Method and apparatus for adjusting application context relocation in edge computing systems

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a communication technology and system thereof for integrating a 5G communication system with IoT technology to support a higher data rate than a 4G system. The present disclosure can be applied to smart services (e.g., smart homes, smart buildings, smart cities, smart cars or connected cars, healthcare, digital education, retail, safety and security related services, etc.) on the basis of 5G communication technology and IoT related technologies. According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for a first server in a wireless communication system is provided. The method of the first server is characterized in that it includes the following steps: receiving first information about whether a relocation process of an application context can be started from at least one of a terminal and an application server; confirming second information related to the relocation process of the application context based on the first information; sending the second information to the terminal and the application server; and when it is confirmed that the relocation process of the application context is being executed, sending an indicator indicating that the relocation process of the application context is in progress to the terminal and the application server.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a communication system and a method for enabling a terminal to use low-latency or broadband services. More specifically, the present disclosure relates to mobile edge computing (MEC), in which a terminal establishes a connection with an edge data network located near it and accesses an edge computing platform operating in an edge enabler server (EES) of the corresponding edge data network or an application server running in an edge hosting environment to use data services. Background Art

[0002] Now that 4G communication systems are commercially available, efforts are being made to develop enhanced 5G communication systems or pre-5G communication systems in order to meet the growing demand for wireless data services. Therefore, 5G communication systems or pre-5G communication systems are called super 4G network communication systems or post-LTE systems. In order to achieve high data transmission rates, 5G communication systems are being considered for implementation in millimeter wave bands (e.g., 60GHz bands). In order to mitigate any path loss of radio waves in millimeter wave bands and increase the transmission distance of radio waves, technologies such as beamforming, massive multiple input multiple output (MIMO), full-dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antennas, analog beamforming, and large antennas are being discussed for 5G communication systems. In addition, in order to enhance the network in the 5G communication system, innovative small cells, advanced small cells, cloud radio access networks (cloud RAN), ultra-dense networks, device-to-device communications (D2D), wireless backhaul, mobile networks, collaborative communications, coordinated multi-point (CoMP), and interference elimination technologies are being developed. In addition, hybrid frequency shift keying and quadrature amplitude modulation (FQAM) and sliding window superposition coding (SWSC) are being developed for 5G systems as advanced coding modulation (ACM) methods; and filter bank multi-carrier (FBMC), non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) and sparse code multiple access (SCMA) are being developed as advanced access technologies.

[0003] Internet innovation has emerged from a human-centered connected network in which humans generate and consume information to an Internet of Things (IoT) network that sends and receives and processes information to distributed constituent elements such as things. Internet of Everything (IoE) technology has emerged in which big data processing technology connected to a cloud server is combined with IoT technology. In order to implement IoT, technical elements such as sensing technology, wired and wireless communication and network infrastructure, service interface technology, and security technology are required; therefore, today, research is being conducted on sensor networks, machine-to-machine (M2M), and machine-type communication (MTC) technologies for connection between things. In the IoT environment, smart Internet technology (IT) services can be provided that collect and analyze data generated in connected things to provide new value to human life. Through the convergence and complex connection between existing information technology (IT) and various industries, IoT can be applied to the fields of smart homes, smart buildings, smart cities, smart cars or connected cars, smart grids, health care, smart appliances, and high-tech medical services.

[0004] Therefore, various attempts are being made to apply 5G communication systems to IoT networks. For example, 5G communication technologies such as sensor networks, machine-to-machine (M2M), and machine-type communications (MTC) have been implemented through the technologies of beamforming, MIMO, and array antennas. The application of cloud RAN, which is the aforementioned big data processing technology, can be an example of the fusion of 5G technology and IoT technology. Summary of the invention

[0005] Technical issues

[0006] The present disclosure provides a method for performing application context relocation between EASs for service continuity in an edge computing system. In the case where it is necessary to change the EAS that provides edge computing services to a terminal, the process of transferring the application context from the source EAS to the target EAS can be triggered by several devices (e.g., EES, or edge enabler client (EEC) in the terminal, and application client). However, because the process of transferring the application context by multiple devices at the same time may be initiated, it is necessary to design a method that can coordinate the process.

[0007] More specifically, without providing a method for coordinating the application context relocation process initiated by multiple devices simultaneously triggered, the signaling generated by the process may be repeatedly sent and received between the devices, resulting in a load on the system. For example, the terminal triggers the application context relocation process without recognizing that the application context relocation process is being triggered and processed (in-progress) by another device in the network, resulting in additional consumption of radio resources. In addition, in some of the various edge computing deployment scenarios based on the movement of the terminal, communication with the source EEC and the source EAS may be impossible when the terminal leaves the service area of ​​the source edge data network. In this case, in order to enable the terminal to receive data services after movement, it is necessary to design a method for initiating the application context relocation process in the source edge data network (which may refer to a network including the source EES and the source EAS) and enabling the terminal to know whether the process has been completed.

[0008] In addition, the present disclosure provides a method for obtaining information about a terminal using an edge computing service through the third generation partnership project (3GPP) (e.g., UE service application programming interface (API) acquisition). Specifically, the present disclosure proposes a method for obtaining information about a terminal when a terminal using an edge computing service moves. That is, the present disclosure will reduce the overhead according to the operation to be performed, so that the information required for the edge computing service is obtained through the 3GPP system when the terminal moves, and the corresponding information is provided while maintaining continuity. More specifically, the edge computing system can obtain the information required to provide edge computing services to the terminal through the 3GPP system. To this end, the EES subscribes to a network exposure function (NEF) as one of the 3GPP network functions (NF), and the NEF subscribes to receive information about the target terminal from other 3GPP NFs, thereby receiving information about the terminal from the 3GPP system. However, in the case of terminal movement, the overhead of repeatedly subscribing / unsubscribing in order to obtain information may occur in the 3GPP system. That is, the subscription / unsubscription configuration may be repeatedly performed between the NF that exposes the terminal-related information to the edge computing device (e.g., EES) and the NF that provides the terminal-related information. For example, when the terminal moves from the service area of ​​the source EES to the service area of ​​the target EES, the continuity of obtaining terminal-related information (e.g., location information or terminal identification information, etc.) through the 3GPP system is cut off. This is because the EES that subscribes to the NF (e.g., NEF) that exposes the corresponding UE-related information changes according to the movement of the UE. Taking the 5G system as an example, the existing source EES can perform an operation (unsubscribe) to cancel the event exposure subscription to the NEF for the corresponding terminal, and the NEF can cancel the subscription for receiving relevant information for another 3GPP NF. Therefore, it is necessary to design a method that can solve the problem of repeated subscription and unsubscription configuration between NFs caused by the movement of the terminal.

[0009] Solution to the problem

[0010] In order to solve the above problem, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a method of a first server in a wireless communication system is provided. The method of the first server includes: receiving first information about whether a relocation process of an application context can be initiated from at least one of a terminal or an application server; identifying second information related to the application context relocation process based on the first information; sending the second information to the terminal and the application server; and sending an indication indicating that the application context relocation process is in progress to the terminal and the application server when identifying that the application context relocation process is being executed.

[0011] In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a method of a terminal in a wireless communication system is provided. The method of the terminal includes: sending first information about whether an application context relocation process can be initiated to a first server; receiving second information related to the application context relocation process from the first server; and identifying whether to initiate the application context relocation process based on the second information, wherein the second information is identified based on the first information.

[0012] In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a first server of a wireless communication system is provided. The first server includes: a transceiver; and a controller configured to control the transceiver: receive first information about whether a relocation process of an application context can be initiated from at least one of a terminal or an application server, identify second information related to the application context relocation process based on the first information, control the transceiver to send the second information to the terminal and the application server, and control the transceiver to send an indication indicating that the application context relocation process is in progress to the terminal and the application server when recognizing that the application context relocation process is being executed.

[0013] In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a terminal of a wireless communication system is provided. The terminal includes: a transceiver; and a controller, configured to: control the transceiver to send first information about whether a relocation process of an application context can be initiated to a first server, control the transceiver to receive second information related to the application context relocation process from the first server, and identify whether to initiate the application context relocation process based on the second information, wherein the second information is identified based on the first information.

[0014] Advantageous Effects of the Invention

[0015] According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, in a wireless communication system, an EES may select an application context relocation mode based on capabilities of an EEC and an EAS, and thus, may perform an application context relocation process.

[0016] Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a method is provided for preventing multiple devices from repeatedly executing the initiation of an application context relocation process, thereby reducing overhead caused by unnecessary signaling.

[0017] In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, even in a deployment scenario where communication with EES and EAS in the source edge data network is no longer possible due to the movement of the terminal, a method is provided to notify the terminal that the application context relocation process has been completed; therefore, the application context relocation process can be performed more stably.

[0018] In addition, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a method is provided that can minimize the operation overhead that occurs between other 3GPP NFs and an NF that provides terminal-related information available through a 3GPP system to an edge computing system according to changes in EES / EAS for providing edge computing services according to the movement of the terminal. Specifically, a method is provided that can minimize the duplication of subscription / unsubscription configuration between a 3GPP NF that exposes terminal-related information to an edge computing device (e.g., EES) and a 3GPP NF that provides terminal-related information.

[0019] Effects obtainable in the present disclosure are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and other effects not mentioned will be clearly understood from the following description by those having ordinary skill in the art to which the present disclosure pertains. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure will become more apparent from the following description of embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0021] Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of an implementation scenario of an edge computing system to which an embodiment of the present disclosure can be applied.

[0022] Figure 2 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for selecting an application context relocation mode among EEC, EES, and EAS in a terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0023] Figure 3 is a message flow diagram illustrating an embodiment of performing coordination during application context relocation according to the present disclosure.

[0024] Figure 4 is a message flow diagram illustrating an embodiment of performing coordination during application context relocation according to the present disclosure.

