Method for transmitting service data flow, communication device and communication system

Abstract

Embodiments of the present application provide a service data stream transmission method, a communication device and a communication system. The method comprises: a user plane network element receiving characteristic information of a service data stream and QoS information of the service data stream, the characteristic information of the service data stream being used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data stream in a time period, and the QoS information being used to indicate QCI corresponding to different time slices; determining a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data stream according to the characteristic information of the service data stream; and sending the data packet to an access network device according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream and the QCI corresponding to the first time slice. According to the scheme, multiple QCI are configured for a single service data stream, QoS guarantee is performed on data packets in different time slices according to QCI, the QoS control requirement of a single service data stream in different time periods is met, and the transmission performance of the service data stream can be improved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a service data flow transmission method, a communication device and a communication system. BACKGROUND

[0002] Currently, one service data flow (SDF) is mapped to one Quality of Service (QoS) flow, and QoS guarantee is performed on the QoS flow by using a fixed QoS class identifier (QCI), that is, one service data flow corresponds to one fixed QoS guarantee.

[0003] However, some services (such as video services) currently have a large amount of data and high latency requirements in some time periods, and have a small amount of data and low latency requirements in other time periods. How to perform QoS control on such services to improve the transmission performance of service data flow has not been proposed. SUMMARY

[0004] The present application provides a service data flow transmission method, a communication device and a communication system, to provide a reasonable QoS guarantee mechanism for a single service data flow, to improve the transmission performance of service data flow.

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a service data flow transmission method, comprising: receiving, by a user plane network element, characteristic information of a service data flow and Quality of Service (QoS) information of the service data flow, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data flow in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifiers (QCIs) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; determining, by the user plane network element, a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow; and sending, by the user plane network element, the data packet according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and the QCI corresponding to the first time slice.

[0006] Here, the user plane network element sends the data packet, for example, the user plane network element can send the data packet to an access network device through an interface between the user plane network element and the access network device, or the user plane network element can send the data packet to the access network device through an intermediate node (such as another user plane network element, etc.).

[0007] Based on the above scheme, for a single service data flow, multiple QCIs are configured, and for data packets in different time slices, corresponding QoS guarantees are performed according to corresponding QCIs, the flexibility of service data flow control is realized, the QoS control requirements of a single service data flow in different time periods are met, and therefore the transmission performance of the service data flow can be improved.

[0008] In a possible implementation method, the characteristic information includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QoS information includes a QoS flow identifier QFI and QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively are not completely same, and the service data flow has a mapping relationship with a QoS flow corresponding to the QFI; and the user plane network element determines a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow, including: the user plane network element determines a first time slice corresponding to a first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow.

[0009] Based on the above scheme, the user plane network element can determine the time slice corresponding to the bit rate of the data packet, and then determine the time slice corresponding to the data packet, so that the time slice corresponding to the data packet can be quickly determined, and the data transmission capability can be improved.

[0010] In a possible implementation method, the user plane network element determines a first time slice corresponding to a first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow, including: the user plane network element determines a boundary (also can be called a starting point) of a time period in which the data packet is located according to the characteristic information; and the user plane network element determines the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate according to at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, and the first bit rate.

[0011] In a possible implementation method, the user plane network element sends the data packet according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and a QCI corresponding to the first time slice, including: the user plane network element adds the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet, and sends the data packet carrying the QFI and the first QCI, and the first QCI is a QCI corresponding to the first time slice in the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively.

[0012] Based on the scheme, the user plane network element can send the QCI corresponding to the data packet in the data packet, so that the receiving side network element can directly obtain the QCI corresponding to the data packet from the data packet, and implement QoS control on the data packet based on the QCI, thereby realizing quick determination of the QoS control strategy corresponding to the data packet, and helping to improve the data transmission quality.

[0013] In a possible implementation method, the user plane network element adds the QFI and the first QCI in the packet header of the data packet.

[0014] In a possible implementation method, the characteristic information of the service data flow is from an application server, or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a database, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow in the database is from an application server, or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a session management network element, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow in the session management network element is from an application server.

[0015] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a service data flow transmission method, including: an access network device receiving characteristic information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices in a time period of the service data flow, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; the access network device determining configuration parameters corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the QoS information; and the access network device sending the data packet to a terminal device according to the configuration parameters.

[0016] Based on the above scheme, for a single service data flow, multiple QCI are configured, and for data packets in different time slices, corresponding QoS guarantee is performed according to corresponding QCI, thereby realizing flexibility of service data flow control, meeting QoS control requirements of a single service data flow in different time periods, and thus improving transmission performance of the service data flow.

[0017] In a possible implementation, the characteristic information includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QoS information includes a QFI and QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively are not completely same, and the service data stream has a mapping relationship with a QoS stream corresponding to the QFI; the access network device determines the configuration parameter corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream according to the characteristic information of the service data stream and the QoS information, including: the access network device determines a first time slice corresponding to a first bit rate of the data packet of the service data stream from the at least two time slices according to the characteristic information of the service data stream and the first bit rate; the access network device determines a first QCI corresponding to the first time slice from the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively; and the access network device determines the configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI as the configuration parameter corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream.

[0018] Based on the foregoing scheme, the configuration parameter corresponding to the data packet can be quickly determined, and the data transmission capability can be improved.

[0019] In a possible implementation, the configuration parameter includes one or more of the following information: a sending rate, a packet loss rate, a packet delay budget, and a priority.

[0020] In a possible implementation, the access network device determines a sending time and a subcarrier occupied by the data packet according to reported channel state information (CSI); and the access network device sends the data packet to the terminal device according to the configuration parameter, including: the access network device sends the data packet to the terminal device at the sending time and the subcarrier occupied by the data packet according to the configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI.

[0021] Based on the foregoing scheme, the access network device can determine the sending time and the subcarrier of the data packet based on the CSI reported by the terminal device, and the data transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0022] In a possible implementation, the access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device, the configuration information includes indication information and the time period, and the indication information is used to indicate that a CSI reporting period of the terminal device is same as the time period; and the access network device receives the CSI from the terminal device.

[0023] In a possible implementation, the indication information is further used to indicate that the terminal device reports the CSI in a first time length before the data packet arrives.

[0024] In a possible implementation, the access network device determines, according to the time period, an arrival time of the data packet; the access network device sends, to the terminal device, a downlink control information (DCI) before the data packet arrives for a second time length, where the DCI is used to instruct the terminal device to report the CSI; and the access network device receives the CSI from the terminal device.

[0025] In a possible implementation, the characteristic information of the service data flow is from an application server, or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a database, where the characteristic information of the service data flow in the database is from an application server, or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a session management network element, where the characteristic information of the service data flow in the session management network element is from an application server.

[0026] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a service data flow transmission method, including: an access network device receiving, from a user plane network element, a data packet of a quality of service (QoS) flow, where a packet header of the data packet carries a QoS flow identifier (QFI) and a QoS class identifier (QCI), and the QFI is used to identify the QoS flow; and the access network device sending, to a terminal device, the data packet according to configuration parameters corresponding to the QCI.

[0027] In a possible implementation, the access network device receives, from a session management network element, QoS information of a service data flow, where the QoS information includes the QFI, the QCI, and the configuration parameters corresponding to the QCI, the service data flow has a mapping relationship with the QoS flow, and the access network device acquires the configuration parameters corresponding to the QCI according to the QoS information.

[0028] In a possible implementation, the configuration parameters include one or more of the following: a bit rate, a packet loss rate, a packet delay budget, and a priority.

[0029] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a service data flow transmission method, including: a session management network element sending, to a user plane network element, characteristic information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow, where the characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices in a time period of the service data flow, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifiers (QCIs) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; the characteristic information of the service data flow enables the user plane network element to determine a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow, and to send the data packet according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and a QCI corresponding to the first time slice.

[0030] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for transmitting a service flow data stream, comprising: a session management network element sending characteristic information of a service data stream and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data stream to an access network device, wherein the characteristic information of the service data stream is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data stream in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; the characteristic information of the service data stream can enable the access network device to determine configuration parameters corresponding to data packets of the service data stream according to the characteristic information of the service data stream and the QoS information; and the access network device sends the data packets to a terminal device according to the configuration parameters.

[0031] In a possible implementation method of the fourth aspect or the fifth aspect, the session management network element receives the characteristic information of the service data stream and the QoS information of the service data stream from a policy control network element.

[0032] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be a user plane network element, and can also be a chip for the user plane network element. The apparatus has the functions of implementing the first aspect or the possible implementation methods of the first aspect. The functions can be implemented by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0033] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be an access network device, and can also be a chip for the access network device. The apparatus has the functions of implementing the second aspect, the third aspect, the possible implementation methods of the second aspect, or the possible implementation methods of the third aspect. The functions can be implemented by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0034] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which can be a session management network element, and can also be a chip for the session management network element. The apparatus has the functions of implementing the fourth aspect, the fifth aspect, the possible implementation methods of the fourth aspect, or the possible implementation methods of the fifth aspect. The functions can be implemented by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0035] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, comprising a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store computer execution instructions, and when the apparatus is running, the processor executes the computer execution instructions stored in the memory, so that the apparatus executes any method in the methods of the first aspect to the fifth aspect and the possible implementation methods of the first aspect to the fifth aspect.

[0036] In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which comprises units or means for performing each step of any of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect and each possible implementation of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect.

[0037] In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which comprises a processor and an interface circuit. The processor is configured to communicate with other apparatuses via the interface circuit, and perform any of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect and each possible implementation of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect. The processor comprises one or more processors.

