Patent Description:
The Fifth Generation (<NUM>) New Radio (NR) standard under development by the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is being designed to provide service for multiple use cases, such as Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB), Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communication (URLLC), and Machine-Type Communication (MTC). Each of these services has different technical requirements. For example, the general requirement for eMBB is high data rate with moderate latency and moderate coverage; URLLC service requires low latency and high reliability transmission with moderate data rates; and MTC tolerates low data rates, but requires high coverage and the ability to support massive numbers of devices.

One of the features to support these use cases is Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet duplication as specified in 3GPP Technical Standard (TS) <NUM> v16. <NUM>, § <NUM>. For high reliability and low latency - such as required by URLLC services - the network can configure multiple independent transmission paths between two endpoints. Packet Data Units (PDUs) to be transmitted are duplicated, and a separate copy transmitted on each path. At the convergence point, the first PDU to arrive is forwarded, and duplicates are discarded. In this manner, a delay or loss on one path does not prevent the timely delivery of data.

In particular, when PDCP packet duplication is configured for a Data Radio Bearer (DRB), at least one secondary Radio Link Control (RLC) entity, in addition to the primary RLC entity, is added to the DRB to handle the duplicated PDCP PDUs. The logical channel (LCH) corresponding to the primary RLC entity is referred to as the primary LCH, and the LCH corresponding to a secondary RLC entity is referred to as a secondary LCH. A wireless device can be configured with multiple secondary RLC entities. When PDCP packet duplication is configured, the same PDCP PDUs are submitted multiple times - once to each activated RLC entity for the radio bearer. By providing multiple independent transmission paths, PDCP packet duplication increases reliability and reduces latency.

PDCP packet duplication is possible in Dual Connectivity (DC) and Carrier Aggregation (CA) protocol architectures. Both Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling and Medium Access Control (MAC) Control Elements (CEs) can be used to control activation/deactivation of packet duplication by the UE in uplink (UL) by the base station (gNB).

In the <NUM> Quality of Service (QoS) framework, a QoS flow is established in the <NUM> system and can be mapped to a DRB. The QoS flow is associated with QoS parameters (<NUM> QoS Identifier (5Ql) values) such as Packet Delay Budget (PDB). The <NUM> Radio Access Network (RAN) scheduling packets of this QoS flow (mapped to a DRB in <NUM> RAN) shall thus deliver packets within this PDB.

Another metric important in the URLLC communication context, related to PDB, is so-called "survival time. " According to 3GPP TS <NUM> v18. <NUM>, survival time is defined as the time that an application consuming a communication service may continue without an anticipated message. The message is expected to be received by the application no later than at the end of the PDB, and the survival time is the maximum additional time that a message is expected after the PDB expires.

For Time Sensitive Communication (TSC) traffic types (typical in industrial automation, autonomous vehicles, and other URLLC type communications), 3GPP TS <NUM> v17. <NUM> specifies TSC Assistance Information (TSCAI) signaling, which provides further information on the QoS flow traffic from the <NUM> core network to a RAN. This signaling includes information on UL/DL direction, periodicity, arrival time of a burst of data in this flow, and the survival time. See table <NUM>. <NUM>-<NUM> in the 3GPP TS <NUM> v17. <NUM>, reproduced below:.

The survival time is typically expressed as an integer number of periodicities of the incoming traffic. Knowledge of the survival time can be beneficial for a gNB to opportunistically schedule a least an amount of radio resources to meet the QoS requirement of the traffic.

<FIG> depicts such an additional allocation of radio resources to meet QoS for a known survival time. The network schedules radio resources with normal allocation of Physical.

Resource Blocks (PRB) for the incoming packets with a nominal Packet Error Rate (PER) target. If a packet is not delivered within the Packet Delay Budget (PDB), causing the application to enter survival time mode, more radio resources are allocated for subsequent packets so that those packets are delivered within the survival time. In the example of <FIG>, assume the first message is lost and not delivered to the application (as indicated by the dashed lines). This starts the survival time. The gNB allocates additional resources, and the second message is delivered on time - that is, within the PDB. After successfully receiving one packet within the survival time, the application exits survival time mode, and resource allocations can return to the normal case, e.g., for delivery of the third message.

The network can transmit a dynamic re-scheduling commands (e.g., dynamic UL grant or DL assignments) to allocate more resources for the subsequent packets. The dynamic re-scheduling commands can only schedule transmission resources for subsequent packets on the same cell as the initial transmission. In the case of re-allocating the resources for the UL configured grant (CG) and DL Semi-Persistent Scheduling (SPS), it is restricted in the cell in which CG and SPS are configured. These restrictions can be insufficient to deliver the subsequent packets within the survival time if this cell may be subject to blocking (e.g., in FR2).

PDCP duplication on another cell is known to provide diversity gain and boost the packet transmission reliability. However, PDCP duplication is activated only by the MAC CE or the RRC configuration, both of which are slow and not suitable for the case in which the survival time is short (e.g., <NUM> millisecond).

The Background section of this document is provided to place aspects of the present disclosure in technological and operational context, to assist those of skill in the art in understanding their scope and utility. Approaches described in the Background section could be pursued, but are not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Unless explicitly identified as such, no statement herein is admitted to be prior art merely by its inclusion in the Background section.

<CIT> mentions apparatuses, methods, and systems for autonomous packet duplication and retransmission.

<CIT> relates to methods and apparatuses for transmitting data duplication in a wireless communication system.

<CIT> relates to improvements for PDCP duplication to achieve higher reliability on data transmission.

