to receive uplink data through.

[0282] The suggested downlink transmission link identification information is used to indicate which link the terminal device (UE) wishes to receive downlink data through.

[0283] The suggested uplink access network standard identification information is used to indicate which standard the terminal device (UE) wishes to use to receive uplink data.

[0284] The suggested downlink access network standard identification information is used to indicate which standard the terminal device (UE) wishes to use to receive downlink data.

[0285] In some embodiments, the data stream detection information is sent via one of the following:

[0286] Radio resource control (RRC) messages, service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) control PDUs, SDAP data PDUs, or new protocol layer messages.

[0287] In some embodiments, when the network device is a core network device, data flow detection information is sent via RRC messages, including:

[0288] Data flow detection information is carried in a Non-access stratum (NAS) message, which is carried in an RRC message. The RRC message includes a fourth indication information. Here, the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the NAS message is sent to a core network element, and / or, the fourth indication information is used to indicate the identifier of the core network element receiving the NAS message.

[0289] In some embodiments, data flow detection information can be carried within a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message, and the NAS message can be carried within an RRC message. The RRC message is transmitted via a first radio bearer. Here, the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured to transmit NAS messages.

[0290] For example, a terminal device can send data flow detection information to a core network element via a NAS message. Here, the NAS message can be carried via an RRC message. It should be noted that, to save data transmission overhead and latency, this NAS message is sent directly to the core network user plane element, without being forwarded through the core network control plane element, and a new NAS message type is defined.

[0291] Furthermore, the RRC message carrying the NAS message can include a NAS message type indicator to indicate that the NAS message is sent to a core network user plane element. When the terminal device establishes a connection with multiple core network user plane elements, it also needs to include the identifier of the core network user plane element. Alternatively, the RRC message carrying the NAS message can include the identifier of the core network element associated with the NAS message. Alternatively, the network device can configure the terminal device to transmit various NAS message bearers (e.g., data bearers, control bearers, etc.), for example, instructing the terminal device to use a first bearer to transmit NAS messages associated with core network control plane elements, or instructing the terminal device to use a second bearer to transmit NAS messages associated with core network user plane elements, etc.

[0292] Furthermore, when a terminal device has multiple NAS messages, and these different NAS messages are sent to different core network elements (e.g., control plane elements, user plane elements, session management elements, mobility management elements, data management elements, etc.), the terminal device can report all supported NAS message types or associated core network element identifiers. Upon receiving this message, the network device configures different mapping relationships between NAS messages and bearers for the terminal device. Subsequently, the terminal device selects the associated bearer for transmission of the NAS message based on this configuration information.

[0293] In another example, the terminal device can send a report (data flow detection information report) to the network device by controlling the PDU SDAP header, the data PDU SDAP, or the new protocol layer PDU header.

[0294] Furthermore, after receiving the report, network devices such as base stations can also send it to core network user plane elements through a communication tunnel (e.g., a GTP tunnel) between the base station and core network elements. Additionally, it can be transmitted through the PDU session associated with this QoS flow.

[0295] It should be understood that when the core network receives the above data flow detection information, it can determine whether the QoS requirements are met based on the packet loss rate or latency information in the QoS report, and thus determine whether the mapping relationship between the QoS flow and the service data flow needs to be updated. If an update is needed, the updated mapping relationship between the QoS flow and the service data flow is sent to the terminal device.

[0296] It should be understood that the terminal device receives the downlink QoS flow data packet sequence sent by the core network, determines the packet loss rate or packet error rate based on the sequence, calculates the uplink packet loss rate or packet error rate, and feeds it back to the network side, which then decides whether to update the relevant information.

[0297] In some embodiments, before the base station sends the aforementioned message to the core network, the base station establishes a tunnel associated with the UE with the core network user plane element for forwarding NAS messages related to the UE.

[0298] In some embodiments, when multiple links exist between the terminal device and the network device, the terminal device can determine the downlink that meets the conditions based on measurement results (data flow detection information) and send a suggested downlink transmission link identifier or standard identifier to the network device. This information can be sent in at least one of the following ways: RRC message; medium access control control element (MAC CE); SDAP control PDU, SDAP data PDU, or new protocol layer.

[0299] In some embodiments, third information may also be sent. First configuration information may also be received.

[0300] Here, the third piece of information is used to indicate the type or identifier of the NAS message that the terminal device needs to transmit.

[0301] Here, the first configuration information is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0302] The NAS messages used by terminal devices for wireless bearer and transmission;

[0303] Mapping relationship between wireless bearer identifiers and NAS message types;

[0304] Mapping relationship between wireless bearer identifiers and NAS message identifiers.

[0305] In some embodiments, a second update message sent by a network device may also be received.

[0306] Here, the second update information is used to indicate the updated QoS flow mapping rules.

[0307] In some embodiments, the updated QoS flow mapping rules described above include at least one of the following:

[0308] The updated QoS flow mapping to the uplink;

[0309] The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and service data streams;

[0310] Updated uplink identification information;

[0311] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0312] Updated identification information for the access network standard;

[0313] The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and radio bearers.

[0314] In one example, when multiple transmission links exist between the terminal device and the core network element, upon receiving the aforementioned data flow detection information, the core network element can determine whether to update the UE's transmission links based on the data flow detection information fed back by the terminal device. If an update is required, the updated QoS flow or the mapping relationship between the data flow and the uplink can be sent to the terminal device via a NAS message. For example, this information may include: a QoS flow identifier and a link identifier, or a data flow identifier and a link identifier, a QoS flow identifier and a standard identifier, or a data flow identifier and a standard identifier.

[0315] In another example, when multiple transmission links exist between the terminal device and the core network element, the core network element, upon receiving the aforementioned data flow detection information, can determine whether to update the UE's transmission link based on the data flow detection information fed back by the terminal device. If an update is required, it can indicate the updated uplink identifier to the UE. After receiving this identifier, the UE changes the link used to transmit the QoS flow or data flow.

