A method, device and system for opening network capabilities

Abstract

The present application discloses a method, device and system for opening network capabilities, which is used to provide a flexible and efficient method for opening network capabilities. The method includes: NEF receives a first request sent from AF, the first request includes the address of the target terminal device, and is used to request the first information of the target terminal device; sends a second request including the address to the first network element, and is used to request the first identifier of the target terminal device; receives the first identifier from the first network element; sends a third request including the first identifier to the second network element, and is used to request the first information. In this method, NEF can obtain the identifier of the target terminal device, open the first information of the target terminal device to other network elements through the identifier, and provide AF with an API based on the address of the target terminal device, which helps the 3GPP system to open the first information and the AF to obtain the first information, and effectively open and share network capabilities.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a method, device and system for opening network capabilities. Background Art

[0002] In the process of network communication, the edge application server (EAS) often obtains the information of the target terminal device from the application function network element (AF) according to the generic public subscription identifier (GPSI) of the target terminal device, so as to provide business support. AF usually calls the application programming interface (API) provided by other network elements in the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) network according to the GPSI to obtain or provide network capability exposure information related to the target terminal device.

[0003] Among them, in the current communication process, for security reasons, the network capability exposure API is based on the GPSI of the terminal device to provide a channel for network capability exposure information interaction. However, the EAS or AF in the current communication system cannot actively obtain the GPSI of the target terminal device, which affects their call to the network capability exposure API, thereby affecting the interaction of network information related to the target terminal device and affecting the service experience of the target terminal device. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present application provides a method, device and system for opening network capabilities, so as to provide a more flexible and efficient method for opening network capabilities.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a network capability opening method, the method comprising:

[0006] NEF receives a first request from AF, wherein the first request includes an address of a target terminal device; the NEF sends a second request to a first network element, wherein the second request includes the address of the target terminal device, and the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within a 3GPP system; the NEF receives the first identifier from the first network element; the NEF determines, based on the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; the NEF sends the second identifier to the AF, and the second identifier is used to open an API interface corresponding to the second identifier.

[0007] Based on the above scheme, the NEF in the embodiment of the present application can actively obtain the second identifier of the target terminal device, thereby providing the second identifier of the target terminal device to the EAS, so that the EAS can use the second identifier to call the corresponding API, and can effectively openly share network capability information with strong flexibility.

[0008] As a possible implementation method, the NEF sends a third request including the first identifier to the UDM, and the third request is used to obtain the second identifier; the NEF receives the second identifier from the UDM; wherein the second identifier is obtained by the UDM based on the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the third request.

[0009] As a possible implementation method, the first network element is a UPF network element; or the first network element is a PCF network element.

[0010] As a possible implementation method, when the first network element is a UPF network element, the NEF and the UPF are both locally deployed network elements. As a possible implementation method, before the NEF sends the second request to the first network element, it also includes: when the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF sends a fourth request to the BSF, the fourth request is used to obtain the address of the PCF serving the target terminal device; the NEF receives the PCF address from the BSF.

[0011] As a possible implementation method, the first identifier is a user permanent identifier SUPI of the target terminal device; and the second identifier is a general public user identifier GPSI of the target terminal device.

[0012] In a second aspect, the present application provides a network capability opening method, the method comprising:

[0013] The NEF receives a first request sent from the AF, wherein the first request includes an address of a target terminal device and first information of the target terminal device; the NEF sends a second request to a first network element, wherein the second request includes an address of the target terminal device, and the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within a 3GPP system; the NEF receives the first identifier from the first network element; the NEF sends a third request to a second network element, wherein the third request includes the first identifier and the first information, and the third request is used to instruct to save the first information.

[0014] Based on the above scheme, the NEF in the embodiment of the present application can obtain the second identifier of the target terminal device, thereby opening the first information of the target terminal device to other network elements through the second identifier of the target terminal device, and at the same time provide the AF with an API based on the terminal device address, which helps the AF to open the first information based on the terminal device address and other network elements to obtain the first information of the target terminal device, and can effectively open and share network capability information.

[0015] As a possible implementation method, the first network element is a UPF network element; or the first network element is a PCF network element.

[0016] As a possible implementation method, before the NEF sends the second request to the first network element, it also includes: when the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF sends a fourth request to the BSF, and the fourth request is used to obtain the address of the PCF serving the target terminal device; the NEF receives the PCF address from the BSF.

[0017] As a possible implementation method, the second network element is a UDM; or the second network element is a NWDAF.

[0018] As a possible implementation method, when the second network element is UDM, the third request is used by the NEF to instruct the third network element to save the first information through the UDM; the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0019] As a possible implementation method, the first information includes part or all of the following: 5G LAN group information, expected behavior information of the target terminal device, network configuration parameters of the target terminal device, and the location of the target terminal device.

[0020] In a third aspect, the present application provides a network capability opening method, the method comprising:

[0021] The NEF receives a first request sent from the AF, the first request includes an address of a target terminal device, and the first request is used to request first information of the target terminal device from the 3GPP system; the NEF sends a second request to a first network element, the second request includes the address of the target terminal device, and the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system; the NEF receives the first identifier from the first network element; the NEF sends a third request to a second network element, the third request includes the first identifier, and the third request is used to request the first information.

[0022] Based on the above solution, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for a NEF to actively obtain a first identifier of a target terminal device, and the NEF can request the first information from other network elements based on the first identifier.

[0023] As a possible implementation manner, the first information indicated in the request may be a request to subscribe to the first information, or a request to unsubscribe from the first information.

[0024] As a possible implementation method, when the third request is used to request subscription to the first information, the method further includes: the NEF receiving the first information from the second network element, and sending the first information to the AF.

[0025] As a possible implementation method, the first network element is a UPF network element; or the first network element is a PCF network element.

[0026] As a possible implementation method, before the NEF sends the second request to the first network element, it also includes: when the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF sends a fourth request to the BSF, and the fourth request is used to obtain the address of the PCF serving the target terminal device; the NEF receives the PCF address from the BSF.

[0027] As a possible implementation method, the second network element is a UDM or a network data analysis function network element (Network Data Analytics Function, NWDAF); when the second network element is a UDM, the third request is used by the NEF to request the first information from the third network element through the UDM; when the second network element is a NWDAF, the third request is used by the NEF to request the first information from the NWDAF.

[0028] As a possible implementation method, the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0029] As a possible implementation method, the first information includes part or all of the following:

[0030] The location of the target terminal device, the congestion status of the cell where the target terminal device is located, and the quality of service (QoS) monitoring result of the target terminal device.

[0031] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0032] The AF sends a first request to a first network element, the first request includes the address of the target terminal device, and the first request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within the 3GPP system; the AF receives the first identifier from the first network element; the AF sends a second request to a second network element, the second request includes the first identifier and first information, and the second request is used to indicate the saving of the first information of the target terminal device.

[0033] Based on the above scheme, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for AF to actively obtain the first identifier of a target terminal device, thereby opening the first information of the target terminal device to other network elements through the first identifier of the target terminal device, which helps AF to open the first information based on the terminal device address and other network elements to obtain the first information of the target terminal device, and can effectively open and share network capability information, ensure the interaction of network information related to the terminal device, and ensure the service experience of the terminal device.

[0034] As a possible implementation method, before the AF sends the first request, the AF determines the address of the target terminal device and the first information of the target terminal device;

[0035] As a possible implementation method, the AF determines the address of the target terminal device and the first information according to a received third request sent by the EAS, where the third request includes the address of the target terminal device and the first information.

[0036] As a possible implementation method, the first network element is a PCF network element; before the AF sends the first request to the first network element, it also includes: the AF sends a fourth request to the BSF, and the fourth request is used to obtain the PCF serving the target terminal device; the AF receives the PCF address from the BSF.

[0037] As a possible implementation method, the second network element is a UDM; or the second network element is a NWDAF.

[0038] As a possible implementation method, when the second network element is UDM, the second request is used by the AF to instruct the third network element to save the first information through the UDM; the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0039] As a possible implementation method, the first information includes part or all of the following:

[0040] 5G LAN group information, expected behavior information of the target terminal device, and network configuration parameters of the target terminal device.

[0041] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0042] The AF sends a first request to a first network element, the first request includes an address of a target terminal device, and the first request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within a 3GPP system; the AF receives the first identifier from the first network element; the AF sends a second request to a second network element, the second request includes the first identifier, and the second request is used to request first information.

[0043] Based on the above scheme, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for AF to actively obtain the first identifier of a target terminal device, and the AF can request the first information from other network elements based on the first identifier, thereby ensuring the interaction of network information related to the terminal device and ensuring the service experience of the terminal device.

