Service Registration and Discovery in a Communication Network

Abstract

Embodiments disclosed herein include a method for service registration in a communication network. The method includes: receiving a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a service type, and data managed by the service provided by the network function; and storing in a repository information that identifies the network function, the service type, and the data managed by the service provided by the network function.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] At least some examples of the present disclosure relate to the technical field of methods and devices for service registration and / or discovery in a communication network. Background Art

[0002] In general, all terms used herein will be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the relevant technical field, unless a different meaning is clearly given and / or implied from the context in which it is used. All references to an element, apparatus, component, part, step, etc. are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of the element, apparatus, component, part, step, etc., unless otherwise expressly stated. The steps of any method disclosed herein are not necessarily to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless a step is expressly described as following or preceding another step, and / or in cases where it is implied that a step must follow or precede another step. In any appropriate case, any feature of any embodiment in the embodiments disclosed herein may be applied to any other embodiment. Similarly, any advantage of any embodiment in the embodiments may be applied to any other embodiment, and vice versa. Other objects, features and advantages of the appended embodiments will be apparent from the following description.

[0003] The fifth generation (“5G”) system is being developed, as documented in References [1] and [2], the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. The 5G system takes the form of an SBA (service-based architecture) including multiple network functions, where each network function (NF) provides one or more services (as a producer NF) to one or more service consumers (each a consumer NF). For example, HTTP / REST (representational state transfer using HTTP) application programming interfaces (APIs) can be used for the interaction between producer services and consumer services. In some cases, an NF may include one or more consumer services and one or more producer services.

[0004] Figure 1 An example of a roaming 5G system architecture is shown. In the service-based architecture of the 5G system, services expected to be provided by service producers are used (e.g., consumed) by service consumers. The number of services (or service instances) available in the 5G system (e.g., due to scaling up or down, failures, programmed maintenance, and / or other factors) is dynamic. Thus, the 5G system contemplates a Network Repository Function (NRF) that supports functionality including:

[0005] – NF service registration and deregistration in the NRF;

[0006] – Discovery of NF services by NF service consumers; and

[0007] – Authorization of NF service consumers to access the producer.

[0008] In a 5G architecture such as Figure 1 shown, the Unified Data Management (UDM) network function can store subscriber data in a database. In a hierarchical architecture, the UDM exists in the UDM Front End (UDM-FE) plus the database. Figure 2 Examples of consumer services and UDR content are shown (e.g., in one or more network functions). As shown, the UDR contains subscription data, subscription policy data, data for exposure, and application data, and interfaces with the UDR-FE, PCF, and NEF network functions via the Nudr interface. Figure 2 The structures shown in

[0009] are merely examples, and the depicted entities can be organized differently and / or use (one or more) different interfaces.

[0010] Table 1 below shows examples of services defined for the UDM and related service operations.

[0011]

[0012] For the UDR, only one service and related service operations are defined, as shown below in Table 2.

[0013]

[0014] Figure 3Shows an example of the communication between an NF (e.g., NF service, NF service producer) and the NRF for the registration of a service (e.g., a service in an NF or an NF service). In step 1, the NF service (service producer) sends a service profile (e.g., an NF service profile) to the NRF. In step 2, the NRF stores the NF service profile. In step 3, the NRF sends an acknowledgement to the NF (service producer) as a response. The terms "NF service" and "NF service profile" may be interchanged with "service" and "service profile".

[0015] The NF service profile may include the following information:

[0016] NF instance ID

[0017] NF type

[0018] PLMN ID

[0019] (One or more) network slice related identifiers, such as S-NSSAI, NSI ID

[0020] IP address or FQDN of the NF

[0021] NF capacity information

[0022] NF specific service authorization information

[0023] Name of the supported service

[0024] Endpoint information of (one or more) instances of each supported service

[0025] (One or more) other service parameters, such as DNN, notification endpoints for each type of notification that the NF service is interested in receiving

[0026] Figure 4 Shows an example of the communication between an NF service (NF consumer) and the NRF during the service discovery process. In step 1, the service consumer (NF service) attempts to discover available instances of a specific service in the network. The service consumer sends a discovery request to the NRF, which indicates:

[0027] NF service name

[0028] NF type of the expected NF instance

[0029] NF type of NF consumer

[0030] Optionally, it may indicate the S-NSSAI.