The following presents a simplified summary of the disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding to those of skill in the art. This summary is not an extensive overview of the disclosure and is not intended to identify key/critical elements of aspects of the disclosure or to delineate the scope of the disclosure. The sole purpose of this summary is to present some concepts disclosed herein in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.

According to aspects of the present disclosure disclosed and claimed herein, fast activation of PDCP duplication resources is enabled by deliberately scheduling at least one duplication leg for which transmission resources are not available. Stale packets, (not transmitted due to a lack of resources) are discarded, so the current packet is always at the top of the queue. That PDCP duplication leg can then be activated quickly when needed, as it has already been configured.

In particular, the network configures and (proactively) activates PDCP duplication with several duplication legs. For at least one PDCP duplication leg, the network configures a logical channel prioritization (LCP) restriction, so that the logical channel in that duplication leg is restricted to be transmitted on resources that are not always available for the UE to utilize. The network configures a discard timer so that the old/stale packets are discarded, meaning those packets for which a PDCP duplication is activated, but no transmission resources were available. As a result, when resources are made available by the network, only the latest PDCP duplicate packet from the UE will be transmitted.

There are two variants for the resource allocation by the network. First, the resource is not activated beforehand, and, if entering the survival time, the network dynamically can transmit a DCI command (e.g., the CG type <NUM> activation or dynamic grant with a specific PHY-priority-index) to allocate these resources for the UE to actually transmit data packets on the configured PDCP duplication leg. Second, the resource is activated beforehand, but scarcely, such that it occurs (i.e., is available) every N-th packet, and so there is a duplication for every N-th packet.

One aspect relates to a method, performed by a wireless device operative in a wireless communication network, for transmitting uplink data packets in a data flow implementing Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet duplication. A first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity is operated as a first PDCP duplication leg, and a second RLC entity is operated as a second PDCP duplication leg. Upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg, a discard timer having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet is started. In response to the unavailability of radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, each packet is discarded, without transmitting it, at the expiration of the discard timer. In response to the network allocating radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, data packets are transmitted to the network utilizing the allocated radio resources.

Another aspect relates to a method, performed by a base station operative in a wireless communication network, for controlling the transmission of uplink data packets in a data flow implementing Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet duplication. A first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity is configured as a first PDCP duplication leg in a wireless device operative in the wireless communication network. A second RLC entity is configured as a second PDCP duplication leg in the wireless device. A discard timer in the wireless device is configured to be started upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg, the discard timer having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet. In response to timely receiving data packets from the second PDCP duplication leg, radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg are not allocated. In response to failing to timely receive a data packet from the second PDCP duplication leg, radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg are allocated and data packets from the first PDCP duplication leg are received.

Yet another aspect relates to a UE operative in a wireless communication network to transmit uplink data packets in a data flow implementing Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet duplication. The UE includes communication circuitry configured to wirelessly transmit and receive signals, and processing circuitry operatively connected to the communication circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to operate a first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity as a first PDCP duplication leg, and a second RLC entity as a second PDCP duplication leg; upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg, start a discard timer having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet; in response to the unavailability of radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, discard each packet, without transmitting it, at the expiration of the discard timer; and in response to the network allocating radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, transmit data packets to the network utilizing the allocated radio resources.

Still another aspect relates to a base station operative in a wireless communication network to control the transmission of uplink data packets in a data flow implementing Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet duplication. The base station includes communication circuitry configured to wirelessly transmit and receive signals, and processing circuitry operatively connected to the communication circuitry. The processing circuitry is configured to configure a first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity as a first PDCP duplication leg in a wireless device operative in the wireless communication network and a second RLC entity as a second PDCP duplication leg in the wireless device; configure a discard timer in the wireless device to be started upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg, the discard timer having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet; in response to timely receiving data packets from the second PDCP duplication leg, not allocate radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg; and in response to failing to timely receive a data packet from the second PDCP duplication leg, allocate radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg.

The present disclosure will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which aspects of the disclosure are shown. However, this disclosure should not be construed as limited to the aspects set forth herein.

For simplicity and illustrative purposes, the present disclosure is described by referring mainly to one or more exemplary aspects thereof. However, it will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that the present disclosure may be practiced without limitation to these specific details. In this description, well known methods and structures have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure the present disclosure.

In the following discussion, for simplicity and without loss of generalization, it is assumed that there is a single packet within one burst period of a TSN QoS flow, and it is mapped to one PDCP Service Data Unit (SDU).

According to aspects disclosed herein, the network configures and activates at least first and second PDCP duplication legs for a Data Radio Bearer (DRB), and configures a discard timer equal to the packet delay budget (PDB) of the DRB. In one aspect, the discard timer may be a PDCP discard timer; in another aspect, the discard timer may be a RLC discard timer associated with a PDCP duplication leg.

The purpose of the discard timer is to allow the transmitter to discard the packet that has been delayed more than the PDB - in other words, the packet that would not meet its PDB.

In one aspect, the discarding mechanism applies only to a first PDCP duplication leg, for which intentional lack of resources is expected. This way, in the case that no resources are allocated for the first PDCP duplication leg, packets are quickly discarded. On the other hand, packets still have the chance to be transmitted eventually via a different PDCP duplication leg, e.g., a second PDCP duplication leg, which does not discard packets as quickly. According to current specifications, PDCP discard is indicated to all duplication legs (RLC entities) for discarding packets already transmitted to these RLC entities. According to aspects of the present disclosure, however, the discarding indication is only provided to certain RLC entities, and is not provided to other RLC entities.

