WO2022241682A1

WO2022241682A1 - Method, device and computer program product for wireless communication

Info

Publication number: WO2022241682A1
Application number: PCT/CN2021/094686
Authority: WO
Inventors: Zijiang Ma; Yin Gao; Yingjun Zhou
Original assignee: ZTE Corp
Current assignee: ZTE Corp
Priority date: 2021-05-19
Filing date: 2021-05-19
Publication date: 2022-11-24
Anticipated expiration: 2023-11-19
Also published as: EP4115696A4; EP4115696A1; CN115643825A

Abstract

Method, device and computer program product for wireless communication are provided. A method includes: transmitting, by a first wireless communication node to a second wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node handling small data transmission, SDT, wherein the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

Description

Method, Device and Computer Program Product for Wireless Communication

This document is directed generally to wireless communications.

In New Radio (NR) of 5G communication, UEs (user equipments) can enter an RRC_INACTIVE state/mode to reduce power consumption. Typically, in the RRC_INACTIVE state, a UE cannot transmit data. Thus, the UE has to resume connections (i.e., switch back to the RRC_CONNECTED state) for the downlink (e.g., mobile termination (MT) ) and uplink (e.g., mobile originated (MO) ) data. However, for small and infrequent data transmission, building up and releasing connections each time when the transmission is needed causes unnecessary power consumption and signaling overhead.

Signaling overhead caused by small data transmission of UEs in the RRC_INACTIVE state can be a severe problem when there are a lot of UEs in a NR system. Signaling overhead may influent not only performance and efficiency of the network, but also battery performance of the UEs.

In some approaches, a UE is allowed to stay in the RRC_INACTIVE state and send uplink (UL) user data or receive downlink (DL) user data when the UL or DL user data is SDT (small data transmission) data.

The present disclosure provides a method for keeping a UE in an RRC_INACTIVE state performing SDT.

The present disclosure relates to methods, devices, and computer program products for wireless communication for SDT.

One aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication method. In an embodiment, the wireless communication method includes: transmitting, by a first wireless communication node to a second wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node handling small data transmission, SDT, in which the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication method. In an embodiment, the wireless communication method includes receiving, by a second wireless communication node from a first wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to handle small data transmission, SDT, in which the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication node. In an embodiment, the wireless communication node includes a communication unit and a processor. The processor is configured to: transmit, to a second wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node handling small data transmission, SDT, wherein the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a wireless communication node. In an embodiment, the wireless communication node includes a communication unit and a processor. The processor is configured to receive, from a first wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to handle small data transmission, SDT, wherein the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

Various embodiments may preferably implement the following features:

Preferably, the first wireless communication node is configured to transmit a second message comprising a second indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node stopping handling SDT, wherein the second indicator indicates the one or more SDT bearers are suspended.

Preferably, at least one of the first message and the second message is a bearer context modification request message or a bearer context setup request message.

Preferably, the first wireless communication node is configured to receive an SDT notification message from the second wireless communication node and resume the one or more SDT bearers according to the SDT notification message.

Preferably, the first wireless communication node is configured to keep one or more non-SDT bearers suspended according to the SDT notification message.

Preferably, the first wireless communication node is configured to keep a Radio Resource Control, RRC, state of a wireless communication terminal in an inactive state according to the SDT notification message.

Preferably, the SDT notification message is an uplink data notification message or a downlink data notification message with an SDT data indicator.

Preferably, the first wireless communication node is configured to receive an SDT inactivity notification message and suspend the one or more SDT bearers according to the SDT inactivity notification message.

Preferably, the first wireless communication node is configured to keep an RRC state of a wireless communication terminal in an inactive state according to the SDT inactivity notification message.

Preferably, the SDT inactivity notification message is a bearer context inactivity notification message with inactivity monitoring results.

Preferably, the second wireless communication node is configured to receive a second message comprising a second indicator to suspend the one or more SDT bearer.

Preferably, the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit an SDT notification message to the first wireless communication node to inform the first wireless communication node resuming the one or more SDT bearers.

Preferably, the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit the SDT notification message to the first wireless communication node to request the first wireless communication node to keep one or more non-SDT bearers suspended.