[0316] In another example, when there are multiple transmission links between the terminal device and the core network element, the core network element receives the aforementioned data flow detection information and can determine whether to update the UE's transmission link based on the data flow detection information fed back by the terminal device. If an update is required, it can send the updated QoS stream or the mapping relationship between the data stream and the uplink to the base station. After the base station identifies the message content, it can send the information to the UE in at least one of the following ways: RRC message; MAC CE; SDAP control PDU, SDAP data PDU, new protocol layer.

[0317] In another example, when there are multiple transmission links with different network standards between the terminal device and the core network element, the core network element receives the aforementioned data flow detection information and can determine whether to update the UE's transmission link based on the data flow detection information fed back by the terminal device. If an update is required, it can send the updated QoS stream or the data flow-to-standard mapping relationship to the base station. After the base station identifies the message content, it can send the information to the UE in at least one of the following ways: RRC message; MAC CE; SDAP control PDU, SDAP data PDU, new protocol layer.

[0318] For example, taking a network device as a base station, a terminal device receives a sequence of downlink QoS flow data packets sent by the base station. It can determine whether packets are lost based on the sequence, calculate the uplink packet loss rate or packet error rate, and feed it back to the network side, so that the network side can decide whether to update the relevant information.

[0319] Furthermore, when there are multiple links between the terminal device and the base station, the base station configures a one-to-one relationship between QoS flow and the link. When it receives a report of data flow detection information from the terminal device, it decides whether to update the configuration information.

[0320] In one example, taking a network device as a base station, when multiple links exist between the terminal device and the base station, the base station receives data flow detection information. Based on the information currently fed back by the terminal device, the base station decides whether to update the terminal device's transmission link. If an update is needed, it sends the updated QoS flow or the mapping relationship between the data flow and the uplink to the terminal device. For example, this information includes: QoS flow identifier and link identifier or data flow and link identifier. This information can be sent in at least one of the following ways: RRC message; MAC CE; SDAP control PDU, SDAP data PDU, or new protocol layer.

[0321] In another example, taking a network device as a base station, when multiple links exist between the terminal device and the base station, the base station receives data flow detection information. Based on the information currently fed back by the terminal device, the base station decides whether to update the terminal device's transmission link. If an update is needed, it sends the updated QoS flow or data flow-to-standard mapping relationship to the terminal device. For example, this information includes: QoS flow identifier and standard identifier or data flow-to-standard identifier. This information can be sent in at least one of the following ways: RRC message; MAC CE; SDAP control PDU, SDAP data PDU, or new protocol layer.

[0322] In another example, taking a network device as a base station, when multiple links exist between the terminal device and the base station, the base station receives data flow detection information. Based on the information currently fed back by the terminal device, the base station decides whether to update the terminal device's transmission link. If an update is needed, it sends an instruction to the terminal device to change the uplink identifier or change the uplink standard identifier. After receiving this identifier, the terminal device changes the uplink transmission link or standard to transmit the QoS flow or data stream.

[0323] Based on the above technical solution, second information from network devices can be received. This second information directly reflects relevant information about the data stream transmitted by the network devices, thus enabling more accurate network performance detection. Here, compared to performance detection mechanisms that use additional probe data packets, the transmission priority of these packets is typically different from the actual transmitted data stream. This disclosure uses second information, such as sequence numbers, to accurately reflect the transmission priority of the transmitted data stream, thereby determining a more accurate latency. Furthermore, by using the second information of multiple data packets over a period of time, the packet loss rate can be more accurately reflected. Therefore, this technical solution improves the accuracy of network service quality determination.

[0324] Furthermore, the technical solution provided in this disclosure does not require the generation and transmission of additional probe data packets, thus saving network traffic associated with generating and transmitting additional probe data packets and reducing network load.

[0325] In some embodiments, this disclosure also provides another communication method, as shown in FIG6, including:

[0326] S401, Send data packets to the terminal device.

[0327] S402, Send the second information to the terminal device.

[0328] Here, the second information is used to indicate relevant information about the data stream used to transmit data packets from the network device, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0329] In some embodiments, the second information includes or is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0330] The QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow associated with a data packet in the data flow;

[0331] The sequence number of the data packet in the QoS stream;

[0332] The service data stream identifier associated with the service data stream of the data packet;

[0333] The sequence number of the data packet in the service data stream.

[0334] S403, Receive data stream detection information from the terminal device.

[0335] Here, data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data stream.

[0336] In some embodiments, the data stream detection information includes at least one of the following:

[0337] QoS flow identifier used for transmitting data packets in a QoS flow;

[0338] Service data stream identifier used to transmit data packets;

[0339] Packet loss rate;

[0340] The identification information of the first data packet lost within the preset time window;

[0341] Indication information used to indicate whether packet loss has occurred for each data packet;

[0342] Data stream latency information.

[0343] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the data stream detection information further includes at least one of the following:

[0344] Recommended uplink transmission link identification information;

[0345] Recommended identification information for downlink transmission links;

[0346] Recommended uplink access network standard identification information;

[0347] Recommended downlink access network standard identification information.

[0348] In some embodiments, the data stream detection information is received via one of the following:

[0349] Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages, Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) Control PDUs, SDAP Data PDUs, or new protocol layer messages.

[0350] In some embodiments, when the network device is a core network device, data flow detection information is received via RRC messages;

[0351] Here, the data flow detection information is carried in the non-access stratum (NAS) message, the NAS message is carried in the RRC message, and the RRC message includes fourth indication information; the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the NAS message is a message sent to the core network element, and / or, the fourth indication information is used to indicate the identifier of the core network element receiving the NAS message.

[0352] In some embodiments, the data flow detection information is received via an RRC message, for example, an RRC message can be received via a first radio bearer; the data flow detection information is carried in a non-access stratum (NAS) message, and the NAS message is carried in an RRC message; the first radio bearer is a radio bearer associated with a user plane network element in at least one radio bearer, or the first radio bearer is a radio bearer associated with a control plane network element in at least one radio bearer.

[0353] In some embodiments, third information may also be received, which indicates the type or identifier of the NAS message that the terminal device needs to transmit. First configuration information may also be sent, which indicates at least one of the following:

[0354] The NAS messages used by terminal devices for wireless bearer and transmission;

[0355] Mapping relationship between wireless bearer identifiers and NAS message types;

[0356] Mapping relationship between wireless bearer identifiers and NAS message identifiers.