From the Burst Arrival Time (BAT) parameter in the TSCAI, an arrival time jitter for the packet can be determined, and the BAT captures the latest possible time when the packet arrives at the RAN or UE. In other words, the packet may arrive at any time before the BAT. It is understood that the above discard timers in the 3GPP standards start at the actual packet arrival time at the relevant protocol layers (e.g., PDCP discard timers at the PDCP layer, and RLC discard timers at the RLC layer). When considering the uplink case, the survival time at the network may start at the end of the BAT plus the PDB, and therefore does not consider the actual packet arrival time at the UE. Aspects disclosed herein take into account these differences between the RAN and UE regarding actual packet arrival time, and may only work in the case that the PDB is shorter than the packet periodicity.

In one aspect, the start of the discard timer is aligned with the actual packet arrival time at the PDCP/RLC layer of the UE/gNB. The value of the discard timer is set longer than the PDB; the principle is to set the discard timer to account for the packet arrival jitter. This ensures that the packet is not unnecessarily discarded, and does not interfere with transmission of the packet in the next period. For example, the discard timer can be set to the time difference between BAT (the latest possible time when a packet can arrive within the current period) and the earliest possible time the next packet can arrive within the next period.

In another aspect, the start of the discard timer is aligned with the BAT in the TSCAI parameter, not the actual packet arrival time at the PDCP/RLC layer of the UE/gNB. This is achieved by specifying that the UE shall start the discard timer when the PDCP/RLC packet is delivered to the lower layer for transmission. The network shall configure periodic resources (for transmission of the first duplicate or original), where at least one periodic resource occurs at time BAT and the remaining resources occur periodically according to the periodicity parameter in the TSCAI.

As one option, for the case where the discard timer is started periodically at BAT, the BAT and periodicity are indicated from the network to the UE.

In some aspects, PDCP duplication is enabled by DCI command.

In these aspects, the network additionally configures Logical Channel Prioritization (LCP) restrictions so that some LCHs for PDCP duplication (i.e., duplication legs) are restricted to being transmitted using a specific set of resources. When resources for any given duplication leg are not available to the UE, the RLC packets ready for transmission thereon are not transmitted, and are discarded after PDB per the discard timer configurations.

One example of such an LCP restriction is that the LCH is restricted to only being transmitted on a configured CG, but the CG is not active.

Another example is that the LCH is restricted to only being transmitted on a dynamic grant with priority index p1 (i.e., a higher PHY priority index grant intended for URLLC service), but the network does not transmit the dynamic grant with priority index p1.

When a survival time mode is entered (e.g., the network does not receive a packet at the expected time instance for UL periodic traffic, e.g., from a PDCP duplication leg that has network resources allocated to it), then the network transmits DCI commands to enable data packet transmission on configured PDCP duplication legs which have not been allocated resources. For the first example above, a CG activation DCI command is issued to activate the CGs that were not activated. For the second example above, the network issues a dynamic grant with priority index p1. This allows the PDCP duplication to be enabled for those duplication legs. Since the previous packets were discarded after the PDB timer expired, they do not block the transmission of the subsequent packets.

When the survival time mode is exited (e.g., the network receives a packet at the expected time instance for UL periodic traffic), then the network may transmit a CG de-activation DCI command to de-activate some activated CGs, or stop transmitting the dynamic grant with priority index p1. This allows the PDCP duplication not to be used, thereby preserving the radio resources. The de-activation by DCI also allows a faster activation by DCI in a later valid survival time mode. Additionally, the network can independently choose to de-activate CGs, i.e., the de-activated CGs do not necessarily need to be the ones that were activated in the previous survival time mode. This allows the network to recover the links on the cells that were failed in the first place (e.g., beam failure recovery).

Without loss of generality, an example of a PDCP duplication with two legs is presented below. This can be extended to a PDCP duplication with more than two legs, in which the method can be applied to any subset of PDCP duplication legs.

In some aspects, PDCP duplication is pro-actively enabled every N-th PDCP SDUs.

In these aspects, the network additionally configures Logical Channel Prioritization (LCP) restrictions so that some LCHs for PDCP duplication are restricted to be transmitted only on resources that are configured to be available only every N-th PDCP SDU. By this configuration, the RLC packets on these duplication legs are not transmitted and are discarded after PDB per the discard timer configurations if no resources are provided and, as a result, the PDCP duplication is enabled only every N-th time (i.e., a duplicate is only transmitted for every N-th PDCP SDU).

One example of such an LCP restriction is that the LCH is restricted to be transmitted on a configured and activated CG whose periodicity is N * the periodicity of the traffic.

Another example is that the LCH is restricted to be transmitted on a dynamic grant with priority index p1 (i.e., a higher PHY priority index grant intended for URLLC service), and the network transmit such a dynamic grant periodically, wherein the periodicity is equal N * the periodicity of the traffic.

<FIG> depicts a state diagram of a network (e.g., the RAN) transitioning into and out of survival time mode, and the network actions taken in each state and at the transitions. When the network is not in survival time mode - that is, periodic packets in a TSC QoS flow are received within their PDBs - the network configures and activates PDCP duplication. The network configures a discard timer for each duplication leg. For at least one duplication leg, the discard timer is at least equal to the PDB, and is less than the arrival time of a next packet (e.g., determined from the periodicity parameter in a TSCAI). The network configures an LCP restriction for a logical channel in at least one duplication leg, such that transmission is limited to radio resources that are currently intentionally unavailable - e.g., dependent on a configured but not activated CG. Throughout the time the network is not in survival time mode, in response to the discard timer and the unavailability of specified radio resources, the UE receives and discards packets in the restricted PDCP duplication leg, such that no packets are transmitted from that duplication leg, and only a current packet is ready to transmit from that duplication leg at any time.