Preferably, the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit an SDT inactivity notification message to the first wireless communication node to request the first wireless communication node suspend the one or more SDT bearers.

Preferably, the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit the SDT inactivity notification message to the first wireless communication node to request the first wireless communication node to keep an RRC state of a wireless communication terminal in an inactive state.

The present disclosure relates to a computer program product including a computer-readable program medium code stored thereupon, the code, when executed by a processor, causing the processor to implement a wireless communication method recited in any one of foregoing methods.

The exemplary embodiments disclosed herein are directed to providing features that will become readily apparent by reference to the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompany drawings. In accordance with various embodiments, exemplary systems, methods, devices and computer program products are disclosed herein. It is understood, however, that these embodiments are presented by way of example and not limitation, and it will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art who read the present disclosure that various modifications to the disclosed embodiments can be made while remaining within the scope of the present disclosure.

Thus, the present disclosure is not limited to the exemplary embodiments and applications described and illustrated herein. Additionally, the specific order and/or hierarchy of steps in the methods disclosed herein are merely exemplary approaches. Based upon design preferences, the specific order or hierarchy of steps of the disclosed methods or processes can be re-arranged while remaining within the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the methods and techniques disclosed herein present various steps or acts in a sample order, and the present disclosure is not limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented unless expressly stated otherwise.

The above and other aspects and their implementations are described in greater detail in the drawings, the descriptions, and the claims.

FIGs. 1A and 1B show a schematic diagram of a procedure to perform SDT according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 shows an example of a schematic diagram of a wireless communication node according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 shows an example of a schematic diagram of another wireless communication node according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 shows a flowchart of a wireless communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 shows a flowchart of another wireless communication method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, an indicator can be introduced in one or more messages from a gNB-CU-CP (gNodeB-Control unit-Control plane) to a gNB-CU-CP (gNodeB-Control unit-User plane) , to indicate whether one or more SDT bearers (also referred to as SDT bearer contexts) are suspended or resumed. According to an embodiment, the indicator may be a Suspend indicator or a Resume indicator in a new information element (IE) , such as “SDT Bearer Context Status Change” IE. The SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE may be illustrated as the table shown below.

In an embodiment, the indicator may be contained in a message related to a bearer context. In an embodiment, the indicator may be contained in at least one of the Bearer context setup request message or the Bearer context modification request message provided from a gNB-CU-CP to a gNB-CU-UP.

In an embodiment, if the SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE is set as “resume” (i.e., a Resume indicator) and is contained in the Bearer context setup request message or the Bearer context modification request message, the gNB-CU-UP may handle SDT user data. In an embodiment, if the SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE is set as “suspend” (i.e., a Suspend indicator) and is contained in the Bearer context setup request message or the Bearer context modification request message, the gNB-CU-UP may stop handling the SDT user data.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, an indicator may be introduced in one or more messages provided from the gNB-CU-UP to the gNB-CU-CP, to indicate that the coming user data is SDT data. In an embodiment, the one or more messages can be at least one of the UL Data Notification message or the DL Data Notification message. In an embodiment, another new IE, such as SDT data IE, can be taken as the indicator.

For example, if the SDT data IE is contained in the UL Data Notification message or the DL Data Notification message, the gNB-CU-CP may resume the one or more SDT bearers if they are suspended, not resume the other bearers, and keep radio resource control (RRC) of a corresponding UE in an RRC_INACTIVE state. On the contrary, if the UL Data Notification message or the DL Data Notification message is received without the SDT data IE, the gNB-CU-CP may resume all the bearers and/or change the corresponding UE to an RRC_CONNECTED state.

In the paragraphs below, an exemplary example is provided with reference to FIGs. 1A and 1B, but the present disclosure is not limited to the example below.

In this exemplary example, bearers of the UE including one or more SDT bearers and non-SDT bearers are setup and suspended, and the UE is in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

In operation 1, the gNB-CU-UP sends a UL Data Notification message or a DL Data Notification message including the SDT data IE to the gNB-CU-CP in response to the gNB-CU-UP receiving UL or DL SDT user data. In an alternative operation, the gNB-CU-UP sends a Bearer Context Inactivity Notification message to the gNB-CU-CP, in which the Bearer Context Inactivity Notification message includes an SDT bearer monitoring result indicating that the SDT bearers are active.

