A heterogeneous network slicing interconnection device and method

Abstract

This invention belongs to the field of novel network architecture technology and discloses a heterogeneous network slice interconnection device and method. The basic idea is to deploy a programmable slice gateway on the forwarding plane, which can accurately identify and control user services through definable data parsing and processing forwarding capabilities, ensuring the service consistency and continuity of service data between heterogeneous network slices, and realizing heterogeneous network slice adaptation; and to deploy a heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit on the control plane, which interacts with the slice control planes of the two heterogeneous networks to generate forwarding plane slice gateway configuration policies, and coordinates the slice control policies of the two heterogeneous networks to improve the end-to-end slice service quality when data is transmitted across networks.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of novel network architecture technology, and in particular to a heterogeneous network slice interconnection device and method. Background Technology

[0002] As the types of network services continue to increase, the supply and demand issues of network resources and services are becoming increasingly apparent. Users are placing higher demands on network operating efficiency, isolation, automation, and capability openness. Network slicing technology addresses these user needs by virtualizing independent end-to-end service subnets on the same physical platform. This not only meets the performance requirements of different services but also maximizes network resource utilization, saves network construction costs, improves operator profitability, and ultimately achieves a balance between network service and cost-effectiveness—a win-win situation.

[0003] In recent years, network slicing technology has received widespread attention and rapid development in network environments such as wireless access networks, mobile core networks, IP bearer networks, and satellite networks. However, the problem of interconnection and interoperability between slices in heterogeneous networks remains unresolved. Network slicing provides differentiated services by virtualizing multiple network slices within a single network. When user services need to traverse different networks, the differences in service classification methods, the number of slices, and slice construction methods between heterogeneous networks often prevent direct interconnection and interoperability, severely impacting the quality of network slicing services. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This invention addresses the interconnection and interoperability problem of network slices between heterogeneous networks by designing a heterogeneous network slice interconnection and interoperability device and method. At the forwarding plane, a programmable slice gateway is used to realize the conversion of service data between heterogeneous network slices. At the control plane, a heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit is used to schedule the slice gateway configuration policy and the heterogeneous network slice control policy, thereby improving the customized service capability for differentiated services when data is transmitted across networks.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution:

[0006] In one aspect, this invention proposes a heterogeneous network slice interconnection and interoperability device, which includes a programmable slice gateway and a heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit;

[0007] The heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit is connected to the slice control planes of two heterogeneous networks respectively, and is used to exchange slice control information. Taking into account the differences between heterogeneous networks in slice service classification, slice quantity and slice construction form, it generates data plane slice gateway configuration strategy and coordinates the slice control strategies of the two heterogeneous networks to improve the end-to-end slice service quality when data is transmitted across networks.

[0008] The programmable slice gateway is used to identify and control user services through definable data parsing and processing forwarding capabilities, complete data mapping between slices according to the slice gateway configuration policy provided by the heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit, ensure the service consistency and continuity of service data between heterogeneous network slices, and realize heterogeneous network slice adaptation.

[0009] Furthermore, the heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit includes a first network control plane interaction module, a second network control plane interaction module, a heterogeneous slice collaborative management module, a parsing rule distribution module, a forwarding rule distribution module, and a reverse parsing rule distribution module;

[0010] The first network control plane interaction module and the second network control plane interaction module are respectively connected to the control planes of two heterogeneous networks, and are used to obtain the slice management information of the two heterogeneous networks and send it to the heterogeneous slice collaborative management module.

[0011] The heterogeneous slice collaborative management module is used to generate forwarding plane slice gateway configuration policies based on the differences between the two heterogeneous networks in slice service classification, slice quantity, and slice construction form. These policies are then sent to the parsing rule distribution module, forwarding rule distribution module, and reverse parsing rule distribution module to generate slice scheduling requirements for the two heterogeneous networks. These requirements are then sent to the control planes of the two heterogeneous networks through the first network control plane interaction module and the second network control plane interaction module, respectively.

[0012] The parsing rule distribution module, forwarding rule distribution module, and reverse parsing rule distribution module rewrite the slice gateway configuration policy into parsing rules, forwarding rules, and reverse parsing rules that the programmable slice gateway can recognize, and then distribute them to the programmable slice gateway to complete the rule configuration.

