Base station core network backhaul communication system and method

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention discloses a base station core network backhaul communication system and method, the system comprises a core network and a plurality of base stations, the base stations are serially cascaded in sequence, the backhaul port of the base station of the first level is connected and communicated with the core network, and the backhaul port of the base station of the second level is connected and communicated with the core network. The backhaul ports of the base stations of other levels are connected with the cascade ports of the base stations of the previous level through optical fibers or network cables, and the base stations directly forward data messages which are received through the cascade ports and sent to the core network to the cascade ports and upload the data messages through the backhaul ports. And the base station directly forwards a data message which is received through the return port and sent to the base station at the lower level to the cascade port and issues the data message through the cascade port. According to the invention, the connection between each base station and the user plane and the signaling plane of the core network is realized, so that the resource configuration between the core network and the base station is saved. According to the invention, the problem of high cost of backhaul of a traditional base station core network needing large-scale machine room construction can be solved, and various problems existing in wireless backhaul can also be solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of 5G communications, and in particular to a base station core network backhaul communication system and method. Background Art

[0002] As 5G technology matures, network construction coverage is becoming more and more extensive, and base station deployment has entered a full-scale deployment stage. Under the high-density networking requirements, the high cost of all-fiber one-to-one networking has become an unbearable burden for operators. Therefore, finding an efficient and economical base station backhaul solution has become the focus of widespread attention in the industry and has become a key technical point that restricts the continued decline in network networking costs.

[0003] In this context, microwave backhaul, wireless backhaul and satellite backhaul have received more and more attention. However, these wireless backhaul technologies generally have the following disadvantages: (1) Bandwidth and capacity limitations Wireless backhaul typically has lower bandwidth than wired backhaul (e.g., fiber), which can limit the overall transmission capacity of a base station, especially in situations of high traffic demand.

[0004] (2) Interference and signal attenuation Wireless signals are easily affected by environmental interference (such as obstacles such as buildings and trees) and other wireless devices, resulting in signal attenuation and reduced transmission quality. (3) Delay issue Wireless backhaul may introduce additional latency, especially in multi-hop scenarios, which may have a negative impact on latency-sensitive applications such as real-time voice and video communications.

[0005] (4) Security Wireless transmission is more susceptible to monitoring and interference than wired transmission, and requires additional encryption and security measures to protect the security of data transmission.

[0006] (5) Limited spectrum resources Wireless backhaul requires spectrum resources, which are limited, which may conflict with other wireless communication needs. Spectrum management and allocation require careful planning.

[0007] (6) Weather impact Weather conditions, such as rain, snow, fog, etc., may adversely affect the transmission of wireless signals, resulting in performance degradation.

[0008] In summary, with the rapid development of 5G networks, the optimization and selection of base station backhaul solutions are related to operators' cost control and network deployment efficiency. Finding an economical and effective backhaul solution while ensuring network performance will be the basic direction of future 5G network construction.

[0009] If the traditional method of connecting base stations and core networks is adopted, each base station is directly connected to the access layer of the core network in the computer room. The number of computer rooms and the management costs will undoubtedly be huge and unacceptable; especially for integrated distributed base stations with large amounts of data, the cost will be astronomical. Summary of the invention

[0010] The technical problem to be solved by the embodiments of the present invention is to provide a base station core network backhaul communication system and method to solve the high cost problem of core network backhaul.

[0011] In order to solve the above technical problems, an embodiment of the present invention proposes a base station core network backhaul communication system, including a core network and a plurality of base stations, wherein the base stations are serially cascaded in sequence, wherein the backhaul port of the base station of the first level is connected to the core network for communication, and the backhaul port of the base station of other levels is connected to the cascade port of the base station of the upper level through an optical fiber or a network cable, and the base station directly forwards the data message received through the cascade port and sent to the core network to the cascade port and uploads it through the backhaul port, and the base station directly forwards the data message received through the backhaul port and sent to the base station of the lower level to the cascade port and sends it down through the cascade port.

