Communication method and device

Abstract

The invention provides a communication method and device, relates to the technical field of mobile communication, and is used for improving the performance of a network element of a core network in a dynamic real-time differential service scene. The method comprises the following steps: a first network element receives first information from a second network element, wherein the first information is used for notifying a first user that the first user is located in a first area; wherein the first area is a data sending area of the first service, and the first user signs the first service. The first service comprises a high-precision positioning service. The first network element can also determine that second information does not exist, wherein the second information is used for indicating that the first area has sent the data of the first service. The first network element may also send data of the first service to the second network element.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the field of mobile communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device. Background Art

[0002] Real-time kinematic (RTK) positioning technology is a differential positioning technology, also known as carrier phase differential technology. In RTK positioning technology, the base station data center obtains RTK calibration data based on the global navigation satellite system (GNSS) positioning measurement results reported by the base station and the difference between the GNSS positioning data calculated based on the actual position of the base station. The base station broadcasts the obtained RTK calibration data, so that the user equipment (UE) and other positioning entities within the base station range can calibrate the positioning results according to the RTK calibration data to improve the positioning accuracy. Among them, the base station can obtain RTK calibration data from core network elements such as the access and mobility management function (AMF) network element.

[0003] However, considering that multiple AMFs in the current AMF pool can adopt a load sharing mechanism, that is, multiple AMFs in the AMF pool communicate and manage the area corresponding to the AMF pool, there may be a situation where LMF repeatedly sends RTK calibration data that needs to be broadcast in the same area to multiple AMFs, resulting in repeated broadcasting, increasing the overhead of core network elements such as AMF, and reducing network element performance. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present application provides a communication method and device for improving the performance of core network elements in RTK service scenarios.

[0005] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided. The method may be implemented by a first network element or a component in the first network element. The first network element may be a core network element such as an LMF or an E-SMLC. The components in the present application may include, for example, at least one of a chip, a chip system, a processor, a transceiver, a processing unit, or a transceiver unit. Taking the execution subject as the first network element as an example, the method may be implemented by the following steps:

[0006] The first network element receives first information from the second network element, and the first information is used to notify the first user that the first user is located (inside), enters, appears or is in a first area. The first area is a sending area for data of a first service, and the first user signs up for the first service. The first service includes a high-precision positioning service. The first network element may also determine that there is no second information, and the second information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service. The first network element may also send data of the first service to the second network element.

[0007] Based on the first aspect, the first network element can learn that there are users who need high-precision positioning services in the first area based on the notification used to notify that the first user is located in the first area, and send the data of the first service to the second network element, so that the second network element sends the data of the first service to the access network device corresponding to the first area, avoiding sending high-precision positioning service data to areas where there are no high-precision positioning service users, so as to reduce the signaling overhead of the core network element and improve the communication performance of the first network element. The first service is, for example, positioning, differential positioning, high-precision positioning, GNSS positioning, outdoor positioning, satellite positioning, positioning service, high-precision positioning service, differential positioning service, GNSS positioning service, satellite positioning service, or RTK positioning service. In addition, the data of the first service is sent when the first network element determines that there is no second information, so repeated sending of the data of the first service in the first area can be avoided.

[0008] In the present application, the first area can be replaced by: the first data broadcasting area, the first data broadcasting area, the first data broadcasting area, the first data broadcasting area, the first data playback area, the first data sending area, the data broadcasting area of ​​the first business, the data broadcasting area of ​​the first business, the broadcasting area of ​​the first business data, the broadcasting area of ​​the first business data, the playback area of ​​the first business data, or the sending area of ​​the first business data.

[0009] In this application, "does not exist" can also be replaced by: not found, not recorded, not stored or received, or does not exist (has not); correspondingly, "exists" can also be replaced by found, recorded, stored or received, or has.

[0010] In addition, "no second information exists" may be replaced by: information exists indicating that the first area does not send data of the first service. "No data of the first service is sent" may be replaced by: data of the first service is not broadcast or not broadcast.

[0011] The method shown in the first aspect can also be replaced by:

[0012] The first network element receives first information from the second network element, the first information being used to notify that the first user is located in, enters, appears in, or is in a first area, the first area being a transmission area for data of a first service. The first network element may also determine that there is no second information, the second information being used to indicate that the first area has transmitted data of the first service. The first network element transmits the data of the first service to the second network element according to the first information and / or the second information.

[0013] Alternatively, the method shown in the first aspect can also be replaced by:

[0014] The first network element receives first information from the second network element, where the first information is used to notify that first service data is sent to the first area. The first network element may also determine that there is no second information, where the second information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service. The first network element may also send the first data to the second network element based on the first information and / or the second information.

[0015] Alternatively, the method shown in the first aspect can also be replaced by:

[0016] The first network element receives first information from the second network element, the first information being used to notify the first area of ​​the existence or appearance of a first user, the first area being a sending area of ​​the first data. The first network element may also determine that there is no second information, the second information being used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service. The first network element may also send the first data to the second network element based on the first information and / or the second information.

[0017] Alternatively, the method shown in the first aspect can also be replaced by:

[0018] The first network element receives first information from the second network element, the first information being used to notify the first user that the first user has entered or is located in or appears in a first area, the first area being a sending area for the first data. The first network element may also determine that there is no second information, the second information being used to indicate that the first area has sent data for the first service. The first network element may also send the first data to the second network element based on the first information and / or the second information.

[0019] Alternatively, the method shown in the first aspect can also be replaced by:

[0020] The first network element receives first information from the second network element, the first information is used to notify that a first user exists or appears in a first area, the first area is a sending area for first data, the first data is data of a first service, the first user is a subscriber of the first service, the first service includes a high-precision positioning service, or the first service includes an RTK service, or the first service includes a differential service. The first network element may also determine that there is no second information, the second information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service. The first network element may also send the first data to the second network element based on the first information and / or the second information.

[0021] In a possible implementation manner, the first network element may send a first message to the second network element, where the first message is used to subscribe to a notification that the first user is located in, enters, appears in, or is in a first area.

[0022] In the present application, the first message can also be described as: the first message can be used to subscribe to a notification that the first user exists in the first area, or the first message is used to subscribe to a notification that the first user appears in the first area, or the first message is used to subscribe to a notification that the first user is located in the first area, or the first message is used to subscribe to a notification that the first user appears in the first area, or the first message is used to subscribe to a notification that the first user enters the first area, or the first message is used to subscribe to a notification that the first user is in the first area, or the first message is used to request a notification that the first user exists in the first area, or the first message is used to request a notification that the first user appears in the first area, or the first message is used to request a notification that the first user is located in the first area, or the first message is used to request a notification that the first user appears in the first area, or the first message is used to request a notification that the first user appears in the first area, or the first message is used to request a notification that the first user enters the first area, or the first message is used to request a notification that the first user is in the first area.

[0023] In a possible implementation, the first message is used to subscribe to the notification of the appearance of the first user in the first area, which can be understood as the first message carrying the number of first users (for example, one or more first users) as a condition for triggering the second network element to send the first information to the first network element, or the first message carries the number of first users as the user number threshold value (or simply referred to as the threshold value) that triggers the second network element to send the first information to the first network element. For example, when the number of first users carried by the first message is 100, it means that the second network element sends the first information to the first network element only after it finds that 100 first users have entered or exist in the first area. When the number is less than 100, the first service data is still sent using the respective sessions of the first users. By carrying the number of first users, the triggering timing of the second network element sending the first information can be made more flexible.

[0024] In a possible implementation, the first information and / or the second information includes information of the first identifier and / or the first area, wherein the first identifier is used to identify or indicate the first service and / or the first area. Therefore, the first service and / or the first area can be indicated, identified or determined by the first identifier. In the present application, the first identifier may also be replaced by the identifier of the first area, or the first area identifier. In the present application, the first identifier may also correspond to the first data and / or the first area. In the present application, the first data includes: positioning assistance data, high-precision positioning assistance data, RTK data, GNSS assistance data, positioning data, differential positioning data, high-precision positioning data, GNSS positioning data, outdoor positioning data, satellite positioning data, positioning service data, high-precision positioning service data, differential positioning service data, GNSS positioning service data, satellite positioning service data, or RTK positioning service data.

[0025] In this application, the first identifier can also be described as: the first identifier corresponds to the first business and / or the first area, or the first identifier is associated with the first business and / or the first area, or the first identifier is related to the first business and / or the first area. Or the first identifier is related to the first data and / or the first area, or the first identifier is associated with the first business and / or the first area, or the first identifier corresponds to the first data and / or the first area.

[0026] In a possible implementation manner, the first identifier includes a high-precision positioning identifier, a positioning area identifier, a positioning data sending area identifier, a positioning data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning data broadcasting area identifier, a GNSS area identifier, a GNSS data sending area identifier, an auxiliary data sending area identifier, an auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, an auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning auxiliary data sending area identifier, a positioning auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning calibration / correction data sending area identifier, a positioning calibration / correction data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning calibration / correction data broadcasting area identifier, an RTK service identifier, or includes at least one of an RTK area user identifier, an RTK broadcasting area identifier, broadcast assistance subscription information (broadcast assistance subscription data), a positioning assistance data type (location assistance data type), a positioning system information block (SIB) type (positioning SIB type), a positioning assistance type (location assistance type), broadcast assistance types data (broadcast assistance types data), or an RTK identifier.

[0027] The above first data and the data of the first service can replace each other.

[0028] In a possible implementation, the second information may also include third information corresponding to the first area and / or third information corresponding to the first identifier. The third information is used to indicate that the first area has sent the data of the first service, or in other words, to indicate that the data of the first service has been sent, and the third information may also be referred to as sent information. Exemplarily, the sent information and the unsent information may be bit values ​​or Boolean values ​​used to indicate that the data of the first service has been sent and the data of the first service has not been sent, respectively. For example, a value of 0 indicates that the data of the first service has not been sent, and a value of 1 indicates that the data of the first service has been sent; or a value of 1 indicates that the data of the first service has not been sent, and a value of 0 indicates that the data of the first service has been sent. Alternatively, the sent information and the unsent information may be characters or enumeration values ​​or integers or decimals used to indicate, respectively, that the data of the first service has been sent and the data of the first service has not been sent. For example, the value may be a character or an enumeration value or an integer or a decimal, indicating that the data of the first service has been sent; or, the value may be a character or an enumeration value or an integer or a decimal, indicating that the data of the first service has not been sent; therefore, the bit or Boolean value or character or enumeration or integer or decimal combined with the information of the first identifier or the first area can be used to indicate whether the first area has sent the data of the first service.

[0029] In a possible implementation, the first network element may also determine that there is no second information, and the second information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service. The second information may also include third information corresponding to the first area and / or third information corresponding to the first identifier. Exemplarily, the third information may be a bit value or a Boolean value used to indicate that the data of the first service has been sent, for example, the value of the bit is 0, indicating that the data of the first service has been sent, or the value of the bit is 1, indicating that the data of the first service has been sent. Alternatively, the third information may be a character or an enumeration value or an integer or a decimal used to indicate that the data of the first service has been sent, for example, the value is a certain character or an enumeration value or an integer or a decimal, indicating that the data of the first service has been sent; or, the value is a certain character or an enumeration value or an integer or a decimal, indicating that the data of the first service has been sent; therefore, the bit or Boolean value or character or enumeration or integer or decimal combined with the first identifier or the information of the first area can be used to indicate whether the first area has sent data of the first service.

[0030] In a possible implementation, the first network element may also generate the second information based on the first information. For example, the first network element may generate the second information after determining that the second information does not exist. Among them, the first network element may generate the second information based on the first information. For example, when the first information includes the first identifier, the second information may add the third information on the basis of the first information to identify whether the first area has sent or not sent the data of the first service. Or, for another example, when the first information includes the first area, the second information may add the third information on the basis of the first information to identify whether the first area has sent or not sent the data of the first service.

[0031] Optionally, “generating second information” may also be replaced by: determining the second information, storing the second information, or obtaining the second information.

[0032] In a possible implementation, if the first network element determines that the second information exists, the first network element may send fourth information to the second network element, where the fourth information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service, and / or the fourth information may be used to indicate that data of the first service is not sent to the first area. Therefore, the second network element may not send data of the first service to the first area according to the fourth information. Not sending data of the first service to the first area, for example, means not sending data of the first service to an access network device corresponding to the first area.

[0033] Optionally, “not sending data of the first service to the first area” may also be replaced by: ignoring sending data of the first service to the first area, stopping or refusing to send data of the first service to the first area, or not sending data of the first service.

[0034] In a possible implementation, the second information may come from a third network element. The third network element may be, for example, another location management network element other than the first network element, such as LMF or E-SMLC. For example, when the third network element has sent information corresponding to the first area, or in other words, the third network element has sent data of the first service to the first area, the sent information of the first area (i.e., the second information) may be sent to the first network element to avoid resending data of the first service in the first area. The third network element may be in the same pool as the first network element, for example.

[0035] In a possible implementation, the first network element may receive fifth information from the second network element, where the fifth information is used to indicate to stop or terminate sending data of the first service to the first area, and / or the fifth information is used to indicate that the first user does not exist in the first area. For example, when the second network element determines that the first user does not exist in the first area, the second network element may send the fifth information to the first network element, so that the first network element stops sending data of the first service to the access network device corresponding to or included in the first area.

[0036] Optionally, “the first user does not exist in the first area” may be replaced by: the first user has left or moved out of the first area.

[0037] It should be noted that the data in this application can also be replaced by information without limitation.

