Quality of Service (QoS) control method, device, and storage medium

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention provide a method, device, and storage medium for controlling quality of service (QoS). The method includes: a target SMF entity sending backhaul information to a PCF entity, where the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information, or user plane connection backhaul information. The unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the terminal's serving base station is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul; and receiving, from the PCF entity, quality of service (QoS) parameter information for a PDU session determined based on the backhaul information. Embodiments of the present invention address the prior art issue of being unable to perform QoS control on PDU sessions using satellite backhaul.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a quality of service (QoS) control method, device and storage medium. Background Art

[0002] Research is currently underway to support satellite access as a base station backhaul network within 5G systems, facilitating the flexible deployment of fixed or mobile base stations on the ground. However, due to the dynamic changes in satellite network topology and the transmission capabilities of satellites in different orbits, base stations using satellites as backhaul face dynamic variations in the Quality of Service (QoS) support capabilities when providing transmission services. For example, variations in backhaul network bandwidth and transmission latency can lead to changes in QoS support capabilities.

[0003] Due to the dynamic nature of satellite backhaul networks, QoS support between base stations and core network User Plane Functions (UPFs) cannot be statically configured. Therefore, for certain Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sessions using satellite backhaul, QoS support needs to be monitored to facilitate subsequent adjustments to session management policies. However, existing technologies are unable to dynamically monitor the GTP-U path, and therefore cannot accurately provide QoS parameters. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present invention provide a quality of service (QoS) control method, device, and storage medium to solve the problem in the prior art that QoS control cannot be performed on PDU sessions using satellite backhaul.

[0005] An embodiment of the present invention provides a quality of service (QoS) control method, which is applied to a target session management function (SMF) entity, including:

[0006] The target SMF entity sends backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, where the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information, or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only through satellite backhaul;

[0007] Receive the quality of service (QoS) parameter information of the protocol data unit (PDU) session determined according to the return information, sent by the PCF entity.

[0008] An embodiment of the present invention provides a quality of service (QoS) control method, which is applied to a policy control function (PCF) entity, including:

[0009] Receive backhaul information sent by the target session management function SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only through satellite backhaul;

[0010] Determine the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session based on the return information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity.

[0011] An embodiment of the present invention provides a quality of service (QoS) control method, which is applied to a mobility management function (AMF) entity, including:

[0012] Sending return information to the target session management function SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity forwards the return information to the policy control function PCF entity and the PCF entity determines the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session according to the return information; wherein,

[0013] The backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only via satellite backhaul.

[0014] An embodiment of the present invention provides a quality of service (QoS) control device, which is applied to a target session management function (SMF) entity and includes:

[0015] A sending module is configured to send backhaul information from a target SMF entity to a policy control function PCF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information, or backhaul information of a user plane connection, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the serving base station of the terminal is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul;

[0016] The receiving module is configured to receive the quality of service (QoS) parameter information of the protocol data unit (PDU) session determined according to the return information, sent by the PCF entity.

[0017] An embodiment of the present invention provides a quality of service (QoS) control device, which is applied to a policy control function (PCF) entity, including:

[0018] A receiving module, configured to receive backhaul information sent by a target session management function SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information, or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only via satellite backhaul;

[0019] The sending module is used to determine the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session according to the return information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity.

[0020] An embodiment of the present invention provides a quality of service (QoS) control device, which is applied to a mobility management function (AMF) entity, including:

[0021] A sending module is used to send return information to a target session management function SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity forwards the return information to a policy control function PCF entity and the PCF entity determines the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session according to the return information; wherein,

[0022] The backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only via satellite backhaul.

[0023] An embodiment of the present invention provides a target SMF entity, comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor. When the processor executes the program, the steps of the method applied to the target SMF entity side are implemented.

[0024] An embodiment of the present invention provides a PCF entity, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor. When the processor executes the program, steps of a method applied to the PCF entity side are implemented.

[0025] An embodiment of the present invention provides an AMF entity, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and runnable on the processor, wherein when the processor executes the program, the steps of the method applied to the AMF entity side are implemented.

[0026] An embodiment of the present invention provides a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the QoS control method are implemented.

[0027] The quality of service QoS control method, device and storage medium provided by the embodiments of the present invention implement QoS control of the PDU session based on the return information by sending return information to the PCF entity during the PDU session establishment process, and receiving QoS parameter information of the PDU session sent by the PCF entity based on the return information, thereby solving the problem in the prior art that QoS control cannot be performed on the PDU session using satellite return. In addition, the QoS parameter information is the parameter information of the PDU session, so that accurate QoS parameters of the PDU session can be obtained. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the following is a brief introduction to the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0029] Figure 1 Flowchart of the steps of the QoS control method applied to the target SMF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 2 Flowchart of the steps of the QoS control method applied to the PCF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 3 Flowchart of the steps of the QoS control method applied to the AMF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 4 This is a network topology diagram of the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the steps of the first embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 6 This is a network topology diagram of the second embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the steps of the second embodiment of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 8 This is a network topology diagram of the third embodiment of the present invention;

[0037] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram of the steps of the third embodiment of the present invention;

[0038] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of the steps of the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

[0039] Figure 11 4 is a block diagram of a QoS control device applied to a target SMF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0040] Figure 12 4 is a block diagram of a QoS control device applied to a PCF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0041] Figure 134 is a block diagram of a QoS control device applied to an AMF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0042] Figure 14 Schematic diagram of the structure of the target SMF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] Figure 15 Schematic diagram of the structure of the PCF entity in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0044] Figure 16 Schematic diagram of the structure of the AMF entity in an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention more clear, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field based on the embodiments of the present invention without making any creative efforts shall fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0046] In order to facilitate a clear description of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, in each embodiment of the present invention, if the words "first", "second", etc. are used to distinguish the same items or similar items with basically the same functions and effects, those skilled in the art can understand that the words "first", "second", etc. do not limit the quantity and execution order.

[0047] In the embodiments of the present invention, the term "and / or" describes the association relationship between associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can represent three situations: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. The character "three" generally indicates that the associated objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0048] In the embodiments of the present invention, the term "plurality" refers to two or more than two, and other quantifiers are similar.

[0049] Furthermore, it should be understood that references throughout this specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment" mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic associated with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present invention. Therefore, the appearances of "in one embodiment" or "in an embodiment" throughout this specification do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Furthermore, these particular features, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.

