Communication method, device and system, storage medium and product

Abstract

The invention relates to a communication method, device and system, a storage medium and a product, and relates to the technical field of communication. The communication method is executed by a network data analysis function NWDAF, and comprises: receiving a data connection establishment request sent by a network function NF, the data connection establishment request comprising a network protocol type; and sending a data connection establishment response to the NF, the data connection establishment response indicating whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method, device, system, storage medium and product. Background Art

[0002] The network protocol stack of the interface between 5G network functions (NF) is solidified, and the service-oriented interface of Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is adopted between control plane modules, such as Network Data Analytics Function (NWDAF), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) and Session Management Function (SMF).

[0003] However, the current fixed protocol stack can no longer meet the information and data transmission requirements in the future 6G mobile network. For example, NWDAF, as a key intelligent network element for data collection and analysis in mobile networks, needs to collect and interact with massive amounts of data from various NFs in the network. The HTTP protocol can no longer meet the requirements of communication frequency and data load. With the development of 6G networks based on artificial intelligence, 6G networks are more intelligent, data interactions within the network are more frequent, and the requirements for network intelligence are getting higher and higher. The data types interacting between the intelligent plane, that is, NWDAF and other entities, will also become more complex, and the requirements for the protocol stack will also be higher. Summary of the invention

[0004] A technical problem to be solved by the present disclosure is: how to improve the efficiency of data interaction between network functions NF.

[0005] According to a first aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which is executed by a network data analysis function NWDAF, including: receiving a data connection establishment request sent by a network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; sending a data connection establishment response to the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0006] In some embodiments, the network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

[0007] In some embodiments, the application layer protocol type is any one of the second-generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third-generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol (File Transfer Protocol, abbreviated as: FTP), the remote direct memory access (Remote Direct Memory Access, abbreviated as: RDMA), and the message queue protocol Kafka; the network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the user datagram protocol (ser Datagram Protocol, abbreviated as: UDP), the transmission control protocol (Transmission Control Protocol, abbreviated as: TCP), and the quick UDP Internet connection (Quick UDP Internet Connection, abbreviated as: QUIC).

[0008] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the type of NF, and the type of NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function (Policy Control Function, PCF), unified data management function (UDM), network exposure function (NEF), user plane function (UPF), access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data repository function (UDR).

[0009] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the NF's identity and a recovery timestamp.

[0010] In some embodiments, when the NF is a UPF, the network protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of FTP.

[0011] In some embodiments, when the NF is also a NWDAF, the network protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP.

[0012] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request is carried via HTTP connection request signaling between the NF and the NWDAF.

[0013] In some embodiments, the communication method further includes: when the data connection establishment response indicates that the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type, data transmission between the NWDAF and the NF is based on the network protocol type.

[0014] According to a second aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which is executed by a network data analysis function NWDAF, including: sending a data connection establishment request to a network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; receiving a data connection establishment response sent by the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF accepts the network protocol type.

[0015] In some embodiments, the network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

[0016] In some embodiments, the application layer protocol type is any one of the second generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol FTP, the remote direct memory access RDMA, and the message queue protocol Kafka; the network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the user datagram protocol UDP, the transmission control protocol TCP, and the fast UDP Internet connection QUIC.

[0017] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request further includes a type of NWDAF, and the type of NF is NWDAF.

[0018] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the identity of the NWDAF and a recovery timestamp.

[0019] In some embodiments, the NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function PCF, unified data management function UDM, network exposure function NEF, user plane function UPF, access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data storage function UDR.

[0020] In some embodiments, when the NF is a UPF, the communication protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of FTP.

[0021] In some embodiments, when the NF is also an NWDAF, the communication protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP.

[0022] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request is carried via HTTP connection request signaling between the NF and the NWDAF.

[0023] In some embodiments, the communication method further includes: when the data connection establishment response indicates that the NF accepts the network protocol type, data transmission between the NWDAF and the NF is based on the network protocol type.

[0024] According to a third aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which is executed by a network function NF, including: sending a data connection establishment request to a network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; receiving a data connection establishment response sent by NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0025] According to a fourth aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication method is provided, which is executed by a network function NF, including: receiving a data connection establishment request sent by a network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; sending a data connection establishment response to the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF receives the network protocol type.