[0044] As a possible implementation manner, the first information indicated in the request may be a request to subscribe to the first information, or a request to unsubscribe from the first information.

[0045] As a possible implementation method, when the second request is used to request subscription to the first information, the method further includes: the AF receiving the first information from the second network element.

[0046] As a possible implementation method, the first network element is a PCF network element.

[0047] As a possible implementation method, before the AF sends the first request to the first network element, it also includes: when the first network element is a PCF network element, the AF sends a third request to the BSF, and the third request is used to obtain the address of the PCF serving the target terminal device; the AF receives the PCF address from the BSF.

[0048] As a possible implementation method, the second network element is UDM or NWDAF; when the second network element is UDM, the second request is used by the AF to request the first information from the third network element through the UDM; when the second network element is NWDAF, the second request is used by the AF to request the first information from the NWDAF.

[0049] As a possible implementation method, the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0050] As a possible implementation method, the first information includes part or all of the following:

[0051] The location of the target terminal device, the congestion status of the cell where the target terminal device is located, and the QoS monitoring result of the target terminal device.

[0052] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0053] The AF sends a first request to the NEF, wherein the first request includes the address of the target terminal device, and the first request is used to request a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; the AF receives the second identifier from the NEF; the AF sends the second identifier to the EAS, and the second identifier is used to open an API interface corresponding to the second identifier.

[0054] Based on the above scheme, the NEF in the embodiment of the present application can actively obtain the second identifier of the target terminal device, thereby providing the second identifier of the target terminal device to the EAS through the AF, so that the EAS can use the second identifier to call the corresponding API, and can effectively openly share network capability information with strong flexibility.

[0055] As a possible implementation method, before the AF sends the first request to the NEF, the method further includes: the AF receiving a second request sent by the EAS, where the second request is used to request the second identifier, and the second request includes an address of the target terminal device.

[0056] As a possible implementation method, the second identifier is obtained by the NEF through UDM conversion of the first identifier obtained from the first network element, and the first identifier is used to identify the target terminal device in the 3GPP system.

[0057] As a possible implementation method, the first network element is a UPF network element; or the first network element is a PCF network element.

[0058] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0059] The UDM receives a request for obtaining a second identifier sent from the AF or NEF, wherein the request includes a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within the 3GPP system, and the second identifier is used to identify the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; the UDM determines the second identifier based on the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the first identifier; the UDM feeds back the second identifier to the AF or NEF.

[0060] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0061] The UDM receives a request from the AF or NEF for instructing to save the first information of the target terminal device, the request includes a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system and the first information, and the first information is the network capability exposure information provided by the AF to the 3GPP system; the UDM instructs the third network element to save the first information according to the request.

[0062] As a possible implementation method, the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0063] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0064] The UDM receives a request sent from the AF or NEF to instruct the AF to request first information from the 3GPP system, wherein the request includes a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system; the UDM requests the first information from a third network element according to the request.

[0065] As a possible implementation manner, the first information indicated in the request may be a request to subscribe to the first information, or a request to unsubscribe from the first information.

[0066] As a possible implementation method, the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0067] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0068] NWDAF receives a request from AF or NEF to instruct saving first information of a target terminal device, the request including a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in a 3GPP system and the first information, the first information being network capability exposure information provided by the AF to the 3GPP system; the NWDAF saves the first information according to the request.

[0069] In an eleventh aspect, the present application provides a method for network capability opening, the method comprising:

[0070] The NWDAF receives a request sent from the AF or NEF for instructing the AF to request first information from the 3GPP system, wherein the request includes a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system; and the NWDAF provides the first information according to the request.

[0071] As a possible implementation manner, the first information indicated in the request may be a request to subscribe to the first information, or a request to unsubscribe from the first information.

[0072] In a twelfth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a network capability opening device, which may be an NEF or a chip for an NEF. The device has the function of implementing any aspect of the first to third aspects above; or executing any method in any possible implementation of the first to third aspects above. The function may be implemented by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software implementation. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0073] In the thirteenth aspect, the embodiment of the present application provides a network capability opening device, which may be an AF or a chip for an AF. The device has the function of implementing any aspect of the fourth to sixth aspects above; or executing any method in any possible implementation of the fourth to sixth aspects above. The function may be implemented by hardware, or the corresponding software may be implemented by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0074] In the fourteenth aspect, the embodiment of the present application provides a network capability opening device, which may be a UDM or a chip for a UDM. The device has the function of implementing any aspect of the seventh to ninth aspects above; or executing any method in any possible implementation of the seventh to ninth aspects above. The function may be implemented by hardware, or the corresponding software may be implemented by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0075] In a fifteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a network capability opening device, which may be a NWDAF or a chip for NWDAF. The device has the function of implementing any aspect of the tenth aspect or the eleventh aspect above; or executing any method in any possible implementation of the tenth aspect to the eleventh aspect above. The function may be implemented by hardware, or the corresponding software may be implemented by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0076] In the sixteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a network capability opening device, including a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store computer execution instructions, and when the device is running, the processor executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory to enable the device to execute any aspect of the above-mentioned first aspect to the eleventh aspect; or execute any method in any possible implementation method of the above-mentioned first aspect to the eleventh aspect.

[0077] In the seventeenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium, wherein instructions are stored in the computer-readable storage medium, which, when executed on a computer, enables a processor to execute any one of the above-mentioned first to eleventh aspects; or execute any method in any possible implementation method of the above-mentioned first to eleventh aspects.

[0078] In the eighteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application also provides a computer program product, which includes a computer program. When the computer program is running, the processor executes any aspect of the above-mentioned first to eleventh aspects; or executes any method in any possible implementation method of the above-mentioned first to eleventh aspects.

[0079] In a nineteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a chip system, comprising a processor and a memory. The memory is used to store a computer program; the processor is used to call and run the computer program from the memory, so that a device equipped with the chip system performs any aspect of the first to eleventh aspects above; or performs any method in any possible implementation of the first to eleventh aspects above.

[0080] In the twentieth aspect, an embodiment of the present application also provides a system for opening up network capabilities, including: NEF, PCF / UPF and UDM network element / NWDAF, etc.

[0081] As a possible implementation method, the network capability exposure system also includes AF.

[0082] As a possible implementation method, the network capability opening system also includes one of AMF network element, SMF network element or UDR. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0083] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a network capability exposure scenario provided for this application;

[0084] Figure 2 A flowchart of the first method for opening network capabilities provided in this application;

[0085] Figure 3 A flowchart of the second method for opening network capabilities provided in this application;

[0086] Figure 4 A flowchart of the third method for opening network capabilities provided in this application;

[0087] Figure 5 A flowchart of the fourth method for opening network capabilities provided in this application;

[0088] Figure 6A flowchart of the fifth method for opening network capabilities provided in this application;

[0089] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of a network capability exposure device provided in this application;

[0090] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of another device for opening network capabilities provided in this application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0091] In order to more clearly and completely introduce the technical solution of the present application, the embodiments of the present application are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0092] Among them, the communication equipment of the embodiment of the present application mainly includes terminal equipment, application function (Application Function, AF) network element, network exposure function (Network Exposure Function, NEF) network element, first network element, unified data management (Unified data management, UDM) network element, etc.

[0093] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the first network element is a policy control function (PCF) network element; or, the first network element is a user plane function (UPF).

[0094] Preferably, when the first network element is a PCF network element and there are at least two PCF network elements in the communication system, the communication system may further include a binding support function (BSF), wherein the BSF is used to help the NEF determine the PCF network element serving the target terminal device.

[0095] Furthermore, the communication system described in the embodiment of the present application can be used in the fifth generation (5th generation, 5G) network architecture. Of course, it can also be used in future network architectures, such as the sixth generation (6th generation, 6G) network architecture, etc. This application is not limited.

[0096] The following is a brief introduction using the 5G network architecture as an example. Figure 1 As shown, the 5G network architecture may include three parts, namely, a terminal device part (i.e., UE) 101, a data network (DN) 104, and a core network part. The core network includes a user plane network element 103, a mobility management network element 105, a session management network element 106, a policy control network element 107, a user data management network element 108, and a network capability exposure network element 110.

