MEC-based Positioning Method, Device and Wireless Communication System

Abstract

The embodiments of the present application provide an MEC-based positioning method, device, and wireless communication system, which can shorten the positioning delay of a terminal. The method includes: a first network element receives first positioning request information sent by a positioning requester, where the first positioning request information is used to request positioning of the terminal, and the identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request information; the first network element determines a positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, and the positioning functional entity is a positioning server; the first network element obtains second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information, and sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server. After receiving the second positioning request information, the positioning server sends a measurement request information to the terminal through the user plane, requesting the terminal to report measurement data. Then, the positioning server positions the terminal according to the measurement data reported by the terminal through the user plane.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the technical field of mobile communication networks, and particularly to a positioning method, device, and wireless communication system based on mobile edge computing (MEC). Background Art

[0002] Currently, both 5G and the evolved packet core network (EPC) of 4G support the positioning open service for specific user equipment (UE). That is, the core network can provide the positioning service for specific terminals to external clients or application functions (AF) through network exposure function (NEF) network elements, service capability exposure function (SCEF) network elements, and gateway mobile location center (GMLC) network elements.

[0003] In the existing positioning process, when the terminal interacts with the selected location management function (LMF) network element in the core network, that is, the positioning function entity, for example, when interacting with measurement data, all uplink and downlink data are forwarded through the control plane channel. For example, when the LMF network element sends a measurement request message (for requesting the terminal to report measurement data) to the terminal, and when the terminal reports measurement data to the LMF network element, both the measurement request message and the measurement data need to be forwarded by the access and mobility management function (AMF) network element. However, since the AMF network element is deployed in the high-position core network (for example, the middle of the core network), when the data interaction between the terminal and the LMF network element is forwarded through the AMF network element, it will cause a longer transmission duration corresponding to the data transmission between the terminal and the LMF network element, thereby increasing the positioning delay of the terminal. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Embodiments of this application provide a positioning method, device, and wireless communication system based on MEC, which are used to shorten the positioning delay of the terminal.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a positioning method based on mobile edge computing (MEC). The method includes: a first network element receives first positioning request information sent by a positioning request party, where the first positioning request information is used to request positioning of a terminal, and identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request information; the first network element determines a positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, and the positioning functional entity is a positioning server; the first network element obtains second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information, and sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server to trigger the positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through a user.

[0006] With the above design, during the process of positioning the terminal, it is possible to determine that the positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal is a positioning server according to the first positioning request information, which facilitates the subsequent positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through a user according to the second positioning request information sent by the first network element, and avoids the problem of large positioning delay caused by interaction through the control plane transmission path, that is, forwarding through the first network element. Thus, a positioning server close to the terminal and the access device can be selected to position the terminal, which can shorten the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server, thereby reducing the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server, and further shortening the positioning delay of the terminal, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0007] In a possible design, the method further includes: the first network element determines that the positioning request party has a high requirement for latency according to a positioning latency requirement or a first indication information carried in the first positioning request information.

[0008] With the above design, the first network element can determine the latency requirement for positioning the terminal according to the positioning latency requirement or the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information, so as to meet the fast positioning requirement of the positioning request party for the terminal.

[0009] In a possible design, the first network element determines a positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, including: the first network element obtains first location information of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, and obtains configuration information of at least one positioning server, where the configuration information of the at least one positioning server includes area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server; the first network element determines a positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first location information of the terminal and the configuration information of the at least one positioning server.

[0010] With the above design, the first network element can determine a positioning server for positioning the terminal from at least one positioning server according to the first location information of the terminal and the configuration information of at least one positioning server, which can ensure that the determined positioning server is close to the terminal and the access network device, thereby shortening the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal, further reducing the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server, and then shortening the positioning latency of the positioning server for the terminal.

[0011] In a possible design, the first location information of the terminal is target tracking area identity (TAI) information; the area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server is the tracking area identity (TAI) information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server.

[0012] In a possible design, the first network element obtains second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information, including: the first network element obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identity information of the terminal; the first network element obtains the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information and the network address of the terminal, where the second positioning request information includes the network address of the terminal.

[0013] With the above design, the first network element can obtain the network address of the terminal by according to the identity information of the terminal, which is convenient for the subsequent positioning server to position the terminal through the user plane according to the network address of the terminal, thereby shortening the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal, further reducing the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server, and then shortening the positioning latency of the positioning server for the terminal.

[0014] In a possible design, the first network element obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identity information of the terminal, including: the first network element sends the identity information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server to the session management function (SMF) network element; the first network element obtains the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element.

[0015] With the above design, the first network element can obtain the network address of the terminal through the SMF network element when the data connection corresponding to the terminal has been successfully established, which is convenient for the subsequent positioning server to position the terminal through the user plane according to the network address of the terminal, thereby shortening the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal, further reducing the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server, and then shortening the positioning latency of the positioning server for the terminal.

[0016] In a possible design, the first network element obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, including: the first network element sends the information of the positioning server to the terminal, triggering the terminal to establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server; the first network element obtains the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element, and the network address is allocated by the network for the terminal during the establishment of the data connection.

[0017] With the above design, when the data connection corresponding to the terminal is not established, the first network element can trigger the terminal to establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server to obtain the network address allocated by the network for the terminal during the establishment of the data connection, which is convenient for the subsequent positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through the user. Thus, the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal can be shortened, and further, the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server can be reduced, and then the positioning delay of the positioning server for the terminal can be shortened.

[0018] In a possible design, the first network element sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server, including: the first network element sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server through the Network Exposure Function (NEF) network element.

[0019] In a possible design, the first network element determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the latency requirement carried in the first positioning request information, including: when the first network element determines that the latency requirement is less than or equal to a preset duration threshold, it determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency. Here, the positioning requester having a high requirement for latency means that the latency required for the positioning requester to request positioning of the terminal is low.

[0020] With the above design, when the first network element determines that the latency requirement carried in the first positioning request information is less than or equal to the preset duration threshold, it determines the latency requirement for positioning the terminal, thus meeting the fast positioning requirement of the positioning requester for the terminal.

[0021] In a possible design, the first network element determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information, including: the first indication information indicates a low-latency positioning service, and the first network element determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information. Here, the low-latency service means that the latency required for the positioning service for which the positioning requester requests positioning of the terminal is low.

[0022] With the above design, the first network element determines the latency requirement for terminal positioning by relying on the first indication information indicating low-latency positioning services carried in the first positioning request information, thereby meeting the fast positioning needs of the positioning requester for the terminal.

[0023] In a possible design, the information of the positioning server is the data network name (DNN) corresponding to the positioning server or the Internet Protocol (IP) address.

[0024] In a possible design, the positioning requester is the terminal or an external client with positioning needs.

[0025] With the above design, the first network element can support the positioning needs of different positioning requesters for the terminal.

[0026] In a second aspect, the present application also provides a positioning method based on MEC. The method includes: the terminal receives measurement request information sent by the positioning server through the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server, and the measurement request information carries the network address of the terminal; the terminal reports the measured measurement data to the positioning server through the data connection, so that the positioning server calculates the second position information of the terminal based on the measurement data.

[0027] With the above design, during the process of positioning the terminal, when the terminal interacts with the positioning server, it can be carried out through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, thus avoiding the problem of large positioning latency caused by interacting through the control plane transmission path, that is, being forwarded by the first network element. Further, the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server can be shortened, the purpose of reducing the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server can be achieved, and thus the positioning latency of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0028] In a possible design, before the terminal receives the measurement request information sent by the positioning server through the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server, it further includes: the terminal receives network trigger information sent by the first network element, and the network trigger information includes the information of the positioning server; the terminal sends a connection establishment request information for establishing the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server to the SMF network element according to the network trigger information to establish the data connection.

[0029] With the above design, when the data connection corresponding to the terminal is not established, the terminal can send a connection establishment request message for establishing a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server to the SMF network element, so as to trigger the SMF network element to create the data connection corresponding to the terminal, which facilitates subsequent interaction between the positioning server and the terminal through this data connection, thereby shortening the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal. Further, the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server can be reduced, and thus the positioning delay of the terminal by the positioning server can be shortened.

[0030] In a third aspect, the present application further provides a positioning method based on MEC. The method includes: the positioning server receives second positioning request information sent by a first network element, and the second positioning request information carries the network address of the terminal; the positioning server sends a measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the network address of the terminal carried in the second positioning request information, and the measurement request information is used to request the terminal to report measurement data; the positioning server receives the measurement data reported by the terminal through the data connection and calculates the second position information of the terminal according to the measurement data.

[0031] With the above design, during the process of positioning the terminal, when the positioning server interacts with the terminal, it can be carried out through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, thereby avoiding the problem of large positioning delay caused by interacting through the control plane transmission path, that is, being forwarded by the first network element. Further, the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server can be shortened, the purpose of reducing the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server can be achieved, and thus the positioning delay of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0032] In a possible design, the positioning server sends the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the network address of the terminal carried in the positioning request information, including: the positioning server sends the network address of the terminal and the measurement request information to the user plane function UPF network element, so that the UPF forwards the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection according to the network address of the terminal.

[0033] With the above design, the positioning server forwards the measurement information to the terminal according to the network address information of the terminal through the UPF network element, so that the measurement information can be sent to the terminal through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, thereby avoiding the problem of large positioning delay caused by interacting through the control plane transmission path, that is, being forwarded by the AMF network element. Further, the positioning delay of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0034] In a possible design, the method further includes: if the positioning requester is the terminal, the positioning server feeds back the second location information to the terminal through a Network Exposure Function (NEF) network element; or, if the positioning requester is an external client with positioning requirements, the positioning server feeds back the second location information to the external client through a Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) network element for Service Capability Exposure.

[0035] With the above design, the positioning server can support the positioning requirements of different positioning requesters for the terminal.

[0036] In a fourth aspect, the present application further provides a first network element. The first network element has the function of implementing the method in the above first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect. The function can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions, such as a receiving unit, a processing unit, and a sending unit.

[0037] In a possible design, the first network element can also be a chip or an integrated circuit.

[0038] In a possible design, the first network element may include a memory and a processor. The memory is used to store a program executed by the processor. When the program is executed by the processor, the first network element can execute the method described in the above first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

[0039] In a fifth aspect, the present application further provides a first network element, including: at least one processor and a memory; the memory stores one or more computer programs; when the one or more computer programs stored in the memory are executed by the at least one processor, the first network element is caused to execute the method of the above first aspect or any possible design of the above first aspect.

[0040] In a sixth aspect, the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium includes a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method of the above first aspect or any possible design of the above first aspect.

[0041] In a seventh aspect, the present application further provides a program product. When the program product runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method of the above first aspect or any possible design of the above first aspect.