[0357] In some embodiments, a second update information may also be sent to the terminal device, the second update information being used to indicate the updated QoS flow mapping rules.

[0358] In some embodiments, the updated QoS flow mapping rule includes at least one of the following:

[0359] The updated QoS flow mapping to the uplink;

[0360] The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and service data streams;

[0361] Updated uplink identification information;

[0362] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0363] Updated identification information for the access network standard;

[0364] The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and radio bearers.

[0365] In some embodiments, a second configuration information may also be sent to the terminal device. The second configuration information is used to configure the reporting period of the data stream detection information and the reporting triggering conditions of the data stream detection information.

[0366] For a detailed description of steps S401-S403, please refer to the relevant descriptions of steps S301-S303 above, which will not be repeated here.

[0367] Based on the above technical solution, second information can be sent to the terminal device. This second information directly reflects relevant information about the network device's data flow, thus enabling more accurate network performance testing. In other words, this technical solution improves the accuracy of network service quality determination.

[0368] In some embodiments, this disclosure also provides another communication method applied to a terminal device, as shown in FIG7, including:

[0369] S501, Receive third information from network devices.

[0370] Here, the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0371] When the terminal device supports transmission via multiple standards, the third information includes at least one of the following:

[0372] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and access network standard identifier lists;

[0373] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier list of access network standards;

[0374] Recommended access network standard identification information;

[0375] Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information;

[0376] The first condition that must be met when using various access network standards to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0377] Here, the mapping relationship between the QoS flow identifier and the access network standard identifier list can be used to indicate the standard of the QoS flow corresponding to each QoS flow id that can be transmitted. Each QoS flow id can correspond to one or more QoS flow standards.

[0378] The mapping relationship between the identifier of a service data stream and the identifier list of the access network standard can be used to indicate the standard identifier of the data stream corresponding to each service data stream identifier that can be transmitted. Each data stream can correspond to one standard or multiple standards.

[0379] The recommended access network standard identification information is used by network devices to indicate the preferred access network standard for terminal devices.

[0380] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the third information further includes at least one of the following:

[0381] Mapping relationship between QoS streams and transmission links;

[0382] The mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0383] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and the identifier list of transmission links;

[0384] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier lists of transmission links;

[0385] Recommended identification information for the transmission link;

[0386] Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information;

[0387] The second condition that must be met to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams using various transport links.

[0388] In some embodiments, the second condition includes the link's measurement results meeting a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the link's signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate.

[0389] S502, Based on third-party information, send a data stream to the network device.

[0390] In some embodiments, data stream detection information sent by network devices may be received.

[0391] Based on the above technical solution, data streams can be sent based on third information from network devices. This third information can directly reflect the relevant information of the data stream transmitted by the network devices. By combining the actual network performance reflected by the third information, the transmission of the data stream can be more adapted to the current network environment, thereby improving the stability of the data stream transmission.

[0392] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG8, this disclosure also provides another communication method applied to a network device, including:

[0393] S601, Send third information to the terminal device.

[0394] Here, the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0395] In some embodiments, where the terminal device supports transmission via multiple standards, the third information includes at least one of the following:

[0396] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and access network standard identifier lists;

[0397] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier list of access network standards;

[0398] Recommended access network standard identification information;

[0399] Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information;

[0400] The first condition that must be met when using various access network standards to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0401] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the third information further includes at least one of the following:

[0402] Mapping relationship between QoS streams and transmission links;

[0403] The mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0404] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and the identifier list of transmission links;

[0405] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier lists of transmission links;

[0406] Recommended identification information for the transmission link;

[0407] Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information;

[0408] The second condition that must be met to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams using various transport links.

[0409] In some embodiments, the second condition includes the link's measurement results meeting a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the link's signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate.

[0410] S602, Receive data stream sent by terminal device.

[0411] Based on the above technical solution, third information can be sent, which can directly reflect the relevant information of the data stream transmitted by the network device, so as to indicate the actual network performance reflected by the third information to the terminal device, so that the data stream transmission between the network device and the terminal device can be more adapted to the current network environment, thereby improving the stability of the data stream transmission.

[0412] In some embodiments, in conjunction with the above embodiments, the downlink message transmission method of this disclosure may include:

[0413] In one example, taking the aforementioned network device as a base station, the base station sends the downlink message to the terminal device through at least one of the following methods: control PDU SDAP header, data PDU SDAP, or new protocol layer PDU header. Here, the downlink message may include QoS flow or service data flow packet loss rate exceeding alarm indication, downlink identifier replacement indication, etc.

[0414] In another example, taking the aforementioned network device as a core network user plane element, the downlink messages transmitted from the core network user plane element to the terminal device can at least include the following methods:

[0415] Method 1: Core network user plane elements can establish a communication tunnel with wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations). This communication tunnel can be dedicated to transmitting relevant information of the network device. Core network user plane elements generate NAS messages related to the terminal device, which can be transmitted to the wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations) through this tunnel.

[0416] At this point, the wireless network access element (e.g., a base station) can identify the target terminal device and message type of the NAS message based on the tunnel identifier and transmit it to the terminal device via a downlink RRC message. The RRC message can carry the type of the NAS message or the core network element identifier that sent the NAS message. NAS message types include: user plane type messages, control plane type messages, data plane type messages, compute plane type messages, etc. Furthermore, the terminal device can obtain the core network element identifier during the connection establishment phase with the core network element, and subsequently, the UE can use this identifier to confirm the core network element associated with the message or the message type.

[0417] Method 2: Core network user plane elements can establish a communication tunnel with wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations). This communication tunnel can be dedicated to transmitting relevant information of the network device. Core network user plane elements generate NAS messages related to the terminal device, which can be transmitted to the wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations) through this tunnel.

