Address allocation method, device, system and DDNMF network element

Abstract

The present disclosure provides an address allocation method, device, system and DDNMF network element, relating to the technical field of communication, the method comprising: receiving an address allocation request from a relay user equipment (UE), the address allocation request carrying an IP address of the relay UE and an identifier of each remote UE corresponding to the relay UE in a plurality of remote UEs; and sending a plurality of IP addresses allocated for the plurality of remote UEs to the relay UE, the plurality of IP addresses being different from each other.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to an address allocation method, apparatus, system, and DDNMF network element. Background Technology

[0002] To extend communication range, remote user equipment (UE) located outside the coverage area of ​​the communication network can connect to the network through a relay UE with UE-to-network relay capability within the network's coverage area, and then communicate with the network. Here, remote UE typically refers to an offline device outside the network's coverage area, while relay UE with UE-to-network relay capability refers to an on-network device within the network's coverage area that can provide relay services for communication between the remote UE and the communication network.

[0003] In related technologies, in certain scenarios (such as L3 relay networking), when multiple remote UEs access the network through the same relay UE, the relay UE will assign multiple IP addresses to these remote UEs one-to-one through Network Address Port Transfer (NAPT). Summary of the Invention

[0004] The inventors noted that the reliability of remote UE service implementation is low in related technologies.

[0005] Analysis revealed that the relay UE assigns its own IP address to each of the multiple remote UEs via NAPT. However, to distinguish these remote UEs, the relay UE also assigns a unique port number to each. Each remote UE then uses the combination of the relay UE's IP address and the assigned port number for subsequent service access. In this approach, the port number used by the remote UE during subsequent service access may not be the original port number used when initiating the service access. This can cause uplink data packets to fail to forward correctly when the remote UE accesses services using specific port numbers, preventing the remote UE from implementing those services and resulting in low reliability of remote UE service implementation.

[0006] To address the aforementioned problems, the present disclosure proposes the following solutions.

[0007] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, an address allocation method is provided, comprising: receiving an address allocation request from a relay user equipment (UE), the address allocation request carrying an IP address of the relay UE and an identifier of each of a plurality of remote UEs corresponding to the relay UE; and sending a plurality of IP addresses allocated for the plurality of remote UEs to the relay UE, wherein the plurality of IP addresses are different from each other.

[0008] In some embodiments, the plurality of remote UEs access the core network via the relay UE in the L3 network.

[0009] In some embodiments, each of the plurality of IP addresses is different from the IP address of the relay UE.

[0010] In some embodiments, the plurality of IP addresses are located in the same network segment as the IP address of the relay UE.

[0011] In some embodiments, the plurality of IP addresses are all IPv4 addresses.

[0012] In some embodiments, the method is performed by a Direct Discovery Name Management Function (DDNMF) network element.

[0013] In some embodiments, the method further includes: the DDNMF network element sending session context update information of the relay UE to the session management function SMF network element, wherein the session context update information includes the IP address of the relay UE and the correspondence between the plurality of IP addresses.

[0014] In some embodiments, the method further includes: the SMF network element updating the forwarding table of the User Plane Function (UPF) network element according to the session context update information.

[0015] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, an address allocation apparatus is provided, comprising: a receiving module configured to receive an address allocation request from a relay UE, the address allocation request carrying an IP address of the relay UE and an identifier of each of a plurality of remote UEs corresponding to the relay UE; and a sending module configured to send a plurality of IP addresses allocated for the plurality of remote UEs to the relay UE, the plurality of IP addresses being different from each other.

[0016] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, an address allocation apparatus is provided, comprising: a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to execute the method described in any of the above embodiments based on instructions stored in the memory.

[0017] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a DDNMF network element is provided, including: the address allocation device described in any of the above embodiments.

[0018] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, an address allocation system is provided, including: a DDNMF network element as described in any of the above embodiments; and a relay UE, wherein the relay UE is configured to send the address allocation request.

[0019] In some embodiments, the DDNMF network element is configured to send session context update information of the relay UE to the SMF network element, the session context update information including the IP address of the relay UE and the correspondence between the plurality of IP addresses; the system further includes: an SMF network element configured to update the forwarding table of the UPF network element according to the session context update information.

