Methods and apparatus for data transmission

Abstract

Embodiments of this application provide a data transmission method. The method includes a user equipment (UE) receiving a first message instructing the UE to activate a Reflective Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism; the UE generating an implicit Quality of Service (QoS) rule based on the RQ mechanism; the UE receiving a second message instructing the UE to stop using the RQ mechanism; and the UE deleting the implicit QoS rule after stopping the RQ mechanism. By receiving the second message indicating the need to stop using the RQ mechanism and deleting the implicit QoS rule, the UE achieves switching between explicit and implicit QoS rules. This allows for flexible setting of uplink data QoS rules according to operator policies, while effectively managing QoS rules stored and maintained in the UE, timely releasing storage resources, and preventing excessive UE storage space load.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of communication technology, and more particularly to methods and apparatus for data transmission. Background Technology

[0002] As a fundamental network architecture, wireless networks increasingly carry a multitude of services. The characteristics and requirements of these services, along with the scarcity of wireless resources, determine the network's behavior. This behavior is pre-defined and implemented by Quality of Service (QoS) rules, which govern access control, resource guarantees, and scheduling. For example, if someone starts downloading a file while you are making a phone call, the scarcity of wireless resources means that the download will preempt your communication resources, potentially causing your call to be interrupted. In this situation, it's necessary to ensure that wireless resources for voice calls have a higher priority than those for file downloads, guaranteeing uninterrupted voice calls even when wireless resources are limited. Of course, different services access the network, requiring different QoS rules to ensure that critical services are guaranteed.

[0003] 3GPP TS24.139 specifies Reflective QoS, which means that the QoS mechanism for uplink data of fixed network users (UEs) is the same as that for downlink data. To simplify the QoS design of 5G networks and save signaling overhead when issuing QoS rules, 5G networks have introduced the fixed network's Reflective QoS mechanism, or RQ mechanism for short. This means that the UE generates a reflective QoS rule for uplink services based on the downlink data stream and executes uplink data transmission based on this rule.

[0004] To simplify and reduce the signaling overhead caused by the network issuing QoS rules to the UE, 5G networks have introduced the Reflective QoS mechanism from fixed networks. In Reflective QoS scenarios, the QoS of the UE's uplink data is the same as that of its downlink data. In Reflective QoS scenarios, the UE automatically generates uplink data QoS rules based on the downlink data, including UL filters and corresponding QoS parameters.

[0005] The QoS rules that the network sends to the UE via signaling are called explicit QoS rules, while the QoS rules that the UE automatically generates based on the Reflective QoS mechanism are called implicit QoS rules.

[0006] However, when the QoS policy changes, the flow cannot switch between the two mechanisms of Reflective QoS activation and Reflective QoS deactivation, and the UE cannot manage the explicit QoS rule and implicit QoS rule according to the switch. Summary of the Invention

[0007] This application provides a data transmission method and apparatus to switch between two mechanisms: Reflective QoS activation and Reflective QoS deactivation, and to enable the UE to manage two rules: explicit QoS rule and implicit QoS rule.

[0008] On one hand, embodiments of this application provide a data transmission method. The method includes a user equipment (UE) receiving a first message instructing the UE to activate a Reflective Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism; the UE generating an implicit Quality of Service (QoS) rule based on the RQ mechanism; the UE receiving a second message instructing the UE to stop using the RQ mechanism; and the UE stopping the RQ mechanism and deleting the implicit QoS rule. By receiving the second message indicating the need to stop using the RQ mechanism and deleting the implicit QoS rule, the UE achieves switching between explicit and implicit QoS rules. This allows for flexible setting of uplink data QoS rules according to operator policies, while effectively managing QoS rules stored and maintained in the UE, timely releasing storage resources, and preventing excessive UE storage space load.

[0009] In one possible design, the first message includes a Quality of Service (RQI) packet, which is a packet carrying the RQI to instruct the user equipment to activate the Reflective Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism. The second message is a non-RQI packet, which is a packet that does not carry the RQI. Indicating RQI by whether a packet carries it is an in-band method, which further conserves control plane messages and network resources.

[0010] In one possible design, the first and second messages can also be signaling messages, sent by the control plane network elements.

[0011] In one possible design, the user equipment receives an "Install explicit QoS rule" message, which instructs the user equipment to process uplink data packets according to the explicit QoS rule. The user equipment then processes the uplink data packets according to the explicit QoS rule. This enables dynamic updates to the RQ mechanism used by the UE.

[0012] On the other hand, embodiments of this application provide a data transmission method, the method comprising: after a user plane network element receives a QoS rule sent by a control plane network element, the user plane network element sends a first message to a user equipment, the first message being used to instruct the user equipment to activate a reflection QoS (Reflection Quality of Service) mechanism; after the user plane network element receives an updated QoS rule sent by a control plane network element, the user plane network element sends a second message to the user equipment, the second message being used to instruct the user equipment to stop using the RQ mechanism.

[0013] In one possible design, after the user plane network element sends the first message to the user equipment, the user plane network element receives the uplink data packet and verifies whether the uplink data packet uses the QoS rule. This verification further ensures the accuracy of QoS rule execution and prevents the UE from misusing the QoS rule.