[0013] Furthermore, the programmable slicing gateway includes a programmable parsing module, one or more programmable forwarding modules, and a programmable reverse parsing module;

[0014] The programmable parsing module is used to parse the service traffic sent from the first network. According to the parsing rules issued by the heterogeneous network slicing collaborative control unit, the service traffic is identified as slicing traffic according to the slicing rules of the first network and sent to different programmable forwarding modules respectively.

[0015] The programmable forwarding module sends slice traffic to each port of the programmable reverse parsing module according to the forwarding rules issued by the heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit.

[0016] The programmable reverse parsing module repackages the slice traffic of the same port into service traffic that conforms to the second network slice rule according to the reverse parsing rules issued by the heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit.

[0017] Furthermore, the parsing rule distribution module, forwarding rule distribution module, and reverse parsing rule distribution module are respectively connected to the programmable parsing module, programmable forwarding module, and programmable reverse parsing module in the programmable slicing gateway, and respectively distribute the parsing rules, forwarding rules, and reverse parsing rules to the programmable parsing module, programmable forwarding module, and programmable reverse parsing module.

[0018] Another aspect of the present invention proposes a method for interconnecting heterogeneous network slices, comprising:

[0019] The first step is to obtain the slice management information of the first network and the second network; the first network and the second network are two heterogeneous networks.

[0020] The second step is to formulate a heterogeneous slice collaborative control strategy based on the above information, including slice gateway configuration strategy, first network slice scheduling requirements, and second network slice scheduling requirements.

[0021] The third step is to send the first network slice scheduling request and the second network slice scheduling request to the control plane of the first network and the second network respectively, and rewrite the slice gateway configuration policy into parsing rules, forwarding rules and reverse parsing rules that can be recognized by the programmable slice gateway;

[0022] The fourth step is to distribute the parsing rules, forwarding rules, and reverse parsing rules to the programmable parsing module, programmable forwarding module, and programmable reverse parsing module in the programmable slice gateway, respectively.

[0023] Fifth, the programmable parsing module accurately identifies the service traffic as slice traffic according to the first network slicing rule based on the parsing rules, and sends them to different programmable forwarding modules respectively;

[0024] The sixth step is for the programmable forwarding module to send the parsed sliced ​​traffic to each port of the programmable reverse parsing module according to the forwarding rules.

[0025] Step 7: The programmable reverse parsing module repackages the slice traffic of the same port into service traffic that conforms to the second network slice rule according to the reverse parsing rules.

[0026] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0027] This invention designs a heterogeneous network slice interconnection device and method. In the forwarding plane, a programmable slice gateway is used to realize the conversion of service data between heterogeneous network slices. In the control plane, a heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit is used to realize the scheduling of slice gateway configuration policies and heterogeneous network slice control policies, thereby improving the ability to provide customized services for differentiated services when data is transmitted across networks. Attached Figure Description

[0028] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a heterogeneous network slicing interconnection device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0029] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a programmable slicing gateway according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the heterogeneous network slicing collaborative control unit according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 4 This is a flowchart of a heterogeneous network slicing interconnection method according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0032] The present invention will be further explained below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments:

[0033] This invention proposes a heterogeneous network slice interconnection and interoperability device. A programmable slice gateway is deployed on the forwarding plane, which, through definable data parsing and processing forwarding capabilities, accurately identifies and controls user services, ensuring service consistency and continuity of service data across heterogeneous network slices and achieving heterogeneous network slice adaptation. A heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit is deployed on the control plane, which interacts with the slice control planes of the two heterogeneous networks to generate forwarding plane slice gateway configuration policies and collaboratively schedules the slice control policies of the two heterogeneous networks, improving the end-to-end slice service quality during cross-network data transmission.

[0034] like Figure 1 As shown, the present invention provides a heterogeneous network slice interconnection and interoperability device, which includes a programmable slice gateway and a heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit.

[0035] Programmable slice gateways, through definable data parsing and processing forwarding capabilities, accurately identify and control user services, complete data mapping between slices according to the configuration policies provided by the control unit, ensure service consistency and continuity of service data between heterogeneous network slices, and achieve heterogeneous network slice adaptation.

[0036] The heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit connects the slice control planes of two heterogeneous networks, exchanges slice control information, comprehensively considers the differences in slice service classification, slice quantity, and slice construction form of heterogeneous networks, generates data plane slice gateway configuration policies, and coordinates the slice control policies of the two heterogeneous networks to improve the end-to-end slice service quality when data is transmitted across networks.