[0038] In a twelfth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, which comprises a processor configured to be connected with a memory, and invoke a program stored in the memory to perform any of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect and each possible implementation of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect. The memory can be located in the apparatus or outside the apparatus. The processor comprises one or more processors.

[0039] In a thirteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer readable storage medium, which stores instructions. When the instructions run on a computer, the processor performs any of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect and each possible implementation of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect.

[0040] In a fourteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a computer program product, which comprises a computer program. When the computer program runs, it makes the above-mentioned methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect and each possible implementation of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect.

[0041] In a fifteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a chip system, which comprises a processor configured to perform any of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect and each possible implementation of the methods in the first aspect to the fifth aspect.

[0042] In a sixteenth aspect, the embodiments of the present application further provide a communication system, comprising a user plane network element and a receiving network element. The user plane network element is configured to receive characteristic information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow from a session management network element, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data flow in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; determine a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow; and send the data packet to the receiving network element according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and the QCI corresponding to the first time slice. The receiving network element is configured to receive the data packet from the user plane network element.

[0043] In a seventeenth aspect, the embodiments of the present application further provide a communication system, comprising an access network device and a session management network element. The session management network element is configured to send characteristic information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow to the access network device, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data flow in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively. The access network device is configured to receive the characteristic information of the service data flow and the QoS information of the service data flow from the session management network element; determine configuration parameters corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the QoS information; and send the data packet to a terminal device according to the configuration parameters. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0044] FIG. 1(a) is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0045] FIG. 1(b) is a schematic diagram of another communication system provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0046] FIG. 2(a) is a schematic diagram of a 5G network architecture based on a service-oriented architecture;

[0047] FIG. 2(b) is a schematic diagram of a 5G network architecture based on a point-to-point interface;

[0048] FIG. 3(a) is a schematic diagram of a service data flow transmission method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0049] FIG. 3(b) is a schematic diagram of another service data flow transmission method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0050] Figure 4 FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of time slices provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0051] Figure 5 FIG. 1(b) is a schematic diagram of another method for transmitting a service data flow according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0052] Figure 6 FIG. 1(b) is a schematic diagram of another method for transmitting a service data flow according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0053] Figure 7 FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0054] Figure 8 FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application; DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0055] In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present application clearer, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the drawings. The specific operation methods in the method embodiments can also be applied to the device embodiments or system embodiments. In the description of the present application, the meaning of "a plurality of" is two or more, unless otherwise specified.

[0056] To solve the problems mentioned in the background, as shown in FIG. 1(a), the present application provides a communication system, which includes an access network device and a user plane network element. Optionally, the system further includes a session management network element.

[0057] The user plane network element is configured to receive characteristic information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow from a session management network element, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data flow in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; determine a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow; and send the data packet to a receiving network element according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and the QCI corresponding to the first time slice; and the receiving network element is configured to receive the data packet from the user plane network element.

[0058] In a specific implementation, the receiving network element can be an access network device, or other user plane network element, or other network element in the network, which is not limited here.

[0059] In a possible implementation, the characteristic information includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QoS information includes a QoS flow identifier QFI and QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively are not completely same, and the service data flow has a mapping relationship with a QoS flow corresponding to the QFI; the user plane network element is configured to determine a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow, and specifically includes a unit configured to determine, according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and a first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow, a first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate in the at least two time slices.

[0060] In a possible implementation, the user plane network element is configured to determine, according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and a first bit rate of a data packet of the service data flow, a first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate in the at least two time slices, and specifically includes a unit configured to determine a boundary of a time period in which the data packet is located according to the characteristic information, and determine the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate according to at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, and the first bit rate.

[0061] In a possible implementation, the user plane network element is configured to send the data packet to a receiving network element according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and a QCI corresponding to the first time slice, and specifically includes a unit configured to add the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet and send the data packet carrying the QFI and the first QCI to the receiving network element, where the first QCI is a QCI corresponding to the first time slice in the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively.

[0062] In a possible implementation, the user plane network element is configured to add the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet, and specifically includes a unit configured to add the QFI and the first QCI to a packet header of the data packet.

[0063] In a possible implementation, the session management network element is configured to receive characteristic information of the service data flow and QoS information of the service data flow from a policy control network element, and send the characteristic information of the service data flow and the QoS information of the service data flow to the user plane network element.

[0064] Specific implementation of the above scheme will be described in detail in subsequent method embodiment part, which will not be repeated here.

[0065] The system shown in FIG. 1(a) can be used in the fifth generation (5G) network architecture shown in FIG. 2(a) or FIG. 2(b), and of course, can also be used in future network architectures, such as the sixth generation (6G) network architecture, etc., which are not limited in the present application.

[0066] To solve the problems mentioned in the background, as shown in FIG. 1(b), the present application provides a communication system, which includes an access network device and a session management network element.

[0067] The session management network element is configured to send feature information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow to the access network device, wherein the feature information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic feature information corresponding to different time slices in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; the access network device is configured to receive the feature information of the service data flow and the QoS information of the service data flow from the session management network element, determine configuration parameters corresponding to data packets of the service data flow according to the feature information of the service data flow and the QoS information, and send the data packets to a terminal device according to the configuration parameters.

[0068] In a possible implementation method, the feature information includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QoS information includes QFI and QCI corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QCI corresponding to the at least two time slices is not completely the same, and the service data flow has a mapping relationship with a QoS flow corresponding to the QFI; the access network device is configured to determine the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data flow according to the feature information of the service data flow and the QoS information, specifically including: determining a first time slice corresponding to a first bit rate of the data packets of the service data flow from the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate in the at least two time slices according to the feature information of the service data flow and the first bit rate of the data packets of the service data flow; determining a first QCI corresponding to the first time slice from the QCI corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively according to the first time slice; and determining the configuration parameters corresponding to the first QCI as the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data flow.

[0069] In a possible implementation method, the configuration parameters include one or more of the following information: sending rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, and priority.

[0070] In a possible implementation, the access network device is further configured to determine a transmission occasion and subcarriers occupied by the data packet according to the reported channel state information (CSI), and transmit the data packet to the terminal device according to the configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI, including transmitting the data packet to the terminal device at the transmission occasion and subcarriers occupied by the data packet according to the configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI.

[0071] In a possible implementation, the access network device is further configured to transmit configuration information to the terminal device, where the configuration information includes indication information and the time period, and the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device reports channel state information (CSI) at a same period as the time period, and receive the CSI from the terminal device.

[0072] In a possible implementation, the indication information is further used to indicate that the terminal device reports the CSI within a first time period before the data packet arrives.

[0073] In a possible implementation, the access network device is further configured to determine an arrival time of the data packet according to the time period, transmit downlink control information (DCI) to the terminal device within a second time period before the data packet arrives, where the DCI is used to instruct the terminal device to report the CSI, and receive the CSI from the terminal device.

[0074] The specific implementation of the above scheme will be described in detail in subsequent method embodiment parts, and will not be repeated here.

[0075] The system shown in FIG. 1(b) can be used in the 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(a) or FIG. 2(b), of course, it can also be used in future network architectures, such as 6G network architecture, etc., which is not limited in the present application.

[0076] For example, assuming that the communication system shown in FIG. 1(a) or FIG. 1(b) is applied to the 5G network architecture, as shown in FIG. 2(a), which is a schematic diagram of a 5G network architecture based on a service-oriented architecture. The network element or entity corresponding to the user plane network element in FIG. 1(a) can be the user plane function (UPF) network element in the 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(a), and the network element or entity corresponding to the access network device in FIG. 1(a) or FIG. 1(b) can be the radio access network (RAN) device in the 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(a). The network element or entity corresponding to the session management network element in FIG. 1(a) or FIG. 1(b) can be the session management function (SMF) network element in the 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(a).

[0077] The 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(a) can include three parts, which are terminal device part, data network (DN) and operator network part respectively. The functions of some network elements in the network are briefly introduced as follows.

[0078] Among them, the operator network can include one or more of the following network elements: Authentication Server Function (AUSF) network element, network exposure function (NEF) network element, Policy Control Function (PCF) network element, unified data management (UDM), Unified Data Repository (UDR), Network Repository Function (NRF) network element, Application Function (AF) network element, Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) network element, SMF network element, RAN and UPF network element, etc. Among the above operator network, except for the wireless access network part, the part can be referred to as the core network part.

[0079] In specific implementations, the terminal device in the embodiments of the present application can be a device for implementing wireless communication functions. The terminal device can be a user equipment (UE), an access terminal, a terminal unit, a terminal station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a wireless communication device, a terminal agent, or a terminal device in a 5G network or a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN). The access terminal can 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 functions, a computing device, or other processing devices 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 treatment, 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 can be mobile or fixed.

[0080] The terminal device can establish a connection with the operator network through an interface (such as N1, etc.) provided by the operator network, and use data and / or voice services provided by the operator network. The terminal device can also access the DN through the operator network, use operator services deployed on the DN, and / or third-party services. The third party can be a service provider other than the operator network and the terminal device, and can provide other data and / or voice services to the terminal device. The specific form of the third party can be determined according to the actual application scenario, which is not limited here.