[0050] Specifically, satellites can provide both fronthaul and backhaul deployment options. When used as fronthaul, the 5G base station (gNB) is located behind a ground gateway, and the satellite link is transparent to the mobile communication network protocols. When used as backhaul, the gNB and the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) establish an NG interface association via the satellite link. In this mode, the satellite link remains transparent to the mobile communication network protocols.

[0051] In addition, a solution for adjusting QoS parameters based on user-plane QoS limitation in specific deployments is currently under investigation. The QoS limitation indicates the minimum latency for a UPF entity connection, which is related to the packet delay allocation in the QoS characteristics. This solution is applicable when the gNB can be connected to multiple UPF entities, some of which require satellite backhaul between the gNB and the UPF entity. The satellite backhaul connection occupies a specific port on the UPF entity, allowing the UPF entity to detect significant latency on that port. In this deployment, the QoS limitation for a specific UPF entity port can be pre-configured or dynamically detected, for example by monitoring the QoS attributes of the connection, although the specific method of dynamic detection is implementation-dependent. When the UPF entity detects a QoS limitation, it reports it to the Session Management Function (SMF) over the N4 interface (see 3GPP TS 23.501). The SMF entity can use the UPF entity's QoS limitation to select a UPF entity, select a QoS profile, or send it to the Policy Control Function (PCF) for QoS parameter adjustment after the PDU session is established.

[0052] However, the QoS limitation is defined for each UPF entity interface, and multiple Internet Protocol / User Datagram Protocol (IP / UDP) paths can be carried on one UPF entity interface, and these paths can lead to different access network nodes (AN nodes) using different backhaul lines. Therefore, using the QoS limitation for each UPF entity interface cannot accurately reflect the QoS support capabilities of the IP / UDP paths between <AN node, UPF entity>. In addition, when selecting a UPF entity, the SMF entity does not have the identification or address information of the AN node, so it cannot consider the QoS support capabilities of the IP / UDP paths between <AN node, UPF entity>. Additionally, even if one interface of a UPF entity is only connected to one AN node, that is, it supports one IP / UDP path, due to the dynamic topology changes of satellite backhaul, the QoS limitation of the UPF entity interface cannot be pre-configured. Based on this, the present invention provides the following embodiments:

[0053] As Figure 1 shown, it is a flowchart of the steps of the QoS control method applied to the target SMF entity in the embodiment of the present invention, and this method includes the following steps:

[0054] Step 101: The target SMF entity sends backhaul information to the PCF entity.

[0055] Specifically, the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or backhaul information of the user plane connection; among them, the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the serving base station of the terminal is only connected to the core network through satellite backhaul.

[0056] Specifically, the target SMF entity can send the backhaul information to the PCF entity by initiating a session management policy association establishment process (SM policy association) during the PDU session establishment process of the terminal.

[0057] At this time, the target SMF entity sends backhaul information to the PCF entity during the PDU session establishment process, so that the PCF entity can learn about the satellite backhaul situation of the serving base station of the terminal, so that the PCF entity can determine the QoS parameters of each PDU session based on this satellite backhaul situation, and further can provide accurate QoS parameters for each PDU session.

[0058] Step 102: Receive the QoS parameter information of the PDU session determined by the PCF entity according to the backhaul information.

[0059] Specifically, after receiving the feedback information, the PCF entity can determine the QoS parameters of the PDU session based on the feedback information, and send the QoS parameter information of the PDU session to the target SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity can obtain the QoS parameter information of each PDU session.

[0060] In this way, the target SMF entity in this embodiment realizes QoS control of the PDU session based on the return information by sending return information to the PCF entity during the PDU session establishment process, and receiving QoS parameter information of the PDU session determined by the PCF entity based on the return information, thereby solving the problem in the prior art that QoS control cannot be performed on the PDU session using satellite return; in addition, the QoS parameter information is the parameter information of the PDU session, so that accurate QoS parameters of the PDU session can be obtained.

[0061] Furthermore, in this embodiment, before the target SMF entity sends the backhaul information to the PCF entity, it can also receive the unified satellite backhaul indication information sent by the AMF entity when it determines that the service base station is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul; or, receive the control plane satellite backhaul information sent by the AMF entity when it determines that the control plane of the service base station uses satellite backhaul; or, receive the user plane connection backhaul information sent by the AMF entity when it determines that the service base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul.

[0062] That is, when the AMF entity determines that the serving base station is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul, it sends unified satellite backhaul indication information to the target SMF entity; when it determines that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, it sends control plane satellite backhaul information; when it determines that the serving base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul, it sends user plane connection backhaul information.

[0063] Optionally, the AMF entity may send unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information to the target SMF entity through a PDU session establishment request.

[0064] In addition, specifically, the unified satellite backhaul indication information can also be used to indicate the type of satellite that supports backhaul, such as a low earth orbit (LEO) satellite, a geostationary orbit (GEO) satellite, or a medium earth orbit (MEO) satellite; or it can also be used to indicate the transmission characteristics of the backhaul link (such as delay, bandwidth, jitter, packet loss rate, etc.).

[0065] In addition, optionally, the target SMF entity can also determine the return information of the user plane connection of the serving base station based on the user plane IP address of the serving base station of the terminal.

[0066] Specifically, the SMF entity determines the satellite information of the user plane backhaul connection of the service base station based on the user plane IP address of the terminal's service base station, and then determines the delay, bandwidth and packet loss rate of the user plane backhaul connection of the service base station based on the satellite information, such as orbital information, thereby determining the backhaul information of the user plane connection of the service base station.

[0067] In addition, optionally, the target SMF entity can also receive the identification information of the serving base station sent by the AMF entity when determining that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul.

[0068] Specifically, the identification information of the serving base station may be the ID or address information of the serving base station.

[0069] It should also be noted that the identification information of the serving base station and the control plane satellite return information can be sent to the target SMF entity together with the PDU session establishment request.

[0070] Of course, the control plane satellite return information may also include the identification information of the serving base station, that is, the identification information of the serving base station is indicated through the control plane satellite return information, so that the target SMF entity can obtain the identification information of the serving base station, and then the target SMF entity can consider the QoS support capability of the user plane path (i.e., GTP-U path) between the serving base station and the UPF entity.

[0071] In addition, further, in this embodiment, when the backhaul information is control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, the target SMF entity can also determine at least one alternative UPF entity after receiving the QoS parameter information of the PDU session determined according to the backhaul information sent by the PCF entity, and select the target UPF entity from at least one alternative UPF entity based on the backhaul information and the QoS parameter information.