[0097] Exemplarily, in the communication system, the terminal device accesses the core network through the access network (radio access network, RAN) device. The terminal device can establish a connection with the data network (data network, DN) through the access network and the core network. Among them, the data network may include, for example, operator services, the Internet (Internet) or third-party services, etc., or serve as an access point for the aforementioned services. In a 4G communication system, the connection may be a packet data network connection (packet data network connection, PDN connection) or a bearer. In a 5G communication system, the connection may be a protocol data unit session (protocol data unit session, PDU Session). In future communication systems such as the sixth generation (6th generation, 6G) communication system, the connection may be a PDU session, or a PDN connection, or other similar concepts, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present application. In an embodiment of the present application, the connection established between the terminal device and the data network is also referred to as a session.

[0098] Further, in Figure 1 In the 5G network architecture shown, the names and functions of the various devices (network elements) and the interfaces between the devices (network elements) are as follows:

[0099] (1) Terminal device 101 is a device for implementing wireless communication functions, such as a terminal or a chip that can be used in a terminal, etc., which can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, 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, and a satellite, etc.). Among them, the terminal can be a user equipment (UE), access terminal, terminal unit, terminal station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, wireless communication equipment, terminal agent or terminal device in a 4G network, a 5G network or a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN). The access terminal may be a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device or a wearable device, a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, 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 device may be mobile or fixed.

[0100] Among them, the terminal device described in the embodiment of the present application can switch from a 4G communication system to a 5G communication system, or, can also switch from a 5G communication system to a 4G communication system.

[0101] (2) Access network equipment 102 is a device that provides wireless communication functions for terminal equipment 101. Access network equipment includes, but is not limited to, Next Generation RAN (NG-RAN), Next Generation Base Station (gnodeB, gNB), 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 nodeB, HNB), Base Band Unit (BBU), Transmitting and Receiving Point (TRP), Transmitting Point (TP), Mobile Switching Center, etc.

[0102] (3) User plane network element 103, mainly used to forward user data packets according to the routing rules of the session management network element. In the 4G communication system, the user plane network element can be a serving gateway user plane (SGW-U) or a packet data network gateway user plane (PGW-U) or a network element jointly set up by SGW-U and PGW-U. In the 5G communication system, the user plane network element can be a user plane function (UPF) network element.

[0103] (4) Mobility management network element 105, mainly used for mobility management in mobile networks, such as user location update, user network registration, user switching, etc. In a 4G communication system, the mobility management network element may be a mobility management entity (MME). In a 5G communication system, the mobility management network element may be an access and mobility management function (AMF).

[0104] (5) Session management network element 106, mainly used for session management in mobile networks, such as session establishment, modification, and release. Specific functions include allocating Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to users, selecting user plane network elements that provide message forwarding functions, etc. In 4G communication systems, the session management network element can be a serving gateway control plane (SGW-C) or a packet data network gateway control plane (PGW-C) or a network element jointly set up by SGW-C and PGW-C. In 5G systems, the session management network element can be a session management function (SMF).

[0105] (6) Policy control network element 107, including user subscription data management function, policy control function, charging policy control function, quality of service (QoS) control, etc. In a 4G communication system, the policy control network element may be a policy control and charging function (PCRF). In a 5G communication system, the policy control network element may be a policy control function (PCF).

[0106] (7) Unified data management network element 108 is a network element responsible for managing the contract information of the terminal device. In a 4G communication system, the unified data management network element may be a home subscriber server (HSS). In a 5G communication system, the unified data management network element may be a unified data management (UDM).

[0107] (8) Application function network element 109, which is mainly responsible for providing services to the 3GPP network, such as affecting service routing, interacting with the PCF for policy control, etc. In the 5G communication system, the application function network element can be an application function network element (Application Function, AF).

[0108] (9) Network capability exposure network element 110, mainly used to expose the capabilities of the communication system to third parties, application service functions, etc., and to transmit information between third parties, application servers and the communication system. In a 4G communication system, the network capability exposure network element may be a service capability exposure function (SCEF). In a 5G communication system, the network capability exposure network element may be a network exposure function (NEF).

[0109] (10) N7 refers to the interface between PCF and SMF, which is used for PDU session and service data flow control policy delivery.

[0110] (11) N15 refers to the interface between PCF and AMF, which is used for UE mobility and network selection control policy delivery.

[0111] (12) N5 refers to the interface between AF and PCF, which is used to issue application service requests and report network events.

[0112] (13) N4 refers to the interface between SMF and UPF, which is used to transmit information between the control plane and the user plane, including the control of the forwarding rules, QoS control rules, traffic statistics rules, etc. to the user plane and the reporting of information to the user plane.

[0113] (14) N11 refers to the interface between SMF and AMF, which is used to transmit user plane tunnel information between RAN and UPF, transmit control messages sent to UE, transmit radio resource control information sent to RAN, etc.

[0114] (15) N2 refers to the interface between AMF and RAN, which is used to transmit radio bearer control information from the core network side to the RAN.

[0115] (16) N1 refers to the interface between AMF and UE, which is access-independent and is used to transmit QoS control rules to UE.

[0116] Among them, in future communication systems such as 6G communication systems, the above-mentioned network elements or devices may still use their names in 4G or 5G communication systems, or have other names; the functions of the above-mentioned network elements or devices may be completed by an independent network element or by several network elements together, and the embodiments of the present application are not limited to this.

[0117] In actual deployment, network elements in the core network can be combined. For example, the mobility management network element 105 can be combined with the session management network element 106; the session management network element 106 can be combined with the user plane network element 103; the policy control network element 107 and the unified data management network element 108 can be combined. When two network elements are combined, the interaction between the two network elements provided in the embodiment of the present application becomes the internal operation of the combined network element or can be omitted.

[0118] It should be noted that the above-mentioned "network element" can also be referred to as an entity, device, apparatus or module, etc., which is not specifically limited in this application. Moreover, in this application, in order to facilitate understanding and explanation, the description of "network element" is omitted in some descriptions. For example, the AF network element is referred to as AF. In this case, the "AF network element" should be understood as an AF network element or AF entity. The description of the same or similar situations is omitted below. It can be understood that the above-mentioned network element or function can be a network element in a hardware device, a software function running on dedicated hardware, or a virtualized function instantiated on a platform (for example, a cloud platform). Optionally, the above-mentioned network element or function can be implemented by one device, or by multiple devices together, or it can be a functional module in a device, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application. Among them, network elements with the same or similar functions can be set together.

[0119] It should be understood that the above-mentioned network architecture applied to the present application is only an example of a network architecture described from the perspective of a service-oriented architecture, and the network architecture applicable to the embodiments of the present application is not limited to this. Any network architecture that can realize the functions of the above-mentioned network elements is applicable to the embodiments of the present application.

[0120] The network architecture and business scenarios described in the embodiments of this application are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this application. It is known to those skilled in the art that with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this application are also applicable to similar technical problems. It should be understood that Figure 1 This is a simplified schematic diagram for ease of understanding. The network architecture may also include other devices (network elements). Figure 1In order to solve the problem that the EES or AF in the current communication system cannot actively obtain the GPSI of the target terminal device, thereby affecting the interaction of network information related to the terminal and affecting the service experience of the terminal, the embodiment of the present application provides a method for an AF network element to obtain the identification of the target terminal device through NEF and PCF or UPF, and realize network capability opening based on the identification of the target terminal device, based on the above network architecture or a variation of the above network architecture, and also provides a method for an AF to directly interact with PCF to obtain the identification of the target terminal device, and realize network capability opening based on the identification of the target terminal device, so as to realize network capability opening more efficiently and flexibly.

[0121] The network capability opening method provided in the present application can be applied to any communication transmission scenario. For example: global system for mobile communications (GSM) system, code division multiple access (CDMA) system, wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, general packet radio service (GPRS), long term evolution (LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WIMAX) communication system, fifth generation (5G) system or new radio (NR), or applied to future communication systems or other similar communication systems.

[0122] Among them, in an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the AF is also called an edge enabler server (EES) in the mobile edge computing (MEC) scenario. For a specific and concise description, the following takes AF as an example for a specific introduction.

[0123] It should be noted that the embodiments of the present application are not limited to the MEC scenario, that is, the EAS may not be deployed at the edge of the network, but may be deployed on an application server (AS) at any location, and any network element with similar AF function may be applied to the embodiments of the present application and belong to the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0124] Some of the terms used in the embodiments of the present application are explained below for easier understanding.

[0125] 1) The Subscription Concealed Identifier (SUPI) in the embodiment of the present application refers to an identifier used to identify the target terminal device in the 3GPP system. In the embodiment of the present application, the first identifier is used to represent the SUPI.

[0126] 2) The Generic Public Subscription Identifier (GPSI) in the embodiment of the present application refers to an identifier used to identify the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system. The embodiment of the present application uses a second identifier to represent the GPSI.