[0081] The RAN is a subnetwork of the operator network and is an implementation system between the service nodes and the terminal devices in the operator network. To access the operator network, the terminal device first passes through the RAN and then can be connected to the service nodes of the operator network through the RAN. The RAN device in the present application is a device that provides wireless communication functions for the terminal device, and the RAN device is also referred to as an access network device. The RAN device in the present application includes but is not limited to: a next-generation base station (g nodeB, gNB) in 5G, an evolved node B (eNB), a radio network controller (RNC), a node B (NB), a base station controller (BSC), a base transceiver station (BTS), a home base station (for example, a home evolved nodeB or a home node B, HNB), a baseband unit (BBU), a transmitting and receiving point (TRP), a transmitting point (TP), a mobile switching center, and the like.

[0082] The AMF network element is mainly used for mobility management, access authentication or authorization, and the like. In addition, the AMF network element is also responsible for transmitting user policies between the UE and the PCF.

[0083] The SMF network element is mainly used for session management, execution of a control policy issued by the PCF, selection of the UPF, allocation of an internet protocol (IP) address of the UE, and the like.

[0084] The UPF network element is an interface UPF with a data network, and is used to complete functions such as user plane data forwarding, session / stream level-based charging statistics, and bandwidth limitation.

[0085] The UDM network element is mainly used for managing subscription data and user access authorization.

[0086] The UDR is mainly used for accessing functions of types of data such as subscription data, policy data, and application data.

[0087] The NEF network element is mainly used for supporting the opening of capabilities and events.

[0088] AF network element, mainly to transfer the demand of application side to network side, for example, QoS demand or user state event subscription, etc. AF can be a third party functional entity, or an application service deployed by the operator, such as IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) voice call service. Among them, the AF network element can also be called an application server.

[0089] PCF network element, mainly responsible for charging, QoS bandwidth guarantee and mobility management at the session and service data flow level, and other policy control functions such as UE policy decision.

[0090] NRF network element, which can be used to provide network element discovery function, based on the request of other network elements, provide network element information corresponding to the network element type. NRF also provides network element management services, such as network element registration, update, deregistration, and network element state subscription and push, etc.

[0091] AUSF network element: mainly responsible for authenticating users to determine whether to allow users or devices to access the network.

[0092] DN is a network located outside the operator network, and the operator network can access multiple DN. Various services can be deployed on the DN, and data and / or voice services can be provided to terminal devices. For example, the DN is a private network of a smart factory, and the sensors installed in the workshop of the smart factory can be terminal devices. The control server of the sensor is deployed in the DN, and the control server can provide services for the sensor. The sensor can communicate with the control server to obtain instructions from the control server, and transmit the collected sensor data to the control server according to the instructions. For another example, the DN is an internal office network of a company, and the mobile phones or computers of the employees of the company can be terminal devices. The mobile phones or computers of the employees can access information and data resources on the internal office network of the company.

[0093] In FIG. 2(a), Nausf, Nnef, Npcf, Nudm, Naf, Namf, Nsmf, N1, N2, N3, N4, and N6 are interface sequence numbers. The meanings of these interface sequence numbers can be referred to the meanings defined in the 3GPP standard protocol, which are not limited here.

[0094] For example, assuming that the communication system shown in FIG. 1(a) or FIG. 1(b) is applied to a 5G network architecture, as shown in FIG. 2(b), which is a schematic diagram of a 5G network architecture based on a service-oriented architecture. The network element or entity corresponding to the user plane network element in FIG. 1(a) can be the UPF network element in the 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(b), and the network element or entity corresponding to the access network device in FIG. 1(a) or FIG. 1(b) can be the RAN device in the 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(b). The network element or entity corresponding to the session management network element in FIG. 1(a) or FIG. 1(b) can be the SMF network element in the 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 2(b).

[0095] The functions of the network elements in FIG. 2(b) can refer to the functions of the corresponding network elements in FIG. 2(a), and will not be described again. The main difference between FIG. 2(b) and FIG. 2(a) is that the interfaces between the network elements in FIG. 2(b) are point-to-point interfaces, rather than service-oriented interfaces.

[0096] In the architecture shown in FIG. 2(b), the interface names and functions between the network elements are as follows:

[0097] 1) N7: interface between PCF and SMF, used to issue protocol data unit (PDU) session granularity and service data flow granularity control policies.

[0098] 2) N15: interface between PCF and AMF, used to issue UE policies and access control related policies.

[0099] 3) N5: interface between AF and PCF, used for application service request issuance and network event reporting.

[0100] 4) N4: interface between SMF and UPF, used to transfer information between the control plane and the user plane, including the issuance of control plane forwarding rules, QoS control rules, traffic statistics rules, and the reporting of user plane information.

[0101] 5) N11: interface between SMF and AMF, used to transfer PDU session tunnel information between the RAN and the UPF, transfer control messages sent to the UE, and transfer radio resource control information sent to the RAN.

[0102] 6) N2: interface between AMF and RAN, used to transfer radio bearer control information from the core network side to the RAN.

[0103] 7) N1: interface between AMF and UE, access independent, used to transfer QoS control rules to the UE.

[0104] 8) N8: interface between AMF and UDM, used for AMF to acquire access and mobility management related subscription data and authentication data from UDM, and for AMF to register UE current mobility management related information to UDM, etc.

[0105] 9) N10: interface between SMF and UDM, used for SMF to acquire session management related subscription data from UDM, and for SMF to register UE current session related information to UDM, etc.

[0106] 10) N35: interface between UDM and UDR, used for UDM to acquire user subscription data information from UDR.

[0107] 11) N36: interface between PCF and UDR, used for PCF to acquire policy related subscription data and application data related information from UDR.

[0108] 12) N12: interface between AMF and AUSF, used for AMF to initiate an authentication procedure to AUSF, which can carry SUCI as a subscription identifier;

[0109] 13) N13: interface between UDM and AUSF, used for AUSF to acquire user authentication vector from UDM to perform an authentication procedure.

[0110] It can be understood that the above network elements or functions can be network elements in a hardware device, or software functions running on a dedicated hardware, or virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform). Optionally, the above network elements or functions can be implemented by one device, or can be implemented by multiple devices together, or can be a functional module in a device, and the embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations thereto.

[0111] The session management network element, the policy control network element, the user plane network element, and the access network device in the present application can be SMF, PCF, UPF, and RAN in FIG. 2(a) or FIG. 2(b), or can be network elements having the functions of the above SMF, PCF, UPF, and RAN in future communications such as 6G networks, and the present application does not make specific limitations thereto. For the convenience of description, the session management network element, the policy control network element, the user plane network element, and the access network device are taken as the above SMF, PCF, UPF, and RAN as examples for description. And, the terminal device is taken as UE as an example for description.

[0112] In the existing QoS model, when the UPF receives downlink packets, the UPF encapsulates packets with the same reliability requirement into the same QoS flow according to the packet detection rule (PDR) filter configured in advance by the SMF. Multiple QoS flows can exist in the same PDU session, but each QoS flow has an independent and unique QoS flow identifier (QFI), and each QoS flow is associated with a QoS profile. The network side will adopt the same QoS guarantee such as delay, forwarding priority, and packet loss rate for packets belonging to the same QoS flow according to the parameters in the QoS profile.

[0113] When the RAN receives downlink QoS flows from the UPF, the RAN encapsulates multiple QoS flows into the same data radio bearer (DRB) according to certain mapping rules, and the same DRB enjoys the same air interface reliability guarantee.

[0114] As described in the background, the current fixed QCI is used for a single service data flow, and each QCI corresponds to a QoS guarantee level. This fixed QCI method will result in low transmission performance of the service data flow. As an example, in the application scenario of industrial communication services, when the industrial system is in different states within a control time period, the QoS requirement is different, but the existing network adjusts the QoS value of the service data flow in a non-real-time manner, that is, the same QoS is used in different industrial states, resulting in a mismatch between QoS and real requirements. For example, in an industrial control application, the QoS requirement is high in the initial stage, and the QoS requirement is low in the stable stage. If the same QoS as the initial stage is used in the stable stage, it will cause waste of wireless resources. As another example, in the media service scenario of video communication, multi-party video conference, etc., the QoS requirement of media service data flow changes within a certain time period. For example, in a group of pictures (GOP) corresponding period, the QoS requirement of different image frames is different. Exemplarily, when the GOP is 60, the frame rate is 60 frames per second, and the GOP period is 1 second, the initial frame in a period is I frame, the QoS requirement is: rate 40 MB / s, transmission time length 16.7 ms; the remaining frames are P frames, the QoS requirement is: rate 10 MB / s, transmission time length 16.8 ms to 1 second.

[0115] It can be seen that in the two application scenarios, there are at least two QoS requirements in a time period, and only one fixed QCI can be provided in a time period at present, that is, only one QoS requirement can be provided, which cannot meet the requirements of the above application scenarios.

[0116] The technical problem of the application embodiment is to solve the above-mentioned technical problem that the QoS guarantee mechanism for a single service data flow is not perfect, resulting in low transmission performance of the service data flow.

[0117] In the application embodiment, the transmission mode of the service data flow is configured according to the traffic characteristics of the service data flow, that is, the sending rate (also known as bit rate) of the service data flow is large in a period of time, and the sending rate is small in other periods of time. Specifically, a time period is divided into different time segments (also known as time slices), and the data sending rate of different time segments in the time period is configured based on the traffic characteristics of the service data flow, so that when data with a large sending rate is received, a large sending rate is used for external transmission, and when data with a small sending rate is received, a small sending rate is used for external transmission.

[0118] In the application embodiment, the service data flow refers to the data flow of a service from a third-party application server, such as a media service data flow. Specifically, it includes a video service data flow, a voice service data flow, etc. The network element of the core network, such as the UPF, can map the service data flow to a QoS flow.