[0418] At this point, the wireless network access element (e.g., a base station) can identify the target terminal device and message type of the NAS message based on the tunnel identifier and transmit it to the terminal device via downlink data bearer. The downlink data bearer can carry the type of the NAS message or the core network element identifier that sent the NAS message. Here, the types of NAS messages include: user plane type messages, control plane type messages, data plane type messages, compute plane type messages, etc. Here, the UE obtains the core network element identifier during the connection establishment phase with the core network element, and subsequently, the UE can confirm the core network element associated with the message or the message type based on this identifier.

[0419] Method 3: Core network user plane elements can establish a communication tunnel with wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations). This communication tunnel can be dedicated to transmitting relevant information of the network device. Core network user plane elements generate NAS messages related to the terminal device, which can be transmitted to the wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations) through this tunnel.

[0420] At this time, the wireless network access element (e.g., base station) can identify the target terminal device and message type of the NAS message based on the tunnel identifier, and send the downlink message (e.g., QoS flow packet loss rate exceeding alarm indication, downlink identifier replacement indication, etc.) to the UE in at least one of the following ways: control PDU SDAP header, data PDU SDAP, or new protocol layer PDU header.

[0421] Method 4: Core network user plane elements can establish a communication tunnel with wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations). This communication tunnel can be dedicated to transmitting relevant information of the network device. Core network user plane elements generate NAS messages related to the terminal device, which can be transmitted to the wireless network access elements (e.g., base stations) through this tunnel.

[0422] At this time, the wireless network access element (such as a base station) can identify the target terminal device and message type of the NAS message based on the tunnel identifier, and transmit the message to the terminal device through downlink data bearer.

[0423] Furthermore, the wireless network access element (e.g., a base station) can configure the mapping relationship between bearers (e.g., data bearers, control bearers, or other new bearers) and NAS messages from core network elements. For example, the base station configures NAS messages from core network user plane elements to be sent through a first bearer, NAS messages from core network session management elements to be sent through a second bearer, NAS messages from core network computing elements to be sent through a third bearer, NAS messages from core network location management elements to be sent through a fourth bearer, and so on. This configuration information is then sent to the UE. Subsequently, when NAS messages from core network elements arrive, the base station sends them to the UE through the associated bearer. The UE determines the type of NAS message or the core network element that sent the message based on the received bearer.

[0424] In some embodiments, in conjunction with the above embodiments, the uplink message transmission method of this disclosure may include:

[0425] Taking the aforementioned network equipment as an example of the core network user plane, terminal devices can send QoS-related information to the core network user plane via NAS messages. Furthermore, NAS messages can be carried via RRC messages; these NAS messages are sent to user plane network elements rather than data plane network elements.

[0426] In one embodiment, a NAS message type indicator can be added to the RRC message carrying the NAS message to indicate that the NAS message is sent to a core network user plane element. If the UE establishes a connection with multiple core network user plane elements, the identifier of the core network user plane element also needs to be carried. Alternatively, the identifier of the core network element associated with the NAS message can be added to the RRC message carrying the NAS message.

[0427] In another embodiment, the base station can configure control plane bearers for the UE to transmit various NAS messages. For example, it can instruct the UE to use a first control plane bearer to transmit NAS messages associated with core network control plane elements, and instruct the UE to use a second control plane bearer to transmit NAS messages associated with core network user plane elements. Furthermore, if the UE has multiple NAS messages, and different NAS messages are sent to different core network elements, such as control panel elements, user plane elements, session management elements, mobility management elements, data management elements, etc., then the UE can report all supported NAS message types or associated core network element identifiers. After receiving this message, the base station configures different mapping relationships between NAS messages and control plane / user plane bearers for the UE. Subsequently, the UE selects the associated bearer for transmission of NAS messages based on this configuration information.

[0428] To achieve the above approach, as shown in Figure 9, a new protocol layer needs to be added to some protocol stacks. This protocol layer terminates at the UE and the core network user plane element, such as the UPF. Here, the Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP), Radio Link Control (RLC), and Media Access Control (MAC) sublayers are terminated by the base station gNB on the network side. The Non-Access Stratum (NAS) is terminated by the UPF on the network side. Furthermore, the UE and the base station gNB can also interact through the physical layer (PHY).

[0429] In another example, the terminal device can send QoS-related information to the base station through at least one of the following methods: a control PDU SDAP header, a data PDU SDAP header, or a new protocol layer PDU header. After receiving the message, the base station then forwards it to the core network user plane element through a communication tunnel (e.g., a GTP tunnel) between the base station and the core network element. Furthermore, it can be transmitted through a PDU session associated with this QoS flow. Further, the base station establishes a tunnel associated with the UE with the core network user plane element for forwarding the NAS message.

[0430] For example, to implement the above approach, some SDAP layers and GTP-U protocols need to be enhanced. Figure 10 illustrates a Uu protocol stack and a user plane protocol stack. Here, the Uu protocol stack, from top to bottom, includes the SDAP layer, PDCP layer, RLC layer, MAC layer, and PHY. The user plane protocol stack, from top to bottom, includes User Plane PDUs, the GPRS Tunneling Protocol for User Plane (GTP-U), the User Datagram Protocol (UDP), the Internet Protocol (IP), the Data Link Layer, and the Physical Layer. In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 11, an enhanced SDAP protocol layer format is illustrated. Here, the D / C field indicates whether it is a data or control PDU. The PDU type indicates the control PDU type and needs to indicate that this is compressed information. Feedback refers to feedback information during data transmission.

[0431] The foregoing primarily describes the solutions provided in this disclosure from the perspective of interaction between various devices or network elements. It is understood that each device or network element, in order to achieve the aforementioned functions, includes corresponding hardware structures and / or software modules for executing each function. Those skilled in the art should readily recognize that, based on the algorithm steps of the examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed in this disclosure, this disclosure can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in hardware or by computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this disclosure.

[0432] This disclosure embodiment can divide the communication device into functional modules according to the above method embodiment. For example, each function can be divided into a separate functional module, or two or more functions can be integrated into one functional module. The integrated module can be implemented in hardware or software. It should be noted that the module division in this disclosure embodiment is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods. The following description uses the example of dividing each functional module according to each function.