[0038] In a second aspect, a communication method is provided. The method may be implemented by a second network element or a component in the second network element. Among them, the components in the present application may include, for example, at least one of a chip, a chip system, a processor, a transceiver, a processing unit, or a transceiver unit. The second network element is, for example, an AMF or an MME. Taking the execution subject as the second network element as an example, the method can be implemented by the following steps: the second network element determines that the first user is located in a first area, the first area is a sending area of ​​the first service data, the first user subscribes to the first service, and the first service includes a high-precision positioning service. The second network element sends a first message to the first network element, and the first message is used to notify the first user that the first user is located in the first area.

[0039] It should be noted that the description of the first information is as shown above and will not be repeated here.

[0040] It should be noted that the first information used to notify that the first user is located in the first area can also be replaced by the first information used to notify that the first service data is sent to the first area. In a possible implementation, the first information may include information of the first identifier and / or the first area, wherein the first identifier is used to identify the first service and / or the first area. Therefore, the first service and / or the first area can be indicated, identified or determined by the first identifier.

[0041] In a possible implementation, the second network element stores the correspondence between the first identifier and the first area or the information of the first area. Alternatively, the second network element does not store the correspondence between the first identifier and the first area or the information of the first area. After receiving the first identifier, the second network element may send the first identifier to the fourth network element. Afterwards, the second network element may receive the information of the first area or the first area from the fourth network element. The fourth network element is, for example, an NRF.

[0042] In a possible implementation, the first identifier includes a high-precision positioning identifier, an RTK service identifier, or includes at least one of an RTK broadcast area identifier, or an RTK identifier. Other descriptions of the first identifier are as shown above and will not be repeated here.

[0043] In a possible implementation, the sending of the first information by the second network element may be triggered according to the number of first users appearing / existing in the first area, for example, when the first message sent by the first network element to the second network element carries the number of first users (for example, one or more first users) as a condition for triggering the second network element to send the first information to the first network element, or the first message carries the number of first users as a threshold value of the number of users that triggers the second network element to send the first information to the first network element (for example, when the number of first users carried by the first message is 100, it means that the second network element sends the first information to the first network element only when it finds that 100 first users have entered or exist in the first area, and when the number is less than 100, the first service data is still sent using the respective sessions of the first users). By carrying the number of first users, the triggering timing of the second network element sending the first information can be made more flexible.

[0044] In a possible implementation, the second network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, and the sent information corresponding to the first area is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service. The sent information corresponding to the first area can be used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service, for example, including information of the first area. In addition, the sent information corresponding to the first area may also include third information corresponding to the first area, and the third information is used to indicate that the data of the first service has been sent. The third information can refer to the description in the first aspect, and will not be repeated here.

[0045] In a possible implementation, the second network element may send the information of the first area or the first information to the fourth network element, and thus may request the fourth network element to determine whether there is sent information or unsent information corresponding to the first area. The fourth network element is, for example, an NRF or an UDSF, or may be another core network element, such as a UDM or an NWDAF, etc.

[0046] If the second network element receives a first indication from a fourth network element, it can be determined that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, and the first information can be used to indicate that the fourth network element does not have the sent information corresponding to the first area. If the second network element receives a second indication from the fourth network element, it can be determined that there is sent information corresponding to the first area, and the second indication can be used to indicate that the fourth network element has the sent information corresponding to the first area.

[0047] Among them, "the fourth network element does not have the sent information corresponding to the first area" can also be replaced by: the fourth network element has the unsent information corresponding to the first area. "The fourth network element has the sent information corresponding to the first area" can also be replaced by: the fourth network element does not have the unsent information corresponding to the first area.

[0048] In this implementation, the second network element may query the fourth network element whether there is sent information corresponding to the first area. The fourth network element may obtain the sent information corresponding to the first area and / or the unsent information corresponding to the first area from the first network element.

[0049] In a possible implementation, the second network element may also receive sixth information from the fifth network element. The sixth information may be used to notify that the first user is located in the second area. The first area may include the second area, for example, the second area is the same as the first area, or the second area is a part of the first area. The fifth network element may be an AMF or MME other than the second network element.

[0050] Optionally, the sixth information may include information of the second area. For example, for multiple AMFs in the same AMF pool, a common area can be managed, so when the fifth network element has or obtains the sent information corresponding to the second area, the fifth network element can send the sent information corresponding to the second area to other AMFs to avoid repeated transmission of data of the first service, where the other AMFs include the second network element.

[0051] In a possible implementation, the second network element may also receive the sent information corresponding to the first area from the fifth network element, and the sent information corresponding to the first area may include information of the first area and may also include third information, and the third information is as described above and will not be repeated here. The fifth network element may be another AMF.

[0052] In a possible implementation, when the second network element determines that the first user does not exist in the first area, the second network element may send fifth information to the first network element. The fifth information may refer to the description in the first aspect and will not be repeated.

[0053] The second aspect and any possible implementation thereof may refer to the description of the first aspect and the corresponding possible implementation, and the beneficial effects of any possible implementation of the second aspect may refer to the description of the beneficial effects of the corresponding implementation in the first aspect, and the repeated parts will not be repeated.

[0054] In a third aspect, a communication method is provided. The method may be implemented by a fourth network element or a component in the fourth network element. Among them, the components in the present application may include, for example, at least one of a chip, a chip system, a processor, a transceiver, a processing unit, or a transceiver unit. The fourth network element is, for example, an NRF or an UDSF or an UDM or an NWDAF. Taking the execution subject as an example, the method may be implemented by the following steps: the fourth network element receives information or first information from a first area of ​​a second network element, the first area is a sending area of ​​first service data, the first user signs up for the first service, the first service includes a high-precision positioning service, and the first information is used to notify the first user that the first user is located in the first area. The fourth network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the third area or there is unsent information corresponding to the third area, the sent information corresponding to the third area is used to indicate that the third area has sent the data of the first service, the unsent information corresponding to the third area is used to indicate that the third area has not sent the data of the first service, and the first area includes the third area. The fourth network element stores the sending information corresponding to the third area according to the information of the third area.

[0055] In a possible implementation, the fourth network element sends a first indication to the second network element, where the first indication is used to indicate that the fourth network element does not have the sent information corresponding to the first area, and the sent information corresponding to the first area is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service. Alternatively, the first indication is related to indicating that the fourth network element has the unsent information corresponding to the first area, and the unsent information corresponding to the first area is used to indicate that the first area has not sent data of the first service.

[0056] In a possible implementation manner, the sent information corresponding to the third area and / or the first indication includes information of the third area.

[0057] In a possible implementation manner, the sent information corresponding to the third area further includes third information corresponding to the third area, and the third information is used to indicate that data of the first service has been sent.

[0058] In a possible implementation manner, the fourth network element determines that there is sent information corresponding to the third area;

[0059] The fourth network element sends a second indication to the second network element, where the second indication is used to indicate that the fourth network element has sent information corresponding to the third area.

[0060] The third aspect and any possible implementation thereof may refer to the description of the first aspect or the second aspect and the corresponding possible implementations, and the beneficial effects of any possible implementation of the third aspect may refer to the description of the beneficial effects of the corresponding implementation in the first aspect or the second aspect, and the repetitions will not be repeated.

[0061] In any possible implementation of the first aspect to the third aspect, the first area includes the registered area of ​​the first user, so that the first area is accurately determined according to the area where the first user is registered and the area where the first user is located, entered, appears or is located.

[0062] In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The device can implement the method described in any possible design of any aspect of the first to third aspects. The device has the functions of the first network element, the second network element, or the fourth network element. The device is, for example, a terminal device, or a functional module in a terminal device, or a network device or a functional module in a network device.

[0063] In an optional implementation, the device may include a module corresponding to the method / operation / step / action described in the first aspect or the second aspect, and the module may be a hardware circuit, or software, or a combination of a hardware circuit and software. In an optional implementation, the device includes a processing unit (sometimes also referred to as a processing module) and a communication unit (sometimes also referred to as a transceiver module, a communication module, etc.). The transceiver unit can implement a sending function and a receiving function. When the transceiver unit implements the sending function, it may be referred to as a sending unit (sometimes also referred to as a sending module), and when the transceiver unit implements the receiving function, it may be referred to as a receiving unit (sometimes also referred to as a receiving module). The sending unit and the receiving unit may be the same functional module, which is called a transceiver unit, and the functional module can implement a sending function and a receiving function; or, the sending unit and the receiving unit may be different functional modules, and the transceiver unit is a general term for these functional modules.

[0064] Exemplarily, when the device is used to execute the method described in the first aspect or the second aspect, the device may include a communication unit and a processing unit.

[0065] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application also provides a communication device, comprising a processor for executing a computer program (or computer executable instructions) stored in a memory, wherein when the computer program (or computer executable instructions) is executed, the device executes a method as in any aspect of the first to third aspects and any possible implementation thereof.

[0066] In one possible implementation, the processor and the memory are integrated together;

[0067] In another possible implementation, the memory is located outside the communication device.

[0068] The communication device also includes a communication interface, which is used for the communication device to communicate with other devices, such as sending or receiving data and / or signals. Exemplarily, the communication interface can be a transceiver, circuit, bus, module or other type of communication interface.

[0069] In a sixth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, wherein the computer-readable storage medium is used to store a computer program or instruction, which, when executed, enables the method shown in the first aspect or the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof to be implemented.

[0070] In a seventh aspect, a computer program product comprising instructions is provided, which, when executed on a computer, enables the method shown in any aspect from the first to the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof to be implemented.

[0071] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device for executing the methods in any aspect of the first to third aspects above and their various possible implementations.

[0072] In the ninth aspect, a chip system is provided, which includes a logic circuit (or understood as, the chip system includes a processor, the processor may include a logic circuit, etc.), and may also include an input and output interface. The input and output interface can be used to input messages or to output messages. The input and output interfaces may be the same interface, that is, the same interface can realize both the sending function and the receiving function; or, the input and output interface includes an input interface and an output interface, the input interface is used to realize the receiving function, that is, for receiving messages; the output interface is used to realize the sending function, that is, for sending messages. The logic circuit can be used to perform operations other than the sending and receiving functions in the method shown in any aspect of the first to third aspects and any possible implementation thereof; the logic circuit can also be used to transmit messages to the input and output interface, or to receive messages from other communication devices from the input and output interface. The chip system can be used to implement the method shown in any aspect of the first to third aspects and any possible implementation thereof. The chip system can be composed of a chip, or it can include a chip and other discrete devices.

[0073] Optionally, the chip system may further include a memory, which may be used to store instructions, and the logic circuit may call the instructions stored in the memory to implement corresponding functions.

[0074] In a tenth aspect, a communication system is provided, which may include a first network element and a second network element, wherein the first network element may be used to execute the method as shown in the first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, and the second network element may be used to execute the method as shown in the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof. The communication system may also include a fourth network element for executing the method as shown in the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof.

[0075] The technical effects brought about by the second to tenth aspects above can be found in the description of the first aspect above, and will not be repeated here. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0076] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the architecture of a wireless communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0077] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the architecture of another wireless communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0078] Figure 3a A schematic diagram of the architecture of another wireless communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0079] Figure 3b A schematic diagram of the architecture of another wireless communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0080] Figure 4 A flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0081] Figure 5 A flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0082] Figure 6 A flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0083] Figure 7 A flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] Figure 8 A flowchart of another communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0087] Fig.11 A schematic diagram of the structure of another communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0088] The embodiment of the present application provides a communication method and device. The method and device are based on the same inventive concept. Since the method and device solve the problem in a similar principle, the implementation of the device and the method can refer to each other, and the repeated parts will not be repeated.

[0089] In the description of this application, words such as "first" and "second" are only used for the purpose of distinguishing descriptions, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance, nor can they be understood as indicating or implying order. It should be noted that the order of appearance of first, second, etc. is not limited in this application. For example, the second may appear first and then the first, and this application does not limit this.

[0090] In the description of this application, "at least one (kind)" refers to one (kind) or more (kinds), and more (kinds) refers to two (kinds) or more than two (kinds). "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, a and b, a and c, b and c, or a and b and c, where a, b, c can be single or multiple. In the description of this application, " / " means "or", for example, a / b means a or b.

[0091] The technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to various communication systems. For example, it can be applied to LTE system or 5G system, and it can also be applied to other new systems facing the future. The embodiment of the present application does not specifically limit this. In addition, the term "system" can be interchangeable with "network". The following is only an example of the communication system architecture of 5G.

[0092] like Figure 1 As shown in the figure, the 5G communication system is formulated by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard. The communication system includes terminal equipment (e.g., user equipment (UE)), access network (AN) (e.g., radio access network (RAN)), and core network (CN). Logically, the network elements of the core network (DN) can be divided into two parts: the user plane and the control plane. The control plane is responsible for the management of the mobile network, and the user plane is responsible for the transmission of service data.

[0093] Among them, the terminal device is the entrance for mobile users to interact with the network, which can provide basic computing power, storage capacity, display service windows to users, and receive user operation input. The next generation terminal equipment (NextGen UE) can use new air interface technology to establish signal connection and data connection with RAN, thereby transmitting control signals and service data to the mobile network. The terminal device can include various handheld devices with wireless communication functions, vehicle-mounted devices, wearable devices, computing devices or other processing devices connected to wireless modems, as well as various forms of terminals, mobile stations (MS), terminals, soft terminals, etc., such as water meters, electricity meters, sensors, etc.

[0094] RAN: Deployed near the terminal device, it provides network access for authorized users in a specific area and can determine transmission tunnels of different qualities to transmit user data according to the user level and business requirements. RAN can manage its own resources, use them reasonably, provide access services to terminal devices on demand, and is responsible for forwarding control signals and user data between terminal devices and the core network.