[0031] In step 2, the NRF searches for registered services to obtain services that match the criteria in the discovery request. In step 3, the NRF replies to the NF with the set of (one or more) discovered NF instances or (one or more) NF service instances (e.g., these may indicate the IP address or FQDN of each service in the set), which include one, some, or all of the services that match the criteria.

[0032] Figure 5 An example of communication between an NF consumer and an NF producer (e.g., a service provider) is shown. The interaction between the two network functions (consumer and producer) within this NF service framework follows two mechanisms.

[0033] First, "request-response", another control plane NF_A (NF service consumer) requests the control plane NF_B (NF service producer) to provide a certain NF service, which performs actions or provides information or both. NF_B provides the NF service based on the request of NF_A. To satisfy the request, NF_B may in turn consume NF services from other NFs. In the request-response mechanism, the communication between the two NFs (consumer and producer) is one-to-one, and within a certain time frame, a single response from the producer to the request from the consumer is expected.

[0034] Second, "subscription-notification", the control plane NF_A (NF service consumer) subscribes to an NF service provided by another control plane NF_B (NF service producer). Multiple control plane NFs may subscribe to the same control plane NF service. NF_B notifies the result of this NF service to the (one or more) interested NFs that have subscribed to this NF service. The subscription request should include the notification endpoint (e.g., notification URL) to which the event notification from the NF service producer for the NF service consumer should be sent. In addition, the subscription request may include a request for periodic updates or notifications triggered by certain events (e.g., the requested information is changed, a certain threshold is reached, etc.).

[0035] The control plane NF_A may also subscribe to an NF service provided by the control plane NF_B on behalf of the control plane NF_C, i.e., it requests the NF service producer to send the event notification to (one or more) another consumer. In this case, NF_A includes the notification endpoint of NF_C in the subscription request. Summary of the Invention

[0036] According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a method for service registration in a communication network is provided. The method includes: receiving a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data administered by the network function for the service. The method further includes storing information in a repository, the information identifying the network function, the type of the service, and the data administered by the network function for the service.

[0037] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method for service registration in a communication network is provided. The method includes sending a service registration request to a service registration network function, the request identifying a service providing network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data administered by the service providing network function for the service.

[0038] According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, a method for service discovery in a communication network is provided. The method includes, in response to a service discovery request for a service registration network function, the service discovery request identifying a service type, receiving a service discovery response that identifies a service providing network function providing the service and identifies data administered by the service providing network function for the service.

[0039] According to yet a further aspect of the present disclosure, a computer program including instructions is provided, which when executed on at least one processor, causes the at least one processor to implement the method according to any of the above aspects. Another aspect includes a carrier containing the computer program, where the carrier includes one of an electronic signal, an optical signal, a radio signal, or a computer-readable storage medium. Another aspect includes a computer program product that includes a non-transitory computer-readable medium having the computer program stored thereon.

[0040] A further aspect of the present disclosure provides a device for service registration in a communication network. The device includes: a receiving module configured to receive a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data administered by the network function for the service. The device further includes: a storage module configured to store information in a repository, the information identifying the network function, the type of the service, and the data administered by the network function for the service.

[0041] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure provides an apparatus for service registration in a communication network. The apparatus includes: a sending module configured to send a service registration request to a service registration network function, the request identifying a service providing network function providing the service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the service providing network function.

[0042] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure provides an apparatus for service discovery in a communication network. The apparatus includes: a receiving module configured to receive a service discovery response in response to a service discovery request for a service registration network function, the service discovery request identifying a service type, the response identifying a service providing network function providing the service and identifying data managed by the service provided by the service providing network function. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0043] To better understand the examples of the present disclosure and to more clearly show how these examples may be implemented, reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the following drawings, in which:

[0044] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a roaming 5G system architecture;

[0045] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of an example of UDR content and a consumer network function;

[0046] Figure 3 is an illustration of an example of communication between an NF and an NRF for registration of an NF service;

[0047] Figure 4 is an illustration of an example of communication between an NF service and an NRF during a service discovery process;

[0048] Figure 5 is an illustration of an example of communication between an NF consumer and an NF producer;

[0049] Figure 6 is a flowchart of an example of a method for service registration in a communication network;

[0050] Figure 7 is a flowchart of an example of a method for service registration in a communication network;

[0051] Figure 8 is a flowchart of an example of a method for service discovery in a communication network;

[0052] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of an example of an apparatus for service registration in a communication network;

[0053] Figure 10Schematic diagram of an example of a device for service registration in a communication network;