[0127] The 3GPP system stores the association between the GPSI and the corresponding SUPI in the subscription data. The GPSI is a Mobile Station International Subscriber Directory Number (MSISDN) or other external identifier.

[0128] In this application, the address of the terminal device can be the IP address of the terminal device, such as an IPv4 address or an IPv6 address prefix, or the MAC address of the terminal device, without limitation; the address of the PCF can be the IP address of the PCF, such as an IPv4 address or an IPv6 address prefix, or the MAC address of the PCF.

[0129] In addition, the terms "system" and "network" in the embodiments of the present application can be used interchangeably. "At least one" means one or more, and "plurality" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. The following at least one item (items) or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single items (items) or plural items (items). For example, at least one item (items) of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0130] Unless otherwise stated, ordinal numbers such as "first" and "second" mentioned in the embodiments of the present application are used to distinguish multiple objects and are not used to limit the order, timing, priority or importance of multiple objects. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" in the embodiments of the present application, the claims and the drawings are not exclusive. For example, a process, method, system, product or device that includes a series of steps or modules is not limited to the listed steps or modules, and may also include steps or modules that are not listed.

[0131] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the following describes in detail the network capability exposure methods provided in the embodiments of the present application based on different application scenarios.

[0132] Scenario 1: The interaction between the AF and the first network element needs to go through the NEF, that is, the AF can be a network element provided by a third party.

[0133] The embodiment of the present application provides a first method for opening network capabilities based on the way in which the AF obtains the identifier of the terminal device through the NEF and the first network element, such as Figure 2 As shown, the specific process includes:

[0134] S200. AF sends a first request to NEF, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device.

[0135] In the embodiment of the present application, the first request is used to obtain a second identifier of the target terminal device that identifies the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system, wherein the second identifier may be a GPSI.

[0136] In this embodiment of the present application, the triggering condition for the AF to send the first request to the NEF may be:

[0137] The AF receives the fifth request sent by the EAS, the fifth request is used to request the second identifier, and the fifth request includes the address of the target terminal device. Thus, the AF determines the address of the target terminal device according to the received fifth request, and sends the first request to the NEF.

[0138] Furthermore, in an optional manner of an embodiment of the present application, before the EAS sends the second request to the AF, after the target terminal device completes the establishment of the PDU session, when the target terminal device needs to initiate a service related to an application, a connection is established with the EAS based on the PDU session, so that the EAS provides the terminal device with services related to the application.

[0139] Wherein, based on the established connection between the UE and the EAS, the EAS can obtain the address of the target terminal device.

[0140] Furthermore, the EAS may provide the address of the target terminal device to the AF, and request the second identifier of the target terminal device from the AF.

[0141] Preferably, in the embodiment of the present application, the first request also carries the identifier of the application (ApplicationID), which is used to determine one of the second identifiers based on the identifier of the application when the address of a UE corresponds to multiple second identifiers.

[0142] S201: The NEF receives a first request sent by the AF.

[0143] S202: The NEF sends a second request to the first network element, where the second request includes the address of the target terminal device.

[0144] In the embodiment of the present application, the second request is used to request a first identifier that identifies the target terminal device within the 3GPP system, wherein the first identifier may be a SUPI, or if it is a 4G system, may be an internal mobile user identifier (International Mobile Subscriber Identity, IMSI) of the target terminal device.

[0145] Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present application, the first network element is a PCF network element or a UPF network element.

[0146] When the first network element is a UPF network element, optionally, the NEF and UPF are both locally deployed network elements, that is, the NEF and UPF are both deployed at the edge of the network to provide MEC services for the target terminal device.

[0147] When the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF needs to determine the PCF serving the target terminal device before sending the second request to the first network element.

[0148] Further, in an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the NEF may determine the PCF serving the target terminal device in the following manner:

[0149] S202a. The NEF sends a fourth request to the BSF, where the fourth request is used to obtain the address of the PCF serving the target terminal device.

[0150] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the fourth request includes the address of the target terminal device.

[0151] Specifically, the NEF provides the address of the target terminal device to the BSF by calling the BSF management discovery Nbsf_Management_Discovery service operation, so as to request the address of the PCF serving the target terminal device.

[0152] S202b: The BSF determines the address of the PCF serving the target terminal device according to the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the PCF and the address of the target terminal device.

[0153] S202c. The BSF notifies the NEF of the address of the PCF.

[0154] S202d. The NEF receives the address of the PCF from the BSF.

[0155] It should be noted that, when there is only one PCF, S202a to S202d may be omitted, that is, the NEF directly sends the second request to the only existing PCF.

[0156] S203. The first network element receives the second request from the NEF.

[0157] In this embodiment of the present application, the second request is determined by the NEF according to the received first request.

[0158] An optional method in an embodiment of the present application is that after receiving the first request from the AF, the NEF generates a second request according to the address of the target terminal device in the first request.

[0159] S204. The first network element determines the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device according to the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier and the second request.

[0160] Exemplarily, assuming that the address of the target terminal device included in the second request is IP2, the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier is shown in Table 1. Therefore, by searching Table 1, the first network element can obtain that the first identifier corresponding to IP2 is S2.

[0161] First Identification (SUPI) The address of the terminal device S1 IP1 S2 IP2 S3 IP3

[0162] Table 1 Correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier

[0163] Among them, the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier can be stored locally in the first network element; or, the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier can be stored on a third-party platform. When the first network element receives the second request, the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier in the third-party platform is called.

[0164] S205. The first network element sends the first identifier to the NEF.

[0165] Among them, in an optimal method in an embodiment of the present application, when the first network element is a UPF network element, the UPF needs to ensure that it has obtained authorization from the SMF before sending the first identifier to the NEF.

[0166] Exemplarily, the SMF may indicate in advance whether the UPF can provide the first identifier to the NEF, or the UPF may temporarily obtain authorization from the SMF after receiving the second request from the NEF.

[0167] S206. The NEF sends a third request including the first identifier to the UDM, where the third request is used to obtain the second identifier.

[0168] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the NEF performs identity conversion by calling the Nudm_SDM_Get service operation.

[0169] Furthermore, the third request may also include the Application ID.

[0170] S207: The UDM receives the third request from the NEF.

[0171] S208. The UDM determines the second identifier according to the third request.

[0172] Furthermore, in the embodiment of the present application, there are multiple methods for the UDM to determine the second identifier according to the third request, which are not limited to the following methods.

[0173] Determination method 1: The UDM stores a correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier, and the UDM determines the second identifier according to the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the received first identifier.

[0174] Exemplarily, assuming that the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier stored in the UDM is shown in Table 2, and the first identifier contained in the third request received by the UDM is S2, the UDM can obtain that the second identifier corresponding to S2 is G2 by searching Table 2.

[0175] First Identification (SUPI) Second Identifier (GPSI) S1 G1 S2 G2 S3 G3

[0176] Table 2 Correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier 1

[0177] Determination method 2: the UDM obtains the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier from the third-party platform, and the UDM determines the second identifier according to the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the received first identifier.

[0178] In addition, if the third request also includes the Application ID, the UDM may determine the corresponding second identifier by combining the Application ID and the first identifier.

[0179] Exemplarily, in the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier, the first identifier may correspond to multiple second identifiers. For example, the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier is shown in Table 3 below.

[0180]

[0181] Table 3 Correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier 2

[0182] Assuming that the first identifier contained in the third request received by the UDM is S2, the UDM can obtain the second identifiers corresponding to S2 as G2, G3 and G4 by searching Table 3. If the third request also contains the Application ID, the UDM can further determine the second identifier corresponding to the target terminal device based on the correspondence between the Application ID and the second identifier.

[0183] For example, the Application ID included in the third request is Application ID3, and the correspondence between Application ID and the second identifier is shown in Table 4 below. The UDM can determine that the second identifier corresponding to Application ID3 is G4 by looking up Table 4, so the UDM determines that the second identifier of the target terminal device is G4.

[0184] Second Identifier (GPSI) Application ID G2 Application ID1 G3 Application ID2 G4 Application ID3

[0185] Table 4 Correspondence between Application ID and second identifier

[0186] S209: The UDM returns the second identifier to the NEF.

[0187] S210. The NEF receives the second identifier of the UDM.

[0188] S211. The NEF sends the second identifier to the AF.

[0189] Among them, in the embodiment of the present application, the second identifier is used to open the application programming interface (API) corresponding to the second identifier.

[0190] Specifically, the AF may call the API interface provided by the NEF based on the second identifier, or may provide an API interface to the EAS connected to the target terminal device based on the second identifier for the EAS to call.