In operation 2, the gNB-CU-CP determines to keep the UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state, resume the one or more SDT bearers, and keep suspending non-SDT bearers according the UL Data Notification message or the DL Data Notification message including the SDT data IE from the gNB-CU-UP.

In operation 3, the gNB-CU-CP sends a Bearer context modification request message including the SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE with a Resume indicator to the gNB-CU-UP, to indicate the one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

In operation 4, the gNB-CU-UP sends a Bearer context modification response message to the gNB-CU-CP.

In operation 5, the gNB-CU-UP handles UL or DL SDT data. In some embodiments, this operation may be omitted if no UL or DL SDT data is received.

In operation 6, the gNB-CU-UP monitors the UL or DL SDT data. If the gNB-CU-UP determines that no further UL or DL SDT data is expected or transmitted for a period of time, the gNB-CU-UP sends a Bearer context inactivity notification message with inactivity monitoring results to the gNB-CU-CP. In a different case, if the gNB-CU-UP receives non-SDT user data, the gNB-CU-UP sends a UL Data Notification message or a DL Data Notification message without the the SDT data IE to the gNB-CU-CP, so that the gNB-CU-CP can change the RRC state of the UE to an RRC_CONNECTED mode and resume all the bearers, including SDT bearer (s) and non-SDT bearer (s) .

In operation 7, the gNB-CU-CP keeps the UE in the RRC_INACTIVE mode and suspends the one or more SDT bearers.

In

operations

8 and 9, the gNB-CU-CP sends an F1AP message (e.g., a UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMMAND message) with an RRCRelease message to a gNodeB-data unit (gNB-DU) serving the UE. The gNB-DU forwards the RRCRelease message to the UE.

In operations 10 and 11, the gNB-CU-CP sends a Bearer context modification request message including an SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE with a Suspend indicator to the gNB-CU-UP. The gNB-CU-UP sends a Bearer context modification response message to the gNB-CU-CP.

In some embodiments,

operations

8 and 9 and operations 10 and 11 may be performed simultaneously or the execution times thereof may at least partially overlap. In some embodiments,

operations

8 and 9 may be performed before or after operations 10 and 11.

In the paragraphs below, aspects related to the gNB-CU-CP are described as an example, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

In this example, bearers of the UE including one or more SDT bearers and non-SDT bearers are setup and suspended, and the UE is in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

In operation 1, the gNB-CU-CP receives a UL Data Notification message or a DL Data Notification message including the SDT data IE from the gNB-CU-UP.

In operation 2, the gNB-CU-CP determines to keep the UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state and to resume one or more SDT bearers according the UL Data Notification message or the DL Data Notification message including the SDT data IE from the gNB-CU-UP.

In operation 4, the gNB-CU-CP receives a Bearer context modification response message from the gNB-CU-UP.

In operation 5, the gNB-CU-CP receives a Bearer context inactivity notification message with inactivity monitoring results from the gNB-CU-UP. In a different case, the gNB-CU-CP receives a UL Data Notification message or a DL Data Notification message from the gNB-CU-UP, and changes the RRC state of the UE to an RRC_CONNECTED mode and resumes all the bearers, including SDT bearer (s) and non-SDT bearer (s) according to the UL Data Notification message or the DL Data Notification message.

In operation 6, the gNB-CU-CP keeps the UE in the RRC_INACTIVE mode and suspends the one or more SDT bearers.

In operation 7, the gNB-CU-CP sends an F1AP message (e.g., a UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMMAND message) with an RRCRelease message for the UE to the gNB-DU serving the UE.

In operation 8, the gNB-CU-CP sends a Bearer context modification request message including an SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE with a Suspend indicator to the gNB-CU-UP, and receives a Bearer context modification response message from the gNB-CU-UP.

In some embodiments,

operations

7 and 8 may be performed simultaneously or the execution time thereof may at least partially overlap. In some embodiments, operation 7 may be performed before or after operation 8.

In the paragraphs below, aspects related to the gNB-CU-UP are described as an example, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

In operation 1, the gNB-CU-UP sends a UL Data Notification message or a DL Data Notification message including the SDT data IE to the gNB-CU-CP in response to the gNB-CU-UP receiving UL or DL SDT user data.