[0095] Core network: responsible for maintaining the subscription data of the mobile network, managing the network elements of the mobile network, and providing functions such as session management, mobility management, policy management, and security authentication for terminal devices. When the terminal device is attached, it provides network access authentication for the terminal device; when the terminal device has a service request, it allocates network resources for the terminal device; when the terminal device moves, it updates network resources for the terminal device; when the terminal device is idle, it provides a fast recovery mechanism for the terminal device; when the terminal device detaches, it releases network resources for the terminal device; when the terminal device has service data, it provides data routing functions for the terminal device, such as forwarding uplink data to the data network; or receiving downlink data of the terminal device from the data network and forwarding it to the RAN, which is then sent to the terminal device by the RAN.

[0096] Data network (DN): A data network that provides business services to users. Generally, the client is located in the terminal device and the server is located in the data network. The data network can be a private network, such as a local area network, or an external network that is not controlled by the operator, such as the Internet. It can also be a proprietary network jointly deployed by operators, such as a network that provides IP multimedia core network subsystem (IMS) services.

[0097] Among them, the core network user plane includes the user plane function (UPF); the core network control plane includes the access and mobility management function (AMF), the session management function (SMF), the network exposure function (NEF), the network function repository function (NRF), the unified data management (UDM), the policy control function (PCF), the application function (AF), the authentication server function (AUSF), the network slice selection function (NSSF), and the network slice-specific authentication and authorization function (NSSAAF).

[0098] The core network control plane adopts a service-oriented architecture, and the interaction between control plane network elements adopts the service call method to replace the point-to-point communication method in the traditional architecture. In the service-oriented architecture, the control plane network elements will open services to other control plane network elements for other control plane network elements to call; in point-to-point communication, the communication interface between control plane network elements will store a set of specific messages, which can only be used by the control plane network elements at both ends of the interface when communicating.

[0099] The following is a brief introduction to the functions of the functional entities in the core network:

[0100] 1. Session management network element: mainly used for session management, IP address allocation and management of terminal devices, selection of endpoints for manageable user equipment plane functions, policy control, or charging function interfaces, and downlink data notification. In 5G communications, the session management network element can be an SMF network element. In future communications such as 6G communications, the session management function network element can still be an SMF network element, or have other names, which is not limited in this application. Nsmf is a service-based interface provided by SMF, and SMF can communicate with other network functions through Nsmf.

[0101] 2. Access management network element: mainly used for mobility management and access management, etc. For example, it can be the mobility management entity (MME) function in the 4G communication network or the AMF network element in the 5G network. In future communications such as 6G communications, the access management network element can still be an AMF network element, or have other names, which is not limited in this application. Namf is a service-based interface provided by AMF, and AMF can communicate with other network functions through Namf.

[0102] 3. Network open network element: used to securely open the services and capabilities provided by 3GPP network functions to the outside. In 5G communication, the network open network element can be a NEF network element. In future communications such as 6G communication, the network open function network element can still be a NEF network element, or have other names, which are not limited in this application. Among them, Nnef is a service-based interface provided by NEF, and NEF can communicate with other network functions through Nnef.

[0103] 4. Network storage network element: used to provide service registration, discovery and authorization, and maintain available network function (NF) instance information, which can realize on-demand configuration of network functions and services and interconnection between NFs. In 5G communications, the network storage network element can be an NRF network element. In future communications such as 6G communications, the network storage function network element can still be an NRF network element, or have other names, which is not limited in this application. Nnrf is a service-based interface provided by NRF. NRF can communicate with other network functions through Nnrf.

[0104] 5. Policy control network element: A unified policy framework for guiding network behavior, providing policy rule information for control plane functional network elements (such as AMF, SMF, etc.). In 5G communication, the policy control network element can be a PCF network element. In future communications such as 6G communication, the policy control network element can still be a PCF network element, or have other names, which are not limited in this application. Among them, Npcf is a service-based interface provided by PCF, and PCF can communicate with other network functions through Npcf.

[0105] 6. Data management network element: used to process user identification, contract signing, access authentication, registration, or mobility management. In 5G communication, the data management network element can be a UDM network element. In future communications such as 6G communication, the data management network element can still be a UDM network element, or have other names, which are not limited in this application. Nudm is a service-based interface provided by UDM, and UDM can communicate with other network functions through Nudm.

[0106] 7. Application network element: used for data routing affected by applications, access to network open functions, or interacting with the policy framework for policy control, etc. In 5G communications, application network elements can be AF network elements. In future communications such as 6G communications, application network elements can still be AF network elements, or have other names, which are not limited in this application. Naf is a service-based interface provided by AF, and AF can communicate with other network functions through Naf.

[0107] 8. User plane network element: used for packet routing and forwarding, or quality of service (QoS) processing of user plane data. In 5G communication, the user plane network element may be a user plane function (UPF) network element. In future communications such as 6G communication, the user plane network element may still be a UPF network element, or have other names, which is not limited in this application.

[0108] 9. Authentication service network element: mainly used for user authentication, etc. In 5G communication, the authentication service network element can be an AUSF network element. In future communications such as 6G communication, the authentication service network element can still be an AUSF network element, or have other names, which are not limited in this application. Nausf is a service-based interface provided by AUSF, and AUSF can communicate with other network functions through Nausf.

[0109] 10. Network slice selection function network element: used to select network slices for terminal devices. In 5G communications, the network slice selection function network element may be an NSSF network element. In future communications such as 6G communications, the network slice selection function network element may still be an NSSF network element, or may have other names, which is not limited in this application.

[0110] 11. Authentication and authorization functional network element selected by network slicing: It is mainly responsible for the authentication and authorization of network slices and can interact with the authentication, authorization, and accounting server (AAA-S) through the authentication, authorization, and accounting proxy (AAA-P).

[0111] It is understandable that the core network may also include other network elements, which is not limited in this application.

[0112] like Figure 1As shown, the terminal device can access 5GS through access network devices such as RAN, and the terminal device can communicate with the AMF network element through the next generation network (Next generation, NG) 1 interface (referred to as N1), the access network device communicates with the AMF network element through the N2 interface (referred to as N2), the access network device communicates with the UPF network element through the N3 interface (referred to as N3), the AMF network element communicates with the SMF network element through the N11 interface (referred to as N11), the AMF network element communicates with the UDM network element through the N8 interface (referred to as N8), the AMF network element communicates with the AUSF network element through the N12 interface (referred to as N12), the AMF network element communicates with the PCF network element through the N15 interface (referred to as N15), the SMF network element communicates with the PCF network element through the N7 interface (referred to as N7), the SMF network element communicates with the UPF network element through the N4 interface (referred to as N4), the NEF network element communicates with the SMF network element through the N29 interface (referred to as N29), and the UPF network element accesses the data network through the N6 interface (referred to as N6). network, DN).

[0113] It should be noted that Figure 1 The names of the network elements and the interfaces between the network elements are only examples. In a specific implementation, the names of the network elements and the interfaces between the network elements may be other names, and the embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this.

[0114] In some deployments, the access network device may include a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). The access network device may also include a radio unit (RU). The CU implements some functions of the access network device, and the DU implements some functions of the access network device, for example, the CU implements the functions of the radio resource control (RRC) and the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, and the DU implements the functions of the radio link control (RLC), the media access control (MAC) and the physical (PHY) layer. Since the information of the RRC layer will eventually become the information of the PHY layer, or be converted from the information of the PHY layer, therefore, under this architecture, high-level signaling, such as RRC layer signaling or PHCP layer signaling, can also be considered to be sent by the DU, or, sent by the DU+RU. It can be understood that the network device can be a CU node, or a DU node, or a device including a CU node and a DU node. In addition, the CU may be classified as a network device in the access network RAN, or the CU may be classified as a network device in the core network CN, which is not limited here.

[0115] The access network device may also include an active antenna unit (AAU) and / or a baseband unit (BBU). Among them, the BBU is mainly responsible for baseband signal processing. The AAU implements some physical layer processing functions, radio frequency processing and related functions of the active antenna. Since the information of the RRC layer will eventually become the information of the PHY layer, or, it is converted from the information of the PHY layer, therefore, under this architecture, high-level signaling such as RRC layer signaling can also be considered to be sent by the DU, or, sent by the DU+AAU. It can be understood that the access network device can be a device including one or more of a CU node, a DU node, and an AAU node.

[0116] like Figure 2 As shown in the figure, it is the network architecture for supporting positioning provided by the current technical specifications. Figure 1 The architecture shown in the figure is expanded upon, for example, multiple functional entities such as a gateway mobile location center (GMLC), a location retrieval function (LRF), a location service client (LCSclient), and a location management function (LMF) are added to support the positioning service function.

[0117] In the current dynamic real-time differential positioning technology, the base station data center obtains RTK calibration data based on the GNSS positioning measurement results reported by the base station and the difference between the GNSS positioning data calculated based on the actual position of the base station. When a UE that has signed a high-precision service performs RTK positioning, it needs to calibrate its own positioning results based on the RTK calibration data broadcast by the network equipment (such as the base station) through the air interface to improve positioning accuracy.

[0118] Take the 5G communication system as an example. Figure 3aAs shown, the AMF pool can contain multiple AMFs, and multiple AMFs can adopt a load sharing mechanism, that is, multiple AMFs in the AMF pool communicate to manage the area corresponding to the AMF pool. For example, some UEs are registered to AMF1, some UEs are registered to AMF2, and so on. When the AMF pool and the LMF pool are fully interconnected (full mesh), AMF1 finds that the high-precision positioning user appears in the tracking area ID (TAI) 1. In addition, AMF2 finds that the high-precision positioning user appears in TAI2 or tracking area (TA) 2. TAI2 can be used to indicate TA2. Therefore, both AMF1 and AMF may request LMF to send RTK data to TAI1, resulting in repeated transmission of RTK data. Therefore, there may be a situation where LMF repeatedly sends RTK calibration data that needs to be broadcast in the same area to multiple AMFs, resulting in repeated broadcasting, increasing the overhead of core network elements such as AMF, and reducing network element performance.

[0119] It can be understood that the above description of RTK positioning technology is based on the 5G architecture. In the 4G network architecture, AMF can be replaced by MME, and LMF can be replaced by Evolved Serving Mobile Location Center (E-SMLC). Figure 3b As shown, the E-SMLC is similar to the role of the LMF, and the MME is similar to the role of the AMF. The MME can be connected to the access network device through the S1 application protocol (S1 application protocol, S1-AP) interface. In this application, the LMF and the E-SMLC can be referred to as location management network elements.

[0120] In order to improve the performance of core network elements in RTK business scenarios, the present application provides a communication method.

[0121] Combine the following Figure 4 This method is introduced. Figure 4 In the embodiment, the execution subject is the first network element and the second network element as an example for explanation. It can be understood that in various embodiments of the present application, the action performed by a certain network element can also be replaced by being performed by a component in the network element. In the present application, the component may include at least one of a chip, a chip system, a processor, a transceiver, a processing unit, or a transceiver unit. Figure 4 In the process shown, either S102 - a or S102 - b can be executed selectively.

[0122] like Figure 4 As shown, the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application may include the following steps:

[0123] S101: A first network element receives first information from a second network element.

[0124] The first information is used to notify that the first user is located inside, enters, appears in, or is in the first area. It can be understood that, as an interchangeable description, the first information can also be used to notify that the first user exists or appears in the first area. The first information can be sent after the second network element determines that the first user is located inside, enters, appears in, or is in the first area. The relevant description of the first information is as shown above and will not be repeated here.

[0125] The first area is the sending area of ​​the data of the first service. The first area may be a tracking area (TA) granularity, a service area (SA) granularity, an access network device range granularity, or an access network device cell granularity, or the like, or the first area includes at least one TA, SA, access network device area or cell. Alternatively, the first area may include one or more of the following: TAI, SAI, access network device identifier (such as gNB ID), cell identifier (cell ID), public land mobile network (PLMN) identifier, CU identifier, DU identifier, AAU, BBU, antenna identifier, RTK area identifier, non-3GPP interworking function (N3IWF) identifier or trusted wireless LAN access point (TWAP) identifier, etc. Alternatively, the first area may include one or more of the following: TA, SA, access network device, cell, CU, DU, AAU, BBU, or antenna, etc. In the present application, the access network device may be a base station. The RTK area identifier may also be recorded as the RTK area. The TWAP logo may also be written as TWAP.

[0126] In addition, the first area can also be described as: a first data broadcasting area, first data sending data, a first data broadcasting area, a first data broadcasting area, a first data broadcasting area, a first data playback area, a first data sending area, a first business data broadcasting area, a first business data broadcasting area, a first business data broadcasting area, a first business data playback area, or a first business data sending area.

[0127] In the present application, the first user may be a user who has signed a contract for the first service. For example, the first user may be one or more terminal devices that have signed a contract for the first service. The first user may also be referred to as a high-precision positioning subscriber.

[0128] It can be understood that the first user signs a contract for the first service, or in other words, the first service is the contracted service of the first user.

[0129] The first service includes, for example, a high-precision positioning service. In the present application, the high-precision positioning service may also be replaced by names such as RTK service, differential service, etc. The explanation of the first service is as described above and will not be repeated here. The data of the first service includes, for example, RTK calibration data, calibration data, differential data, and positioning assistance data. The first network element may obtain the RTK calibration data provided by the quasi-base station from a data center (for example, an RTK data center) or an AF or a third party.

[0130] In a possible embodiment, the first information may include information of the first identifier and / or the first area.

[0131] Among them, the first identifier can be used to identify the first business and / or the first area, or the first identifier can be used to identify the first data and / or the first area. In the present application, the first identifier can also be described as: the first identifier corresponds to the first business and / or the first area, or the first identifier is associated with the first business and / or the first area, or the first identifier is related to the first business and / or the first area. Therefore, the first business and / or the first area can be determined according to the first identifier, and it is determined that the first area is the sending area of ​​the data of the first business, so that it can be determined to execute S102-a and / or S103.