[0072] That is, the target SMF entity can select the target UPF entity from at least one alternative UPF entity based on the type of return information, according to the control plane satellite return information and QoS parameter information; or, select the target UPF entity from at least one alternative UPF entity based on the return information and QoS parameter information of the user plane connection.

[0073] Specifically, the target SMF entity can accurately select the alternative UPF entity based on the selection of the existing UPF entity.

[0074] In addition, when the target SMF entity selects a target UPF entity from at least one alternative UPF entity based on the backhaul information and QoS parameter information, it can send an indication message to at least one alternative UPF entity, wherein the indication message is used to instruct the alternative UPF entity to perform QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the service base station, so that at least one alternative UPF entity performs QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the service base station and obtains a first QoS monitoring result; then receives the first QoS monitoring result sent by at least one alternative UPF entity according to the indication message; finally, selects the target UPF entity from at least one alternative UPF entity based on the first QoS monitoring result.

[0075] This process enables the alternative UPF entity to perform QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between the serving base station, realizes the QoS monitoring process of the user plane transmission path, and enables the network to accurately know the QoS support capability of the backhaul link between the access network node and the UPF entity using satellite backhaul; in addition, the target SMF entity can select the target UPF entity based on the QoS monitoring results, so that it can select the appropriate UPF entity and the UPF entity reselection process.

[0076] In addition, optionally, in this embodiment, when the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, before the target SMF entity sends the backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, the target SMF entity can also receive the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity; wherein the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

[0077] That is, when the return information is the return information of the user plane connection, if the control plane of the terminal's service base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the return information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity. At this time, the return information of the user plane connection is the return information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located and is determined by the intermediate SMF entity.

[0078] Specifically, the intermediate SMF entity can determine the backhaul information of the user plane connection of the serving base station based on the user plane IP address of the serving base station of the terminal. Specifically, the intermediate SMF entity determines the satellite information of the user plane backhaul connection of the serving base station based on the user plane IP address of the serving base station of the terminal, and then determines the delay, bandwidth and packet loss rate of the user plane backhaul connection of the serving base station according to the satellite information, such as orbital information, thereby determining the backhaul information of the user plane connection of the serving base station.

[0079] In addition, further, in this embodiment, when the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, before the target SMF entity sends the backhaul information to the PCF entity, it can also be when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; wherein the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

[0080] Among them, the second QoS monitoring result is reported by at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path (i.e., GTP-U path) between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station.

[0081] Specifically, the intermediate SMF entity can activate QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station, and determine the return information of the user plane connection based on the QoS monitoring result. Then the target SMF entity receives the return information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity can send the return information of the user plane connection to the PCF entity and receive appropriate QoS parameters from the PCF entity, thereby realizing precise control of the QoS parameters of the PDU session.

[0082] In addition, in this embodiment, the target SMF entity may also receive the QoS notification control parameters and the alternative QoS parameters sent by the PCF entity and determined according to the return information.

[0083] Specifically, after receiving the QoS notification control parameters and alternative QoS parameters sent by the PCF entity, the target SMF entity can send the QoS notification control parameters and alternative QoS parameters to the serving base station, so that when the serving base station determines that the user plane transmission path between it and the UPF entity cannot meet the QoS requirements, it can adopt the alternative QoS parameters and determine to start the notification control process based on the QoS notification control parameters.

[0084] In this way, this embodiment implements QoS control of PDU sessions based on backhaul information through the above process, solving the problem in the prior art that QoS control cannot be performed on PDU sessions using satellite backhaul.

[0085] In addition, if Figure 2 FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a QoS control method applied to a PCF entity in an embodiment of the present invention. The method includes the following steps:

[0086] Step 201: Receive feedback information sent by a target SMF entity.

[0087] Specifically, the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information. The unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the service base station of the terminal is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul.

[0088] In addition, during the PDU session establishment process of the terminal, the PCF entity receives the return information sent by the target SMF entity.

[0089] Step 202: Determine the QoS parameter information of the PDU session based on the return information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity.

[0090] Specifically, after receiving the return information, the PCF entity can determine the QoS parameter information of the PDU session based on the return information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity, thereby realizing QoS control of the PDU session based on the return information, and solving the problem in the existing technology that QoS control cannot be performed on the PDU session using satellite return; in addition, the QoS parameter information is the parameter information of the PDU session, so that accurate QoS parameters of the PDU session can be obtained.

[0091] In addition, in this embodiment, the PCF entity may also determine the QoS notification control parameters and the alternative QoS parameters based on the return information, and send the QoS notification control parameters and the alternative QoS parameters to the target SMF entity.

[0092] It should be noted here that the specific content of the method embodiment on the PCF entity side can be found in the relevant content of the above-mentioned target SMF entity, which will not be repeated here.

[0093] In addition, if Figure 3 FIG. 1 is a flowchart of a QoS control method applied to an AMF entity in an embodiment of the present invention, the method comprising the following steps:

[0094] Step 301: Send feedback information to the target SMF entity.

[0095] Specifically, the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the service base station of the terminal is connected to the core network only through satellite backhaul.

[0096] In addition, specifically, during the PDU session establishment process of the terminal, the AMF entity can send feedback information to the target SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity can forward the feedback information to the PCF entity, and enable the PCF entity to determine the QoS parameter information of the PDU session based on the feedback information.

[0097] In addition, when the AMF entity sends backhaul information to the target SMF entity, it may send unified satellite backhaul indication information to the target SMF entity when it is determined that the service base station is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul; or, when it is determined that the control plane of the service base station uses satellite backhaul, send control plane satellite backhaul information to the target SMF entity; or, when it is determined that the service base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul, send backhaul information of the user plane connection to the target SMF entity.

[0098] In addition, when the AMF entity determines that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, it can also send the identification information of the serving base station to the target SMF entity.

[0099] It should be noted here that for the specific content of the embodiment on this side, please refer to the relevant content on the target SMF entity side, which will not be repeated here.

[0100] The present invention will be described in detail below through specific embodiments.