[0014] In another aspect, embodiments of this application provide a data transmission method, comprising: a control plane network element sending a first message to a user equipment, the first message being used to instruct the user equipment to activate a reflection Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism; and a control plane network element sending a second message to the user equipment, the second message being used to instruct the user equipment to stop using the RQ mechanism. This enables direct management of the QoS rules used by the UE through the control plane.

[0015] In another aspect, embodiments of this application provide a user equipment (UE) having the functions of a user equipment implementing the above-described method design. These functions can be implemented in hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. These modules can be software and / or hardware.

[0016] In another aspect, embodiments of this application provide a user plane device that implements the user plane network elements in the above-described method design. These functions can be implemented in hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions. These modules can be software and / or hardware.

[0017] In another aspect, embodiments of this application provide a control plane device that has the function of implementing the control plane network elements in the above-described method design. The function can be implemented in hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-described functions. The modules can be software and / or hardware.

[0018] In another aspect, embodiments of the present invention provide a computer storage medium for storing computer software instructions for use by the UE described above, which includes programs designed for executing the aspects described above.

[0019] In another aspect, embodiments of the present invention provide a computer storage medium for storing computer software instructions for use in the aforementioned user plane device, which includes programs designed for executing the aspects described above.

[0020] In another aspect, embodiments of the present invention provide a computer storage medium for storing computer software instructions for use by the control surface device described above, which includes programs designed for executing the aspects described above. Attached Figure Description

[0021] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings used in the embodiments of the present invention will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0022] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of uplink data transmission based on Reflective QoS provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 2 This is a communication network system architecture diagram provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 3 This is a flowchart of a data transmission method based on Reflective QoS provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 4 This is a flowchart of another data transmission method based on Reflective QoS provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0026] Figure 5 This is a flowchart of another QoS rule installation and configuration method provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0027] Figure 6 This is a flowchart of a QoS rule update method provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0028] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of a user equipment provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a user plane device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 9 A schematic diagram of a control surface device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 10 This is a schematic diagram of another user equipment provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of another user plane device provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of another control surface device provided in an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0034] The present invention provides a data transmission method and apparatus thereof. A user equipment receives a first message, the first message being used to indicate that a data stream uses an implicit QoS mechanism; the user equipment generates an implicit QoS rule according to the RQ mechanism; the user equipment receives a second message, the second message being used to indicate that the RQ mechanism needs to be stopped; and the user equipment deletes the implicit QoS rule.

[0035] In this embodiment of the invention, the user equipment receives a second message indicating that the RQ mechanism needs to be stopped, deletes the implicit QoS rule, thereby realizing the switching between the explicit QoS rule and the implicit QoS rule; thus, it can flexibly set the QoS rule of uplink data according to the operator's policy, and at the same time, it can effectively manage the QoS rule stored and maintained in the UE, release storage resources in a timely manner, and prevent the UE storage space from being overloaded.

[0036] In this embodiment of the invention, the reflection quality of service parameters may include the quality of service identifier (RQI) granularity, the reflection quality of service rule priority (RQP), and the reflection quality of service indicator (RQI).

[0037] The User Equipment (UE) receives messages from Control Plane (CP) network elements, including the mapping between Next-Generation Quality of Service (NQI) indexes and RQIs, as well as messages from User Plane (UP) network elements. This enables the UE to generate Quality of Service (QoS) rules based on the messages received from the CP and UP network elements. When the uplink data received by the UE conforms to the QoS rules, the uplink data is transmitted according to those rules.

[0038] Messages sent by user plane network elements may not carry RQI. When a user equipment receives a message from a user plane network element, it obtains the NQI of the message sent by the user plane network element, activates the RQ mechanism based on the mapping between NQI and RQI received from the control plane network element, and generates quality of service rules.

[0039] Messages sent by user plane network elements can carry RQI (Quality of Service). When a user equipment receives a message sent by a user plane network element, it activates the RQ mechanism and generates a Quality of Service rule for transmitting uplink data.

[0040] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of uplink data transmission based on Reflective QoS provided in an embodiment of the present invention. The control plane network element (CP) sends a QoS rule to the user plane network element (UP). This QoS rule includes the correspondence between downlink packet filters and Next-Generation QoS Index (NQI) and Reflective QoS Indication (RQI), as well as RQI marking information. The user plane network element sends a message to the user equipment (UE) according to the received QoS rule. This message is filtered by downlink filters to determine the corresponding QoS, such as the NQI, and then sent to the UE in the access network through the corresponding DRB. Figure 1 The system sends messages to the UE via DRB1 and DRB2. These messages may include a reflected Quality of Service (RQI) identifier, used to instruct the UE to activate the RQ mechanism.

[0041] Furthermore, this message can be either a signaling plane message or a user plane message. Signaling plane messages are instructions sent from the core network to the user equipment; user plane messages are data sent from the core network to the user equipment, and RQI can be configured in the packet header.

[0042] After receiving the message sent by the UP, the UE activates the RQ mechanism according to the RQI in the message, and determines the service quality rules for transmitting uplink data according to the message reversal. The service quality rules include information such as uplink filters.