Upon detecting a message not received within the PDB, the network enters survival time mode. In survival time mode, the network activates the radio resources for the restricted PDCP duplication leg - e.g., activating the configured but heretofore non-activated CG. In response to the CG, the UE transmits packets on the restricted PDCP duplication leg. The packets are current because prior packets were discarded at or after the expiration of their PDB. The addition of radio resources (i.e., activation of the restricted PDCP duplication leg) to address the survival time situation is very fast - i.e., transmitting a CG in a DCI - particularly as compared to an RRC message or a MAC CE.

When the network detects a message received within the PDB, it exits survival time mode. The network deactivates radio resources for the restricted PDCP duplication leg - e.g., de-activating the configured CG. In response, the UE ceases transmitting packets in the restricted PDCP duplication leg, but continues transmitting packets in non-restricted PDCP duplication leg(s). The UE discards packets in the restricted PDCP duplication leg without transmitting them, so that only a current packet is ready to transmit at any time.

<FIG> depicts a method <NUM> in accordance with particular aspects. The method <NUM> is performed by a wireless device operative in a wireless communication network. The method <NUM> is a method of transmitting uplink data packets in a data flow implementing Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet duplication. A first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity is operated as a first PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>), and a second RLC entity is operated as a second PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>). Upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>), a discard timer, having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet, is started (block <NUM>). In response to the unavailability of radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>), upon the expiration of the discard timer (block <NUM>) each packet is discarded, without transmitting it (block <NUM>). In response to the network allocating radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>), data packets are transmitted to the network utilizing the allocated radio resources (block <NUM>).

<FIG> depicts a method <NUM> in accordance with other particular aspects. The method <NUM> is performed by a base station operative in a wireless communication network. The method <NUM> is a method of controlling the transmission of uplink data packets in a data flow implementing Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP) packet duplication. A first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity is configured as a first PDCP duplication leg in a wireless device operative in the wireless communication network (block <NUM>), and a second RLC entity is configured as a second PDCP duplication leg in the wireless device (block <NUM>). A discard timer is configured in the wireless device to be started upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>). The discard timer has a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet. In response to timely receiving data packets from the second PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>), radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg are not allocated (block <NUM>). In response to failing to timely receive a data packet from the second PDCP duplication leg (block <NUM>), radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg are allocated, and data packets from the first PDCP duplication leg are received (block <NUM>).

Note that apparatuses described herein may perform the methods <NUM>, <NUM> herein and any other processing by implementing any functional means, modules, units, or circuitry. In one aspect, for example, the apparatuses comprise respective circuits or circuitry configured to perform the steps shown in the method figures. The circuits or circuitry in this regard may comprise circuits dedicated to performing certain functional processing and/or one or more microprocessors in conjunction with memory. For instance, the circuitry may include one or more microprocessor or microcontrollers, as well as other digital hardware, which may include digital signal processors (DSPs), special-purpose digital logic, and the like. The processing circuitry may be configured to execute program code stored in memory, which may include one or several types of memory such as read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory, cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. Program code stored in memory may include program instructions for executing one or more telecommunications and/or data communications protocols as well as instructions for carrying out one or more of the techniques described herein, in several aspects. In aspects that employ memory, the memory stores program code that, when executed by the one or more processors, carries out the techniques described herein.

<FIG> for example illustrates a hardware block diagram of a wireless device <NUM> as implemented in accordance with one or more aspects. A wireless device <NUM> is any type of device capable of communicating with a network node and/or access point using radio signals. A wireless device <NUM> may therefore refer to a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, a machine-type communications (MTC) device, a Narrowband Internet of Things (NB loT) device, etc. The wireless device <NUM> may also be referred to as a User Equipment (UE), such as a cellular telephone or "smartphone," however, the term UE should be understood to encompass any wireless device <NUM>. A wireless device <NUM> may also be referred to as a radio device, a radio communication device, a wireless device, a wireless terminal, or simply a terminal - unless the context indicates otherwise, the use of any of these terms is intended to include device-to-device UEs or devices, machine-type devices, or devices capable of machine-to-machine communication, sensors equipped with a wireless device, wireless-enabled table computers, mobile terminals, smart phones, laptop-embedded equipped (LEE), laptop-mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles, wireless customer-premises equipment (CPE), etc. In the discussion herein, the terms machine-to-machine (M2M) device, machine-type communication (MTC) device, wireless sensor, and sensor may also be used. It should be understood that these devices, although referred to as UEs, but may be configured to transmit and/or receive data without direct human interaction.

In some aspects, the wireless device <NUM> includes a user interface <NUM> (display, touchscreen, keyboard or keypad, microphone, speaker, and the like); in other aspects, such as in many M2M, MTC, or NB loT scenarios, the wireless device <NUM> may include only a minimal, or no, user interface <NUM> (as indicated by the dashed lines of block <NUM> in <FIG>). The wireless device <NUM> also includes processing circuitry <NUM>; memory <NUM>; and communication circuitry <NUM> connected to one or more antennas <NUM>, to effect wireless communication across an air interface to one or more radio network nodes, such as a base station, and/or access points. As indicated by the dashed lines, the antenna(s) <NUM> may protrude externally from the wireless device <NUM>, or the antenna(s) <NUM> may be internal. In some aspects, a wireless device <NUM> may include a sophisticated user interface <NUM>, and may additionally include features such as a camera, accelerometer, satellite navigation signal receiver circuitry, vibrating motor, and the like (not depicted in <FIG>).