[0025] Figure 5 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a source EES according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0026] Figure 6 is a flow chart illustrating the operation of a target EES according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0027] Figure 7 is a message flow diagram illustrating operations that may be performed for coordination during application context relocation according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0028] Figure 8 is a message flow diagram illustrating operations that may be performed for coordination during application context relocation according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0029] Fig. 9is a block diagram showing the structure of a server according to the present disclosure.

[0030] Fig.10 is a block diagram showing the structure of a terminal according to the present disclosure.

[0031] Fig.11 is a flowchart illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] Fig.12 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0033] Fig.13 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0034] Fig.14 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0035] Fig.15 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0036] Fig.16 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0037] Fig.17 is a block diagram illustrating a method in which a source EES subscribes to a NEF in order to obtain terminal information according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0038] Fig.18 is a block diagram showing the structure of a server according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0039] Fig.19 is a block diagram showing a structure of a terminal according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] Hereinafter, the operating principle of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. The terms to be described later are terms defined in consideration of the functions in the present disclosure. Since this may vary according to the intention or habit of the user or operator, the definition should be determined according to the content of the entire present specification.

[0041] For ease of description, the terms used in the present disclosure to indicate network entities and entities of edge computing systems, terms indicating messages, and terms indicating identification information are illustrated. Therefore, the present disclosure is not limited to the terms described below, and other terms indicating objects with equivalent technical meanings may be used.

[0042] Hereinafter, for convenience, the present disclosure uses terms and names defined in the 5G system standard, but is not limited to these terms and names and can be equally applied to systems conforming to other standards.

[0043] In the edge computing service, the UE service API is an API required to obtain and provide terminal-related information required for providing the edge computing service, and the UE service API context information of the present disclosure may include at least one of the following items.

[0044] -The ID, address and subscription-related ID (a reference ID that can identify the events of the NF exposed by the subscribing edge computing device) of the NF (e.g., NEF, service capability exposure function (SCEF)) that exposes the corresponding terminal information, the S-NSSAI of the slice to which the corresponding NF belongs, the event ID supported by the application function, or information used for NEF discovery (such as a domain name).

[0045] - Information about the terminal: UE ID (e.g. GPSI, External Identifier, External Group Identifier), EEC ID, UE IP address.

[0046] - Information related to the application for which the terminal is receiving services: the application ID (application client ID) receiving the edge computing service, the EAS ID / address providing the edge computing service, the EAS instance ID or the edge computing service provider information.

[0047] In the present disclosure, terms used as functions may indicate a device that performs the function.

[0048] In the present disclosure, the source edge enabling server may be referred to as a source EES, S-EES, a first server, etc., and may be referred to by terms having the same or similar meanings. Hereinafter, the source edge enabling server will be referred to as a source EES.

[0049] In the present disclosure, the source edge application server may be referred to as a source EAS, S-EAS, etc., and may be referred to by terms having the same or similar meanings. Hereinafter, the source edge application server will be referred to as a source EAS.

[0050] In the present disclosure, the target edge enabling server may be referred to as a target EES, an object EES, a T-EES, a second server, etc., and may be referred to by terms having the same or similar meanings. Hereinafter, the target edge enabling server will be referred to as a target EES.

[0051] In the present disclosure, the target edge application server may be referred to as a target EAS, T-EAS, etc., and may be referred to by terms having the same or similar meanings. Hereinafter, the target edge application server will be referred to as a target EAS.

[0052] In addition, in the present disclosure, the edge enabling client may be referred to as EEC, EEC in terminal, terminal, etc., and may be referred to by terms having the same or similar meanings. Hereinafter, the edge enabling client will be referred to as EEC.

[0053] Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of an implementation scenario of an edge computing system to which an embodiment of the present disclosure can be applied.

[0054] The user plane function (UPF) (or a network entity capable of executing UPF) can act as a gateway for transmitting packets to be sent and received. To support edge computing services, the EES can be placed close to the UPF. The UPF sends data packets directly to the edge data network without going through the Internet, so that low-latency transmission can be performed. The UPF can also be connected to a data network connected to the Internet.

[0055] The edge computing system to which the present disclosure can be applied may include an EES, an edge data network configuration server, and an EEC. The EES can build an edge hosting environment (or edge computing platform) and know information about the EAS running in the edge hosting environment.

[0056] The EES can perform the function of negotiating with the UE to connect the UE's application client and the EAS in the edge hosting environment. The UE that supports the edge computing system can have a built-in EEC, and the negotiation between the UE and the EES can be performed through the interaction between the EEC and the EES. The layer that performs interaction (such as negotiation) between the EEC and the EES can be called the edge enabling layer. The UE mentioned in the present disclosure may include all UEs capable of performing wireless communication, such as Internet of Things (IoT) devices, vehicles, drones, robots, and smartphones.

[0057] The edge data network configuration server knows the deployment information of the EES and can perform the function of transmitting configuration information for using edge computing services to the UE. The configuration information may include at least one of edge data network connection information (e.g., data network name, S-NSSAI, etc.), edge data network service area (e.g., cell list, tracking area list, PLMN ID), or EES connection (edge ​​enabling server connection) information (e.g., URI). That is, the UE can identify (or obtain) information about an accessible EES at a specific location. When the edge data network configuration server can know information about the EAS running in the edge hosting environment of a specific EES, the UE can also obtain the corresponding information through the EEC.

[0058] EAS refers to a third-party application server running in an edge computing system. EAS is a third-party application server running in the infrastructure provided by the edge hosting environment. Because EAS can provide services close to the UE, EAS can provide ultra-low latency services to the UE. In EAS, the upper layer information about the services provided to the UE can be called application context.

[0059] For example, when a user uses a real-time gaming application, all information required to regenerate the currently displayed screen and the game stage according to the use of the gaming application can be included in the application context. The application context can be relocated to the EAS to be newly connected so that the UE can connect to another EAS to seamlessly use existing services. In order to perform application context relocation, an EAS that can provide services to applications running in the UE's application client should be available. The availability of the EAS in the edge data network can be determined based on whether the EAS is driven in the edge hosting environment and the state of the EAS.

[0060] The UE may include an application client, an EEC for enabling the application client to interact with an edge computing service, and a mobile terminal (MT) for accessing a mobile communication system.

[0061] UE application is an application provided by a third party and may refer to a client application program for a specific application service running in the UE. Several applications may be driven in the UE. At least one of the various applications may use a mobile edge computing (MEC) service.

[0062] The EEC in the UE may refer to a client that performs operations required to use edge computing services in the UE. The EEC may perform operations to determine which applications can use edge computing services and connect network interfaces so that data of application clients in the UE can be sent to the EAS that provides edge computing services.

[0063] The operation for establishing a data connection using the edge computing service may be performed in a third generation partnership project (3GPP) communication layer by the MT in the UE. The 3GPP communication layer may refer to a layer that performs an operation (e.g., a modem operation) for using a mobile communication system and performs at least one of the roles of establishing a wireless connection for data communication, registering the UE in the mobile communication system, establishing a connection for data transmission to the communication system, and sending and receiving data.

[0064] The following will refer to Figure 2 A method for determining (identifying) what is required to perform application context relocation in the above-mentioned edge computing system and a method for determining a target EES or a target EAS are described.

[0065] Figure 2 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for selecting an application context relocation mode among EEC, EES, and EAS in a UE according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0066] refer to Figure 2 In step 1A, the EEC in the UE may inform the EES of the UE's application context relocation initiation UE capability. That is, the EEC may send capability information to the EES regarding whether the UE can initiate the application context relocation process.

[0067] When the EEC performs a registration process (EEC registration process) (which may include an initial registration process and a registration update process) with the EES, or when the EEC sends a registration request to the EES, the operation of sending the capability information may be performed. That is, the EEC may include and send the capability information in the registration request or in a message sent to the EES during the registration process. Alternatively, the operation of sending the capability information may be performed by a separate process immediately after the application client is executed.

[0068] In the operation of sending capability information, the EEC may identify whether the application client and MT in the UE can initiate an application context relocation process, and send it to the EES. The application context relocation initiation UE capability of the UE according to the present disclosure may include at least one of the following information.

[0069] - Whether to initiate UE application context relocation

[0070] - Information that can be considered or required when determining whether to initiate an application context relocation process (e.g., edge data network service area), required application key performance indicators (or QoS)

[0071] - The estimated time required to perform the application context relocation initiate operation

[0072] In addition, in step 1B, the EAS may inform the EES of the application context relocation initiation EAS capability. That is, the EAS may send capability information to the EES regarding whether it can initiate the application context relocation process.

[0073] When EAS performs a registration process (EAS registration process) for EES (which may include an initial registration process and a registration update process), or when EAS sends a registration request to EES, the operation of sending capability information may be performed. Alternatively, the operation of sending capability information may be performed as a separate operation after receiving a notification for EEC registration from EES.

[0074] In the operation of sending capability information, the EAS may identify whether it can initiate an application context relocation process and send it to the EES. The application context relocation initiation EAS capability according to the present disclosure may include at least one of the following information.

[0075] - Can EAS initiate application context relocation?

[0076] - Information that can be considered or required when determining whether to initiate an application context relocation process

[0077] ■Whether to subscribe to user plane (UP) management event notifications, or whether to subscribe to user plane (UP) management event notifications

[0078] ■ Whether the application client can be served (e.g., whether application context relocation for load balancing is initiated based on load, key performance indicators (required application KPIs) (or QoS) of the required application)

[0079] - The estimated time required to perform the application context relocation initiate operation

[0080] In step 1A or 1B, in order for the EEC or EAS to delegate the initiation of the application context relocation process rather than the ability to initiate the application context relocation to the EES, the EEC or EAS may send a delegation request for the initiation of the application context relocation to the EES. Upon receiving the delegation request, the EES may perform a pre-operation to determine whether the application context relocation process needs to be initiated. The pre-operation may include an operation in which the EES sends a subscription request for a related event notification service to the network exposure function (NEF) in order to track the location of the UE or monitor user plane path management events.