[0191] Through the above method, the AF in the embodiment of the present application can actively obtain the second identifier of the target terminal device, thereby providing the second identifier of the target terminal device to the EAS, so that the EAS can use the second identifier to call the corresponding API.

[0192] Based on the scenario 1, the embodiment of the present application further provides a second method for opening network capabilities. The process of the second method for opening network capabilities provided by the embodiment of the present application is specifically introduced below. Figure 3 As shown, the specific process includes:

[0193] S300. AF sends a first request to NEF, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device and first information of the target terminal device.

[0194] The first information is information provided by the AF to the 3GPP system, and can be used by the 3GPP system or the 5G system to perform operations on the target terminal device.

[0195] In the embodiment of the present application, the content of the first information is not limited to part or all of the following:

[0196] 5G local area network group information, expected behavior information of the target terminal device, and network configuration parameters of the target terminal device.

[0197] In this embodiment of the present application, the triggering condition for the AF to send the first request to the NEF may be:

[0198] Before the EAS sends the second request to the AF, after the target terminal device completes the establishment of the PDU session, when the target terminal device needs to initiate application-related services, a connection is established with the EAS based on the PDU session, and the EAS provides the target terminal device with services related to the application.

[0199] Wherein, based on the established connection between the target terminal device and the EAS, the EAS may obtain the address of the target terminal device.

[0200] Further, the EAS provides the address of the target terminal device to the AF, and the AF can provide the first information to the 3GPP system through the API provided by the NEF, so that the 3GPP system can provide corresponding network conditions for the application.

[0201] S301: The NEF receives a first request sent by the AF, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device and first information of the target terminal device.

[0202] S302: The NEF sends a second request to the first network element, where the second request includes the address of the target terminal device.

[0203] In the embodiment of the present application, the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system, wherein the first identifier may be a SUPI, or if it is a 4G system, may be the IMSI of the target terminal device.

[0204] In this embodiment of the present application, the second request is determined by the NEF according to the received first request.

[0205] Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present application, the first network element is a PCF network element or a UPF network element.

[0206] When the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF needs to determine the PCF that serves the target terminal device before sending the second request to the first network element. The method by which the NEF determines the PCF that serves the target terminal device can be specifically referred to in S202a to S202d above, which will not be described here for the sake of brevity. It should be noted that when there is only one PCF, the NEF does not need to execute S202a to S202d, and can directly send the second request to the only existing PCF.

[0207] When the first network element is a UPF network element, optionally, the NEF and UPF are both locally deployed network elements, that is, the NEF and UPF are both deployed at the edge of the network to provide MEC services for the target terminal device.

[0208] S303. The first network element receives the second request from the NEF.

[0209] S304. The first network element determines the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device according to the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier and the second request.

[0210] Among them, the method by which the first network element determines the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device is similar to that introduced in the above S204. Please refer to the introduction of the above S204 for details, which will not be repeated here.

[0211] S305. The first network element sends the first identifier to the NEF.

[0212] Among them, in an optimal method in an embodiment of the present application, when the first network element is a UPF network element, the UPF needs to ensure that it has obtained authorization from the SMF before sending the first identifier to the NEF.

[0213] The SMF may indicate in advance whether the UPF can provide the first identifier to the NEF, or the UPF may temporarily obtain authorization from the SMF after receiving the second request from the NEF.

[0214] S306. The NEF sends a third request to the second network element, where the third request includes the first identifier and the first information.

[0215] The third request is generated by the NEF according to the first identifier and the first information.

[0216] The third request in this embodiment of the present application is used to instruct saving the first information.

[0217] In an optional manner in an embodiment of the present application, the first information is network capability exposure information of the target terminal device.

[0218] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the second network element is a UDM; or the second network element is a NWDAF.

[0219] S307. The second network element receives the third request and saves the first information.

[0220] Among them, in an embodiment of the present application, when the second network element is UDM, after the UDM receives the third request, it instructs the third network element to save the first information, and the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a unified data storage (Unified Data Repository, UDR) network element.

[0221] Exemplarily, the second network element is a UDM, and the third network element is a UDR. After receiving the third request, the UDM provides the first identifier to the UDR, instructing the UDR to save the first information corresponding to the first identifier.

[0222] Exemplarily, when the second network element is UDM and the third network element is AMF, and the first information is the expected moving trajectory of the target terminal device, after receiving the third request, the UDM provides the first identifier and the first information to the AMF, so that the AMF that receives the first identifier and the first information performs paging optimization processing, that is, the AMF can page the target terminal device within a smaller area.

[0223] Optionally, the third request may also be used to update the stored information to the first information.

[0224] Through the above method, the NEF in the embodiment of the present application can obtain the second identifier of the target terminal device, thereby opening the first information of the target terminal device to other network elements through the second identifier of the target terminal device, and at the same time provide the AF with an API based on the terminal device address, which helps the AF to open the first information based on the terminal device address and other network elements to obtain the first information of the target terminal device, and can effectively open and share network capability information.

[0225] Based on the scenario 1, the embodiment of the present application further provides a third method for opening network capabilities. The process of the third method for opening network capabilities provided by the embodiment of the present application is specifically introduced below. Figure 4 As shown, the specific process includes:

[0226] S400: AF sends a first request to NEF, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device.

[0227] The first request is used to request the first information of the target terminal device from the 3GPP system (for example, requesting to subscribe to the first information, or requesting to unsubscribe from the first information).

[0228] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the content included in the first information is specifically not limited to part or all of the following:

[0229] The location of the target terminal device, the congestion status of the cell where the target terminal device is located, and the service quality monitoring result of the target terminal device.

[0230] In this embodiment of the present application, the triggering situation for triggering the AF to send the first request to the NEF may be:

[0231] Before the EAS sends the second request to the AF, after the target terminal device completes the establishment of the PDU session, when the target terminal device needs to initiate application-related services, a connection is established with the EAS based on the PDU session, and the EAS provides the terminal device with services related to the application.

[0232] Wherein, based on the established connection between the UE and the EAS, the EAS can obtain the address of the target terminal device.

[0233] Further, the EAS provides the address of the target terminal device to the AF, and the AF can send a first request to the 3GPP system through the API provided by the NEF, such as requesting to subscribe to information related to the target terminal device, or canceling the subscribed information related to the target terminal device.

[0234] S401: The NEF receives a first request sent by the AF.

[0235] S402: The NEF sends a second request to the first network element, where the second request includes the address of the target terminal device.

[0236] In the embodiment of the present application, the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system, wherein the first identifier may be a SUPI, or if it is a 4G system, may be the IMSI of the target terminal device.

[0237] In this embodiment of the present application, the second request is determined by the NEF according to the received first request.

[0238] Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present application, the first network element is a PCF network element or a UPF network element.

[0239] When the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF needs to determine the PCF that serves the target terminal device before sending the second request to the first network element. The method by which the NEF determines the PCF that serves the target terminal device can be specifically referred to in S202a to S202d above, which will not be described here for the sake of brevity. It should be noted that when there is only one PCF, the NEF does not need to execute S202a to S202d and can directly send the second request to the only existing PCF.

[0240] When the first network element is a UPF network element, optionally, the NEF and UPF are both locally deployed network elements, that is, the NEF and UPF are both deployed at the edge of the network to provide MEC services for the target terminal device.

[0241] S403. The first network element receives the second request from the NEF.

[0242] S404. The first network element determines the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device according to the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier and the second request.

[0243] Among them, the method by which the first network element determines the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device is similar to that introduced in the above S204. Please refer to the introduction of the above S204 for details, which will not be repeated here.

[0244] S405. The first network element sends the first identifier to the NEF.

[0245] Among them, in an optimal method in an embodiment of the present application, when the first network element is a UPF network element, the UPF needs to ensure that it has obtained authorization from the SMF before sending the first identifier to the NEF.

[0246] The SMF may indicate in advance whether the UPF can provide the first identifier to the NEF, or the UPF may temporarily obtain authorization from the SMF after receiving the second request from the NEF.

[0247] S406. The NEF receives the first identifier from the first network element.

[0248] S407: The NEF sends a third request to the second network element, where the third request includes the first identifier.

[0249] The third request in this embodiment of the application is used to request the first information.

[0250] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the second network element is a UDM; or the second network element is a NWDAF.

[0251] Further, when the second network element is a UDM, the third request is used by the NEF to request the first information from a third network element through the UDM (for example, requesting to subscribe to the first information, or requesting to unsubscribe from the first information).