[0042] In an eighth aspect, the present application further provides a chip. The chip can be coupled to the memory in the first network element for calling the computer program stored in the memory and executing the method of the above first aspect and any possible design thereof.

[0043] The beneficial effects in the above fourth aspect to the eighth aspect and their possible designs can refer to the description of the beneficial effects of the method in the above first aspect and any of its possible designs.

[0044] In a ninth aspect, the present application further provides a terminal, which has the function of implementing the method in the above second aspect or any of its possible designs. The function can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions, such as a receiving unit and a transmitting unit.

[0045] In a possible design, the terminal can also be a chip or an integrated circuit.

[0046] In a possible design, the terminal may include a memory and a processor. The memory is used to store a program executed by the processor. When the program is executed by the processor, the terminal can execute the method described in the above second aspect or any of its possible designs.

[0047] In a tenth aspect, the present application further provides a terminal, including: at least one processor and a memory; the memory stores one or more computer programs; when the one or more computer programs stored in the memory are executed by the at least one processor, the terminal is caused to execute the method in the above second aspect or any of its possible designs.

[0048] In an eleventh aspect, the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, which includes a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method in the above second aspect or any of its possible designs.

[0049] In a twelfth aspect, the present application further provides a program product. When the program product runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method in the above second aspect or any of its possible designs.

[0050] In a thirteenth aspect, the present application further provides a chip, which can be coupled to the memory in a terminal for calling a computer program stored in the memory and executing the method in the above second aspect and any of its possible designs.

[0051] The beneficial effects in the above ninth aspect to the thirteenth aspect and their possible designs can refer to the description of the beneficial effects of the method in the above second aspect and any of its possible designs.

[0052] In a fourteenth aspect, the present application further provides a positioning server, which has the function of implementing the method in the above-mentioned third aspect or any possible design of the third aspect. This function can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions, such as a receiving unit, a processing unit, and a sending unit.

[0053] In a possible design, the positioning server may also be a chip or an integrated circuit.

[0054] In a possible design, the positioning server may include a memory and a processor. The memory is used to store a program executed by the processor. When the program is executed by the processor, the positioning server can execute the method described in the above-mentioned third aspect or any possible design of the third aspect.

[0055] In a fifteenth aspect, the present application further provides a positioning server, including: at least one processor and a memory; the memory stores one or more computer programs; when the one or more computer programs stored in the memory are executed by the at least one processor, the positioning server is caused to execute the method in the above-mentioned third aspect or any possible design of the third aspect.

[0056] In a sixteenth aspect, the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, which includes a computer program. When the computer program runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method in the above-mentioned third aspect or any possible design of the third aspect.

[0057] In a seventeenth aspect, the present application further provides a program product. When the program product runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method in the above-mentioned third aspect or any possible design of the third aspect.

[0058] In an eighteenth aspect, the present application further provides a chip, which can be coupled to the memory in the positioning server and is used to call the computer program stored in the memory and execute the method in the above-mentioned third aspect and any possible design thereof.

[0059] The beneficial effects in the above fourteenth aspect to eighteenth aspect and their possible designs can refer to the description of the beneficial effects of the method in the above-mentioned third aspect and any possible design thereof.

[0060] In a nineteenth aspect, the present application further provides a wireless communication system, which includes a first network element and a positioning server. The first network element is configured to perform the steps executed by the first network element in the first aspect above, or in the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application; the positioning server is configured to perform the steps executed by the positioning server in the third aspect above, or in the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0061] In a possible design, the wireless communication system may further include a terminal, and the terminal is configured to perform the steps executed by the terminal in the second aspect above, or in the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application.

[0062] In a possible design, the wireless communication system may further include other devices that interact with the first network element, the positioning server, or the terminal in the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application, such as a session management network element, an access device, etc., and the embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations thereto. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0063] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a wireless communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application;

[0064] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of another wireless communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application;

[0065] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a 5G wireless communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application;

[0066] Figure 4 It is a schematic flowchart of a positioning method based on MEC provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0067] Figure 5 It is a schematic flowchart of another positioning method based on MEC provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0068] Figure 6 It is a schematic flowchart of yet another positioning method based on MEC provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0069] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the architecture of another 5G wireless communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application;

[0070] Figure 8 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of a first network element applicable to the embodiments of the present application;

[0071] Figure 9 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of another first network element applicable to the embodiments of the present application;

[0072] Figure 10A schematic structural diagram of a terminal applicable to an embodiment of the present application;

[0073] Figure 11 A schematic structural diagram of another terminal applicable to an embodiment of the present application;

[0074] Figure 12 A schematic structural diagram of a positioning server applicable to an embodiment of the present application;

[0075] Figure 13 A schematic structural diagram of another positioning server applicable to an embodiment of the present application. Detailed implementation manners

[0076] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the present application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application.

[0077] As Figure 1 shown, it is a schematic architecture diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to an embodiment of the present application. Among them, the wireless communication system 100 may include a first network element 101 and a positioning function entity 102.

[0078] It should be understood that the wireless communication system 100 provided in the embodiments of the present application is applicable to both low-frequency scenarios (sub 6G) and high-frequency scenarios (above 6G). The application scenarios of the wireless communication system 100 provided in the embodiments of the present application include but are not limited to global system of mobile communication (GSM) systems, code division multiple access (CDMA) systems, wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) systems, general packet radio service (GPRS), long term evolution (LTE) systems, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) systems, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication systems, future fifth-generation (5G) systems or new radio (NR) communication systems, etc.

[0079] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the first network element 101 and the positioning function entity 102 can communicate directly or through the forwarding of other devices; the embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations in this regard. Among them:

[0080] The first network element 101 is configured to receive the first positioning request information sent by the positioning requester, where the first positioning request information is used to request positioning of the terminal, and the identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request information.

[0081] The first network element 101 is further configured to determine the positioning function entity 102 for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, and the positioning function entity 102 is a positioning server;

[0082] The first network element 101 is further configured to obtain the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request message, and send the second positioning request information to the positioning server to trigger the positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane.

[0083] The positioning function entity 102 is configured to receive the second positioning request information sent by the first network element 101, and perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane according to the second positioning request information.

[0084] In the wireless communication system provided by the embodiments of the present application, after the first network element receives the first positioning request information sent by the positioning requester for requesting positioning of the terminal, it can obtain the second positioning request information and send the second positioning request information to the positioning server to trigger the positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane. Based on the wireless communication system provided by the embodiments of the present application, since the positioning server can perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane, the data interaction between the positioning server and the terminal does not need to be forwarded through the control plane channel, that is, through the first network element, so that the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal can be shortened, and further the transmission duration required for the terminal and the positioning server to transmit data can be reduced, and thus the positioning delay of the positioning server for the terminal can be shortened.

[0085] Among them, in the embodiments of the present application, the first network element 101 may include, but is not limited to, a mobility management network element and a gateway mobile location center. When the first network element 101 is a mobility management network element, in addition to having the above functions, it can also be used for mobility management in a mobile network, such as user location update, user network registration, user handover, etc. In the fifth generation (5G) communication system, the network element or entity corresponding to the mobility management network element may be an access and mobility management function (AMF) network element in the 5G network architecture. Namf is a service-based interface provided by the AMF network element, and the AMF network element can communicate with other network functions through Namf. In future communications, such as the sixth generation (6G) communication system, the mobility management network element may still be the AMF network element, or the mobility management network element may have other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of the present application. When the first network element 101 is a gateway mobile location center, in addition to having the above functions, the first network element 101 can also be used for processing location requests for location services and selecting a suitable mobility management network element for location services. In the 5G communication system, the gateway mobile location center may be a gateway mobile location centre (GMLC). In future communication systems, such as the 6G communication system, the gateway mobile location center may still be the GMLC, or the gateway mobile location center may have other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of the present application. In the following, the first network element 101 is taken as an example of a mobility management network element.

[0086] In some embodiments, in addition to having the above functions, the above location function entity 102 can also be used for location request management for location services, location resource allocation, obtaining the location information of the terminal, and returning the location information to relevant network elements, etc. In the 5G wireless communication system, the network element or entity corresponding to the location function entity 102 may be a location server in the 5G wireless communication system.

[0087] Such as Figure 2 shown, it is a schematic diagram of the architecture of another wireless communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application. In addition to including Figure 1 the first network element 101 in Figure 2 i.e., the mobility management network element 101 ( Figure 2 in which the gateway mobile location center is identified by 208 to distinguish the gateway mobile location center from the mobility management network element), the location function entity 102 i.e., the location server 102, the wireless communication system 200 may further include a terminal 201, an access device 202, a user plane network element 203, a session management network element 204, a data management network element 205, a network exposure function network element 206, an application function network element 207, an external client 209, and a location management network element 210. Among them:

[0088] The terminal 201 can be a device with wireless transceiver functions, which can be deployed on land, including indoor or outdoor, handheld or vehicle-mounted; it can also be deployed on the water surface (such as a ship, etc.); it can also be deployed in the air (such as an airplane, a balloon, a satellite, etc.). The terminal 201 is capable of communicating with one or more network devices of one or more communication systems and receiving network services provided by the access device 202. For example, the terminal 201 in the embodiments of this application can be a mobile phone (or called a "cellular" phone), a computer with a mobile terminal, etc. The terminal 201 can also be a user equipment (UE), a terminal, a mobile station (MS), a mobile phone, a tablet (pad), a computer with wireless transceiver functions, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, a wireless terminal in smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in smart city, a wireless terminal in smart home, etc. The terminal 201 can also be a communication chip with a communication module.

[0089] The access device 202 includes, but is not limited to: the next-generation base station (gnodeB, gNB) in 5G, evolved node B (eNB), radio network controller (RNC), node B (NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home base station (e.g., home evolved nodeB, or home node B, HNB), baseband unit (BBU), transmitting and receiving point (TRP), transmitting point (TP), mobile switching center, etc., which are not limited in the embodiments of this application. The access device 202 can also be a communication chip with a communication module. During the execution of the positioning method based on MEC provided in the embodiments of this application, the access device 202 can provide wireless network connection to the terminal 201 as a radio access network (RAN) base station. For example, the access device 202 can be an access network base station in the 4G access network - evolved UMTS terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN), or the access device 202 can be an access network base station in the 5G access network - 5G RAN, or the access device 202 can be an access network base station in a future wireless communication system.