[0081] In step 2, the EES may select (or determine) an application context relocation mode (hereinafter, referred to as relocation mode) based on the application context relocation initiation UE capability and the application context relocation initiation EAS capability received from the EEC and the EAS, respectively.

[0082] In the present disclosure, the relocation mode may refer to information including information about the subject that initiates the application context relocation process and information about the conditions for initiating the application context relocation process, and operating based on the information. That is, EES, EAS, and EEC can identify whether they can initiate the application context relocation process according to the selected relocation mode, and are configured to operate according to the conditions for being able to initiate the process.

[0083] The EES can determine the relocation mode based on a predetermined method or information without receiving the capability information of the UE or EAS (for example, when the EES knows the capability information of the UE or EAS in advance based on the information). For example, the EES can receive relevant information from the edge data network configuration server without receiving capability information from the EEC and the EAS. In order for the EEC to receive the edge data network configuration information, the EEC can provide the capability information of the EEC while sending an initial provisioning request to the edge data network configuration server, and the edge data network configuration server can send the information to the EES that the EEC will access. The corresponding information can be sent before the EEC accesses the EES. This is because the edge data network configuration server can know the EES that the EEC is to access based on the application client-related information and UE-related information provided by the EEC (for example, connection information such as a public local mobile network ID, or the location information of the UE).

[0084] The present disclosure Figure 2 An embodiment in which the EES selects a relocation mode based on information about the capabilities of the UE received from the EEC and information about the capabilities of the EAS received from the EAS is shown, but the present disclosure is not limited thereto. That is, the EES may select a relocation mode based on information about the capabilities of the UE from the EEC, or may select a relocation mode based on information about the capabilities of the EAS received from the EAS.

[0085] The relocation mode may be configured for each UE, for each application (e.g., a different mode may be configured for each EAS), or for each EES (so that the configuration information about the EAS registered in the EES may be the same). Hereinafter, the method by which the EES selects the relocation mode will be described.

[0086] ●EES can determine which device is allowed to initiate the application context relocation process based on the information about the received application context relocation initiation capability of the UE or EAS. However, the device allowed to initiate the process is not limited to one. In this case, when selecting the relocation mode, the EES can determine it by considering its application context relocation initiation capability.

[0087] ■ It can be allowed to be initiated from multiple devices. This is to cope with the situation that application context relocation is required according to various situations (for example, it can include the situation that application context relocation is required according to the loss of service provision capability of EAS and the situation that application context relocation is required according to the location movement of UE). In this case, in order to quickly perform the application context relocation process, EES can select a relocation mode that allows both UE and EAS to initiate the process.

[0088] ■ The EES may specify the configuration of the conditions under which it should initiate application context relocation and the initiation conditions of the application context relocation process for each of the UE and the EAS, as shown in the following example (however, the present disclosure is not limited to the examples presented below).

[0089] - Example 1) EEC performs origination according to leaving the service area, and EAS performs origination because application client service cannot be provided according to load.

[0090] - Example 2) EEC performs launch based on leaving the service area, and EES performs application context relocation due to abnormal termination or abnormality of EAS. In this case, EAS can prohibit launch.

[0091] - Example 3) EEC and EES perform application context relocation according to leaving the service area, and EAS performs initiation due to service unavailability.

[0092] In step 3, EES can notify EEC and EAS of the configured or coordinated relocation mode. In the case where the relocation mode is configured differently for each UE, EES may include information (e.g., UE ID, UE IP address, or EEC ID) that can identify the UE or the EEC in the UE. In this case, the relocation mode can be notified, as shown in the following example. However, the following examples are given as examples in the embodiments of the present disclosure, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto. That is, EES can notify UE and EAS of the relocation mode based on various methods.

[0093] ●Example 1) In the case where only whether the initiation of the application context relocation process is allowed can be sent, whether all of each device is allowed (for example, {EEC:O, EES:X, EAS:O}) can be sent, or whether the initiation is allowed can be sent only to devices that receive whether it is allowed (for example, {O} or {X}).

[0094] ● Example 2) It is also possible to send whether to allow the initiation of the application context relocation process and the conditions to be considered (see the example of step 2).

[0095] In step 4A, by reflecting the information received from EES, EEC can configure the relocation mode. For example, EEC may continue or may not perform the operation of comparing the location information of UE and the service area of ​​EES. Alternatively, EEC can determine whether to perform monitoring or reporting operations on the relocation requirements (i.e., the conditions considered to initiate the application context relocation process) from the application client and modem in the UE. That is, according to the relocation mode, EES can identify whether it can initiate the application context relocation process and perform operations accordingly. EEC can send configuration information about the relocation mode received from EES to the application client and MT in the UE. In this case, the application client and MT can additionally perform configuration related to the initiation of the application context relocation process.

[0096] In step 4B, the EES may determine to which device to send the relocation in progress indication. That is, the EES may determine the device to send the relocation in progress indication. The EES may identify the device that can initiate the application context relocation process based on the configured relocation mode, thereby reducing unnecessary transmission of the relocation in progress indication.

[0097] That is, EES sends a relocation-in-progress indication to a device that is capable of initiating an application context relocation process, thereby notifying that the process is in progress to prevent redundant operations, and does not send a relocation-in-progress indication to a device that is not capable of initiating an application context relocation process, thereby reducing the signaling overhead caused by sending unnecessary relocation-in-progress indications.

[0098] In the case where the EEC is newly connected to the target EES, the EEC may provide the target EES with information on the relocation mode received from the previous source EES. In this case, a detailed description of the relocation in progress indication is as follows.

[0099] ● Relocation in progress indication: In the case where multiple devices are allowed to initiate the application context relocation process, the relocation in progress indication is a message (or indication) to be sent (transmitted) to notify another device that a process for context relocation has been initiated from one device to prevent duplicate process progress. The relocation in progress indication may include information about the device initiating the relocation process, and information indicating that the process for context relocation has been initiated.

[0100] ● The EES may subscribe to or cancel the user plane path management event notification of the corresponding UE according to the determined relocation mode. In this case, the EES may refer to the target EES of the new connection.

[0101] ● In the case where the fact that a new UE has entered the service area of ​​the target EES is recognized according to the determined relocation mode, the target EES may determine whether to notify the source EES to which the UE has previously been connected that the UE has moved to its service area. (For example, in the case where the UE is allowed to initiate a relocation process, the target EES may recognize that the UE has moved to its service area through the EEC registration process and notify the source EES of this fact.)

[0102] In step 4C, the EAS may subscribe to or cancel user plane management event notifications of the corresponding UE based on the relocation pattern received from the EES.

[0103] Hereinafter, a process of performing an application context relocation process according to the present disclosure based on the above-mentioned relocation mode will be described.

[0104] Figure 3 is a message flow diagram illustrating an embodiment of performing coordination during application context relocation according to the present disclosure.

[0105] refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 is a message flow diagram illustrating an embodiment of performing an application context relocation procedure in a deployment scenario where the communication range between a UE and a source EES is limited to a service area of ​​the source EES.

[0106] This embodiment can be applied to all scenarios where the UE can no longer communicate with the source EES after initiating the source EES-based application context relocation procedure.

[0107] For example, this embodiment can be applied when the source EES (or source EAS) initiates an application context relocation process and the UE moves to the service area of ​​the target EES before the process is completed. This will be described in detail below.

[0108] refer to Figure 3 In step 0, the source EES or source EAS may initiate an application context relocation procedure. As described above, the UE may move to the service area of ​​the target EES. This embodiment may be applied even if the UE moves at any point in time before the relocation procedure is completed.

[0109] In step 1, the source EES or source EAS may send a relocation in progress indication to each device based on the configured relocation mode. In this case, the relocation in progress indication may be sent based on the reference Figure 2 The above method described above is used to configure the relocation mode. Alternatively, the relocation mode can be pre-configured to the EES. Alternatively, the relocation mode can be configured without the need for the EES or EAS to know the capabilities of each device. Figure 2The separate capability information is exchanged in the process, and the EES or EAS can send a relocation in progress indication to the determined device according to the configured relocation mode. The detailed description thereof refers to the above description.

[0110] In this case, the source EES or source EAS only sends a relocation in progress indication to devices (e.g., EEC or (multiple) source EAS) that are allowed to initiate the application context relocation process in the relocation mode (e.g., the relocation mode selected (determined) by the source EES), thereby reducing signaling overhead. However, in the absence of a configured relocation mode, the source EES or source EAS may send a relocation in progress indication to all devices. In this case, all devices may include devices (EEC, EAS) belonging to the service area of ​​the source EES or other EES.

[0111] ●The relocation in progress indication may include information indicating that the corresponding application context relocation process is already in progress. In addition, the indication may include information about which application context relocation of the UE is in progress (e.g., application ID or EAS (instance) ID). In addition, the relocation in progress indication sent to the source EAS may include information capable of identifying the UE or EEC (e.g., EEC ID, UE ID, UE IP address, or ID assigned from the authentication and authorization function).

[0112] As described above, when the UE is not allowed to initiate the application context relocation process, the EES or EAS does not send the above relocation in progress indication to the EEC of the corresponding UE, thereby reducing signaling overhead.

[0113] Furthermore, the source EES may notify other source EASs of information about the application context relocation process initiated from the source EAS through a relocation-in-progress indication, thereby preventing the initiation of a redundant process.

[0114] In step 2, the EEC in the UE may perform a registration procedure with the target EES. In the case where the EEC does not perform a registration procedure, the EEC may inform the target EES through separate signaling that it has moved to the target EES service area.

[0115] In step 3, the target EES may send an EEC registration event notification to the source EES. In this case, the target EES may send the EEC registration event notification by including information that can identify the UE or the EEC in the UE. The information that can identify the UE or the EEC in the UE may refer to, for example, an EEC ID, a UE ID, a UE IP address, or an ID assigned from an authentication and authorization function.

[0116] In step 4, the target EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the EEC.

