A switching method, terminal and network side device

Abstract

The present invention provides a switching method, a terminal and a network side device, the switching method applied to a first terminal comprises: sending a connection processing request to a network side device, the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with a second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal. The embodiment of the present application can realize the switching of services between terminals through the network, thereby improving the flexibility of switching.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a switching method, a terminal and a network side device. Background Art

[0002] With the development of wireless communication technology, the same user may have two or more communication terminals (for example, mobile phones, phone watches, and car terminals, etc.). When a user uses one terminal (i.e., the first terminal) to perform a wireless communication service, there is an application scenario where the user needs to switch to another terminal (i.e., the second terminal) to perform the wireless communication service.

[0003] In the related art, switching between terminals is achieved based on the interface between the terminals or in a way that is not perceived by the network side. The switching can be achieved through short-range communication rather than a mobile communication network. For example, based on the Bluetooth connection between the first terminal and the second terminal, the data packets of the wireless communication service executed on the first terminal are transparently transmitted to the second terminal, thereby achieving switching between the first terminal and the second terminal.

[0004] However, incompatibility may occur between the first terminal and the second terminal, so that switching between the terminals cannot be achieved based on the interface between the terminals or in a manner that is not perceived by the network side.

[0005] It can be seen from this that the method of implementing switching between terminals based on interfaces between terminals or in a manner that is not perceived by the network side has the defect of poor flexibility. Summary of the invention

[0006] The embodiment of the present invention provides a switching method, a terminal and a network side device, so as to implement the switching of services between terminals through a network and improve the flexibility of switching.

[0007] To solve the above technical problems, the present invention is achieved as follows:

[0008] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a switching method, which is used for a first terminal. The switching method includes:

[0009] Send a connection processing request to the network side device, wherein the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state.

[0010] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a switching method for a network side device, the switching method comprising:

[0011] receiving a connection processing request sent by the first terminal;

[0012] Switch or copy part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and the network side, and the second connection is a connection established between the second terminal and the network side.

[0013] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a terminal, the terminal comprising: a processor and a transceiver;

[0014] The transceiver is used to send a connection processing request to a network side device, wherein the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state.

[0015] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network side device, the network side device comprising: a processor and a transceiver;

[0016] The transceiver is used to receive a connection processing request sent by the first terminal;

[0017] The processor is used to switch or copy part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and the network side, and the second connection is a connection established between the second terminal and the network side.

[0018] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a terminal, the terminal comprising:

[0019] A first sending module is used to send a connection processing request to a network side device, wherein the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure an existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal.

[0020] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network side device, wherein the network side device includes:

[0021] A first receiving module, configured to receive a connection processing request sent by a first terminal;

[0022] A switching module is used to switch or copy part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and the network side, and the second connection is a connection established between the second terminal and the network side.

[0023] In the seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a terminal, characterized in that it includes a processor, a memory, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, and when the computer program is executed by the processor, the steps in the switching method described in the first aspect are implemented.

[0024] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network side device, comprising a processor, a memory, and a computer program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein when the computer program is executed by the processor, the steps in the switching method described in the second aspect are implemented.

[0025] In the ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps in the switching method described in the first aspect are implemented, or when the computer program is executed by the processor, the steps in the switching method described in the second aspect are implemented.

[0026] In an embodiment of the present invention, a first terminal sends a connection processing request to a network side device, and the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal. In this embodiment, the first terminal sends a connection processing request to the network side device, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection between the second terminal and the network side through the network side, that is, the wireless network switching is performed by the network side to switch the services continuously executed on the first terminal to the second terminal for execution, and there is no need to rely on the data transparent transmission function between the first terminal and the second terminal, thereby improving the flexibility of the switching method provided in the embodiment of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments of the present invention will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other accompanying drawings can be obtained based on these accompanying drawings without paying creative labor.

[0028] Figure 1 is a flow chart of a first switching method provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 2 is a flow chart of a second switching method provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 3a It is one of the structural diagrams of a network system to which the embodiment of the present invention can be applied;

[0031] Figure 3b This is a second structural diagram of a network system to which the embodiment of the present invention can be applied;

[0032] Figure 4 is a structural diagram of a terminal provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 5 is a structural diagram of a network side device provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 6 is a structural diagram of another network side device provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 7 It is a structural diagram of another terminal provided by an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0037] In existing wireless communication technologies, switching refers to the switching of a terminal between different base stations during movement (for example, when a terminal moves from the service cell of base station A to the service cell of base station B, the terminal switches the connection with base station A to the connection with base station B). During the switching process, the network side is assisted in completing the switching based on some measurement results reported by the terminal.

[0038] However, in actual applications, there is another switching scenario, which is described as follows.