[0132] For example, the first identifier may include a high-precision positioning identifier, a positioning area identifier, a positioning data sending area identifier, a positioning data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning data broadcasting area identifier, a GNSS area identifier, a GNSS data sending area identifier, an auxiliary data sending area identifier, an auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, an auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning auxiliary data sending area identifier, a positioning auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning auxiliary data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning calibration / correction data sending area identifier, a positioning calibration / correction data broadcasting area identifier, a positioning calibration / correction data broadcasting area identifier, an RTK service identifier, or include, at least one of an RTK area user identifier, an RTK broadcasting area identifier, broadcast assistance subscription data, a positioning assistance data type, a positioning system information block (SIB) type (positioning SIB type), a positioning assistance type (location assistance type), broadcast assistance type data (broadcastassistance types data), or an RTK identifier. For example, the correspondence between multiple first identifiers of the same type and different areas can be pre-configured or configured through signaling. For example, the first area corresponding to the high-precision positioning identifier-1 is area 1, and the first area corresponding to the high-precision positioning identifier-2 is area 2. Therefore, different areas can be represented by different high-precision positioning identifiers.

[0133] In the present application, the first identifier may also be replaced by the identifier of the first area, or the first area identifier. The identifier of the first area is, for example, an RTK broadcast area identifier, a positioning assistance data broadcast area identifier, or a positioning data broadcast area identifier.

[0134] The information of the first area may include at least one of a TAI, a service area ID (SAI), an access network device ID, and a cell ID, or at least one of a TAI list, a SAI list, a base station ID list, or a cell ID list. The information of the first area may also be referred to as the first area.

[0135] Alternatively, the first information may include at least one of an identifier of the first service and information of the first area, or the first identifier may include a combination of the identifier of the first service and information of the first area. For example, the first service and the first area may be identified by a combination of the identifier of the first service and information of the first area. The identifier of the first service may include at least one of a high-precision positioning identifier, an RTK service identifier, an RTK broadcast area identifier, or an RTK identifier, or the interpretation of the identifier of the first service may be equivalent to the first identifier, and the interpretation of the first identifier is as described above and will not be repeated here.

[0136] It can be understood that the first identifier can correspond to the information of the first area. For example, the information of the first area can be used to indicate the scope of the first area corresponding to the first identifier. The correspondence between the first identifier and the information of the first area can be configured or pre-configured in the fourth network element, so that the first network element and / or the second network element can query the correspondence through the fourth network element, or query the information of the first area corresponding to the first identifier. Optionally, the fourth network element can be a core network element such as UDM or NRF. In addition, the correspondence can also be configured or pre-configured in the first network element and / or the second network element.

[0137] In a possible embodiment, before S101, the first network element may send a first message to the second network element, and the first message may be used to subscribe to the first information. For example, the first network element may send a first message to all second network elements connected to it, wherein the second network element is a network element with user mobility management function such as AMF or MME. Taking the 5G system architecture as an example, when the AMF pool and the LMF pool are fully interconnected, the LMF can subscribe to all AMFs. For example, in the existing network, a single pool generally includes 10 AMF network function network elements or network function instances or network functions. In S101, the second network element that sends the first information to the first network element may be a part of the multiple second network elements that receive the first message, thereby reducing the overhead of the second network element.

[0138] Specifically, the first message can be used to subscribe to a notification that the first user is located, enters, appears in, or is in the first area; or, the first message can be used to subscribe to a notification that the first user exists in the first area; or, the first message can be used to subscribe to a first message for subscribing to a notification that the first user appears in the first area. Therefore, based on the first message, the second network element can send the first information to the first network element after determining that the first user is located, enters, appears in, or is in the first area, or after determining that the first user exists in the first area, or after determining that the first user appears in the first area.

[0139] Since the second network element is a network element with user mobility management function such as AMF or MME, the location information and mobility management status information (for example, registered, unregistered, connected, idle) of the first user are known to the second network element, and the second network element can determine whether the first user appears in the first area based on the location information and / or mobility management status information of the first user.

[0140] Optionally, the first message may include information of the first identifier and / or the first area, so that the second network element can learn the scope of the first area subscribed by the first message.

[0141] Wherein, if the first message includes the first identifier but does not include the information of the first area, and the second network element does not store the correspondence between the first identifier and the information of the first area, the second network element can query the fourth network element for the correspondence; or, the second network element can send the first identifier to the fourth network element to request the fourth network element to query the information of the first area corresponding to the first identifier, and receive the information of the first area from the fourth network element. If the first message includes the first identifier but does not include the information of the first area, and the second network element stores the correspondence between the first identifier and the information of the first area, the second network element can query the information of the first area corresponding to the first identifier according to the stored correspondence. Wherein, the correspondence can be configured / pre-configured in the second network element, or it can be obtained by the second network element from the fourth network element.

[0142] In addition, the first message may include information about the second identifier and / or the second area. The second identifier is used to identify the first service and / or the second area. The second identifier corresponds to the information of the second area. The second area may be a larger area that includes the first area. Therefore, compared with the subscribed first area, the second network element may provide a subscription notification in a more refined area to further improve the accuracy of the broadcast range of the data of the first service and reduce the overhead of the core network network element. For example, the second area may be the maximum broadcast area of ​​RTK calibration data, and the first area is the area where the first user exists, and the range of the first area may be less than or equal to the range of the second area. For example, the second area is a TA, and the first area is the coverage area of ​​an access network device in the TA. The second identifier may refer to the description of the first identifier, and the identifier of the second area may refer to the description of the information of the first area. For another example, the second identifier may be the first identifier, and the second area may be the first area, without limitation.

[0143] For example, UE1 and UE2 are both high-precision positioning users, that is, UE1 and UE2 can both be used as the first user. In addition, the first message sent by the first network element to the second network element includes the TAI of TA1-TA6, that is, the second area includes TA1-TA6, where TA1-TA6 belongs to the coverage of the second network element. When UE1 appears in TA3, the second network element can carry the TAI of TA3 in the first message sent to the first network element, that is, the first area includes TA3. In addition, when UE2 appears in TA4, the second network element can carry the TAI of TA4 in the first message sent to the first network element, that is, the first area includes TA4.

[0144] AMF / MME discovers that UE1 enters TAI4, and according to S101, it will send TAI4 indication information to LMF / E-SMLC. The indication information may be, for example, the tracking area information (TAI) itself.

[0145] It can be understood that the first message itself may have the above function, for example, the first message is a subscription message for the above notification; or any information carried in the first message may specifically have the above function, for example, the first message carries information indicating subscription to the above notification, such as notification subscription information.

[0146] In a possible embodiment, the first area includes the registered area of ​​the first user. Therefore, the first area can be accurately determined according to the area where the first user is registered and the area where the first user is located, enters, appears or is located, so as to further improve the accuracy of the broadcast range of the data of the first service and reduce the overhead of the core network network element. For example, before sending the first information to the first network element, the second network element can determine that the first user appears in the first area and the first area includes the registered area of ​​the first user.

[0147] For example, UE1 and UE2 are both high-precision positioning users, that is, UE1 and UE2 can both serve as the first user. In addition, the TAs registered by UE1 and UE2 in the second network element are TA1-TA3 and TA4-TA6, respectively. Among them, TA1-TA6 belongs to the coverage range of the second network element. The first message sent by the first network element to the second network element includes the TAI of TA1-TA6, and the second area includes TA1-TA6. When UE-1 enters TA3, the second network element can carry the TAI of TA3 in the first message sent to the first network element. Accordingly, the first network element will send the data of the first service to the second network element so that the second network element can broadcast the data of the first service in TA3. Further optionally, in this example, the first message sent by the first network element to the second network element may carry the TAI of TA3, that is, TA3 belongs to the first area. Similarly, if UE2 appears in TA6, the first message may include the TAI of TA6.

[0148] In addition, in the above example, if UE-1 appears in TA4, the second network element may not (or ignore) send the first information to the first network element, because TA4 does not belong to the registration area of ​​UE-1. Alternatively, depending on the operator's policy, the second network element may send the first information to the first network element.

[0149] Optionally, the sending of the first information by the second network element may be triggered according to the number of first users that appear or exist in the first area. If there are at least n first users in the first area, where n is a positive integer, the second network element sends the first information to the first network element. For example, when the number of first users carried by the first message is 100, it means that the second network element sends the first information to the first network element only after it finds that 100 first users have entered or exist in the first area. When the number is less than 100, the first network element may still use the respective sessions of the first users to send the first service data. By carrying the number of first users, the triggering timing of the second network element sending the first information can be made more flexible.

[0150] Optionally, the first message may also carry the number of first users, and the number of first users meeting this number is used as a condition for the second user to send the first information. In other words, the first message carries the number of first users as a threshold value of the number of users that triggers the second network element to send the first information to the first network element. For example, the first message carries the number of first users n as a user number condition that triggers the sending of the first information.

[0151] S102-a: The first network element determines that the second information does not exist, where the second information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service.

[0152] Among them, "non-existence" can also be replaced by: not found, not recorded, not stored, not received, or not available; correspondingly, "existence" can also be replaced by: found, recorded, stored, received, or available. In addition, "non-existence of second information" can also be replaced by: information indicating that the first area does not send data for the first service. "No data for the first service is sent" can also be replaced by: data for the first service is not broadcast or data for the first service is not broadcast.

[0153] It can be understood that the first network element can determine whether the second information exists based on the information of the first area and / or the first identifier. The information of the first area and / or the first identifier can be determined based on the first information in S101, for example, the first information includes the information of the first area, or the first information includes the first identifier, and the first identifier corresponds to the information of the first area.

[0154] In the present application, the second information may be included in the broadcast record stored in the first network element. For example, the broadcast record may include the area information of the data of the first service that has been sent and / or the area information of the data of the first service that has not been sent. For example, as shown in Table 1, the second information may include the information of the first area and / or the first identifier and the sent information, or in other words, may include the correspondence between the first identifier and / or the information of the first area and the sent information. Therefore, in S102-a, the first network element may query the broadcast record shown in Table 1 to determine whether there is second information indicating that the first area has sent the data of the first service. In the present application, the sent information may also be referred to as the third information.

[0155] The sent information may be used to indicate that the data of the first service has been sent. The unsent information may be used to indicate that the data of the first service has not been sent. Therefore, the sent information or the unsent information may be combined with the first identifier and / or the information of the first area to indicate whether the first area has sent the data of the first service.

[0156] Table 1

[0157]

[0158] For example, according to Table 1, when the first network element determines that the first area is area #1 based on the information of the first area, it can query Table 1 to learn that area #1 corresponds to sent information, that is, there is second information used to indicate that area #1 has sent data of the first service, or there is no information used to indicate that area #1 has not sent data of the first service, that is, there is sent information, or there is no unsent information. For another example, when the first network element determines that the first identifier is the first identifier #1, it can query Table 1 to learn that the first identifier #1 corresponds to unsent information, that is, there is no second information used to indicate that area #2 has sent data of the first service, or there is information used to indicate that area #2 has not sent data of the first service, that is, there is unsent information, or there is no sent information.

[0159] As a possible implementation, the information sent and the information not sent can be implemented in a bit value or a Boolean value. For example, the value is 0, indicating that a certain area has not sent the data of the first service, that is, at this time, the information bit indicates that the information has not been sent, and the value is 1, indicating that the area has sent the data of the first service, that is, at this time, the information bit indicates that the information has been sent; or the value is 1, indicating that the data of the first service has not been sent, that is, at this time, the information bit indicates that the information has been sent, and the value is 0, indicating that the data of the first service has been sent, that is, at this time, the information bit indicates that the information has been sent. Alternatively, the information sent and the information not sent can be implemented in the form of characters or enumeration values ​​or integers or decimals. For example, the value is a certain character or an enumeration value or an integer or a decimal, indicating that the data of the first service has been sent, that is, at this time, the information bit indicates that the information has been sent; or the value is a certain character or an enumeration value or an integer or a decimal, indicating that the data of the first service has not been sent, that is, at this time, the information bit indicates that the information has been sent. Therefore, the bit or Boolean value or character or enumeration or integer or decimal combined with the information of the first identifier or the first area can be used to indicate whether the first area has sent the data of the first service.

[0160] Optionally, after sending the data of the first service, the first network element may update the corresponding relationship shown in Table 1 or the broadcast record shown in Table 1 according to the first information. Still taking Table 1 as an example, if it is determined according to Table 1 that the second information does not exist in the area #2 corresponding to the first identifier #1, then according to S103, the first network element may send the data of the first service to the second network element. In addition, the first network element may also update Table 1 according to the first identifier #1, or generate, store or obtain the sent information according to the first identifier #1, that is, update the information corresponding to the first identifier #1 to the sent information, so that the data of the first service that has been broadcast in the area corresponding to the first identifier #1 can be recorded to avoid subsequent repeated broadcasts. As an example, the first network element may change the unsent information shown in Table 1 to the sent information to realize the generation, storage or acquisition of the sent information.

[0161] In addition, optionally, the first network element can receive the second information from other location management network elements (such as a third network element). The location management network element can be an LMF or an E-SMLC. For example, multiple location management network elements can synchronize their respective maintained broadcast records, and the broadcast records are shown in Table 1. When a location management network element sends data of the first service to the first area, it can update its own broadcast record and obtain the second information, and further send the updated broadcast record to other location management network elements, so that the second information can be synchronized between multiple location management network elements. Optionally, only the sent information and its corresponding information of the first area and / or the identifier of the first area are synchronized between multiple location management network elements, or only the unsent information and its corresponding information of the first area and / or the identifier of the first area are synchronized.

[0162] Therefore, when multiple location management network elements jointly manage the same mobility management network element, the broadcasting record of the first service data can be shared by the multiple location management network elements to avoid repeated broadcasting of the first service data to the same area when the mobility management network element is jointly managed by multiple location management network elements.