[0119] The service data flow information includes one or more of the following: the identification of the application (Application ID, App ID), the identification information of the service data flow, the characteristic information of the service data flow (Traffic model), and the QoS requirement of the service data flow.

[0120] The identification of the application is used to identify a specific service, for example, it can be a set of characters.

[0121] The identification information of the service data flow includes but is not limited to one or more of the following information: IP triplets, uniform resource locator (Uniform Resource Locator, URL). The IP triplets refer to the IP address, port number and protocol number of the application server (i.e. AF).

[0122] The characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate the traffic characteristics information corresponding to different time slices in a time period. The characteristic information of the service data flow includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and a bit rate corresponding to each time slice.

[0123] The QoS requirement of the service data flow includes one or more of the following information: bitrate, packet error rate (PER), packet delay budget (PDB).

[0124] It should be noted that the characteristic information of the service data flow has a corresponding relationship with the QoS requirement of the service data flow, and each time slice in a time period in the characteristic information of the service data flow corresponds to a QoS requirement. Different time slices may have the same or different QoS requirements. For example, a time period is divided into 10 time slices, namely time slice 1 to time slice 10. Time slice 1 corresponds to QoS requirement 1, time slices 2-3 both correspond to QoS requirement 2, and time slices 4-10 all correspond to QoS requirement 3.

[0125] As shown in FIG. 3(a), it is a schematic diagram of a service data flow transmission method provided by an embodiment of the present application. The method determines different QCI corresponding to different data packets by the UPF, and adds the corresponding QCI to the data packets, so that the RAN can transmit the data packets based on the QCI in the data packets.

[0126] The method comprises the following steps:

[0127] Step 301a, the UPF receives the characteristic information of the service data flow and the QoS information of the service data flow.

[0128] The characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate the traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data flow in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate the QCI corresponding to different time slices.

[0129] The traffic characteristic information here can include bitrate, or data size, etc. of the service data flow, or other information capable of reflecting the traffic of the service data flow, which is not limited here.

[0130] Optionally, the characteristic information of the service data flow comes from the AF. Alternatively, the characteristic information of the service data flow comes from a database, and the characteristic information of the service data flow in the database comes from the AF. Alternatively, the characteristic information of the service data flow comes from the SMF, and the characteristic information of the service data flow in the SMF comes from the AF.

[0131] Step 302a, the UPF determines the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow.

[0132] For example, the characteristic information of the service data flow includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QoS information includes a QoS flow identity (QFI) and QCs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QCs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively are not completely same, and the service data flow and a QoS flow corresponding to the QFI have a mapping relationship, then the step 302a can be specifically: determining, by the UPF, a first time slice corresponding to a first bit rate of a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow. In a specific application, the UPF first determines a boundary (i.e., a starting point) of a time period in which the data packet is located according to the characteristic information of the service data flow, and then determines the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate according to the at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, the bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, and the first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow. That is, the UPF first identifies that the bit rate of the received data packet is the first bit rate, and then determines that the time slice corresponding to the first bit rate is the first time slice, and thus determines that the data packet corresponds to the first time slice.

[0133] As an example, reference is made to Figure 4 , which is a schematic diagram of time slices. The characteristic information of the service data flow includes that a time period is 1 second, the time period is divided into 60 time slices, time slice 1 corresponds to a bit rate 1, and time slice 2 to time slice 60 correspond to a bit rate 2. The QoS information includes a QFI, and time slice 1 corresponds to a QC 83, and time slice 2 to time slice 60 correspond to a QC 87. When the UPF receives a data packet of the service data flow, it is identified that the bit rate of the data packet is the bit rate 1, and it is determined that the data packet corresponds to time slice 1. Here, any one of the time slice 1 to the time slice 60 can be regarded as the first time slice.

[0134] As an implementation method, when the first time slice is time slice 1, the UPF can determine the time slice 1 according to the following method: the UPF first determines the boundary of the time period (i.e., the starting point of the time period, which is the starting point of the time slice 1) in which the received data packet is located according to the characteristic information of the service data flow, and then determines the time slice 1 corresponding to the bit rate 1 according to the time slice 1 to the time slice 60 corresponding to the time period, and the bit rate 1 and the bit rate 1 of the data packet. That is, the UPF first determines the boundary of the time period, and then determines the time slice 1 corresponding to the bit rate 1 in a time period starting from the boundary of the time period. As an implementation method, when the first time slice is any one of the time slice 2 to the time slice 60, the UPF can determine any one of the time slice 2 to the time slice 60 according to the following method: the UPF determines one of the time slice 2 to the time slice 60 corresponding to the bit rate 2 according to the boundary of the time period (i.e., the starting point of the time slice 1), the bit rate 2 and the bit rate 2 of the data packet. That is, the UPF first determines the starting point of the time slice 2 according to the starting point of the time slice 1, and then determines one of the time slice 2 to the time slice 60 according to the bit rate 2 of the received data packet. Specifically, which one of the time slice 2 to the time slice 60 needs to be determined in combination with the time delay between the time point of receiving the data packet with the bit rate 2 and the time point of receiving the data packet with the bit rate 1.

[0135] It should be noted that, in the example shown in Figure 4 In the example shown in FIG. 6, the time period can also be divided into time slices with different time lengths, such as dividing 1 second into two time slices. Among them, the time slice 1 occupies the 0-16.7 milliseconds, the time slice 1 corresponds to the bit rate 1, and the time slice 1 corresponds to the QCI 83. The time slice 2 occupies the 16.8-1 second, the time slice 2 corresponds to the bit rate 2, and the time slice 1 corresponds to the QCI 87. When the UPF receives the data packet of the service data flow, if it is identified that the bit rate of the data packet is the bit rate 1, it is determined that the data packet corresponds to the time slice 1. If it is identified that the bit rate of the data packet is not the bit rate 1, it is determined that the data packet corresponds to the time slice 2. Here, the time slice 1 or the time slice 2 can be regarded as the first time slice.

[0136] Figure 4 Taking two QCI in a period as an example, in actual application, the number of QCI in a period is not limited to two, and can be more than two.

[0137] At step 303a, the UPF sends the data packet to the RAN according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and the QCI corresponding to the first time slice. Correspondingly, the RAN receives the data packet.

[0138] Here, the UPF sending the data packet to the RAN can be, for example, that the UPF sends the data packet to the RAN through an interface between the UPF and the RAN, or that the UPF sends the data packet to the RAN through an intermediate node.

[0139] For example, the step 303a can be specifically that the RAN carries the identification (i.e., QFI) of the service data flow and the first QCI corresponding to the first time slice in the data packet and sends the data packet to the RAN, the first QCI being the QCI corresponding to the first time slice among the QCI corresponding to at least two time slices of the time period respectively. Optionally, the UPF can add the first QCI and the QFI to the data packet. For example, the first QCI and the QFI can be added to the packet header of the data packet, and of course, the implementation is not limited to this adding manner. Figure 4 For example, if it is determined that the data packet corresponds to the time slice 1, the UPF carries the QFI and the QCI 83 in the data packet. If it is determined that the data packet corresponds to any one of the time slice 2 to the time slice 60, the UPF carries the QFI and the QCI 87 in the data packet.

[0140] At step 304a, the RAN sends the data packet to the UE according to the configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI.

[0141] After the RAN receives the data packet carrying the first QCI, the first QCI is obtained therefrom, and the data packet is sent to the UE according to the configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI. The configuration parameter includes one or more of the following: transmission rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, priority. That is, the RAN determines the transmission mode of sending the data packet to the UE according to one or more of the transmission rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, and priority indicated by the configuration parameter, and sends the data packet to the UE based on the transmission mode.

[0142] For example, the data packet carries the QCI 83, and the RAN sends the data packet to the UE according to the bit rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, or priority corresponding to the QCI 83. For another example, the data packet carries the QCI 87, and the RAN sends the data packet to the UE according to the bit rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, or priority corresponding to the QCI 87.

[0143] Optionally, the RAN can receive the QoS information of the service data flow from the SMF, the QoS information including the QFI, the QCI, and the configuration parameter corresponding to the QCI, and the RAN can obtain the configuration parameter corresponding to different QCI from the QoS information.

[0144] Based on the above scheme, for a single service data flow, multiple QCIs are configured, and for data packets in different time slices, corresponding QoS guarantees are performed according to the corresponding QCIs, the flexibility of service data flow control is realized, the QoS control requirements of a single service data flow in different time periods are met, and thus the transmission performance of the service data flow can be improved.

[0145] As shown in FIG. 3(b), it is a schematic diagram of another method for transmitting a service data flow provided by an embodiment of the present application. In this method, the RAN receives data packets of different sending bit rates of the same service data flow, so that the RAN can identify data packets with different bit rates, and then perform QoS control using corresponding QCIs.

[0146] The method comprises the following steps:

[0147] In step 301b, the RAN receives characteristic information of the service data flow and QoS information of the service data flow.

[0148] The characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate the traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices in a time period of the service data flow, and the QoS information is used to indicate the QCI corresponding to different time slices.

[0149] Optionally, the characteristic information of the service data flow comes from the AF. Alternatively, the characteristic information of the service data flow comes from a database, and the characteristic information of the service data flow in the database comes from the AF. Alternatively, the characteristic information of the service data flow comes from the SMF, and the characteristic information of the service data flow in the SMF comes from the AF.

[0150] In step 302b, the RAN determines the configuration parameter corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information and the QoS information of the service data flow.