[0026] According to a fifth aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a network data analysis function NWDAF is provided, comprising: a first receiving module, configured to receive a data connection establishment request sent by a network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; a first sending module, configured to send a data connection establishment response to the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0027] According to a sixth aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a network data analysis function NWDAF is provided, including: a second sending module, configured to send a data connection establishment request to a network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; a second receiving module, configured to receive a data connection establishment response sent by the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF accepts the network protocol type.

[0028] According to the seventh aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a network function NF is provided, including: a first sending module, configured to send a data connection establishment request to a network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; a first receiving module, configured to receive a data connection establishment response sent by NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0029] According to an eighth aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a network function NF is provided, including: a second receiving module, configured to receive a data connection establishment request sent by NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; a second sending module, configured to send a data connection establishment response to NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF receives the network protocol type.

[0030] According to a ninth aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a communication system, comprising: the NWDAF as described above; and the NF as described above; or comprising: the NWDAF as described above; and the NF as described above.

[0031] According to the tenth aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor; and a memory coupled to the processor, for storing instructions, which, when executed by the processor, causes the processor to execute any one of the communication methods described above.

[0032] According to an eleventh aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, wherein the program, when executed by a processor, implements any one of the communication methods described above.

[0033] According to a twelfth aspect of some embodiments of the present disclosure, a computer program product is provided, comprising instructions, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to execute any one of the communication methods described above.

[0034] The present invention enables the network data analysis function and the network function to negotiate the network protocol type by performing requests and responses for establishing a data connection between the network data analysis function and the network function that interacts with it, so that the network data analysis function and the network function can flexibly select the network protocol type according to needs, thereby improving the efficiency of data interaction between the network functions.

[0035] Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0036] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present disclosure or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present disclosure. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0037] Figure 1 A flow chart of a communication method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0038] Figure 2 A flow chart of a communication method according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0039] Figure 3 A flow chart of a communication method according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0040] Figure 4 A flow chart of a communication method according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0041] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the structure of NWDAF according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0042] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of the structure of NWDAF according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0043] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of a NF according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0044] Figure 8 A schematic structural diagram of a NF according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0045] Fig. 9 A schematic structural diagram of a communication system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0046] Fig.10 A schematic structural diagram of a communication system according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0047] Fig.11 A schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown.

[0048] Fig.12 A schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0049] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, rather than all of the embodiments. The following description of at least one exemplary embodiment is actually only illustrative and is by no means intended to limit the present disclosure and its application or use. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present disclosure.

[0050] The interface between the target 5G control plane entities adopts a service-based architecture (Service Based Architecture, SBA for short), and the interface protocol between them adopts the HTTP protocol. The protocol stack of the SBA interface is shown in Table 1, where L1 represents the physical layer, L2 represents the link layer, IP represents the network layer, TCP represents the transport layer adopts the TCP protocol, and HTTP2.0 represents the application layer (Application) adopts the HTTP2.0 protocol.

[0051] Table 1

[0052]

[0053]

[0054] In order to meet the intelligent needs of future mobile networks and efficiently realize the collection and processing of various complex data, the present disclosure considers that the network protocols used on the interfaces related to NWDAF can be flexibly edited based on the content of the transmitted data, and the application layer protocols and transport layer protocols used can be negotiated, that is, support editable and flexible protocol stack combinations. Based on this, the present disclosure proposes a communication method, which realizes the network protocol negotiation function of the entities at both ends of the interface by adding a network protocol negotiation interface to NWDAF and the functional entities around NWDAF, namely NF.

[0055] The communication method disclosed in the present invention involves the interaction between NWDAF and NF, and will be described based on NWDAF and NF side respectively. Figure 1 The communication method of the present disclosure is described based on the NWDAF side.

[0056] Figure 1 FIG. 1 is a flow chart showing a communication method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 1 As shown, the method of this embodiment is executed by NWDAF, and includes steps S102 to S104.

[0057] In step S102, a data connection establishment request sent by a network function NF is received, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type.