[0020] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, including computer program instructions, wherein the computer program instructions, when executed by a processor, implement the method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0021] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a computer program product is provided, including a computer program, wherein the computer program, when executed by a processor, implements the method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0022] In this embodiment, based on the address allocation request from the relay UE, multiple distinct IP addresses allocated to multiple remote UEs accessing the network through the relay UE are sent to the relay UE. Thus, since the multiple IP addresses allocated to the multiple remote UEs are different, the relay UE can distinguish these multiple remote UEs based on these IP addresses, without needing to assign an additional port number to each remote UE. That is, each remote UE can retain its original port number when initiating service access after accessing the network, avoiding the impact of port number changes on the uplink data packet forwarding of the remote UE, thereby improving the reliability of remote UE service implementation.

[0023] Furthermore, the absence of NAPT for address allocation by the relay UE reduces the performance requirements for the relay UE, which is beneficial for the implementation of relay services.

[0024] The technical solutions of this disclosure will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. Attached Figure Description

[0025] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this disclosure or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this disclosure. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0026] Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating an address allocation method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0027] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating an address allocation method according to other embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0028] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an address allocation device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0029] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an address allocation device according to other embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0030] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an address allocation system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0031] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this disclosure, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this disclosure.

[0032] Unless otherwise specifically stated, the relative arrangement, numerical expressions, and values ​​of the components and steps set forth in these embodiments do not limit the scope of this disclosure.

[0033] At the same time, it should be understood that, for ease of description, the dimensions of the various parts shown in the accompanying drawings are not drawn according to actual scale.

[0034] Techniques, methods, and equipment known to those skilled in the art may not be discussed in detail, but where appropriate, such techniques, methods, and equipment should be considered part of the specification.

[0035] In all examples shown and discussed herein, any specific values ​​should be interpreted as merely exemplary and not as limitations. Therefore, other examples of exemplary embodiments may have different values.

[0036] It should be noted that similar labels and letters in the following figures indicate similar items; therefore, once an item is defined in one figure, it does not need to be discussed further in subsequent figures.

[0037] Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating an address allocation method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0038] In step 102, an address allocation request is received from the relay UE.

[0039] Here, the address allocation request carries the IP address of the relay UE and the identifier of each of the multiple remote UEs corresponding to the relay UE.

[0040] It should be understood that in the embodiments of this disclosure, "multiple remote UEs corresponding to the relay UE" means that all of these multiple remote UEs access the network through the relay UE.

[0041] In some embodiments, the address allocation request from the relay UE can be one or more. For example, an address allocation request from the relay UE may carry the IP address of the relay UE and the identifier of each of the multiple remote UEs, that is, the relay UE can send one address allocation request to request IP addresses to multiple remote UEs; as another example, each of the multiple address allocation requests from the relay UE may carry the IP address of the relay UE and the identifier of a remote UE, that is, the relay UE can send multiple address allocation requests to request IP addresses to multiple remote UEs respectively.

[0042] In some embodiments, the IP address of a relay UE can be assigned by a Session Management Function (SMF) network element or a User Plane Function (UPF) network element when the relay UE accesses the network through the NR interface.

[0043] In step 104, multiple IP addresses assigned to multiple remote UEs are sent to the relay UE.

[0044] Here, the IP addresses assigned to multiple remote UEs are different from each other. For example, the two IP addresses assigned to the two remote UEs corresponding to the relay UE can be 128.16.10.7 and 123.16.10.8 respectively.

[0045] In some embodiments, a relay UE can forward multiple received IP addresses to multiple remote UEs in a one-to-one correspondence.

[0046] In the above embodiments, based on the address allocation request from the relay UE, multiple distinct IP addresses allocated to multiple remote UEs accessing the network through the relay UE are sent to the relay UE. Thus, since the multiple IP addresses allocated to the multiple remote UEs are different, the relay UE can distinguish these multiple remote UEs based on these IP addresses, without needing to assign an additional port number to each remote UE. That is, each remote UE can retain its original port number when initiating service access after accessing the network, avoiding the impact of port number changes on the uplink data packet forwarding of the remote UE, thereby improving the reliability of remote UE service implementation.

[0047] Furthermore, the absence of NAPT for address allocation by the relay UE reduces the performance requirements for the relay UE, which is beneficial for the implementation of relay services.

[0048] In some embodiments, multiple remote UEs can access the core network via relay UEs in the L3 network. This improves the reliability of remote UE service implementation in L3 relay networking scenarios, specifically addressing the technical problem of low reliability caused by remote UEs being unable to implement some services in L3 relay networking scenarios.