[0151] The content included in the configuration parameter is referred to the foregoing description.

[0152] For example, the characteristic information of the service data flow includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices, respectively, the QoS information includes a QFI and QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices, respectively, the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices, respectively, are not completely same, and the service data flow and the QoS flow corresponding to the QFI have a mapping relationship, then step 302b can be specifically: the RAN determines a first time slice corresponding to a first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow from the at least two time slices according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow, then the RAN determines a first QCI corresponding to the first time slice from the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices, respectively, and then the RAN determines a configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI as the configuration parameter corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow.

[0153] by Figure 4 For example, the characteristic information of a service data stream includes: a time period of 1 second, the time period being divided into 60 time slices, time slice 1 corresponding to bit rate 1, and time slices 2 to 60 corresponding to bit rate 2. QoS information includes QFI, and QCI 83 corresponding to time slice 1, and QCI 87 corresponding to time slices 2 to 60. When the RAN receives a data packet of this service data stream, for example, if it identifies that the bit rate of the data packet is bit rate 1, it determines that the data packet corresponds to time slice 1, then determines that the QCI corresponding to time slice 1 is QCI 83, and then determines the configuration parameters corresponding to QCI 83, which are the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream.

[0154] Step 303b: The RAN sends data packets to the UE according to the configuration parameters.

[0155] For example, if the RAN determines that a data packet corresponds to QCI 83, it will send the data packet to the UE based on the bit rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, or priority corresponding to QCI 83. As another example, if the RAN determines that a data packet corresponds to QCI 87, it will send the data packet to the UE based on the bit rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, or priority corresponding to QCI 87.

[0156] Based on the above scheme, multiple QCIs are configured for a single service data stream. For data packets in different time segments, corresponding QoS guarantees are performed according to the corresponding QCIs. This achieves flexibility in service data stream control and meets the QoS control requirements of a single service data stream in different time periods, thereby improving the transmission performance of the service data stream.

[0157] As one implementation method, in the embodiment corresponding to Figure 3(a) or Figure 3(b) above, before the RAN sends a data packet to the UE, it first receives channel state information (CSI) from the UE, then determines the transmission timing and subcarrier occupied by the data packet based on the CSI, and then the RAN sends the data packet to the terminal device at the transmission timing and subcarrier occupied by the data packet according to the configuration parameters corresponding to the determined first QCI.

[0158] The methods by which the RAN receives CSI from the UE include, but are not limited to, the following methods one through three.

[0159] Method 1: The RAN sends configuration information to the UE, which includes indication information and a time period. The indication information is used to instruct the UE to report CSI at the same time period. The RAN receives CSI from the UE.

[0160] That is, the RAN instructs the UE to periodically report CSI to the RAN, and the reporting period of CSI is equal to the time period of sending to the UE.

[0161] Method 2: The RAN sends configuration information to the UE. The configuration information includes indication information and time period. The indication information is used to instruct the UE to report CSI at the same time period and to instruct the UE to report CSI for the first duration before the data packet arrives. The RAN receives CSI from the UE.

[0162] In other words, the RAN instructs the UE to periodically report CSI to the RAN, and the reporting period is equal to the time period. Furthermore, each time the UE reports CSI, it does so a certain time interval before receiving the data packet from the RAN. Therefore, the RAN can determine the transmission timing and subcarrier for the next data packet to be sent based on the received CSI.

[0163] Method 3: The RAN determines the arrival time of the data packet based on the time period; the RAN sends downlink control information (DCI) to the UE in the second time period before the data packet arrives, instructing the UE to report CSI; the RAN receives the CSI from the UE.

[0164] That is, at the moment when the RAN receives a data packet from the UPF, it sends a DCI to the UE to instruct the UE to report the CSI, so that the RAN can determine the transmission timing and subcarrier occupied by the next data packet to be sent based on the received CSI.

[0165] As an example, the following is combined with Figure 5 and Figure 6 The specific embodiments shown in Figures 3(a) and 3(b) above will be described in detail.

[0166] like Figure 5 The diagram illustrates another method for transmitting service data streams according to an embodiment of the application. This method describes the configuration process for service data stream information. Specifically, the AF provides the service data stream information to the network via the NEF. The service data stream information includes at least one of the following: application identifier, service data stream identifier information, service data stream characteristic information, or service data stream QoS requirements. For details, please refer to the foregoing description.

[0167] The method includes the following steps:

[0168] Step 501: AF sends a first request to NEF. Accordingly, NEF can receive the first request.

[0169] The first request carries newly added or updated business data stream information.

[0170] In an implementation method, when the AF is ready to add new service data flow information, the AF sends a first request to the NEF, which can be a service data flow creation request, such as PFDManagement_CreateRequest, and the service data flow creation request carries the newly added service data flow information.

[0171] In another implementation method, when the AF is ready to update the existing service data flow information, the AF sends a first request to the NEF, which can be a service data flow update request, such as PFDManagement_UpdateRequest, and the service data flow update request carries the updated service data flow information.

[0172] Step 502, the NEF updates the service data flow information saved on the NEF.

[0173] For example, the NEF first determines whether the first request is allowed, and if so, updates the service data flow information saved on the NEF. For example, if the first request carries newly added service data flow information, the NEF updates the service data flow information saved on the NEF according to the newly added service data flow information. For another example, if the first request carries updated service data flow information, the NEF updates the service data flow information saved on the NEF according to the updated service data flow information.

[0174] Step 503, the NEF sends a first response to the AF. Correspondingly, the AF can receive the first response.

[0175] The first response is used to notify the AF that the request processing is successful.

[0176] Of course, if in the above step 502, the NEF determines that the first request is not allowed, or the NEF fails to update the service data flow information, the first response is used to notify the AF that the request processing fails.

[0177] The first response can be a service data flow creation response or a service data flow update response.

[0178] Step 504, the NEF sends a second request to the UDR. Correspondingly, the UDR can receive the second request.

[0179] The second request carries the newly added service data flow information or the updated service data flow information.

[0180] In an implementation method, when the NEF is ready to add new service data flow information, the NEF sends a second request to the UDR, which can be a data management creation request (DM_Create Request), and the data management creation request carries the newly added service data flow information.

[0181] In another implementation method, when the NEF is ready to update existing service data flow information, the NEF sends a second request to the UDR, which can be a data management update request (DM_Update Request), and the data management update request carries the updated service data flow information.

[0182] Step 505, the UDR updates the service data flow information stored on the UDR.

[0183] For example, if the second request carries newly added service data flow information, the UDR updates the service data flow information stored on the UDR according to the newly added service data flow information. For another example, if the second request carries updated service data flow information, the UDR updates the service data flow information stored on the UDR according to the updated service data flow information.

[0184] Step 506, the UDR sends a second response to the NEF. Correspondingly, the NEF can receive the second response.

[0185] The second response is used to notify the NEF that the request processing is successful.

[0186] Of course, if the UDR fails to update the service data flow information in the above step 505, the second response is used to notify the NEF that the request processing fails.

[0187] The second response can be a data management creation response (DM_Create Response) or a data management update response (DM_Update Response).

[0188] Step 507, the SMF determines that it needs to obtain service data flow information.

[0189] For example, a timer is set on the SMF, and every time the set time period is reached, the SMF triggers to obtain service data flow information.

[0190] The SMF determines that it needs to obtain service data flow information can be that it determines to obtain newly added service data flow information or that it determines to obtain updated service data flow information.

[0191] Step 508, the SMF sends a third request to the NEF. Correspondingly, the NEF can receive the third request.

[0192] The third request is used to request to obtain service data flow information.

[0193] For example, the third request can be a PFDManagement_Fetch Request.

[0194] At step 509, the NEF sends a third response to the SMF. Accordingly, the SMF can receive the third response.

[0195] The third response carries the newly added service data flow information or the updated service data flow information.

[0196] For example, the third response can be a PFDManagement_Fetch Response.

[0197] After the SMF receives the newly added service data flow information or the updated service data flow information, the SMF saves the newly added service data flow information or the updated service data flow information on the SMF.

[0198] As another implementation method, the NEF can actively report the newly added service data flow information or the updated service data flow information to the SMF after receiving the newly added service data flow information or the updated service data flow information. Alternatively, as another implementation method, the SMF can actively request the UDR for the service data flow information.

[0199] At step 510, the SMF sends a fourth request to the UPF. Accordingly, the UPF can receive the fourth request.

[0200] The fourth request carries the identification information of the newly added service data flow or the identification information of the updated service data flow.

[0201] For example, the fourth request can be a PFDManagement Request.

[0202] The UPF can perform data flow detection according to the identification information of the newly added service data flow or the identification information of the updated service data flow to identify the new service data flow.

[0203] At step 511, the UPF sends a fourth response to the SMF. Accordingly, the SMF can receive the fourth response.

[0204] This step is an optional step.

[0205] In the above embodiments, the AF provides newly added or updated service data flow information and updates it to the NEF, UDR, or SMF in the network. In specific implementations, it may update only one or more network elements among the NEF, UDR, and SMF in the network, or it may update other network elements such as AMF and PCF. Furthermore, it also updates the service data flow identification information in the service data flow information to the UPF, enabling the UPF to begin detecting new service data flows.

[0206] Based on the above embodiments, the network can acquire and configure specified service data stream information, thereby detecting the corresponding service data stream, and subsequently transmitting the data stream based on the service data stream information. However, existing technologies do not support providing the network with service data stream feature information from the service data stream information.