[0058] The NF interacting with the NWDAF sends a data connection establishment request to the NWDAF to inform the NWDAF of the network protocol types it supports.

[0059] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the type of NF, and the type of NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function PCF, unified data management function UDM, network open function NEF, user plane function UPF, access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data storage function UDR. That is, interfaces for network protocol negotiation can be added to these NFs. Those skilled in the art can understand that NF is not limited to these specific examples, and NF in the present disclosure also includes other NFs that have data exchange with NWDAF.

[0060] In some embodiments, the network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

[0061] In some embodiments, the application layer protocol type is any one of the second generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol FTP, the remote direct memory access RDMA, and the message queue protocol Kafka; the network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the user datagram protocol UDP, the transmission control protocol TCP, and the fast UDP Internet connection QUIC.

[0062] NF sends a data connection establishment request to NWDAF according to the network protocol type it supports, thus realizing the editability of the network protocol between NWDAF and NF. That is, according to the needs, technical personnel in this field can edit the network protocol type supported by NF, which can not only adjust the network protocol between NWDAF and NF according to the business conditions, but also adapt to the needs of future development, and can timely update the network protocol between NWDAF and NF after the emergence of a new generation of network protocols.

[0063] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request is carried by HTTP connection request signaling between NF and NWDAF. That is, the data connection request does not require new signaling, and can be implemented by adding new information elements in the existing signaling, and the new information elements include descriptions of the network protocol type and the NF type.

[0064] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the NF's identity and a recovery timestamp.

[0065] That is to say, the communication method disclosed in the present invention can be implemented through the existing signaling between NF and NWDAF. For example, by adding an option of a new information element in the HTTP connection request signaling, the communication method disclosed in the present invention can be implemented when the option is set, and the original communication method can be maintained when the option is not set. That is, the communication method disclosed in the present invention is not only simple to implement, but also highly flexible.

[0066] Table 2 shows an example of adding an optional element to the HTTP connection request signaling to implement the communication method of the present disclosure.

[0067] As shown in Table 2, the communication method of the present disclosure can be implemented by adding the options of application layer protocol type and L3 / 4 (network layer and transport layer) protocol type in the HTTP connection request signaling. That is, the network protocol type included in the data connection request can be described by multiple information elements, such as the protocol type of the application layer, the protocol type of the network layer and the protocol type of the transport layer in Table 2. Of course, the network protocol type included in the data connection request can also be described by a single information element.

[0068] In addition, as shown in Table 2, after adding the optional options of application layer protocol type and L3 / 4 protocol type in the HTTP connection request signaling, the mandatory option of NF type is also added, that is, the communication method disclosed in the present invention requires NF to inform NWDAF of its NF type so that NWDAF can respond to the data connection suggestion request according to the NF type.

[0069] Table 2

[0070]

[0071] Table 3, Table 4 and Table 5 respectively show examples of the specific structure of an information element describing an application layer protocol type, the specific structure of an information element describing a network layer and transport layer protocol type, and the specific structure of an information element describing an NF type.

[0072] Table 3

[0073]

[0074] Table 4

[0075]

[0076] Table 5

[0077]

[0078] The information cells shown in Table 3, Table 4 and Table 5 exemplarily show the bits corresponding to each field. For example, the information cell may describe the type of the information cell, define the length of the data in the information cell as n, and the length may be adjusted as needed. The information cell may also include an idle or reserved field for future use, an instance field for specifying a specific instance of the protocol, and a field describing the protocol. The fields included in the information cell are only exemplary, and those skilled in the art may modify them as needed.

[0079] As shown in Table 3, Table 4 and Table 5, different application layer (L7) protocol types, network layer and transport layer (L3 / 4) protocol types and NF types can be represented by binary encoding.

[0080] Table 3, Table 4 and Table 5 are only exemplary descriptions of the design of the information element for implementing the communication method of the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art may modify the exemplary description, for example, the NF type value in Table 5 may be added or deleted to correspond to the NF interacting with the NWDAF.