[0252] When the second network element is an NWDAF, the third request is used by the NEF to request the first information from the NWDAF (for example, requesting to subscribe to the first information, or requesting to unsubscribe from the first information).

[0253] An optional method in an embodiment of the present application, the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0254] Scenario 2: The interaction between AF and the first network element does not need to go through NEF.

[0255] Preferably, the AF in the scenario 2 is a trusted AF, that is, the AF is deployed by the operator like the PCF, UDM and other network elements, and can communicate directly with the PCF or UDM without going through the NEF. In this scenario, the communication system may not include the NEF network element.

[0256] Based on the second scenario, the process of the fourth network capability opening method provided in the embodiment of the present application is specifically introduced as follows: Figure 5 As shown, the specific process includes:

[0257] S500. AF determines an address of a target terminal device and first information of the target terminal device.

[0258] The first information is information provided by the AF to the 3GPP system, and can be used by the 3GPP system to perform operations on the target terminal device.

[0259] In the embodiment of the present application, the first information includes but is not limited to part or all of the following:

[0260] 5G local area network group information, expected behavior information of the target terminal device, and network configuration parameters of the target terminal device.

[0261] Among them, in an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the AF determines the address of the target terminal device and the first information based on the third request sent by the received EAS, and the third request includes the address of the target terminal device and the first information.

[0262] Furthermore, in an optional manner of an embodiment of the present application, before the EAS sends the third request to the AF, after the target terminal device completes the establishment of the PDU session, when the target terminal device needs to initiate a service related to an application, a connection is established with the EAS based on the PDU session, and the EAS provides the target terminal device with services related to the application.

[0263] Wherein, based on the established connection between the target terminal device and the EAS, the EAS may obtain the address of the target terminal device and the first information. The EAS provides the address of the target terminal device and the first information to the AF.

[0264] S501. AF sends a first request to a first network element, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device.

[0265] In the embodiment of the present application, the first request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system, wherein the first identifier may be a SUPI, or if it is a 4G system, may be the IMSI of the target terminal device.

[0266] Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present application, the first network element is a PCF network element.

[0267] When the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF needs to determine the PCF that serves the target terminal device before sending the second request to the first network element. The method by which the NEF determines the PCF that serves the target terminal device can be specifically referred to in S202a to S202d above, which will not be described here for the sake of brevity. It should be noted that when there is only one PCF, the NEF does not need to execute S202a to S202d, and can directly send the second request to the only existing PCF.

[0268] S502. The first network element receives the first request from the AF.

[0269] S503: The first network element determines the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device according to the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier and the first request.

[0270] Among them, the first network element determines the content of the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device, which is similar to the introduction in the above S204. Please refer to the introduction of the above S204 for details, which will not be repeated here.

[0271] S504. The first network element sends the first identifier to the AF.

[0272] S505. The AF receives the first identifier from the first network element.

[0273] S506: The AF sends a second request to a second network element, where the second request includes the first identifier and the first information.

[0274] The second request is generated by the AF according to the first identifier and the first information.

[0275] In this embodiment of the present application, the second request is used to instruct saving the first information.

[0276] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the second network element is a UDM; or the second network element is a NWDAF.

[0277] S507: The second network element receives the second request and saves the first information.

[0278] Among them, in an embodiment of the present application, when the second network element is UDM, after receiving the second request, the UDM instructs the third network element to save the first information, and the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0279] Exemplarily, the second network element is a UDM, and the third network element is a UDR. After receiving the third request, the UDM provides the first identifier to the UDR, instructing the UDR to save the first information corresponding to the first identifier.

[0280] Exemplarily, when the second network element is UDM and the third network element is AMF, and the first information is the expected moving trajectory of the target terminal device, after receiving the third request, the UDM provides the first identifier and the first information to the AMF, so that the AMF that receives the first identifier and the first information performs paging optimization processing, that is, the AMF can page the target terminal device within a smaller area.

[0281] Optionally, the third request may also be used to update the stored information to the first information.

[0282] Through the above method, the AF in the embodiment of the present application can actively obtain the second identifier of the target terminal device, thereby opening the first information of the target terminal device to other network elements through the second identifier of the target terminal device, which helps other network elements to obtain the first information of the target terminal device, and can ensure the interaction of network information related to the terminal device, and ensure the service experience of the terminal device.

[0283] Based on the second scenario, the embodiment of the present application further provides another method for opening network capabilities. The following is a detailed introduction to the process of the fifth method for opening network capabilities provided in the embodiment of the present application. Figure 6 As shown, the specific process includes:

[0284] S600. AF determines an address of a target terminal device and first information of the target terminal device that needs to be obtained.

[0285] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the content included in the first information is specifically not limited to part or all of the following:

[0286] The location of the target terminal device, the congestion status of the cell where the target terminal device is located, and the service quality monitoring result of the target terminal device.

[0287] Among them, in an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the AF determines the address of the target terminal device and the first information based on the third request sent by the received EAS, and the third request includes the address of the target terminal device and the first information.

[0288] S601. AF sends a first request to a first network element, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device.

[0289] In the embodiment of the present application, the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system, wherein the first identifier may be a SUPI, or if it is a 4G system, may be the IMSI of the target terminal device.

[0290] Among them, the specific situation of triggering the AF to send the first request to the first network element in the embodiment of the present application can be found in the introduction of the above S500, which is not repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0291] Furthermore, in an embodiment of the present application, the first network element is a PCF network element.

[0292] When the first network element is a PCF network element, the NEF needs to determine the PCF that serves the target terminal device before sending the second request to the first network element. The method by which the NEF determines the PCF that serves the target terminal device can be specifically referred to in S202a to S202d above, which will not be described here for the sake of brevity. It should be noted that when there is only one PCF, the NEF does not need to execute S202a to S202d, and can directly send the second request to the only existing PCF.

[0293] S602: The first network element receives the first request from the AF.

[0294] S603. The first network element determines the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device according to the correspondence between the address of the terminal device and the first identifier and the first request.

[0295] Among them, the first network element determines the content of the first identifier corresponding to the address of the target terminal device, which is similar to the introduction in the above S204. Please refer to the introduction of the above S204 for details, which will not be repeated here.

[0296] S604: The first network element sends the first identifier to the AF.

[0297] S605. The AF receives the first identifier from the first network element.

[0298] S606: The AF sends a second request to a second network element, where the second request includes the first identifier.

[0299] In the embodiment of the present application, the second request is used to request the first information (for example, request to subscribe to the first information, or request to unsubscribe from the first information).

[0300] In an optional manner in the embodiment of the present application, the second network element is a UDM; or the second network element is a NWDAF.

[0301] Further, when the second network element is a UDM, the second request is used by the NEF to request the first information from a third network element through the UDM (for example, requesting to subscribe to the first information, or requesting to unsubscribe from the first information).

[0302] When the second network element is an NWDAF, the second request is used by the NEF to request the first information from the NWDAF (for example, requesting to subscribe to the first information, or requesting to unsubscribe from the first information).

[0303] An optional method in an embodiment of the present application, the third network element is one of an AMF network element, an SMF network element or a UDR.

[0304] Through the above introduction to the scheme of the present application, it can be understood that in order to realize the above functions, the above-mentioned implementation devices include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the execution of 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 herein, the present invention can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a 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 and technical personnel 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 invention.

[0305] Based on the above embodiments, Figure 7As shown, an embodiment of the present application further provides a network capability opening device, which includes a processor 700, a memory 701 and a communication interface 702.

[0306] The processor 700 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 701 can store data used by the processor 700 when performing operations. The communication interface 702 is used for data communication between the processor 700 and the memory 701 .

[0307] The processor 700 may be a central processing unit (CPU), a network processor (NP) or a combination of a CPU and a NP. The processor 700 may further include a hardware chip. The hardware chip may be an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD) or a combination thereof. The PLD may be a complex programmable logic device (CPLD), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), a generic array logic (GAL) or any combination thereof. The memory 701 may include various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

[0308] The processor 700, the memory 701 and the communication interface 702 are interconnected. Optionally, the processor 700, the memory 701 and the communication interface 702 can be interconnected via a bus 703; the bus 703 can be a peripheral component interconnect (PCI) bus or an extended industry standard architecture (EISA) bus. The bus can be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, etc. For ease of representation, Figure 7 Only one thick line is used in the diagram, but this does not mean that there is only one bus or only one type of bus.