In operation 2, the gNB-CU-UP receives a Bearer context modification request message including the SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE with a Resume indicator from the gNB-CU-CP, to indicate that the one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

In operation 3, the gNB-CU-UP sends a Bearer context modification response message to the gNB-CU-CP.

In operation 4, the gNB-CU-UP handles UL or DL SDT data. In some embodiments, this operation may be omitted if no UL and/or DL SDT data is received.

In operation 5, the gNB-CU-UP monitors the UL or DL SDT data. If the gNB-CU-UP determines that no further UL and/or DL SDT data is expected or transmitted for a period of time, the gNB-CU-UP sends a Bearer context inactivity notification message with inactivity monitoring results to the gNB-CU-CP. In a different case, if the gNB-CU-UP receives non-SDT user data, the gNB-CU-UP sends a UL Data Notification message or a DL Data Notification message without the SDT data IE to the gNB-CU-CP, so that the gNB-CU-CP may change the RRC state of the UE to an RRC_CONNECTED mode and resume all the bearers including SDT bearer (s) and non-SDT bearer (s) .

In operation 6, the gNB-CU-UP receives a Bearer context modification request message including an SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE with a Suspend indicator from the gNB-CU-UP. The gNB-CU-UP sends a Bearer context modification response message to the gNB-CU-CP.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, an IE (e.g., the SDT Bearer Context Status Change IE with a value of “resume” or “suspend” ) is included in the Bearer context modification request message and/or the Bearer context setup request message.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, an IE (e.g., the SDT data IE) is included in the UL Data Notification message and/or the DL Data Notification message.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the gNB-CU-CP may decide to keep the UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state/mode, and to resume the SDT bearer (s) .

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the gNB-CU-CP may resume the SDT bearer (s) , keep suspending non-SDT bearer (s) , and handle SDT data.

FIG. 2 relates to a schematic diagram of a wireless communication node 40 (e.g., a network device) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The wireless communication node 40 may be a satellite, a base station (BS) (e.g., a gNB or a gNB-CU-CP) , a network entity, a Mobility Management Entity (MME) , Serving Gateway (S-GW) , Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway (P-GW) , a radio access network (RAN) , a next generation RAN (NG-RAN) , a data network, a core network or a Radio Network Controller (RNC) , and is not limited herein. In addition, the wireless communication node 40 may include (perform) at least one network function such as an access and mobility management function (AMF) , a session management function (SMF) , a user place function (UPF) , a policy control function (PCF) , an application function (AF) , etc. The wireless communication node 40 may include a processor 400 such as a microprocessor or ASIC, a storage unit 410 and a communication unit 420. The storage unit 410 may be any data storage device that stores a program code 412, which is accessed and executed by the processor 400. Examples of the storage unit 412 include but are not limited to a SIM, ROM, flash memory, RAM, hard-disk, and optical data storage device. The communication unit 420 may be a transceiver and is used to transmit and receive signals (e.g., messages or packets) according to processing results of the processor 400. In an example, the communication unit 420 transmits and receives the signals via at least one antenna 422.

In an embodiment, the storage unit 410 and the program code 412 may be omitted. The processor 400 may include a storage unit with stored program code.

The processor 400 may implement any steps described in exemplified embodiments on the wireless communication node 40, e.g., via executing the program code 412.

The communication unit 420 may be a transceiver. The communication unit 420 may as an alternative or in addition be combining a transmitting unit and a receiving unit configured to transmit and to receive, respectively, signals, messages, or information to and from a wireless node (e.g., a gNB-CU-UP or a gNB-DU) .

In some embodiments, the wireless communication node 40 may be used to perform the operations of the gNB-CU-CP described above. In some embodiments, the processor 400 and the communication unit 420 collaboratively perform the operations described above. For example, the processor 400 performs operations and transmit or receive signals through the communication unit 420.