[0163] It can be understood that S102-a is an optional step of the communication method provided in this application. As another possible implementation, S102-b can also be performed before S101. Among them, S102-b includes the following steps:

[0164] S102-b: The second network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, wherein the sent information corresponding to the first area is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service.

[0165] It can be understood that the difference between the sent information corresponding to the first area and the second information is reflected in: since the second network element can obtain information such as the TA list serving the first user, the user's registration area, and the first identifier corresponding to the first area, the sent information corresponding to the first area can correspond to the information of the first area, without having to correspond to the first identifier; and the aforementioned second information corresponds to the first identifier and / or the information of the first area.

[0166] The sent information corresponding to the first area may include the information of the first area. Optionally, the sent information corresponding to the first area may also include third information corresponding to the information of the first area. The third information may refer to the description in S102-a, which will not be repeated here.

[0167] In a possible implementation, the sent information corresponding to the first area is stored in the second network element, or the second network element maintains the sent information corresponding to the first area. For example, after the second network element sends the data of the first service to the access network device corresponding to the first area, the sent information corresponding to the first area can be generated, stored or obtained. In addition, the second network element can also receive the sent information corresponding to the first area from other mobility management network elements (such as the fifth network element), wherein the other mobility management network elements can be AMFs or MMEs other than the second network element. It can be understood that other mobility management network elements can generate, store or obtain the sent information corresponding to the first area after sending the data of the first service to the access network device corresponding to the first area, and send the sent information corresponding to the first area to one or more mobility management network elements including the second network element. Therefore, the sharing of the sent information can further avoid repeated sending of the data of the first service. Optionally, the second network element and other mobility management network elements are located in the same pool, for example, the second network element and other mobility management network elements are AMFs in the same AMF pool, or MMEs in the same MME pool.

[0168] In this implementation, the sent information corresponding to the first area can be stored in the broadcast record of the second network element, and the broadcast record can refer to the description in S102-a. Referring to Table 1, the broadcast record of the second network element can include the correspondence between the information of the first area and the sent information or the unsent information. Among them, the indication method of the sent information corresponding to the first area and the unsent information of the second area can refer to the aforementioned indication method of the sent information and the unsent information.

[0169] In another possible implementation, the sent information corresponding to the first area is stored in the fourth network element. The fourth network element is, for example, a core network element such as NRF, UDSF, UDM or NWDAF. In this implementation, the second network element may send a query request for the second information to the fourth network element, which may carry information about the first area or the first information, so that the fourth network element queries whether there is sent information corresponding to the third area, and the first area may include the third area. Optionally, the fourth network element may obtain a broadcast record from the first network element, which includes information about the first area (or at least one third area included in the first area) and / or sent information and / or unsent information corresponding to the first identifier. The first network element may send a broadcast record to the fourth network element according to a set period; or, the first network element may send a broadcast record to the fourth network element after each update of the broadcast record; or, when the first network element finds that the first user appears in the first area, it may send a query request for the second information to the fourth network element, which may carry information about the first area or the first information.

[0170] In this implementation, if the fourth network element does not have the information of the third area and / or the sent information corresponding to the first identifier corresponding to the third area, and / or, there is information of the third area and / or the unsent information corresponding to the first identifier corresponding to the third area, the fourth network element may send a first indication to the second network element to indicate that the fourth network element does not have the sent information corresponding to the first area, so the second network element can determine that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area. That is to say, when no corresponding sent information exists in any area of ​​the first area, it can be determined that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area. If the fourth network element has information of the third area and / or the sent information corresponding to the first identifier corresponding to the third area, and / or, there is no information of the third area and / or the unsent information corresponding to the first identifier corresponding to the third area, the fourth network element may send a second indication to the second network element to indicate that the fourth network element has the sent information corresponding to the first area, so the second network element can determine that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, and subsequently send the first information to the first network element to obtain the data of the first service and send the data of the first service to the first area.

[0171] Optionally, the first indication may include information about the third area. In addition, the first indication may also include sent information corresponding to the third area. Therefore, when the third area is a partial area in the first area, if the data of the first service is not broadcast only in the third area, but not in the first area, then in S101, the second network element may only send the first information corresponding to the third area to the first network element, that is, it only needs to notify the first network element that the first user is located in the third area, and subsequently the data of the first service can be broadcast to the third area without broadcasting the data of the first service to the first area, which can further reduce the overhead of the core network element.

[0172] In addition, if the fourth network element sends the first indication to the second network element, the fourth network element may also generate, store or obtain the sent information corresponding to the first area. Therefore, when the second network element queries the sent information corresponding to the first area again, the fourth network element will determine that the sent information exists, and can avoid repeatedly sending the data of the first service in the first area.

[0173] Optionally, the second network element may execute S102-b after determining that at least one first user is located in the first area. According to S102-b, if the second network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, the first information may be sent to the first network element; otherwise, if the first network element determines that there is sent information corresponding to the first area, the sending of the first information may be stopped, that is, the first information is not sent to the first network element.

[0174] S103: The first network element sends data of the first service to the second network element.

[0175] S103 may also be replaced by: the first network element sends the first data to the second network element according to the first information and / or the second information. Sending the first data to the second network element according to the second information may mean sending the first data in the absence of the second information.

[0176] The second network element corresponds to or serves the second network element, or the second network element can serve the first area, or the service range of the second network element includes the first area.

[0177] Based on S103, the second network element may send data of the first service to the access network device serving part or all of the first area. Accordingly, the access network device may broadcast the data of the first service in the first area. The first service is, for example, an RTK service, and the data of the first service is, for example, RTK calibration data.

[0178] Optionally, in S103, the first network element may periodically send data of the first service to the second network element, and correspondingly, the access network device corresponding to the first area may periodically send data of the first service.

[0179] It can be understood that if the first information sent by the second network element is not received, the first network element does not (or ignores) sending the data of the first service to the second network element.

[0180] Optionally, if the second network element determines that the first user does not exist in the first area, fifth information may be sent to the first network element so that the first network element stops sending data of the first service to the first area. The fifth information may be used to indicate to stop sending data of the first service to the first area, and / or to indicate that the first user does not exist in the first area. The fact that the first user does not exist in the first area may mean that the first user has left or moved out of the first area.

[0181] Therefore, based on Figure 4 According to the method shown, the first network element can learn that there are users who need high-precision positioning services in the first area based on a notification for notifying the first user that the first user is located in the first area, and send data of the first service to the second network element in the area when it is determined that there is no second information, thereby avoiding sending high-precision positioning service data to an area where there are no high-precision positioning service users, thereby reducing the signaling overhead of the core network elements and improving the communication performance of the first network element.

[0182] Optionally, in S103, the first network element may further send information of an area where data of the first service needs to be broadcast and / or a first identifier corresponding to the area to the second network element, wherein the area and the area indicated by the first information may be the same or different.

[0183] For example, the area indicated by the first information is TAI1~4, that is, the first area is TAI1~4, that is, the second network element determines that there is at least one first user in TAI1~4; if based on S102-a or S102-b, the first network element or the second network element determines that there is corresponding sent information in TAI1~3, and there is no corresponding existing information in TAI4, then in S103, the first network element can indicate TAI4 to the second network element, so that the second network element sends the data of the first service to the access network device corresponding to TAI4, without sending the data of the first service to the access network device corresponding to TAI1~3, thereby further reducing the repeated sending of the data of the first service.

[0184] Further optionally, in S103, the first network element may also send to the second network element an area that does not need to broadcast data of the first service and / or a first identifier corresponding to the area, for example, the area has sent data of the first service. Still using the above example, the area indicated by the first information is TAI1~4, and TAI1~3 has corresponding sent information, then the first network element may also send indication information to the second network element to notify that there is sent information corresponding to TAI1~3.

[0185] Combine the following Figure 5 as well as Figure 6 The process of the communication method provided in this application under the 5G and 4G network architectures is described respectively.

[0186] like Figure 5 As shown, taking the 5G scenario as an example, the first network element is LMF, the second network element is AMF1, and the fourth network element may be NRF. The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application may include the following steps:

[0187] S201: LMF obtains RTK calibration data from the RTK data center.

[0188] Among them, the RTK data center can be used as AF. Figure 5 AF is used to represent the RTK data center.

[0189] S202: LMF sends a first message to AMF1 to which it is connected, for subscribing to the first information.

[0190] For example, according to the previous description, the first message can be specifically used to subscribe to notifications that the first user is located in, enters, appears in or is in the first area, subscribe to notifications that the first user exists in the first area, or subscribe to the first message for subscribing to notifications that the first user appears in the first area.

[0191] Optionally, the first message may include a second identifier, or include the second identifier and information about the second area. The second identifier corresponds to the information about the second area, and the information about the second area may be 3GPP area information of the second area. For example, the information about the second area may include at least one of TAI, SAI, base station identifier, or cell identifier, or at least one of a TAI list, a SAI list, a base station identifier list, or a cell identifier list. The second identifier may be used to identify the first service and / or the second area. The second identifier may be the first identifier described above. For example, the second identifier may include at least one of a high-precision positioning identifier, an RTK service identifier, an RTK broadcast area identifier, or an RTK identifier. The specific explanation of the first identifier is as described above and will not be repeated here.

[0192] As described in the aforementioned method embodiment, the second area may include the first area, and the explanation of the second area is similar to that of the first message, as described above, and will not be repeated here. For example, the second area may be the maximum broadcast area of ​​the positioning assistance data or the RTK calibration data, and the first area may be an area in the second area where the first user exists.

[0193] It can be understood that the LMF can send the first message to all AMFs connected to it (such as all AMFs in the AMF pool). For example, when the AMF pool and the LMF pool are fully interconnected, the LMF can subscribe to all AMFs. For example, a single pool generally contains 10 NFs. Among them, the AMF pool may include AMF1 and AMF2.

[0194] Optionally, the first message may carry the number of first users (for example, one or more first users) as a condition for triggering the second network element to send the first information to the first network element, or the first message carries the number of first users as a threshold value of the number of users that triggers the second network element to send the first information to the first network element. For example, when the number of first users carried by the first message is 100, it means that the second network element sends the first information to the first network element only when it finds that 100 first users have entered or exist in the first area. When the number is less than 100, the first service data is still sent using the respective sessions of the first users. By carrying the number of first users, the triggering timing of the second network element sending the first information can be made more flexible.

[0195] S203: AMF1 can determine, based on the first message, whether there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located in, entering, appearing in or in the first area. If so, execute S203-1.

[0196] The high-precision positioning subscriber is, for example, the first user shown in S101.

[0197] When the first message carries the number of first users, S203 can also be replaced by: AMF1 determines whether the number of first users located in, entering, appearing or in the first area reaches a user number threshold, and if the threshold is reached, sends the first information to LMF.

[0198] Alternatively, S203 may also be replaced by: AMF1 may determine whether there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located, entering, appearing or in the first area according to the first message, and if so, send the first information to LMF. And / or, AMF1 determines whether the number of first users located, entering, appearing or in the first area reaches a user number threshold, and if so, sends the first information to LMF.

[0199] As an example, AMF1 may determine whether there is a high-precision positioning subscriber who enters the second area through a switching process, an initial registration process, a periodic registration process, or a registration update process. If so, it may be determined that there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located in, entering, appearing in, or in the second area.

[0200] In addition, as another example, AMF1 may also receive the sixth information from other AMFs in the AMF pool, and determine that there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located, entering, appearing or in the first area according to the sixth information. The sixth information may be used to indicate the first area, indicating that at least one high-precision positioning subscriber is located, entering, appearing or in the first area. For example, among the multiple AMFs in the AMF pool, one or more AMFs may send the first information to the LMF, and other AMFs only need to report the first area to the one or more AMFs without sending the first information to the LMF, which can further reduce the overhead of the core network elements. For example, the AMF pool includes AMF1 and AMF2, and AMF2 discovers that the first user enters TA2. AMF2 informs AMF1 of the event that the first user exists in TA2 through the sixth information, and AMF1 finally summarizes and reports. For example, after AMF1 discovers that a user has entered TA1, AMF1 reports TA1 and TA2, that is, the first area includes TA1 and TA2.

[0201] Optionally, if the first message carries the second identifier and does not carry information about the second area, AMF1 may query NRF for information about the second area. For example, AMF1 sends a network function query request (Nnrf_NFDiscovery_NFDiscover request) carrying the second identifier to NRF, and receives a network function query response (Nnrf_NFDiscovery_NFDiscover response) returned by NRF carrying information about the second area.

[0202] Optionally, if the first message carries the second identifier but does not carry the identifier information of the second area, if AMF1 locally configures the correspondence between the second identifier and the information of the second area, AMF1 can determine the information of the second area corresponding to the second identifier based on the correspondence.

[0203] S203-1: AMF1 determines whether second information exists, that is, whether information indicating that the first area has sent data of the first service exists. Alternatively, AMF1 determines whether information indicating that the first area has not sent data of the first service exists.

[0204] It can be understood that S203-1 corresponds to S102-b, so the implementation process of S203-1 can refer to the description in S102-b.

[0205] As an example, AMF1 may determine whether the second information exists from a local broadcast record.

[0206] In S203-1, if AMF1 determines that the second information exists, or determines that there is no information indicating that the first area does not send data for the first service, S203-2 may be executed. If AMF1 determines that the second information does not exist, or determines that there is information indicating that the first area does not send data for the first service, S203-3 and S203-4 may be executed.

[0207] Or, for another example, if AMF1 in the AMF pool receives a notification from other AMFs that the first area has sent data of the first service, it does not need to send the first information to the LMF, thereby avoiding repeated sending of the first service data and reducing the overhead of the core network elements.

[0208] S203-2: AMF1 determines not to send the first information to LMF.

[0209] Therefore, when AMF1 determines that the second information exists, there is no need to trigger sending data of the first service to the first area.