[0117] ●That is, in order to prevent the application context relocation process from being initiated in the UE, the target EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the UE. For example, in the case where no indication is sent in step 1 according to a specific condition (for example, in the case where the UE leaves the service area of ​​the source EES before sending the indication), the target EES may send the indication to the UE. Alternatively, the target EES may send the indication to the UE regardless of whether the operation of step 1 is performed.

[0118] • The relocation in progress indication may include information indicating that a procedure is already in progress, and also include information about which application context relocation of the UE is in progress (eg, application ID or EAS (instance) ID).

[0119] In operation A, the source EES may determine whether the UE has left its service area based on the EEC registration event notification received from the target EES. In the event that the UE leaves the service area of ​​the source EES, the UE may perform an EEC deregistration operation after the application context relocation process for the UE is completed.

[0120] In operation B, the UE may coordinate the relocation mode.

[0121] Even if the previously configured initiation conditions for the application context relocation procedure are met, the UE may coordinate the relocation mode based on the relocation in progress indication received from the target EES so as not to initiate the procedure. The coordination operation may be applied to each application client, or may be applied to all running application clients in common. This may be determined based on the EAS information and the application included in the relocation in progress indication.

[0122] In operation C, the target EES, rather than the source EES, may perform AF impact on the traffic routed to the target EAS where application context relocation has been completed for the application data traffic. This is because the source EES may no longer perform application function requests to impact the traffic routing of the UE. Alternatively, the target EES may notify the EEC in the UE of the completion of the application context relocation process and enable the EEC to perform application data traffic rerouting.

[0123] Figure 4 is a message flow diagram illustrating an embodiment in which coordination is performed during application context relocation according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0124] Figure 4 is a message flow diagram illustrating a process of performing an application context relocation procedure in a deployment scenario where the communication range between a UE and a source EES is limited to a service area of ​​the source EES.

[0125] This embodiment can be applied to all scenarios where the UE can no longer communicate with the source EES after the application context relocation process based on the source EES is initiated.

[0126] Specifically, in step 0, the UE or the EEC in the UE may initiate an application context relocation procedure to send a context relocation request (or a context relocation request message, an application context relocation request, an application context relocation request message) to the source EES. However, before the process is completed, the UE may move to the target EES service area, and in this case, this embodiment may be applied. This embodiment may also be applied even if the UE moves at any point in time before the relocation procedure is completed.

[0127] In step 1, the source EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the source EAS providing service to the UE. Specifically, the source EAS may identify the device sending the indication (e.g., the source EAS) according to the configured relocation mode. The method for configuring the relocation mode is the same as described above and will be omitted below.

[0128] The relocation in progress indication may include information that can identify the UE or the EEC in the corresponding UE (e.g., at least one of the EEC ID, UE ID, UE IP address, or ID assigned from the authentication and authorization function). By receiving a context relocation request (or a context relocation request message, an application context relocation request, an application context relocation request message) from the UE (or EEC), the source EES may recognize that the process has been initiated in the EEC. The context relocation request may be sent from the UE to the source EES before step 0 or 1.

[0129] In step 2, the EEC in the UE may perform a registration procedure with the target EES. In the case where the EEC does not perform a registration procedure, the EEC in the UE may inform the target EES through separate signaling that it has moved to the target EES service area.

[0130] Because the EEC has sent a context relocation request to the source EES, the EEC will not immediately perform the same operation (the operation of sending a context relocation request) on the target EES. That is, the EEC may not send a context relocation request to the target EES until it knows that the application context relocation process has failed, or until a predefined timer is completed.

[0131] The EEC may transmit information on the relocation mode received from the source EES to the target EES through a registration process or a separate process.

[0132] In step 3, the target EES may send an EEC registration event notification to the source EES.

[0133] The target EES may include information that can identify the UE or the EEC in the UE to send an EEC registration notification to the source EES. For example, the information that can identify the EEC may include at least one of the EEC ID, UE ID, UE IP address, or an ID assigned from an authentication and authorization function.

[0134] In step 4, the source EES may coordinate the application context relocation process. The coordination of the application context relocation process that may be performed by the source EES may be exemplified as follows.

[0135] • The source EES may recognize that the UE has moved to the target EES service area and modify (coordinate) the application context relocation procedure as follows.

[0136] ■The source EES may not send an application context relocation completion to the UE (e.g., the source EES may modify the context relocation process so as not to send a response message to the EEC to a context relocation request previously received from the EEC). In cases where communication between the source EES and the UE is not possible through such coordination, overhead may be reduced by preventing duplicate signaling.

[0137] In step 5, the target EES may send an Application Context Relocation Complete to the EEC. Because communication between the source EES and the UE is impossible, the target EES (rather than the source EES) sends an Application Context Relocation Complete to notify the UE that the Application Context Relocation is complete.

[0138] The operations of steps 4 and 5 above are summarized as follows.

[0139] • The source EES may recognize the fact that the UE has moved to the service area of ​​the target EES and modify the application context relocation procedure as follows.

[0140] ■ The source EES may not send an application context relocation completion to the UE (e.g., the source EES may modify the process so as not to send a response message to the EEC for a context relocation request previously received from the EEC). In the event that communication between the source EES and the UE is not possible through such coordination, overhead may be reduced by preventing the transmission of duplicate signaling.

[0141] ■ The target EES, rather than the source EES, can send the application context relocation completion to the EEC. Therefore, the target EES can perform application function influence on the service routing to replace the UE to perform rerouting for the application data service. This will be described in detail below.

[0142] In step 6, the EEC may receive the application context relocation completion from the target EES instead of the source EES, and perform rerouting for the application data service. The UE may recognize that it will receive the application context relocation completion from the target EES via the EEC registration process performed by moving to the service area of ​​the target EES. In the case where the target EES performs rerouting for the application data service, the UE does not perform the operation (operation of performing rerouting for the application data service).

[0143] Figure 5 is a message flow diagram illustrating the operation of a source EES according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0144] refer to Figure 5 , the source EES can determine the relocation mode. In addition, the source EES can send the determined relocation mode to the EEC and the EAS. Because the specific method for determining the relocation mode is the same as the above method, it will be omitted below.

[0145] The process of determining the relocation mode may be omitted. In the case where the determination of the relocation mode is omitted (i.e., in the case where the relocation mode is not determined), if the application context relocation process is initiated, the source EES may send a relocation in progress indication to all devices. Alternatively, the relocation mode may be determined by each device, and in this case, the process for sending the relocation mode may also be omitted.

[0146] Thereafter, the source EES may identify whether the application context relocation process is initiated. In addition, the source EES may determine the device that initiated the application context relocation process.

[0147] Where a relocation mode is determined, the source EES may determine a device to send a relocation in progress indication based on the determined mode.

[0148] 1. Specifically, the case where the device initiating the application context relocation process is the source EES will be described.

[0149] In this case, the source EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the determined device. For example, the source EES may send an indication to the initiating EAS and EEC not to perform the application context relocation process.

[0150] The source EES may identify whether it has received an EEC registration notification from the target EES. In the case of receiving the notification, the source EES may perform an EEC deregistration process after completing the application context relocation. In addition, the source EES may not perform AF influence on the service routing.

[0151] In case of not receiving the notification, the source EES may perform AF impact on the service routing after completing the application context relocation. The source EES may perform the EEC deregistration process.

[0152] 2. A case where the device initiating the application context relocation process is the EEC will be described.

[0153] In this case, the source EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the source EAS. According to the indication, the source EAS may not initiate the application context relocation process.

[0154] The source EES can identify whether the EEC registration notification has been received from the source EES. In the case of receiving the notification, the source EES can coordinate the application context relocation process. That is, the source EES can identify the fact that the UE has moved to the target EES and modify the process to not send the application context relocation completion to the UE. Through this coordination, repeated signaling transmission can be prevented.

[0155] In the case where no notification is received, the source EES may send the result of the application context relocation to the EEC.

[0156] Figure 6 is a message flow diagram illustrating the operation of a target EES according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0157] refer to Figure 6 , the target EES can identify whether the EEC registration process has been performed.

[0158] In case the EEC registration process is performed, the target EES may send an EEC registration notification to the source EES.

[0159] The target EES can identify the device that initiated the application context relocation process. In the case where the device is an EEC, the target EES can send an application context relocation completion notification message to the EEC after completing the application context relocation. In the case where the UE cannot communicate with the source EES according to the movement of the UE, the target EES instead of the source EES can send the application context relocation completion notification message to the UE, thereby preventing repeated signaling transmission.

[0160] In the case that the device initiating the application context relocation process is the source EES or the source EAS, the target EES may perform an AF request to affect service routing after the application context relocation process is completed.

[0161] In addition to the deployment scenarios of the above embodiments, an embodiment of the case where communication between the UE and the source EES is guaranteed outside the service area of ​​the source EES is as follows.

[0162] ●In the case where the source EES initiates the application context relocation process, the source EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the EEC of the UE and all source EASs that provide services to the UE. The source EES may select the device to send the relocation in progress indication based on the relocation mode predetermined by the source EES before sending the relocation in progress indication. Therefore, there is no need to send an indication (relocation in progress indication) to a device that will not perform the application context relocation process based on the conditions of the mode. Because the detailed description of the relocation mode is the same as that described above, its description will be omitted below.

[0163] In addition, the relocation in progress indication sent to the EEC may include information that can identify which application context relocation client of the UE is in progress. The relocation in progress indication sent to the source EAS may include information that can identify the UE or the EEC in the UE (e.g., EEC ID, UE ID, UE IP address, or ID assigned from the authentication and authorization function). However, the identifier may not be included in the relocation in progress indication.

[0164] ● In the case where the source EAS providing services to the UE initiates the application context relocation process, the source EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the EEC providing services to the UE and another source EAS providing services to the UE. The relocation in progress indication sent to the EEC may include information that can identify which application context relocation client of the UE is in progress.