[0049] In some embodiments, the multiple IP addresses assigned to multiple remote UEs are all IPv4 addresses. This avoids the impact of port number changes on uplink packet forwarding for remote UEs that support IPv4 addresses but not IPv6 addresses, thereby improving the reliability of service implementation for such remote UEs.

[0050] In some embodiments, each of the multiple IP addresses allocated to multiple remote UEs is different from the IP address of the relay UE. For example, the address pool for address allocation to remote UEs can be different from the address pools of SMF and UPF network elements, thus ensuring that the IP address of the relay UE allocated by the SMF or UPF network element is different from the multiple IP addresses allocated to the multiple remote UEs. In this way, upon receiving a downlink data packet from the data network, the relay UE can determine whether to forward it to the corresponding remote UE based on the IP address of the downlink data packet, improving the reliability of the remote UE receiving downlink data packets, thereby further improving the reliability of remote UE service implementation.

[0051] In some embodiments, the IP addresses assigned to multiple remote UEs are located in the same network segment as the IP address of the relay UE. For example, the IP address of the relay UE may be 128.16.10.6, while the IP addresses of the three remote UEs accessing the network via the relay UE are 128.16.10.7, 128.16.10.8, and 128.16.10.9, respectively. This facilitates route aggregation on the network side for multiple remote UEs accessing the network via the relay UE and the forwarding path of that relay UE, reducing the workload of routing configuration on the network side and thus reducing network resource consumption.

[0052] In some embodiments, this can be performed by network elements within the core network. Figure 1 The address allocation method shown can be implemented, for example, by the Direct Discovery Name Management Function (DDNMF) network element within the core network. This reduces modifications to the existing network architecture and facilitates the implementation of the solution.

[0053] In some embodiments, the DDNMF network element can send session context update information of the relay UE to the SMF network element. This session context update information may include the IP address of the relay UE and the mapping between multiple IP addresses allocated to multiple remote UEs. In this way, the SMF network element can distinguish the uplink and downlink data packets of each of the multiple remote UEs and determine which relay UE should forward the respective uplink and downlink data packets of each remote UE. That is, it can ensure that the SMF network element can correctly route the uplink and downlink data packets of the remote UEs, thereby further improving the reliability of remote UE service implementation.

[0054] In some embodiments, the SMF network element can update the forwarding table of the UPF network element based on session context update information. In these embodiments, the updated forwarding table in the UPF network element also includes the IP address of the relay UE and the mapping between multiple IP addresses allocated to multiple remote UEs. For example, when a downlink data packet from a remote UE arrives at the UPF network element, the UPF network element can forward the downlink data packet to the corresponding relay UE based on the updated forwarding table, so that the relay UE can correctly forward the downlink data packet to the remote UE. That is, the UPF network element can correctly forward data packets from the remote UE based on the updated forwarding table, enabling the remote UE to interact with the data network.

[0055] In this way, the UPF network element can also distinguish the uplink and downlink data packets of multiple remote UEs and determine that the corresponding relay UE should forward the uplink and downlink data packets of multiple remote UEs. That is, it can ensure that the UPF network element can correctly route the uplink and downlink data packets of remote UEs, thereby further improving the reliability of remote UE service implementation.

[0056] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating an address allocation method according to other embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0057] Figure 2 Two remote UEs (i.e., remote UE1 and remote UE2) are schematically shown accessing the network via a relay UE.

[0058] In step 202, remote UE1 and remote UE2 send address allocation request 1 and address allocation request 2 to the relay UE, respectively.

[0059] For example, address allocation request 1 can carry the identifier of remote UE1, and address allocation request 2 can carry the identifier of remote UE2.

[0060] It should be understood that remote UE1 can select a relay UE by initiating a relay discovery procedure and can establish a relay connection with the relay UE (e.g., a PC5 connection) to send an address allocation request 1 to the relay UE. Similarly, remote UE2 can select a relay UE by initiating a relay discovery procedure and can establish a relay connection with the relay UE to send an address allocation request 2 to the relay UE.

[0061] In some embodiments, remote UE1 and remote UE2 can access the core network via a relay UE in the L3 network.

[0062] In step 204, the relay UE sends an address allocation request 3 to the DDNMF network element.