[0210] S203-3: Optionally, AMF1 sends second information to AMF2.

[0211] Optionally, AMF1 may also generate second information.

[0212] Based on S203-3, AMF1 can notify other AMFs in the AMF pool, such as AMF2, of the sent information corresponding to the first area. Other AMFs can update the broadcast record according to the second information from AMF1, and other AMFs in the AMF pool only need to perform differentiated area notification LMFs.

[0213] Specifically, AMF1 may send the seventh information (or message) to other AMFs in the AMF pool, which may include the correspondence between the information of the first area (or the first information) and the sent information, or the seventh information may be used to notify the first area that the data of the first service has been broadcast. The information of the first area may be cell ID, gNB ID, TAI, PLMNID, SAI, RTK area, N3IWF ID, or TWAP, etc., which is not limited in this application.

[0214] Correspondingly, other AMFs in the AMF pool can update the local broadcast record according to the seventh information. Therefore, for other AMFs, the first area corresponds to the sent information, even if other AMFs also find that there is at least one first user in the first area and perform the judgment action corresponding to S203-1, and according to the judgment result, other AMFs will subsequently perform S203-2, that is, will not trigger the sending of the first information, so it can be avoided that other AMFs repeatedly send the first information to LMF, causing LMF to repeatedly send the data of the first service to the first area.

[0215] Similar to S203-2, AMF1 can also receive the seventh information (or message) from other AMFs in the AMF pool, which may include the correspondence between the information of the first area (or the first information) and the sent information, or in other words, the seventh information can be used to notify the first area that the data of the first service has been broadcast. Therefore, AMF1 can update the local broadcast record according to the seventh information to avoid repeatedly sending the first information to the LMF, causing the LMF to repeatedly send the data of the first service to the first area.

[0216] S203-4: AMF1 sends the first information to LMF.

[0217] The first information is used to notify at least one first user that the at least one first user is located, enters, appears in, or is in the second area. Alternatively, the first information is used to notify at least one first user that the at least one first user is located, enters, appears in, or is in the first area. The first area may be a subset of the second area, that is, for example, may be less than or equal to the second area.

[0218] The first information may include the first identifier and / or information of the first area, or include the identifier of the first service and information of the first area. The first identifier may be used to identify the first service and / or the first area, or the first identifier may be used to identify the first data and / or the first area, and the description of the first data is as described above and will not be described again here.

[0219] Optionally, if the first area and the second area have the same range, the first identifier may be the same as the second identifier. Optionally, regardless of whether the first area and the second area have the same range, the first identifier may be the same as the second identifier.

[0220] Therefore, in S203, AMF1 can determine the first area where there are high-precision positioning subscribers from the second area, and carry the information of the first area in the first information, or carry the first identifier corresponding to the first area. As described above, the information of the first area may include at least one of the TAI, SAI, base station identifier or cell identifier of the first area, or at least one of the TAI list, SAI list, base station identifier list or cell identifier list. The first identifier may include at least one of the positioning service identifier, high-precision positioning identifier, RTK service identifier, RTK broadcast area identifier, or RTK identifier. The explanation of the first identifier is as described above and will not be repeated here.

[0221] Correspondingly, the LMF may receive the first information and determine to broadcast the RTK calibration data in the first area.

[0222] S204: LMF sends a non-UE N2 message transmission message (Namf_Communication_NonUeN2Message) to AMF1, which carries the RTK calibration data. In addition, the non-UE N2 message transmission may also carry information of the first identifier and / or the first area to indicate the area where the RTK calibration data needs to be broadcast, such as indicating the access network device and / or the cell in the access network device.

[0223] For example, in S203-4, AMF1 sends information about the first identifier and / or the first area to LMF, indicating that there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber in the first area corresponding to the first identifier. Then in S204, LMF can carry the information about the first identifier and / or the first area in the non-UEN2 message transmission.

[0224] Optionally, if the first information carries the first identifier and does not carry the information of the first area, optionally, LMF can query the NRF for the information of the first area. For example, AMF1 sends a network function query request carrying the first identifier to NRF, and receives a network function query reply carrying the information of the first area returned by NRF. Optionally, the network function query request may also include the identifier of LMF, that is, LMF ID.

[0225] S205: AMF1 sends an N2 transport message to the access network device.

[0226] The N2 transmission message may carry the RTK calibration data. In addition, the N2 transmission message may also carry information of the first identifier and / or the first area to indicate the area where the RTK calibration data needs to be broadcast.

[0227] For example, if the information of the first identifier and / or the first area indicates multiple access network devices and / or multiple cells of the access network devices, then in S205, AMF1 may send an N2 transmission message to the multiple access network devices, which carries RTK calibration data, and may also carry the information of the first identifier and / or the first area corresponding to the multiple access network devices. For example, the first area includes cell-1 in access network device-1, and cell-2 in access network device-2, then AMF1 may send N2 transmission messages to access network device-1 and access network device-2 respectively, wherein the N2 transmission message sent to access network device-1 may include RTK calibration data and the identifier of cell-1, and the N2 transmission message sent to access network device-2 may include RTK calibration data and the identifier of cell-2.

[0228] S206: The access network device broadcasts RTK calibration data.

[0229] Correspondingly, the UE in the access network device (such as including the first user) receives the RTK calibration data. The RTK calibration data may be included in the broadcast message.

[0230] The RTK calibration data may be received via the N2 transmission message in S205 .

[0231] In addition, by transmitting the N2 message in S205 to carry the first identifier and / or the information of the first area, the access network device can broadcast the RTK calibration data in the first area.

[0232] As a possible example, the first area is part or all of the coverage area of ​​the access network device, then the access network device can broadcast the RTK calibration data only to the first area, and does not need to broadcast the RTK calibration data in the entire coverage area.

[0233] For example, the cells of access network device-1 include cell-1, cell-2 to cell-n, and the N2 transmission message carries the identifier of cell-1 but does not carry the identifiers of cell-2 to cell-n. The access network device can broadcast RTK calibration data in cell-1 but may not broadcast RTK calibration data in cell-2 to cell-n.

[0234] As another possible example, if the N2 transmission message carries information of the first area or a first identifier, the access network device may broadcast the RTK calibration data within the entire coverage area.

[0235] Optionally, the access network device broadcasts the RTK calibration data in, for example, carrying the RTK calibration data in a SIB and sending the SIB in a broadcast manner. The SIB may be a positioning SIB.

[0236] S207: Optionally, the access network device sends a feedback message to AMF1, which may carry feedback information for the broadcast of RTK calibration data.

[0237] For example, the feedback information may be feedback information broadcast for RTK calibration data.

[0238] The feedback information may also include an identifier of the LMF, ie, the LMF ID.

[0239] S208: Optionally, AMF1 sends a non-UE N2 information notification (Namf_Communication_NonUeN2InfoNotify) to LMF, which may carry feedback information for the broadcast of RTK calibration data.

[0240] Understandably, Figure 5In the process shown, the action of AMF1 sending the first information to LMF in S203-4 corresponds to S101, that is, S203-4 is an implementation method of S101; S203-1 can correspond to S102, that is, S203-1 is an implementation method of S102; the action of LMF sending a non-UE N2 message transmission carrying RTK calibration data to AMF1 in S204 can correspond to S103, that is, S204 is an implementation method of S103.

[0241] based on Figure 5 The process shown can be performed through the interaction between AMF1 and LMF under the 5G network architecture, and AMF can reasonably determine whether to report to LMF that the high-precision positioning contract user appears in the first area, and whether to broadcast RTK calibration data to the first area. If RTK calibration data needs to be sent in the first area, AMF1 can send the first information to LMF, so that LMF sends RTK calibration data to AMF1, and then AMF sends RTK calibration data to the corresponding access network equipment, which can reduce the overhead of the core network elements.

[0242] It can be understood that in various embodiments of the present application, the execution sequence between any two steps can be interchanged.

[0243] like Figure 6 As shown, still taking the 5G scenario as an example, the first network element is LMF1, the second network element is AMF, and the fourth network element may be NRF. The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application may include the following steps:

[0244] S301: LMF1 obtains RTK calibration data from the RTK data center.

[0245] Among them, the RTK data center can be used as AF. Figure 6 AF is used to represent the RTK data center.

[0246] S302: LMF1 sends a first message to the AMF to which it is connected, for subscribing to the first information.

[0247] For example, according to the previous description, the first message can be specifically used to subscribe to notifications that the first user is located in, enters, appears in or is in the first area, subscribe to notifications that the first user exists in the first area, or subscribe to the first message for subscribing to notifications that the first user appears in the first area.

[0248] Optionally, the first message may include a second identifier, or include the second identifier and information about the second area. The second identifier corresponds to the information about the second area, and the information about the second area may be 3GPP area information of the second area. For example, the information about the second area may include at least one of TAI, SAI, base station identifier, or cell identifier, or at least one of a TAI list, a SAI list, a base station identifier list, or a cell identifier list. The second identifier may be used to identify the first service and / or the second area. The second identifier may be the first identifier described above. For example, the second identifier may include at least one of a high-precision positioning identifier, an RTK service identifier, an RTK broadcast area identifier, or an RTK identifier. The specific explanation of the first identifier is as described above and will not be repeated here.

[0249] As described in the aforementioned method embodiment, the second area may include the first area, and the explanation of the second area is similar to that of the first message, as described above, and will not be repeated here. For example, the second area may be the maximum broadcast area of ​​the positioning assistance data or the RTK calibration data, and the first area may be an area in the second area where the first user exists.

[0250] It is understandable that LMF1 can send the first message to all AMFs connected to it (such as all AMFs in the AMF pool). For example, when the AMF pool and the LMF pool are fully interconnected, LMF1 can subscribe to all AMFs. For example, a single pool generally contains 10 NFs.

[0251] Optionally, the first message carries the number of first users (for example, one or more first users) as a condition for triggering the second network element to send the first information to the first network element, or the first message carries the number of first users as a threshold value of the number of users that triggers the second network element to send the first information to the first network element. For example, when the number of first users carried by the first message is 100, it means that the second network element sends the first information to the first network element only when it finds that 100 first users have entered or exist in the first area. When the number is less than 100, the first service data is still sent using the respective sessions of the first users. By carrying the number of first users, the triggering timing of the second network element sending the first information can be made more flexible.

[0252] S303: AMF can determine whether there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located, entering, appearing or in the first area based on the first message. If so, it sends the first information to LMF1.

[0253] When the first message carries the number of first users, S303 may also be replaced by: AMF1 determines whether the number of first users located in, entering, appearing in or in the first area reaches a user number threshold, and if so, sends the first information to LMF.

[0254] Alternatively, S303 may also be replaced by: AMF may determine whether there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located, entering, appearing or in the first area according to the first message, and if so, send the first information to LMF1. And / or, AMF determines whether the number of first users located, entering, appearing or in the first area reaches a user number threshold, and if so, sends the first information to LMF1.

[0255] The first information is used to notify at least one first user that the at least one first user is located, enters, appears in, or is in the second area. Alternatively, the first information is used to notify at least one first user that the at least one first user is located, enters, appears in, or is in the first area. The first area may be a subset of the second area, that is, for example, may be less than or equal to the second area.

[0256] The first information may include the first identifier and / or information of the first area, or include the identifier of the first service and information of the first area. The first identifier may be used to identify the first service and / or the first area, or the first identifier may be used to identify the first data and / or the first area, and the description of the first data is as described above and will not be described again here.

[0257] Optionally, if the first area and the second area have the same range, the first identifier may be the same as the second identifier. Optionally, regardless of whether the first area and the second area have the same range, the first identifier may be the same as the second identifier.

[0258] Therefore, in S303, AMF can determine the first area where there are high-precision positioning subscribers from the second area, and carry the information of the first area in the first information, or carry the first identifier corresponding to the first area. As described above, the information of the first area may include at least one of the TAI, SAI, base station identifier or cell identifier of the first area, or at least one of the TAI list, SAI list, base station identifier list or cell identifier list. The first identifier may include at least one of the positioning service identifier, high-precision positioning identifier, RTK service identifier, RTK broadcast area identifier, or RTK identifier. The explanation of the first identifier is as described above and will not be repeated here.

[0259] As an example, AMF1 may determine whether there is a high-precision positioning subscriber who enters the second area through a switching process, an initial registration process, a periodic registration process, or a registration update process. If so, it may be determined that there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located in, entering, appearing in, or in the second area.

[0260] In addition, as another example, the AMF may also receive the sixth information from other AMFs in the AMF pool, and determine based on the sixth information that there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber located in, entering, appearing in or in the first area. The sixth information may be used to indicate the first area, indicating that at least one high-precision positioning subscriber is located in, entering, appearing in or in the first area. For example, among the multiple AMFs in the AMF pool, one or more AMFs may send the first information to LMF1, and other AMFs only need to report the first area to the one or more AMFs without sending the first information to LMF1, which can further reduce the overhead of the core network elements. Or, for another example, if the AMF in the AMF pool receives a notification from other AMFs that the first area has sent data of the first service, it does not need to send the first information to LMF1, thereby avoiding repeated sending of the first service data and reducing the overhead of the core network elements.

[0261] Correspondingly, LMF1 can receive the first information.

[0262] Optionally, if the first message carries the second identifier and does not carry information about the second area, the AMF may query the NRF for information about the second area. For example, the AMF sends a network function query request carrying the second identifier to the NRF, and receives a network function query reply carrying information about the second area returned by the NRF.

[0263] Optionally, if the first message carries the second identifier but does not carry the identifier information of the second area, if the AMF locally configures the correspondence between the second identifier and the information of the second area, the AMF can determine the information of the second area corresponding to the second identifier based on the correspondence.