[0165] The relocation in progress indication sent to the source EAS may include information capable of identifying the UE or EEC (eg, EEC ID, UE ID, UE IP address, or an ID assigned from an authentication and authorization function, etc.).

[0166] • In case the UE initiates the application context relocation procedure and the source EES receives a context relocation request from the UE, the source EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the source EAS providing service to the UE.

[0167] Figure 7 is a message flow diagram illustrating operations that may be performed for coordination during an application context relocation process according to the present disclosure.

[0168] Figure 7 An embodiment of specific operations of the source EES-based application context relocation process (a process in which a device in a source edge data network initiates an application context relocation process) according to the above embodiment is shown.

[0169] In step 0, the source EES may determine a relocation mode and send the relocation mode to the EEC and the source EAS. The detailed description thereof is the same as described above and will be omitted below. In addition, according to an embodiment, step 0 may be omitted.

[0170] In step 1, an application context relocation process may be initiated. The application context relocation process may be initiated (or triggered) in the EEC, the source EAS, and the source EES, respectively.

[0171] Initiate or trigger the application context relocation process in EEC or source EAS, source EES can receive context relocation request (step 2A) from EEC, or can receive context relocation request (step 2B) from source EAS. In addition, source EES can directly perform the operation of initiating the application context relocation process. Like this, when source EES receives context relocation request, or when source EES directly initiates the application context relocation process, source EES can send relocation ongoing indication to another device. In this case, source EES can determine the equipment (EEC or source EAS) that sends relocation ongoing indication based on determined relocation mode. Alternatively, when relocation mode is not determined, source EES can send indication to all devices.

[0172] The source EES may obtain the target EES information in step 3, and send an application context relocation request to the target EES in step 4.

[0173] After receiving the application context relocation request from the source EES (after step 4), when performing the EEC registration process, the target EES may send an EEC registration notification to the source EES. The notification may include information that can identify the UE or the EEC in the UE.

[0174] Upon receiving the EEC registration notification, the source EES may modify the ongoing application context relocation process. Specifically, the source EES may recognize that communication with the EEC is no longer possible and may not perform the sending of application context relocation completion and the AF impact on traffic routing.

[0175] The operations of the source EES may be performed by the target EES, or some operations (application data traffic rerouting) may be performed by the EEC in the UE.

[0176] Specifically, in step 12B, the target EES may send an application context relocation completion (or response) to the UE. In the case where the source EES does not receive an EEC registration notification from the target EES, in step 12A, the source EES may send an application context relocation completion (or response) to the EEC.

[0177] In addition, in step 13B or 13C, the source EES or the target EES may trigger an AF request to affect the service routing. The detailed description is the same as that described above and will be omitted below.

[0178] Figure 8 is a message flow diagram illustrating operations that may be performed for coordination during an application context relocation process according to the present disclosure.

[0179] Figure 8 An embodiment of detailed operation of the above embodiment of the application context relocation process based on the target EES (a process initiated by the EEC in the UE, the application client or the MT and sending an application context relocation request to the target EES) is shown.

[0180] In step 1, the EEC may determine whether to initiate an application context relocation process, and in the case of determining to initiate an application context relocation process, in step 2, the EEC may send an application context relocation request to the target EES. In this case, the application context relocation request may include at least one of UE information (e.g., UE ID or IP address), S-EAS information, application information, or EEC registration context ID. In addition, the application context request may also include information about the relocation mode. However, this information may be omitted.

[0181] After the target EES receives the application context relocation request from the EEC (after step 2), the target EES may send a relocation in progress indication to the source EES to which the corresponding UE has been connected.

[0182] As described above, the EEC may provide the target EES with information about the relocation mode received from the source EES, and the target EES may use the information (information about the relocation mode) to determine a device to send a relocation in progress indication (e.g., the target EES may use the information to determine whether to send an indication to the source EES). For example, according to the corresponding mode, in the case where only the UE can initiate the application context relocation process, the target EES may not send a relocation in progress indication to the source EES.

[0183] The relocation in progress indication may include information capable of identifying the UE or the EEC in the corresponding UE (e.g., EEC ID, UE ID, UE IP address, or ID assigned from the authentication and authorization function, etc.) The source EES may send the corresponding relocation in progress indication to the source EAS providing service to the UE.

[0184] As another example, a relocation in progress indication may be included in Figure 8 The application context relocation request of steps 5 and 6 may be sent to the source EES and the source EAS. As in the above embodiment, whether to include and send the corresponding indication may be determined according to the information about the relocation mode provided from the EEC.

[0185] Fig. 9is a block diagram showing the structure of a server according to the present disclosure.

[0186] refer to Fig. 9 , the server may include a transceiver 910, a controller 920, and a storage unit 930. In the present disclosure, the controller may be defined as a circuit, an application specific integrated circuit, or at least one processor.

[0187] In this case, the server may correspond to at least one of an EES, an EAS, or an edge data network configuration server.

[0188] The transceiver 910 may send and receive signals to and from other network entities. The transceiver 910 may send and receive information to and from, for example, another server through a specific interface.

[0189] According to the embodiments proposed in the present disclosure, the controller 920 may control the overall operation of the server. For example, the controller 920 may control the signal flow between blocks so as to perform the operations according to the above-mentioned flowchart.

[0190] The storage unit 930 may store at least one of information transmitted and received by the transceiver 910 or information generated by the controller 920 .

[0191] Fig.10 is a block diagram showing the structure of a UE according to the present disclosure.

[0192] refer to Fig.10 , the UE may include a transceiver 1010, a controller 1020, and a storage unit 1030. In the present disclosure, the controller may be defined as a circuit, an application specific integrated circuit, or at least one processor.

[0193] The transceiver 1010 may send and receive signals to and from other network entities.

[0194] According to the embodiments proposed in the present disclosure, the controller 1020 may control the overall operation of the server. For example, the controller 1020 may control the signal flow between blocks so as to perform the operations according to the above flowchart.

[0195] The storage unit 1030 may store at least one of information transmitted and received by the transceiver 1010 or information generated by the controller 1020 .

[0196] The present disclosure proposes a method for performing coordination in an application context relocation process that can be initiated from multiple devices, thereby enabling selection of an optimal device to initiate the application context relocation process and reducing signaling overhead.

[0197] For the above purpose, the present disclosure provides a method for coordinating an application context relocation procedure between a UE (or an EEC in the UE), an EAS, and an EEC.

[0198] Furthermore, the present disclosure proposes a method of notifying each of the EAS and the UE (or the EEC in the UE) of a capability of initiating an application context relocation procedure to the EAS (application context relocation initiation capability).

[0199] Furthermore, the present disclosure proposes a method of notifying another device (eg, EEC, EES, EAS, etc.) of information on the progress of an application context relocation process initiated in one device.

[0200] The above-mentioned edge computing system can obtain the information required to provide edge computing services to the UE through the 3GPP system. To this end, the EES subscribes to the network exposure function (NEF) which is one of the 3GPP network functions (NF), and the NEF subscribes to receive information about the target UE from other 3GPPNFs, thereby receiving information about the UE from the 3GPP system. In the case of UE movement, an overhead of repeated subscription / unsubscription in order to obtain information may occur in the 3GPP system. In the following, in order to solve the overhead problem, a method will be described that can minimize the duplication of subscription / unsubscription configuration between the 3GPP NF that exposes UE-related information to an edge computing device (e.g., EES) and the 3GPP NF that provides UE-related information.

[0201] Fig.11 is a flowchart illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0202] When performing an EEC registration procedure with a UE, if source EES related information is provided from the UE, the target EES may determine that UE service API context information transfer is necessary.

[0203] The source EES information (or source server information) provided by the UE through the EEC registration process may include only the identifier of the source server (source EES) or the address information of the source server (source EES). In addition, the source server information may include the identifier of the source server and the address information of the source server, and include at least one of the various information required for data transmission and reception between the source server and the UE (for example, the source EAS information (identifier and address information) that has provided services to the application client in the UE, the application client identifier and related information that has received the edge computing service, and the UE service API information required to provide the edge computing service to the application client).

[0204] If only an identifier is provided, the target EES shall receive the address information of the source EES from the edge data network configuration server.

[0205] Therefore, the target EES can determine the characteristics of the application provided to the UE. Specifically, the target EES can identify whether the UE is using a stateful application service. In this case, a stateful application service may refer to an application service that requires continuous operating status information of the client and the server in order to provide a seamless service, and includes, for example, the above-mentioned real-time interactive game application. That is, the target EES can identify whether the application context relocation process is executed (or whether it is necessary). This can be determined based on whether the target EES has received an application context relocation request from the source server. However, the embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited to this, and specific examples will be described later.

[0206] In the case where the UE is using a stateless application service, the following description may be performed. Fig.12 Independent processes of various embodiments of the UE service API context transfer method.

[0207] Because the UE is receiving a stateful application service, if an application context relocation process needs to be performed, the application context relocation process can be applied as one of various embodiments of the UE service API context transfer method. A detailed description of various embodiments will be described later.

[0208] A specific example of the UE determining the characteristics (stateful or stateless) of the received application service is as follows.

[0209] - The UE (EEC) may determine the application service characteristics based on the EAS service profile information that provides the requested service, or

[0210] - The UE may determine the application service characteristics based on the provided source EAS information, or

[0211] -The UE may determine the application service characteristics based on whether an application context relocation request is received.

[0212] However, embodiments of the present disclosure are not limited thereto, and various methods of determining the characteristics of an application service may be used.

[0213] The scope of the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments. That is, when the conditions for performing the operation according to each embodiment are met without the process of determining the characteristics of the application, the target server may perform the corresponding operation. For example, after performing the registration process of the UE, the target server may perform the process corresponding to the various embodiments of the present disclosure. As another example, in the case of performing the application context relocation process, the target server may perform the process corresponding to the various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0214] Fig.12 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0215] refer to Fig.12 , the EEC of the UE may perform an EEC registration procedure to the target EES to which the UE has moved (step 0). When performing the registration procedure, the UE may provide at least one of the source EES ID or address information (e.g., fully qualified domain name (FQDN), IP address, etc.) of the source EES. This is to allow the target EES to identify the source EES and send a UE service API context request.