[0039] With the continuous development of mobile communication technology, the types of terminals are now diversified. For example, a user has both a car terminal and a normal mobile terminal, or a user has both a single-screen terminal and a multi-screen terminal, etc. At this time, there is another switching demand, that is, according to different scenarios, it is necessary to migrate the service being carried out on one terminal to another terminal. For example: a user may have a mobile phone and a watch phone with communication function. While the user is using the mobile phone to make a call, he wants to go out for a run but does not want to bring the mobile phone. At this time, he hopes to switch the current call service to the watch phone. For another example, a user may have a mobile phone and a car terminal. After the user gets in the car, he hopes to switch the call service to the car terminal. For another example, the user hopes to switch the current media browsing service to a terminal with a larger screen area. Even when the current terminal is low on power, he hopes to switch the current service to another terminal.

[0040] According to the above description, it can be found that the switching in the specific embodiment of the present invention refers to the switching of the currently established or executing service to another terminal, which is different from the existing call forwarding service and the switching of mobile phones between different base stations / cells.

[0041] In these scenarios where switching between two terminals is required, the existing solution can be implemented in the following manner: the first terminal transparently transmits the service data packet to the second terminal via Bluetooth or other short-range communication protocols.

[0042] However, this method is subject to many limitations, such as remaining power (the first terminal must be continuously online as a transit point), terminal capabilities (both must support the same short-range communication protocol), and distance between terminals (connection cannot be established if the distance is too large), resulting in poor flexibility.

[0043] In the switching method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the first terminal sends a connection processing request to the network side to trigger the network side to execute the switching process, or the first terminal sends a request to the network requesting the network to establish a second connection with the second terminal, but does not require maintaining the first connection between the network and the first terminal at the same time. That is to say, the application scheme does not need to maintain the connection between the first terminal and the network at the same time to ensure voice or video interaction between the first terminal and the second terminal, as in the existing process of the first terminal calling the second terminal (the first terminal also sends a call request to the network) to conduct a voice or video call, so as to solve the problem of poor flexibility of the switching method in the related art.

[0044] See also Figure 1 , Figure 1 is a flow chart of a first switching method provided by an embodiment of the present invention, which is used for a terminal, such as Figure 1As shown, the switching method may include the following steps:

[0045] Step 101: Send a connection processing request to a network side device, where the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with a second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure an existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state.

[0046] In a specific implementation, the service in the above-mentioned first terminal connection state can also be referred to as application data, service data flow (Service Data Flow) and user plane data (User Data Plane Traffic), etc. The service is carried through the first connection between the terminal and the network side.

[0047] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, requesting the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or requesting the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, all include the same requirements, namely: the data originally transmitted between the network side and the first terminal is transmitted between the network side and the second terminal by a second connection other than the first connection, and the difference between switching, copying and carrying is whether the service data still needs to be transmitted between the network side and the first terminal when it is transmitted through the second connection.

[0048] For example:

[0049] The switching may be understood as that after the switching is completed, the switched service data does not need to be transmitted between the network side and the first terminal, that is, the corresponding first connection may be released after the switching is completed;

[0050] Replication can be understood as the business data needs to be transmitted through the first connection and the second connection at the same time;

[0051] Requesting the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state can be understood as including any one of the above two methods, namely:.

[0052] The first terminal switches part or all of the services in the connection state to the second connection; or

[0053] The first terminal copies part or all of the services in the connection state to the second connection.

[0054] In addition, in a specific embodiment of the present invention, part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state are switched or copied to the second connection, or the second connection is used to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, which is different from call transfer and inter-cell handover in the following aspects:

[0055] The business is migration / switching between terminals;

[0056] The service to be migrated or copied (i.e., part or all of the services in the connected state of the first terminal in this application) is the service currently being executed by the first terminal, such as an executing voice call service, an executing video communication service, an executing media browsing service, etc.;

[0057] The migration or replication of services is initiated and executed during the service execution process, rather than being pre-set and automatically executed by the network side.

[0058] In a specific embodiment of the present invention, the connection processing request may be implemented through any one of indication information, request information and notification information, as long as the network side can be informed of the needs of the first terminal, and no specific limitation is made here.

[0059] In the switching method of a specific embodiment of the present invention, part or all of the services of the first terminal will be executed through the second terminal, and as an optional implementation, the second terminal is a pre-set terminal, or a terminal indicated by the terminal identification information carried by the connection processing request.

[0060] Among them, in an implementation where the second terminal is a pre-set terminal, the above-mentioned pre-setting can be a pre-setting of an association relationship between the first terminal and the second terminal, for example: the device information of the first terminal is uniquely associated with the device information of the second terminal, or the first terminal and the second terminal are associated with the same user information.

