In one embodiment, the information #C may be used to directly indicate the moment #C. Specifically, the information #C indicates an absolute moment, and the absolute moment is the moment #C. In this way, the terminal device #C may directly determine the moment #C based on the information #C.
Indication Manner 6
In one embodiment, the information #C may be used to indirectly indicate the moment #C. Specifically, the information #C may be used to indicate duration #C, where the duration #C may be duration of an interval between the moment #C and a specified reference moment. In this way, the moment #C can be determined (in other words, calculated) based on the reference moment and the duration #C.
By way of example but not limitation, in the embodiments of this application, a moment (denoted as moment #5 below for ease of understanding and description) when the terminal device #C sends the data #γ may be used as the reference moment.
Specifically, in the embodiments of this application, a data packet sent by the terminal device to the access network device may carry a moment when the terminal device sends the data packet. In this way, based on the foregoing mechanism, the access network device #C can determine the moment #5 from the data packet that carries the data #γ, and use the moment #5 as the reference moment. In this way, in the communication method according to the embodiments of this application, the moment #5 is used as the reference moment, so that the receive end device can easily learn of the moment when the transmit end device sends the data, and the receive end device can easily learn of the moment when the data needs to be delivered from the transmission layer to the application layer.