[0216] The target EES may perform an operation of finding the address of the source EES based on information received from the EEC of the UE. For example, the target EES may receive the address of the source EES from the edge data network configuration server by querying. Alternatively, information about the address of the source EES may be stored in the target EES, and the target EES may find the address of the source EES based on the information received from the UE.

[0217] The target EES may send a UE Service API context request to the identified source EES (step 1).

[0218] The UE service API context request may include at least one of the following information.

[0219] -EEC ID of the UE that has performed the registration process for itself: This identifier may be an identifier provided from the authentication authorization function when the UE performs authentication / authorization, or an ID given by the source EES during the EEC registration process (EEC registration context ID). In addition, at least one of an identifier capable of identifying the UE other than the EEC ID (e.g., identifier information such as a generic public subscription identifier (GPSI)) or a UE IP address may be sent together, or at least one of an identifier that can identify the UE instead of the EEC ID or a UE IP address may be sent.

[0220] - Target EES information: may include at least one of the target EES FQDN, target EES IP address, target EES ID, or edge computing service provider information (e.g., ECSP ID)

[0221] - EAS information (application ID, EAS ID, EAS category, etc.) of the services that the target EES has provided to the UE.

[0222] The source EES may identify UE-related information provided from the EAS and 3GPP systems that have provided services to the UE based on the information received from the target EES. The source EES may send to the target EES information about a 3GPP NF (e.g., NEF or SCEF) that has exposed information related to the corresponding UE based on the identified information. The source EES may send to the target EES a response message (UE Service API Context Response) including relevant UE service API context information (step 2).

[0223] The UE service API context information may include at least one of information such as NEF ID / address, subscription-related ID, or notification-related ID.

[0224] The subscription correlation ID is an identifier of subscription information between a consumer NF and a provider NF (e.g., information about which UE, the information is provided, the subscription between what devices, and information about the NF related to the provided information). The subscription correlation ID can be used to specify the subscription to be modified. The event provider NF (e.g., NEF) can provide the subscription correlation ID to the consumer NF (e.g., EES or EAS).

[0225] The subscription correlation ID is required to find the NEF that should use the NEF ID / address to perform the subscription and identify the subscription performed for the UE between the NEF and the source EES. After completing the identification of the NEF and modifying the target subscription, the target EES can modify the subscription between the NEF and the source EES by performing a subscription operation on the target NEF.

[0226] The target EES may perform the following operations based on the UE service API context information received by the source EES (step 3).

[0227] - Case 1: If the NEF subscribed by the source EES is a NEF that the target EES can subscribe to (determined based on the NEFID / address received from the source EES)

[0228] ◆Subscribe to the target NEF based on at least one of the subscription ID, notification target address (target EES information) or notification correlation ID received from the source EES.

[0229] ◆NEF identifies subscription-related information with an existing source EES based on the subscription correlation ID included in the subscription request message of the target EES. NEF may change the notification target address from the source EES address to the target EES address. That is, NEF may maintain the southbound interface-related configuration between NEF and NF (e.g., access and mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), and policy control function (PCF)) of the 3GPP system, and change the northbound API configuration exposed to a higher application layer (e.g., EES as an application function of the 3GPP system). The northbound API refers to the interface exposed by NEF to the application function (e.g., EES, EAS) of the upper layer (application layer). The southbound interface refers to the lower layer (lower layer than the application layer) interface between NEF and NF (e.g., AMF, SMF, PCF, etc.) of the 3GPP system.

[0230] - Case 2: If the source EES subscribes to a NEF that the target EES cannot subscribe to (determined based on the NEFID / address received from the source EES)

[0231] ◆The target EES performs a new subscription to the NEF to which it is subscribed and linked.

[0232] ● The target EES can provide UE identification information to the NEF to specify the UE. The UE identification information can be GPSI, external ID, UE IP address, etc.

[0233] The target EES may send a subscription result (subscription indication) to the source EES according to step 3 (step 4). Once the subscription is successful (step 3, case 1), the source EES may delete the locally stored UE service API context-related information and perform a deregistration on the UE (EEC). In addition, the source EES may not perform a deregistration request to the NEF (step 5).

[0234] Once the subscription fails (step 3, case 2), the source EES may perform a unsubscribe request to the NEF.

[0235] The detailed operation of step 5 is as follows.

[0236] Case 1: Target EES successfully subscribes to NEF

[0237] ◆Delete the UE service API context information stored in the source EES.

[0238] ◆Execute the EEC deregistration process.

[0239] ◆Do not unsubscribe NEF.

[0240] Case 2: The target EES fails to subscribe to the NEF sent by the source EES.

[0241] ◆The source EES performs the unsubscribe operation to the NEF for the corresponding UE.

[0242] Fig.13 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0243] refer to Fig.13 , the EEC of the UE may perform an EEC registration procedure to the target EES to which the UE has moved (step 0). When performing the registration procedure, the UE may provide at least one of the source EES ID or address information (e.g., FQDN, IP address, etc.) of the source EES. This is to allow the target EES to identify the source EES and send a UE service API context request.

[0244] The target EES may perform an operation of finding the address of the source EES based on information received from the EEC of the UE. For example, the target EES may receive the address of the source EES from the edge data network configuration server by querying. Alternatively, information about the address of the source EES may be stored in the target EES, and the address of the source EES may be found based on information received from the UE.

[0245] The target EES may send a UE Service API context request to the identified source EES (step 1).

[0246] The UE service API context request may include at least one of the following information.

[0247] -EEC ID of the UE that has performed the registration process for itself: This identifier may be an identifier provided from the authentication authorization function when the UE performs authentication / authorization, or an ID given by the source EES during the EEC registration process (EEC registration context ID). In addition, at least one of an identifier capable of identifying the UE other than the EEC ID (e.g., identifier information such as a general public subscription identifier (GPSI)) or a UE IP address may be sent together, or at least one of the UE IP address or an identifier that can identify the UE instead of the EEC ID may be sent.

[0248] - Target EES information: may include at least one of a target EES FQDN, a target EES IP address, a target EES ID, or edge computing service provider information (e.g., ECSP ID). In this case, target EES address information that can be used as a notification target address of the NEF of the 3GPP system may be included.

[0249] - EAS information (application ID, EAS ID, EAS category, etc.) of the services that the target EES has provided to the UE.

[0250] -NEF information that the target EES subscribes to or that the target EES can use (NEF ID / address)

[0251] Thereafter, the source EES may identify whether the NEF that the target EES can use is the NEF it subscribes for the corresponding UE based on the information received from the target EES (step 2).

[0252] - In the case that the NEF is a NEF that the source EES subscribes to and has already used, the source EES can identify the UE-related information provided from the EAS and 3GPP system that have provided services to the UE, and find the relevant subscription correlation ID. The source EES can modify the subscription of the 3GPP NF (e.g., NEF or SCEF) that has exposed the information related to the corresponding UE based on the identified information. In addition, the source EES can modify the notification target address to the target EES address and store the relevant notification correlation ID.

[0253] - If the NEF is not the NEF that the source EES has subscribed to and used, the source EES sends a modification failure message to the target EES through the following step 3.

[0254] The source EES may send a response message (UE Service API Context Response) including UE Service API context information to the target EES (step 3). The UE Service API context information may include information about the modified subscription. The response message may include an indication that may indicate the result of the subscription modification.

[0255] The UE service API context information may include at least one of information such as NEF ID / address, subscription correlation ID, notification correlation ID, notification target address, or event ID. The subscription correlation ID is necessary to support management operations such as modification and deletion of the corresponding subscription, and the event provider NF (e.g., NEF) may be provided to the consumer NF (e.g., EES or EAS).

[0256] The target EES may perform the following operations based on the UE service API context information and subscription modification result received from the source EES.

[0257] Case 1: Successful subscription modification (when the NEF subscribed to by the source EES is a NEF that the target EES can subscribe to)

[0258] ◆Store the UE service API context information received from the source EES (eg, at least one of a subscription ID, a notification target address (target EES information), or a notification correlation ID).

[0259] Case 2: Subscription modification failed (when the NEF subscribed by the source EES is a NEF that the target EES cannot subscribe to)

[0260] ◆The target EES performs a new subscription to the NEF to which it is subscribed and linked.

[0261] ● The target EES can provide UE identification information to the NEF to specify the UE. The UE identification information can be GPSI, external ID, UE IP address, etc.

[0262] Fig.14 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method of transmitting a UE service API context according to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0263] Fig.14 The application context relocation process based on the source EES is shown.

[0264] In order to support the UE using the stateful application service through the corresponding procedure, the source EES sends the application context information stored in the source EAS providing the service to the UE to the target EAS.

[0265] In the above process, the source EES may send an application context relocation request to the target EES. The present disclosure proposes a method for performing UE service context API transfer by sending UE service API context information together with the application context relocation request without performing Figures 11 to 13 The specific method is as follows. Fig.14 The process can be based on the above Fig.11 The process may be performed by the UE, or may be performed when executing a process for supporting a UE using a stateful application service.

[0266] Since the detailed description of steps 1 to 3 is the same as the above description, it will be omitted here.

[0267] The source EES may send the application context relocation request by adding at least one of the following information to the application context relocation request.

[0268] At least one of NEF ID / address, subscription-related ID (which can specify the source EES's subscription to the NEF for the target UE), EEC ID, or EEC registration context ID

[0269] Thereafter, the target EES may send an application context relocation request to the target EAS in step 5 , and receive an application context relocation response in step 6 .

[0270] The target EES can subscribe to the NEF in operation A (Subscribe to NEF)

[0271] ◆If the NEF indicated by the source EES is a NEF to which the target EES can subscribe, the target EES can modify the subscription between the NEF and the source EES by performing the subscription using the subscription correlation ID.