[0054] Figure 11 Schematic diagram of an example of a device for service discovery in a communication network;

[0055] Figure 12 Schematic diagram of an example of a device for service registration in a communication network;

[0056] Figure 13 Schematic diagram of an example of a device for service registration in a communication network;

[0057] Figure 14 Schematic diagram of an example of a device for service discovery in a communication network;

[0058] Figure 15 Illustrates an example of communication between certain entities in a communication network during service registration and discovery; and

[0059] Figure 16 Illustrates communication between entities in a communication network during service usage. Detailed Description

[0060] Specific details, such as specific embodiments or examples, are set forth below for purposes of explanation and not limitation. Those skilled in the art will understand that other examples may be employed in addition to these specific details. In some instances, detailed descriptions of well-known methods, nodes, interfaces, circuits, and devices are omitted so as not to obscure the description with unnecessary detail. Those skilled in the art will understand that the described functionality may be implemented in one or more nodes using hardware circuits (e.g., analog and / or discrete logic gates interconnected to perform a dedicated function, ASICs, PLAs, etc.) and / or using software programs and data along with one or more digital microprocessors or general purpose computers. Nodes that communicate using an air interface also have appropriate radio communication circuitry. Additionally, in appropriate cases, the technology can also be regarded as being fully embodied in any form of computer-readable memory (such as solid state memory, magnetic disk, or optical disk) that contains an appropriate set of computer instructions that will cause a processor to implement the technology described herein.

[0061] Hardware implementations can non - restrictively include or encompass digital signal processor (DSP) hardware, reduced instruction set processors, hardware (e.g., digital or analog) circuits, including but not limited to one or more application - specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and / or one or more field - programmable gate arrays ((one or more) FPGAs), and (where appropriate) state machines capable of performing such functions.

[0062] According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, the UDR is not the only entity in the network. For example, in the following cases, there may be multiple UDRs in the network:

[0063] - In a customer's deployment, in the same network, for example, in China where multiple regions are deployed, multiple UDRs may be deployed.

[0064] - Multiple UDRs hold different data respectively.

[0065] - Multiple UDRs provide different services to different service consumers (such as PCF, UDM, NEF, and / or one or more other consumers).

[0066] In these cases, each UDR in the network can register a UDM service in the NRF, but each UDM only serves some specific data. For example, the first UDR may hold subscription data only for a part of all subscribers, while the second UDR may hold subscription data for the remaining subscribers; or the first UDR may only store subscription data for UDM-FE and PCF, while the second UDR stores application data, and even the third UDR stores data for openness.

[0067] This means that each UDR can register a producer service (such as "Unified Data Management") under the same name, but it is impossible to identify which data is accessed / served by this service instance. As a result, a consumer NF, such as UDM-FE, cannot obtain information from the discovery of the NRF that can select a UDR service instance that provides access to the data of interest to this consumer service.

[0068] The same problem also applies to the UDM when the UDM stores data locally (i.e., no UDR is deployed as an external database). For example, if the UDM stores data for a group or a range of subscribers, the UDM consumers (such as AMF, SMF, SMSF) do not know which UDM-FE instance stores the data for the corresponding UE / subscriber.

[0069] In addition, there are currently no regulations on how to handle service versions, how to handle vendor-proprietary service functionality, how to handle vendor-proprietary database (which is used to store any data in the 5G system) functionality, or how to handle service upgrades.

[0070] Figure 600 is a flowchart of an example of method 600 for service registration in a communication network. The method includes: at block 602, receiving a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the network function. At block 604, method 600 includes storing in a repository information that identifies the network function, the type of the service, and the data managed by the service provided by the network function.

[0071] For example, data managed by a service can be specific data associated with the service (e.g., a data set or a data range). For example, the specific data can be data stored by or for the service, or data created, modified, deleted, moved, provided, processed, or managed by or for the service, or any other operation performed on the data by or for the service.

[0072] In some embodiments, the service registration request is received from the network function. The information can be stored in a Network Repository Function (NRF). For example, the stored information can be an NF service profile. In some embodiments, the method is performed by a Network Repository Function (NRF).

[0073] In some embodiments, the method includes: receiving a service discovery request that identifies a type of a service; and sending a service discovery response to a sender of the service discovery request, the service discovery response identifying a network function and / or a service. In some embodiments, the service discovery response identifies the data. Thus, the sender of the service discovery request (e.g., an NF service consumer) can determine whether the service(s) identified in the service discovery response is / are associated with appropriate data (e.g., a data set, a data range, etc. of interest to the sender).