FIG. 3 relates to a schematic diagram of a wireless communication node 50 (e.g., a network device) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The wireless communication node 50 may be a satellite, a base station (BS) (e.g., a gNB or a gNB-CU-UP) , a network entity, a Mobility Management Entity (MME) , Serving Gateway (S-GW) , Packet Data Network (PDN) Gateway (P-GW) , a radio access network (RAN) , a next generation RAN (NG-RAN) , a data network, a core network or a Radio Network Controller (RNC) , and is not limited herein. In addition, the wireless communication node 50 may include (perform) at least one network function such as an access and mobility management function (AMF) , a session management function (SMF) , a user place function (UPF) , a policy control function (PCF) , an application function (AF) , etc. The wireless communication node 50 may include a processor 500 such as a microprocessor or ASIC, a storage unit 510 and a communication unit 520. The storage unit 510 may be any data storage device that stores a program code 512, which is accessed and executed by the processor 500. Examples of the storage unit 512 include but are not limited to a SIM, ROM, flash memory, RAM, hard-disk, and optical data storage device. The communication unit 520 may be a transceiver and is used to transmit and receive signals (e.g., messages or packets) according to processing results of the processor 500. In an example, the communication unit 520 transmits and receives the signals via at least one antenna 522.

In an embodiment, the storage unit 510 and the program code 512 may be omitted. The processor 500 may include a storage unit with stored program code.

The processor 500 may implement any steps described in exemplified embodiments on the wireless communication node 50, e.g., via executing the program code 512.

The communication unit 520 may be a transceiver. The communication unit 520 may as an alternative or in addition be combining a transmitting unit and a receiving unit configured to transmit and to receive, respectively, signals, messages, or information to and from a wireless node (e.g., a gNB-CU-CP or a gNB-DU) .

In some embodiments, the wireless communication node 50 may be used to perform the operations of the gNB-CU-UP described above. In some embodiments, the processor 500 and the communication unit 520 collaboratively perform the operations described above. For example, the processor 500 performs operations and transmit or receive signals through the communication unit 520.

A wireless communication method is also provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the wireless communication method may be performed by using a wireless communication node (e.g., a gNB-CU-CP) . In an embodiment, the wireless communication terminal may be implemented by using the wireless communication terminal 40 described above, but is not limited thereto.

Referring to FIG. 4, in an embodiment, the wireless communication method includes: transmitting, by a first wireless communication node to a second wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node handling small data transmission, SDT, in which the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

In an embodiment, the first wireless communication node may be the gNB-CU-CP described above, and the second wireless communication node may be the gNB-CU-UP described above. In an embodiment, the first message may be the Bearer context setup request message or the Bearer context modification request message described above, and the first indicator may be the Resume indicator described above.

In an embodiment, the first wireless communication node is configured to transmit a second message comprising a second indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node stopping handling SDT, wherein the second indicator indicates the one or more SDT bearers are suspended. In an embodiment, the second message may be the Bearer context setup request message or the Bearer context modification request message described above, and the second indicator may be the Suspend indicator described above.

In an embodiment, the first wireless communication node is configured to receive an SDT notification message from the second wireless communication node and resume the one or more SDT bearers according to the SDT notification message. In an embodiment, the SDT notification message is the UL Data Notification message or the DL Data Notification message with the SDT data indicator.

In an embodiment, the first wireless communication node is configured to keep one or more non-SDT bearers suspended according to the SDT notification message.

In an embodiment, the first wireless communication node is configured to keep a Radio Resource Control, RRC, state of a wireless communication terminal (e.g., the UE described above) in an inactive state (e.g., an RRC_INACTIVE mode) according to the SDT notification message.

In an embodiment, the first wireless communication node is configured to receive an SDT inactivity notification message and suspend the one or more SDT bearers according to the SDT inactivity notification message. In an embodiment, the SDT inactivity notification message is the Bearer context inactivity notification message with inactivity monitoring results described above.

In an embodiment, the first wireless communication node is configured to keep an RRC state of a wireless communication terminal (e.g., the UE described above) in an inactive state (e.g., an RRC_INACTIVE mode) according to the SDT inactivity notification message.

Details in this regard can be ascertained with reference to the paragraphs above, and will not be repeated herein.

Another wireless communication method is also provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In an embodiment, the wireless communication method may be performed by using a wireless communication node (e.g., a gNB-CU-UP) . In an embodiment, the wireless communication node may be implemented by using the wireless communication node 50 described above, but is not limited thereto.