[0433] Figure 12 is a block diagram of a communication device according to some embodiments. As shown in Figure 12, the communication device 1200 can be applied to a terminal device and includes a receiving module 1201 and a transmitting module 1202. In some embodiments, it may also include a processing module 1203.

[0434] The receiving module 1201 is used to receive first indication information from the network device;

[0435] The sending module 1202 is used to send first information to the network device based on first indication information. The first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, including quality of service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0436] In some embodiments, the first indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0437] Report the sequence number of the data packets in the data stream;

[0438] The maximum value of the sequence number of the data packet;

[0439] The maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of a data packet;

[0440] Report the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs;

[0441] The service data stream identifier to which the reported data packet belongs;

[0442] Mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0443] Mapping relationship between service data streams and access network standards;

[0444] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and access network standard identifier lists;

[0445] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier list of access network standards;

[0446] Recommended access network standard identification information;

[0447] Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information;

[0448] The first condition that must be met when using various access network standards to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0449] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the first indication information is further used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0450] Mapping relationship between QoS streams and transmission links;

[0451] The mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0452] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and the identifier list of transmission links;

[0453] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier lists of transmission links;

[0454] Recommended identification information for the transmission link;

[0455] Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information;

[0456] The second condition that must be met when using various transmission links to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0457] In some embodiments, the second condition includes the link's measurement results meeting a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the link's signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate.

[0458] In some embodiments, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0459] A list of QoS flow identifiers for the sequence numbers of the data packets to be sent;

[0460] A list of service data stream identifiers for the data packet sequence numbers that need to be sent.

[0461] In some embodiments, the processing module 1203 is configured to reset the QoS flow sequence number when the QoS flow mapping rules change or the user plane network element connected to the terminal device changes.

[0462] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1201 is further configured to receive data flow detection information from a network device, the data flow detection information being used to indicate the transmission quality of QoS flow and / or service data flow;

[0463] Update QoS flow mapping rules based on data flow detection information.

[0464] In some embodiments, the processing module 1203 is further configured to replace the transmission link of the QoS stream and / or replace the transmission link of the service data stream when the data stream detection information indicates that the packet loss rate of the QoS stream or the service data stream is greater than a preset threshold.

[0465] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1201 is further configured to receive an alarm indication sent by the network device, the alarm indication indicating that the packet loss rate of the QoS stream or service data stream is greater than a preset threshold. The processing module 1203 is further configured to, based on the alarm indication, switch the QoS stream or service data stream from the current transmission link to a first transmission link when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the first transmission link being one of the multiple transmission links other than the current transmission link.

[0466] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1201 is further configured to receive second indication information sent by the network device, the second indication information being used to indicate the identifier of the updated uplink transmission link and / or the identifier of the downlink transmission link.

[0467] In some embodiments, the sending module 1202 is further configured to send third indication information when establishing or updating a communication connection, the third indication information being used to indicate the identifiers of multiple transmission links corresponding to the terminal device.

[0468] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1201 is further configured to receive first update information from the network device when the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or service data flow is greater than a preset threshold. The first update information is used to indicate the updated QoS flow mapping rules.

[0469] In some embodiments, the first update information includes at least one of the following:

[0470] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and transmission links;

[0471] The updated mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0472] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0473] The updated mapping relationship between service data streams and access network standards;

[0474] Updated mapping rules between QoS streams and service data streams;

[0475] Updated mapping rules for QoS streams and wireless data bearers.

[0476] For a more detailed description of the receiving module 1201, the transmitting module 1202, and the processing module 1203, as well as a more detailed description of their respective technical features and beneficial effects, please refer to the corresponding method embodiment section above, which will not be repeated here.

[0477] Figure 13 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments, applied to a network device. As shown in Figure 13, the communication device 1300 includes a transmitting module 1301 and a receiving module 1302.

[0478] The sending module 1301 is used to send first indication information to the terminal device;

[0479] The receiving module 1302 is configured to receive first information sent by the terminal device based on first indication information. The first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams from the terminal device, and the data streams include Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0480] In some embodiments, the first indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0481] Report the sequence number of the data packets in the data stream;

[0482] The maximum value of the sequence number of the data packet;

[0483] The maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of a data packet;

[0484] Report the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs;

[0485] The service data stream identifier to which the reported data packet belongs;

[0486] Mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0487] Mapping relationship between service data streams and access network standards;

[0488] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and access network standard identifier lists;

[0489] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier list of access network standards;

[0490] Recommended access network standard identification information;

[0491] Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information;

[0492] The first condition that must be met when using various access network standards to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0493] For a more detailed description of the above-mentioned transmitting module 1301 and receiving module 1302, as well as a more detailed description of their respective technical features and beneficial effects, please refer to the corresponding method embodiment section above, which will not be repeated here.

[0494] Figure 14 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments. As shown in Figure 14, the communication device 1400 can be applied to a terminal device and includes a receiving module 1401 and a transmitting module 1402.

[0495] The receiving module 1401 is used to receive data packets from network devices.

[0496] The receiving module 1401 is further configured to receive second information from the network device. The second information indicates information related to a data stream used for transmitting data packets from the network device, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream.

[0497] The sending module 1402 is used to send data flow detection information to the network device based on the second information; wherein the data flow detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data flow.

[0498] In some embodiments, the second information includes or is used to indicate at least one of the following:

[0499] The QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow associated with a data packet in the data flow;

[0500] The sequence number of the data packet in the QoS stream;

[0501] The service data stream identifier associated with the service data stream of the data packet;

[0502] The sequence number of the data packet in the service data stream.

[0503] In some embodiments, the data stream detection information includes at least one of the following:

[0504] QoS flow identifier used for transmitting data packets in a QoS flow;

[0505] Service data stream identifier used to transmit data packets;

[0506] Packet loss rate;

[0507] The identification information of the first data packet lost within the preset time window;

[0508] Indication information used to indicate whether packet loss has occurred for each data packet;

[0509] Data stream latency information.

[0510] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the data stream detection information further includes at least one of the following:

[0511] Recommended uplink transmission link identification information;

[0512] Recommended identification information for downlink transmission links;

[0513] Recommended uplink access network standard identification information;

[0514] Recommended downlink access network standard identification information.