[0043] When a UE needs to transmit uplink data, it filters the uplink data to be transmitted using an uplink filter. If uplink data matching the filter exists, the UE uses the DRB corresponding to that uplink filter for uplink data transmission. Figure 1 The UE shown here transmits uplink data via DRB2.

[0044] It should be noted that, Figure 1 Uplink and downlink data can be transmitted through the Accessing Network (AN). The interface between the UE and the AN is called the radio interface. The interface between the AN and the UP can be called the AN-UP interface. In existing LTE networks, the interface between the AN and the S-GW is the S1 interface, and the interface between the S-GW and the P-GW is the S5 / S8 interface.

[0045] In this embodiment of the invention, the UP sends a message carrying RQI to the UE through the NG3 interface between the UP and the AN, the Uu interface between the AN and the UE, or through NG3 bearer transmission and Uu bearer transmission.

[0046] Figure 2 This is a system architecture diagram of a communication network provided as an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 As shown, the system includes user equipment (UE), control plane network element (CP), user plane network element (UP), access network (AN), and policy function equipment, which can also be called policy entity.

[0047] In this context, the control plane network element is responsible for distributing mobility management and control policies in the mobile network. This includes distributing Quality of Service (QoS) rules for message processing to the user plane, instructing the user plane to filter and mark downlink data according to these QoS rules. The control plane network element (CP) can be a Mobile Management Entity (MME), a gateway control plane, or all or part of the control functions formed by the convergence of these elements.

[0048] User plane network elements (UPs) are responsible for data processing and forwarding. User plane network elements can be physical or virtual devices such as the forwarding plane functions of a PDN GW, the forwarding plane functions of an S-GW, routers, and switches.

[0049] The access network (AN) provides wireless access services to user equipment, including but not limited to base stations (eNodeB) and access points (APs).

[0050] User equipment (UE) refers to network terminal equipment, including but not limited to mobile phones, network access devices, and IoT terminal devices.

[0051] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the core network (CN) includes UPF (User Plane Functions) and CPF (Control Plane Functions). The QoS rules issued by the CPF to the UE and the UPF are called explicit QoS rules or signalalled QoS rules. The QoS rules generated by the UE itself based on Reflective QoS are called implicit QoS rules or derived QoS rules.

[0052] In a Reflective QoS scenario, the core network's UPF includes QoS rules sent by the CPF. The UPF includes QoS rule groups, each containing multiple QoS rules. Each QoS rule also includes a Packet Filter and QoS parameters. For example, these parameters can be a mapping between NQI (NextGen QoS index, 5G) QoS indication and QCI (QoS Class Identifier). The Packet Filter includes a DL Packet Filter and a UL Packet Filter.

[0053] The UPF filters downlink data based on multiple QoS rules in the QoS rules group. Taking a Packet Filter as a five-tuple as an example, the DL Packet Filter in the Packet Filter is matched with the five-tuples included in the downlink data. When the DL Packet Filter matches a five-tuple included in the downlink data, the downlink data is sent according to the QoS processing rule corresponding to that QoS rule.

[0054] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, each QoS rule corresponds to a QoS processing rule. Different QoS processing rules provide different QoS guarantees for the data stream, such as scheduling strategies, queue management strategies, rate adjustment strategies, and RLC (Radio Link Control) configurations.

[0055] In this embodiment of the invention, the user equipment receives a second message indicating that the RQ mechanism needs to be stopped, deletes the implicit QoS rule, thereby realizing the switching between the explicit QoS rule and the implicit QoS rule; thus, it can flexibly set the QoS rule of uplink data according to the operator's policy, and at the same time, it can effectively manage the QoS rule stored and maintained in the UE, release storage resources in a timely manner, and prevent the UE storage space from being overloaded.

[0056] Figure 3 This is a flowchart of a data transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 3 As shown, the method 300 includes the following steps:

[0057] S310, the user equipment receives the first message.

[0058] Optionally, the first message includes a data packet sent by the user plane network element to the user equipment, which is transmitted using a Quality of Service (QoS) guarantee corresponding to the Quality of Service (NQI) identifier. This data packet may carry a Reflection Quality of Service (RQI) identifier to instruct the user equipment to activate the Reflection Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism. This data packet carrying the RQI is an RQI data packet. The RQI is used to instruct the user equipment to activate the Reflection Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism. In this embodiment of the invention, the QoS rules sent by the control plane network element and used by the user plane network element include one or more of the following: the correspondence between downlink packet filters and Next-Generation Quality of Service (NQI) identifiers, the Reflection Quality of Service (RQI) identifier, and an indication message indicating the RQI identifier. Downlink packet filters include source IP address, destination IP address, source IP port number, destination IP port number, and protocol type, etc.

[0059] The user plane network element sends a first message to the user equipment according to the QoS rule. The specific steps are as follows: the user plane network element filters the downlink data to be sent through Downlink Packet Filters, selects a specific quality of service for the downlink data to be sent, and adds or configures RQI in the header of the downlink data packet according to the RQI marking indication information, thereby obtaining the first message, which is also called an RQI data packet.