[0061] In the above-mentioned pre-set method, the second terminal may need to be unique in some applications, and in order to further improve the flexibility of switching, in a specific embodiment of the present invention, the terminal identification information is carried in the connection processing request to indicate the second terminal. In this way, the above-mentioned second terminal can also be any terminal other than the first terminal, or the second terminal is one of multiple terminals associated with the first terminal. At this time, it is only necessary to carry the terminal identification information of the second terminal in the connection processing request. In this way, when the network side device receives the above-mentioned connection processing request, it will determine the second terminal based on the terminal identification information carried in the connection processing request, and switch or copy the connection state service flow executed on the first terminal to the second connection between the network side and the second terminal.

[0062] In an optional implementation, the second connection includes a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection, a bearer and / or a session.

[0063] In the application, the second terminal may be in an idle or inactive state, or the bearer or session between the second terminal and the network side may not support some or all services in the connection state of the first terminal, resulting in the inability to switch the services on the first connection to the second connection. In implementation, when the network side device receives the above connection processing request, it will perform the process of creating or modifying the RRC connection, bearer / session based on the connection processing request and the network state of the second terminal.

[0064] In practical applications, the network status of the second terminal may be any of the following:

[0065] Case 1: the second terminal is in an idle state or an inactive state;

[0066] Case 2: the second terminal is in a connected state, but the bearer between the second terminal and the network side does not support some or all services of the first terminal in the connected state;

[0067] Case 3: the second terminal is in a connected state, but the session between the second terminal and the network side does not support some or all services in the connected state of the first terminal;

[0068] Case 4: The second terminal is in a connected state, and the established bearer and session meet the service requirements of the service.

[0069] In the first case, the following methods may be used to implement switching or copying part or all of the services in the connected state on the first terminal to the second connection, or requesting the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connected state on the first terminal:

[0070] A new RRC connection, bearer and session are created between the second terminal and the network side, and the service is processed using the newly created RRC connection, bearer and session.

[0071] In this implementation, an RRC connection can be established between the second terminal and the network side, and a bearer and session that meet the service requirements of the service can be established to ensure that the service can be switched or copied to the second connection, or the service can be carried on the second connection.

[0072] In the second case, the following two methods can be used to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connected state on the first terminal to the second connection, or request the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connected state of the first terminal:

[0073] Method 1: Create a new bearer and session that meet the service requirements of the service, and use the RRC connection established between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

[0074] Method 2: Modify the bearer and session that do not meet the service requirements of the service, and use the RRC connection established between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

[0075] In the third case, the following two methods can be used to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connected state on the first terminal to the second connection, or request the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connected state of the first terminal:

[0076] Method 1: Create a new session that meets the service requirements of the service, and use the RRC connection established between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

[0077] Among them, when the current session cannot meet the business requirements of the business, the above-mentioned newly created session that meets the business requirements of the business can be: a newly created PDU session that meets the business requirements of the business, and the protocol data unit (Protocol Data Unit, PDU) session identifier (PDU-Session ID) that associates the service with the newly established PDU session.

[0078] When the current session or the QoS Flow in the session cannot meet the business requirements of the business, the above-mentioned newly created session that meets the business requirements of the business may also be: creating a new QoS Flow that meets the business requirements of the business, and associating the business with the newly created QoS Flow identifier (QoS Flow ID, QFI).

[0079] Method 2: modify the session that does not meet the service requirements of the service, and use the RRC connection established between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

[0080] In the fourth case, the service may be directly processed by using the bearer and session established between the second terminal and the network side.

[0081] As an optional implementation manner, after sending the connection processing request to the network side device, the method further includes:

[0082] Sending uplink data to the network side until receiving indication information indicating that the second terminal has successfully completed the connection configuration with the network side; or

[0083] Receiving a release indication message sent by a network side device;

[0084] Release a first connection, wherein the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and a network side.

[0085] In one embodiment, when the second connection between the second terminal and the network side is established, modified or reconfigured, the second terminal will send an indication message to the first terminal to indicate the successful completion of the connection configuration with the network side, and the first terminal will stop the data interaction related to the service to be switched on the first connection in response to the indication message.

[0086] In actual applications, if the second connection between the second terminal and the network side is not established or the modification / reconfiguration is not completed, the second terminal cannot carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal based on the second connection. In this implementation, after the first terminal sends a connection processing request to the network side device and before the second terminal successfully completes the connection configuration with the network, during this process, the first terminal can still interact with the network side settings for data, so that the first terminal can continue to support the service in the connection state of the first terminal before the service is successfully switched to the second connection.