[0037] like Figure 2 As shown, the programmable slicing gateway includes a programmable parsing module, one or more programmable forwarding modules, and a programmable reverse parsing module.

[0038] The programmable parsing module parses the service traffic from the first network and, according to the parsing rules issued by the heterogeneous network slicing collaborative control unit, accurately identifies the service traffic as slice traffic according to the slicing rules of the first network and sends it to different programmable forwarding modules respectively.

[0039] The programmable forwarding module sends slice traffic to each port of the programmable reverse parsing module according to the forwarding rules issued by the heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit;

[0040] The programmable reverse parsing module repackages the slice traffic on the same port into service traffic that conforms to the second network slice rule, based on the reverse parsing rules issued by the heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit.

[0041] like Figure 3 As shown, the heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit includes a first network control plane interaction module, a second network control plane interaction module, a heterogeneous slice collaborative management module, a parsing rule distribution module, a forwarding rule distribution module, and a reverse parsing rule distribution module.

[0042] The first network control plane interaction module and the second network control plane interaction module are respectively connected to the control planes of the first network and the second network, obtain the slice management information of the first network and the second network, and send it to the heterogeneous slice collaborative management module.

[0043] Based on the differences between the first network and the second network in terms of slice service classification, number of slices, and slice construction form, the heterogeneous slice collaborative management module generates a forwarding plane slice gateway configuration policy and sends it to the parsing rule distribution module, forwarding rule distribution module, and reverse parsing rule distribution module. It generates slice scheduling requirements for the first network and sends them to the control plane of the first network through the first network control plane interaction module. It also generates slice scheduling requirements for the second network and sends them to the control plane of the second network through the second network control plane interaction module.

[0044] The parsing rule distribution module, forwarding rule distribution module, and reverse parsing rule distribution module are respectively connected to the programmable parsing module, programmable forwarding module, and programmable reverse parsing module in the programmable slice gateway. They rewrite the slice gateway configuration policy into parsing rules, forwarding rules, and reverse parsing rules that the programmable slice gateway can recognize, and distribute them to the programmable parsing module, programmable forwarding module, and programmable reverse parsing module respectively to complete the rule configuration.

[0045] Based on the above embodiments, such as Figure 4 As shown, this invention also designs a method for interconnecting heterogeneous network slices, which includes 7 steps:

[0046] The first step is to obtain the slice management information for the first and second networks;

[0047] The second step is to formulate a heterogeneous slice collaborative control strategy based on the above information, including slice gateway configuration strategy, first network slice scheduling requirements, and second network slice scheduling requirements.

[0048] The third step is to send the first network slice scheduling request and the second network slice scheduling request to the control plane of the first network and the second network respectively, and rewrite the slice gateway configuration policy into parsing rules, forwarding rules and reverse parsing rules that can be recognized by the programmable slice gateway;

[0049] The fourth step is to distribute the parsing rules, forwarding rules, and reverse parsing rules to the programmable parsing module, programmable forwarding module, and programmable reverse parsing module in the programmable slice gateway, respectively.

[0050] Fifth, the programmable parsing module accurately identifies the service traffic as slice traffic according to the first network slicing rule based on the parsing rules, and sends them to different programmable forwarding modules respectively;

[0051] The sixth step is for the programmable forwarding module to send the parsed sliced ​​traffic to each port of the programmable reverse parsing module according to the forwarding rules.

[0052] Step 7: The programmable reverse parsing module repackages the slice traffic of the same port into service traffic that conforms to the second network slice rule according to the reverse parsing rules.

[0053] In summary, this invention designs a heterogeneous network slice interconnection device and method. In the forwarding plane, a programmable slice gateway is used to realize the conversion of service data between heterogeneous network slices. In the control plane, a heterogeneous network slice collaborative control unit is used to realize the scheduling of slice gateway configuration policies and heterogeneous network slice control policies, thereby improving the ability to provide customized services for differentiated services when data is transmitted across networks.