[0060] In this process, RQI is added or configured in the header of the downlink data packet. RQI can use 2 bits to identify the RQI activation mechanism and RQI deactivation. For example, "10" or "01" can be used to indicate the activation of the RQI mechanism. When the RQI field of the data packet received by the UE contains "10" or "01", it means that the UE needs to activate the RQ mechanism. The UE automatically generates an implicit QoS rule according to the RQ mechanism.

[0061] Optionally, 1 bit can be used to identify the RQI activation mechanism and RQI deactivation, such as using "1" to indicate the activation of the RQI mechanism; when the RQI field of the data packet received by the UE contains 1, it indicates that the UE needs to activate the RQ mechanism, and implicit QoS rules are automatically generated according to the RQ mechanism.

[0062] S320, the user equipment generates an implicit QoS rule according to the RQ mechanism;

[0063] The user equipment (UE) determines to activate the RQ mechanism based on the correspondence between NQI and RQI, and the NQI carried by the downlink data packets received by the UE, and generates service quality rules for uplink data transmission according to the RQ mechanism. Optionally, if the generated service quality rules are not included in the UE's existing service quality rules, the UE needs to generate new service quality rules, which can be called implicit service quality rules. Implicit service quality rules generated by this method can be called control plane implicit service quality rules (C-Plane implicit QoS rules). For example, the IP 5-tuple of downlink data is source IP address Y, destination IP address X, source IP port number B, destination IP port number A, and protocol type C. The IP 5-tuple of the inverted uplink packet filters is source IP address X, destination IP address Y, source IP port number A, destination IP port number B, and protocol type C.

[0064] The user equipment (UE) generates implicit quality of service rules based on the IP 5-tuple of the downlink data and the Quality of Service Identifier (NQI) or QoS Classification Identifier (QCI) corresponding to the transmission quality of service, according to the RQ mechanism. These rules include the mapping between uplink packet filters and NQIs. The uplink packet filters contain parameter information for filtering the IP 5-tuple of uplink data, including source IP address, destination IP address, source IP port number, destination IP port number, and protocol type.

[0065] It should be noted that in this embodiment of the invention, the Quality of Service Identifier (NQI) represents the QoS Quality of Service Identifier in the 5G network, and can be a combination of one or more parameters, such as forwarding priority, latency, and packet loss rate, similar to the QoS classification identifier in EPS.

[0066] It should be noted that, in this embodiment of the invention, the uplink packet filter can be simply referred to as an uplink filter (ULPacket filters). Additionally, the newly generated uplink filter can be called a temporary uplink filter.

[0067] It should also be noted that, in this embodiment of the invention, the generated implicit QoS rules may also include reflected QoS priority (RQP) to indicate the matching priority order of the C-Plane implicit QoS rules.

[0068] Optionally, if the quality of service rules generated by the user equipment according to the RQ mechanism are included in the user equipment's existing quality of service rules, it is not necessary to regenerate new quality of service rules.

[0069] When a user equipment receives uplink data that matches a newly generated or existing uplink filter, the user equipment uses the quality of service rules corresponding to the uplink filter to transmit the uplink data, thereby realizing the transmission of uplink data by the user equipment based on the RQ mechanism.

[0070] S330, the user equipment receives a second message, the second message being used to instruct the user equipment to stop using the RQ mechanism;

[0071] The user plane network element receives an updated QoS rule from the control plane network element. Based on this updated QoS rule, the user plane network element processes the corresponding downlink data packet into a second message. This updated QoS rule is updated compared to the QoS rule sent by the control plane network element in step S320. This update can be any parameter in the updated QoS rule, such as a filter, priority, or NQI. The second message may include data packets sent by the user plane network element to the user equipment. Unlike the first message, this data packet does not carry an RQI; that is, the data packet without an RQI is a non-RQI data packet. If the second message received by the user equipment does not carry an RQI identifier, the user equipment stops using the RQ mechanism.

[0072] The user plane network element sends a second message according to the updated QoS rule. The user plane network element filters the downlink data to be sent through DownlinkPacket Filters, selects a specific quality of service for the downlink data to be sent, and does not add or configure RQI to the header of the downlink data packet to be sent according to the RQI marking indication information. That is, the second message in this embodiment is a data packet without RQI, which can also be called a non-RQI data packet.

[0073] If the user plane network element does not have a downlink data packet to send, the user plane network element constructs an empty downlink data packet and then processes the empty downlink data packet into the second message mentioned above.

[0074] The process of generating the second message can refer to the processing of the first information in the corresponding step S310. If the RQI contained in the first information is identified by 2 bits, such as "10" or "01" to identify the RQI activation mechanism, then "11" or "00" can be used to identify the downlink data packet to form the second information, that is, the non-RQI data packet that does not carry RQI. When the RQI field of a received data packet contains "11" or "00", it indicates that the UE needs to deactivate the RQI mechanism and delete the automatically generated implicit QoS rule. If the RQI in the first message uses 1 bit to identify the RQI activation mechanism (e.g., "1"), then the second message can use "0" to identify the downlink data packet, forming the second message, which is a non-RQI data packet without RQI. When the RQI field of a received data packet contains "0", it indicates that the UE needs to deactivate the RQI mechanism and delete the automatically generated implicit QoS rule. It should be noted that using 2 bits to identify the RQI activation mechanism (e.g., "10" or "01" are just examples; "11" or "00" can also be used), and using 1 bit to identify the RQI activation mechanism (e.g., "1") is just an example; "0" can also be used. Correspondingly, deactivating RQI is different from activating RQI.