[0090] The user plane network element 203 is used for packet routing and forwarding, quality of service (QoS) processing of user plane data, etc. In a 5G communication system, the network element or entity corresponding to the user plane network element 203 can be the user plane function (UPF) network element in the 5G wireless communication system. In a future communication system such as the 6th generation (6G) system, the user plane network element 203 can still be the UPF network element, or the user plane network element 203 has other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0091] The session management network element 204 is used for session management in a mobile network, such as session establishment, modification, release, etc. In a 5G communication system, the network element or entity corresponding to the session management network element 304 can be the session management function (SMF) network element in a 5G radio communication system. In future communications such as the 6th generation (6G) communication system, the session management network element 204 can still be the SMF network element, or the session management network element 204 can have other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0092] The data management network element 205 is used to process user identification, access authentication, registration, or mobility management, etc. In a 5G communication system, the network element or entity corresponding to the data management network element can be the unified data management (UDM) network element in a 5G network architecture, where Nudm is the service-based interface provided by the UDM network element, and the UDM network element can communicate with other network functions through Nudm. In future communication systems such as the 6G communication system, the data management network element 205 can still be the UDM network element, or the data management network element 205 has other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0093] The network exposure function network element 206 mainly provides services that enable the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) network to securely provide network service capabilities to the application function network element 207 of a third-party service provider. In a 5G communication system, the network exposure function network element 206 can be the network exposure function (NEF) network element, and Nnef is the service-based interface provided by the NEF network element. The NEF network element can communicate with other network functions through Nnef. In future communication systems such as the 6G communication system, the network exposure function network element 206 can still be the NEF network element, or it has other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0094] The application function network element 207 is mainly used to provide application layer information to the 3GPP network. In a 5G communication system, the application function network element 207 can be an application function (AF) network element. Naf is a service-based interface provided by the AF network element, and the AF network element can communicate with other network functions through Naf. In future communication systems such as 6G communication systems, the application function network element 207 can still be an AF network element, or have other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of this application. Exemplarily, the AF network element can include, for example, a services capability server (SCS) or an application server (AS).

[0095] The external client 209 can be a requester of the location information of the terminal 201, and it can also be referred to as an external client.

[0096] The location management network element 210 can be used for location request management of location services, location resource allocation, obtaining the location information of the terminal device, and returning the location information to relevant network elements, etc. In a 5G wireless communication system, the network element or entity corresponding to the location management network element 210 can be a location management function (LMF) network element in the 5G wireless communication system. Nlmf is a service-based interface provided by the AMF network element, and the LMF network element can communicate with other network functions through Nlmf. In future communication systems such as 6G communication systems, the location management network element 210 can still be an LMF network element, or the location management network element 210 has other names, which are not limited in the embodiments of this application.

[0097] In addition, as Figure 3As shown, taking the 5G wireless communication system as an example, it is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a 5G wireless communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application. The wireless communication system includes the above-mentioned AMF network element, LMF network element, terminal, gNB, UPF network element, SMF network element, UDM network element, NEF network element, AF network element, GMLC, and external client. In addition, it may further include an authentication server function (AUSF) network element, a network slice selection function (NSSF) network element, a network function storage function (NRF) network element, or a policy control function (PCF) network element, a unified data repository (UDR) network element, an unstructured data storage function (UDSF), etc. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on this.

[0098] Among them, Figure 3 the N1 interface in is the reference point between the terminal and the AMF network element; the N2 interface is the reference point between the gNB and the AMF network element, and is used for sending non-access stratum (NAS) messages and next-generation application protocol (NGAP) messages, etc.; the N3 interface is the reference point between the gNB and the UPF network element, and is used for transmitting user plane data, etc.; the N4 interface is the reference point between the SMF and the UPF, and is used for transmitting information such as tunnel identification information of the N3 connection, data caching indication information, and downlink data notification messages, etc.; the N6 interface is the reference point between the UPF network element and the data network (DN), and is used for transmitting user plane data, etc.

[0099] In addition, Figure 3The control plane network elements such as the AUSF network element, AMF network element, SMF network element, LMF network element, NSSF network element, NEF network element, NRF network element, PCF network element, UDM network element, UDR network element, UDSF network element, or AF network element can also interact using service-based interfaces. For example, the service-based interface provided by the AUSF network element can be Nausf; the service-based interface provided by the AMF network element can be Namf; the service-based interface provided by the SMF network element can be Nsmf; the service-based interface provided by the NSSG network element can be Nnssf; the service-based interface provided by the NEF network element can be Nnef; the service-based interface provided by the NRF network element can be Nnrf; the service-based interface provided by the PCF network element can be Npcf; the service-based interface provided by the UDM network element can be Nudm; the service-based interface provided by the AF network element can be Naf. For relevant descriptions, reference can be made to the 5G system architecture diagram in the 23501 standard, which will not be elaborated here.

[0100] It can be understood that the above-mentioned network elements or functions can be either network elements in hardware devices, software functions running on dedicated hardware, or virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (such as a cloud platform). The above-mentioned network elements or functions can be divided into one or more services. Further, there may also be services that exist independently of network functions. In this application, instances of the above-mentioned functions, or instances of services included in the above-mentioned functions, or service instances that exist independently of network functions can all be referred to as service instances.

[0101] Before introducing the embodiments of this application, some terms in this application will be explained first for the convenience of those skilled in the art to understand.

[0102] Carry can mean that a certain message is used to carry a certain piece of information or data, or it can also mean that a certain message is composed of a certain piece of information.

[0103] The positioning request information refers to the information used to request the positioning service for a specific terminal in the embodiments of the present application. The positioning service may be a location immediate request (LIR) service or a location deferred request (LDR) service. Through the positioning service, the mobile communication network can inform the requester of the positioning service, i.e., the positioning requester, of the location information of the terminal or the positioning event related to the location. The positioning server or the location management network element can be used to manage the positioning request information for a specific terminal. Specifically, managing the positioning request information means that the positioning server or the location management network element can be used to feedback the location information of the terminal to the positioning requester or indicate to the positioning requester the positioning event indicated by the positioning request information according to the positioning request information sent by the positioning requester.

[0104] The location immediate request service is a "location immediate request, immediate response" positioning service, and its positioning request may include LIR. In the implementation of the present application, the positioning requester sends an LIR to the core network element where the terminal is located, such as the mobility management network element or the gateway mobile location center, and the mobility management network element or the gateway mobile location center forwards it to the positioning server or other network elements in the core network, such as the location management network element, so that the positioning server or the location management network element can immediately feedback the location information of the terminal to the positioning requester based on the LIR.

[0105] The location deferred request service has a latency. The positioning requester subscribes to the positioning report of the terminal from the terminal, the core network element where the terminal is located or other relevant network elements. The report can be triggered after a certain positioning event is met. The positioning event, for example, the terminal moves out of or into a certain area, the moving distance of the terminal reaches the threshold distance or the preset reporting period is met, etc. The report can carry the location information of the terminal, and / or the report can be used to indicate that the above location events are met, such as indicating that the terminal moves out of or into a certain area, etc.

[0106] Based on the positioning service, the core network element where the terminal is located, such as the location management network element or the positioning server, can calculate the location information of the terminal. Specifically, for example, the location management network element or the positioning server can calculate the location information of the terminal based on the positioning request information sent by the positioning requester and the measurement data reported by the terminal, and feedback the location information of the terminal to the positioning requester. Specifically, the location management network element or the positioning server can generate the above positioning event report according to the location information. Among them, the location information of the terminal can be the geographical location coordinates in a certain location system (for example, the global positioning system (GPS) or the Beidou satellite system).

[0107] A terminal, in the embodiments of this application, refers to the object of the positioning service requested by the positioning requester. For example, in the 3GPP specification, a secure user plane location enabled terminal (SET) is the client of the positioning service, that is, the object of the positioning service requested by the positioning requester. For example, an Android smartphone, which is also the terminal defined by 3GPP. Network elements in the core network where the terminal is located, such as the LMF network element or the positioning server, can provide the positioning requester with the location information of the terminal based on the positioning request of the positioning requester, or inform the positioning requester that the terminal has satisfied the positioning event indicated by the positioning request information.

[0108] A positioning requester, in the embodiments of this application, refers to a communication device that requests the core network element, such as a location management network element or a positioning server, to provide a positioning service for a terminal. It can be a terminal or an external client with a positioning requirement, such as a server, a network element in a wireless communication network, or other carriers with a positioning terminal location requirement. For example, a secure user plane location (SUPL) agent is an application that needs to obtain location information, that is, the location service client defined by 3GPP. Among them, the SUPL Agent can run in the SET or in the SUPL network. Among them, if the SUPL Agent runs in the SET, the positioning requester is the terminal. If the SUPL Agent runs in the SUPL network, the positioning requester is an external client with a positioning requirement.

[0109] The positioning server is deployed in the MEC mode in the embodiments of this application, and it can be an MEC platform or a server. The specific deployment form of the positioning server is not limited in this application. Specifically, it can be cloud deployment, or an independent computer device or chip, etc. Among them, the data interaction between the positioning server and the terminal can be directly carried out through the user plane. For example, SUPL is a positioning protocol defined by the operation administration and maintenance (OAM) organization. The positioning server can interact with the terminal through the user plane based on the SUPL protocol, that is, the terminal can transmit SUPL messages through the user plane. The SUPL messages can encapsulate information such as the positioning request information and measurement data reported by the terminal, as well as the measurement request information sent by the positioning server to the terminal.

[0110] In addition, it should be understood that the terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application can be used interchangeably. "At least one" means one or more, and "a plurality" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally represents an "or" relationship between the associated objects before and after. The singular forms "a", "an", "the", "above-mentioned", "said", and "this" are also intended to include expressions such as "one or more", unless there is a clear contrary indication in the context. Also, unless otherwise stated, the ordinal numbers such as "first", "second", etc. mentioned in the embodiments of the present application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the order, time sequence, priority, or importance of multiple objects. For example, the first positioning request information and the second positioning request information are only used to distinguish different positioning request information, rather than indicating differences in the priority or importance of these two positioning request information, etc.

[0111] References to "one embodiment" or "some embodiments" or the like described in the embodiments of the present application mean that specific features, structures, or characteristics described in connection with that embodiment are included in one or more embodiments of the present application. Thus, the statements "in one embodiment", "in some embodiments", "in other some embodiments", "in still other embodiments", etc. that appear in different places in this specification do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment, but mean "one or more but not all embodiments", unless otherwise specifically emphasized in another way. The terms "comprising", "including", "having", and their variants all mean "including but not limited to", unless otherwise specifically emphasized in another way.

[0112] Next, the MEC-based positioning method provided by the embodiments of the present application will be specifically described in conjunction with Figures 1 to 3 the following.

[0113] It should be understood that the method shown in the embodiments of the present application is not only applicable to the wireless communication system shown in FIGS. 1 - 3, but also can be applied to other future communication systems, such as 6G communication systems, etc. In future communication systems, the functions may remain the same, but the names may change.

[0114] In some embodiments, taking the Figure 1 or Figure 2 shown wireless communication system applied to the 5G wireless communication system shown in Figure 3 as an example, as shown in Figure 4 FIG. [FIGURE NUMBER], it is a schematic flowchart of a MEC-based positioning method provided by an embodiment of the present application.