According to aspects of the present disclosure, the memory <NUM> is operative to store, and the processing circuitry <NUM> operative to execute, software which when executed is operative to cause the wireless device <NUM> to transmit packets for a TCS QoS flow from a first PDCP duplication leg using restricted radio resources when the network is in survival time mode. In particular, the software, when executed on the processing circuitry <NUM>, is operative to perform the method <NUM> described and claimed herein. The processing circuitry <NUM> in this regard may implement certain functional means, units, or modules.

<FIG> illustrates a functional block diagram of a wireless device <NUM> in a wireless network according to still other aspects. As shown, the wireless device <NUM> implements various functional means, units, or modules, e.g., via the processing circuitry <NUM> in <FIG> and/or via software code. These functional means, units, or modules, e.g., for implementing the method(s) herein, include for instance: a PDCP duplication leg operating unit <NUM>, a packet discarding unit <NUM>, and a packet transmitting unit <NUM>.

The network PDCP duplication leg operating unit <NUM> is configured to operate a first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity as a first PDCP duplication leg, and a second RLP entity as a second PDCP duplication leg. The packet discarding unit <NUM> is configured to, upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg, start a discard timer having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet, and in response to the unavailability of radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, discard each packet, without transmitting it, at the expiration of the discard timer. The packet transmitting unit <NUM> is configured to, in response to the network allocating radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, transmit data packets to the network utilizing the allocated radio resources.

<FIG> depicts a hardware block diagram of a base station <NUM> operative in a wireless communication network. The base station <NUM> includes processing circuitry <NUM>; memory <NUM>; and communication circuitry <NUM> connected to one or more antennas <NUM>, to effect wireless communication across an air interface to one or more wireless devices <NUM>. As indicated by the broken connection to the antenna(s) <NUM>, the antenna(s) <NUM> may be physically located separately from the base station <NUM>, such as mounted on a tower, building, or the like. Although the memory <NUM> is depicted as being internal to the processing circuitry <NUM>, those of skill in the art understand that the memory <NUM> may also be external. Those of skill in the art additionally understand that virtualization techniques allow some functions nominally executed by the processing circuitry <NUM> to actually be executed by other hardware, perhaps remotely located (e.g., in the so-called "cloud"). The base station <NUM> is known in LTE as an eNodeB or eNB, and in New Radio (NR) as gNB. In general, in other wireless communication networks, the base station <NUM> may be known as a Radio Base Station, Base Transceiver Station, Access Point, or the like.

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, the processing circuitry <NUM> is operative to cause the base station <NUM> to enter survival time mode upon detecting a missed packet in a TCS QoS flow, and in response to allocate additional radio resources to the TCS QoS flow until a packet is received within a Packet Delay Budget (PDB). In particular, the processing circuitry <NUM> is operative to perform the method <NUM> described and claimed herein. The processing circuitry <NUM> in this regard may implement certain functional means, units, or modules.

<FIG> illustrates a functional block diagram of a base station <NUM> in a wireless network according to still other aspects. As shown, the base station <NUM> implements various functional means, units, or modules, e.g., via the processing circuitry <NUM> in <FIG> and/or via software code. These functional means, units, or modules, e.g., for implementing the method <NUM> herein, include for instance: PDCP duplication leg configuring unit <NUM>, discard timer configuring unit <NUM>, packet arrival monitoring unit <NUM>, and radio resource (de)allocating unit <NUM>.

The PDCP duplication leg configuring unit <NUM> is configured to configure a first Radio Link Control (RLC) entity as a first PDCP duplication leg in a wireless device operative in the wireless communication network, and to configure a second RLC entity as a second PDCP duplication leg in the wireless device. The discard timer configuring unit <NUM> is configured to configure a discard timer in the wireless device to be started upon the actual or estimated arrival of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg, the discard timer having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet. The packet arrival monitoring unit <NUM> is configured to monitor the arrival of packets from the first and second PDCP duplication legs. The radio resource (de)allocating unit <NUM> is configured to, in response to timely receiving data packets from the second PDCP duplication leg, not allocate radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg; and in response to not timely receiving data packets from the second PDCP duplication leg, allocate radio resources associated with the first PDCP duplication leg and receive data packets from the first PDCP duplication leg.

Those skilled in the art will also appreciate that aspects herein further include corresponding computer programs.

A computer program comprises instructions which, when executed on at least one processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to carry out any of the respective processing described above. A computer program in this regard may comprise one or more code modules corresponding to the means or units described above.

Aspects further include a carrier containing such a computer program.

In this regard, aspects herein also include a computer program product stored on a non-transitory computer readable (storage or recording) medium and comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor of an apparatus, cause the apparatus to perform as described above.

Aspects further include a computer program product comprising program code portions for performing the steps of any of the aspects herein when the computer program product is executed by a computing device.

Although the subject matter described herein may be implemented in any appropriate type of system using any suitable components, the aspects disclosed herein are described in relation to a wireless network, such as the example wireless network illustrated in <FIG>. For simplicity, the wireless network of <FIG> only depicts network <NUM>, network nodes <NUM> and 1160b, and WDs <NUM>, 1110b, and 1110c. In practice, a wireless network may further include any additional elements suitable to support communication between wireless devices or between a wireless device and another communication device, such as a landline telephone, a service provider, or any other network node or end device. Of the illustrated components, network node <NUM> and wireless device (WD) <NUM> are depicted with additional detail. The wireless network may provide communication and other types of services to one or more wireless devices to facilitate the wireless devices' access to and/or use of the services provided by, or via, the wireless network.

In some aspects, the wireless network may be configured to operate according to specific standards or other types of predefined rules or procedures. Thus, particular aspects of the wireless network may implement communication standards, such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Long Term Evolution (LTE), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), and/or other suitable <NUM>, <NUM>, <NUM>, or <NUM> standards; wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the IEEE <NUM> standards; and/or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave and/or ZigBee standards.