[0074] In some embodiments, the method includes: receiving an additional service registration request that identifies an additional network function providing a service, a type of the service, and additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function; and storing additional information in a repository that identifies the additional network function, the type of the service, and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function. Thus, for example, multiple services of the same type (e.g., having the same service name) can be registered and distinguished by the data they are associated with (e.g., data groups, data ranges, etc.). Thus, for example, this can enable service consumers to discover services associated with the correct data and discount those services not associated with the correct data (e.g., subscribers not of interest to the service consumer). The method may further include: receiving a service discovery request that identifies a type of the service; and sending a service discovery response to a sender of the service discovery request, the service discovery response identifying at least one of a network function and an additional network function. In some embodiments, the service discovery request identifies data, and the service discovery response may exclude information identifying at least one network function providing a service for different data. Thus, for example, the service discovery response may identify only one or more services associated with data of interest to the sender of the request. The additional service registration request may be received from the additional network function.

[0075] In some embodiments, the information identifying data managed by a service provided by a network function includes information identifying a data subset, a data category, a subscriber group associated with the data, one or more applications using the data, and / or a data range managed by the service provided by the network function. Additionally or alternatively, wherein the network function is a Unified Data Repository (UDR), User Data Repository (UDR), Unified Data Management (UDM), Policy Control Function (PCF), UDSF (Unstructured Data Storage Function), PDFD-FE (Packet Data Filter Description Front End), or Network Exposure Function (NEF). In some examples, data managed by a service provided by a network function may include data stored by, for, or on behalf of the service or the network function. The communication network may be, for example, a 5G system.

[0076] Figure 7 An example of a method 700 for service registration in a communication network is shown. The method 700 includes: at block 702, sending a service registration request to a service registration network function, the request identifying a service-providing network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function. Thus, for example, a sender of the request, such as an NF service producer, can register a service associated with data of interest to the service (e.g., data type, data group, data range, etc.).

[0077] In some examples, the service registration network function is the Network Repository Function (NRF). The service registration request may be sent by a service providing network function (e.g., an NF service producer).

[0078] The data managed by the service provided by the service providing network function may be, for example, the data stored by the service providing network function. In some examples, the service providing network function may be a Unified Data Repository (UDR), a User Data Repository (UDR), a Unified Data Management (UDM), a Policy Control Function (PCF), a UDSF (Unstructured Data Storage Function), a PDFD-FE (Packet Data Filter Description Front End), or a Network Exposure Function (NEF).

[0079] The request may identify the data managed by the service provided by the service providing network function by identifying a subset of the data, a data category, a subscriber group associated with the data, and / or a scope of the data managed by the service provided by the service providing network function.

[0080] Figure 8 is a flow chart of an example of a method 800 for service discovery in a communication network. The method 800 includes: in response to a service discovery request for a service registration network function, the service discovery request identifying a service type, receiving a service discovery response, the response identifying a service providing network function providing the service; and identifying data managed by the service provided by the service providing network function. Thus, in some examples, the sender of the service discovery request, e.g., an NF service consumer, may receive a response identifying the service(s), and the sender may be able to select one or more services associated with data of interest to the sender, such as an appropriate type, group, scope, etc. of the data. In some embodiments, the method 800 includes sending a service discovery request to a service registration network function (e.g., the NRF).

[0081] In some examples, the service discovery response identifies additional network functions providing the service and identifies additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network functions. Thus, if the additional data is not the same or not exactly the same as the data for the first service (e.g., the same scope, etc.), the response may identify multiple services and potentially different data.

[0082] A service discovery request can identify data. For example, in such cases, the response can identify only those services that match the data (i.e., are associated with the same scope, group, type, etc. of the data). The service discovery response can also identify additional network functions that provide the service and identify the data. That is, for example, the response identifies multiple services of the same type (e.g., the same name) and is associated with the same or similar data. The data managed by the services provided by the service - providing network function and the data managed by the services provided by the additional network functions can include the same data subset, data category, subscriber group associated with the data, and / or data scope.

[0083] In some embodiments, the request identifies the data managed by the service provided by the service - providing network function by identifying a data subset, a data category, a subscriber group associated with the data, and / or a data scope of the data managed by the service provided by the service - providing network function. In some examples, the service - providing network function can be a Unified Data Repository (UDR), User Data Repository (UDR), Unified Data Management (UDM), Policy Control Function (PCF), UDSF (Unstructured Data Storage Function), PDFD - FE (Packet Data Filter Description Front - End), or Network Exposure Function (NEF). In some examples, the service registration network function includes a Network Repository Function (NRF).