[0115] Among them, the method process includes the following steps:

[0116] S401: Send a first positioning request message to the AMF network element in the positioning request direction. Correspondingly, the AMF network element receives the first positioning request message sent by the positioning request party. Among them, the first positioning request message is used to request positioning of the terminal, and the identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request message.

[0117] In some embodiments, if the positioning request party needs to position a certain terminal, it can send a first positioning request message carrying the identification information of the terminal to the AMF network element. Among them, the identification information of the terminal can be the international mobile equipment identity (IMEI) of the terminal, or the subscription permanent identifier (SUPI), or the generic public subscription identifier (GPSI), or other information that can identify the terminal. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations.

[0118] S402: The AMF network element determines that the positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal is the positioning server according to the first positioning request message.

[0119] In some embodiments, the first positioning request message may carry a positioning delay requirement. After receiving the first positioning request message sent by the positioning request party, the AMF network element can determine that the positioning request party has a high requirement for delay according to the first positioning request message. For example, before sending the first positioning request message to the AMF network element, the positioning request party can insert a positioning delay requirement in the first positioning request message. Correspondingly, after receiving the first positioning request message, the AMF network element can obtain the positioning delay requirement carried in the first positioning request message, so as to determine that the positioning request party has a high requirement for delay according to this positioning delay requirement.

[0120] For example, when the AMF network element determines that the positioning delay requirement carried in the first positioning request message is less than or equal to a preset duration threshold, it determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for delay, that is, the AMF network element determines that rapid positioning of the terminal is required. At this time, a positioning server can be selected to perform positioning on the terminal. Among them, the positioning delay requirement can be set by the positioning requester according to requirements, or can be the positioning delay requirement corresponding to the value-added positioning service. For example, the positioning requester subscribes to a paid positioning service. When the positioning requester performs positioning on the terminal by using this positioning service, the first positioning request message sent by the positioning requester to the AMF network element can carry the positioning delay requirement corresponding to the value-added positioning service. After that, the AMF network element can determine that the positioning requester has a high requirement for delay according to the positioning delay requirement corresponding to the value-added positioning service.

[0121] In some other embodiments, the first positioning request message may carry first indication information, where the first indication information indicates a low-latency positioning service. After receiving the first positioning request message sent by the positioning requester, the AMF network element can determine that the positioning requester has a high requirement for delay according to the first indication information carried in the first positioning request message. Optionally, the first indication information may be an indicator.

[0122] It should be noted that the above takes the first indication information for directly indicating a low-latency service as an example. Of course, in the specific implementation process, the first indication information may also be used to indirectly indicate a low-latency service, and the embodiments of the present application do not make any limitations in this regard. For example, the first indication information may be the identification information of the positioning service. After receiving the first positioning request message sent by the positioning requester, the AMF network element can indirectly determine that the positioning service identified by the first indication information is a low-latency service according to the first indication information carried in the first positioning request message. For example, at least one first correspondence between a positioning service and identification information and at least one second correspondence between a positioning service and a delay requirement may be stored in the AMF network element. After receiving the first positioning request message sent by the positioning requester, the AMF network element can determine the positioning service identified by the first indication information according to the first indication information and the first correspondence. After that, when the AMF network element determines that the delay requirement of the positioning service identified by the first indication information is a high requirement according to the positioning service identified by the first indication information and the second correspondence, it can determine that the positioning service identified by the first indication information is a low-latency service.

[0123] In the specific implementation process, the positioning delay requirement and the first indication information in the above embodiments can be used in combination, and the embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0124] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, the positioning requester has high requirements for latency, which can be expressed as the low latency required by the positioning requester to request positioning of the terminal. For example, taking the preset duration threshold as 8 milliseconds, when the latency required by the positioning requester to request positioning of the terminal is 5 milliseconds, it can be expressed that the positioning requester has high requirements for latency. Correspondingly, the low-latency service can be expressed as the low latency required by the positioning service for which the positioning requester requests positioning of the terminal.

[0125] In the embodiments of the present application, the AMF network element determines the latency requirement for positioning the terminal according to the positioning latency requirement carried in the first positioning request information or the first indication information, so as to meet the fast positioning requirement of the positioning requester for the terminal.

[0126] In some embodiments, when the AMF network element determines that the positioning requester has high requirements for latency, it determines that the positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal is the positioning server.

[0127] In the embodiments of the present application, the AMF network element can determine that the positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal is the positioning server according to the first positioning request information, which is convenient for the subsequent positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane, avoiding the problem of large positioning latency caused by interaction through the control plane transmission path, that is, forwarding through the AMF network element. Thus, a positioning server close to the terminal and the access device can be selected to position the terminal, which can shorten the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server, further reduce the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server, and then shorten the positioning latency of the terminal, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0128] In the specific implementation process, after the AMF network element determines that the positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal is the positioning server, it can select the positioning server for positioning the terminal from at least one positioning server. For example, the data management network element (such as Figure 3 the UDM network element in) can pre-store the configuration information of at least one positioning server. The AMF network element can determine the positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first location information of the terminal and the configuration information of at least one positioning server. Optionally, the configuration information of at least one positioning server may include the area information under the jurisdiction of at least one positioning server, and the area information under the jurisdiction of at least one positioning server is the tracking area identity (TAI) information under the jurisdiction of at least one positioning server. The first location information of the terminal is the target TAI information. In the following, in order to distinguish the target TAI information of the terminal from the geographical location information, the first location information is used to represent the target TAI information of the terminal, and the second location information is used to represent the geographical location information of the terminal.

[0129] For example, after receiving the first positioning request information sent by the positioning requestor, the AMF network element can obtain the target TAI information of the terminal from the UDM network element according to the identification information of the terminal carried in the first positioning request information, and obtain the configuration information of at least one positioning server stored in the UDM network element. After that, when the AMF network element determines that the configuration information of a certain positioning server among the at least one positioning server includes the target TAI information of the terminal, the AMF network element can determine that this positioning server is the positioning server for positioning the terminal.

[0130] Among them, the at least one positioning server can be a positioning server in the access network where the terminal is located, or a positioning server under the jurisdiction of the radio communication system where the terminal is located. The embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this.

[0131] In the embodiments of the present application, by determining the positioning server for positioning the terminal from at least one positioning server according to the target TAI information of the terminal and the configuration information of at least one positioning server, it can be ensured that the determined positioning server is close to the terminal and the access network device (such as Figure 3 the gNB in it), so as to shorten the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal, further reduce the transmission duration required for the terminal and the positioning server to transmit data, and then shorten the positioning delay of the positioning server for the terminal.

[0132] S403: The AMF network element obtains second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information. Among them, the second positioning request information carries the network address of the terminal.

[0133] In some embodiments, the AMF network element can obtain the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, and then obtain the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information and the network address of the terminal. Among them, the second positioning request information includes the network address of the terminal. After the AMF network element obtains the network address of the terminal, it can obtain the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information. Among them, in the embodiments of the present application, the specific implementation manner for the AMF network element to obtain the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information is not limited. For example, the AMF network element can extract the positioning delay requirement or the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information, and then insert the network address of the terminal into the first positioning request information to obtain the second positioning request information, and so on. Among them, the network address of the terminal can include but is not limited to: Internet Protocol (IP) address, Media Access Control (MAC) address, etc.

[0134] In the embodiments of the present application, the AMF network element can obtain the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, which is convenient for the subsequent positioning server to locate the terminal through the user plane according to the network address of the terminal, so as to shorten the transmission distance between the positioning server and the terminal. Further, the transmission duration required for the terminal to transmit data to the positioning server can be reduced, and thus the positioning delay of the positioning server for the terminal can be shortened.

[0135] S404. The AMF network element sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server. Correspondingly, the positioning server can receive the second positioning request information sent by the AMF network element. The second positioning request information is used to trigger the positioning server to locate the terminal through the user plane.

[0136] In some embodiments, the AMF network element can send the second positioning request information to the positioning server through a network exposure function network element (such as Figure 3 the NEF network element therein).

[0137] S405. The positioning server sends measurement request information to the terminal through the user plane according to the second positioning request information. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the measurement request information sent by the positioning server. The measurement request information carries the network address of the terminal and is used to instruct the terminal to report measurement data, and the measurement data is used by the positioning server to calculate the second location information of the terminal.

[0138] In some embodiments, after receiving the second positioning request information from the AMF network element, the positioning server can select a suitable positioning calculation method. Then, according to the positioning calculation method, it determines the measurement data that needs to be provided by the terminal and sends a measurement request information to the terminal device through the user plane to instruct the terminal to report the measurement data. For example, the positioning server can send the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection corresponding to the terminal according to the second positioning request information. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the measurement request information sent by the positioning server through this data connection. The data connection can include but is not limited to a packet data unit (PDU) session.

[0139] For example, the positioning server can determine that the destination address of the measurement request information is the network address of the terminal according to the network address of the terminal carried in the second positioning request information. Then, it can send the network address of the terminal and the measurement request information to a user plane network element (such as Figure 3 the UPF network element therein) located in the data connection corresponding to the terminal, so that the UPF network element forwards the measurement request information to the terminal through this data connection according to the network address of the terminal. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the measurement request information sent by the positioning server through this data connection. For example, please refer to Figure 3As shown in the figure, the transmission path of the measurement request information can be "location server - UPF network element - access network device - terminal", that is, this data connection is composed of a location server, a UPF network element, an access network device (such as Figure 3 the gNB in

[0140] In the embodiment of the present application, the location server forwards the measurement information to the terminal according to the network address information of the terminal through the UPF network element, so that the measurement information can be sent to the terminal through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, and further, the problem of large positioning delay caused by interaction through the control plane transmission path, that is, forwarding through the AMF network element, can be avoided. Furthermore, the positioning delay of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0141] Among them, passing through the data connection corresponding to the terminal can be expressed as passing through the user plane transmission path of the terminal. Correspondingly, passing through the UPF network element located in the data connection corresponding to the terminal can be expressed as passing through the UPF network element located in the user plane transmission path of the terminal. The embodiment of the present application does not make specific limitations on this.

[0142] In the embodiment of the present application, during the process of positioning the terminal, when the location server interacts with the terminal, it can be carried out through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, so that the problem of large positioning delay caused by interaction through the control plane transmission path, that is, forwarding through the AMF network element, can be avoided. Thus, a location server close to the terminal and the access device can be selected to locate the terminal, the transmission distance between the terminal and the location server can be shortened, and further, the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the location server can be reduced, and then the positioning delay of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0143] Optionally, in an implementation scenario of the embodiment of the present application, the MEC-based positioning method further includes the following steps S406 - S409:

[0144] S406: The terminal performs measurements to obtain measurement data.