[0075] S340, the user equipment stops using the RQ mechanism; the user equipment may also delete the implicit QoS rule generated in S320.

[0076] The UE no longer uses the RQ mechanism to process uplink data, and the user equipment can also delete the implicit QoS rule;

[0077] The user equipment (UE) deletes the implicit QoS rule generated in S320. The UE receives a "remove QoS rule" message, which instructs the UE to perform a corresponding operation on the implicit QoS rule, such as deleting it. This "remove QoS rule" message can also be called a "disable QoS rule" message or a "modify implicit QoS rule" message.

[0078] Optionally, the method in this embodiment may further include:

[0079] S350, the user equipment receives an Install explicit QoS rule message. This Install explicit QoS rule message can be sent by the control plane network element. This Install explicit QoS rule message is used to instruct the user equipment to process uplink data packets according to the explicit QoS rule.

[0080] If the UE receives an "Install explicit QoS rule" message from a control plane network element, the UE processes subsequent uplink data according to the explicit QoS rule. This processing involves matching the data against filters within the explicit QoS rule and transmitting data based on the NQI (Non-Quality Information) specified in the explicit QoS rule. Otherwise, the UE processes the data according to the current QoS rules. Optionally, the method in this embodiment may further include:

[0081] In step S360, the user plane network element receives uplink data packets sent by the UE and verifies whether the uplink data packets use the correct QoS rule according to the updated QoS rule. This verification further ensures the accuracy of QoS rule execution and prevents the UE from misusing the QoS rule.

[0082] In this embodiment of the invention, the user equipment receives a second message indicating that the RQ mechanism needs to be stopped, deletes the implicit QoS rule, thereby realizing the switching between the explicit QoS rule and the implicit QoS rule; thus, it can flexibly set the QoS rule of uplink data according to the operator's policy, and at the same time, it can effectively manage the QoS rule stored and maintained in the UE, release storage resources in a timely manner, and prevent the UE storage space from being overloaded. Figure 4 The following is another embodiment of this application, in which... Figure 4 In the illustrated embodiment, the first message received by the UE, and Figure 3 In a different embodiment, in S410, the UE receives a first message, which is a signaling message sent by a control plane network element. This first message is a QoS rule message, which may contain an Install Implicit QoS Rule message. This Install Implicit QoS Rule message contains an RQI granularity message, which is used to indicate that a data flow on a specific NQI, a flow on a specific session, or a flow on a specific 5-tuple uses the RQ mechanism. It can also be used to indicate the priority of the implicit QoS rule generated according to the RQ mechanism. After receiving the first message, the UE automatically generates an implicit QoS rule according to the RQ mechanism. It should be noted that the specific steps for the UE to automatically generate an implicit QoS rule according to the RQ mechanism can be referred to in embodiment S320, and will not be repeated here.

[0083] In this embodiment, S420, the UE receives a second message. Unlike S330 in the embodiment, the second message is a signaling message sent by the control plane network element. The second message is a remove QoS rule message, also known as a disable QoS rule message or a modify implicit QoS rule message. This second message indicates that packet filter information needs to be deleted. After receiving the second message in step S430, the UE stops using the RQ mechanism. The UE can also delete the previously generated implicit QoS rule containing the packet filter. The step of deleting the implicit QoS rule can be referred to step S340 in the previous embodiment, and will not be repeated here.

[0084] In step S450, if the UE receives an Install explicit QoS rule message from the CPF, subsequent uplink data will be processed according to the explicit QoS rule. For details, please refer to [link / reference]. Figure 4 Step S350 in the illustrated embodiment will not be repeated here.

[0085] The user plane network element receives uplink data packets sent by the UE and verifies whether the uplink data packets use the correct QoS according to the updated QoS rule. This verification further ensures the accuracy of QoS rule execution and prevents the UE from misusing the QoS rule.

[0086] It should be noted that this application Figure 3 The illustrated embodiment involves sending the first and second messages via user plane network elements. This application... Figure 4 The illustrated embodiment involves sending the first and second messages via a control plane network element. This can also be achieved through other implementation methods, such as sending the first message via a user plane network element and sending the second message via a control plane network element; or sending the first message via a control plane network element and sending the second message via a control plane network element.

[0087] Combined with the present Figure 3 and Figure 4 The embodiment shown, Figure 5 This is a flowchart of a QoS rule installation and configuration method provided according to an embodiment of this application. Figure 5 The installation and configuration method shown is implemented using signaling messages. The steps of this method are as follows:

[0088] 1. The policy entity determines the QoS rule.

[0089] 2. The policy entity installs and configures QoS rules in the network control plane elements via the QoS rule-Install message.

[0090] 3. The CPF sends a QoS rule-Install message to the UPF to complete the installation and configuration of the QoS rule-Install in the UPF.