[0087] Of course, when the first terminal receives the indication information that the second terminal has successfully completed the connection configuration with the network, it means that the service in the connection state of the first terminal has been successfully switched to the second connection, so that the first terminal can stop data interaction with the network side device to save resources and avoid duplication and confusion of service data.

[0088] In another embodiment, the network side device may send the above-mentioned release indication message to the first terminal after receiving the information sent by the second terminal that successfully switches or copies part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or after the second connection completes carrying part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state.

[0089] In this implementation manner, the first terminal will release the first connection in response to the release indication message, so as to release the idle first connection after the successful switching, so as to reduce resource waste.

[0090] In a specific implementation, during the above switching process, the first terminal and the second terminal may execute the above service in parallel until the first connection is released.

[0091] In the process where the first terminal and the second terminal are in parallel, the first terminal and the second terminal can respectively receive downlink data packets from the network side, and the first terminal and the second terminal can respectively send uplink data packets to the network side. In order to avoid data packet loss in this process, the following method can be used:

[0092] Method 1: Before the first connection is released, the network side device corresponding to the first connection (usually a base station, but it is not excluded that it is processed by other devices as the network evolves) is responsible for allocating the sequence number (Sequence Number, SN) of the service data unit (Service Data Unit, SDU) in the downlink packet data convergence protocol (Packet Data Convergence Protocol, PDCP) corresponding to the service. After the switching is completed, the network side device corresponding to the second connection (usually a base station, but it is not excluded that it is processed by other devices as the network evolves) is responsible for allocating the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU corresponding to the service.

[0093] Method 2: When the first terminal and the second terminal are in parallel, in order to avoid data packet loss, the consistency of the sequence numbers sent by the two terminals can also be ensured through the application layer.

[0094] like Figure 3a In the illustrated embodiment, in the downlink, the PDCP protocol layer of the first network side device (hereinafter referred to as the "first base station") connected to the first terminal is responsible for allocating SNs of downlink PDCP SDUs until the first base station connected to the first terminal receives a switching success message and sends an SN status forwarding message to the second network side device (hereinafter referred to as the "second base station") connected to the second terminal. At this time, the first base station stops allocating SN numbers of the downlink PDCP SDUs, and the SN allocation work is switched to the second base station for execution.

[0095] It should be noted that, in a specific implementation, the first base station and the second base station may be the same base station. Of course, they may also be different base stations, which is not specifically limited here.

[0096] In this implementation manner, by synchronizing the SN information of the PDCP SDU of the first terminal and the second terminal, data packet loss can be avoided during the process of checking the data packet sequence number based on the SN information.

[0097] In an embodiment of the present invention, a first terminal sends a connection processing request to a network side device, and the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal. In this embodiment, the first terminal sends a connection processing request to the network side device, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection between the second terminal and the network side through the network side, that is, the wireless network switching is performed by the network side to switch the services continuously executed on the first terminal to the second terminal for execution, and there is no need to rely on the data transparent transmission function between the first terminal and the second terminal, thereby improving the flexibility of the switching method provided in the embodiment of the present application.

[0098] See also Figure 2 , is a flow chart of a second switching method provided by an embodiment of the present invention, the switching method is used for a network side device, such as Figure 2 As shown, the switching method may include the following steps:

[0099] Step 201: Receive a connection processing request sent by a first terminal.

[0100] The above connection processing request is similar to Figure 1 The connection processing requests in the illustrated method embodiments have the same meaning and will not be described in detail herein.

[0101] Step 202: switch or copy part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, where the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and the network side, and the second connection is a connection established between the second terminal and the network side.

[0102] The specific process of switching or copying part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or using the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state is similar to the specific process of Figure 1 The method embodiment shown corresponds to the process of switching or copying part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or using the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, which will not be repeated here.

[0103] Optionally, the second terminal is a pre-set terminal, or a terminal indicated by terminal identification information carried in the connection processing request.

[0104] Optionally, the second connection includes an RRC connection, a bearer or a session.

[0105] Optionally, the step of switching part or all of the services on the first connection to the second connection, or using the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, includes:

[0106] When the second terminal is in an idle state or an inactive state, a new RRC connection, bearer or session is created between the second terminal and the network side, and the service is processed by using the new RRC connection, bearer or session;

[0107] or

[0108] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer or session meets the service requirements of the service, use the RRC connection, bearer or session established between the second terminal and the network side to process the service;

[0109] or

[0110] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, a new bearer and / or session that meets the service requirements is created, and the service is processed by using the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements;

[0111] or

[0112] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, modify the bearer and / or session that does not meet the service requirements of the service, and use the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

[0113] This embodiment is similar to Figure 1 In the method embodiment shown, when the network side device receives the above-mentioned connection processing request, the implementation method of the process of creating or modifying the RRC connection, bearer / session based on the connection processing request and the network status of the second terminal has the same meaning and will not be repeated here.