[0012] Accordingly, an embodiment of the present invention further provides a base station core network backhaul communication method, comprising: Step 1: Cascade the base stations in series in sequence, connect the backhaul port of the first-level base station to the core network for communication, and connect the backhaul port of the base stations at other levels to the cascade port of the base station at the previous level through optical fiber or network cable; Step 2: The base station forwards the data message received through the cascade port and sent to the core network directly to the cascade port and uploads it through the backhaul port. The base station forwards the data message received through the backhaul port and sent to the lower-level base station directly to the cascade port and sends it down through the cascade port.

[0013] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: the present invention realizes the purpose of communicating with the core network by cascading through the cascade port of the base station; it not only solves the high cost of establishing a machine room for each distributed base station, but also solves the shortcomings introduced by the connection mode of realizing backhaul by adopting wireless waves, including small bandwidth, limited capacity, serious interference and signal attenuation, large delay, insufficient security, additional frequency resource occupation, and large influence of weather. The present invention still uses the wired entity of optical fiber and optical port to cascade the backhaul port. Since the forwarding of the message does not depend on the CPU participation of the cascade device, the bandwidth of the interface can be fully utilized, including but not limited to 1G, 10G, 25G, 50G, 100G, 200G, 400G, 800G. At the same time, the data interaction with the core network is forwarded by the chip hardware matching the corresponding message rules, and the forwarding delay and jitter are also particularly low. The present invention can realize multi-level cascading to continuously expand the coverage of 5G, and at the same time does not reduce the processing performance of the base station. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figure 1 It is a structural diagram of a base station core network backhaul communication system according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0015] It should be noted that, in the absence of conflict, the embodiments in the present application and the features in the embodiments may be combined with each other. The present invention is further described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings and specific embodiments.

[0016] In the embodiments of the present invention, if there are directional indications (such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc.), they are only used to explain the relative position relationship, movement status, etc. between the components under a certain specific posture (as shown in the accompanying drawings). If the specific posture changes, the directional indication will also change accordingly.

[0017] In addition, in the present invention, the descriptions of "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying their relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features.

[0018] Please refer to Figure 1 The base station core network backhaul communication system of the embodiment of the present invention includes a core network and n base stations.

[0019] n base stations are serially cascaded in sequence. The backhaul port (i.e. port 1, Figure 1 The backhaul port of the base station at other levels is connected to the cascade port of the base station at the previous level (i.e., port 4, Figure 1The base station directly forwards the data message sent to the core network received through the cascade port to the cascade port and uploads it through the backhaul port, that is, the base station i directly forwards the data message sent to the core network received through the cascade port (part 1 of base station i) to the cascade port (part 4 of base station i-1) and uploads it through the backhaul port.

[0020] The base station directly forwards the data message sent to the base station of the lower level received through the backhaul port to the cascade port and sends it down through the cascade port. That is, base station i directly forwards the data message sent to the base station of the lower level (i.e., the base station of the level below i, i+1~n level) received through the backhaul port (part1 of base station i) to the cascade port (part4 of base station i) and sends it down through the cascade port. i∈n. The present invention jumps to the core network through the cascade port of the previous level base station to achieve connection with the user plane and signaling plane of the core network, thereby saving resource configuration between the core network and the base station.

[0021] As an implementation method, the MAC addresses of the ports of the base station are numbered according to the following rules: 00:11:22: the level of the base station: 01: Port number; Among them, Port number is the number of the base station port, such as Figure 1 As shown in the figure, the backhaul port is numbered 01 and the cascade port is numbered 04.

[0022] As an implementation method, the base station broadcasts the MAC address of each port at a preset frequency (for example, once every 5 seconds) to facilitate other base stations to learn the MAC address and IP address. In specific implementation, an arp proxy task can be started on the first-level base station, and the CPU receives all ARP broadcast messages and then replies to all arp request messages in turn.

[0023] The base station core network backhaul communication method of the present invention is applied to a base station core network backhaul communication system. The base station core network backhaul communication method of an embodiment of the present invention includes: Step 1: Cascade the base stations in series in sequence, connect the backhaul port of the first-level base station to the core network for communication, and connect the backhaul port of the base stations at other levels to the cascade port of the base station at the previous level through optical fiber or network cable; Step 2: The base station forwards the data message received through the cascade port and sent to the core network directly to the cascade port and uploads it through the backhaul port. The base station forwards the data message received through the backhaul port and sent to the lower-level base station directly to the cascade port and sends it down through the cascade port.