[0091] 4. The UE automatically generates implicit QoS rules based on the RQ mechanism.

[0092] The QoS rule installation and configuration method shown in this embodiment, combined with existing... Figure 3 or Figure 4In the embodiment shown, after step 3, the user plane network element can send a first message so that the UE can automatically generate an implicit QoS rule according to the RQ mechanism indicated by the first message. For the specific implementation of the UE automatically generating the implicit QoS rule according to the RQ mechanism in step 4, please refer to the implementation. Figure 3 and Figure 4 The descriptions regarding the generation of implicit QoS rules in the illustrated embodiments will not be repeated here.

[0093] Figure 6 This is a flowchart of a QoS rule update method according to an embodiment of this application. The steps of the update method are as follows:

[0094] 1. The policy entity determines which packet filter to remove from the TFT (Traffic Flow Template) in the QoS rule;

[0095] 2. The policy entity installs and configures QoS rules in the network control plane elements via the QoS rule-Install message. Compared with the first message in other method embodiments, namely InstallImplicit QoS Rule, this QoS rule-Install message has updated parameters. The updated parameters can be at least one of the following:

[0096]

[0097] 3. The CPF sends a remove implicit QoS rule message to the UE, which instructs the UE to delete the Packet filter information;

[0098] 4. After receiving the remove implicit QoS rule message, the UE performs the corresponding operation on the implicit QoS rule. This operation can be to delete the implicit QoS rule that contains the packet filter.

[0099] In this embodiment, the QoS rule update method can be used to implement... Figure 3 and Figure 4 In the example shown, the user equipment deletes the implicit QoS rule.

[0100] Furthermore, after the policy entity installs and configures the QoS rule on the network control plane elements via the QoS rule-Install message, the CPF can also send a QoS rule-Install to the UPF to update the QoS rule. In this example, the Flow-Information of the QoS rule-Definition is updated to include TFT information that does not contain this packet filter.

[0101] Under the 5G RQ mechanism, the CPF needs to send a `remove implicit QoS rule` message in step 3 to update the implicit QoS rule. This is because the implicit QoS rule is automatically generated by the UE, but the CPF is unaware of the Packet filter identifier information. If the CPF needs to delete Packet filter1 information, it can only explicitly include the Packet filter content information (such as a 5-tuple) in the `remove implicit QoS rule` message. After receiving the `remove implicit QoS rule` message (which indicates that the Packet filter information needs to be deleted), the UE will delete the corresponding implicit QoS rule, thereby optimizing the UE's internal QoS rule management, releasing UE storage space in a timely manner, and saving resources.

[0102] Figure 7 A user equipment 700 is provided as a specific embodiment of the present invention, which can realize the functions of the user equipment in the above-described method embodiments. Therefore, it can also achieve the beneficial effects of the above-described method embodiments. The hardware or software includes at least one module corresponding to the above-described functions. For example... Figure 7 As shown, the user equipment 700 specifically includes:

[0103] Receiving module 710 is configured to receive a first message, the first message being used to instruct the user to set

[0104] Prepare to activate the Reflection Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism;

[0105] Processing module 720 is used to generate implicit QoS rules according to the RQ mechanism;

[0106] The receiving module 710 is further configured to receive a second message, the second message being used to instruct the user equipment to stop using the RQ mechanism;

[0107] The processing module 720 is also used to stop using the RQ mechanism and delete the implicit QoS rule.

[0108] Optionally, the first message includes an RQI data packet, which is a data packet carrying an RQI, and the RQI is used to instruct the user equipment to activate the Reflective Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism.

[0109] The second message is a non-RQI data packet, which is a data packet that does not carry RQI.

[0110] Optionally, the first message and the second message are signaling messages.

[0111] The receiving module 710 is further configured to receive an Install explicit QoS rule message, which instructs the user equipment to process uplink data packets according to the explicit QoS rule; the processing module 720 is further configured to process uplink data packets according to the explicit QoS rule.

[0112] The receiving module 710 is further configured to receive a remove implicit QoS rule message before the processing module deletes the implicit QoS rule.

[0113] The user equipment may further include a sending module 730 for sending data packets, which are uplink data packets.

[0114] Figure 8 A user plane device 800 is provided as a specific embodiment of the present invention. This user plane device can implement the functions of the user plane network elements in the above-described method embodiments. Therefore, it can also achieve the beneficial effects of the above-described method embodiments. The hardware or software includes at least one module corresponding to the above-described functions. For example... Figure 8 As shown, the user plane device specifically includes:

[0115] Receiver module 810, the receiver module 810 is used to receive QoS rule sent by the control plane device;

[0116] Processing module 820 is configured to generate a first message after receiving module 810 receives the Qosrule sent by the control plane device, the first message being used to instruct the user equipment to activate the reflection quality of service (RQ) mechanism;

[0117] Sending module 830, the sending module 830 is used to send the first message to the user equipment;

[0118] The receiving module 810 is further configured to receive an updated QoS rule sent by the control plane device; the processing module is further configured to generate a second message after the receiving module 810 receives the updated QoS rule sent by the control plane device, the second message being used to instruct the user equipment to stop using the RQ mechanism; the sending module 830 is further configured to send the second message to the user equipment.