[0207] like Figure 6 The diagram illustrates another method for transmitting service data streams according to an embodiment of the application. This method outlines the configuration process for the characteristic information of the service data stream.

[0208] The method includes the following steps:

[0209] Step 601: The UE establishes a service data flow connection with the AF for the application.

[0210] The UE establishes a service data flow connection with the AF, for example, an application in the UE establishes an application-layer service data flow connection with an application in the AF.

[0211] Specifically, the IP triplet or URL of this service data stream must match the IP triplet or URL in the service data stream information pre-provided to the network by the AF. For example, the AF follows... Figure 5 The method in this embodiment provides service data flow information to the network. In step 601, the IP triplet or URL of the service data flow is compared with... Figure 5 The IP triplet or URL in the business data flow information of the embodiment remains consistent.

[0212] Step 602: The UPF performs packet inspection according to the configured packet inspection rules. When it detects a service data flow corresponding to a specified service, it sends an event report to the PCF. The event report carries the detected packet flow description (PFD) identifier.

[0213] For example, if the business data flow information corresponding to the business is pre-configured on the UPF (e.g., through...) Figure 5 If step 510 of the embodiment is configured, then the UPF can use the IP triplet or URL in the service data flow information as a parameter for packet detection rules to perform packet detection.

[0214] As another implementation method, the UPF can also send the event report to the SMF, and then the SMF sends the event report to the PCF.

[0215] At step 603, the PCF sends a policy and charging control (PCC) rule to the SMF. Accordingly, the SMF can receive the PCC rule.

[0216] The PCF can first obtain the service data flow information from a network element such as the UDR or the SMF, and then generate the PCC rule according to the service data flow information. When the service uses multi-data flow transmission, the PCF provides to generate a PCC rule for each service data flow, and then the PCF sends the PCC rule to the SMF. Each PCC rule includes the identification of the application, the identification information of the service data flow, the characteristic information of the service data flow, and the QoS information of the service data flow. Among them, the QoS information of the service data flow is obtained according to the QoS requirement of the service data flow. The QoS information of the service data flow includes the QoS flow identity (QFI) and the QCI corresponding to each time slice in a time period in the characteristic information of the service data flow. Optionally, the QoS information of the service data flow also includes the configuration parameters corresponding to each QCI, and the configuration parameters include one or more of the sending rate, the packet loss rate, the packet delay budget, and the priority. For example, when the QCI is defined by the standard, the QoS information of the service data flow can not need to carry the configuration parameters corresponding to the QCI, and when the QCI is self-defined, the QoS information of the service data flow can carry the configuration parameters corresponding to the QCI.

[0217] As an implementation method, the PCF can send the SMF initiated SM_PolicyAssociation Modefication Request to the SMF in this step, which carries the PCC rule.

[0218] At step 604, the SMF sends configuration information of at least one service data flow to the UPF. Accordingly, the UPF can receive the configuration information of at least one service data flow.

[0219] Each service data flow corresponds to a configuration information, and the configuration information contains the identification of the application, the identification information of the service data flow, the characteristic information of the service data flow, and the QoS information of the service data flow.

[0220] The SMF can send the configuration information of the multiple service data flows to the UPF through an N4 message (such as an N4 PDU Establishment Modification Request or an N4 PDU Session Modification Request).

[0221] The specific implementation method in which the UPF identifies or controls the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow can refer to the related description of the embodiment of FIG. 3, and will not be described in detail.

[0222] In step 605, the SMF sends the configuration information of at least one service data flow to the RAN through the AMF. Accordingly, the RAN can receive the configuration information of at least one service data flow.

[0223] Each service data flow corresponds to one configuration information, and the configuration information includes the identifier of the application, the identifier information of the service data flow, the characteristic information of the service data flow, and the QoS information of the service data flow.

[0224] The specific implementation method in which the RAN identifies or sends the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow can refer to the related description of the embodiment of FIG. 3, and will not be described in detail.

[0225] Based on the above embodiments, after the application in the UE establishes the service data flow connection of the application with the AF, the configuration information of the service data flow can be sent to the RAN and the UPF, and the RAN and the UPF can perform scheduling and transmission control of the service data flow according to the configuration information, so as to improve the transmission efficiency of the service data flow.

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

[0227] It can be understood that, in each of the above method embodiments, the steps or operations implemented by the first policy control network element can also be implemented by a component (for example, a chip or a circuit) configured in the first policy control network element, the steps or operations implemented by the second policy control network element can also be implemented by a component (for example, a chip or a circuit) configured in the second policy control network element, the steps or operations implemented by the binding support network element can also be implemented by a component (for example, a chip or a circuit) configured in the binding support network element, and the steps or operations implemented by the application function network element can also be implemented by a component (for example, a chip or a circuit) configured in the application function network element.

[0228] Reference Figure 7 A schematic diagram of a communication apparatus is provided for the embodiments of the present application. The apparatus is used to implement each step performed by the user plane network element or the access network device in the above embodiments, as shown in the figure, the apparatus 700 includes a sending unit 710, a receiving unit 720, and a processing unit 730. Figure 7

[0229] In the first embodiment, the communication apparatus is a user plane network element or a chip for a user plane network element, and the following applies:

[0230] The receiving unit 720 is configured to receive characteristic information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow, the characteristic information of the service data flow being used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data flow within a time period, and the QoS information being used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively; the processing unit 730 is configured to determine a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow; and the sending unit 710 is configured to send the data packet according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and the QCI corresponding to the first time slice.

[0231] In a possible implementation method, the characteristic information includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QoS information includes QoS flow identifier (QFI) and QCI corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QCI corresponding to the at least two time slices is not completely the same, and the service data flow has a mapping relationship with a QoS flow corresponding to the QFI; and the processing unit 730 is configured to determine a first time slice corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow, and specifically includes: configured to determine a first time slice corresponding to a first bit rate of the data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the first bit rate. ​

[0232] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 730 is configured to determine, according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and a first bit rate of a data packet of the service data flow, a first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate in the at least two time slices, specifically including: determining, according to the characteristic information, a boundary of a time period in which the data packet is located; and determining, according to the at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, the bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices, and the first bit rate, the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate.

[0233] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 730 is further configured to add the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet. The sending unit 710 is configured to send the data packet according to the first time slice corresponding to the data packet of the service data flow and the QCI corresponding to the first time slice, specifically including: sending the data packet carrying the QFI and the first QCI, where the first QCI is the QCI corresponding to the first time slice in the QCI corresponding to the at least two time slices.

[0234] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 730 is configured to add the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet, specifically including: adding the QFI and the first QCI to a packet header of the data packet.

[0235] In a possible implementation, the characteristic information of the service data flow is from an application server; or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a database, and the characteristic information of the service data flow in the database is from an application server; or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a session management network element, and the characteristic information of the service data flow in the session management network element is from an application server.

[0236] In a second embodiment, the communication apparatus is an access network device or a chip for an access network device, and the following applies:

[0237] The receiving unit 720 is configured to receive characteristic information of a service data flow and quality of service (QoS) information of the service data flow, where the characteristic information of the service data flow is used to indicate traffic characteristic information corresponding to different time slices of the service data flow in a time period, and the QoS information is used to indicate QoS class identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time slices respectively. The processing unit 730 is configured to determine configuration parameters corresponding to a data packet of the service data flow according to the characteristic information of the service data flow and the QoS information. The sending unit 710 is configured to send the data packet to a terminal device according to the configuration parameters.

[0238] In a possible implementation, the characteristic information includes a time period, at least two time slices corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QoS information includes a QFI and QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively, the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively are not completely same, and the service data stream has a mapping relationship with a QoS stream corresponding to the QFI; the processing unit 730 is configured to determine, according to the characteristic information of the service data stream and the QoS information, a configuration parameter corresponding to a data packet of the service data stream, and specifically includes: configured to determine, according to the characteristic information of the service data stream and a first bit rate of the data packet of the service data stream, a first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate in the at least two time slices; determine a first QCI corresponding to the first time slice in the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively; and determine a configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI as the configuration parameter corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream.

[0239] In a possible implementation, the configuration parameter includes one or more of the following information: a sending rate, a packet loss rate, a packet delay budget, and a priority.

[0240] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 730 is further configured to determine, according to reported channel state information (CSI), a sending time opportunity and a subcarrier occupied by the data packet; and the sending unit 710 is specifically configured to send, to the terminal device, the data packet in the sending time opportunity and the subcarrier occupied by the data packet according to the configuration parameter corresponding to the first QCI.

[0241] In a possible implementation, the sending unit 710 is further configured to send, to the terminal device, configuration information including indication information and the time period, where the indication information is used to indicate that a period of reporting CSI by the terminal device is same as the time period; and the receiving unit 720 is further configured to receive, from the terminal device, the CSI.

[0242] In a possible implementation, the indication information is further used to indicate that the terminal device reports the CSI in a first time length before the data packet arrives.

[0243] In a possible implementation, the processing unit 730 is further configured to determine, according to the time period, an arrival time of the data packet; the sending unit 710 is further configured to send, to the terminal device, a downlink control information (DCI) in a second time length before the data packet arrives, where the DCI is used to instruct the terminal device to report the CSI; and the receiving unit 720 is further configured to receive, from the terminal device, the CSI.

[0244] In a possible implementation, the characteristic information of the service data flow is from an application server; or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a database, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow in the database is from an application server; or the characteristic information of the service data flow is from a session management network element, wherein the characteristic information of the service data flow in the session management network element is from an application server.