[0114] Optionally, all business data of some or all of the businesses are configured to have the same or equivalent QFI.

[0115] In a specific implementation, QoS flow is the finest QoS differentiation granularity in a PDU session, which means that the difference between two PDU sessions is that their QoS flows are different. In a wireless communication system (such as a 5G system), a QoS flow ID (QFI) is used to identify a QoS flow so that user plane data with the same QFI in a PDU session will receive the same forwarding treatment (such as the same scheduling, the same access threshold, etc.).

[0116] In actual applications, QFI must be unique within a PDU session, that is, a PDU session can have multiple (up to 64) QoS flows, but the QFI of each QoS flow is different (range 0 to 63). However, for two PDU sessions of the same terminal, the QFI in the two PDU sessions may be repeated.

[0117] In this implementation, all service data of some or all services (i.e., service data of services to be switched) are configured to have the same or equivalent QFI, so that the network side can perform the same processing on the service data of these services to be switched, for example, forwarding them all to the second connection. In this way, it is convenient for the network side to identify the service data of services to be switched based on the same QFI, and perform the same processing on the service data of these services.

[0118] Optionally, after switching part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, the method further includes:

[0119] The first connection is released, and the service data of the service is transmitted through the second connection.

[0120] In this implementation manner, after the service on the first connection is switched to the second connection, the first connection in an idle state is released, thereby saving network resources.

[0121] Optionally, the network side device is an access network device or a core network device.

[0122] In an optional implementation, the above-mentioned network side device is a core network device, which can be a data network (DN) in the core network, and the first connection includes a transmission channel between the core network and the first terminal, and the second connection includes a transmission channel between the core network and the second terminal, and the part of the first connection located between the core network device and the access network setting is independent of the part of the second connection located between the core network device and the access network setting, and can simultaneously transmit business data of at least the same business within a period of time.

[0123] In this implementation, the core network device completes copying or rerouting part or all of the service data on the first connection to the second connection.

[0124] For example: Figure 3a In the illustrated embodiment, the radio access network (RAN) device includes a first base station and a second base station. The first terminal UE A is connected to the user plane function (UPF) through the first base station, and the second terminal UE B is connected to the UPF through the second base station. The UPF is connected to the DN to obtain the QOS Flow with UE A (i.e., Figure 3a QoS Flow for UE A) is a network protocol flow A (i.e., Figure 3a The IP Flow A shown in FIG. 1 and the IP Flow B that is mapped to the QoS Flow for UE B of UE B. In this embodiment, the switching method may include the following process:

[0125] In the downlink, the first base station is first responsible for allocating SNs of downlink PDCP SDUs until the first base station receives a switching success message and sends an SN status forwarding message to the second base station. At this time, the first base station stops allocating SN numbers of downlink PDCP SDUs, and the SN allocation work is switched to the second base station for execution.

[0126] In addition, during the switching process, the first base station schedules downlink data on the link connected to UE A so that UE A receives downlink data packets from the first base station, and at the same time starts forwarding the downlink PDCP SDU carrying the assigned PDCP SN to the second base station so that UE B receives downlink data packets from the second base station, thereby realizing the parallel operation of the first connection and the second connection.

[0127] During the parallel process of the first connection and the second connection, the first base station can be responsible for maintaining the hyper frame number (HFN) of the forwarded downlink PDCP SDU to improve the performance of security synchronization. Specifically, the first base station sends an early status forwarding message and carries a downlink count value in the message, including the PDCP SN and HFN of the first forwarded PDCP SDU.

[0128] Similarly, after the first base station stops allocating SN numbers of downlink PDCP SDUs and the SN allocation work is switched to the second base station, the maintenance work of the HFN of the downlink PDCP SDU is also switched to the second base station for execution.

[0129] During the handover execution process, the first base station and the second base station may also respectively perform Robust Header Compression (ROHC) to encrypt and enhance the PDCP header.

[0130] In the uplink, UE A sends uplink data to the first base station until UE A receives indication information that UE B has successfully completed the random access process to the second base station. Moreover, even after the transmission of UE A sending uplink data to the first base station is switched, UE A can continue to send uplink layer 1 (L1) channel state information (CSI) feedback, hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback, layer 2 (L2) radio link control (RLC) feedback, ROHC feedback, HARQ and RLC data retransmission to the first base station to achieve the first connection and the second connection in parallel.

[0131] In addition, during the handover process, UE A and UE B exchange SN information of PDCP SDU through a direct link to ensure SN synchronization; or, the application layer ensures the consistency of sequence numbers sent by the two UEs.

[0132] Furthermore, during the handover execution, UE A and UE B may also respectively maintain separate security contexts and ROHC header compressor contexts for uplink transmission to the first base station and the second base station.