[0309] When the network capability opening device is AF, the processor 700 is used to read the program in the memory 701 and execute the following steps: Figure 2 The method flow of AF in S200-S213 shown in FIG. 10 is executed; or Figure 3 The method flow of AF execution in S300-S307 shown in FIG. 1 is as follows: Figure 4 The method flow of AF execution in S400 to S407 shown in FIG. 1 is as follows: Figure 5 The method flow of AF execution in S500-S507 shown in FIG. 1 is as follows: Figure 6 The method flow of AF execution in S600 to S606 is shown.

[0310] When the network capability opening device is NEF, the processor 700 is used to read the program in the memory 701 and execute the following steps: Figure 2 The method flow of the NEF in S200 to S213 shown in FIG. 10 is executed; or the method flow of the NEF in S200 to S213 is executed as shown in FIG. Figure 3 The method flow of the NEF in S300 to S307 shown in FIG. 1 is as follows: Figure 4 The method flow of the NEF in S400-S407 is shown.

[0311] like Figure 8 As shown, the present invention provides a network capability opening device, which includes: at least one processing unit 800, at least one storage unit 801 and at least one communication unit 802, wherein the communication unit 802 is used to receive and send data under the control of the processing unit 800, and the storage unit 801 stores program code.

[0312] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is a NEF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0313] Used to receive a first request from an application function network element through the communication unit 802, the first request including the address of the target terminal device; send the second request to the first network element through the communication unit 802, the second request including the address of the target terminal device, the second request being used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within a standard 3GPP system of the third generation technology; receive the first identifier from the first network element through the communication unit 802; determine a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system based on the first identifier; send the second identifier to the application function network element through the communication unit 802, the second identifier being used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier.

[0314] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is a NEF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0315] Used to receive a first request sent from an application function network element through the communication unit 802, the first request including the address of the target terminal device and the first information of the target terminal device; send a second request to the first network element, the second request including the address of the target terminal device, the second request is used to request a first identifier to identify the target terminal device in the 3GPP system; receive the first identifier from the first network element; send a third request to the second network element, the third request including the first identifier and the first information, the third request is used to instruct to save the first information.

[0316] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is a NEF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0317] Used to receive a first request sent from an application function network element through the communication unit 802, the first request including the address of the target terminal device, and the first request is used to request first information of the target terminal device from the specification 3GPP system of the third generation technology; send a second request to the first network element through the communication unit 802, the second request including the address of the target terminal device, and the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system; receive the first identifier from the first network element through the communication unit 802; send a third request to the second network element through the communication unit 802, the third request including the first identifier, and the third request is used to request the first information.

[0318] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability information opening device is AF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0319] Used to send a first request to a first network element through the communication unit 802, the first request including the address of the target terminal device, the first request being used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within the 3GPP system; receive the first identifier from the first network element through the communication unit 802; send a second request to a second network element through the communication unit 802, the second request including the first identifier and first information, the second request being used to indicate saving the first information of the target terminal device.

[0320] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is AF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0321] Used to send a first request to a first network element through the communication unit 802, the first request including the address of a target terminal device, and the first request being used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within a 3GPP system; receive the first identifier from the first network element through the communication unit 802; send a second request to a second network element through the communication unit 802, the second request including the first identifier, and the second request being used to request the first information.

[0322] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is AF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0323] Used to send a first request to NEF through the communication unit 802, the first request including the address of the target terminal device, the first request being used to request a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; receive a second identifier from the NEF through the communication unit 802; send the second identifier to EAS through the communication unit 802, the second identifier being used to open an API interface corresponding to the second identifier.

[0324] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is a UDM, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0325] Used to receive, through the communication unit 802, a request for obtaining a second identifier sent from the AF or NEF, the request including a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within the 3GPP system, and the second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; determine the second identifier based on a correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the first identifier; and feed back the second identifier to the AF or NEF through the communication unit 802.

[0326] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is a UDM, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0327] Used to receive, through the communication unit 802, a request sent from the AF or NEF for instructing to save the first information of the target terminal device, the request including the first identifier of the target terminal device and the first information, the first information being the network capability exposure information provided by the AF to the 3GPP system; and instruct a third network element to save the first information according to the request.

[0328] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is a UDM, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0329] Used to receive, through the communication unit 802, a request sent from the AF or NEF for instructing the AF to request the 3GPP system to subscribe to or unsubscribe from first information, the request including a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system and the first information, the first information being used to indicate that the AF requests the 3GPP system to subscribe to or unsubscribe from network capability exposure information; and subscribe to or unsubscribe from the first information to a third network element according to the request.

[0330] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is NWDAF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0331] Used to receive, through the communication unit 802, a request sent from the AF or NEF for instructing to save first information of a target terminal device, the request including a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system and the first information, the first information being used to instruct the AF to request the 3GPP system to subscribe to or unsubscribe from network capability exposure information; and save the first information according to the request.

[0332] In an optional manner of the embodiment of the present application, the network capability opening device is NWDAF, and when the program code is executed by the processing unit 800, the processing unit 800 performs the following process:

[0333] Used to receive, through the communication unit 802, a request sent from the AF or NEF for instructing the AF to request the 3GPP system to subscribe to or unsubscribe from first information, the request including a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in the 3GPP system and the first information, the first information being used to indicate that the AF requests the 3GPP system to subscribe to or unsubscribe from network capability exposure information; subscribe to or unsubscribe from the first information according to the request.

[0334] Above Figure 8The functions of the communication unit 802 and the processing unit 800 shown may be performed by the processor 700 running the program in the memory 701 , or may be performed by the processor 700 alone.

[0335] Figure 8 The communication transmission device shown may be the NEF network element in the above embodiment, or a chip in the NEF network element; or may be the AF network element in the above embodiment, or a chip in the AF network element; or may be the UDM network element in the above embodiment, or a chip in the UDM network element; or may be the NWDAF network element in the above embodiment, or a chip in the NWDAF network element.

[0336] In some possible implementations, various aspects of the method for network capability exposure provided by the embodiments of the present invention may also be implemented in the form of a program product, which includes a program code. When the program code is run on a computer device, the program code is used to enable the computer device to execute the steps of the method for network capability exposure according to various exemplary embodiments of the present invention described in this specification.

[0337] The program product may use any combination of one or more readable media. The readable medium may be a readable signal medium or a readable storage medium. The readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electrical, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, device or device, or any combination of the above. More specific examples of readable storage media (a non-exhaustive list) include: an electrical connection with one or more wires, a portable disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the above.

[0338] The program product for executing network capability opening according to the embodiment of the present invention may adopt a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM) and include program code, and may be run on a server device. However, the program product of the present invention is not limited thereto, and in this document, a readable storage medium may be any tangible medium containing or storing a program, and the program may be used by or in combination with a network capability opening device or a device.

[0339] The readable signal medium may include a data signal propagated in baseband or as part of a cell, carrying a readable program code. Such propagated data signals may take a variety of forms, including, but not limited to, electromagnetic signals, optical signals, or any suitable combination of the above. The readable signal medium may also be any readable medium other than a readable storage medium that can transmit, propagate, or transfer a program for use by or in conjunction with a periodic network action system, device, or device.

[0340] The program code embodied on the readable medium may be transmitted using any appropriate medium, including but not limited to wireless, wireline, optical fiber cable, RF, etc., or any suitable combination of the foregoing.

[0341] Program code for performing the operations of the present invention may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including object-oriented programming languages ​​such as Java, C++, etc., and conventional procedural programming languages ​​such as "C" or similar programming languages. The program code may be executed entirely on the user computing device, partially on the user device, as a separate software package, partially on the user computing device and partially on a remote computing device, or entirely on a remote computing device or server. In the case of a remote computing device, the remote computing device may be connected to the user computing device via any type of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or may be connected to an external computing device.

[0342] The embodiment of the present application also provides a computing device readable storage medium for the method of executing network capability opening of NEF, that is, the content is not lost after power failure. The storage medium stores a software program, including program code, and when the program code is run on the computing device, the software program can implement any of the above network capability opening solutions of the embodiment of the present application when read and executed by one or more processors.

[0343] The embodiment of the present application also provides a computing device readable storage medium for the method of performing network capability opening for AF, that is, the content is not lost after power failure. The storage medium stores a software program, including program code, and when the program code is run on the computing device, the software program can implement any of the above network capability opening solutions of the embodiment of the present application when read and executed by one or more processors.

[0344] The present application is described above with reference to the block diagrams and / or flow charts showing the methods, devices (systems) and / or computer program products according to the embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that a block of the block diagram and / or flow chart diagram and a combination of blocks of the block diagram and / or flow chart diagram can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer and / or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions executed by the computer processor and / or other programmable data processing device create a method for implementing the functions / actions specified in the block diagram and / or flow chart block.