[0245] Optionally, the communication device 700 can further include a storage unit for storing data or instructions (also referred to as code or program). Each of the above units can interact with or be coupled to the storage unit to implement corresponding methods or functions. For example, the processing unit 730 can read data or instructions from the storage unit, so that the communication device implements the methods in the above embodiments.

[0246] It should be understood that the division of the units in the above device is only a logical functional division. In actual implementation, all or part of the units can be integrated into one physical entity, or can be physically separated. The units in the device can all be implemented in the form of software invoked by the processing element; or all be implemented in the form of hardware; or part of the units be implemented in the form of software invoked by the processing element, and part of the units be implemented in the form of hardware. For example, each unit can be a separately established processing element, or can be integrated into a chip of the device, in addition, the unit can also be stored in the form of program in the memory, and the function of the unit is invoked and executed by a processing element of the device. In addition, all or part of the units can be integrated together, or can be independently implemented. The processing element mentioned herein can be a processor, which can be an integrated circuit with signal processing capability. In the implementation process, each step of the above method or each unit can be implemented by the integrated logic circuit of the hardware in the processing element, or in the form of software invoked by the processing element.

[0247] In one example, the units in any of the above apparatuses can be one or more integrated circuits configured to implement one or more of the above methods, e.g., one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), or, one or more Digital Signal Processors (DSPs), or, one or more Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), or a combination of at least two of these integrated circuit forms. In another example, when the units in the apparatuses can be implemented by a form of a processing element scheduler, the processing element can be a general purpose processor, e.g., a Central Processing Unit (CPU) or other processor that can invoke a program. In yet another example, the units can be integrated together in a form of a System-on-a-Chip (SOC).

[0248] The above sending unit 710 is an interface circuit of the apparatus for sending signals to other apparatuses. For example, when the apparatus is implemented in a form of a chip, the sending unit 710 is an interface circuit of the chip for sending signals to other chips or apparatuses.

[0249] The above receiving unit 720 is an interface circuit of the apparatus for receiving signals from other apparatuses. For example, when the apparatus is implemented in a form of a chip, the receiving unit 720 is an interface circuit of the chip for receiving signals from other chips or apparatuses.

[0250] Reference Figure 8 A schematic diagram of a communication apparatus is provided for implementing the operations of the user plane network element or the access network device in the above embodiments. As shown in the figure, the communication apparatus includes a processor 810 and an interface 830. Optionally, the communication apparatus further includes a memory 820. The interface 830 is configured to implement communication with other devices. Figure 8

[0251] ​The method performed by the user plane network element or the access network device in the above embodiments can be implemented by the processor 810 invoking the program stored in the memory (which can be the memory 820 in the user plane network element or the access network device, or an external memory). That is, the user plane network element or the access network device can include a processor 810 that invokes the program in the memory to perform the method performed by the user plane network element or the access network device in the above method embodiments. The processor here can be an integrated circuit with a processing capability of a signal, such as a CPU. The user plane network element or the access network device can be implemented by one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the above method. For example: one or more ASICs, or one or more microprocessors DSPs, or one or more FPGAs, etc., or a combination of at least two of these integrated circuit forms. Alternatively, the above implementation can be combined.

[0252] Specifically, Figure 7 The functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 710, the receiving unit 720, and the processing unit 730 in the user plane network element or the access network device can be implemented by the processor 810 in the communication apparatus 800 shown in FIG. 8 invoking the computer executable instructions stored in the memory 820. Alternatively, Figure 8 The functions / implementation processes of the processing unit 730 in the user plane network element or the access network device can be implemented by the processor 810 in the communication apparatus 800 shown in FIG. 8 invoking the computer executable instructions stored in the memory 820. Figure 7 The functions / implementation processes of the processing unit 730 in the user plane network element or the access network device can be implemented by the processor 810 in the communication apparatus 800 shown in FIG. 8 invoking the computer executable instructions stored in the memory 820. Figure 8 The functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 710 and the receiving unit 720 in the user plane network element or the access network device can be implemented by the interface 830 in the communication apparatus 800 shown in FIG. 8. Figure 7 The functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 710 and the receiving unit 720 in the user plane network element or the access network device can be implemented by the interface 830 in the communication apparatus 800 shown in FIG. 8. Figure 8 The functions / implementation processes of the sending unit 710 and the receiving unit 720 in the user plane network element or the access network device can be implemented by the interface 830 in the communication apparatus 800 shown in FIG. 8.

[0253] Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that the various numbers such as first, second, etc. involved in the present application are only for the convenience of description and do not limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application, nor indicate the order. The association relationship of the associated objects described by "and / or" indicates that there can be three relationships, for example, A and / or B can represent the existence of A alone, the existence of A and B together, and the existence of B alone. The character " / " generally represents that the associated objects before and after it are in an "or" relationship. "At least one" means one or more. At least two means two or more. "At least one", "any one" or the like means any combination of these items, including any combination of single item or multiple items. For example, at least one (one, kind) of a, b, or c can represent a, b, c, a-b, a-c, b-c, or a-b-c, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple. "Multiple" means two or more, and other quantifiers are similar.

[0254] It should be understood that the magnitude of the sequence number of each process described above does not mean the order of execution, and the execution order of each process should be determined according to its function and inherent logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the application.

[0255] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the above-described system, device and unit can refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, which will not be described here.

[0256] In the above embodiments, all or part can be realized by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When realized by software, all or part can be realized in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network or other programmable devices. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer readable storage medium or transferred from one computer readable storage medium to another, for example, the computer instructions can be transferred from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center through wired (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode. The computer readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server, data center, etc. integrated with one or more available media. The available media can be magnetic media (for example, floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), optical media (for example, DVD), or semiconductor media (for example, solid state disk (SSD)) and the like.

[0257] The various illustrative logical elements and circuits described in the embodiments of the present application can be realized or operated by a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or a combination of any of the above. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor, and optionally, the general-purpose processor can also be any conventional processor, controller, microcontroller or state machine. The processor can also be realized by a combination of computing devices, such as a digital signal processor and a microprocessor, multiple microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a digital signal processor core, or any other similar configuration.

[0258] The steps of a method or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein can be embodied directly in hardware, in a software module executed by a processor, or in a combination of the two. A software module can reside in Random Access Memory (RAM), flash memory, Read-Only Memory (ROM), EPROM memory, EEPROM memory, registers, hard disk, a removable disk, a CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium can be coupled to the processor, such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium can be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium can reside in an ASIC.

[0259] The computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart and / or block diagram block or blocks.

[0260] In one or more exemplary designs, the functions described can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software, the functions can be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a computer. By way of example, such computer-readable media can comprise RAM, ROM, EEPROM, CD-ROM or other optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer, or a general-purpose or special-purpose processor. Also, any connection is properly termed a computer-readable medium. For example, if the software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using a coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL), or data signals adapted for

[0261] Those skilled in the art should understand that, in one or more examples described above, the functions described in the specification can be implemented in hardware, software, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, the functions can be stored in or transmitted as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media include computer storage media and communication media, where communication media include any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. Storage media can be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.

[0262] The above detailed description describes the purpose, technical solutions and beneficial effects of the present application. It should be understood that the above description is only a specific implementation of the present application and is not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made on the basis of the technical solutions of the present application should be included in the protection scope of the present application. The above description of the specification can enable any person skilled in the art to utilize or implement the content of the present application. Any modification based on the disclosed content should be considered obvious in the art, and the basic principles described in the present application can be applied to other variations without deviating from the essence and scope of the present application. Therefore, the content disclosed in the present application is not limited to the described embodiments and designs, but can be extended to the maximum scope consistent with the principles and new features disclosed in the present application.

[0263] Although the present application is described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it is obvious that various modifications and combinations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are merely illustrative of the exemplary embodiments of the present application, and are considered to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of the present application. Obviously, those skilled in the art can 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 intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A method for transmitting business data streams, characterized in that, include: The user plane network element receives the feature information of the service data stream and the QoS information of the service data stream. The feature information of the service data stream is used to indicate the traffic feature information corresponding to different time segments of the service data stream within a time period. The QoS information is used to indicate the QoS level identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time segments. The user plane network element determines the first time fragmentation corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream based on the feature information of the service data stream; The user plane network element sends the data packet according to the first time segment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream and the QCI corresponding to the first time segment.

2. The method as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The feature information includes a time period, at least two time segments corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time segments respectively. The QoS information includes a QoS flow identifier (QFI) and a QCI corresponding to the at least two time segments respectively. The QCIs corresponding to the at least two time segments are not completely the same. There is a mapping relationship between the service data stream and the QoS stream corresponding to the QFI. The user plane network element determines the first time fragmentation corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream based on the feature information of the service data stream, including: The user plane network element determines the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate among the at least two time slices based on the feature information of the service data stream and the first bit rate of the data packets of the service data stream.

3. The method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The user plane network element determines the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate among the at least two time slices based on the feature information of the service data stream and the first bit rate of the data packets of the service data stream, including: The user plane network element determines the boundary of the time period in which the data packet is located based on the feature information; The user plane network element determines the first time segment corresponding to the first bit rate based on at least two time segments corresponding to the time period, the bit rates corresponding to the at least two time segments respectively, and the first bit rate.

4. The method as described in claim 2 or 3, characterized in that, The user plane network element sends the data packet according to the first time segment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream and the QCI corresponding to the first time segment, including: The user plane network element adds the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet and sends the data packet carrying the QFI and the first QCI, wherein the first QCI is the QCI corresponding to the first time slice among the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices respectively.