[0515] In some embodiments, the data stream detection information is sent via one of the following: Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages, Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) Control PDUs, SDAP Data PDUs, or New Protocol Layer messages.

[0516] In some embodiments, when the network device is a core network device, the data flow detection information is sent via an RRC message. The sending module 1402 is specifically used to: carry the data flow detection information in a non-access stratum (NAS) message, the NAS message is carried in an RRC message, and the RRC message includes fourth indication information; wherein, the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the NAS message is a message sent to a core network element, and / or, the fourth indication information is used to indicate the identifier of the core network element receiving the NAS message.

[0517] In some embodiments, data flow detection information is sent via RRC messages. The sending module 1402 is specifically used to: carry the data flow detection information in a non-access stratum (NAS) message, and the NAS message is carried in an RRC message; and send the RRC message through a first radio bearer, wherein the first radio bearer is a radio bearer configured to transmit NAS messages.

[0518] In some embodiments, the sending module 1402 is further configured to send third information, which indicates the type or identifier of the NAS message that the terminal device needs to transmit. The receiving module 1401 is further configured to receive first configuration information, which indicates at least one of the following: the wireless bearer used by the terminal device and the NAS message being transmitted; the mapping relationship between the wireless bearer identifier and the NAS message type; and the mapping relationship between the wireless bearer identifier and the NAS message identifier.

[0519] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1401 is configured to receive second update information sent by the network device, the second update information being used to indicate the updated QoS flow mapping rules.

[0520] In some embodiments, the updated QoS flow mapping rule includes at least one of the following:

[0521] The updated QoS flow mapping to the uplink;

[0522] The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and service data streams;

[0523] Updated uplink identification information;

[0524] The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards;

[0525] Updated identification information for the access network standard;

[0526] The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and radio bearers.

[0527] In some embodiments, the receiving module 1401 is further configured to receive second configuration information from the network device, the second configuration information being used to configure the reporting period of the data flow detection information and the reporting triggering conditions of the data flow detection information.

[0528] For a more detailed description of the receiving module 1401, the transmitting module 1402, and the various technical features thereof, as well as the beneficial effects, please refer to the corresponding method embodiment section above, which will not be repeated here.

[0529] Figure 15 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments, applied to a network device. As shown in Figure 15, the communication device 1500 includes a transmitting module 1501 and a receiving module 1502.

[0530] The sending module 1501 is used to send data packets to the terminal device.

[0531] The sending module 1501 is further configured to send second information to the terminal device; wherein the second information is used to indicate relevant information for data streams used to transmit data packets from the network device, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams;

[0532] The receiving module 1502 is used to receive data stream detection information from the terminal device; wherein the data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data stream.

[0533] For a more detailed description of the above-mentioned transmitting module 1501 and receiving module 1502, as well as a more detailed description of their respective technical features and beneficial effects, please refer to the corresponding method embodiment section above, which will not be repeated here.

[0534] Figure 16 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments. As shown in Figure 16, the communication device 1600 can be applied to a terminal device and includes a receiving module 1601 and a transmitting module 1602.

[0535] The receiving module 1601 is used to receive third information from the network device; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0536] The sending module 1602 is used to send a data stream to a network device based on third information.

[0537] In some embodiments, where the terminal device supports transmission via multiple standards, the third information includes at least one of the following:

[0538] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and access network standard identifier lists;

[0539] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier list of access network standards;

[0540] Recommended access network standard identification information;

[0541] Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information;

[0542] The first condition that must be met when using various access network standards to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams.

[0543] In some embodiments, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the third information further includes at least one of the following:

[0544] Mapping relationship between QoS streams and transmission links;

[0545] The mapping relationship between service data streams and transmission links;

[0546] The mapping relationship between QoS flow identifiers and the identifier list of transmission links;

[0547] The mapping relationship between the identifiers of service data streams and the identifier lists of transmission links;

[0548] Recommended identification information for the transmission link;

[0549] Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information;

[0550] The second condition that must be met to transmit QoS streams and / or service data streams using various transport links.

[0551] In some embodiments, the second condition includes the link's measurement results meeting a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the link's signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate.

[0552] For a more detailed description of the receiving module 1601, the transmitting module 1602, and the various technical features thereof, as well as the beneficial effects, please refer to the corresponding method embodiment section above, which will not be repeated here.

[0553] Figure 17 is a block diagram of another communication device according to some embodiments, applied to a network device. As shown in Figure 17, the communication device 1700 includes a transmitting module 1701 and a receiving module 1702.

[0554] The sending module 1701 is used to send third information to the terminal device; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, the data streams including quality of service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams.

[0555] The receiving module 1702 is used to receive the data stream sent by the terminal device.

[0556] For a more detailed description of the above-mentioned transmitting module 1701 and receiving module 1702, as well as a more detailed description of their respective technical features and beneficial effects, please refer to the corresponding method embodiment section above, which will not be repeated here.

[0557] It should be noted that the modules in Figures 12-17 can also be called units; for example, the transmitting module can be called a transmitting unit. Furthermore, in the embodiments shown in Figures 12-17, the names of the modules may not be those shown in the figures; for example, the transmitting module can also be called a communication module, and the receiving module can also be called a communication module.

[0558] If the units or modules in Figures 12-17 are implemented as software functional modules and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this disclosure, essentially, or the parts that contribute to some technologies, or all or part of the technical solutions, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) or processor to execute all or part of the steps of the methods of the various embodiments of this disclosure. Storage media for storing computer software products include: USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, optical disks, and other media capable of storing program code.

[0559] In the case of implementing the functions of the integrated modules described above in hardware, this disclosure provides a schematic diagram of a communication device 1800, which includes: a processor 1802, a communication interface 1803, and a bus 1804. In some embodiments, the communication device 1800 may further include a memory 1801.

[0560] Processor 1802 may implement or execute various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with this disclosure. Processor 1802 may be a central processing unit, a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It may implement or execute various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with this disclosure. Processor 1802 may also be a combination of functions implementing computation, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a microprocessor.