[0264] S304: After receiving the first information, LMF1 determines whether the second information exists, that is, whether the information indicating that the first area has sent the data of the first service exists. Alternatively, LMF1 determines whether the information indicating that the first area has not sent the data of the first service exists.

[0265] It can be understood that S304 corresponds to S102 - a , and thus the implementation process of S304 can refer to the description in S102 - a .

[0266] In S304, if LMF1 determines that the second information exists, or determines that there is no information indicating that the first area does not send data for the first service, S304-1 and / or S304-2 may be executed. If LMF1 determines that the second information does not exist, or determines that there is information indicating that the first area does not send data for the first service, S304-3 and S304-4 may be executed.

[0267] S304-1: LMF1 determines not to send data of the first service to AMF.

[0268] S304-2: Optionally, LMF1 sends fourth information to AMF to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service, and / or the fourth information can be used to indicate that data of the first service is not sent to the first area.

[0269] Therefore, when LMF1 determines that the second information exists, there is no need to trigger sending the data of the first service to the first area.

[0270] S304-3: Optionally, LMF1 sends second information to LMF2, wherein LMF1 and LMF2 manage the same AMF or AMF pool.

[0271] Optionally, LMF1 may also generate second information.

[0272] Based on S304-2, LMF1 can notify other LMFs, such as LMF2, of the sent information corresponding to the first area. Other LMFs can update the broadcast record according to the second information from LMF1. If other LMFs subsequently receive the first information corresponding to the first area, they can indicate the judgment action shown in S304. Since the second information has been received from LMF1, other LMFs can avoid repeatedly sending the data of the first service to AMF.

[0273] Specifically, the second information sent by LMF1 to other LMFs may include the correspondence between the information of the first area (or the first information) and the sent information, or in other words, the seventh information can be used to notify the first area that the data of the first service has been broadcast. The information of the first area may be a cell ID, a gNB ID, a TAI, a PLMN ID, a SAI, an RTK area, a N3IWFID, or a TWAP, etc., which is not limited in this application.

[0274] Similar to S304-3, LMF1 can also receive the second information (or message) from other LMFs. Therefore, LMF1 can update the local broadcast record according to the second information to avoid repeatedly sending the data of the first service to AMF.

[0275] S304-4: LMF1 sends a non-UE N2 message transmission message to AMF, which carries RTK calibration data. In addition, the non-UE N2 message transmission may also carry information of the first identifier and / or the first area to indicate the area where the RTK calibration data needs to be broadcast, such as indicating the access network device and / or the cell in the access network device.

[0276] For example, in S303, AMF sends information about the first identifier and / or the first area to LMF1, indicating that there is at least one high-precision positioning subscriber in the first area corresponding to the first identifier. Then in S304-4, LMF1 can carry the information about the first identifier and / or the first area in the non-UE N2 message transmission.

[0277] As a possible implementation method, if the second area includes TAI 1~4, where TAI 1~3 are areas where RTK calibration data has been broadcast, and TAI4 is an area where RTK calibration data has not been broadcast, then the non-UE N2 message transmission message can carry TAI4 and RTK calibration data, indicating that the RTK calibration data needs to be broadcast in TAI4.

[0278] In addition, the non-UE N2 message transmission message may also carry information about the broadcast area, such as TAI 1 to 3, which is used to indicate the area where the RTK calibration data has been broadcast. In addition, it may also carry information indicating that TAI 1 to 3 corresponds to the broadcast area. For example, the information indicating that TAI 1 to 3 corresponds to the broadcast area may be a vector composed of bits, each bit of which corresponds to a TAI or area, and when the bit value is 1 (or 0), it indicates that the corresponding area has broadcast the RTK calibration data.

[0279] Optionally, if the first information carries the first identifier and does not carry the information of the first area, optionally, LMF1 can query the NRF for the information of the first area. For example, AMF1 sends a network function query request carrying the first identifier to NRF, and receives a network function query reply carrying the information of the first area returned by NRF. Optionally, the network function query request may also include the identifier of LMF1, that is, LMF ID.

[0280] S305: AMF sends an N2 transmission message to the access network device.

[0281] The N2 transmission message may carry the RTK calibration data. In addition, the N2 transmission message may also carry information of the first identifier and / or the first area to indicate the area where the RTK calibration data needs to be broadcast.

[0282] For example, if the information of the first identifier and / or the first area indicates multiple access network devices and / or multiple cells of the access network devices, then in S305, the AMF may send an N2 transmission message to the multiple access network devices, which carries the RTK calibration data, and may also carry the information of the first identifier and / or the first area respectively corresponding to the multiple access network devices. For example, the first area includes the cell-1 in the access network device-1, and the cell-2 in the access network device-2, then the AMF may send an N2 transmission message to the access network device-1 and the access network device-2 respectively, wherein the N2 transmission message sent to the access network device-1 may include the RTK calibration data and the identifier of the cell-1, and the N2 transmission message sent to the access network device-2 may include the RTK calibration data and the identifier of the cell-2.

[0283] For example, if the non-UE N2 message transmission message in S304 includes TAI4, the AMF can send an N2 transmission message to the access network device corresponding to TAI4, so that the access network device broadcasts RTK calibration data within the TAI4 range.

[0284] S306: The access network device broadcasts RTK calibration data.

[0285] Correspondingly, the UE in the access network device (such as including the first user) receives the RTK calibration data. The RTK calibration data may be included in the broadcast message.

[0286] The RTK calibration data may be received via the N2 transmission message in S305 .

[0287] In addition, by transmitting the N2 message in S305 to carry the first identifier and / or information of the first area, the access network device can broadcast the RTK calibration data in the first area.

[0288] As a possible example, the first area is part or all of the coverage area of ​​the access network device, then the access network device can broadcast the RTK calibration data only to the first area, and does not need to broadcast the RTK calibration data in the entire coverage area.

[0289] For example, the cells of access network device-1 include cell-1, cell-2 to cell-n, and the N2 transmission message carries the identifier of cell-1 but does not carry the identifiers of cell-2 to cell-n. The access network device can broadcast RTK calibration data in cell-1 but may not broadcast RTK calibration data in cell-2 to cell-n.

[0290] As another possible example, if the N2 transmission message carries information of the first area or a first identifier, the access network device may broadcast the RTK calibration data within the entire coverage area.

[0291] S307: Optionally, the access network device sends a feedback message to the AMF, which may carry feedback information for the broadcast of RTK calibration data.

[0292] For example, the feedback information may be feedback information broadcast for RTK calibration data.

[0293] The feedback information may also include an identifier of LMF1, ie, LMF ID.

[0294] S308: Optionally, AMF sends a non-UE N2 information notification to LMF1, which may carry feedback information for the broadcast of RTK calibration data.

[0295] Understandably, Figure 6 In the process shown, the action of AMF sending the first information to LMF1 in S303 corresponds to S101, that is, S303 is an implementation method of S101; S304 corresponds to S102-a, that is, S304 is a possible implementation method of S102-a; the action of LMF1 sending a non-UE N2 message transmission carrying RTK calibration data to AMF in S304-4 can correspond to S103, that is, S304-4 is an implementation method of S103.

[0296] based on Figure 6 The process shown can be carried out through the interaction between AMF and LMF1 under the 5G network architecture, and LMF1 can reasonably determine whether to broadcast RTK calibration data to AMF and / or the first area based on the broadcast record. This can avoid repeatedly sending data of the first service to the same area and reduce the overhead of core network elements.

[0297] In a possible embodiment, in S102-b or S203-1, the AMF (or AMF1) may determine whether there is sent information (or second information) corresponding to the first area through a fourth network element. The fourth network element is, for example, an NRF or an UDSF, or may also be other network elements such as a UDM or an NWDAF. Figure 7 As shown, the method for AMF to determine whether sent information exists through the fourth network element may include the following steps, or in other words, S102-b and / or S203-1 include the following steps:

[0298] S401: AMF sends a second message to the fourth network element, and the second message may include information of the first area or the first information.

[0299] It can be understood that the second message can be used to request the fourth network element to determine whether the second information exists, that is, to determine whether there is sent information corresponding to the first area, or to determine whether there is unsent information corresponding to the first area.

[0300] It can also be understood that for S102-b, the second network element in S102-b may execute Figure 7 For S203-1, it can be executed by AMF1 in S203-1 Figure 7 The action of AMF in .

[0301] Correspondingly, the fourth network element receives the second message.

[0302] S402: The fourth network element determines whether there is sent information corresponding to the first area according to the second message.

[0303] S402 may also be replaced by: the fourth network element determines whether there is unsent information corresponding to the first area according to the second message

[0304] Among them, the NRF can determine whether there is sent information or unsent information corresponding to the first area based on the locally stored broadcast records. The local broadcast records of the NRF may be from one or more LMFs or AMFs. For example, one or more LMFs or AMFs send the broadcast records stored therein as shown in Table 1 to the NRF, and the NRF obtains the locally stored broadcast records based on the broadcast records provided by one or more LMFs.

[0305] S403: If the fourth network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the third area, the fourth network element sends a first indication to the AMF.

[0306] S403 may also be replaced by: the fourth network element determines that there is unsent information corresponding to the third area.

[0307] The third area may be a part or all of the first area. Therefore, when the third area does not broadcast the data of the first service, S403 is executed.

[0308] The first indication may be used to indicate that there is no sent information (or second information) corresponding to the third area in the fourth network element, or to indicate that there is unsent information corresponding to the third area. For the sent information and unsent information, please refer to the description in S102-a.

[0309] Optionally, the first indication may include information of the third area and / or non-sent information. Therefore, the second network element may learn, according to the first indication, that the third area has not broadcast data of the first service.

[0310] In addition, the first indication may also carry a specific bit or information to indicate that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area. For example, bit 0 (or 1) indicates that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, and accordingly, the second network element may determine that there is no second information. For another example, if the first indication carries a first identifier, it may indicate that there is no sent information in the first area.

[0311] Correspondingly, the second network element may receive the first indication and determine, based on the first indication, that there is no sent information corresponding to the third area. For example, if the first area corresponds to TAI1-4, and the fourth network element determines that there is sent information corresponding to TAI1-3, but there is no sent information corresponding to TAI4, then TAI4 is the third area, and the second network element may send the first information corresponding to TAI4 to the first network element, that is, notify the first user that it is located in TAI4.

[0312] S404: If the fourth network element determines that there is sent information corresponding to the first area, the fourth network element sends a second indication to the AMF.

[0313] S404 may also be replaced by: the fourth network element determines that there is no unsent information corresponding to the first area. Therefore, when the data of the first service has been broadcasted in the first area, S404 is executed.

[0314] The second indication may be used to indicate that the fourth network element has sent information corresponding to the first area, or to indicate that there is no unsent information corresponding to the first area. Alternatively, the second indication may also be used to indicate that data of the first service does not need to be broadcast in the first area.

[0315] In a possible embodiment, the second indication may carry a specific bit or information to indicate that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area. For example, bit 1 (or 0) indicates that there is sent information corresponding to the first area, and accordingly, the second network element may determine that there is the second information.

[0316] Correspondingly, the second network element may receive the second indication, and determine, based on the first indication, that there is sent information corresponding to the first area, that is, the second information.

[0317] based on Figure 7 In the process shown, the second network element can determine that the second information does not exist according to the first indication in S403, or determine that the second information exists according to the second indication in S404, thereby accurately and efficiently determining whether the second information exists. In addition, the AMF does not need to maintain the broadcast record during the implementation process, which can further reduce the AMF overhead.

[0318] In addition, as another possible embodiment, Figure 7 The actions performed by AMF can also be replaced by LMF. Figure 7 The process shown can be used as a possible implementation of S102 - a or S304 , and the specific process will not be repeated.

[0319] Figure 8Another optional communication method provided by the present application is shown, which is used to stop broadcasting data of the first service when the second network element (or AMF) determines that there is no first user in the first area or the number of first users is lower than the user number threshold. The user number threshold can be a certain integer value. Figure 8 The process shown can be Figures 4 to 7 Any of the processes shown can be combined or implemented independently. Figures 4 to 7 The process shown is implemented, and this application is not limited. Take the second network element as AMF and the first network element as LMF as an example, Figure 8 The following steps may be included:

[0320] S501: AMF determines that there is no first user in the first area or the number of first users is lower than a threshold.

[0321] For example, the AMF determines that the first user has left or moved out of the first area.

[0322] For another example, the AMF determines that the number of first users in the first area is lower than a threshold.

[0323] The first area may also be replaced by a partial area in the first area, which may be an area where the broadcast of data of the first service has already started.

[0324] S502: AMF sends the fifth information to LMF.

[0325] Among them, the fifth information can also be replaced by a third message, which can be used to indicate stopping sending data of the first service to the first area (or part of the first area), and / or to indicate that the first user does not exist in the first area (or part of the first area) or the number of first users is lower than a threshold value.

[0326] Optionally, the fifth information may carry information of the area where broadcasting of data of the first service is stopped and / or the first information. The first information may be used to notify the first area of ​​the existence of the first user in the pre-process (such as S101).

[0327] Correspondingly, LMF receives the fifth information.

[0328] S503: LMF sends a non-UE N2 message transmission message to AMF, which is used to instruct to stop broadcasting data of the first service in the first area.

[0329] Optionally, the first area may also be replaced by a partial area in the first area. Accordingly, the information of the area may be carried in the non-UE N2 message transmission message.

[0330] In addition, optionally, the non-UE N2 message transmission message may also carry an indication for indicating to stop broadcasting the data of the first service. For example, when a specific bit of the non-UE N2 message transmission message is set to 0, it indicates to stop broadcasting the data of the first service. For another example, the non-UE N2 message transmission message may carry an N2 container. The N2 container may include a stop indication for indicating to stop broadcasting the data of the first service.

[0331] Correspondingly, the AMF receives the non-UE N2 message transmission message.