[0133] In addition, the HFN and PDCP SN can be retained in the second base station, and the second base station can be instructed to start transmitting the first lost UL count value (Count) to the core network (e.g., 5G Core Network (5G Core Network, 5GC)) through the SN status transfer (StatusTransfer) message. This process can also be applied to the unacknowledged mode (RLC Unacknowledged Mode, RLC-UM) in the radio link control.

[0134] After the network side device receives the connection processing request, UE A suspends the signaling radio bearer (SRB) to the first base station and stops sending and receiving any RRC control plane signaling toward the service cell connected to UE A; UE B establishes SRB with the first base station.

[0135] After the handover is successfully performed, the first base station may receive a release indication message from the second base station to instruct UE A to release the connection with the first base station (ie, the first connection).

[0136] It should be noted that Figure 3a The first base station and the second base station in the description may be the same base station or different base stations, which is not specifically limited here.

[0137] In another optional implementation, the network side device is an access network device, the first connection includes a transmission channel between the access network device and the first terminal, and the second connection includes a transmission channel between the access network device and the second terminal.

[0138] In addition, in this embodiment, the transmission channel between the core network and the first terminal located between the core network device and the access network device and the transmission channel between the core network and the second terminal located between the core network device and the access network device are the same transmission channel.

[0139] In this implementation, the access network device sends the data in the transmission channel to the second terminal.

[0140] For example: Figure 3b In the illustrated embodiment, the access network device includes a target base station, and the first terminal UE A and the second terminal UE B are both connected to the UPF through the target base station, and the UPF is connected to the DN. In this embodiment, the execution process of the above-mentioned switching method is the same as that of Figure 3a The execution process of the switching method in the illustrated embodiment is the same, except that: in this embodiment, the first base station and the second base station are the same base station (ie, the target base station), which will not be described in detail here.

[0141] In the switching method provided by the embodiment of the present invention, the terminal triggers the network side device to perform the switching, so that there is no need to establish a data interactive connection between the first terminal before the switching and the second terminal after the switching through a short-distance communication protocol, thereby improving the flexibility of the switching method and having the advantages of Figure 1 The same beneficial effects as those of the method embodiments shown are not described again here to avoid repetition.

[0142] See also Figure 4 , is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal provided by an embodiment of the present invention, such as Figure 4 As shown, the terminal 400 includes:

[0143] The first sending module 401 is used to send a connection processing request to a network side device, wherein the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state.

[0144] Furthermore, the second terminal is a pre-set terminal, or a terminal indicated by terminal identification information carried in the connection processing request.

[0145] Furthermore, the second connection includes a radio resource control RRC connection, a bearer and / or a session.

[0146] Furthermore, the terminal 400 further includes:

[0147] A second sending module is used to send uplink data to the network side until receiving indication information indicating that the second terminal has successfully completed the connection configuration with the network side; or

[0148] A second receiving module, used to receive a release indication message sent by a network side device;

[0149] A release module is used to release a first connection, wherein the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and a network side.

[0150] Furthermore, before the first connection is released, the network side device corresponding to the first connection is responsible for allocating the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU corresponding to the service, until the switching is completed, and the network side device corresponding to the second connection is responsible for allocating the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU corresponding to the service.

[0151] The terminal of an embodiment of the present invention can send a connection processing request to a network side device through a first terminal to trigger the network side device to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal, without establishing a data interaction connection of a short-range communication protocol with the second terminal, thereby improving the flexibility of switching between the first terminal and the second terminal.

[0152] See also Figure 5 , is a schematic diagram of the structure of a network side device provided by an embodiment of the present invention, such as Figure 5 As shown, the network side device 500 includes:

[0153] A first receiving module 501 is used to receive a connection processing request sent by a first terminal;

[0154] The switching module 502 is used to switch or copy the service on the first connection to the second connection, or request the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal, wherein the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and the network side, and the second connection is a connection established between the second terminal and the network side.

[0155] Furthermore, the second terminal is a pre-set terminal, or a terminal indicated by terminal identification information carried in the connection processing request.

[0156] Furthermore, the second connection includes an RRC connection, a bearer or a session.

[0157] Furthermore, the switching module 502 is specifically configured to:

[0158] When the second terminal is in an idle state or an inactive state, a new RRC connection, bearer or session is created between the second terminal and the network side, and the service is processed by using the new RRC connection, bearer or session;

[0159] or

[0160] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer or session meets the service requirements of the service, use the RRC connection, bearer or session established between the second terminal and the network side to process the service;

[0161] or

[0162] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, a new bearer and / or session that meets the service requirements is created, and the service is processed by using the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements;

[0163] or

[0164] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, modify the bearer and / or session that does not meet the service requirements of the service, and use the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

[0165] Furthermore, the service data of the service is configured to have the same or equivalent QFI.