[0084] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of an example of a device 900 for service registration in a communication network. The device 1000 includes a processor 902 and a memory 904. The memory 904 contains instructions executable by the processor 902 such that the device 900 is operable to perform, for example Figure 6 the method 600 shown in

[0085] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of an example of a device 1000 for service registration in a communication network. The device 1000 includes a processor 1002 and a memory 1004. The memory 1004 contains instructions executable by the processor 1002 such that the device 1000 is operable to perform, for example Figure 7 the method 700 of

[0086] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of an example of a device 1100 for service discovery in a communication network. The device 1100 includes a processor 1102 and a memory 1104. The memory 1104 contains instructions executable by the processor 1002 such that the device 1100 is operable to perform, for example Figure 8 the method 800 of

[0087] Figure 12FIG. is a schematic diagram of an example of a device 1200 for service registration in a communication network. The device 1200 includes: a receiving module 1202 configured to receive a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the network function; and a storage module 1204 configured to store information in a repository that identifies the network function, the type of the service, and the data managed by the service provided by the network function.

[0088] Figure 13 FIG. is a schematic diagram of an example of a device 1300 for service registration in a communication network. The device 1300 includes: a sending module 1302 configured to send a service registration request to a service registration network function, the request identifying a service-providing network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function.

[0089] Figure 14 FIG. is a schematic diagram of an example of a device 1400 for service discovery in a communication network. The device 1400 includes: a receiving module 1402 configured to, in response to a service discovery request for a service registration network function, the service discovery request identifying a type of the service, receive a service discovery response that identifies a service-providing network function providing the service and identifies data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function.

[0090] Any suitable steps, methods, features, functions, or benefits disclosed herein may be performed by one or more functional units or modules of one or more virtual devices. Each virtual device may include a plurality of such functional units. These functional units may be implemented via a processing circuit and other digital hardware, the processing circuit may include one or more microprocessors or microcontrollers, and the digital hardware may include a digital signal processor (DSP), dedicated digital logic, etc. The processing circuit may be configured to execute program code stored in a memory, and the memory may include one or several types of memories, such as read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), cache memory, flash memory devices, optical storage devices, etc. The program code stored in the memory includes program instructions for executing one or more telecommunication and / or data communication protocols, and instructions for implementing one or more of the techniques described herein. In some implementations, according to one or more embodiments of the present disclosure, the processing circuit may be used to cause the corresponding functional unit to perform the corresponding function.

[0091] Some additional examples and embodiments will now be described. The embodiments disclosed herein propose solutions to support 5G SBA (Service-Based Architecture) service registration, discovery, and execution for an NF for locally stored data (e.g., UDR for locally stored data). This solution can be implemented when data accessible by a UE / consumer (e.g., UDM-FE as an example) is stored in more than one NF (e.g., multiple UDRs are deployed), and subsequently when the services provided by multiple producer NFs (e.g., UDRs) are the same, the UE / consumer needs to know which one of the multiple NFs storing the data stores the data it is interested in.

[0092] The embodiments disclosed herein propose to update service registration to allow a producer to identify the data accessible by a service either through explicit information at registration or by supplementing this information with a configuration in the producer.

[0093] In some embodiments, service discovery is modified to provide this information to a consumer, which is registered as part of the service information.

[0094] In some embodiments, the service execution of a consumer is modified as follows: the consumer can identify which service producer should be used for each request for a service based on the data to be accessed, i.e., select the service that provides access to the data of interest to the service consumer. For example, when registering a UE in the AMF for mobility, the AMF requests the UE's subscribed data from the UDM-FE, and the UDM-FE needs to extract this data from the corresponding UDR (e.g., the correct UDR if multiple are deployed) via the same service (e.g., Nudr_Unified Data Management Service).

