Communications terminal and method

1. A communications terminal comprising:

a transmitter configured to transmit signals to a wireless communications network via a wireless access interface provided by the wireless communications network, and

a receiver configured to receive signals from the wireless communications network, and

a controller configured to control the transmitter and the receiver to transmit and receive the signals, wherein the controller includes an input buffer for receiving data packets for transmission as the signals by the communications terminal via the wireless access interface, and the controller is configured:

to identify whether the received data packets are delay tolerant or non-delay tolerant,

to determine in combination with signals received by the receiver an indication of a current state for radio communications formed by the wireless access interface for transmitting the data packets via the wireless access interface, and

in accordance with predetermined conditions, which include the current state for radio communications, an amount of the delay tolerant data packets in the input buffer, and an amount of the non-delay tolerant packets in the input buffer to one of:

transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets to the mobile communications network using the transmitter,

aggregate the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets together, and transmit the aggregated non-delay tolerant data packets and delay tolerant data packets to the mobile communications network using the transmitter, and

maintain both the delay tolerant data packets and the non-delay tolerant data packets in the input buffer until the predetermined conditions are satisfied.

2. The communications terminal as claimed in claim 1 , comprising:

a power monitoring circuit configured to monitor an amount of power which is available to the transmitter and the receiver to transmit or to receive the data via the wireless access interface,

wherein the predetermined conditions used by the controller to determine whether to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets or to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer to the mobile communications network using the transmitter includes the amount of power available to the transmitter to transmit the data packets in combination with the current state for radio communications.

3. The communications terminals as claimed in claim 2 , wherein the controller is configured to determine whether the amount of power available is above or below a power threshold and if the amount of power available is below the power threshold to only transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets, and if the amount of power available is above the power threshold to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets.

4. The communications terminal as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the current state of radio communications is determined by the controller from signals received by the receiver from data transmitted by the mobile communications network, the receiver providing to the controller a channel quality measurement indicator, and the predetermined conditions include whether the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality for radio communications above a first predetermined level, and if the channel quality measurement for radio communications is above the first predetermined threshold the controller is configured to transmit the delay tolerant data packets and non-delay tolerant data packets when present in the input buffer.

5. The communications terminal as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the predetermined conditions include whether the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality for radio communications below the first predetermined threshold and above a second predetermined level, and if the channel quality measurement for radio communications is above the second predetermined threshold and below the first predetermined threshold the controller is configured to transmit the delay tolerant data packets if the number of delay tolerant data packets in the input buffer has reached a predetermined amount, and to transmit the delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer with non-delay tolerant data packets, when there is at least one non-delay tolerant data packet present in the input buffer.

6. The communications terminal as claimed in claim 4 , wherein the predetermined conditions include whether the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality for radio communications below the first predetermined threshold, below the second predetermined threshold and above a third predetermined level, and if the channel quality measurement for radio communications is above the third predetermined threshold and below the first and second predetermined thresholds the controller is configured to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets and to maintain the non-delay tolerant data packets in the input buffer until the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality above the first or second predetermined threshold.

7. The communications terminal as claimed in claim 1 , wherein the current state for radio communications includes whether the communications terminal has detached from a first infrastructure equipment of the mobile communications network and re-attached to a second infrastructure equipment in accordance with a hand-over procedure, and if the communications terminal has performed a handover procedure, the controller is configured to transmit any delay tolerant and non-delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer to the mobile communications network.

8. A method of communicating data from a communications terminal to a wireless communications network, the method comprising:

transmitting, with a transmitter, signals to the wireless communications network via a wireless access interface provided by the wireless communications network,

receiving, with a receiver, signals from the wireless communications network, and

controlling, with a controller, the transmitting and the receiving of the signals, wherein the controlling includes

receiving data packets for transmission by the communications terminal via the wireless access interface,

storing the data packets in an input buffer,

identifying whether the received data packets are delay tolerant or non-delay tolerant,

determining in combination with the received signals an indication of a current state for radio communications formed by the wireless access interface for transmitting the data packets via the wireless access interface, and

in accordance with predetermined conditions which include a current state for radio communications and an amount of the delay tolerant data packets in an input buffer and an amount of the non-delay tolerant packets in the input buffer determining whether to one of:

transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets to the wireless communications network using the transmitter,

aggregate the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets together and transmit the aggregated on-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets to the wireless communications network using the transmitter, and

maintain both the delay tolerant data packets and the non-delay tolerant data packets in the input buffer until the predetermined conditions are satisfied.

9. The method of communicating as claimed in claim 8 , comprising:

monitoring an amount of power which is available to transmit or to receive the data via the wireless access interface, wherein the predetermined conditions for determining whether to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets or to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer to the mobile communications network includes the amount of power available to the transmitter to transmit the data packets in combination with the current state for radio communications.

10. The method of communicating as claimed in claim 9 , wherein the predetermined conditions for determining whether to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets or to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer to the mobile communications network includes whether the amount of power available is above or below a power threshold and if the amount of power available is below the power threshold only transmitting the non-delay tolerant data packets, and if the amount of power available is above the power threshold transmitting the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets.

11. The method of communicating as claimed in claim 8 , comprising:

determining the current state of radio communications from the signals received from the mobile communications network,

providing to the controller a channel quality measurement indicator, and the predetermined conditions for determining whether to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets or to transmit the non-delay tolerant data packets and the delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer to the mobile communications network include whether the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality for radio communications above a first predetermined level, and

if the channel quality measurement for radio communications is above the first predetermined threshold, transmitting the delay tolerant data packets or non-delay tolerant data packets when present in the input buffer.

12. The method of communicating as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the predetermined conditions include whether the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality for radio communications below the first predetermined threshold and above a second predetermined level, and

if the channel quality measurement for radio communications is above the second predetermined threshold and below the first predetermined threshold the method further comprises:

transmitting the delay tolerant data packets if the number of delay tolerant data packets in the input buffer has reached a predetermined amount, and to transmit the delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer with and non-delay tolerant data packets, when there is at least one non-delay tolerant data packet present in the input buffer.

13. The method of communicating as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the predetermined conditions include whether the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality for radio communications below the first predetermined threshold, below the second predetermined threshold and above a third predetermined level, and if the channel quality measurement for radio communications is above the third predetermined threshold and below the first and second predetermined thresholds, the method further comprises transmitting the non-delay tolerant data packets and to maintain the delay tolerant data packets in the input buffer until the channel quality measurement indicator indicates a quality above the first or second predetermined threshold.

14. The method of communicating as claimed in claim 8 , wherein the current state for radio communications includes whether the communications terminal has detached from a first infrastructure equipment of the mobile communications network and re-attached to a second infrastructure equipment in accordance with a hand-over procedure, and if the communications terminal has performed a handover procedure, the method further comprises transmitting any delay tolerant and non-delay tolerant data packets from the input buffer to the mobile communications network.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable medium encoded with computer-readable instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the method according to claim 8 .