[0166] Furthermore, the network side device 500 further includes:

[0167] The release module is used to release the first connection and transmit the service data of the service through the second connection.

[0168] Furthermore, the network side device is an access network device or a core network device.

[0169] The network side device of the embodiment of the present invention can switch or copy the service on the first connection to the second connection based on the connection processing request sent by the terminal, or request the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal, thereby completing the switching between the first terminal and the second terminal, and has the same Figure 2 The same beneficial effects as those of the method embodiments shown are not described again here to avoid repetition.

[0170] See also Figure 6 The embodiment of the present invention further provides a network side device, including a bus 601, a transceiver 602, an antenna 603, a bus interface 604, a processor 605 and a memory 606.

[0171] The transceiver 602 is configured to receive a connection processing request sent by the first terminal;

[0172] Processor 605 is used to switch or copy part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, where the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and the network side, and the second connection is a connection established between the second terminal and the network side.

[0173] Furthermore, the second terminal is a pre-set terminal, or a terminal indicated by terminal identification information carried in the connection processing request.

[0174] Furthermore, the second connection includes a radio resource control RRC connection, a bearer and / or a session.

[0175] Further, the processor 605 executes the switching of part or all of the services on the first connection to the second connection, or using the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, including:

[0176] When the second terminal is in an idle state or an inactive state, a new RRC connection, bearer or session is created between the second terminal and the network side, and the service is processed by using the new RRC connection, bearer or session;

[0177] or

[0178] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer or session meets the service requirements of the service, use the RRC connection, bearer or session established between the second terminal and the network side to process the service;

[0179] or

[0180] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, a new bearer and / or session that meets the service requirements is created, and the service is processed by using the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements;

[0181] or

[0182] When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, modify the bearer and / or session that does not meet the service requirements of the service, and use the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the network side, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

[0183] Furthermore, the service data of the service is configured to have the same or equivalent quality of service flow identifier QFI.

[0184] Further, after executing the step of switching part or all of the services carried by the first connection in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, the processor 605 is further configured to:

[0185] The first connection is released, and the service data of the service is transmitted through the second connection.

[0186] Furthermore, the network side device is an access network device or a core network device.

[0187] In this embodiment, the entity can achieve Figure 2 To avoid repetition, the various processes implemented by the network-side device in the illustrated method embodiment will not be described again here.

[0188] The network side device of the embodiment of the present invention can switch or copy the service on the first connection to the second connection based on the connection processing request sent by the terminal, or request the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal, thereby completing the switching between the first terminal and the second terminal, and has the same Figure 2 The same beneficial effects as those of the method embodiments shown are not described again here to avoid repetition.

[0189] exist Figure 6In the embodiment, a bus architecture (represented by bus 601) is shown, bus 601 may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, bus 601 links various circuits including one or more processors represented by processor 605 and memory represented by memory 606. Bus 601 may also link various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and are therefore not further described herein. Bus interface 604 provides an interface between bus 601 and transceiver 602. Transceiver 602 may be one element or multiple elements, such as multiple receivers and transmitters, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices on a transmission medium. Data processed by processor 605 is transmitted on a wireless medium via antenna 603, and further, antenna 603 also receives data and transmits the data to processor 605.

[0190] The processor 605 is responsible for managing the bus 601 and general processing, and can also provide various functions, including timing, peripheral interfaces, voltage regulation, power management and other control functions. The memory 606 can be used to store data used by the processor 605 when performing operations.

[0191] Optionally, the processor 605 may be a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA or a CPLD.

[0192] See also Figure 7 The embodiment of the present invention further provides a terminal 700, including a bus 701, a transceiver 702, an antenna 703, a bus interface 704, a processor 705 and a memory 706.

[0193] Transceiver 702 is used to send a connection processing request to a network side device, wherein the connection processing request is used to request the network side to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure the existing connection between the network side and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state.

[0194] Furthermore, the second terminal is a pre-set terminal, or a terminal indicated by terminal identification information carried in the connection processing request.

[0195] Furthermore, the second connection includes a radio resource control RRC connection, a bearer and / or a session.

[0196] Further, after the transceiver 702 executes the sending of the connection processing request to the network side device:

[0197] The transceiver 702 is further configured to send the uplink data to the network side until receiving indication information indicating that the second terminal has successfully completed the connection configuration with the network side; or

[0198] The transceiver 702 is further configured to receive a release indication message sent by a network side device;

[0199] The processor 705 is configured to release a first connection, where the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and a network side.