[0345] Accordingly, the present application may also be implemented with hardware and / or software (including firmware, resident software, microcode, etc.). Furthermore, the present application may take the form of a computer program product on a computer-usable or computer-readable storage medium, which has a computer-usable or computer-readable program code implemented in the medium, for use by an instruction execution system or in conjunction with an instruction execution system. In the context of the present application, a computer-usable or computer-readable medium may be any medium that may contain, store, communicate, transmit, or convey a program for use by an instruction execution system, device, or apparatus, or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, device, or apparatus.

[0346] Although the present application has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it is obvious that various modifications and combinations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Accordingly, this specification and the drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the present application as defined by the appended claims, and are deemed to have covered any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the present application. Obviously, a person skilled in the art may make various modifications and variations to the present application without departing from the scope of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A method for opening network capabilities, characterized in that: include: The network open function network element receives a first request from the application function network element, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device; The network open function network element sends a second request to the first network element, where the second request includes the address of the target terminal device, and the second request is used to request a first identifier that identifies the target terminal device in a standard 3GPP system of the third generation technology; The network open function network element receives the first identifier from the first network element; The network open function network element determines, according to the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; The network open function network element sends the second identifier to the application function network element, where the second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The network open function network element determines, according to the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system, including: The network open function network element sends a third request including the first identifier to the unified data management network element, where the third request is used to obtain the second identifier; The network open function network element receives the second identifier from the unified data management network element; The second identifier is obtained by the unified data management network element according to the corresponding relationship between the first identifier and the second identifier and the third request.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that The first network element is a user plane function network element; or the first network element is a policy control function network element.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that Before the network open function network element sends the second request to the first network element, the method further includes: When the first network element is a policy control function network element, the network open function network element sends a fourth request to the binding support function network element, where the fourth request is used to obtain an address of a policy control function network element serving the target terminal device; The network openness function network element receives the address of the policy control function network element from the binding support function network element.

5. The method according to claim 1, 2 or 4, characterized in that: The first identifier is a permanent identifier of a user of the target terminal device; and the second identifier is a universal public user identifier of the target terminal device.

6. The method according to claim 1, 2 or 4, characterized in that: The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

7. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

8. The method according to claim 1, 2, 4 or 7, characterized in that: The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

9. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

10. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

11. A device for opening network capabilities, characterized in that: include: one or more processors; memory; transceiver; The processor is used to read the program in the memory and execute: A first request is received from an application function network element through a transceiver, wherein the first request includes an address of a target terminal device; a second request is sent to the first network element, wherein the second request includes the address of the target terminal device, and the second request is used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device within a standard 3GPP system of the third generation technology; the first identifier is received from the first network element through a transceiver; a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system is determined based on the first identifier; and the second identifier is sent to the application function network element through a transceiver, wherein the second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier.

12. The device according to claim 11, characterized in that The processor is specifically used for: A third request including the first identifier is sent to a unified data management network element via a transceiver, wherein the third request is used to obtain the second identifier; the second identifier is received from the unified data management network element via a transceiver; wherein the second identifier is obtained by the unified data management network element based on the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the third request.

13. The device according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that The first network element is a user plane function network element; or the first network element is a policy control function network element.

14. The device according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that The first identifier is a permanent identifier of a user of the target terminal device; and the second identifier is a universal public user identifier of the target terminal device.

15. A device for opening network capabilities, characterized in that: include: a processing unit and a communication unit; The processing unit is used for: receiving, by the communication unit, a first request from an application function network element, the first request including an address of a target terminal device; sending a second request to the first network element, the second request including the address of the target terminal device, the second request being used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in a standard 3GPP system of a third generation technology; receiving the first identifier from the first network element; Determine, according to the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; The second identifier is sent to the application function network element through the communication unit, and the second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier.

16. The device according to claim 15, characterized in that The processing unit is configured to determine, according to the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system, including: The processing unit is used for: Sending a third request including the first identifier to a unified data management network element through the communication unit, wherein the third request is used to obtain the second identifier; and receiving the second identifier from the unified data management network element; The second identifier is obtained by the unified data management network element according to the corresponding relationship between the first identifier and the second identifier and the third request.

17. The device according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that The first identifier is a permanent identifier of a user of the target terminal device; and the second identifier is a universal public user identifier of the target terminal device.

18. The device according to claim 11 or 12 or 15 or 16, characterized in that The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

19. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

20. The device according to claim 17, characterized in that The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

21. The device according to claim 11 or 12 or 15 or 16 or 19 or 20, characterized in that The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

22. The device according to claim 14, characterized in that The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

23. The device according to claim 17, characterized in that The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

24. The device according to claim 18, characterized in that The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

25. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The method comprises computer instructions, and when the computer instructions are executed on a network capability exposure device, the network capability exposure device is enabled to execute the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

26. A computer program product, characterized in that The computer program product includes computer instructions. When the computer instructions are executed by a network capability exposure device, the network capability exposure device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

27. A method for opening network capabilities, characterized in that: include: The network open function network element receives a first request from the application function network element, where the first request includes an address of a target terminal device; The network open function network element sends a second request to the first network element, where the second request includes the address of the target terminal device, and the second request is used to request a first identifier that identifies the target terminal device in a standard 3GPP system of the third generation technology; The first network element receives the second request and sends the first identifier to the network open function network element; The network open function network element receives the first identifier from the first network element; The network open function network element determines, according to the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; The network open function network element sends the second identifier to the application function network element, where the second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier.

28. The method of claim 27, wherein: The network open function network element determines, according to the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system, including: The network open function network element sends a third request including the first identifier to the unified data management network element, where the third request is used to obtain the second identifier; The unified data management network element obtains the second identifier according to the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the third request, and sends the second identifier to the network open function network element; The network open function network element receives the second identifier from the unified data management network element.

29. The method according to claim 27 or 28, characterized in that The first identifier is a permanent identifier of a user of the target terminal device; and the second identifier is a universal public user identifier of the target terminal device.

30. The method according to claim 27 or 28, characterized in that The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

31. The method of claim 29, wherein: The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

32. The method of claim 27, 28 or 31, wherein: The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

33. The method of claim 29, wherein: The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

34. The method of claim 30, wherein: The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

35. A communication system, characterized in that: It includes a network open function network element and a first network element, wherein: The network open function network element is used for: Receiving a first request from an application function network element, wherein the first request includes an address of a target terminal device; Sending a second request to the first network element, the second request including the address of the target terminal device, the second request being used to request a first identifier for identifying the target terminal device in a standard 3GPP system of the third generation technology; receiving the first identifier from the first network element; Determine, according to the first identifier, a second identifier for identifying the target terminal device outside the 3GPP system; Sending the second identifier to the application function network element, where the second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier; The first network element is used for: The second request is received, and the first identifier is sent to the network open function network element.

36. The communication system according to claim 35, characterized in that Also includes: The application function network element is used to send the first request and receive the second identifier.

37. The communication system according to claim 35 or 36, characterized in that: The network open function network element is used for: Sending a third request including the first identifier to a unified data management network element, where the third request is used to obtain the second identifier; receiving the second identifier from the unified data management network element; The second identifier is obtained by the unified data management network element according to the corresponding relationship between the first identifier and the second identifier and the third request.

38. The communication system according to claim 37, characterized in that It also includes the unified data management network element, which is used for: receiving the third request from the network open function network element; Obtaining the second identifier according to the correspondence between the first identifier and the second identifier and the third request; Send the second identifier to the network open function network element.

39. The communication system according to claim 35, 36 or 38, characterized in that: The first identifier is a permanent identifier of a user of the target terminal device; and the second identifier is a universal public user identifier of the target terminal device.

40. The communication system according to claim 37, characterized in that The first identifier is a permanent identifier of a user of the target terminal device; and the second identifier is a universal public user identifier of the target terminal device.

41. The communication system according to claim 35, 36, 38 or 40, characterized in that: The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

42. The communication system according to claim 37, wherein: The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

43. The communication system according to claim 39, characterized in that The address of the target terminal device is an Internet Protocol address or a MAC address of the target terminal device.

44. The communication system according to claim 35 or 36 or 38 or 40 or 42 or 43, characterized in that: The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

45. The communication system of claim 37, wherein: The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

46. ​​The communication system according to claim 39, characterized in that The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

47. The communication system of claim 41, wherein: The second identifier is used to open an application programming interface corresponding to the second identifier, including: The second identifier is used by the application function network element to call the application programming interface provided by other network elements in the 3GPP system to obtain information related to the target terminal device.

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