[0272] ◆If the NEF indicated by the source EES is a NEF that the target EES cannot subscribe to, the target EES performs a new subscription operation for the target UE to the NEF subscribed to by the target EES. The target EES may provide the NEF with at least one of GPSI, external ID or UE IP address to specify the target UE.

[0273] In step 7, the target EES may send an application context relocation response to the source EES. The subscription result of the NEF (the result of operation A: whether the target EES can subscribe to the NEF connected to the source EES) may be included in the application context relocation response.

[0274] Accordingly, in operation B, the source EES may perform the following operations according to the subscription indication of the target EES.

[0275] ◆ Case 1: The target EES successfully subscribes to the NEF indicated by the source EES.

[0276] ●Delete the UE service API context information stored in the source EES.

[0277] ●Perform the EEC deregistration process.

[0278] ●Do not unsubscribe from NEF.

[0279] ◆ Case 2: The target EES fails to subscribe to the NEF indicated by the source EES.

[0280] ●The source EES performs an unsubscribe operation to the NEF for the corresponding UE.

[0281] Fig.15 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0282] Steps 1 to 4 are the process in which the target EES receives an application context relocation request from the EEC of the UE, and accordingly sends and receives an application context relocation request to and from the target EAS, and a detailed description thereof will be omitted.

[0283] In step 5, the target EES may send an application context relocation request to the source EES. In this case, the target EES may include and send a UE service API context request in the application context relocation request. The target EES may search for the address of the source EES based on the information received from the EEC of the UE to send the request message. Alternatively, the target EES may receive the address of the source EES from the edge data network configuration server through a query. The UE service API context request may include at least one of the following information.

[0284] ● Information capable of identifying a UE or EEC that has performed a registration procedure on itself

[0285] - EEC ID: The corresponding identifier may be an identifier provided from the authentication authorization function when the UE performs authentication / authorization, or an ID given during the EEC registration process in the source EES (EEC Registration Context ID).

[0286] - At least one of information such as GPSI, external ID or UE IP address that can identify the UE can be transmitted together, or at least one of the UE IP address or an identifier that can identify the UE instead of the EEC ID can be transmitted.

[0287] ● Target EES information: at least one of target EES FQDN, target EES IP address, target EES ID, or edge computing service provider information (eg, ECSP ID).

[0288] ● EAS information (application ID, EAS ID, EAS category, etc.) that the target EES has provided services to the UE

[0289] Thereafter, the source EES may send an application context relocation request to the source EAS in step 6 , and receive an application context relocation response in step 7 .

[0290] In step 8, the source EES may send an application context relocation response to the target EES. In this case, the source EES may include and send the UE service API context information in the application context relocation response.

[0291] The source EES may identify UE-related information provided from the EAS and 3GPP system that have provided services to the UE based on the information received from the target EES. The source EES may transmit information about the 3GPP NF (e.g., NEF or SCEF) that has exposed information related to the corresponding UE based on the identified information. The source EES may send a response message including relevant UE service API context information to the target EES.

[0292] The UE service API context information may include at least one of information such as NEF ID / address, subscription-related ID, or notification-related ID.

[0293] The target EES may subscribe to NEF (subscribe to NEF service) in operation A. In this case, the target EES may operate based on the UE service API context information received in step 8. The specific operations are as follows.

[0294] Case 1: If the NEF subscribed by the source EES is a NEF that the target EES can subscribe to (determined based on the NEFID / address received by the source EES)

[0295] ◆ Subscription NEF including at least one of a subscription ID or a notification target address (target EES information) received by the source EES. In addition, a notification correlation ID may be included.

[0296] ◆NEF can identify subscription related information with existing source EES based on the subscription correlation ID in the subscription request of the target EES.NEF can change the notification target address from the source EES address to the target EES address. That is, NEF can keep the southbound configuration (interface) and change the northbound API configuration (interface).

[0297] Case 2: If the source EES subscribes to a NEF that the target EES cannot subscribe to (determined based on the NEFID / address received by the source EES)

[0298] ◆The target EES performs a new subscription to the NEF to which it is subscribed and linked.

[0299] ● The target EES can provide UE identification information to the NEF to specify the UE. The UE identification information can be GPSI, external ID, UE IP address, etc.

[0300] The target EES may send the result of operation A in step 9 to the source EES.

[0301] When the subscription to the NEF notified by the source EES is successful (case 1), the target EES deletes the UE service API context related information stored locally and performs the deregistration process of the UE (EEC). In addition, the source EES does not perform a deregistration request to the NEF.

[0302] When the subscription to the NEF notified by the source EES fails (case 2), the source EES performs a unsubscribe request on the UE related to the NEF.

[0303] The detailed description thereof can be summarized as the following operation B.

[0304] In operation B, the source EES can perform the following operations based on the subscription indication of the target EES:

[0305] Case 1: The target EES successfully subscribes to the NEF indicated by the source EES.

[0306] ◆Delete the UE service API context information stored in the source EES.

[0307] ◆Execute the EEC deregistration process.

[0308] ◆Do not unsubscribe NEF.

[0309] Case 2: The target EES fails to subscribe to the NEF sent by the source EES.

[0310] ◆The source EES performs the unsubscribe operation to the NEF for the corresponding UE.

[0311] Fig.16 is a message flow diagram illustrating a method for transmitting a UE service API context according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0312] refer to Fig.16 In step 0, when performing the EEC registration process to the target EES, the EEC in the UE can provide the source EES ID and address information (e.g., FQDN, IP address, etc.) of the source EES. This enables the target EES to identify the source EES to send the UE service API context request.

[0313] The target EES may perform an operation of looking up the address of the source EES based on the information received from the EEC in the UE (the target EES may receive (obtain) the address of the source EES from the edge data network configuration server through a query). Thereafter, in step 1, the target EES may send a UE service API context request to the source EES. The UE service API context request may include the following information.

[0314] ●EEC ID of the UE that has performed the registration procedure for itself: This identifier can be the identifier provided from the authentication authorization function when the UE performs authentication / authorization, or the ID given by the source EES during the EEC registration process (EEC Registration Context ID).

[0315] - In addition to the EEC ID, identifier information such as GPSI or UE IP address that can identify the UE may be sent.

[0316] Target EES information: may include target EES FQDN, target EES IP address, target EES ID, edge computing service provider information (eg, ECSP ID), etc. The target EES information may include target EES address information, which may be used as a notification target address of the NEF of the 3GPP system.

[0317] ● EAS information (application ID, EAS ID, EAS category, etc.) provided to UEs connected to the target EES

[0318] ● Service API related information provided by the target EES to the EAS for the UE

[0319] ●NEF information subscribed by the target EES or NEF information that the target EES can use (NEF ID / address)

[0320] In step 2, the source EES may identify, based on the information received from the target EES, whether the NEF that the target EES can use is the NEF that it has subscribed for the corresponding UE.

[0321] ● In the case where the NEF is the NEF that the source EES subscribes to and has already used, the source EES may identify the UE-related information received from the target UE and the EAS and 3GPP systems that have provided services to the corresponding UE, and look up (identify) the relevant subscription correlation ID. The source EES may modify the subscription of the 3GPP NF (e.g., NEF or SCEF) that has exposed the information related to the corresponding UE based on the identified information. The source EES may modify the notification target address to the target EES address, and store the relevant notification correlation ID.

[0322] ●If the NEF is not the NEF that the source EES has subscribed to and has already used, the source EES sends a modification failure message to the target EES through the following step 3.

[0323] In step 3, the source EES may include the UE service API context information related to the subscription modification performed by itself in the response message (UE service API context response), and send the response message to the target EES. The response message may include an indication that may represent the result of the subscription modification. The information transmitted by the response message may be NEF ID / address, subscription-related ID, notification-related ID, notification target address, event ID, etc. The subscription-related ID is information required to support management operations such as modification and deletion of the corresponding subscription. In addition to the subscription-related ID, the response message may include information for specifying the service-related transaction of the subscription and be transmitted (e.g., transaction reference ID, AF transaction ID, etc.). Regardless of whether the subscription modification is successful, the list of capability exposure services (the list of services for the corresponding UE provided by the source EES to the source EAS) and information about the NEF linked to provide the exposure service (address and ID) may be provided to the target EES together.

[0324] In step 4, the target EES may perform the following operations based on the subscription modification result and UE service API context information received from the source EES.

[0325] - Case 1: Subscription modification is successful (if the NEF subscribed by the source EES is a NEF that the target EES can subscribe to)

[0326] ◆Store the UE service API context information received from the source EES (store subscription ID, notification target address (target EES information) and notification correlation ID).

[0327] - Case 2: Subscription modification failed (if the NEF subscribed by the source EES is a NEF that the target EES cannot subscribe to)

[0328] ◆The target EES performs a new subscription to the NEF to which it is subscribed and linked.

[0329] ● The target EES can provide UE identification information to the NEF to specify the UE. In this case, the UE identification information can be GPSI, external ID, UE IP address, etc.

[0330] Fig.17 is a block diagram illustrating a method in which a source EES subscribes to a NEF in order to obtain UE information according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0331] refer to Fig.17 When the source EES of the present disclosure subscribes to an event exposure service for a UE, the source EES may identify an EES to which it can be connected as a notification target and subscribe to the event exposure service as a representative of the EES.

[0332] That is, the source EES may subscribe to the 3GPP event exposure service to the NEF on behalf of the neighboring EES and EAS, map the ID and notification target address of the event corresponding to each of the EES and EAS, and store them as context information.

[0333] Thereafter, when the UE moves to the service area of ​​the target EES, the source EES can identify whether the target EES exists in the list of EESs to be replaced by performing pre-subscription. When the target EES is an EES that has previously been subscribed in the source EES, the source EES can identify the notification target address and notification correlation ID corresponding to the target EES.