[0095] Figure 15 An example of the communication between certain entities in a communication network during the service registration and discovery process is shown. Registration is performed in steps 1 - 3, and the discovery request is step 4. Steps 1 - 3 can be performed in any order. In steps 1 - 3, each UDR (UDR-1, UDR-2, and UDR-3) registers its NF profile (service profile) with the NRF. The NF profile can include:

[0096] - NF instance ID

[0097] - NF type

[0098] - PLMN ID

[0099] - (One or more) network slice-related identifiers, such as S-NSSAI, NSI ID

[0100] - IP address or FQDN of the NF

[0101] - NF capacity information

[0102] - NF specific service authorization information

[0103] - (One or more) names of the supported service(s)

[0104] - Endpoint information for (one or more) instances of each supported service; and / or

[0105] - Other service parameters, such as DNN, notification endpoints for each type of notification that the NF is interested in receiving

[0106] Some embodiments disclosed herein allow, for example, multiple UDR NFs to provide a way to identify the data associated with each NF so that a consumer can choose which one to use. Multiple options are possible, such as including the following:

[0107] Different UDRs can use different "NF instances" (e.g., "UDR-1", "UDR-2", "UDR-3"). Then, the consumer can be configured to identify the corresponding data accessible by each service. For example:

[0108] o "UDR-1": Sub-data group 1 (subscriber identity list and / or range).

[0109] o "UDR-2": Sub-data group 2 (subscriber identity list and / or range).

[0110] o "UDR-3": Data for open access.

[0111] Additionally or alternatively, the "other service parameters" may be extended to include new parameters that identify different data sets (e.g., different data types, or just parts of the same data type identified by a range / group of data identifiers - such as a range of subscriber identities).

[0112] In the example disclosed herein, the UDM-FE may want to discover the UDR service. This can include the UDM-FE indicating the service name to be discovered. Then, the discovery (e.g., discovery response) can provide sufficient information for the UDM-FE to be able to select an appropriate UDR instance. The information provided may be sufficient to uniquely identify the data to be accessed in each UDR instance, such as a new parameter indicating "data for open access", which provides all the information required for the consumer to select an appropriate UDR instance.

[0113] Figure 16Shows the communication between entities in a communication network during an example use case where the AMF uses the UDM-FE service. For example, we can consider when the AMF needs to access specific UE subscriber data. It requests this information from the UDM-FE for a specific UE identity (e.g., SUPIx) using, for example, the Nudm_SubsDataMng_Get operation. The UDM-FE needs to identify which Nudr service to use to access the corresponding data. It needs to check the information at registration, such as the information included in the service discovery response, and may also require some local configuration in some examples. In one example, we assume that SUPIx is in subscriber data group 2, i.e., stored by UDR 2; the UDM-FE executes the Nudr service registered by UDR 2 (i.e., using the provided IP address or FQDN).

[0114] In another example, the AMF needs to identify which UDM instance stores the data for the corresponding UE. In a 5G system, since the SBA interface is based on service registration and discovery and (for example) HTTP / REST APIs, the Diameter routing is not available. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed herein allow each UDM instance to register its service, but provide information to identify which subscription data is stored in or for each instance.

[0115] It should be noted that the above examples illustrate rather than limit the embodiments disclosed herein, and those skilled in the art will be able to design many alternative examples. The word "comprising" does not exclude the presence of additional elements or steps, "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality, and a single processor or other unit can perform the functions of several units. When using terms such as "first", "second", etc., they are only to be understood as labels for conveniently identifying specific features. In particular, they should not be construed as describing the first or second feature of a plurality of such features (i.e., the first or second feature of such features occurring in time or space), unless otherwise explicitly stated. The steps in the methods disclosed herein can be executed in any order, unless otherwise explicitly stated. Any reference signs in the claims should not be construed as limiting their scope.

Claims

1. A method for service registration and service discovery in a communication network, the method comprising: Receiving a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the network function; Storing information in a repository, the information identifying the network function, the type of the service, and the data managed by the service provided by the network function; Receiving a service discovery request that identifies a type of service; And Sending a service discovery response to a sender of the service discovery request, the response identifying a service - providing network function providing the service and identifying data managed by the service provided by the service - providing network function, Wherein the service discovery response identifies additional network functions providing the service and identifies additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network functions, and wherein the data managed by the service provided by the service - providing network function and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network functions include: the same subscriber group, the same data subset, data category, and / or data range associated with the data.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information identifying the data managed by the service provided by the network function includes information identifying a subscriber group associated with the data.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information identifying the data managed by the service provided by the network function includes information identifying a data subset, a data category, one or more applications using the data, and / or a data range of the data managed by the service provided by the network function.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the service registration request is received from the network function.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein the information is stored in a Network Repository Function (NRF) and / or the method is executed by a Network Repository Function (NRF).