[0024] As an implementation method, the MAC addresses of the ports of the base station are numbered according to the following rules: 00:11:22: the level of the base station: 01: Port number; The Port number is the number of the base station port, and the number of the backhaul port is 01.

[0025] As an implementation mode, the base station broadcasts the MAC address of each port thereof at a preset frequency.

[0026] The present invention realizes low-cost backhaul transmission. The present invention can not only solve the high cost problem of traditional base station core network backhaul that requires large-scale machine room construction, but also solve the problems of "small bandwidth, low capacity", "serious interference and signal attenuation", "large delay", "low security", "occupied spectrum resources", "severely affected by weather" and so on in wireless backhaul. Based on the solution of the present invention, the deployment range of base stations can be expanded and the coverage of wireless networks can be improved.

[0027] The specific implementation of the solution of the present invention is described below by taking n=3 as an example: Base station 1 is directly connected to the access layer of the core network, and other base stations are no longer directly connected to the access layer of the core network; other base stations are changed to serial cascade with the upper-level base station; the backhaul port of base station 2 communicates with the core network through the backhaul port of base station 1; the backhaul port of base station 3 communicates with the core network through the backhaul ports of base station 2 and base station 1 in turn; other subsequent base stations are similarly connected to complete the SCTP link establishment and other message interactions with the core network.

[0028] The specific message interaction and implementation process is as follows: First, it is agreed that the MAC addresses of base stations are numbered according to the following rules to facilitate the subsequent description of the specific implementation process: The mac address numbering rule of the port is as follows: 00:11:22: the level where the base station is located: 01: port number.

[0029] The following is an explanation of the first three levels of return port cascading, and the subsequent multi-level cascading can be deduced by analogy: The mac address of Port1 of base station 1 is: 00:11:22:01:01:01.

[0030] The mac address of Port1 of base station 2 is: 00:11:22:02:01:01.

[0031] The mac address of Port1 of base station 3 is: 00:11:22:03:01:01.

[0032] Since there is no lower-level device for cascading on base station 3, no rules or actions need to be configured, and data can be directly sent and received through the port.

[0033] Configure the specified flow steer redirection rule on base station 2. The purpose of this rule is to be compiled into the hardware through firmware, telling the hardware how to match the message and then forward it from port to port.

[0034] The rules are divided into the following categories: 1. For base station 2, Port 1 of base station 3 is connected to Port 4 of base station 2 through optical fiber; a) Therefore, all data packets on base station 3 that need to be sent to the core network need to be forwarded through Port 1 of base station 2; therefore, we configure the following rules on base station 2 to forward the matching packets on port 4 directly to Port 1 through hardware without the need for CPU participation, which also reduces latency.

[0035] Configure rule A on base station 2: Rule A is as follows: steerflow create port 4 prority 0 ingress pattern src-mac 00:11:22:03:01:01 / end actions port 1.

[0036] b) For messages that need to be sent to base station 3, they need to be forwarded from Port 1 of base station 2 to Port 4 of base station 2 before they can reach Port 1 of base station 3 through optical fiber. Therefore, we also configure the following rules on base station 2 to forward matching messages on Port 1 directly to Port 4 through hardware, without any CPU involvement, and also reducing latency.

[0037] Configure rule B on base station 2. Rule B is as follows: steerflow create port 1 prority 0 ingress pattern dst-mac 00:11:22:03:01:01 / end actions port 4.

[0038] c) The above two rules can cover all unicast message processing, as for broadcast and multicast processing; considering that the base station service mainly processes unicast and ARP broadcast, ARP broadcast can be actively sent by the base station to tell the broadcast domain its own MAC address. Other hosts in the broadcast domain know the MAC address and IP address of base station 3, and the frequency can be set to once every 5 seconds.

[0039] 2. For base station 1, Port 1 of base station 2 is connected to Port 4 of base station 1 through optical fiber; at the same time, Port 1 of base station 2 also contains all the data of base station 3.