[0063] Here, address allocation request 3 may carry the IP address of the relay UE, the identifier of remote UE1, and the identifier of remote UE2.

[0064] For example, a relay UE can support Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) proxy functionality to send address allocation requests to DDNMF network elements.

[0065] In step 206, the DDNMF network element sends the IP address assigned to remote UE1 and the IP address assigned to remote UE2 to the relay UE.

[0066] Here, the IP addresses of remote UE1 and remote UE2 are different. For example, the DDNMF network element can support DHCP server functionality to assign IP addresses to remote UE1 and remote UE2 respectively from a pre-configured address pool.

[0067] In some embodiments, the IP addresses of remote UE1, remote UE2, and relay UE may be different from each other.

[0068] In some embodiments, the IP addresses of remote UE1, remote UE2, and relay UE may be located in the same network segment.

[0069] In step 208, the relay UE sends the IP address assigned by the DDNMF network element to the remote UE1 to the remote UE1, and sends the IP address assigned by the DDNMF network element to the remote UE2 to the remote UE2.

[0070] In some embodiments, remote UE1 or remote UE2 can provide corresponding Quality of Service (QoS) rules to the relay UE through an L2 link modification procedure. The relay UE can initiate a session modification procedure to convert the data packets of remote UE1 or remote UE2 into the corresponding QoS stream, thereby enabling QoS control of remote UE1 or remote UE2.

[0071] In step 210, the DDNMF network element sends the session context update information of the relay UE to the SMF network element.

[0072] Here, the session context update information of the relay UE includes the mapping between the IP address of the relay UE and the IP addresses of remote UE1 and remote UE2.

[0073] In step 212, the SMF network element updates the forwarding table of the UPF network element according to the session context update information.

[0074] In some embodiments, the UPF network element can forward data packets of remote UE1 and remote UE2 according to the updated forwarding table, so that remote UE1 and remote UE2 can access the data network.

[0075] The various embodiments in this specification are described in a progressive manner, with each embodiment focusing on its differences from other embodiments. Similar or identical parts between embodiments can be referred to interchangeably. For the device and network element embodiments, since they largely correspond to the method embodiments, the descriptions are relatively simple; relevant parts can be referred to the descriptions in the method embodiments.

[0076] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an address allocation device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0077] like Figure 3 As shown, the address allocation device 300 includes a receiving module 301 and a sending module 302.

[0078] The receiving module 301 can be configured to receive an address allocation request from a relay UE, the address allocation request carrying the IP address of the relay UE and the identifier of each of the multiple remote UEs corresponding to the relay UE.

[0079] The sending module 302 can be configured to send multiple IP addresses assigned to multiple remote UEs to the relay UE, and the multiple IP addresses are different from each other.

[0080] In some embodiments, the address allocation device 300 may also include other modules that perform the other operations described above.

[0081] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an address allocation device according to other embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0082] like Figure 4 As shown, the address allocation device 400 includes a memory 401 and a processor 402 coupled to the memory 401. The processor 402 is configured to execute the method of any of the foregoing embodiments based on instructions stored in the memory 401.

[0083] The memory 401 may include, for example, system memory, fixed non-volatile storage media, etc. The system memory may store, for example, an operating system, application programs, a boot loader, and other programs.

[0084] The address allocation device 400 may also include an input / output interface 403, a network interface 404, and a storage interface 405. These interfaces 403, 404, and 405, as well as the memory 401 and processor 402, can be connected via, for example, a bus 406. The input / output interface 403 provides a connection interface for input / output devices such as monitors, mice, keyboards, and touchscreens. The network interface 404 provides a connection interface for various networked devices. The storage interface 405 provides a connection interface for external storage devices such as SD cards and USB flash drives.

[0085] This disclosure also provides a DDNMF network element, including the address allocation device (e.g., address allocation device 300 / 400) of any of the above embodiments.

[0086] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an address allocation system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0087] like Figure 5As shown, the address allocation system 500 includes the DDNMF network element 501 and the relay UE 502 in any of the above embodiments. The relay UE 502 can be configured to send address allocation requests.

[0088] In some embodiments, the address allocation system 500 may further include an SMF network element 503 and a UPF network element 504. In these embodiments, the DDNMF network element 501 may be configured to send session context update information of the relay UE 502 to the SMF network element 503, wherein the session context update information includes the IP address of the relay UE and the mapping relationship of multiple IP addresses; the SMF network element 503 may be configured to update the forwarding table of the UPF network element 504 according to the session context update information.