[0054] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. It should be noted that those skilled in the art can make several improvements and modifications without departing from the principle of the present invention, and these improvements and modifications should also be considered within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A heterogeneous network slice interconnection interworking device, characterized in that, The device comprises a programmable slice gateway and a heterogeneous network slice coordination control unit; The heterogeneous network slice coordination control unit is connected to the slice control planes of two heterogeneous networks respectively, is used for interacting slice control information, comprehensively considers the differences of the two heterogeneous networks in slice service classification mode, slice quantity and slice construction form, generates a data plane slice gateway configuration strategy, and cooperatively schedules slice control strategies of the two heterogeneous networks, so as to improve the end-to-end slice service quality during data cross-network transmission. The programmable slice gateway is used for identifying and controlling user services through definable data analysis and processing forwarding capabilities, completing data mapping between slices according to the slice gateway configuration strategy provided by the heterogeneous network slice coordination control unit, guaranteeing service consistency and continuity between slices of the heterogeneous network, and realizing heterogeneous network slice adaptation. 2.The heterogeneous network slice interconnection and intercommunication apparatus of claim 1, wherein, The heterogeneous network slice coordination control unit comprises a first network control plane interaction module, a second network control plane interaction module, a heterogeneous slice coordination management module, an analysis rule issuing module, a forwarding rule issuing module and an inverse analysis rule issuing module. The first network control plane interaction module and the second network control plane interaction module are connected to the control planes of two heterogeneous networks respectively, and are used for obtaining slice management information of the two heterogeneous networks and sending the information to the heterogeneous slice coordination management module. The heterogeneous slice coordination management module is used for generating forwarding plane slice gateway configuration strategies according to the differences of the two heterogeneous networks in slice service classification mode, slice quantity and slice construction form, sending the strategies to the analysis rule issuing module, the forwarding rule issuing module and the inverse analysis rule issuing module, generating slice scheduling requirements of the two heterogeneous networks respectively, and sending the requirements to the control planes of the two heterogeneous networks through the first network control plane interaction module and the second network control plane interaction module. The analysis rule issuing module, the forwarding rule issuing module and the inverse analysis rule issuing module rewrite the slice gateway configuration strategies into analysis rules, forwarding rules and inverse analysis rules that can be recognized by the programmable slice gateway, and issue the rules to the programmable slice gateway to complete rule configuration. 3.The heterogeneous network slice interconnection and intercommunication apparatus of claim 2, characterized in that, The programmable slice gateway comprises a programmable analysis module, one or more programmable forwarding modules and a programmable inverse analysis module. The programmable analysis module is used for analyzing service traffic sent by the first network, identifying the service traffic as slice traffic according to the analysis rules issued by the heterogeneous network slice coordination control unit, and sending the slice traffic to different programmable forwarding modules according to the slice rules of the first network. The programmable forwarding module sends the slice traffic to each port of the programmable inverse analysis module according to the forwarding rules issued by the heterogeneous network slice coordination control unit. The programmable inverse analysis module re-encapsulates the slice traffic of the same port into service traffic conforming to the slice rules of the second network according to the inverse analysis rules issued by the heterogeneous network slice coordination control unit. 4.The heterogeneous network slice interconnection and intercommunication apparatus of claim 3, characterized in that, The parsing rule issuing module, the forwarding rule issuing module and the inverse parsing rule issuing module are respectively connected with the programmable parsing module, the programmable forwarding module and the programmable inverse parsing module in the programmable slice gateway, and respectively issue the parsing rule, the forwarding rule and the inverse parsing rule to the programmable parsing module, the programmable forwarding module and the programmable inverse parsing module.

5. A heterogeneous network slice interconnection interworking method, characterized in that, The method is executed based on the heterogeneous network slice interconnection intercommunication device of claim 4, comprising: Firstly, obtaining the slice management information of the first network and the second network; the first network and the second network are two heterogeneous networks; Secondly, formulating the heterogeneous slice cooperative control strategy according to the slice management information, including the slice gateway configuration strategy, the first network slice scheduling requirement and the second network slice scheduling requirement; Thirdly, sending the first network slice scheduling requirement and the second network slice scheduling requirement to the control plane of the first network and the second network respectively, and rewriting the slice gateway configuration strategy into the parsing rule, the forwarding rule and the inverse parsing rule which can be recognized by the programmable slice gateway; Fourthly, issuing the parsing rule, the forwarding rule and the inverse parsing rule to the programmable parsing module, the programmable forwarding module and the programmable inverse parsing module in the programmable slice gateway respectively; Fifthly, the programmable parsing module accurately identifies the service traffic as slice traffic according to the parsing rule, and sends it to different programmable forwarding modules respectively; Sixthly, the programmable forwarding module sends the parsed slice traffic to each port of the programmable inverse parsing module according to the forwarding rule; Seventhly, the programmable inverse parsing module re-encapsulates the slice traffic of the same port into the service traffic conforming to the second network slice rule according to the inverse parsing rule.

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