[0101] In the first embodiment, the serving base station is connected to the 5G core network entirely via satellite backhaul:

[0102] like Figure 4 As shown in the figure, it is a schematic diagram of the topology structure in this scenario. At this time, the QoS parameter determination process of the PDU session under this network topology is shown in the figure. Figure 5 As shown, the process of determining the QoS parameters includes the following steps:

[0103] 0, when the serving base station (gNB) uses satellite backhaul, during the NG association establishment process, the serving base station may notify the AMF entity that both the control plane and the user plane of the serving base station are connected to the 5G core network through the same satellite;

[0104] 1. The terminal (UE) initiates the PDU session establishment process by sending a PDU session establishment request to the AMF;

[0105] 2. Then, when the AMF determines that the serving base station of the terminal only uses satellite backhaul, when forwarding the PDU session establishment request to the SMF entity, it provides a unified satellite backhaul indication to indicate that the serving base station is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul.

[0106] Specifically, the unified satellite return indication may also be used to indicate a satellite type, wherein the satellite type may be LEO, MEO, or GEO, which is not specifically limited herein.

[0107] 3. Then, when establishing the session management policy association, the SMF entity provides the PCF with a unified satellite backhaul indication by sending a policy association establishment request to the PCF.

[0108] 4. Then, the PCF determines the appropriate QoS parameters for the PDU session based on the unified satellite backhaul indication and sends them to the SMF entity through the Policy and Charging Control Rule (PCC Rule).

[0109] Of course, the PCC Rule can be fed back to the SMF entity through a policy association establishment response.

[0110] 5. Then, SMF selects UPF and generates a QoS file based on the PCC Rule.

[0111] 6. Finally, the subsequent steps can be completed according to the existing PDU session establishment process.

[0112] In this way, the QoS parameters of each PDU session are determined through the above steps, thereby achieving precise control of the QoS parameters for each PDU session.

[0113] In the second embodiment, the serving base station has multiple user plane backhauls:

[0114] like Figure 6 As shown in the figure, it is a schematic diagram of the topology structure in this scenario. At this time, the QoS parameter determination process of the PDU session under this network topology is shown in the figure. Figure 7 As shown, the process of determining the QoS parameters includes the following steps:

[0115] 0, during the NG association establishment process, the serving base station may notify the AMF that the serving base station control plane uses satellite backhaul or there is a user plane connection using satellite backhaul;

[0116] 1. The terminal initiates the PDU session establishment process by sending a PDU session establishment request to the AMF;

[0117] 2. Then, when the AMF determines that the control plane of the terminal's serving base station uses satellite backhaul or there is a user plane connection using satellite backhaul, it provides the control plane satellite backhaul information or the backhaul information of the user plane connection when forwarding the PDU session establishment request to the SMF entity; of course, the serving base station identification information, such as the serving base station ID, is also provided at this time.

[0118] 3. Then, when establishing the session management policy association, the SMF entity provides the PCF with the control plane satellite backhaul information or the user plane connection backhaul information by sending a policy association establishment request to the PCF.

[0119] 4. Then, the PCF determines the alternative QoS parameters for the PDU session based on the control plane satellite backhaul information or the user plane connection backhaul information, taking into account that the terminal's PDU session may use satellite backhaul. The parameters correspond to the satellite backhaul situation and are sent to the SMF entity through the PCC Rule.

[0120] 5. Then, the SMF entity determines the candidate UPF entity based on the terminal's location, single network slice selection auxiliary information (S-NSSAI), and data network name (DNN) information, and determines to perform QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path (GTP-U path) between the serving base station and the candidate UPF entity (candidate UPF entity) based on the control plane backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information provided by the AMF. At this time, the SMF entity can notify each candidate UPF entity to perform GTP-U path monitoring to the serving base station through the N4 association update request (N4 association update) process.

[0121] Specifically, QoS monitoring content may include latency, bandwidth, jitter, packet loss, etc.

[0122] 6. Then, each candidate UPF entity confirms the execution of GTP-U path monitoring and notifies the SMF entity through the N4 association update response.

[0123] 7. Optionally, each candidate UPF entity sends an echo request message (ECHO Request) to the serving base station.

[0124] 8. Optionally, the serving base station returns an echo request response (ECHO Response). The serving base station may provide satellite backhaul information of the GTP-U path, such as satellite type, in the echo request response.

[0125] 9. Then, each alternative UPF entity reports the monitoring results to the SMF entity through N4 report or ACK.

[0126] 10. Then, the SMF entity selects a suitable target UPF entity, such as the intermediate UPF entity (I-UPF entity) and the PDU Session Anchor (PSA), based on the QoS monitoring results reported by each candidate UPF entity, thereby achieving the selection of the target UPF entity. The SMF entity determines the QoS profile of the PDU session based on the selected target UPF entity and the QoS parameters provided by the PCF.

[0127] 11. Finally, the subsequent steps can be completed according to the existing PDU session establishment process.

[0128] In this way, the above steps enable selection of a suitable UPF entity and implement the user plane path QoS monitoring process between the selected UPF entity and the serving base station, thereby enabling provision of accurate QoS parameters.

[0129] In the third embodiment, the serving base station has multiple user plane backhauls:

[0130] like Figure 8 As shown in the figure, it is a schematic diagram of the topology structure in this scenario. At this time, the QoS parameter determination process of the PDU session under this network topology is shown in the figure. Figure 9 As shown, the process of determining the QoS parameters includes the following steps:

[0131] 0, during the NG association establishment process, the serving base station may notify the AMF that the serving base station control plane uses satellite backhaul;

[0132] 1. The terminal initiates the PDU session establishment process by sending a PDU session establishment request to the AMF;

[0133] 2. Then, AMF selects the intermediate SMF entity (I-SMF entity) and the anchor SMF entity (A-SMF entity), and when it determines that the service base station control plane of the terminal uses satellite backhaul, it provides the control plane satellite backhaul information when forwarding the PDU session establishment request to the I-SMF entity; of course, the service base station identification information, such as the service base station ID, is also provided at this time.

[0134] 3. The I-SMF entity then selects a candidate intermediate UPF entity (Candidate I-UPF entity) based on the existing UPF entity selection criteria. It then determines to perform QoS monitoring of the GTP-U path between the serving base station and the candidate I-UPF entity based on the control plane satellite backhaul information provided by the AMF. At this point, the I-SMF entity can notify each candidate I-UPF entity to perform GTP-U path monitoring to the serving base station through the N4 association update request process. QoS monitoring content may include latency and bandwidth.

[0135] 4. Then, each candidate I-UPF entity confirms the execution of GTP-U path monitoring and notifies the I-SMF entity through the N4 association update response.

[0136] 5. Optionally, each candidate I-UPF entity sends a response request message to the serving base station.

[0137] 6. Optionally, the serving base station returns a response to the request. The serving base station may provide satellite backhaul information of the GTP-U path, such as satellite type, in the response to the request.