[0334] The source EES may configure the notification target address of future events as the target EES address based on the identified notification target address and notification correlation ID.

[0335] refer to Fig.17 The described embodiments can be applied to the above-mentioned embodiments, and the source EES of the present disclosure can be referred to Fig.17 The described method knows the event to be modified, the notification target address, the subscription correlation ID, etc.

[0336] Fig.18 is a block diagram showing the structure of a server according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0337] refer to Fig.18 , the server may include a transceiver 1810, a controller 1820, and a storage unit 1830. In the present disclosure, the controller may be defined as a circuit, an application specific integrated circuit, or at least one processor.

[0338] In this case, the server may correspond to at least one of an EES, an EAS, or an edge data network configuration server.

[0339] The transceiver 1810 may send and receive signals to and from other network entities. The transceiver 1810 may send and receive information to and from, for example, another server through a specific interface.

[0340] According to the embodiment proposed in the present disclosure, the controller 1820 can control the overall operation of the server. For example, the controller 1820 can control the signal flow between the blocks so as to perform the operation according to the above-mentioned flowchart.

[0341] The storage unit 1830 may store at least one of information transmitted and received by the transceiver 1810 or information generated by the controller 1820 .

[0342] Fig.19 is a block diagram showing the structure of a UE according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0343] refer to Fig.19 , the UE may include a transceiver 1910, a controller 1920, and a storage unit 1930. In the present disclosure, the controller may be defined as a circuit, an application specific integrated circuit, or at least one processor.

[0344] The transceiver 1910 may transmit and receive signals to and from other network entities.

[0345] According to the embodiments proposed in the present disclosure, the controller 1920 may control the overall operation of the UE. For example, the controller 1920 may control the signal flow between blocks so as to perform the operations according to the above flowcharts.

[0346] The storage unit 1930 may store at least one of information transmitted and received by the transceiver 1910 or information generated by the controller 1920 .

[0347] The above embodiments are prepared with a focus on the operation of interacting with NEF as a network exposure function of the 3GPP 5G system. However, the network function that exposes the UE service API in the 3GPP system to provide UE-related information is not limited to NEF. That is, in the above operations, a device that performs a network function (such as a PCF or SMF) can directly perform exposure to the edge computing system. In the edge computing service provision scenario through the 3GPP 4G system, SCEF can be an application target of the present disclosure.

[0348] In addition, the devices that directly receive exposed information in edge computing are not limited to EES. EAS or edge data network configuration server can also directly obtain and use UE-related information exposed through the 3GPP system. That is to say, the operating subject of the present disclosure can be EAS and edge data network configuration server other than EES, and this can be collectively referred to as server. Therefore, the exchange of UE service API context information can be carried out not only between EES, but also between various devices (for example, the present disclosure can be applied to the exchange between EES<->EAS and edge data network configuration server<->EES, the exchange between EES, the exchange between EAS, or the exchange between edge data network configuration servers).

[0349] The information available through the UE service API mentioned in the present disclosure may include all UE related information that can be provided from the 3GPP system. For example, information about the NF serving the UE and information such as the communication service quality (QoS) provided to the UE, the policy applied to the UE, and at least one of the location and UE identifier of the UE used in the 3GPP system can be provided to the edge computing service through the UE service API.

[0350] In the present disclosure, the UE service API context information is not limited to information related to the NF subscribed to the existing source EES. The UE service API context information may include all the information required to find a 3GPP system network function that can provide the information required for edge computing services (for example, information such as S-NSSAI for NEF discovery, event IDs supported by application functions, external identifiers, external group identifiers, or at least one of domain names). In addition, the UE service API is not limited to a specific single UE, and includes an API for obtaining information about a group consisting of specific UEs, and in view of this, the UE service API context information may also include information about a group consisting of UEs. In this case, the information about the UE group included in the UE service API context may include a group ID.

[0351] The present disclosure provides a method for obtaining information about a UE using an edge computing service through a 3GPP system (e.g., providing a UE service API). Specifically, the present disclosure proposes a method for obtaining information about a UE when the UE using an edge computing service is moving (i.e., a method for supporting mobility in the method for obtaining information about the UE).

[0352] In addition, the present disclosure proposes a method of transmitting and receiving UE service API context information for obtaining UE related information provided from a 3GPP system between EESs.

[0353] In addition, the present disclosure proposes a method for EES or EAS to modify the subscription of 3GPP network functions based on the provided UE service API context information. This involves subscribing to the northbound API of the 3GPP network function.

[0354] In addition, the present disclosure proposes a method for maintaining a subscription made by a 3GPP network function (such as NEF) that provides a northbound API for edge computing services regardless of the mobility of the UE to other 3GPP network functions. The corresponding subscription is a subscription between 3GPP network functions and is established to provide the above-mentioned UE service API.

[0355] In the drawings for describing the method of the present disclosure, the order of description does not necessarily correspond to the order of execution, and the priority relationship may be changed or may be executed in parallel.

[0356] Alternatively, some components may be omitted within the scope that does not impair the essence of the present disclosure, and only some components may be included in the drawings illustrating the method of the present disclosure.

[0357] Furthermore, within the scope not impairing the essence of the present disclosure, the method of the present disclosure may be implemented in a combination including some or all of the contents in each embodiment.

[0358] Furthermore, information included in a message in the present disclosure is used to describe an example of the present disclosure, and some information may be omitted or additional information may be included.

[0359] In the detailed description of the present disclosure, specific embodiments have been described, but various modifications are possible without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of the present disclosure should not be limited to the described embodiments, and should be limited not only by the claims described below, but also by the equivalents of these claims.

Claims

1. A method performed by an edge enabling server (EES) of a wireless communication system, the method comprising: receiving a first registration request message from an edge enabling client EEC, wherein the first registration request message includes information about whether the EEC supports application context relocation ACR for service continuity; receiving a second registration request message from an edge application server EAS, wherein the second registration request message includes information about whether the EAS supports ACR; obtaining information about the EES, wherein the information about the EES includes information about whether the EES supports ACR; as well as An ACR mode indicating which entity among the EEC, the EAS, or the EES is allowed to initiate the ACR is determined based on at least one of the first registration request message, the second registration request message, and the information about the EES.

2. The method according to claim 1, in, The first registration request message includes information about the ACR supported by the EEC, The second registration request message includes information about the ACR supported by the EAS, and The information about the EES includes information about the ACR supported by the EES.

3. The method according to claim 2, in, The information about whether the EEC supports ACR and the information about the ACR supported by the EEC are associated with whether the ACR process is initiated by the EEC, The information about whether the EAS supports ACR and the information about the ACR supported by the EAS are associated with whether the ACR process is initiated by the EAS, and The information about whether the EES supports ACR and the information about the ACR supported by the EES are associated with whether the ACR process is initiated by the EES.

4. The method according to claim 1, in, The ACR mode includes at least one of a first ACR mode for the EEC, a second ACR mode for the EAS, or a third ACR mode for the EES, The first ACR mode is identified based on the first registration request message, wherein the second ACR mode is identified based on the second registration request message, and Wherein, the third ACR mode is identified based on the information about the EES.

5. The method according to claim 4, further comprising: Information about the ACR mode is sent to the EEC.

6. The method according to claim 4, in, The first ACR mode corresponds to an ACR scenario supported by the EEC, Wherein, the second ACR mode corresponds to the ACR scenario supported by the EAS, and Among them, the third ACR mode corresponds to the ACR scenario supported by the EES.

7. The method according to claim 4, in, The ACR process performed by the EEC is based on the first ACR mode, wherein the ACR process performed by the EAS is based on the second ACR mode, and The ACR process performed by the EES is based on the third ACR mode.

8. The method according to claim 4, in, When the terminal is not in the service area, the EES initiates an ACR process based on the first ACR mode.

9. An edge enabling server EES of a wireless communication system, the EES comprising: Transceiver; and A controller, wherein the controller is configured to: receiving a first registration request message from an edge enabling client EEC, wherein the first registration request message includes information about whether the EEC supports application context relocation ACR for service continuity, receiving a second registration request message from an edge application server EAS, wherein the second registration request message includes information about whether the EAS supports ACR, obtaining information about the EES, the information about the EES including information about whether the EES supports ACR, and An ACR mode indicating which entity among the EEC, the EAS, or the EES is allowed to initiate the ACR is determined based on at least one of the first registration request message, the second registration request message, and the information about the EES.

10. The EES according to claim 9, in, The first registration request message includes information about the ACR supported by the EEC, The second registration request message includes information about the ACR supported by the EAS, The information about the EES includes information about the ACR supported by the EES. The information about whether the EEC supports ACR and the information about the ACR supported by the EEC are associated with whether the ACR process is initiated by the EEC. The information about whether the EAS supports ACR and the information about the ACR supported by the EAS are associated with whether the ACR process is initiated by the EAS, and The information about whether the EES supports ACR and the information about the ACR supported by the EES are associated with whether the ACR process is initiated by the EES.

11. The EES according to claim 9, in, The ACR mode includes at least one of a first ACR mode for the EEC, a second ACR mode for the EAS, or a third ACR mode for the EES, The first ACR mode is identified based on the first registration request message, wherein the second ACR mode is identified based on the second registration request message, and Wherein, the third ACR mode is identified based on the information about the EES.

12. The EES according to claim 9, in, The controller is also configured to: Information about the ACR mode is sent to the EEC.

13. The EES according to claim 11, in, The first ACR mode corresponds to an ACR scenario supported by the EEC, Wherein, the second ACR mode corresponds to the ACR scenario supported by the EAS, and Among them, the third ACR mode corresponds to the ACR scenario supported by the EES.

14. The EES according to claim 11, in, The ACR process performed by the EEC is based on the first ACR mode, wherein the ACR process performed by the EAS is based on the second ACR mode, and The ACR process performed by the EES is based on the third ACR mode.

15. The EES according to claim 11, in, When the terminal is not in the service area, the EES initiates an ACR process based on the first ACR mode.

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