[0119] Optionally, the receiving module 810 is further configured to receive uplink data packets sent by the user equipment after the sending module 830 sends the first message to the user equipment, and the processing module 820 is configured to verify whether the uplink data packets use the QoS rule.

[0120] Optionally, after the sending module 830 sends the first message to the user equipment, the receiving module 810 is further configured to receive the uplink data packet sent by the user equipment, and the processing module is configured to verify whether the uplink data packet uses the updated QoS rule.

[0121] Optionally, the first message includes an RQI data packet, which is a data packet carrying an RQI, and the RQI is used to instruct the user equipment to activate the Reflective Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism.

[0122] The second message is a non-RQI data packet, which is a data packet that does not carry RQI.

[0123] The processing module 810 is also used to construct an empty data packet as the data packet.

[0124] Optionally, the first message is a signaling message and the second message is a signaling message.

[0125] Figure 9 A control plane device 900 is provided as a specific embodiment of the present invention. This control plane device can realize the functions of the control plane network elements in the above-described method embodiments. Therefore, it can also achieve the beneficial effects of the above-described method embodiments. The hardware or software includes at least one module corresponding to the above-described functions.

[0126] like Figure 9 As shown, the control plane device 900 specifically includes:

[0127] The sending module 910 is configured to send a first message to the user equipment, the first message instructing the user equipment to activate the Reflection Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism; and to send a second message to the user equipment, the second message instructing the user equipment to stop using the RQ mechanism. The processing module 920 is configured to generate the first message and the second message.

[0128] Figure 10 A simplified schematic diagram of a possible design structure of the UE involved in the above embodiments is shown. The UE includes a transmitter 1001, a receiver 1002, a controller / processor 1003, and a memory 1004.

[0129] Transmitter 1001 is used to send data packets, which are uplink data packets; receiver 1002 is used to receive relevant messages sent by the user plane device and control plane device in the method embodiment, such as first messages and second messages. Controller / processor 1003 controls and manages the actions of the UE, and is used to execute the processing performed by the UE in the above method embodiment. As an example, controller / processor 1003 is used to support the UE in performing... Figure 3 The processes 320, 340, and 360 in the middle Figure 4 Processes 420, 440, and 440 are described in the text. Memory 1004 is used to store program code and data for UE 100.

[0130] Figure 11 A design block diagram of a user plane device involved in the above embodiments is shown. The user plane device belongs to the core network, which can refer to MME, SGW, PGW, or any combination thereof. The user plane device can also be an AN.

[0131] The user plane device includes: a controller / processor 1102 for generating relevant information and performing relevant processing. For example, the controller / processor 1102 is used to generate a first message and a second message in the method embodiments, and / or other processes for the techniques described herein. A memory 1101 is used to store relevant program code and data for the user plane device. A communication unit 1103 is used to support communication with other network devices, such as communication with user equipment and control plane devices in other method embodiments.

[0132] Figure 12 A design block diagram of a control plane device involved in the above embodiments is shown. The user plane device belongs to the core network, which can refer to MME, SGW, PGW, or any combination thereof. This user plane network element can also be AN, SM (session management function module), or MM (mobility management function module).

[0133] The control plane device includes: a controller / processor 1202 for controlling and managing the operation of the control plane device and performing various functions to support the UE's communication services. For example, the controller / processor 1202 is used to generate a first message and a second message in the method embodiments, and / or other processes for the techniques described herein. A memory 1201 is used to store program code and data for the control plane device. A communication unit 1203 is used to support communication with other network devices, such as communication with user equipment and user plane devices in other method embodiments.

[0134] The controller / processor used to perform the functions of the UE or other devices described above in this invention can be a central processing unit (CPU), 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, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof. It can implement or execute the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in conjunction with the disclosure of this invention. The processor can also be a combination that implements computational functions, such as a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, etc.

[0135] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in conjunction with the present invention can be implemented in hardware or by a processor executing software instructions. The software instructions can consist of corresponding software modules, which can be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, registers, hard disk, portable hard disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor, enabling the processor to read information from and write information to the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium can also be a component of the processor. The processor and storage medium can reside in an ASIC. Alternatively, the ASIC can reside in a user device. Of course, the processor and storage medium can also exist as discrete components in the user device.

[0136] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here. The step numbers in the embodiments of the present invention are for reference only and do not limit the timing of the execution steps.

[0137] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed apparatus and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. In addition, the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices, or units, or may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms of connection.

[0138] Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present invention can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be implemented in hardware or as a software functional unit.

[0139] The above are merely specific embodiments of the present invention, but the scope of protection of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily conceive of various equivalent modifications or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present invention, and these modifications or substitutions should all be covered within the scope of protection of the present invention. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A data transmission control method, applied to a data transmission device, characterized in that, The method includes: A first message is received, which is used to indicate the activation of the Reflection Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism; the first message includes a Quality of Service Identifier (RQI) data packet, which is a data packet carrying an RQI, and the RQI is used to indicate the data transmission device to activate the Reflection Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism. Service quality rules are generated and derived based on the RQ mechanism. Receive a second message, which indicates that the RQ mechanism should be stopped; the second message is a non-RQI data packet, which is a data packet that does not carry RQI. Stop using the RQ mechanism.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: Delete the derived quality of service rule.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, Receive the Install explicit QoS rule message, which is used to instruct uplink data packets to be processed according to the explicit QoS rule; The uplink data packets are processed according to the explicit QoS rule.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The second message received includes: The second message is received when the QoS rule from the control plane network element is updated.