In different aspects, the wireless network may comprise any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, base stations, controllers, wireless devices, relay stations, and/or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and/or signals whether via wired or wireless connections.

Although network node <NUM> illustrated in the example wireless network of <FIG> may represent a device that includes the illustrated combination of hardware components, other aspects may comprise network nodes with different combinations of components.

In some aspects, network node <NUM> may be configured to support multiple radio access technologies (RATs). In such aspects, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate device readable medium <NUM> for the different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., the same antenna <NUM> may be shared by the RATs).

In some aspects, processing circuitry <NUM> may include a system on a chip (SOC).

In some aspects, processing circuitry <NUM> may include one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry <NUM> and baseband processing circuitry <NUM>. In some aspects, radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry <NUM> and baseband processing circuitry <NUM> may be on separate chips (or sets of chips), boards, or units, such as radio units and digital units. In alternative aspects, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry <NUM> and baseband processing circuitry <NUM> may be on the same chip or set of chips, boards, or units.

In certain aspects, some or all of the functionality described herein as being provided by a network node, base station, eNB or other such network device may be performed by processing circuitry <NUM> executing instructions stored on device readable medium <NUM> or memory within processing circuitry <NUM>. In alternative aspects, some or all of the functionality may be provided by processing circuitry <NUM> without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device readable medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those aspects, whether executing instructions stored on a device readable storage medium or not, processing circuitry <NUM> can be configured to perform the described functionality.

In some aspects, processing circuitry <NUM> and device readable medium <NUM> may be considered to be integrated.

Interface <NUM> also includes radio front end circuitry <NUM> that may be coupled to, or in certain aspects a part of, antenna <NUM>. In other aspects, the interface may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components.

In certain alternative aspects, network node <NUM> may not include separate radio front end circuitry <NUM>, instead, processing circuitry <NUM> may comprise radio front end circuitry and may be connected to antenna <NUM> without separate radio front end circuitry <NUM>. Similarly, in some aspects, all or some of RF transceiver circuitry <NUM> may be considered a part of interface <NUM>. In still other aspects, interface <NUM> may include one or more ports or terminals <NUM>, radio front end circuitry <NUM>, and RF transceiver circuitry <NUM>, as part of a radio unit (not shown), and interface <NUM> may communicate with baseband processing circuitry <NUM>, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

In some aspects, antenna <NUM> may comprise one or more omni-directional, sector or panel antennas operable to transmit/receive radio signals between, for example, <NUM> and <NUM>. In certain aspects, antenna <NUM> may be separate from network node <NUM> and may be connectable to network node <NUM> through an interface or port.

Alternative aspects of network node <NUM> may include additional components beyond those shown in <FIG> that may be responsible for providing certain aspects of the network node's functionality, including any of the functionality described herein and/or any functionality necessary to support the subject matter described herein.

As used herein, wireless device (WD) refers to a device capable, configured, arranged and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with network nodes and/or other wireless devices. Unless otherwise noted, the term WD may be used interchangeably herein with user equipment (UE). Communicating wirelessly may involve transmitting and/or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and/or other types of signals suitable for conveying information through air. In some aspects, a WD may be configured to transmit and/or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a WD may be designed to transmit information to a network on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the network. Examples of a WD include, but are not limited to, a smart phone, a mobile phone, a cell phone, a voice over IP (VoIP) phone, a wireless local loop phone, a desktop computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless cameras, a gaming console or device, a music storage device, a playback appliance, a wearable terminal device, a wireless endpoint, a mobile station, a tablet, a laptop, a laptop-embedded equipment (LEE), a laptop-mounted equipment (LME), a smart device, a wireless customer-premise equipment (CPE). a vehicle-mounted wireless terminal device, etc.. A WD may support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example by implementing a 3GPP standard for sidelink communication, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) and may in this case be referred to as a D2D communication device. As yet another specific example, in an Internet of Things (IoT) scenario, a WD may represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and/or measurements, and transmits the results of such monitoring and/or measurements to another WD and/or a network node. The WD may in this case be a machine-to-machine (M2M) device, which may in a 3GPP context be referred to as an MTC device. As one particular example, the WD may be a UE implementing the 3GPP narrow band internet of things (NB-IoT) standard. Particular examples of such machines or devices are sensors, metering devices such as power meters, industrial machinery, or home or personal appliances (e.g. refrigerators, televisions, etc.) personal wearables (e.g., watches, fitness trackers, etc.). In other scenarios, a WD may represent a vehicle or other equipment that is capable of monitoring and/or reporting on its operational status or other functions associated with its operation. A WD as described above may represent the endpoint of a wireless connection, in which case the device may be referred to as a wireless terminal. Furthermore, a WD as described above may be mobile, in which case it may also be referred to as a mobile device or a mobile terminal.

WD <NUM> may include multiple sets of one or more of the illustrated components for different wireless technologies supported by WD <NUM>, such as, for example, GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, WiMAX, NB-IoT, or Bluetooth wireless technologies, just to mention a few.

In certain alternative aspects, antenna <NUM> may be separate from WD <NUM> and be connectable to WD <NUM> through an interface or port. In some aspects, radio front end circuitry and/or antenna <NUM> may be considered an interface.

In some aspects, WD <NUM> may not include separate radio front end circuitry <NUM>; rather, processing circuitry <NUM> may comprise radio front end circuitry and may be connected to antenna <NUM>. Similarly, in some aspects, some or all of RF transceiver circuitry <NUM> may be considered a part of interface <NUM>. In other aspects, the interface may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components.