[0138] 7. Then, each candidate I-UPF entity reports the monitoring results to the I-SMF entity through N4 report or ACK.

[0139] 8. Then, the I-SMF entity selects a suitable I-UPF entity based on the QoS monitoring results reported by each candidate I-UPF entity.

[0140] 9. Then, the I-SMF entity completes the configuration of the I-UPF entity through the N4 session establishment process (N4 Session Establishment).

[0141] 10. The I-SMF entity sends a PDU session establishment request (NSMF entity_PDUSession_CreateRequest) to the A-SMF entity, carrying the return information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located determined according to the QoS monitoring results, which may include delay, bandwidth, jitter, packet loss, etc.

[0142] 11. When establishing a session management policy association, the A-SMF entity provides the PCF with satellite backhaul information of the user plane connection by sending a policy association establishment request to the PCF.

[0143] 12. The PCF determines the QoS parameters of the PDU session based on the satellite return information of the user plane connection and feeds it back to the A-SMF entity. Of course, the PCF may also determine to enable the Notification Control mechanism based on the satellite return information of the user plane connection.

[0144] Of course, if the PCF believes that the satellite return information of the user plane connection cannot meet the QoS requirements, it requests the SMF entity to release the PDU session.

[0145] 13. Finally, the subsequent steps can be completed according to the existing PDU session establishment process.

[0146] In this way, the above steps enable selection of a suitable I-UPF entity and implement a user plane path QoS monitoring process between the selected I-UPF entity and the serving base station, thereby enabling provision of accurate QoS parameters.

[0147] In a fourth embodiment, a QoS notification control (QNC) mechanism based on an alternative QoS configuration is used when the serving base station has multiple user plane backhauls:

[0148] like Figure 10 FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of the QoS parameter determination process for a PDU session in this scenario. The QoS parameter determination process includes the following steps:

[0149] 0, during the NG association establishment process, the serving base station may notify the AMF that the serving base station control plane uses satellite backhaul;

[0150] 1. The terminal initiates the PDU session establishment process by sending a PDU session establishment request to the AMF;

[0151] 2. Then, when the AMF determines that the service base station control plane of the terminal uses satellite backhaul, it provides the control plane satellite backhaul information when forwarding the PDU session establishment request to the SMF entity; of course, the service base station identification information, such as the service base station ID, is also provided at this time.

[0152] 3. Then, when establishing the session management policy association, the SMF entity provides the control plane satellite return information to the PCF by sending a policy association establishment request to the PCF.

[0153] 4. Then, the PCF determines to enable the QNC mechanism based on the control plane satellite return information (QoS notification control with alternative QoS profiles), and therefore provides QNC indication and alternative QoS parameters for the guaranteed bit rate (GBR) QoS flow in the PCC Rule.

[0154] 5. Then, the SMF entity determines the alternative UPF entity based on the terminal's location, single network slice selection auxiliary information (S-NSSAI), and data network name (DNN), and determines to perform QoS monitoring of the GTP-U path between the serving base station and the alternative UPF entity based on the control plane return information provided by the AMF. At this time, the SMF entity can notify each alternative UPF entity to perform GTP-U path monitoring to the serving base station through the N4 association update request process.

[0155] Specifically, QoS monitoring content may include latency and bandwidth.

[0156] 6. Then, each candidate UPF entity confirms the execution of GTP-U path monitoring and notifies the SMF entity through the N4 association update response.

[0157] 7. Optionally, each candidate UPF entity sends an echo request message (ECHO Request) to the serving base station.

[0158] 8. Optionally, the serving base station returns an echo request response (ECHO Response). The serving base station may provide satellite backhaul information of the GTP-U path, such as satellite type, in the echo request response.

[0159] 9. Then, each alternative UPF entity reports the monitoring results to the SMF entity through N4 report or ACK.

[0160] 10. Then, the SMF entity selects a suitable target UPF entity, such as the I-UPF entity and PSA, based on the QoS monitoring results reported by each candidate UPF entity, thereby achieving the selection of the target UPF entity. The SMF entity determines the QoS profile of the PDU session based on the selected target UPF entity and the QoS parameters provided by the PCF.

[0161] 11. The SMF entity sends the QoS profile to the base station via the N2 message.

[0162] 12. Complete the subsequent steps according to the existing PDU session establishment process.

[0163] 13. When the serving base station detects that its GTP-U path cannot meet the QoS requirements based on the ECHO Request / Response mechanism between the serving base station and the UPF entity, the serving base station adopts the alternative QoS configuration and sends a notification to the SMF entity based on the QNC parameters.

[0164] 14. Finally, the existing notification control process can be started.

[0165] In this way, the above steps enable the selection of a suitable UPF entity, and implement the user plane path QoS monitoring process and notification control process between the selected UPF entity and the serving base station, thereby enabling accurate QoS parameters to be provided.

[0166] like Figure 11 FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a QoS control device for a target SMF entity according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the device includes:

[0167] The sending module 1101 is configured to send backhaul information from the target SMF entity to the policy control function PCF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information, or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the serving base station of the terminal is connected to the core network only through satellite backhaul;

[0168] The receiving module 1102 is configured to receive the quality of service (QoS) parameter information of the PDU session determined according to the return information, sent by the PCF entity.

[0169] It should be noted here that the device provided in this embodiment can implement all the method steps that can be implemented by the above-mentioned target SMF entity side method embodiment, and can achieve the same technical effect, so it will not be repeated here.

[0170] like Figure 12FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a QoS control device applied to a PCF entity in an embodiment of the present invention, and the device includes:

[0171] The receiving module 1201 is configured to receive backhaul information sent by a target session management function SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information, or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only via satellite backhaul;

[0172] The sending module 1202 is used to determine the quality of service QoS parameter information of the PDU session according to the return information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity.

[0173] It should be noted here that the device provided in this embodiment can implement all the method steps that can be implemented in the above-mentioned PCF side method embodiment, and can achieve the same technical effect, which will not be repeated here.

[0174] like Figure 13 FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a QoS control device for an AMF entity according to an embodiment of the present invention, and the device includes:

[0175] The sending module 1301 is configured to send return information to the target session management function SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity forwards the return information to the policy control function PCF entity and the PCF entity determines the quality of service QoS parameter information of the PDU session according to the return information; wherein,

[0176] The backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only via satellite backhaul.

[0177] It should be noted here that the device provided in this embodiment can implement all the method steps that can be implemented in the above-mentioned AMF side method embodiment, and can achieve the same technical effect, which will not be repeated here.