[0081] In some embodiments, when the NF is UPF, the network protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of FTP. UPF initiates a request message for establishing an intelligent data plane connection interface to NWDAF for transmitting user behavior analysis data. There is a lot of data in the user layer. Considering that FTP has the advantages of fast transmission speed, high reliability, and support for large-capacity file transmission, UPF can apply for transmission in the form of FTP interface.

[0082] In some embodiments, when the NF is also an NWDAF, the network protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP. An intelligent data plane interface connection needs to be established between the NWDAFs of federated learning to achieve the transmission of federated data. Considering that RDMA technology can directly transmit application data on the user side to the storage area on the server side, eliminating multiple CPU copy operations during the transmission process, on the one hand, it has the characteristics of low latency and high bandwidth data transmission, and on the other hand, it can effectively reduce the CPU load, that is, it can greatly accelerate AI scenarios such as federated learning and model splitting. Therefore, NWDAF can apply to establish an RDMA data interface.

[0083] In step S104, a data connection establishment response is sent to the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0084] NWDAF determines whether to accept the network protocol type proposed by NF based on the network protocol types it supports or the service conditions.

[0085] In some embodiments, the communication method further includes: when the data connection establishment response indicates that the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type, data transmission between the NWDAF and the NF is based on the network protocol type.

[0086] When the data connection establishment response indicates that NWDAF does not accept the network protocol type, NF can send a data connection establishment request to NWDAF again with other supported network protocol types, or NF and NWDAF can use a preset default network protocol type for data transmission.

[0087] The above is a description of the communication method of the present disclosure based on the NWDAF side. In the above description, the NF sends a protocol negotiation request to the NWDAF. In fact, the NWDAF can also send a protocol negotiation request, i.e., a data connection establishment request, to the NF, and receive a data connection establishment response sent by the NF. That is, the communication method of the present disclosure can be carried out by bilateral negotiation between the NWDAF and the NF.

[0088] Figure 2 FIG. 2 shows a flow chart of a communication method according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 2 As shown, the method of this embodiment is executed by NWDAF, and includes steps S202 to S204.

[0089] In step S202, a data connection establishment request is sent to the network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type.

[0090] In some embodiments, the network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

[0091] In some embodiments, the application layer protocol type is any one of the second generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol FTP, the remote direct memory access RDMA, and the message queue protocol Kafka; the network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the user datagram protocol UDP, the transmission control protocol TCP, and the fast UDP Internet connection QUIC.

[0092] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request further includes a type of NWDAF, and the type of NF is NWDAF.

[0093] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request is carried via HTTP connection request signaling between the NF and the NWDAF.

[0094] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the identity of the NWDAF and a recovery timestamp.

[0095] Similar to the data connection establishment request sent by the NF, the data connection establishment request sent by the NWDAF can be performed through existing signaling between the NF and the NWDAF, such as HTTP connection request signaling, which will not be described in detail here.

[0096] In some embodiments, the NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function PCF, unified data management function UDM, network open function NEF, user plane function UPF, access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data storage function UDR. That is, interfaces for network protocol negotiation can be added to these NFs. Those skilled in the art can understand that NF is not limited to these specific examples, and NF in the present disclosure also includes other NFs that have data exchange with NWDAF.

[0097] In some embodiments, when the NF is a UPF, the communication protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of FTP.

[0098] In some embodiments, when the NF is also an NWDAF, the communication protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP.

[0099] In step S204, a data connection establishment response sent by the NF is received, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF accepts the network protocol type.

[0100] The NF determines whether to accept the network protocol type recommended by the NWDAF based on the network protocol types it supports or the service conditions.

[0101] In some embodiments, when the data connection establishment response indicates that the NF accepts the network protocol type, data transmission is performed between the NWDAF and the NF based on the network protocol type.

[0102] When the data connection establishment response indicates that the NF does not accept the network protocol type, the NWDAF may send a data connection establishment request to the NF again with other supported network protocol types, or the NF and the NWDAF may use a preset default network protocol type for data transmission.

[0103] The above is a description of the communication method of the present disclosure based on the NWDAF side. The following is a description of the communication method of the present disclosure based on the NF side. Corresponding to the NWDAF, the NF side includes two implementation methods, namely, sending a data connection establishment request to the NWDAF or receiving a data connection establishment request sent by the NWDAF. Figure 3 and Figure 4 Give a description.