[0561] The communication interface 1803 is used to connect to other devices via a communication network. This communication network can be Ethernet, wireless access network, wireless local area network (WLAN), etc.

[0562] The memory 1801 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device capable of storing static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device capable of storing information and instructions, or electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and accessible by a computer, but is not limited thereto.

[0563] As one possible implementation, the memory 1801 can exist independently of the processor 1802. The memory 1801 can be connected to the processor 1802 via a bus 1804 and is used to store instructions or program code. When the processor 1802 calls and executes the instructions or program code stored in the memory 1801, it can implement the method provided in the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0564] In another possible implementation, the memory 1801 can also be integrated with the processor 1802.

[0565] Bus 1804 can be an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus, etc. Bus 1804 can be divided into address bus, data bus, control bus, etc. For ease of illustration, only one thick line is used to represent it in Figure 18, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0566] Through the above description of the implementation methods, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, only the division of the above functional modules is used as an example. In actual applications, the above functions can be assigned to different functional modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the equipment or device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above.

[0567] This disclosure also provides a computer-readable storage medium, which includes a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. All or part of the processes in the above method embodiments can be executed by computer instructions instructing related hardware. The program can be stored in the above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium, and when executed, it can include the processes of the above-described method embodiments. The computer-readable storage medium can be any of the foregoing embodiments or memory. The above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium can also be an external storage device of the above-mentioned device or apparatus, such as a plug-in hard disk, smart media card (SMC), secure digital (SD) card, flash card, etc., equipped on the above-mentioned device or apparatus. Further, the above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium can also include both internal storage units of the above-mentioned device or apparatus and external storage devices. The above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium is used to store the above-mentioned computer program and other programs and data required by the above-mentioned device or apparatus. The above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium can also be used to temporarily store data that has been output or will be output.

[0568] This disclosure also provides a computer program product comprising a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform any of the methods provided in the above embodiments.

[0569] Although this disclosure has been described herein in conjunction with various embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand and implement other variations of the disclosed embodiments by reviewing the accompanying drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims in carrying out the claimed disclosure. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit can implement several functions listed in the claims. While different dependent claims may recite certain measures, this does not mean that these measures cannot be combined to produce a good effect.

[0570] Although this disclosure has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments, it will be apparent that various modifications and combinations can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of this disclosure. Accordingly, this specification and drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims and are to be considered as covering any and all modifications, variations, combinations, or equivalents within the scope of this disclosure. It is obvious that those skilled in the art can make various alterations and modifications to this disclosure without departing from its spirit and scope. Thus, this disclosure is also intended to include any such modifications and modifications that fall within the scope of the claims of this disclosure and their equivalents.

[0571] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this disclosure, but the scope of protection of this disclosure is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in this disclosure should be included within the scope of protection of this disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of this disclosure should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