[0178] Figure 14 A schematic diagram of the structure of the target SMF entity provided by an embodiment of the present invention is shown as follows: Figure 14As shown, the target SMF entity 1400 may include at least one processor 1401, a memory 1402, at least one other user interface 1403, and a transceiver 1404. The various components in the target SMF entity 1400 are coupled together via a bus system 1405. It is understood that the bus system 1405 is used to implement connection and communication between these components. In addition to the data bus, the bus system 1405 also includes a power bus, a control bus, and a status signal bus. However, for the sake of clarity, the bus system 1405 is not shown in FIG. Figure 14 In the figure, various buses are labeled as bus system 1405. The bus system may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking together various circuits of one or more processors represented by processor 1401 and memory represented by memory 1402. The bus system may also link together various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be further described in the embodiments of the present invention. The bus interface provides an interface. The transceiver 1404 may be a plurality of components, i.e., a transmitter and a receiver, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices on a transmission medium. For different user devices, the user interface 1403 may also be an interface capable of connecting external or internal devices as required. The connected devices include but are not limited to a keypad, a display, a speaker, a microphone, a joystick, etc.

[0179] It is understood that the memory 1402 in the embodiment of the present invention can be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or can include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory can be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDRSDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct RAM bus random access memory (DRRAM). The memory 1402 of the systems and methods described in various embodiments of the present invention is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0180] The processor 1401 is responsible for managing the bus system and general processing. The memory 1402 can store computer programs or instructions used by the processor 1401 when performing operations. Specifically, the processor 1401 can be used to:

[0181] The target SMF entity sends backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, where the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information, or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to instruct the serving base station of the terminal to connect to the core network only through satellite backhaul;

[0182] Receive the quality of service (QoS) parameter information of the PDU session sent by the PCF entity and determined according to the return information.

[0183] The methods disclosed in the above embodiments of the present invention can be applied to or implemented by processor 1401. Processor 1401 may be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capabilities. During implementation, each step of the above method can be completed by hardware integrated logic circuits or software instructions in processor 1401. The above processor 1401 may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components. The methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented or executed. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor. The steps of the methods disclosed in conjunction with the embodiments of the present invention can be directly implemented and executed by a hardware decoding processor, or by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software modules can be located in storage media well-known in the art, such as random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory, electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory 1402 , and the processor 1401 reads the information in the memory 1402 and completes the steps of the above method in combination with its hardware.

[0184] It is understood that the embodiments described in the present invention may be implemented using hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, or a combination thereof. For hardware implementation, the processing unit may be implemented in one or more application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signal processors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), general-purpose processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, other electronic units for performing the functions described herein, or a combination thereof.

[0185] For software implementation, the techniques described can be implemented by modules (e.g., procedures, functions, etc.) that perform the functions described in the embodiments of the present invention. The software code can be stored in a memory and executed by a processor. The memory can be implemented in the processor or external to the processor.

[0186] Optionally, as another embodiment, the processor 1401 is also used to: receive the unified satellite backhaul indication information sent by the mobility management function AMF entity when it determines that the service base station is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul; or, receive the control plane satellite backhaul information sent by the AMF entity when it determines that the control plane of the service base station uses satellite backhaul; or, receive the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the AMF entity when it determines that the service base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul.

[0187] Optionally, as another embodiment, the processor 1401 is further used for: the target SMF entity determines the return information of the user plane connection of the serving base station based on the user plane IP address of the serving base station of the terminal.

[0188] Optionally, as another embodiment, the processor 1401 is further used to: receive identification information of the serving base station sent by the AMF entity when determining that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul.

[0189] Optionally, as another embodiment, when the return information is control plane satellite return information or user plane connection return information, the processor 1401 is also used to: determine at least one alternative user plane function UPF entity, and select a target UPF entity from at least one alternative UPF entity based on the return information and the QoS parameter information.

[0190] Optionally, as another embodiment, the processor 1401 is further used to: send an indication message to the at least one alternative UPF entity, wherein the indication message is used to instruct the at least one alternative UPF entity to perform QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the serving base station, so that the at least one alternative UPF entity performs QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the serving base station and obtains a first QoS monitoring result; receive the first QoS monitoring result sent by the at least one alternative UPF entity according to the indication message; and select a target UPF entity from the at least one alternative UPF entity according to the first QoS monitoring result.

[0191] Optionally, as another embodiment, when the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, before the target SMF entity sends the backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, the processor 1401 is also used to: when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity; wherein the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

[0192] Optionally, as another embodiment, when the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, the processor 1401 is also used to: when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; wherein the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

[0193] Optionally, as another embodiment, the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station.

[0194] Optionally, as another embodiment, the processor 1401 is further configured to: receive QoS notification control parameters and alternative QoS parameters sent by the PCF entity and determined according to the return information.

[0195] The target SMF entity provided in the embodiment of the present invention can implement the various processes implemented by the target SMF entity in the aforementioned embodiment. To avoid repetition, they will not be described here.

[0196] Figure 15 A schematic diagram of the structure of a PCF entity provided in one embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. Figure 15 As shown, the PCF entity 1500 may include at least one processor 1501, a memory 1502, at least one other user interface 1503, and a transceiver 1504. The various components in the PCF entity 1500 are coupled together via a bus system 1505. It is understood that the bus system 1505 is used to implement connection and communication between these components. In addition to including a data bus, the bus system 1505 also includes a power bus, a control bus, and a status signal bus. However, for the sake of clarity, the bus system 1505 is not described in detail. Figure 15In the figure, various buses are labeled as bus system 1505. The bus system may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking together various circuits of one or more processors represented by processor 1501 and memory represented by memory 1502. The bus system may also link together various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and are therefore not further described in the embodiments of the present invention. The bus interface provides an interface. The transceiver 1504 may be a plurality of components, i.e., a transmitter and a receiver, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices on a transmission medium. For different user devices, the user interface 1503 may also be an interface capable of connecting external or internal devices as required. The connected devices include but are not limited to a keypad, a display, a speaker, a microphone, a joystick, etc.