Referring to FIG. 5, in an embodiment, the wireless communication method includes: receiving, by a second wireless communication node from a first wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to handle small data transmission, SDT, in which the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.

While various embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, it should be understood that they have been presented by way of example only, and not by way of limitation. Likewise, the various diagrams may depict an example architectural or configuration, which are provided to enable persons of ordinary skill in the art to understand exemplary features and functions of the present disclosure. Such persons would understand, however, that the present disclosure is not restricted to the illustrated example architectures or configurations, but can be implemented using a variety of alternative architectures and configurations. Additionally, as would be understood by persons of ordinary skill in the art, one or more features of one embodiment can be combined with one or more features of another embodiment described herein. Thus, the breadth and scope of the present disclosure should not be limited by any one of the above-described exemplary embodiments.

It is also understood that any reference to an element herein using a designation such as "first, " "second, " and so forth does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. Rather, these designations can be used herein as a convenient means of distinguishing between two or more elements or instances of an element. Thus, a reference to first and second elements does not mean that only two elements can be employed, or that the first element must precede the second element in some manner.

Additionally, a person having ordinary skill in the art would understand that information and signals can be represented using any one of a variety of different technologies and techniques. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits and symbols, for example, which may be referenced in the above description can be represented by voltages, currents, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or particles, optical fields or particles, or any combination thereof.

A skilled person would further appreciate that any one of the various illustrative logical blocks, units, processors, means, circuits, methods and functions described in connection with the aspects disclosed herein can be implemented by electronic hardware (e.g., a digital implementation, an analog implementation, or a combination of the two) , firmware, various forms of program or design code incorporating instructions (which can be referred to herein, for convenience, as "software" or a "software unit” ) , or any combination of these techniques.

To clearly illustrate this interchangeability of hardware, firmware and software, various illustrative components, blocks, units, circuits, and steps have been described above generally in terms of their functionality. Whether such functionality is implemented as hardware, firmware or software, or a combination of these techniques, depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the overall system. Skilled artisans can implement the described functionality in various ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions do not cause a departure from the scope of the present disclosure. In accordance with various embodiments, a processor, device, component, circuit, structure, machine, unit, etc. can be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein. The term “configured to” or “configured for” as used herein with respect to a specified operation or function refers to a processor, device, component, circuit, structure, machine, unit, etc. that is physically constructed, programmed and/or arranged to perform the specified operation or function.

Furthermore, a skilled person would understand that various illustrative logical blocks, units, devices, components and circuits described herein can be implemented within or performed by an integrated circuit (IC) that can include a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP) , an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) , a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, or any combination thereof. The logical blocks, units, and circuits can further include antennas and/or transceivers to communicate with various components within the network or within the device. A general purpose processor can be a microprocessor, but in the alternative, the processor can be any conventional processor, controller, or state machine. A processor can also be implemented as a combination of computing devices, e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in conjunction with a DSP core, or any other suitable configuration to perform the functions described herein. If implemented in software, the functions can be stored as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Thus, the steps of a method or algorithm disclosed herein can be implemented as software stored on a computer-readable medium.

Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that can be enabled to transfer a computer program or code from one place to another. A storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, and not limitation, such computer-readable media can include RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer.

In this document, the term "unit" as used herein, refers to software, firmware, hardware, and any combination of these elements for performing the associated functions described herein. Additionally, for purpose of discussion, the various units are described as discrete units; however, as would be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, two or more units may be combined to form a single unit that performs the associated functions according embodiments of the present disclosure.

Additionally, memory or other storage, as well as communication components, may be employed in embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be appreciated that, for clarity purposes, the above description has described embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to different functional units and processors. However, it will be apparent that any suitable distribution of functionality between different functional units, processing logic elements or domains may be used without detracting from the present disclosure. For example, functionality illustrated to be performed by separate processing logic elements, or controllers, may be performed by the same processing logic element, or controller. Hence, references to specific functional units are only references to a suitable means for providing the described functionality, rather than indicative of a strict logical or physical structure or organization.