A communication method, wherein, Applied to a terminal device, the method includes: Receive the first instruction information from the network device; Based on the first indication information, first information is sent to the network device, the first information being used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams. According to the method of claim 1, wherein, The first indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following: Report the sequence number of the data packets in the data stream; The maximum value of the sequence number of the data packet; The maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of the data packet; Report the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs; Report the service data stream identifier of the service data stream to which the data packet belongs; The mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards; The mapping relationship between the service data stream and the access network standard; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the QoS flow and the identifier list of the access network standard; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the service data stream and the identifier list of the access network standard; Recommended access network standard identification information; Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information; The first condition that must be met when transmitting the QoS stream and / or service data stream using various access network standards. The method according to claim 2, wherein, When the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the first indication information is also used to indicate at least one of the following: The mapping relationship between the QoS flow and the transmission link; The mapping relationship between the service data stream and the transmission link; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the QoS flow and the identifier list of the transmission link; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the service data stream and the identifier list of the transmission link; Recommended identification information for the transmission link; Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information; The second condition that must be met for transmitting the QoS stream and / or service data stream using various transmission links. The method according to claim 3, wherein, The second condition includes that the measurement results of the link meet a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the following: signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate of the link. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein, The first information includes at least one of the following: A list of QoS flow identifiers for the sequence numbers of the data packets to be sent; A list of service data stream identifiers for the data packet sequence numbers that need to be sent. The method according to claim 2 or 5, wherein, The method further includes: If the QoS flow mapping rules change, or if the user plane network element connected to the terminal device changes, the QoS flow sequence number is reset. According to the method of claim 1, wherein, The method further includes: Receive data stream detection information from the network device, the data stream detection information being used to indicate the transmission quality of the QoS stream and / or the service data stream; The QoS flow mapping rules are updated based on the data flow detection information. The method according to claim 7, wherein, The method further includes: If the data stream detection information indicates that the packet loss rate of the QoS stream or the service data stream is greater than a preset threshold, the transmission link of the QoS stream is replaced, and / or the transmission link of the service data stream is replaced. The method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein, The method further includes: The network device receives an alarm indication, which indicates that the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or the service data flow is greater than a preset threshold. Based on the alarm indication, when the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the QoS stream or service data stream is switched from the current transmission link to the first transmission link, where the first transmission link is one of the multiple transmission links other than the current transmission link. The method according to claim 7, wherein, The method further includes: The system receives a second indication message sent by the network device, the second indication message being used to indicate the updated identifier of the uplink transmission link and / or the identifier of the downlink transmission link. The method according to claim 7, wherein, The method further includes: When establishing or updating a communication connection, a third indication message is sent, which is used to indicate the identifiers of multiple transmission links corresponding to the terminal device. The method according to claim 7, wherein, The method further includes: If the packet loss rate of the QoS flow or the service data flow is greater than a preset threshold, first update information is received from the network device, and the first update information is used to indicate the updated QoS flow mapping rules. The method according to claim 12, wherein, The first update information includes at least one of the following: The updated mapping relationship between the QoS flow and the transmission link; The updated mapping relationship between the service data stream and the transmission link; The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards; The updated mapping relationship between the service data stream and the access network standard; Updated mapping rules between QoS streams and service data streams; Updated mapping rules for QoS streams and wireless data bearers. A communication method, wherein, Applied to network devices, the method includes: Send the first instruction information to the terminal device; The terminal device receives first information sent based on the first indication information. The first information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting a data stream from the terminal device, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream. The method according to claim 14, wherein, The first indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following: Report the sequence number of the data packets in the data stream; The maximum value of the sequence number of the data packet; The maximum number of bits occupied by the sequence number of the data packet; Report the QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow to which the data packet belongs; Report the service data stream identifier of the service data stream to which the data packet belongs; The mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards; The mapping relationship between the service data stream and the access network standard; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the QoS flow and the identifier list of the access network standard; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the service data stream and the identifier list of the access network standard; Recommended access network standard identification information; Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information; The first condition that must be met when transmitting the QoS stream and / or service data stream using various access network standards. A communication method, wherein, Applied to a terminal device, the method includes: Receive data packets from network devices; Receive second information from a network device; wherein the second information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams from the network device, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams; Based on the second information, data flow detection information is sent to the network device; wherein the data flow detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data flow. The method according to claim 16, wherein, The second information includes or is used to indicate at least one of the following: The QoS flow identifier of the QoS flow associated with the data packets in the data flow; The sequence number of the data packet in the QoS stream; The service data stream identifier associated with the service data stream of the data packet; The sequence number of the data packet in the service data stream. The method according to claim 16, wherein, The data stream detection information includes at least one of the following: QoS flow identifier for the QoS flow used to transmit the data packets; Service data stream identifier used to transmit the data packet; Packet loss rate; The identification information of the first data packet lost within the preset time window; Indication information used to indicate whether packet loss has occurred for each data packet; The latency information of the data stream. The method according to claim 18, wherein, When the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the data stream detection information further includes at least one of the following: Recommended uplink transmission link identification information; Recommended identification information for downlink transmission links; Recommended uplink access network standard identification information; Recommended downlink access network standard identification information. The method according to any one of claims 16-19, wherein, The data stream detection information is sent via one of the following methods: Radio Resource Control (RRC) messages, Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP) Control PDUs, SDAP Data PDUs, or new protocol layer messages. The method according to claim 20, wherein, When the network device is a core network device, the data flow detection information is sent via RRC messages, including: The data stream detection information is carried in a non-access stratum (NAS) message, the NAS message is carried in the RRC message, and the RRC message includes fourth indication information; Wherein, the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the NAS message is a message sent to a core network element, and / or, the fourth indication information is used to indicate the identifier of the core network element receiving the NAS message. The method according to claim 21, wherein, The data stream detection information is sent via RRC messages, including: The data stream detection information is carried in a non-access stratum (NAS) message, and the NAS message is carried in the RRC message; The RRC message is sent via a first wireless bearer, which is a wireless bearer configured to transmit the NAS message. The method according to claim 22, wherein, The method further includes: Send a third message, the third message being used to indicate the type or identifier of the NAS message that the terminal device needs to transmit; Receive first configuration information, the first configuration information being used to indicate at least one of the following: The terminal device uses wireless bearers and transmits NAS messages. Mapping relationship between wireless bearer identifiers and NAS message types; Mapping relationship between wireless bearer identifiers and NAS message identifiers. The method according to any one of claims 16-23, wherein, The method further includes: The system receives a second update message sent by the network device, the second update message being used to indicate the updated QoS flow mapping rules. The method according to claim 24, wherein, The updated QoS flow mapping rule includes at least one of the following: The updated QoS flow mapping to the uplink; The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and service data streams; Updated uplink identification information; The updated mapping relationship between QoS flows and access network standards; Updated identification information for the access network standard; The updated mapping relationship between QoS streams and radio bearers. The method according to claim 16, wherein, The method further includes: The system receives second configuration information from the network device, the second configuration information being used to configure the reporting period of the data flow detection information and the reporting triggering conditions of the data flow detection information. A communication method, wherein, Applied to network devices, the method includes: Send data packets to the terminal device; Send second information to the terminal device; wherein the second information is used to indicate relevant information for a data stream used to transmit data packets from a network device, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream; Receive data stream detection information from the terminal device; wherein the data stream detection information is used to indicate the transmission quality of the data stream. A communication method, wherein, Applied to a terminal device, the method includes: Receive third information from a network device; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting a data stream, the data stream including a Quality of Service (QoS) stream and / or a service data stream; Based on the third information, a data stream is sent to the network device. The method according to claim 28, wherein, When the terminal device supports transmission via multiple standards, the third information includes at least one of the following: The mapping relationship between the identifier of the QoS flow and the identifier list of the access network standard; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the service data stream and the identifier list of the access network standard; Recommended access network standard identification information; Determine the access network standard based on QoS detection information; The first condition that must be met when transmitting the QoS stream and / or service data stream using various access network standards. The method according to claim 28, wherein, When the terminal device corresponds to multiple transmission links, the third information further includes at least one of the following: The mapping relationship between the QoS flow and the transmission link; The mapping relationship between the service data stream and the transmission link; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the QoS flow and the identifier list of the transmission link; The mapping relationship between the identifier of the service data stream and the identifier list of the transmission link; Recommended identification information for the transmission link; Determine the transmission link based on QoS detection information; The second condition that must be met for transmitting the QoS stream and / or service data stream using each transport link. The method according to claim 30, wherein, The second condition includes that the measurement results of the transmission link meet a preset threshold, and the measurement results include at least one of the following: signal-to-dryness ratio, transmission delay, packet loss rate, and packet error rate of the transmission link. A communication method, wherein, Applied to network devices, the method includes: Send third information to the terminal device; wherein the third information is used to indicate relevant information for transmitting data streams, the data streams including Quality of Service (QoS) streams and / or service data streams; Receive the data stream sent by the terminal device. A communication device, wherein, include: Memory and processor; Memory and processor are coupled; The memory is used to store instructions that can be executed by the processor; When the processor executes the instructions, it performs the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 32. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein, The computer-readable storage medium includes a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium on which computer instructions are stored, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 32. A computer program product, wherein, The computer program product includes computer instructions that, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 32.

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