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, the method comprising: Receiving an additional service registration request that identifies an additional network function providing the service, the type of the service, and additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function; And Storing additional information in the repository, the additional information identifying the additional network function, the type of the service, and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function.

7. The method according to claim 6, the method comprising: Receiving a service discovery request that identifies a type of service; And Sending a service discovery response to a sender of the service discovery request, the service discovery response identifying at least one of the network function and the additional network function.

8. The method according to claim 7, wherein the service discovery request identifies the data.

9. The method according to claim 8, wherein the service discovery response excludes information identifying at least one network function that provides the service for different data.

10. The method according to claim 6, wherein the additional service registration request is received from the additional network function.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the network function is a unified data repository, a user data repository, a unified data management (UDM), a policy control function (PCF), an unstructured data storage function (UDSF), a packet data filter description front end (PDFD-FE), or a network exposure function (NEF).

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the data managed by the service provided by the network function includes data stored by, for, or by the network function for the service.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the communication network is a 5G system.

14. A method for service discovery in a communication network, the method comprising: receiving, in response to a service discovery request for a service registration network function, a service discovery response, the service discovery request identifying the type of service, the response identifying the service-providing network function that provides the service, and identifying the data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function, wherein the service discovery response identifies an additional network function that provides the service and identifies additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function, and wherein the data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function include: the same subscriber group, the same data subset, data category, and / or data range associated with the data.

15. The method according to claim 14, comprising sending the service discovery request to the service registration network function.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the service discovery request identifies the data.

17. The method according to any one of claims 14 - 16, wherein the service discovery request identifies the data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function by identifying a data subset, a data category, a subscriber group associated with the data, and / or a data range managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function.

18. The method according to any one of claims 14 - 16, wherein the service-providing network function is a unified data repository, a user data repository, a unified data management (UDM), a policy control function (PCF), an unstructured data storage function (UDSF), a packet data filter description front end (PDFD-FE), or a network exposure function (NEF).

19. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein the service registration network function includes a network repository function (NRF).

20. A computer program product comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

21. A computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 19.

22. A device for service registration and service discovery in a communication network, the device comprising a processor and a memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processor such that the device is operable to: Receive a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the network function; Store information in a repository that identifies the network function, the type of the service, and the data managed by the service provided by the network function; Receive a service discovery request that identifies a type of a service; And Send a service discovery response to a sender of the service discovery request, the response identifying a service-providing network function providing the service and identifying data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function, Wherein the service discovery response identifies additional network functions providing the service and identifies additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network functions, and wherein the data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network functions include: the same subscriber group associated with the data, the same data subset, data categories, and / or data ranges.

23. The device according to claim 22, the instructions being executable by the processor such that the device is operable to perform the method according to any one of claims 2 to 13.

24. A device for service discovery in a communication network, the device comprising a processor and a memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processor such that the device is operable to: In response to a service discovery request for a service registration network function, receive a service discovery response that identifies a type of a service, the response identifying a service-providing network function providing the service and identifying data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function, Among them, The service discovery response identifies additional network functions providing the service and identifies additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network functions, and wherein the data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network functions include: the same subscriber group associated with the data, the same data subset, data categories, and / or data ranges.

25. The apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the instructions are executable by the processor such that the apparatus is operable to perform the method according to any one of claims 15 to 19.

26. An apparatus for service registration and service discovery in a communication network, the apparatus comprising: a receiving module configured to receive a service registration request that identifies a network function providing a service, a type of the service, and data managed by the service provided by the network function, and configured to receive a service discovery request that identifies a type of the service; a storage module configured to store information in a repository that identifies the network function, the type of the service, and the data managed by the service provided by the network function; and a sending module configured to send a service discovery response to a sender of the service discovery request, the response identifying a service-providing network function providing the service and identifying data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function, wherein the service discovery response identifies an additional network function providing the service and identifies additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function, and wherein the data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function include: the same subscriber group associated with the data, the same data subset, data category, and / or data range.

27. An apparatus for service discovery in a communication network, the apparatus comprising: a receiving module configured to: in response to a service discovery request for a service registration network function, receive a service discovery response that identifies a type of the service, the response identifying a service-providing network function providing the service and identifying data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function, wherein the service discovery response identifies an additional network function providing the service and identifies additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function, and wherein the data managed by the service provided by the service-providing network function and the additional data managed by the service provided by the additional network function include: the same subscriber group associated with the data, the same data subset, data category, and / or data range.

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