[0145] In some embodiments, when the terminal receives the measurement request information from the location server, it can measure and obtain the measurement data according to the measurement request information. For example, the terminal can perform measurements and collect (such as measuring the signal quality of the serving cell where the terminal is located and the neighboring cells of the serving cell, etc.) according to the measurement parameters configured for the terminal by the network side (such as the gNB) to obtain the measurement data.

[0146] S407: The terminal sends the measurement data to the location server. Correspondingly, the location server receives the measurement data from the terminal.

[0147] In some embodiments, the terminal may send measurement data to a positioning server through the data connection corresponding to the terminal. For example, the terminal may send the measurement data to a UPF network element in the data connection corresponding to the terminal, so that the UPF network element forwards the measurement data to the positioning server through the data connection according to the network address of the terminal. Optionally, referring to Figure 3 As shown, the transmission path of the measurement data may be "terminal - gNB - UPF network element - positioning server".

[0148] S408: The positioning server calculates the second location information of the terminal according to the measurement data.

[0149] In some embodiments, after receiving the measurement data, the positioning server may calculate the second location information of the terminal according to the positioning calculation method selected in S405 above.

[0150] S409: The positioning server sends the second location information of the terminal to the positioning requester.

[0151] In some embodiments, after calculating the second location information of the terminal, the positioning server may feedback the terminal location information to the positioning requester through a gateway mobile location center network element (such as Figure 3 the GMLC network element in).

[0152] It should be noted that Figure 4 takes the positioning requester as an external client with positioning requirements as an example. When the positioning requester is the terminal, after calculating the second location information of the terminal, the positioning server may feedback the second location information of the terminal to the terminal through a network exposure function network element (such as Figure 3 the NEF network element in).

[0153] In the embodiments of the present application, the positioning server can support the positioning requirements of different positioning requesters for the terminal.

[0154] In the embodiments of the present application, during the process of positioning the terminal, when the terminal interacts with the positioning server, it can be carried out through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, and similarly, it can avoid forwarding through the AMF network element, that is, interacting through the control plane transmission path, so as to shorten the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server, and further reduce the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server. Furthermore, the positioning delay of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0155] The following combines specific embodiments Figure 5 , and elaborates on the above Figures 1 to 4 shown embodiments in detail.

[0156] In some other embodiments, taking Figure 1 or Figure 2The wireless communication system shown is applied to, for example, Figure 3 the 5G wireless communication system shown. For example, Figure 5 As shown, another MEC-based positioning method provided by an embodiment of this application includes the following steps:

[0157] S501: Send a first positioning request message to the AMF network element in the direction of the positioning request. Correspondingly, the AMF network element receives the first positioning request message sent by the positioning request party. Among them, the first positioning request message is used to request positioning of the terminal, and the identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request message.

[0158] S502: The AMF network element determines, according to the first positioning request message, that the positioning function entity for positioning the terminal is the positioning server.

[0159] S503: The AMF network element obtains a second positioning request message according to the first positioning request message. Among them, the network address of the terminal is carried in the second positioning request message.

[0160] S504: The AMF network element sends the second positioning request message to the positioning server. Correspondingly, the positioning server can receive the second positioning request message sent by the AMF network element. Among them, the second positioning request message is used to trigger the positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane.

[0161] S505: The positioning server sends a measurement request message to the terminal through the user plane according to the second positioning request message. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the measurement request message sent by the positioning server. Among them, the measurement request message carries the network address of the terminal and is used to instruct the terminal to report measurement data, and this measurement data is used by the positioning server to obtain the location information of the terminal.

[0162] Among them, steps S501 - S505 are the same as steps S401 - S405 in the embodiment shown in Figure 4 For the relevant description, reference can be made to the embodiment shown in Figure 4 The embodiment shown, and details will not be repeated here.

[0163] In the embodiment of this application, during the process of positioning the terminal, the positioning server and the terminal can interact through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, which can avoid interacting through the forwarding of the AMF network element, that is, the control plane transmission path. Thus, the AMF network element can select a positioning server close to the terminal and the access device to perform positioning calculation on the terminal, thereby shortening the message transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server. Further, the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server can be reduced, and further, the positioning delay of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0164] It should be noted that Figure 5The illustrated embodiment is described by taking the example that the data connection corresponding to the terminal has not been established before step S503.

[0165] Optionally, before the positioning server sends the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection corresponding to the terminal, since the data connection of the terminal has not been established yet, therefore, before step S503, the AMF also needs to instruct the SMF network element to establish a data connection for the terminal. In addition, the AMF network element can also obtain the network address of the terminal, which is assigned by the network to the terminal during the establishment of the data connection of the terminal. Optionally, during the process of establishing the data connection of the terminal, the SMF network element can assign a network address to the terminal, and then send the network address to the AMF network element. Among them, the SMF network element is the session management network element serving the terminal.

[0166] Among them, in the embodiments of the present application, there are various ways for the SMF network element to send the network address of the terminal to the AMF. For example, the network address of the terminal can be sent by the SMF network element to the AMF network element after the AMF network element requests it, or can be sent by the AMF network element instructing the SMF network element to send it to the AMF network element, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on this.

[0167] Based on this, in some other embodiments, before step S503, the AMF network element can determine whether the data connection corresponding to the terminal has been successfully established. At this time, Figure 5 The illustrated embodiment may further include the following steps:

[0168] S503a: The AMF network element sends detection information to the UDM network element. Correspondingly, the UDM network element receives the detection information from the AMF network element. Among them, the detection information is used to detect whether there is a data connection corresponding to the terminal in the UDM network element.

[0169] In some other embodiments, the detection information may include the identification information of the terminal, so that the UDM network element can detect whether there is a data connection corresponding to the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal.

[0170] In some other embodiments, the UDM network element can store records of the data connection corresponding to the terminal. After receiving the detection information, the UDM network element can detect whether it has stored the record of the PDDU session corresponding to the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal carried in the detection information. When the UDM network element detects that there is no record of the data connection corresponding to the terminal in the stored data connection records, it can not respond to the detection information or send a prompt message to the AMF network element to prompt the AMF network element that there is currently no corresponding data connection for the terminal. After that, the AMF network element can execute the following step S503b.

[0171] S503b: The AMF network element sends network trigger information to the terminal to trigger the terminal to establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server.

[0172] Among them, the network trigger information includes information about the positioning server, which is used to trigger the terminal to send a connection establishment request message for establishing a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server to the SMF network element.

[0173] S503c: The terminal sends a connection establishment request message to the SMF network element according to the network trigger information. Among them, the data network name (DNN) of the positioning server is carried in the connection establishment request message.

[0174] In some other embodiments, if the information about the positioning server received by the terminal is the DNN of the positioning server, the terminal may send the connection establishment request message carrying the DNN of the positioning server to the SMF network element. Or, if the information about the positioning server received by the terminal is an IP address, the terminal may obtain the DNN of the positioning server from the UDM network element according to the IP address of the positioning server, and then send the connection establishment request message carrying the DNN of the positioning server to the SMF network element. That is, in this embodiment, the DNN of the positioning server received by the SMF network element is sent by the AMF network element through the terminal.

[0175] In the embodiments of the present application, when the terminal determines that the information about the positioning server received is an IP address, the terminal may obtain the DNN of the positioning server from the UDM network element according to the IP address of the positioning server, so as to ensure that the information about the positioning server carried in the connection establishment request message sent to the SMF network element is the DNN of the positioning service, so that the SMF network element can establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the DNN of the positioning server.

[0176] S503d: The SMF network element establishes a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the connection establishment request message.

[0177] In some other embodiments, the SMF network element may obtain the identification information of the terminal. Among them, the identification information may be carried in the connection establishment request message sent by the terminal, or the AMF network element may send the identification information of the terminal to the SMF network element, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on this.

[0178] In some other embodiments, the SMF network element may also obtain the first location information of the terminal, such as the target TAI information. Among them, in the embodiments of the present application, the manner for the SMF network element to obtain the first location information of the terminal is not specifically limited. For example, the SMF may obtain the first location information of the terminal sent by the AMF network element, or the SMF network element may obtain the first location information of the terminal from the UDM network element according to the identification information of the terminal, etc.

[0179] In some other embodiments, after receiving the establishment request information, the SMF network element may select a UPF network element closer to the terminal side according to the DNN of the positioning server and the first location information of the terminal, such as the target TAI information, and establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server. Specifically, as Figure 3 shown, the data connection may be composed of a terminal, a gNB, a UPF network element, and a positioning server.

[0180] In some other embodiments, the SMF network element may allocate a network address for the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal during the process of establishing a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server.

[0181] In the embodiments of the present application, the SMF network element establishes a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server, so that the terminal and the positioning server can directly perform data interaction through the data connection without being forwarded by the AMF network element, thereby shortening the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server, and further shortening the transmission duration required for data transmission between the terminal and the positioning server, and effectively shortening the positioning delay of the terminal.

[0182] S503e: The SMF network element sends a notification message and the network address of the terminal to the AMF network element. The notification message is used to notify the AMF that a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server has been established.

[0183] In some embodiments, after the SMF network element completes the establishment of the data connection corresponding to the terminal, it may send a notification message to the AMF network element to notify the AMF network element that the data connection corresponding to the terminal has been established.

[0184] In the embodiments of the present application, the AMF network element may obtain the network address of the terminal through the SMF network element, so that the subsequent positioning server can interact with the terminal through the user plane according to the network address of the terminal, thereby shortening the positioning delay of the positioning server for the terminal.

[0185] Thus, the AMF network element may obtain the second positioning request information according to the network address of the terminal and the first positioning request information. The positioning server may send a measurement request message to the terminal according to the data connection corresponding to the terminal.

[0186] Optionally, in an implementation scenario of the embodiments of the present application, after step S505, Figure 5 the method shown further includes the following steps S506-S509:

[0187] S506: The terminal performs measurements to obtain measurement data.

[0188] S507: The terminal sends measurement data to the positioning server. Correspondingly, the positioning server receives the measurement data from the terminal.

[0189] S508: The positioning server calculates the second location information of the terminal according to the measurement data.

[0190] S509: The positioning server sends the second location information of the terminal to the positioning requester.

[0191] Among them, steps S506 - S509 are respectively the same as steps S406 - S409 in the Figure 4 illustrated embodiment, and the relevant descriptions can be referred to the Figure 4 illustrated embodiment, which will not be elaborated here.

[0192] In the embodiment of the present application, during the process of positioning the terminal, the terminal and the positioning server can interact through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, and it can also avoid interacting through the forwarding of the AMF network element, that is, the control plane transmission path interaction. Thus, the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server can be shortened, and further, the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server can be reduced. Furthermore, the positioning latency of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0193] Next, combined with specific embodiments Figures 6 to 7 , the above Figures 1 to 5 illustrated embodiment will be described in detail.