[0197] It is understood that the memory 1502 in the embodiment of the present invention can be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or can include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory can be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory can be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous DRAM (DDRSDRAM), enhanced synchronous DRAM (ESDRAM), synchronous link DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct RAM bus random access memory (DRRAM). The memory 1502 of the systems and methods described in various embodiments of the present invention is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0198] The processor 1501 is responsible for managing the bus system and general processing. The memory 1502 can store computer programs or instructions used by the processor 1501 when performing operations. Specifically, the processor 1501 can be used to:

[0199] Receive the backhaul information sent by the target session management function SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the service base station of the terminal is only connected to the core network via satellite backhaul; determine the service quality QoS parameter information of the PDU session based on the backhaul information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity.

[0200] The PCF entity provided in the embodiment of the present invention can implement the various processes implemented by the PCF entity in the aforementioned embodiment, and to avoid repetition, they are not described again here.

[0201] Figure 16 A structural diagram of an AMF entity provided in one embodiment of the present invention is as follows Figure 16 As shown, the AMF entity 1600 may include at least one processor 1601, a memory 1602, at least one other user interface 1603, and a transceiver 1604. The various components in the AMF entity 1600 are coupled together via a bus system 1605. It is understood that the bus system 1605 is used to implement connection and communication between these components. In addition to the data bus, the bus system 1605 also includes a power bus, a control bus, and a status signal bus. However, for the sake of clarity, the bus system 1605 is not described in detail. Figure 16 In the figure, various buses are labeled as bus system 1605. The bus system may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically one or more processors represented by processor 1601 and various circuits of memory represented by memory 1602. The bus system may also link together various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be further described in the embodiments of the present invention. The bus interface provides an interface. The transceiver 1604 may be a plurality of components, i.e., a transmitter and a receiver, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices on a transmission medium. For different user devices, the user interface 1603 may also be an interface capable of connecting external or internal devices as required. The connected devices include but are not limited to a keypad, a display, a speaker, a microphone, a joystick, etc.

[0202] It is understood that the memory 1602 in the embodiment of the present invention may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory may be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous DRAM (DDRSDRAM), enhanced synchronous DRAM (ESDRAM), synchronous link DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct RAM bus random access memory (DRRAM). The memory 1602 of the systems and methods described in various embodiments of the present invention is intended to include, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0203] The processor 1601 is responsible for managing the bus system and general processing. The memory 1602 can store computer programs or instructions used by the processor 1601 when performing operations. Specifically, the processor 1601 can be used to:

[0204] Sending backhaul information to the target session management function SMF entity so that the target SMF entity forwards the backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity and the PCF entity determines the quality of service QoS parameter information of the PDU session based on the backhaul information; wherein, the backhaul information includes unified satellite backhaul indication information, control plane satellite backhaul information or user plane connection backhaul information, and the unified satellite backhaul indication information is used to indicate that the service base station of the terminal is connected to the core network only via satellite backhaul.

[0205] The AMF entity provided in the embodiment of the present invention can implement the various processes implemented by the AMF entity in the aforementioned embodiment. To avoid repetition, they are not described here.

[0206] The above mainly introduces the solutions provided by the embodiments of the present invention from the perspective of electronic devices. It is understandable that in order to achieve the above functions, the electronic devices provided by the embodiments of the present invention include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of each function. It should be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art that, in combination with the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in the embodiments disclosed in the present invention, the present invention can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software.

[0207] Whether a function is implemented in hardware or by computer software driving the hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professionals may use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of the present invention.

[0208] In embodiments of the present invention, electronic devices, etc., can be divided into functional modules according to the above-described method examples. For example, functional modules can be divided according to respective functions, or two or more functions can be integrated into a single processing module. The above-described integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules.

[0209] It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiment of the present invention is schematic and is merely a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation.

[0210] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that for the sake of convenience and brevity, the division of the above-mentioned functional modules is only used as an example for illustration. In actual applications, the above-mentioned functions can be assigned to different functional modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above. The specific working processes of the above-mentioned systems, devices, and units can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0211] In the several embodiments provided by the present invention, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the division of the modules or units is merely a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interface, device or unit.

[0212] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0213] In addition, the functional units in various embodiments of the present invention may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated units may be implemented in the form of software functional units.

[0214] If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, all or part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium, including a number of instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) or a processor to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present invention. The computer storage medium is a non-transitory medium, including: flash memory, mobile hard disk, read-only memory, random access memory, magnetic disk or optical disk, etc., which can store program code.

[0215] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present invention also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, and the computer program includes program instructions. When the program instructions are executed by a computer, the computer can execute the methods provided by the above-mentioned method embodiments.

[0216] On the other hand, an embodiment of the present invention also provides a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium on which a computer program is stored. When the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the method steps provided in the above embodiments and can achieve the same technical effects, which will not be repeated here.

[0217] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, rather than to limit it. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or make equivalent replacements for some of the technical features therein. However, these modifications or replacements do not deviate the essence of the corresponding technical solutions from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the various embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A quality of service (QoS) control method, applied to a target session management function (SMF) entity, characterized in that: include: The target SMF entity sends backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes backhaul information of the user plane connection; Receiving quality of service (QoS) parameter information of a protocol data unit (PDU) session determined according to the return information, sent by the PCF entity; Before the target SMF entity sends the return information to the policy control function PCF entity, the method further includes: When the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station; the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

2. The QoS control method according to claim 1, wherein: Before the target SMF entity sends the return information to the policy control function PCF entity, the method further includes: The receiving AMF entity sends the backhaul information of the user plane connection when determining that the serving base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul.

3. The QoS control method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: Also includes: Receive the identification information of the serving base station sent by the AMF entity when determining that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul.

4. The QoS control method according to claim 1, wherein: When the backhaul information is backhaul information of a user plane connection, after receiving the quality of service QoS parameter information of the PDU session determined according to the backhaul information sent by the PCF entity, the method further includes: Determine at least one candidate user plane function UPF entity, and select a target UPF entity from the at least one candidate UPF entity based on the backhaul information and the QoS parameter information.

5. The QoS control method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The selecting a target UPF entity from at least one candidate UPF entity according to the backhaul information and the QoS parameter information includes: Sending an indication message to the at least one alternative UPF entity, wherein the indication message is used to instruct the alternative UPF entity to perform QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the serving base station, so that the at least one alternative UPF entity performs QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the serving base station and obtains a first QoS monitoring result; receiving a first QoS monitoring result sent by the at least one candidate UPF entity according to the indication message; A target UPF entity is selected from the at least one candidate UPF entity according to the first QoS monitoring result.

6. The QoS control method according to claim 1, wherein: Also includes: Receive the QoS notification control parameters and the candidate QoS parameters sent by the PCF entity and determined according to the return information.