Various modifications to the implementations described in this disclosure will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein can be applied to other implementations without departing from the scope of this disclosure. Thus, the disclosure is not intended to be limited to the implementations shown herein, but is to be accorded the widest scope consistent with the novel features and principles disclosed herein, as recited in the claims below.

Claims

A wireless communication method comprising:

transmitting, by a first wireless communication node to a second wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node handling small data transmission, SDT;

wherein the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.
The wireless communication method of claim 1, wherein the first wireless communication node is configured to transmit a second message comprising a second indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node stopping handling SDT, wherein the second indicator indicates the one or more SDT bearers are suspended.
The wireless communication method of claim 2, wherein at least one of the first message and the second message is a bearer context modification request message or a bearer context setup request message.
The wireless communication method of any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first wireless communication node is configured to receive an SDT notification message from the second wireless communication node and resume the one or more SDT bearers according to the SDT notification message.
The wireless communication method of claim 4, wherein the first wireless communication node is configured to keep one or more non-SDT bearers suspended according to the SDT notification message.
The wireless communication method of claim 4 or 5, wherein the first wireless communication node is configured to keep a Radio Resource Control, RRC, state of a wireless communication terminal in an inactive state according to the SDT notification message.
The wireless communication method of any of claims 4 to 6, wherein the SDT notification message is an uplink data notification message or a downlink data notification message with an SDT data indicator.
The wireless communication method of any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the first wireless communication node is configured to receive an SDT inactivity notification message and suspend the one or more SDT bearers according to the SDT inactivity notification message.
The wireless communication method of claim 8, wherein the first wireless communication node is configured to keep an RRC state of a wireless communication terminal in an inactive state according to the SDT inactivity notification message.
The wireless communication method of claim 8 or 9, wherein the SDT inactivity notification message is a bearer context inactivity notification message with inactivity monitoring results.
A wireless communication method comprising:

receiving, by a second wireless communication node from a first wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to handle small data transmission, SDT;

wherein the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.
The wireless communication method of claim 11, wherein the second wireless communication node is configured to receive a second message comprising a second indicator to suspend the one or more SDT bearer.
The wireless communication method of claim 12, wherein at least one of the first message and the second message is a bearer context modification request message or a bearer context setup request message.
The wireless communication method of any of claims 11 to 13, wherein the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit an SDT notification message to the first wireless communication node to inform the first wireless communication node resuming the one or more SDT bearers.
The wireless communication method of claim 14, wherein the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit the SDT notification message to the first wireless communication node to request the first wireless communication node to keep one or more non-SDT bearers suspended.
The wireless communication method of claim 14 or 15, wherein the first wireless communication node is configured to keep a Radio Resource Control, RRC, state of a wireless communication terminal in an inactive state according to the SDT notification message.
The wireless communication method of any of claims 14 to 16, wherein the SDT notification message is an uplink data notification message or a downlink data notification message with an SDT data indicator.
The wireless communication method of any of claims 11 to 17, wherein the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit an SDT inactivity notification message to the first wireless communication node to request the first wireless communication node suspend the one or more SDT bearers.
The wireless communication method of claim 18, wherein the second wireless communication node is configured to transmit the SDT inactivity notification message to the first wireless communication node to request the first wireless communication node to keep an RRC state of a wireless communication terminal in an inactive state.
The wireless communication method of claim 18 or 19, wherein the SDT inactivity notification message is a bearer context inactivity notification message with inactivity monitoring results.
A wireless communication node, comprising:

a communication unit; and

a processor configured to transmit, to a second wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to instruct the second wireless communication node handling small data transmission, SDT, wherein the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.
The wireless communication node of claim 21, wherein the processor is further configured to perform a wireless communication method of any of claims 2 to 10.
A wireless communication node, comprising:

a communication unit; and

a processor configured to receive, from a first wireless communication node, a first message comprising a first indicator to handle small data transmission, SDT, wherein the first indicator indicates one or more SDT bearers are resumed.
The wireless communication node of claim 23, wherein the processor is further configured to perform a wireless communication method of any of claims 12 to 20.
A computer program product comprising a computer-readable program medium code stored thereupon, the code, when executed by a processor, causing the processor to implement a wireless communication method recited in any of claims 1 to 20.