[0200] Furthermore, before the first connection is released, the network side device corresponding to the first connection is responsible for allocating the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU corresponding to the service, until the switching is completed, and the network side device corresponding to the second connection is responsible for allocating the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU corresponding to the service.

[0201] In this embodiment, the entity can achieve Figure 1 To avoid repetition, the various processes implemented by the first terminal in the illustrated method embodiment are not described again here.

[0202] The entity of this embodiment can send a connection processing request to the network side device to trigger the network side device to switch part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection between the second terminal and the network side, without establishing a data interaction connection of a short-range communication protocol with the second terminal, thereby improving the flexibility of switching between the entity and the second terminal.

[0203] Preferably, an embodiment of the present invention further provides a terminal, including a processor 705, a memory 706, and a computer program stored in the memory 706 and executable on the processor 705, wherein the computer program is executed by the processor 705 to implement the above Figure 1 The various processes of the switching method embodiment shown can achieve the same technical effect, and will not be described again here to avoid repetition.

[0204] The embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored, which implements the above-mentioned Figure 1 or Figure 2 The various processes of the switching method embodiment shown can achieve the same technical effect, and will not be described again here to avoid repetition.

[0205] The computer-readable storage medium is, for example, a ROM, RAM, a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

[0206] It should be noted that, in this article, the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." does not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element.

[0207] Through the description of the above implementation methods, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above-mentioned embodiment methods can be implemented by means of software plus a necessary general hardware platform, and of course by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method. Based on such an understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM / RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk), and includes a number of instructions for enabling a terminal (which can be a mobile phone, a computer, a server, an air conditioner, or a network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in each embodiment of the present invention.

[0208] The embodiments of the present invention are described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned specific implementation modes, which are merely illustrative rather than restrictive. Under the guidance of the present invention, ordinary technicians in this field can also make many forms without departing from the scope of protection of the present invention and the claims, all of which are within the protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A switching method, characterized in that: The switching method comprises: The first terminal sends a connection processing request to the first network side device, where the connection processing request is used to request the second network side device to establish a second connection with the second terminal, or to request the network side to modify / reconfigure an existing connection between the second network side device and the second terminal as a second connection, so as to switch or copy part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal to the second connection, or to use the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the connection state of the first terminal, where the first network side device is an access network device or a core network device, and the second network side device is an access network device or a core network device; Wherein, in the process of switching or copying part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or using the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, the first terminal and the second terminal execute the services in parallel; Before the first connection is released, the first network side device is responsible for allocating the sequence number SN of the service data unit SDU in the downlink packet data convergence protocol PDCP corresponding to the service, until the switching process is completed, the second network side device is responsible for allocating the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU corresponding to the service; or, during the switching process, in the downlink, the PDCP protocol layer of the first network side device is responsible for allocating the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU of the service, until the first network side device receives a switching success message and sends an SN status forwarding message to the second network side device, the first network side device stops allocating the SN number of the downlink PDCP SDU of the service, and the allocation of the SN of the downlink PDCP SDU of the service is switched to the second network side device for execution, and the first connection is a connection established between the first terminal and the first network side device.

2. The switching method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second terminal is a pre-set terminal, or a terminal indicated by the terminal identification information carried in the connection processing request.

3. The switching method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The second connection includes a radio resource control RRC connection, a bearer and / or a session.

4. The switching method according to claim 1, characterized in that: After the first terminal sends the connection processing request to the first network side device, the method further includes: The first terminal sends uplink data to the first network side device until receiving indication information indicating that the second terminal has successfully completed the connection configuration with the second network side device; or The first terminal receives a release indication message sent by the first network side device; The first connection is released.

5. The switching method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The switching or copying part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, or using the second connection to carry part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state, includes: When the second terminal is in an idle state or an inactive state, a new RRC connection, bearer and session are created between the second terminal and the second network side device, and the service is processed by using the newly created RRC connection, bearer and session; or When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and session meet the service requirements of the service, use the RRC connection, bearer and session established between the second terminal and the second network side device to process the service; or When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, a new bearer and / or session that meets the service requirements is created, and the service is processed by using the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the second network side device, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements; or When the second terminal is in a connected state and the established bearer and / or session does not meet the service requirements of the service, modify the bearer and / or session that does not meet the service requirements of the service, and use the established RRC connection between the second terminal and the second network side device, the bearer that meets the service requirements, and the session that meets the service requirements to process the service.

6. The switching method according to claim 5, characterized in that: All service data of the part or all of the services are configured to have the same or equivalent quality of service flow identifier QFI.

7. The switching method according to claim 1, characterized in that: After switching part or all of the services in the first terminal connection state to the second connection, the method further includes: The first connection is released, and the service data of the service is transmitted through the second connection.

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