[0194] In some other embodiments, taking the Figure 1 or Figure 2 illustrated communication system applied to the Figure 3 illustrated 5G wireless communication system as an example, as Figure 6 illustrated, another positioning method based on MEC provided by the embodiment of the present application includes the following steps:

[0195] S601: The positioning requester sends the first positioning request information to the AMF network element. Correspondingly, the AMF network element receives the first positioning request information sent by the positioning requester. Among them, the first positioning request information is used to request to position the terminal, and the identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request information.

[0196] S602: The AMF network element determines that the positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal is the positioning server according to the first positioning request information.

[0197] S603: The AMF network element obtains the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information. Among them, the network address of the terminal is carried in the second positioning request information.

[0198] S604. The AMF network element sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server. Correspondingly, the positioning server can receive the second positioning request information sent by the AMF network element. The second positioning request information is used to trigger the positioning server to perform positioning on the user equipment (UE) through the user plane.

[0199] S605. The positioning server sends a measurement request information to the UE through the user plane according to the second positioning request information. Correspondingly, the UE receives the measurement request information sent by the positioning server. The measurement request information carries the network address of the UE and is used to instruct the UE to report measurement data, which is used by the positioning server to obtain the location information of the UE.

[0200] Steps S601 - S605 are the same as Figure 4 steps S401 - S405 in the embodiment shown, and the relevant descriptions can be referred to Figure 4 the embodiment shown, and will not be elaborated here.

[0201] In the embodiment of the present application, during the process of positioning the UE, the positioning server and the UE can interact through the user plane transmission path of the UE, which can avoid interacting through the forwarding of the AMF network element, i.e., the control plane transmission path. Thus, the AMF network element can select a positioning server close to the UE and the access device to perform positioning calculation on the UE, thereby shortening the transmission distance between the UE and the positioning server, further reducing the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the UE and the positioning server, and then shortening the positioning latency of the UE, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0202] It should be noted that Figure 6 the embodiment shown takes the example that the data connection corresponding to the UE has been successfully established before step S603.

[0203] Optionally, before the positioning server sends the measurement request information to the UE through the data connection of the UE, since the destination network address of the measurement request information is the network address of the UE, therefore, before step S603, the AMF network element obtains the network address of the UE, which is assigned by the network to the UE during the establishment of the data connection of the UE. Optionally, during the process of the SMF network element establishing the data connection of the UE, it assigns a network address to the UE and then sends the network address to the AMF network element. The SMF network element is the session management network element serving the UE.

[0204] Among them, in the embodiments of the present application, there can be multiple ways for the SMF network element to send the network address of the terminal to the AMF network element. For example, the network address of the terminal can be sent by the SMF network element to the AMF network element after the AMF network element requests it from the SMF network element, or can be sent by the AMF network element instructing the SMF network element to send it to the AMF network element, and so on. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on this.

[0205] Based on this, in some other embodiments, before step S603, Figure 6 The embodiments shown may further include the following steps:

[0206] S603a: The AMF network element sends the identification information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server to the SMF network element to instruct the SMF network element to establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server.

[0207] In step S603a, the AMF network element has determined that there is a record of the data connection corresponding to the terminal in the UDM network element. Please refer to Figure 7 shown, which is a schematic diagram of the architecture of another 5G wireless communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application. Among them, Figure 7 and Figure 3 The architecture is similar and will not be elaborated here. Among them, the 5G wireless communication system can support a scenario where a data connection has multiple protocol data unit session anchors (PSA). For example, as Figure 7 shown, the data connection corresponding to the terminal can include PSA1 and PSA2. Among them, in this step, the data connection corresponding to the terminal currently existing in the UDM network element is a data connection composed of the terminal, gNB, PSA1, and the data network (DN).

[0208] In some other embodiments, when the AMF network element determines that there is a data connection corresponding to the terminal currently in the UDM network element, the AMF network element can send the identification information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server to the SMF network element. Specifically, the information of the positioning server can be the IP address of the positioning server or the DNN of the positioning server. Among them, in the specific implementation process, when the information of the positioning server is the IP address of the positioning server, the AMF network element can send it to the network storage function network element (such as Figure 7obtain the DNN of the positioning server through access (to the NRF network element). For example, after determining the IP address of the positioning server according to the configuration information of the positioning server, the AMF network element sends the IP address of the positioning server to the NRF network element. Then, the NRF network element can determine the DNN of the positioning server according to the received IP address of the positioning server and send the DNN of the positioning server to the AMF network element. Alternatively, the AMF network element can obtain the relationship between the DNNs and IP addresses of at least one pre-stored positioning server. When the AMF network element determines the IP address of the positioning server according to the configuration information of the positioning server, it can determine the DNN of the positioning server according to this corresponding relationship. Or, the AMF network element sends the IP address of the positioning server to the SMF network element. Then, the SMF network element converts the IP address of the positioning server into the corresponding DNN, etc., which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0209] S603b: The SMF network element inserts the address of the uplink classifier (UL CL) in the access network where the terminal is located and the address of the PSA into the data connection currently corresponding to the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server, and establishes a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server.

[0210] In some other embodiments, after receiving the identification information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server sent by the AMF network element, the SMF network element can choose to insert the address of the UL CL in the access network where the terminal is located and the address of the PSA into the data connection currently corresponding to the terminal, and establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server. For example, as Figure 7 shown, the SMF network element can select the ULCL and PAS2 close to the terminal and / or the gNB according to the DNN of the positioning server and the target TAI information of the terminal, and establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server, that is, the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server is a data connection composed of the terminal, the gNB, PSA2, and the positioning server. Among them, the UL CL can play the role of switching the data connection.

[0211] In the embodiments of the present application, the SMF network element establishes a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server by inserting the address of the UL CL in the access network where the terminal is located and the address of the PSA into the data connection currently corresponding to the terminal, so that the UL CL and PSA close to the terminal side and the positioning server can be selected, so that the terminal and the positioning server can directly perform data interaction through the newly established data connection without passing through the AMF network element for forwarding, thereby shortening the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server, further reducing the transmission time required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server, and then effectively shortening the positioning delay of the terminal.

[0212] S603c: The SMF network element sends notification information and the network address of the terminal to the AMF network element. Among them, the notification information is used to notify the SMF that a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server has been established.

[0213] In some embodiments, after the SMF network element completes the establishment of the data connection corresponding to the terminal, it may send notification information to the AMF network element to notify the AMF network element that the data connection corresponding to the terminal has been completed.

[0214] At this point, the AMF network element can obtain the second positioning request information based on the network address of the terminal and the first positioning request information. The positioning server can send a measurement request information to the terminal according to the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server.

[0215] Optionally, in an implementation scenario of the embodiments of the present application, after step S605, Figure 6 The method shown further includes the following steps S606 - S609:

[0216] S606: The terminal performs measurements to obtain measurement data.

[0217] S607: The terminal sends the measurement data to the positioning server. Correspondingly, the positioning server receives the measurement data from the terminal.

[0218] S608: The positioning server calculates the location information of the terminal according to the measurement data.

[0219] S609: The positioning server sends the second location information of the terminal to the positioning requester.

[0220] Among them, steps S606 - S609 are respectively the same as steps S406 - S409 in the Figure 4 shown embodiments, and the relevant descriptions can be referred to the Figure 4 shown embodiments, and will not be elaborated here.

[0221] In the embodiments of the present application, during the process of positioning the terminal, the terminal and the positioning server can interact through the user plane transmission path of the terminal, and can also avoid interacting through the forwarding of the AMF network element, that is, the control plane transmission path, so as to shorten the transmission distance between the terminal and the positioning server. Further, the transmission duration required for transmitting data between the terminal and the positioning server can be reduced, and thus the positioning latency of the terminal can be shortened, which helps to improve the user experience.

[0222] It should be noted that, in the above embodiments, the positioning function entity for positioning the terminal determined by the AMF network element according to the first positioning request information is taken as an example of the positioning server. Correspondingly, in some other embodiments, the AMF network element may also determine that the positioning function entity for positioning the terminal is the LMF network element according to the first positioning request information. For example, when the AMF network element determines that the positioning delay requirement carried in the first positioning request information is greater than the preset duration threshold, or determines that the first indication information is not carried in the first positioning request information, or determines that the second indication information is carried in the first positioning request information, and the second indication information is used to indicate high-delay positioning services, the AMF network element determines that fast positioning calculation is not required for the terminal. At this time, the positioning function entity on the core network side, such as the LMF network element, can be selected to position the terminal. Among them, the specific process of the LMF network element positioning the terminal can adopt the existing positioning process, which will not be elaborated in this embodiment of the present application.

[0223] In the embodiments of the present application, the AMF network element can select different positioning function entities to position the terminal according to different requirements of the positioning requester for the positioning delay, so as to meet the needs of the positioning requester for different positioning delays.

[0224] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, each network element and the positioning server can execute some or all of the steps in the embodiments of the present application. These steps are only examples, and the embodiments of the present application can also execute other steps or various deformations of the steps. In addition, the steps can be executed in different orders presented in the embodiments of the present application, and it is possible not to execute all the steps in the embodiments of the present application.

[0225] In each embodiment of the present application, if there is no special description and logical conflict, the terms and / or descriptions between different embodiments are consistent and can be referenced to each other. The technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments according to their internal logical relationships.

[0226] The above mainly introduces the solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application from the perspective of the interaction between each network element and between each network element and the positioning server. It should be understood that in order to implement the above functions, the above first network element, positioning server or terminal includes the corresponding hardware structure and / or software module for executing each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that, in combination with the units and algorithm steps of each example described in the embodiments disclosed in this article, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a certain function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional technicians can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of the present application.

[0227] In the embodiments of the present application, the first network element, the positioning server, or the terminal can be divided into functional modules according to the above method examples. For example, each functional module can be corresponding to each function, or two or more functions can be integrated into one processing module. The above integrated module can be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional module. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is illustrative, only a logical function division, and there can be other division methods in actual implementation.

[0228] In the case of adopting an integrated unit (module), Figure 8 FIG. shows a schematic structural diagram of a first network element applicable in the embodiments of the present application. As Figure 8 shown, the first network element 800 may include: a receiving unit 801, a processing unit 802, and a transmitting unit 803.

[0229] Among them, the processing unit 802 is used to control and manage the actions of the first network element 800. For example, the processing unit 802 is used to support the first network element 800 to execute Figures 4 to 6 the process S402 in, and / or other processes of the technologies described herein. The transmitting unit 803 and the receiving unit 801 are used to support the communication between the first network element 800 and other network entities, such as the communication with Figures 4 to 6 the positioning server and / or the terminal shown.