[0104] Figure 3 FIG. 2 shows a flow chart of a communication method according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 3 As shown, the method of this embodiment is executed by NF, including steps S302 to S304.

[0105] In step S302, a data connection establishment request is sent to the network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type.

[0106] In step S304, a data connection establishment response sent by the NWDAF is received, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0107] Figure 4 FIG. 2 shows a flow chart of a communication method according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 4 As shown, the method of this embodiment is executed by NF, and includes steps S402 to S404.

[0108] In step S402, a data connection establishment request sent by the network data analysis function NWDAF is received, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type.

[0109] In step S404, a data connection establishment response is sent to the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF receives the network protocol type.

[0110] The present invention enables the network data analysis function and the network function to negotiate the network protocol type by performing requests and responses for establishing a data connection between the network data analysis function and the network function that interacts with it, so that the network data analysis function and the network function can flexibly select the network protocol type according to needs, thereby improving the efficiency of data interaction between the network functions.

[0111] Figure 5 FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of NWDAF according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 5 As shown, NWDAF 50 includes modules 510 and 520 .

[0112] The first receiving module 510 is configured to receive a data connection establishment request sent by the network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type;

[0113] The first sending module 520 is configured to send a data connection establishment response to the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0114] In some embodiments, the network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

[0115] In some embodiments, the application layer protocol type is any one of the second generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol FTP, the remote direct memory access RDMA, and the message queue protocol Kafka; the network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the user datagram protocol UDP, the transmission control protocol TCP, and the fast UDP Internet connection QUIC.

[0116] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the type of NF, and the type of NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function PCF, unified data management function UDM, network exposure function NEF, user plane function UPF, access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data warehouse function UDR.

[0117] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the NF's identity and a recovery timestamp.

[0118] In some embodiments, when the NF is a UPF, the network protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of FTP.

[0119] In some embodiments, when the NF is also a NWDAF, the network protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP.

[0120] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request is carried via HTTP connection request signaling between the NF and the NWDAF.

[0121] In some embodiments, the NWDAF 50 further includes: when the data connection establishment response indicates that the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type, data transmission between the NWDAF and the NF is based on the network protocol type.

[0122] Figure 6 FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of NWDAF according to other embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 6 As shown, NWDAF 60 includes modules 610 and 620 .

[0123] The second sending module 610 is configured to send a data connection establishment request to the network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type;

[0124] The second receiving module 620 is configured to receive a data connection establishment response sent by the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF accepts the network protocol type.

[0125] In some embodiments, the network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

[0126] In some embodiments, the application layer protocol type is any one of the second generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol FTP, the remote direct memory access RDMA, and the message queue protocol Kafka; the network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the user datagram protocol UDP, the transmission control protocol TCP, and the fast UDP Internet connection QUIC.

[0127] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request further includes a type of NWDAF, and the type of NF is NWDAF.

[0128] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request also includes the identity of the NWDAF and a recovery timestamp.

[0129] In some embodiments, the NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function PCF, unified data management function UDM, network exposure function NEF, user plane function UPF, access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data storage function UDR.

[0130] In some embodiments, when the NF is a UPF, the communication protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of FTP.

[0131] In some embodiments, when the NF is also an NWDAF, the communication protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP.

[0132] In some embodiments, the data connection establishment request is carried via HTTP connection request signaling between the NF and the NWDAF.

[0133] In some embodiments, the NWDAF 60 is further configured to perform data transmission between the NWDAF and the NF based on the network protocol type when the data connection establishment response indicates that the NF accepts the network protocol type.

[0134] Figure 7 FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a NF according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 7 As shown, NF 70 includes modules 710 and 720 .

[0135] The first sending module 710 is configured to send a data connection establishment request to the network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type;

[0136] The first receiving module 720 is configured to receive a data connection establishment response sent by the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

[0137] Figure 8 FIG. 4 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a NF according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. Figure 8 As shown, NF 80 includes modules 810 and 820 .