7. A quality of service (QoS) control method, applied to a policy control function (PCF) entity, characterized in that: include: Receiving return information sent by a target session management function SMF entity, wherein the return information includes return information of a user plane connection; The quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session is determined according to the backhaul information, and the QoS parameter information is sent to the target SMF entity; when the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, before the target SMF entity sends the backhaul information to the PCF entity, the target SMF entity is also used to: when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, receive the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, and is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station; the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

8. The QoS control method according to claim 7, wherein: Also includes: Determine QoS notification control parameters and alternative QoS parameters based on the return information, and send the QoS notification control parameters and alternative QoS parameters to the target SMF entity.

9. A quality of service (QoS) control method, applied to a mobility management function (AMF) entity, characterized in that: include: Sending return information to the target session management function SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity forwards the return information to the policy control function PCF entity and the PCF entity determines the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session according to the return information; wherein, The return information includes return information of the user plane connection; When the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, the target SMF entity is also used to: when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, receive the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station; the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

10. The QoS control method according to claim 9, characterized in that: The sending of the return information to the target session management function SMF entity includes: When it is determined that the serving base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul, backhaul information of the user plane connection is sent to the target SMF entity.

11. The QoS control method according to claim 9, wherein: Also includes: When it is determined that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the identification information of the serving base station is sent to the target SMF entity.

12. A quality of service (QoS) control device, applied to a target session management function (SMF) entity, characterized in that: include: A sending module, configured for the target SMF entity to send backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes backhaul information of the user plane connection; A receiving module, configured to receive quality of service (QoS) parameter information of a protocol data unit (PDU) session determined according to the return information, sent by the PCF entity; When the return information is the return information of the user plane connection, the receiving module is further configured to: When the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity is received, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station.

13. A quality of service (QoS) control device, applied to a policy control function (PCF) entity, characterized in that: include: A receiving module, configured to receive return information sent by a target session management function SMF entity, wherein the return information includes return information of a user plane connection; When the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, the target SMF entity is further used to: when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, receive the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, and is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between the intermediate SMF entity activating at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity to the serving base station, and is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity; The target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity; The sending module is used to determine the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session according to the return information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity.

14. A quality of service (QoS) control device, applied to a mobility management function (AMF) entity, characterized in that: include: A sending module is used to send return information to a target session management function SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity forwards the return information to a policy control function PCF entity and the PCF entity determines the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session according to the return information; wherein, The return information includes return information of the user plane connection; When the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, the target SMF entity is also used to: when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, receive the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station; the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

15. A target SMF entity, comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, characterized in that: When the processor executes the computer program, the following steps are implemented: The target SMF entity sends backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes backhaul information of the user plane connection; when the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, before the target SMF entity sends the backhaul information to the policy control function PCF entity, when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station; The target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity; Receive the quality of service (QoS) parameter information of the protocol data unit (PDU) session determined according to the return information, sent by the PCF entity.

16. The target SMF entity according to claim 15, characterized in that: Before the target SMF entity sends the return information to the policy control function PCF entity, the method further includes: The receiving AMF entity sends the backhaul information of the user plane connection when determining that the serving base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul.

17. The target SMF entity according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that: Also includes: Receive the identification information of the serving base station sent by the AMF entity when determining that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul.

18. The target SMF entity according to claim 15, characterized in that: When the backhaul information is backhaul information of a user plane connection, after receiving the quality of service QoS parameter information of the PDU session determined according to the backhaul information sent by the PCF entity, the method further includes: Determine at least one candidate user plane function UPF entity, and select a target UPF entity from the at least one candidate UPF entity based on the backhaul information and the QoS parameter information.

19. The target SMF entity according to claim 18, characterized in that: The selecting a target UPF entity from at least one candidate UPF entity according to the backhaul information and the QoS parameter information includes: Sending an indication message to the at least one alternative UPF entity, wherein the indication message is used to instruct the alternative UPF entity to perform QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the serving base station, so that the at least one alternative UPF entity performs QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path to the serving base station and obtains a first QoS monitoring result; receiving a first QoS monitoring result sent by the at least one candidate UPF entity according to the indication message; A target UPF entity is selected from the at least one candidate UPF entity according to the first QoS monitoring result.

20. The target SMF entity according to claim 17, characterized in that: Also includes: Receive the QoS notification control parameters and the candidate QoS parameters sent by the PCF entity and determined according to the return information.

21. A PCF entity comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein: When the processor executes the computer program, the following steps are implemented: Receive backhaul information sent by the target session management function SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information includes backhaul information of the user plane connection; when the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, before the target SMF entity sends the backhaul information to the PCF entity, when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station; The target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity; Determine the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session based on the return information, and send the QoS parameter information to the target SMF entity.

22. The PCF entity according to claim 21, characterized in that Also includes: Determine QoS notification control parameters and alternative QoS parameters based on the return information, and send the QoS notification control parameters and alternative QoS parameters to the target SMF entity.

23. An AMF entity comprising a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, characterized in that: When the processor executes the computer program, the following steps are implemented: Sending return information to the target session management function SMF entity, so that the target SMF entity forwards the return information to the policy control function PCF entity and the PCF entity determines the quality of service QoS parameter information of the protocol data unit PDU session according to the return information; wherein, The return information includes return information of the user plane connection; When the backhaul information is the backhaul information of the user plane connection, when the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the target SMF entity receives the backhaul information of the user plane connection sent by the intermediate SMF entity, wherein the backhaul information of the user plane connection is the backhaul information of the user plane connection where the PDU session is located, which is determined by the intermediate SMF entity based on the second QoS monitoring result; the second QoS monitoring result is reported by the at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity when the intermediate SMF entity activates the QoS monitoring of the user plane transmission path between at least one alternative intermediate UPF entity and the serving base station; the target SMF entity is the anchor SMF entity.

24. The AMF entity according to claim 23, characterized in that The sending of the return information to the target session management function SMF entity includes: When it is determined that the serving base station has a user plane connection using satellite backhaul, backhaul information of the user plane connection is sent to the target SMF entity.

25. The AMF entity according to claim 23, characterized in that Also includes: When it is determined that the control plane of the serving base station uses satellite backhaul, the identification information of the serving base station is sent to the target SMF entity.

26. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, characterized in that: When the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the steps of the QoS control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, or executes the steps of the QoS control method according to claim 7 or 8, or executes the steps of the QoS control method according to any one of claims 9 to 11.

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