[0230] Optionally, the first network element 800 may further include a storage unit 804, which is used to store the program code and / or data of the first network element 800. Specifically, the following description can be referred to:

[0231] The receiving unit 801 is used to receive the first positioning request information sent by the positioning requester, where the first positioning request information is used to request to position the terminal, and the identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request information;

[0232] The processing unit 802 is used to determine the positioning function entity for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, and the positioning function entity is a positioning server; and obtain second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information;

[0233] The transmitting unit 803 is used to send the second positioning request information to the positioning server to trigger the positioning server to position the terminal through the user.

[0234] In a possible design, the processing unit 802 may further be used to: determine that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the latency requirement or the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information.

[0235] In a possible design, when the processing unit 802 determines a positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, it may specifically be used to: obtain first location information of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, and obtain configuration information of at least one positioning server, where the configuration information of the at least one positioning server includes area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server; and determine a positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first location information of the terminal and the configuration information of the at least one positioning server.

[0236] In the embodiments of the present application, the specific content of the first location information of the terminal and the area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server is not limited herein. For example, the first location information of the terminal is target tracking area identifier (TAI) information; the area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server is TAI information of tracking areas under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server.

[0237] In a possible design, the receiving unit 801 may further be used to: obtain a network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal; when the processing unit 802 obtains second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information, it may specifically be used to: obtain the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information and the network address of the terminal, where the second positioning request information includes the network address of the terminal.

[0238] In a possible design, the sending unit 803 may further be used to: send the identification information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server to a session management function (SMF) network element; when the receiving unit 801 obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, it may specifically be used to: obtain the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element.

[0239] In a possible design, the sending unit 803 may further be used to: send the information of the positioning server to the terminal, trigger the terminal to establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server; when the receiving unit 801 obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, it may specifically be used to: obtain the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element, where the network address is assigned by the network to the terminal during the establishment of the data connection.

[0240] In a possible design, when the sending unit 803 sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server, it may specifically be used to: send the second positioning request information to the positioning server through a network exposure function (NEF) network element.

[0241] In a possible design, when the processing unit 802 determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the positioning latency requirement carried in the first positioning request information, it may specifically be used to: when it is determined that the positioning latency requirement is less than or equal to a preset duration threshold, determine that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency.

[0242] In a possible design, when the processing unit 802 determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information, it may specifically be used to: when the first indication information indicates a low-latency positioning service, determine that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information.

[0243] In the embodiments of the present application, the specific content of the information of the positioning server is not limited herein. For example, the information of the positioning server may be the data network name DNN corresponding to the positioning server or the Internet protocol IP address.

[0244] In the embodiments of the present application, the positioning requester is not limited herein. For example, the positioning requester may be the terminal or an external client with a positioning requirement.

[0245] It should be understood that the operations and / or functions of the respective modules in the first network element 800 are respectively for implementing Figures 4 to 6 the corresponding processes of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and for the sake of brevity, they will not be elaborated herein.

[0246] In the case of adopting an integrated unit (module), Figure 9 FIG. shows a schematic structural diagram of another first network element applicable in the embodiments of the present application. As Figure 9 shown, the first network element 900 may include at least one processor 901 and a memory 902. The memory 902 stores one or more computer programs, for example, stores one or more computer programs necessary for the first network element 900. The processor 901 is used to support the first network element 900 to implement the above MEC-based positioning method. For example, when one or more computer programs stored in the memory 902 are executed by the at least one processor 901, the first network element 900 can implement Figures 4 - 6 any possibility of the embodiments of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and / or be used to implement other embodiments described herein.

[0247] Based on the same concept as the above method embodiments, in the embodiments of the present application, a first network element is further provided. The first network element includes modules / units that execute the method embodiments of the above MEC-based positioning method, or any possible implementation manner of the method embodiments. These modules / units can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software.

[0248] In the case of adopting integrated units (modules), Figure 10 FIG. shows a schematic structural diagram of a terminal applicable in an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 10 shown, the terminal 1000 may include: a receiving unit 1001, a transmitting unit 1002.

[0249] Among them, the transmitting unit 1002 and the receiving unit 1001 are used to support the communication between the terminal 1000 and other network entities, such as Figures 4 to 6 the communication between the first network element and / or the positioning server shown.

[0250] Optionally, the terminal 1000 further includes a processing unit 1004, which is used to control and manage the actions of the terminal 1000. For example, the processing unit 1004 is used to support the terminal 1000 to execute Figures 4 to 6 the process S406 in, and / or other processes for the technologies described herein.

[0251] Optionally, the terminal 1000 may further include a storage unit 1003, which is used to store the program code and / or data of the terminal 1000. Specifically, the following description may be referred to:

[0252] The receiving unit 1001 is configured to receive measurement request information sent by the positioning server through a data connection between the terminal 1000 and the positioning server, and the measurement request information carries the network address of the terminal 1000;

[0253] The transmitting unit 1002 is configured to report the measured measurement data to the positioning server through the data connection, so that the positioning server calculates the second position information of the terminal 1000 according to the measurement data.

[0254] In a possible design, before the receiving unit 1001 receives the measurement request information sent by the positioning server through the data connection between the terminal 1000 and the positioning server, it may further be configured to: receive network trigger information sent by the first network element, where the network trigger information includes information of the positioning server; the transmitting unit 1002 may further be configured to: send a connection establishment request information for establishing the data connection between the terminal 1000 and the positioning server to the SMF network element according to the network trigger information, so as to establish the data connection.

[0255] It should be understood that the operations and / or functions of each module in the terminal 1000 are respectively for implementing Figures 4 to 6 the corresponding processes of the MEC-based positioning method shown. For the sake of brevity, details are not described herein again.

[0256] In the case of adopting integrated units (modules),Figure 11 The structural schematic diagram of another terminal applicable in the embodiments of the present application is shown. As Figure 11 shown, the terminal 1100 may include at least one processor 1101 and a memory 1102; the memory 1102 stores one or more computer programs, for example, one or more computer programs necessary for storing the terminal 1100. The processor 1101 is used to support the terminal 1100 to implement the above-mentioned MEC-based positioning method. For example, when one or more computer programs stored in the memory 1102 are executed by the at least one processor 1101, the terminal 1100 can implement Figures 4 - 6 any possibility of the embodiment of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and / or used to implement other embodiments described herein.

[0257] Based on the same concept as the above method embodiments, an embodiment of the present application also provides a terminal, and the terminal includes a method embodiment for executing the above-mentioned MEC-based positioning method, or a module / unit of any possible implementation manner of the method embodiment. These modules / units can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software.

[0258] In the case of adopting an integrated unit (module), Figure 12 The structural schematic diagram of a positioning server applicable in the embodiments of the present application is shown. As Figure 12 shown, the positioning server 1200 may include: a receiving unit 1201, a sending unit 1202, and a processing unit 1203.

[0259] In a possible design, the processing unit 1203 is used to control and manage the actions of the positioning server 1200. For example, the processing unit 1203 is used to support the positioning server 1200 to execute Figures 4 to 6 the process S408 in, and / or other processes of the technology described herein. The sending unit 1202 and the receiving unit 1201 are used to support the communication between the positioning server 1200 and other network entities, for example, the communication between the first network element and / or the terminal shown as Figures 4 - 6 shown.

[0260] Optionally, the positioning server 1200 may further include a storage unit 1204 for storing program codes and / or data of the positioning server 1200. Specifically, the following description can be referred to:

[0261] The receiving unit 1201 is used to receive the second positioning request information sent by the first network element, and the second positioning request information carries the network address of the terminal;

[0262] A sending unit 1202, configured to send measurement request information to the terminal via a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server 1200 according to the network address of the terminal carried in the second positioning request information, where the measurement request information is used to request the terminal to report measurement data;

[0263] The receiving unit 1201 is further configured to receive the measurement data reported by the terminal via the data connection;

[0264] A processing unit 1203, configured to calculate second location information of the terminal according to the measurement data.

[0265] In a possible design, when the sending unit 1202 sends the measurement request information to the terminal via the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server 1200 according to the network address of the terminal carried in the positioning request information, it may specifically be configured to: send the network address of the terminal and the measurement request information to a user plane function (UPF) network element, so that the UPF forwards the measurement request information to the terminal via the data connection according to the network address of the terminal.

[0266] In a possible design, the sending unit 1202 may further be configured to: if the positioning requester is the terminal, feedback the second location information to the terminal via a network exposure function (NEF) network element; or, if the positioning requester is an external client with a positioning requirement, feedback the second location information to the external client via a service capability exposure function (GMLC) network element.

[0267] It should be understood that the operations and / or functions of the respective modules in the positioning server 1200 are respectively for implementing Figures 4 to 6 the corresponding processes of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and for the sake of brevity, they will not be elaborated here.

[0268] In the case of adopting an integrated unit (module), Figure 13 FIG. shows a schematic structural diagram of another positioning server applicable in an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 13 shown, the positioning server 1300 may include at least one processor 1301 and a memory 1302. The memory 1302 stores one or more computer programs, for example, one or more computer programs necessary for storing the positioning server 1300. The processor 1301 is used to support the positioning server 1300 in implementing the above-mentioned MEC-based positioning method. For example, when one or more computer programs stored in the memory 1302 are executed by the at least one processor 1301, the positioning server 1300 can implement Figures 4 - 6Any possibility of the embodiment of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and / or for implementing other embodiments described herein.

[0269] Based on the same concept as the above method embodiments, an embodiment of the present application also provides a positioning server, which includes modules / units that execute the method embodiments of the above MEC-based positioning method and any possible implementation manners of the method embodiments. These modules / units can be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software.

[0270] Based on the same concept as the above method embodiments, an embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored. When the computer program runs on a computer, it causes the computer to execute the method embodiments of the above MEC-based positioning method and any possible implementation manners of the method embodiments, for example, to execute Figures 4 - 6 any step of the embodiment of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and / or to execute other processes of the technologies described herein.

[0271] Based on the same concept as the above method embodiments, an embodiment of the present application also provides a program product. When the program product runs on a computer, it causes the computer to execute the method embodiments of the above MEC-based positioning method and any possible implementation manners of the method embodiments, for example, to execute Figures 4 - 6 any step of the embodiment of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and / or to execute other processes of the technologies described herein.

[0272] Based on the same concept as the above method embodiments, an embodiment of the present application also provides a chip, which can be coupled to the memory of the first network element, the terminal, or the positioning server, and is used to call the computer program stored in the memory and execute the method embodiments of the above MEC-based positioning method and any possible implementation manners of the method embodiments, for example, to execute Figures 4 - 6 any step of the embodiment of the MEC-based positioning method shown, and / or to execute other processes of the technologies described herein.