[0138] The second receiving module 810 is configured to receive a data connection establishment request sent by the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type;

[0139] The second sending module 820 is configured to send a data connection establishment response to the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF receives the network protocol type.

[0140] Fig. 9 FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig. 9 As shown, the communication system 90 includes an NWDAF 910 and a NF 920, wherein the NWDAF 910 is the NWDAF 50 as described above, and the NF 920 is the NF 70 as described above; or the NWDAF 910 is the NWDAF 60 as described above, and the NF 920 is the NF 80 as described above.

[0141] Fig.10 FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of a communication system according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig.10 As shown, the communication system includes eNWDAF 1010, eSMF 1020, eUDM 1030, eUPF 1040, and eAMF 1050. Among them, eNWDAF 1010 refers to NWDAF with protocol negotiation service, that is, enhanced NWDAF, eSMF 1020 refers to SMF with protocol negotiation service, that is, enhanced SMF, eUDM 1030 refers to UDM with protocol negotiation service, that is, enhanced UDM, eUPF 1040 refers to UPF with protocol negotiation service, that is, enhanced UPF, and eAMF 1050 refers to AMF with protocol negotiation service, that is, enhanced AMF. eSMF 1020, eUDM 1030, eUPF 1040, and eAMF 1050 can perform protocol negotiation with eNWDAF.

[0142] The NWDAF and NF in the embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented by various computing devices or computer systems. Fig.11 as well as Fig.12 Give a description.

[0143] Fig.11 FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig.11 As shown, the device 110 of this embodiment includes: a memory 1110 and a processor 1120 coupled to the memory 1110 , and the processor 1120 is configured to execute the communication method in any of some embodiments of the present disclosure based on instructions stored in the memory 1110 .

[0144] The memory 1110 may include, for example, a system memory, a fixed non-volatile storage medium, etc. The system memory may store, for example, an operating system, an application program, a boot loader, a database, and other programs.

[0145] Fig.12 FIG. 2 shows a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. Fig.12 As shown, the device 120 of this embodiment includes: a memory 1210 and a processor 1220, which are similar to the memory 1110 and the processor 1120, respectively. It can also include an input and output interface 1230, a network interface 1240, a storage interface 1250, etc. These interfaces 1230, 1240, 1250 and the memory 1210 and the processor 1220 can be connected, for example, through a bus 1260. Among them, the input and output interface 1230 provides a connection interface for input and output devices such as a display, a mouse, a keyboard, and a touch screen. The network interface 1240 provides a connection interface for various networked devices, for example, it can be connected to a database server or a cloud storage server. The storage interface 1250 provides a connection interface for external storage devices such as SD cards and USB flash drives.

[0146] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, wherein the program implements any one of the aforementioned communication methods when executed by a processor.

[0147] An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a computer program product, comprising instructions, which, when executed by a processor, enable the processor to perform any one of the aforementioned communication methods.

[0148] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the embodiments of the present disclosure may be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, the present disclosure may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware. Moreover, the present disclosure may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable non-transient storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0149] The present disclosure is described with reference to the flowcharts and / or block diagrams of the methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to the embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be understood that each process and / or box in the flowchart and / or block diagram, as well as the combination of the processes and / or boxes in the flowchart and / or block diagram, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing device to generate a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device generate instructions for implementing the processes in the flowchart and / or block diagram. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A device that provides the functions specified in a block or multiple blocks.

[0150] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture comprising an instruction device, which implements the process Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A function specified in one or more boxes.

[0151] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions for implementing the process. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The steps for the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0152] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present disclosure and is not intended to limit the present disclosure. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present disclosure should be included in the protection scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A communication method, performed by a network data analysis function NWDAF, include: receiving a data connection establishment request sent by a network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; A data connection establishment response is sent to the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

2. The communication method according to claim 1, in, The network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

3. The communication method according to claim 2, in, The application layer protocol type is any one of the second generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol FTP, the remote direct memory access RDMA, and the message queue protocol Kafka; The network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the User Datagram Protocol UDP, the Transmission Control Protocol TCP, and the Quick UDP Internet Connection QUIC.