[0332] S504: AMF sends an N2 transmission message to the access network device corresponding to the first area, to instruct to stop broadcasting data of the first service in the first area.

[0333] Optionally, the N2 transmission message may carry information about the area where broadcasting of the first service is stopped, such as information about the first area or information about a portion of the first area.

[0334] In addition, optionally, the N2 transmission message may carry an indication for indicating to stop broadcasting the data of the first service, such as a bit with a specific value, or an N2 container as shown in S503.

[0335] Correspondingly, the access network device stops broadcasting the data of the first service in the first area (or a part of the first area) according to the N2 transmission message.

[0336] Therefore, based on Figure 8 The process shown can be used by AMF to efficiently and accurately stop the broadcast of the first service data in the first area after determining that the first user does not exist in the first area, thereby further reducing the overhead of the core network elements.

[0337] Based on the same concept, the embodiment of the present application also provides a communication device. The communication device may include hardware structures and / or software modules corresponding to the functions shown in the above method. Those skilled in the art should easily appreciate that, in combination with the units and method steps of each example described in the embodiment disclosed in the present application, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is executed in the form of hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application scenario and design constraints of the technical solution.

[0338] Figures 9 to 11A schematic diagram of the structure of a possible communication device provided for an embodiment of the present application. The communication device can be used to implement the functions of the first network element, the second network element, or the fourth network element in the above method embodiment, and thus can also achieve the beneficial effects possessed by the above method embodiment. In a possible implementation, the communication device can be the first network element, the second network element, or the fourth network element involved in the above method, or a component in the first network element, a component in the second network element, or a component in the fourth network element. For relevant details and effects, please refer to the description of the above embodiment.

[0339] like Fig. 9 As shown, the communication device 900 includes a processing unit 910 and a communication unit 920. The communication unit 920 can implement corresponding communication functions, and the processing unit 910 is used to perform data processing, such as parsing / reading policy information and other data or information received by the communication unit 920, or triggering the communication unit 920 to send data or information, or generating data or information to be sent. The communication unit 920 can also be a transceiver unit or an input / output interface, etc., which is used for the communication device 900 to perform receiving and / or sending actions. The communication device 900 can be used to implement the above Figures 4 to 8 The functions of the first network element, the second network element or the fourth network element in any of the method embodiments shown in the figure and the actions that the communication device can perform can be found in the description of the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0340] For example, when implementing the function of the first network element, the communication unit 920 may be used to receive the first information from the second network element and send the data of the first service to the second network element. The processing unit 910 may be used to determine whether the second information exists. In addition, the communication unit 920 may also be used to send the first message to the second network element.

[0341] Optionally, the processing unit 910 may also be configured to generate second information.

[0342] The communication unit 920 may also be configured to receive second information from a third network element and / or to send second information to the third network element.

[0343] The communication unit 920 may also be configured to receive fifth information from the second network element, where the fifth information is used to instruct to stop sending data of the first service to the first area.

[0344] For another example, when implementing the function of the second network element, the processing unit 910 may be used to determine whether the second information exists. The communication unit 920 may be used to send the first information to the first network element. The processing unit 910 may be used to determine that the first user is located in the first area. In addition, the communication unit 920 may also be used to receive a first message from the first network element.

[0345] Optionally, the processing unit 910 may also be configured to generate second information.

[0346] The communication unit 920 may also be configured to receive sixth information from the fifth network element, where the sixth information is used to notify that the first user is located in the second area, and the first area includes the second area.

[0347] The processing unit 910 may also be used to determine that the first user does not exist in the first area. The communication unit 920 may also be used to send fifth information to the second network element.

[0348] For another example, when implementing the function of the fourth network element, the communication unit 920 may be used to receive information from the first area of ​​the second network element or the first information. The processing unit 910 may be used to determine that there is no sent information corresponding to the third area, and store the sent message corresponding to the third area.

[0349] The communication unit 920 may also be configured to send the first indication or the second indication.

[0350] In addition, optionally, when implementing the first network element and / or the second network element, the communication unit 920 may be configured to send the first identifier to the fourth network element and receive information of the first area from the fourth network element.

[0351] It can be understood that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is schematic and is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. In addition, each functional module in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into a processor, or may exist physically separately, or two or more modules may be integrated into one module. The above-mentioned integrated modules may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional modules.

[0352] like Fig.10 The communication device 1000 provided in the embodiment of the present application is shown, which is used to implement the communication method provided in the present application. The communication device 1000 may be a communication device that applies the communication method, or a component in the communication device, or a device that can be used in combination with the communication device. The communication device 1000 may be a first network element, a second network element, or a fourth network element. Among them, the communication device 1000 may be a chip system or a chip. In the embodiment of the present application, the chip system may be composed of a chip, or may include a chip and other discrete devices. The communication device 1000 includes at least one processor 1020, which is used to implement the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application. The communication device 1000 may also include an input and output interface 1010, and the input and output interface may include an input interface and / or an output interface. In the embodiment of the present application, the input and output interface 1010 may be used to communicate with other devices through a transmission medium, and its functions may include sending and / or receiving. For example, when the communication device 1000 is a chip, it is transmitted with other chips or devices through the input and output interface 1010. The processor 1020 may be used to implement the method shown in the above method embodiment.

[0353] Exemplarily, the processor 1020 may be used to execute actions executed by the processing unit 910 , and the input / output interface 1010 may be used to execute actions executed by the communication unit 920 , which will not be described in detail.

[0354] Optionally, the communication device 1000 may further include at least one memory 1030 for storing program instructions and / or data. The memory 1030 is coupled to the processor 1020. The coupling in the embodiment of the present application is an indirect coupling or communication connection between devices, units or modules, which may be electrical, mechanical or other forms, and is used for information exchange between devices, units or modules. The processor 1020 may operate in conjunction with the memory 1030. The processor 1020 may execute program instructions stored in the memory 1030. At least one of the at least one memory may be integrated with the processor.

[0355] In an embodiment of the present application, the memory 1030 may be a non-volatile memory, such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a solid-state drive (SSD), etc., or a volatile memory (volatile memory), such as a random access memory (RAM). The memory is any other medium that can be used to carry or store a desired program code in the form of an instruction or data structure and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory in the embodiment of the present application may also be a circuit or any other device that can implement a storage function, for storing program instructions and / or data.

[0356] In the embodiment of the present application, the processor 1020 may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application-specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, or a discrete hardware component, and may implement or execute the methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiment of the present application. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiment of the present application may be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware processor, or may be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor.

[0357] like Fig.11The communication device 1100 provided in an embodiment of the present application is shown, which is used to implement the communication method provided in the present application. The communication device 1100 may be a communication device that applies the communication method shown in the embodiment of the present application, or it may be a component in the communication device, or it may be a device that can be used in combination with the communication device. The communication device 1100 may be a first network element, a second network element, or a fourth network element. Among them, the communication device 1100 may be a chip system or a chip. In the embodiment of the present application, the chip system may be composed of a chip, or it may include a chip and other discrete devices. Part or all of the communication methods provided in the above embodiments may be implemented by hardware or by software. When implemented by hardware, the communication device 1100 may include: an input interface circuit 1101, a logic circuit 1102, and an output interface circuit 1103.

[0358] Optionally, taking the device being used to implement the function of the receiving end as an example, the input interface circuit 1101 can be used to execute the above-mentioned receiving action performed by the communication unit 920, the output interface circuit 1103 can be used to execute the above-mentioned sending action performed by the communication unit 920, and the logic circuit 1102 can be used to execute the above-mentioned action performed by the processing unit 910, which will not be repeated.

[0359] Optionally, the communication device 1100 may be a chip or an integrated circuit in a specific implementation.

[0360] Part or all of the operations and functions performed by the communication device described in the above method embodiments of the present application can be completed using a chip or an integrated circuit.

[0361] An embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program includes instructions for executing the above method embodiment.

[0362] An embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product including instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the above method embodiment.

[0363] The embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes a first network element and a second network element, and optionally may include a fourth network element. The communication system can be used to perform Figures 4 to 8 Any one or more processes in .

[0364] It is understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, transistor logic devices, hardware components or any combination thereof. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0365] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When loading and executing computer instructions on a computer, the process or function according to the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from a website site, computer, server or data center by wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (digital subscriber line, DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode to another website site, computer, server or data center. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server, data center, etc. that contains one or more available media integrated. The available medium may be a magnetic medium (eg, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (eg, a high-density digital video disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (eg, an SSD), etc.

[0366] Note: A portion of this patent application document contains material which is subject to copyright protection. The copyright owner reserves all rights reserved except for the production of copies of the material in the patent file or patent record in the Patent Office.

[0367] The first network element, the second network element or the fourth network element in the above-mentioned various device embodiments correspond to the first network element, the second network element or the fourth network element in the method embodiment, and the corresponding modules or units perform the corresponding steps. For example, the communication unit (transceiver) performs the steps of receiving or sending in the method embodiment, and other steps except sending and receiving can be performed by the processing unit (processor). The functions of the specific units can refer to the corresponding method embodiments. Among them, the processor can be one or more.

[0368] The terms "component", "module", "system", etc. used in this specification are used to represent computer-related entities, hardware, firmware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution. For example, a component can be, but is not limited to, a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable file, an execution thread, a program and / or a computer. By way of illustration, both applications running on a computing device and a computing device can be components. One or more components may reside in a process and / or an execution thread, and a component may be located on a computer and / or distributed between two or more computers. In addition, these components may be executed from various computer-readable media having various data structures stored thereon. Components may, for example, communicate through local and / or remote processes based on signals having one or more data packets (e.g., data from two components interacting with another component between a local system, a distributed system and / or a network, such as the Internet interacting with other systems through signals).

[0369] Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the various illustrative logical blocks and steps described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or in a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel may use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0370] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0371] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic. For example, the division of units is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation. For example, multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0372] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0373] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. If the function is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.

[0374] The above are only specific implementations of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any technician familiar with the technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be included in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application should be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The first network element receives first information from the second network element, where the first information is used to notify that the first user is located in a first area, where the first area is a sending area of ​​data of a first service, where the first user subscribes to the first service, and where the first service includes a high-precision positioning service; The first network element determines that second information does not exist, where the second information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service; The first network element sends data of the first service to the second network element.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The second information includes information of a first identifier and / or the first area, where the first identifier is used to identify the first service and / or the first area.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The second information also includes third information corresponding to the first area and / or third information corresponding to the first identifier, and the third information is used to indicate that data of the first service has been sent.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The first network element generates the second information according to the first information.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The first network element determines that the second information exists; The first network element sends fourth information to the second network element, where the fourth information is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that The method further comprises: The first network element receives the second information from the third network element.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The first network element receives fifth information from the second network element, where the fifth information is used to instruct to stop sending data of the first service to the first area, and / or the fifth information is used to indicate that the first user does not exist in the first area.

8. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The second network element determines that the first user is located in a first area, the first area is a sending area of ​​first service data, the first user subscribes to the first service, and the first service includes a high-precision positioning service; The second network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, where the sent information corresponding to the first area is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service; The second network element sends first information to the first network element, where the first information is used to notify that the first user is located in the first area.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that The sent information corresponding to the first area includes information of the first area.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that The sent information also includes third information corresponding to the first area, and the third information is used to indicate that data of the first service has been sent.

11. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The second network element sends the information of the first area or the first information to a fourth network element; The second network element receives a first indication from the fourth network element, where the first indication is used to indicate that the fourth network element does not have sent information corresponding to the first area; The second network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area, including: The second network element determines, according to the first indication, that there is no sent information corresponding to the first area.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that The method further comprises: The second network element receives a second indication from the fourth network element, where the second indication is used to indicate that the fourth network element has sent information corresponding to the first area; The second network element determines that there is sent information corresponding to the first area.

13. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 12, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The second network element receives sixth information from the fifth network element, where the sixth information is used to notify that the first user is located in a second area, and the first area includes the second area.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The sixth information includes information of the second area.

15. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 14, characterized in that: The method further comprises: Determining, by the second network element, that the first user does not exist in the first area; The second network element sends fifth information to the first network element, where the fifth information is used to instruct to stop sending data of the first service to the first area, and / or the fifth information is used to indicate that the first user does not exist in the first area.

16. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The fourth network element receives information about a first area or first information from the second network element, the first area is a sending area of ​​first service data, the first user subscribes to the first service, the first service includes a high-precision positioning service, and the first information is used to notify the first user that the first user is located in the first area; The fourth network element determines that there is no sent information corresponding to the third area, where the sent information corresponding to the third area is used to indicate that the third area has sent data of the first service, and the first area includes the third area; The fourth network element stores the sending information corresponding to the third area according to the information of the third area.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that The method further comprises: The fourth network element sends a first indication to the second network element, where the first indication is used to indicate that the fourth network element does not have the sent information corresponding to the first area, and the sent information corresponding to the first area is used to indicate that the first area has sent data of the first service.

18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that The sent information corresponding to the third area and / or the first indication includes information of the third area.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that The sent information corresponding to the third area also includes third information corresponding to the third area, and the third information is used to indicate that data of the first service has been sent.

20. The method according to any one of claims 16 to 19, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The fourth network element determines that there is sent information corresponding to the third area; The fourth network element sends a second indication to the second network element, where the second indication is used to indicate that the fourth network element has sent information corresponding to the third area.

21. A communication device, characterized in that: The device comprises a processor, wherein the processor is configured to execute a computer program to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

22. The communication device according to claim 21, characterized in that It also includes a transceiver or a memory, wherein the transceiver is used for the communication device to communicate, and the memory is used to store the computer program.

23. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The storage medium stores a computer program or an instruction. When the computer program or the instruction is executed by the communication device, the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20 is implemented.

24. A computer program product, characterized in that The method comprises a computer program or an instruction, which, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 20.

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