In other aspects, the processing circuitry may comprise different components and/or different combinations of components. In certain aspects processing circuitry <NUM> of WD <NUM> may comprise a SOC. In some aspects, RF transceiver circuitry <NUM>, baseband processing circuitry <NUM>, and application processing circuitry <NUM> may be on separate chips or sets of chips. In alternative aspects, part or all of baseband processing circuitry <NUM> and application processing circuitry <NUM> may be combined into one chip or set of chips, and RF transceiver circuitry <NUM> may be on a separate chip or set of chips. In still alternative aspects, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry <NUM> and baseband processing circuitry <NUM> may be on the same chip or set of chips, and application processing circuitry <NUM> may be on a separate chip or set of chips. In yet other alternative aspects, part or all of RF transceiver circuitry <NUM>, baseband processing circuitry <NUM>, and application processing circuitry <NUM> may be combined in the same chip or set of chips. In some aspects, RF transceiver circuitry <NUM> may be a part of interface <NUM>.

In certain aspects, some or all of the functionality described herein as being performed by a WD may be provided by processing circuitry <NUM> executing instructions stored on device readable medium <NUM>, which in certain aspects may be a computer-readable storage medium. In alternative aspects, some or all of the functionality may be provided by processing circuitry <NUM> without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular aspects, whether executing instructions stored on a device readable storage medium or not, processing circuitry <NUM> can be configured to perform the described functionality.

In some aspects, processing circuitry <NUM> and device readable medium <NUM> may be considered to be integrated.

This may comprise specialized sensors for doing measurements for various purposes, interfaces for additional types of communication such as wired communications etc. The inclusion and type of components of auxiliary equipment <NUM> may vary depending on the aspect and/or scenario.

Power source <NUM> may, in some aspects, be in the form of a battery or battery pack. Power circuitry <NUM> may in certain aspects comprise power management circuitry. Power circuitry <NUM> may also in certain aspects be operable to deliver power from an external power source to power source <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates one aspect of a UE in accordance with various aspects described herein. UE <NUM> may be any UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including a NB-loT UE, a machine type communication (MTC) UE, and/or an enhanced MTC (eMTC) UE. UE <NUM>, as illustrated in <FIG>, is one example of a WD configured for communication in accordance with one or more communication standards promulgated by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), such as 3GPP's GSM, UMTS, LTE, and/or <NUM> standards.

In other aspects, storage medium <NUM> may include other similar types of information.

In the depicted aspect, input/output interface <NUM> may be configured to provide a communication interface to an input device, output device, or input and output device.

Network connection interface <NUM> may be configured to provide a communication interface to network 1243a. Network 1243a may encompass wired and/or wireless networks such as a local-area network (LAN), a wide-area network (WAN), a computer network, a wireless network, a telecommunications network, another like network or any combination thereof. For example, network 1243a may comprise a Wi-Fi network.

In <FIG>, processing circuitry <NUM> may be configured to communicate with network 1243b using communication subsystem <NUM>. Network 1243a and network 1243b may be the same network or networks or different network or networks. Communication subsystem <NUM> may be configured to include one or more transceivers used to communicate with network 1243b.

In the illustrated aspect, the communication functions of communication subsystem <NUM> may include data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communications such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as the use of the global positioning system (GPS) to determine a location, another like communication function, or any combination thereof. Network 1243b may encompass wired and/or wireless networks such as a local-area network (LAN), a wide-area network (WAN), a computer network, a wireless network, a telecommunications network, another like network or any combination thereof. For example, network 1243b may be a cellular network, a Wi-Fi network, and/or a near-field network.

<FIG> is a schematic block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment <NUM> in which functions implemented by some aspects may be virtualized.

In some aspects, some or all of the functions described herein may be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines implemented in one or more virtual environments <NUM> hosted by one or more of hardware nodes <NUM>. Further, in aspects in which the virtual node is not a radio access node or does not require radio connectivity (e.g., a core network node), then the network node may be entirely virtualized.

The functions may be implemented by one or more applications <NUM> (which may alternatively be called software instances, virtual appliances, network functions, virtual nodes, virtual network functions, etc.) operative to implement some of the features, functions, and/or benefits of some of the aspects disclosed herein.

Software <NUM> may include any type of software including software for instantiating one or more virtualization layers <NUM> (also referred to as hypervisors), software to execute virtual machines <NUM> as well as software allowing it to execute functions, features and/or benefits described in relation with some aspects described herein.

Different aspects of the instance of virtual appliance <NUM> may be implemented on one or more of virtual machines <NUM>, and the implementations may be made in different ways.

In some aspects, one or more radio units <NUM> that each include one or more transmitters <NUM> and one or more receivers <NUM> may be coupled to one or more antennas <NUM>.

In some aspects, some signalling can be effected with the use of control system <NUM> which may alternatively be used for communication between the hardware nodes <NUM> and radio units <NUM>.

<FIG> illustrates a telecommunication network connected via an intermediate network to a host computer in accordance with some aspects. In particular, with reference to <FIG>, in accordance with an aspect, a communication system includes telecommunication network <NUM>, such as a 3GPP-type cellular network, which comprises access network <NUM>, such as a radio access network, and core network <NUM>. Access network <NUM> comprises a plurality of base stations 1412a, 1412b, 1412c, such as NBs, eNBs, gNBs or other types of wireless access points, each defining a corresponding coverage area 1413a, 1413b, 1413c. Each base station 1412a, 1412b, 1412c is connectable to core network <NUM> over a wired or wireless connection <NUM>. A first UE <NUM> located in coverage area 1413c is configured to wirelessly connect to, or be paged by, the corresponding base station 1412c. A second UE <NUM> in coverage area 1413a is wirelessly connectable to the corresponding base station 1412a. While a plurality of UEs <NUM>, <NUM> are illustrated in this example, the disclosed aspects are equally applicable to a situation where a sole UE is in the coverage area or where a sole UE is connecting to the corresponding base station <NUM>.