5. A data transmission control method, characterized in that, The method includes: After receiving the Quality of Service (QoS) rule from the control plane network element, the user plane network element sends a first message to the user equipment. The first message is used to instruct the user equipment to activate the Reflective Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism. The first message includes a Quality of Service Identifier (RQI) data packet, which is a data packet carrying an RQI and is used to instruct the activation of the Reflective Quality of Service (RQ) mechanism. After receiving the updated QoS rule from the control plane network element, the user plane network element sends a second message to the user equipment. The second message is used to indicate that the RQ mechanism should be stopped. The second message is a non-RQI data packet, which is a data packet that does not carry RQI.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, Also includes: After the user plane network element sends the first message to the user equipment, the user plane network element receives the uplink data packet and verifies whether the uplink data packet uses the QoS rule.

7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, Also includes: After the user plane network element sends the second message to the user equipment, the user plane network element receives the uplink data packet and verifies whether the uplink data packet uses the updated QoS rule.

8. A data transmission control method, characterized in that, The method includes: Control plane network elements send QoS rules to user plane network elements; After receiving the QoS rule from the control plane network element, the user plane network element sends a first message to the user equipment. The first message is used to indicate the activation of the reflection quality of service (RQ) mechanism. The first message includes a quality of service identifier (RQI) data packet, which is a data packet carrying an RQI. The RQI is used to indicate the data transmission device to activate the reflection quality of service (RQ) mechanism. The control plane network element sends an updated QoS rule to the user plane network element; After receiving the updated QoS rule from the control plane network element, the user plane network element sends a second message to the user equipment. The second message is used to instruct the user equipment to stop using the RQ mechanism. The second message is a non-RQI data packet, which is a data packet that does not carry RQI.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, The method further includes: The user equipment receives the first message and generates a deduced quality of service rule based on the RQ mechanism; The user equipment receives the second message and stops using the RQ mechanism.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: The user equipment deletes the derived quality of service rule.

11. The method according to any one of claims 8-10, characterized in that, Also includes: After the user plane network element sends the first message to the user equipment, the user plane network element receives the uplink data packet and verifies whether the uplink data packet uses the QoS rule.

12. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that, The QoS rule includes an indication message for the RQI tag.

13. A data transmission device, characterized in that, include: Receiver and processor The receiver is configured to receive a first message, which is configured to indicate the activation of the reflection quality of service (RQ) mechanism; the first message includes a quality of service identifier (RQI) data packet, which is a data packet carrying an RQI, and the RQI is used to indicate the activation of the reflection quality of service (RQ) mechanism. The processor is used to generate inferred quality of service rules based on the RQ mechanism; The receiver is also configured to receive a second message indicating that the RQ mechanism should be stopped; the second message is a non-RQI data packet, which is a data packet that does not carry RQI. The processor is used to stop using the RQ mechanism.

14. The data transmission apparatus according to claim 13, characterized in that, The processor is also used to delete the derived quality of service rules.

15. The data transmission apparatus according to claim 13 or 14, characterized in that, The receipt of the second message includes: In the event of a QoS rule update from a control plane network element, the second message is received.

16. A user plane device, characterized in that, include: Communication unit, The communication unit is used to send a first message to the user equipment after receiving the QoS rule from the control plane network element. The first message is used to instruct the user equipment to activate the reflection quality of service (RQ) mechanism. The first message includes an RQI data packet, which is a data packet carrying RQI, and the RQI is used to instruct the activation of the reflection quality of service (RQ) mechanism. The communication unit is further configured to send a second message to the user equipment after receiving the updated QoS rule from the control plane network element. The second message is used to indicate that the RQ mechanism should be stopped. The second message is a non-RQI data packet, which is data that does not carry RQI.

17. The user face device according to claim 16, characterized in that, The communication unit is further configured to: receive uplink data packets after sending the first message to the user equipment; the user plane device further includes: a processor configured to: verify whether the uplink data packet uses the QoS rule.

18. The user face device according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The communication unit is further configured to: receive uplink data packets after sending the second message to the user equipment; the user plane device further includes: a processor configured to: verify whether the uplink data packet uses the updated QoS rule.

19. A communication system, characterized in that, include: Control plane network elements and user plane network elements; The control plane network element is used to send QoS rules to the user plane network element; The control plane network element is also used to send updated QoS rules to the user plane network element; The user plane network element is used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 5-7.

20. The communication system according to claim 19, characterized in that, Also includes: The user equipment is used to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1 to 4.

21. A computer storage medium, characterized in that, The computer software instructions are stored for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1-4.

22. A computer storage medium, characterized in that, The computer software instructions are stored for performing the method as described in any one of claims 5-7.

Images