# US 12,225,619 B2 · Sidelink DTX method and apparatus, sidelink DRX method and apparatus, and terminal device

> Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt

- Number: US 12,225,619 B2
- Document ID: US12225619B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/676,532
- Filed: 2022-02-21
- Published: 2022-06-09
- Granted: 2025-02-11
- Earliest claimed: 2019-08-22
- Assignees: Vivo Mobile Communication Co., Ltd.
- Applicants: Vivo Mobile Communication Co., Ltd.
- Inventors: Wei Bao; Xiaodong Yang
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12225619B2

## CPC

- H04W 72/1263: Mapping of traffic onto schedule, e.g. scheduled allocation or multiplexing of flows
- H04W 76/28: Discontinuous transmission [DTX]; Discontinuous reception [DRX]
- H04L 1/1883: {using multiple timers}
- H04L 1/1887: {Scheduling and prioritising arrangements}
- H04W 72/12: Wireless traffic scheduling
- H04W 76/14: Direct-mode setup
- H04W 92/18: between terminal devices
- Y02D 30/70: in wireless communication networks
- H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72)
- H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M)
- Y02D: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES [ICT], I.E. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES AIMING AT THE REDUCTION OF THEIR OWN ENERGY USE

## Abstract

A sidelink discontinuous transmission (DTX) method and apparatus, a sidelink discontinuous reception (DRX) method and apparatus, and a terminal device, and relates to the field of communication technologies. The sidelink DTX method and apparatus, the sidelink DRX method and apparatus, and the terminal device are utilized, so that when user terminals communicate with each other through a sidelink, data scheduling/transmission is monitored, or data scheduling/transmission is received, or it is allowed to perform data scheduling/transmission to a first user terminal, or data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is performed under control of a timer based on a DRX mechanism only during running of a target receive timer in the timer.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A sidelink discontinuous transmission (DTX) method, applicable to a second user terminal, the method comprising:
allowing performing data scheduling/transmission to a first user terminal during running of an on duration transmit timer; and
starting, in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered, an inactivity transmit timer to continuously allow performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal,
wherein after the starting, in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered, the inactivity transmit timer to continuously allow performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal, the method further comprises:
restarting the inactivity transmit timer in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered again during running of the inactivity transmit timer,
before allowing performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal during running of the on duration transmit timer; or starting, in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered, the inactivity transmit timer to continuously allow performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal, the method further comprises:
turning off a target receive timer according to a DRX mechanism in a case that it is detected that a target transmit timer and the target receive timer are both running, wherein it is agreed in the DRX mechanism that a send priority of the second user terminal is higher than a send priority of the first user terminal, wherein the target transmit timer is one of the on duration transmit timer, the inactivity transmit timer and the retransmission transmit timer.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The method according to claim 1, wherein the second user terminal is further configured with a Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ) retransmission mechanism, and the method further comprises:
starting a HARQ round-trip latency transmit timer in a case that a HARQ negative acknowledgment (NACK) fed back by the first user terminal is received; and
starting, after the HARQ round-trip latency transmit timer expires, a retransmission transmit timer to allow performing retransmission data scheduling/data transmission to the first user terminal.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The method according to claim 1, wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to a highest priority level of at least one to-be-processed service parameter of the first user terminal and a highest priority level of at least one to-be-processed service parameter of the second user terminal that are pre-configured; or,
wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to a type of the target transmit timer that is run and a type of the target receive timer that is run; or,
wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to moments at which the target transmit timer and the target receive timer are running.

### Claim 4

A terminal device, comprising a processor, a memory, and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the computer program is executed by the processor to execute the following operations:
allowing performing data scheduling/transmission to a first user terminal during running of an on duration transmit timer; and
starting, in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered, an inactivity transmit timer to continuously allow performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal,
wherein after the starting, in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered, the inactivity transmit timer to continuously allow performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal, the processor is configured to: restart the inactivity transmit timer in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered again during running of the inactivity transmit timer,
wherein before allowing performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal during running of the on duration transmit timer; or starting, in a case that data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal is triggered, the inactivity transmit timer to continuously allow performing data scheduling/transmission to the first user terminal, the processor is configured to:
turn off a target receive timer according to a discontinuous reception (DRX) mechanism in a case that it is detected that a target transmit timer and the target receive timer are both running, wherein it is agreed in the DRX mechanism that a send priority of the second user terminal is higher than a send priority of the first user terminal, wherein the target transmit timer is one of the on duration transmit timer, the inactivity transmit timer and the retransmission transmit timer.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The terminal device according to claim 4, wherein a second user terminal is further configured with a Hybrid Automatic Repeat reQuest (HARQ) retransmission mechanism, and the method further comprises:
starting a HARQ round-trip latency transmit timer in a case that a HARQ negative acknowledgment (NACK) fed back by the first user terminal is received; and
starting, after the HARQ round-trip latency transmit timer expires, a retransmission transmit timer to allow performing retransmission data scheduling/data transmission to the first user terminal.

### Claim 6 (depends on 4)

The terminal device according to claim 4, wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to a highest priority level of at least one to-be-processed service parameter of the first user terminal and a highest priority level of at least one to-be-processed service parameter of the second user terminal that are pre-configured; or,
wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to a type of the target transmit timer that is run and a type of the target receive timer that is run; or,
wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to moments at which the target transmit timer and the target receive timer are running.

### Claim 7

A terminal device, comprising a processor, a memory, and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the computer program is executed by the processor to execute the following operations:
monitoring data scheduling/transmission from a second user terminal during running of an on duration monitoring receive timer;
starting, in a case that the data scheduling/transmission from the second user terminal is received, an inactivity receive timer to continuously monitor the data scheduling/transmission from the second user terminal;
during running of the inactivity receive timer, in a case that the data scheduling/transmission transmitted by the second user terminal is received again, restarting the inactivity receive timer,
wherein a target transmit timer is one of the on duration transmit timer, the inactivity transmit timer and a retransmission transmit timer, before monitoring data scheduling/transmission from the second user terminal during running of an on duration monitoring receive timer, the processor is configured to:
turn off the target transmit timer according to a discontinuous reception (DRX) mechanism in a case that it is detected that the target transmit timer and a target receive timer are both running, wherein it is agreed in the DRX mechanism that a send priority of the second user terminal is higher than a send priority of a first user terminal.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The terminal device according to claim 7, wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to a highest priority level of at least one to-be-processed service parameter of the first user terminal and a highest priority level of at least one to-be-processed service parameter of the second user terminal that are pre-configured.

### Claim 9 (depends on 7)

The terminal device according to claim 7, wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to a type of the target transmit timer that is run on the first user terminal and a type of the target receive timer that is run on the first user terminal.

### Claim 10 (depends on 7)

The terminal device according to claim 7, wherein according to the DRX mechanism, the send priority of the first user terminal relative to the second user terminal is determined according to moments at which the target transmit timer and the target receive timer are running on the first user terminal.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

A non-transitory readable storage medium, wherein the non-transitory readable storage medium stores a program or an instruction, and the program or the instruction, when being executed by a processor, causes the processor to execute steps of the method according to claim 1.

### Claim 12 (depends on 4)

A non-transitory readable storage medium, wherein the non-transitory readable storage medium stores a program or an instruction, and the program or the instruction, when being executed by a processor, causes the processor to execute steps of the method according to claim 4.