[0089] This disclosure also provides a computer-readable storage medium including computer program instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement the method of any of the above embodiments.

[0090] This disclosure also provides a computer program product, including a computer program, wherein when the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the method of any of the above embodiments.

[0091] The embodiments of this disclosure have now been described in detail. To avoid obscuring the concept of this disclosure, some details known in the art have not been described. Those skilled in the art can fully understand how to implement the technical solutions disclosed herein based on the above description.

[0092] Those skilled in the art will understand that embodiments of this disclosure can be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, this disclosure can take the form of a completely hardware embodiment, a completely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, this disclosure can take the form of a computer program product embodied on one or more computer-usable non-transitory storage media (including, but not limited to, disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0093] This disclosure is described with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of this disclosure. It should be understood that the functions specified in one or more flowchart illustrations and / or one or more blocks in a block diagram can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, generate functions for implementing the functions in the flowchart illustrations. Figure 1 One or more processes and / or boxes Figure 1A device that provides the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0094] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing device to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium produce an article of manufacture including instruction means, which are implemented in a process Figure 1 One or more processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The function specified in one or more boxes.

[0095] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing equipment to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable equipment to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions that execute on the computer or other programmable equipment for implementing the process. Figure 1 One or more processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The steps of the function specified in one or more boxes.

[0096] While specific embodiments of this disclosure have been described in detail by way of examples, those skilled in the art should understand that the examples are for illustrative purposes only and not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can be made to the above embodiments or equivalent substitutions can be made to some technical features without departing from the scope and spirit of this disclosure. The scope of this disclosure is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. An address allocation method, comprising: The Direct Discovery Name Management (DDNMF) network element receives an address allocation request from a trunk user equipment (UE). The address allocation request carries the IP address of the trunk UE and the identifier of each of the multiple remote UEs corresponding to the trunk UE. The DDNMF network element sends multiple IP addresses allocated to the multiple remote UEs to the relay UE based on the IP address of the relay UE. The multiple IP addresses are different from each other, and the relay UE forwards the multiple IP addresses to the multiple remote UEs one by one.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of remote UEs access the core network via the relay UE in the L3 network.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein, Each of the plurality of IP addresses is different from the IP address of the relay UE.

4. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The multiple IP addresses are located in the same network segment as the IP address of the relay UE.

5. The method according to claim 1, wherein, All of the IP addresses are IPv4 addresses.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, further comprising: The DDNMF network element sends the session context update information of the relay UE to the session management function SMF network element. The session context update information includes the IP address of the relay UE and the correspondence between the multiple IP addresses.

7. The method according to claim 6, further comprising: The SMF network element updates the forwarding table of the User Plane Function (UPF) network element based on the session context update information.

8. An address allocation device, configured in a Direct Discovery Name Management (DDNMF) network element, comprising: The receiving module is configured to receive an address allocation request from a relay UE, the address allocation request carrying the IP address of the relay UE and the identifier of each of a plurality of remote UEs corresponding to the relay UE; The sending module is configured to send multiple IP addresses allocated to the multiple remote UEs to the relay UE, wherein the multiple IP addresses are different from each other, and the multiple IP addresses are forwarded by the relay UE to the multiple remote UEs in a one-to-one correspondence.

9. An address allocation device, configured in a Direct Discovery Name Management (DDNMF) network element, comprising: Memory; as well as A processor coupled to the memory is configured to execute the method of any one of claims 1-6 based on instructions stored in the memory.

10. An address allocation system, comprising: The DDNMF network element is configured to perform the method described in any one of claims 1-6; as well as The relay UE is configured to send the address allocation request.

11. The system according to claim 10, wherein: The DDNMF network element is configured to send the session context update information of the relay UE to the SMF network element. The session context update information includes the IP address of the relay UE and the correspondence between the multiple IP addresses. The system also includes: The SMF network element is configured to update the forwarding table of the UPF network element based on the session context update information.

12. A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer program instructions, wherein, When the computer program instructions are executed by the processor, they implement the method described in any one of claims 1-7.

13. A computer program product comprising a computer program, wherein, When the computer program is executed by a processor, it implements the method described in any one of claims 1-7.

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