[0273] It should be understood that the processor or processing unit in the embodiments of the present application (such as Figures 8 to 13The processor or processing unit shown) may be an integrated circuit chip with the ability to process signals. In the implementation process, each step of the method embodiment of the above MEC-based positioning method may be completed by the integrated logic circuit of the hardware in the processor or the instructions in the form of software. The above processor may be a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processing (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components, or any combination thereof; it may also be a combination for implementing computing functions, such as including a combination of one or more microprocessors, a combination of DSP and microprocessors, and so on. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may also be any conventional processor, etc.

[0274] It should be understood that the memory or storage unit in the embodiments of the present application may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasable programmable ROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory may be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example but not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM). It should be noted that the memory of the systems and methods described in the present application is intended to include but not be limited to these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0275] In the embodiments of the present application, the various illustrative logical units and circuits can be implemented or operate the described functions by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination of the above designs. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor. Optionally, the general-purpose processor can also be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller or state machine. The processor can also be implemented by a combination of computing devices, such as a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

[0276] The steps of the methods or algorithms described in the embodiments of the present application can be directly embedded in hardware, software units executed by a processor, or a combination of both. The software units can be stored in a RAM, flash memory, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, register, hard disk, removable disk, CD-ROM or any other form of storage medium in the art. Exemplarily, the storage medium can be connected to the processor so that the processor can read information from the storage medium and write information to the storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium can also be integrated into the processor. The processor and the storage medium can be disposed in an ASIC, and the ASIC can be disposed in a communication device (such as a terminal, a positioning server, a first network element, etc.), for example, in different components of the communication device.

[0277] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer programs or instructions. When the computer program or instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are executed in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer program or instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted through the computer-readable storage medium. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that the computer can access or a data storage device such as a server integrating one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium, such as a floppy disk, a hard disk, or a magnetic tape; it can also be an optical medium, such as a DVD; or it can be a semiconductor medium, such as a solid state disk (SSD).

[0278] The embodiments of the present application are described with reference to the flowcharts and / or block diagrams of the methods, devices, and computer program products involved in the embodiments. It should be understood that each process and / or block in the flowchart and / or block diagram, as well as the combination of processes and / or blocks in the flowchart and / or block diagram, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to the processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing devices to generate a machine, such that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing devices generate a device for implementing the functions specified in Figure 1 one process or multiple processes and / or blocks Figure 1 one block or multiple blocks.

[0279] These computer program instructions can also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing device to work in a specific manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory generate a manufactured article including an instruction device that implements the functions specified in Figure 1 one process or multiple processes and / or blocks Figure 1 one block or multiple blocks.

[0280] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device, such that a series of operation steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to generate a computer-implemented process, so that the instructions executed on the computer or other programmable device provide steps for implementing the functions specified in Figure 1 one process or multiple processes and / or blocks Figure 1 one block or multiple blocks.

[0281] Although the embodiments of the present application have been described in combination with specific features, it is obvious that various modifications and combinations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the embodiments of the present application. Accordingly, the present specification and the drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the embodiments of the present application defined by the appended claims, and are considered to have covered any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A positioning method based on Mobile Edge Computing (MEC), characterized in that, it includes: A first network element receives first positioning request information sent by a positioning requester, where the first positioning request information is used to request positioning of a terminal, and the identification information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request information. Here, the first network element is a mobility management network element or a Gateway Mobile Location Center; The first network element determines a positioning function entity for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information. The positioning function entity is a positioning server, and the positioning server is deployed in an MEC manner; The first network element obtains second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information, and sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server to trigger the positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane; Among them, the first network element obtains the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information, including: The first network element obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal; The first network element obtains the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information and the network address of the terminal, where the second positioning request information includes the network address of the terminal.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, the method further includes: The first network element determines that the positioning requester has high requirements for latency according to the latency requirement or the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first network element determines a positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, including: The first network element obtains the first location information of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, and obtains the configuration information of at least one positioning server. The configuration information of the at least one positioning server includes the area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server; The first network element determines a positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first location information of the terminal and the configuration information of the at least one positioning server.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The first location information of the terminal is Target Tracking Area Identity (TAI) information; The area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server is the Target Tracking Area Identity (TAI) information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first network element obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, including: The first network element sends the identification information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server to a Session Management Function (SMF) network element; The first network element obtains the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first network element obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, including: The first network element sends the information of the positioning server to the terminal, triggering the terminal to establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server; The first network element obtains the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element, where the network address is assigned to the terminal by the network during the establishment of the data connection.

7. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first network element sending the second positioning request information to the positioning server includes: The first network element sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server through a Network Exposure Function (NEF) network element.

8. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first network element determining that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the positioning latency requirement carried in the first positioning request information includes: When the first network element determines that the positioning latency requirement is less than or equal to a preset duration threshold, it determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency.

9. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first network element determining that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information includes: The first indication information indicates a low-latency positioning service, and the first network element determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information.

10. The method according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that, The information of the positioning server is the data network name (DNN) corresponding to the positioning server or the Internet Protocol (IP) address.

11. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The positioning requester is the terminal or an external client with a positioning requirement.

12. A positioning method based on MEC, characterized in that, including: The positioning server receives second positioning request information sent by a first network element, where the second positioning request information carries the network address of a terminal. Herein, the first network element is a mobility management network element or a gateway mobile location center, and the positioning server is deployed in a MEC manner; The positioning server sends measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the network address of the terminal carried in the second positioning request information, where the measurement request information is used to request the terminal to report measurement data; The positioning server receives the measurement data reported by the terminal through the data connection, and calculates the second location information of the terminal according to the measurement data.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that, The positioning server sending the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the network address of the terminal carried in the positioning request information includes: The positioning server sends the network address of the terminal and the measurement request information to a User Plane Function (UPF) network element, so that the UPF forwards the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection according to the network address of the terminal.

14. The method according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that, the method further comprises: if the positioning requester is the terminal, the positioning server feeds back the second location information to the terminal through a Network Exposure Function (NEF) network element; or, if the positioning requester is an external client with positioning requirements, the positioning server feeds back the second location information to the external client through a Service Capability Exposure Function (GMLC) network element.

15. A first network element, characterized in that, it comprises: a receiving unit, configured to receive first positioning request information sent by a positioning requester, where the first positioning request information is used to request positioning of a terminal, and the identity information of the terminal is carried in the first positioning request information, and wherein the first network element is a Mobility Management Entity (MME) or a Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC); a processing unit, configured to determine, according to the first positioning request information, a positioning functional entity for positioning the terminal, where the positioning functional entity is a positioning server, and the positioning server is deployed in a Multi-Access Edge Computing (MEC) manner; and obtain second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information; a sending unit, configured to send the second positioning request information to the positioning server to trigger the positioning server to perform positioning on the terminal through the user plane; wherein when the processing unit obtains the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information, it is specifically configured to: obtain the network address of the terminal according to the identity information of the terminal, and obtain the second positioning request information according to the first positioning request information and the network address of the terminal, where the second positioning request information includes the network address of the terminal.

16. The first network element according to claim 15, characterized in that, the processing unit is further configured to: determine that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the latency requirement or the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information.

17. The first network element according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that, when the processing unit determines the positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first positioning request information, it is specifically configured to: obtain the first location information of the terminal according to the identity information of the terminal, and obtain the configuration information of at least one positioning server, where the configuration information of the at least one positioning server includes the area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server; determine the positioning server for positioning the terminal according to the first location information of the terminal and the configuration information of the at least one positioning server.

18. The first network element according to claim 17, characterized in that, the first location information of the terminal is Target Tracking Area Identity (TAI) information; the area information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server is the Target Tracking Area Identity (TAI) information under the jurisdiction of the at least one positioning server.

19. The first network element according to claim 15, characterized in that, the sending unit is further configured to: send the identity information of the terminal and the information of the positioning server to a Session Management Function (SMF) network element; When the receiving unit obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, it specifically is used for: Obtaining the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element.

20. The first network element according to claim 15, Characterized in that, The sending unit is further used for: Sending the information of the positioning server to the terminal, and triggering the terminal to establish a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server; When the receiving unit obtains the network address of the terminal according to the identification information of the terminal, it specifically is used for: Obtaining the network address of the terminal sent by the SMF network element, where the network address is the network address allocated to the terminal during the establishment process of the data connection.

21. The first network element according to claim 15 or 16, Characterized in that, When the sending unit sends the second positioning request information to the positioning server, it specifically is used for: Sending the second positioning request information to the positioning server through the network exposure function NEF network element.

22. The first network element according to claim 16, Characterized in that, When the processing unit determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the positioning latency requirement carried in the first positioning request information, it specifically is used for: Determining that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency when determining that the positioning latency requirement is less than or equal to a preset duration threshold.

23. The first network element according to claim 16, Characterized in that, When the processing unit determines that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information carried in the first positioning request information, it specifically is used for: The first indication information indicates a low-latency positioning service, and determining that the positioning requester has a high requirement for latency according to the first indication information.

24. The first network element according to claim 19 or 20, Characterized in that, The information of the positioning server is the data network name DNN or the Internet protocol IP address corresponding to the positioning server.

25. The first network element according to claim 15 or 16, Characterized in that, The positioning requester is the terminal or an external client with a positioning requirement.

26. A positioning server, Characterized in that, The positioning server is deployed in a MEC manner and includes: A receiving unit, configured to receive second positioning request information sent by a first network element, where the second positioning request information carries the network address of a terminal, and the first network element is a mobility management network element or a gateway mobile location center; A sending unit, configured to send a measurement request information to the terminal through a data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the network address of the terminal carried in the second positioning request information, where the measurement request information is used to request the terminal to report measurement data; The receiving unit is further configured to receive measurement data reported by the terminal through the data connection; A processing unit, configured to calculate second position information of the terminal according to the measurement data.

27. The positioning server according to claim 26, Characterized in that, When the sending unit sends the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection between the terminal and the positioning server according to the network address of the terminal carried in the positioning request information, it is specifically used for: Sending the network address of the terminal and the measurement request information to the user plane function UPF network element, so that the UPF forwards the measurement request information to the terminal through the data connection according to the network address of the terminal.

28. The positioning server according to claim 26 or 27, characterized in that the sending unit is further used for: if the positioning requester is the terminal, feeding back the second location information to the terminal through the network exposure function NEF network element; or if the positioning requester is an external client with positioning requirements, feeding back the second location information to the external client through the service capability exposure function GMLC network element.

29. A communication device, characterized in that it includes: at least one processor and a memory; the memory stores one or more computer programs; when the one or more computer programs stored in the memory are executed by the at least one processor, the communication device executes the method according to any one of claims 1-14.

30. A computer storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium includes a computer program, and when the computer program runs on a computer, the computer executes the method according to any one of claims 1-14.

31. A wireless communication system, characterized in that the wireless communication system includes the first network element according to any one of claims 15-25 and the positioning server according to any one of claims 26-29.

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