5. The method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The user plane network element adds the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet, including: The user plane network element adds the QFI and the first QCI to the header of the data packet.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1-3 and 5, characterized in that, The characteristic information of the business data stream comes from the application server; or... The feature information of the business data stream comes from a database, and the feature information of the business data stream in the database comes from an application server; or, The feature information of the service data stream comes from the session management network element, and the feature information of the service data stream in the session management network element comes from the application server.

7. The method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The characteristic information of the business data stream comes from the application server; or... The feature information of the business data stream comes from a database, and the feature information of the business data stream in the database comes from an application server; or, The feature information of the service data stream comes from the session management network element, and the feature information of the service data stream in the session management network element comes from the application server.

8. A method for transmitting business data streams, characterized in that, include: The access network device receives feature information of the service data stream and QoS information of the service data stream. The feature information of the service data stream is used to indicate the traffic feature information corresponding to different time segments of the service data stream within a time period. The QoS information is used to indicate the QoS level identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time segments. The access network device determines the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream based on the feature information of the service data stream and the QoS information; The access network device sends the data packet to the terminal device according to the configuration parameters.

9. The method as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The feature information includes a time period, at least two time segments corresponding to the time period, and the bit rate corresponding to each of the at least two time segments. The QoS information includes QFI and QCI corresponding to each of the at least two time segments. The QCI corresponding to each of the at least two time segments are not completely the same. The service data stream and the QoS stream corresponding to the QFI have a mapping relationship. The access network device determines the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream based on the feature information and QoS information of the service data stream, including: The access network device determines the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate among the at least two time slices based on the feature information of the service data stream and the first bit rate of the data packets of the service data stream; The access network device determines the first QCI corresponding to the first time slice among the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time slices; The access network device determines the configuration parameters corresponding to the first QCI, which are the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream.

10. The method as described in claim 9, characterized in that, The configuration parameters include one or more of the following: transmission rate, packet loss rate, packet delay budget, and priority.

11. The method as described in claim 9 or 10, characterized in that, Also includes: The access network device determines the transmission timing and subcarrier to be used for sending the data packet based on the reported Channel State Information (CSI). The access network device sends the data packet to the terminal device according to the configuration parameters, including: The access network device sends the data packet to the terminal device according to the configuration parameters corresponding to the first QCI, at the transmission timing and on the subcarrier occupied by the data packet.

12. The method as described in claim 11, characterized in that, Also includes: The access network device sends configuration information to the terminal device. The configuration information includes indication information and the time period. The indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device reports Channel State Information (CSI) at the same time period as the time period. The access network device receives the CSI from the terminal device.

13. The method as described in claim 12, characterized in that, The indication information is also used to instruct the terminal device to report CSI for a first period of time before the arrival of the data packet.

14. The method as described in claim 11, characterized in that, Also includes: The access network device determines the arrival time of the data packet according to the time period; The access network device sends downlink control information (DCI) to the terminal device during a second time period before the arrival of the data packet. The DCI is used to instruct the terminal device to report CSI. The access network device receives the CSI from the terminal device.

15. The method according to any one of claims 8-10 and 12-14, characterized in that, The characteristic information of the business data stream comes from the application server; or... The feature information of the business data stream comes from a database, and the feature information of the business data stream in the database comes from an application server; or, The feature information of the service data stream comes from the session management network element, and the feature information of the service data stream in the session management network element comes from the application server.

16. The method as described in claim 11, characterized in that, The characteristic information of the business data stream comes from the application server; or... The feature information of the business data stream comes from a database, and the feature information of the business data stream in the database comes from an application server; or, The feature information of the service data stream comes from the session management network element, and the feature information of the service data stream in the session management network element comes from the application server.

17. A communication device, characterized in that, include: The receiving unit is used to receive the feature information of the service data stream and the quality of service (QoS) information of the service data stream. The feature information of the service data stream is used to indicate the traffic feature information corresponding to different time segments of the service data stream within a time period. The QoS information is used to indicate the QoS level identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time segments. The processing unit is configured to determine the first time fragment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream based on the feature information of the service data stream; The sending unit is configured to send the data packet according to the first time segment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream and the QCI corresponding to the first time segment.

18. The apparatus as claimed in claim 17, characterized in that, The feature information includes a time period, at least two time segments corresponding to the time period, and bit rates corresponding to the at least two time segments respectively. The QoS information includes a QoS flow identifier (QFI) and a QCI corresponding to the at least two time segments respectively. The QCIs corresponding to the at least two time segments are not completely the same. There is a mapping relationship between the service data stream and the QoS stream corresponding to the QFI. The processing unit is configured to determine the first time segment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream based on the feature information of the service data stream, specifically including: Used to determine the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate among the at least two time slices based on the feature information of the service data stream and the first bit rate of the data packets of the service data stream.

19. The apparatus as claimed in claim 18, characterized in that, The processing unit is configured to determine, based on the characteristic information of the service data stream and the first bit rate of the data packets of the service data stream, the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate among the at least two time slices, specifically including: Used to determine the boundary of the time period in which the data packet is located based on the feature information; and to determine the first time segment corresponding to the first bit rate based on at least two time segments corresponding to the time period, the bit rates corresponding to the at least two time segments respectively, and the first bit rate.

20. The apparatus as claimed in claim 18 or 19, characterized in that, The processing unit is also configured to add the QFI and the first QCI to the data packet; The sending unit is configured to send the data packet according to the first time segment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream and the QCI corresponding to the first time segment, specifically including: Used to send the data packet carrying the QFI and the first QCI to the access network device, wherein the first QCI is the QCI corresponding to the first time segment among the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time segments respectively.

21. A communication device, characterized in that, include: The receiving unit is used to receive the feature information of the service data stream and the quality of service (QoS) information of the service data stream. The feature information of the service data stream is used to indicate the traffic feature information corresponding to different time segments of the service data stream within a time period. The QoS information is used to indicate the QoS level identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time segments. The processing unit is configured to determine the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream based on the feature information of the service data stream and the QoS information. The sending unit is used to send the data packet to the terminal device according to the configuration parameters.

22. The apparatus as claimed in claim 21, characterized in that, The feature information includes a time period, at least two time segments corresponding to the time period, and the bit rate corresponding to each of the at least two time segments. The QoS information includes QFI and QCI corresponding to each of the at least two time segments. The QCI corresponding to each of the at least two time segments are not completely the same. The service data stream and the QoS stream corresponding to the QFI have a mapping relationship. The processing unit is configured to determine the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream based on the feature information and the QoS information, specifically including: Used to determine the first time slice corresponding to the first bit rate among the at least two time slices based on the feature information of the service data stream and the first bit rate of the data packets of the service data stream; Determine the first QCI corresponding to the first time segment among the QCIs corresponding to the at least two time segments; determine the configuration parameters corresponding to the first QCI, which are the configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream.

23. The apparatus as claimed in claim 22, characterized in that, The processing unit is also used to determine the transmission timing and subcarrier occupied by the data packet based on the reported channel state information (CSI). The sending unit is specifically used to send the data packet to the terminal device according to the configuration parameters corresponding to the first QCI, at the sending timing and on the subcarrier occupied by the data packet.

24. The apparatus as claimed in claim 23, characterized in that, The sending unit is further configured to send configuration information to the terminal device. The configuration information includes indication information and the time period. The indication information is used to indicate that the period for the terminal device to report Channel State Information (CSI) is the same as the time period. The receiving unit is further configured to receive the CSI from the terminal device.

25. The apparatus as claimed in claim 23, characterized in that, The processing unit is further configured to determine the arrival time of the data packet based on the time period; The sending unit is further configured to send downlink control information (DCI) to the terminal device during a second time period before the arrival of the data packet, wherein the DCI is used to instruct the terminal device to report CSI; The receiving unit is further configured to receive the CSI from the terminal device.

26. A communication system, characterized in that, Including user plane network elements and receiving network elements; The user plane network element is used to receive feature information of the service data stream and QoS information of the service data stream from the session management network element. The feature information of the service data stream is used to indicate the traffic feature information corresponding to different time segments of the service data stream within a time period. The QoS information is used to indicate the QoS level identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time segments. Based on the feature information of the service data stream, the first time segment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream is determined. In addition, the data packet is sent to the receiving network element according to the first time segment corresponding to the data packet of the service data stream and the QCI corresponding to the first time segment; The receiving network element is used to receive the data packet from the user plane network element.

27. The system as claimed in claim 26, characterized in that, The system further includes the session management network element, which is used to receive feature information of the service data stream and QoS information of the service data stream from the policy control network element; and to send the feature information of the service data stream and QoS information of the service data stream to the user plane network element.

28. A communication system, characterized in that, This includes access network equipment and session management network elements; The session management network element is used to send the service data flow feature information and the service quality (QoS) information of the service data flow to the access network device. The service data flow feature information is used to indicate the traffic feature information corresponding to different time segments of the service data flow within a time period. The QoS information is used to indicate the QoS level identifier (QCI) corresponding to the different time segments. The access network device is configured to receive feature information and QoS information of the service data stream from the session management network element; determine configuration parameters corresponding to the data packets of the service data stream based on the feature information and QoS information; and send the data packets to the terminal device based on the configuration parameters.

29. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes a computer program that, when executed, implements the method described in any one of claims 1-16.

30. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores instructions that, when executed, implement the method of any one of claims 1-16.

31. A chip system, characterized in that, include: A processor for performing the method of any one of claims 1-16.

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