Example implementations, in accordance with an aspect, of the UE, base station and host computer discussed in the preceding paragraphs will now be described with reference to <FIG> illustrates host computer communicating via a base station with a user equipment over a partially wireless connection in accordance with some aspects In communication system <NUM>, host computer <NUM> comprises hardware <NUM> including communication interface <NUM> configured to set up and maintain a wired or wireless connection with an interface of a different communication device of communication system <NUM>.

In the aspect shown, hardware <NUM> of base station <NUM> further includes processing circuitry <NUM>, which may comprise one or more programmable processors, application-specific integrated circuits, field programmable gate arrays or combinations of these (not shown) adapted to execute instructions.

It is noted that host computer <NUM>, base station <NUM> and UE <NUM> illustrated in <FIG> may be similar or identical to host computer <NUM>, one of base stations 1412a, 1412b, 1412c and one of UEs <NUM>, <NUM> of <FIG>, respectively.

Wireless connection <NUM> between UE <NUM> and base station <NUM> is in accordance with the teachings of the aspects described throughout this disclosure. One or more of the various aspects improve the performance of OTT services provided to UE <NUM> using OTT connection <NUM>, in which wireless connection <NUM> forms the last segment. More precisely, the teachings of these aspects may improve packet delivery, and hence meet service level requirements in a TSC QoS flow, and thereby provide benefits such as reducing latency, meeting critical timing requirements, and improving UE battery savings.

A measurement procedure may be provided for the purpose of monitoring data rate, latency and other factors on which the one or more aspects improve. In aspects, sensors (not shown) may be deployed in or in association with communication devices through which OTT connection <NUM> passes; the sensors may participate in the measurement procedure by supplying values of the monitored quantities exemplified above, or supplying values of other physical quantities from which software <NUM>, <NUM> may compute or estimate the monitored quantities. In certain aspects, measurements may involve proprietary UE signaling facilitating host computer <NUM>'s measurements of throughput, propagation times, latency and the like.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one aspect. In step <NUM> (which may be optional), the base station transmits to the UE the user data which was carried in the transmission that the host computer initiated, in accordance with the teachings of the aspects described throughout this disclosure.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one aspect. The transmission may pass via the base station, in accordance with the teachings of the aspects described throughout this disclosure.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one aspect. In step <NUM> of the method, the host computer receives the user data transmitted from the UE, in accordance with the teachings of the aspects described throughout this disclosure.

<FIG> is a flowchart illustrating a method implemented in a communication system, in accordance with one aspect. In step <NUM> (which may be optional), in accordance with the teachings of the aspects described throughout this disclosure, the base station receives user data from the UE.

In some implementations, the processing circuitry may be used to cause the respective functional unit to perform corresponding functions according one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

Certain aspects may provide one or more of the following technical advantages. The network can utilize survival time to increase the spectral efficiency, while ensuring it meets the service level requirement, in particular for the case where the survival time is very short, e.g., <NUM> millisecond. For example, the network can effectively activate the actual utilization of a PDCP duplication by a DCI command, which is faster and more reliable than the traditional MAC CE activation command. Alternatively, the network can pre-allocate a smaller set of resources needed for PDCP duplication.

Any feature of any of the aspects disclosed herein may be applied to any other aspect, wherever appropriate. Likewise, any advantage of any of the aspects may apply to any other aspects, and vice versa. Other objectives, features, and advantages of the enclosed aspects will be apparent from the description.

The term "unit" may have conventional meaning in the field of electronics, electrical devices and/or electronic devices and may include, for example, electrical and/or electronic circuitry, devices, modules, processors, memories, logic solid state and/or discrete devices, computer programs or instructions for carrying out respective tasks, procedures, computations, outputs, and/or displaying functions, and so on, such as those that are described herein. As used herein, the term "configured to" means set up, organized, adapted, or arranged to operate in a particular way; the term is synonymous with "designed to. " As used herein, the term "substantially" means nearly or essentially, but not necessarily completely; the term encompasses and accounts for mechanical or component value tolerances, measurement error, random variation, and similar sources of imprecision.

Some of the aspects contemplated herein are described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Other aspects, however, are contained within the scope of the subject matter disclosed herein. The disclosed subject matter should not be construed as limited to only the aspects set forth herein; rather, these aspects are provided by way of example to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art.

Claim 1:
A method (<NUM>), performed by a wireless device (<NUM>, <NUM>) operative in a wireless communication network, for transmitting uplink data packets in a data flow implementing Packet Data Convergence Protocol, PDCP, packet duplication, the method (<NUM>) comprising:
operating (<NUM>) a first Radio Link Control, RLC, entity as a first PDCP duplication leg;
operating (<NUM>) a second RLC entity as a second PDCP duplication leg;
upon the actual or estimated arrival (<NUM>) of each data packet in the first PDCP duplication leg, starting (<NUM>) a discard timer having a duration less than an estimated arrival time of a subsequent data packet;
in response to the unavailability of radio resources (<NUM>) associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, discarding (<NUM>) each data packet, without transmitting it, at the expiration of the discard timer (<NUM>); and
in response to the network allocating radio resources (<NUM>) associated with the first PDCP duplication leg, transmitting (<NUM>) data packets to the network utilizing the allocated radio resources.