4. The communication method according to claim 1, in, The data connection establishment request also includes the type of the NF, and the type of the NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function PCF, unified data management function UDM, network open function NEF, user plane function UPF, access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data warehouse function UDR.

5. The communication method according to claim 1, in, The data connection establishment request also includes the identity of the NF and a recovery timestamp.

6. The communication method according to claim 1, in, In the case that the NF is UPF, the application layer protocol type included in the network protocol type is FTP.

7. The communication method according to claim 1, in, In the case that the NF is also NWDAF, the network protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP.

8. The communication method according to claim 1, in, The data connection establishment request is carried by HTTP connection request signaling between the NF and the NWDAF.

9. The communication method according to claim 1, further comprising: include: In a case where the data connection establishment response indicates that the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type, data transmission is performed between the NWDAF and the NF based on the network protocol type.

10. A communication method, performed by a network data analysis function NWDAF, include: Sending a data connection establishment request to a network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; A data connection establishment response is received from the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF accepts the network protocol type.

11. The communication method according to claim 10, in, The network protocol type includes at least one of an application layer protocol type, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type.

12. The communication method according to claim 11, in, The application layer protocol type is any one of the second generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP2.0, the third generation hypertext transfer protocol HTTP3.0, the file transfer protocol FTP, the remote direct memory access RDMA, and the message queue protocol Kafka; The network layer protocol type and the transport layer protocol type include any one of the User Datagram Protocol UDP, the Transmission Control Protocol TCP, and the Quick UDP Internet Connection QUIC.

13. The communication method according to claim 10, in, The data connection establishment request also includes the type of the NWDAF, and the type of the NF is NWDAF.

14. The communication method according to claim 10, in, The data connection establishment request also includes the identity of the NWDAF and a recovery timestamp.

15. The communication method according to claim 10, in, The NF is at least one of NWDAF, session management function SMF, policy control function PCF, unified data management function UDM, network opening function NEF, user plane function UPF, access and mobility management function AMF, and unified data storage function UDR.

16. The communication method according to claim 10, in, In the case that the NF is UPF, the application layer protocol type included in the communication protocol type is FTP.

17. The communication method according to claim 10, in, In the case that the NF is also NWDAF, the communication protocol type includes an application layer protocol type of RDMA, a network layer protocol type, and a transport layer protocol type of UDP.

18. The communication method according to claim 10, in, The data connection establishment request is carried by HTTP connection request signaling between the NF and the NWDAF.

19. The communication method according to claim 10, further comprising: include: In a case where the data connection establishment response indicates that the NF accepts the network protocol type, data transmission is performed between the NWDAF and the NF based on the network protocol type.

20. A communication method, performed by a network function NF, include: Sending a data connection establishment request to the network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; A data connection establishment response sent by the NWDAF is received, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

21. A communication method, performed by a network function NF, include: receiving a data connection establishment request sent by a network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; A data connection establishment response is sent to the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF receives the network protocol type.

22. A network data analysis function NWDAF, include: A first receiving module is configured to receive a data connection establishment request sent by a network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; The first sending module is configured to send a data connection establishment response to the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

23. A network data analysis function NWDAF, include: A second sending module is configured to send a data connection establishment request to the network function NF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; The second receiving module is configured to receive a data connection establishment response sent by the NF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF accepts the network protocol type.

24. A network function NF, include: A first sending module is configured to send a data connection establishment request to the network data analysis function NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; The first receiving module is configured to receive a data connection establishment response sent by the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NWDAF accepts the network protocol type.

25. A network function NF, include: A second receiving module is configured to receive a data connection establishment request sent by the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment request includes a network protocol type; The second sending module is configured to send a data connection establishment response to the NWDAF, wherein the data connection establishment response indicates whether the NF receives the network protocol type.

26. A communication system, include: The NWDAF as claimed in claim 22; and the NF according to claim 24; or comprising: The NWDAF as claimed in claim 23; And the NF as claimed in claim 25.

27. A communication device, include: processor; as well as A memory coupled to the processor, for storing instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed by the processor, the processor executes the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

28. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, in, When the program is executed by a processor, the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 21 is implemented.

29. A computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to implement the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 21.

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