[0040] For data processing of base station 2: a) All data packets that need to be sent to the core network from base station 2 need to be forwarded through Port 1 of base station 1; therefore, we configure the following rules on base station 1 to forward matching packets on port 4 directly to Port 1 through hardware without the need for CPU involvement, which also reduces latency.

[0041] Configure rule C on base station 1. Rule C is as follows: steerflow create port 4 prority 0 ingress pattern src-mac 00:11:22:02:01:01 / end actions port 1.

[0042] b) For messages that need to be sent to base station 2, they need to be forwarded from Port 1 of base station 1 to Port 4 of base station 1 before they can reach Port 1 of base station 2 through the optical fiber. Therefore, we also configure the following rules on base station 1 to forward the matching messages on Port 1 directly to Port 4 through hardware, without the need for CPU participation, and also reducing latency.

[0043] Configure rule D on base station 1. Rule D is as follows: steerflow create port 1 prority 0 ingress pattern dst-mac 00:11:22:02:01:01 / end actions port 4.

[0044] c) All data packets that need to be sent to the core network of base station 3 need to be forwarded through Port 1 of base station 1; therefore, the present invention configures the following rules on base station 1 to directly forward the matching packets on port 4 to Port 1 through hardware without the need for CPU participation, thereby reducing latency.

[0045] Configure rule E on base station 1. Rule E is as follows: steerflow create port 4 prority 1 ingress pattern src-mac 00:11:22:03:01:01 / end actions port 1.

[0046] d) For messages that need to be sent to base station 3, they need to be forwarded from Port 1 of base station 1 to Port 4 of base station 1, and then reach Port 1 of base station 2 through the optical fiber. Rule B is matched on base station 2, and the message is forwarded to Port 4, and then reaches Port 1 of base station 3 through the optical fiber. Therefore, we also configure the following rules on base station 1 to forward the matching messages on port 1 directly to Port 4 through hardware, without the involvement of the CPU, and also reduce latency.

[0047] Configure rule F on base station 1. Rule F is as follows: steerflow create port 1 prority 0 ingress pattern dst-mac 00:11:22:03:01:01 / end actions port 4.

[0048] e) The four rules C, D, E, and F above base station 1 can cover the processing of all unicast messages of base station 2 and base station 3. As for the processing of broadcast and multicast, considering that the base station business mainly processes unicast and arp broadcast. Therefore, arp broadcast can be actively sent by base station 2 to tell the broadcast domain its own mac address. Other hosts in this broadcast domain know the mac address and ip address of base station 2. The frequency can be set to once every 5 seconds. At the same time, base station 1 needs to be used as a base station directly connected to the core network. An arp proxy task needs to be started on base station 1. The CPU receives all ARP broadcast messages and then replies to all arp request messages in turn.

[0049] The forwarding between the backhaul port and the cascade port of the base station is carried out by the steerflow inside the chip of the specific base station. The implementation description of the steerflow solution is as follows: The user configures the steerflow rules and sends them to the chip driver. Take rule A as an example: steerflow create port 4 prority 0 ingress pattern src-mac 00:11:22:03:01:01 / end actions port 1; After receiving the rule, the driver extracts the following information, including the port number of the message input, the matching domain of the rule src-mac, the matching value of the rule: 00:11:22:03:01:01, and the execution action of the rule: actions port; After syntax checking, the driver compiles the code into microcode that the hardware can recognize and sends it to the hardware, which then implements rule matching and execution.

[0050] Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes, modifications, substitutions and variations may be made to the embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the present invention, and that the scope of the present invention is defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A base station core network backhaul communication system, comprising a core network and a plurality of base stations, characterized in that: The base stations are serially cascaded in sequence, wherein the backhaul ports of the base stations of the first level are connected to the core network for communication, and the backhaul ports of the base stations of other levels are connected to the cascade ports of the base stations of the upper level through optical fibers or network cables. The base station directly forwards the data packets received through the cascade ports and sent to the core network to the cascade ports and uploads them through the backhaul ports, and the base station directly forwards the data packets received through the backhaul ports and sent to the base stations of the lower level to the cascade ports and sends them down through the cascade ports.

2. The base station core network backhaul communication system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The MAC addresses of the ports of the base station are numbered according to the following rules: 00:11:22: the level of the base station: 01: Port number; The Port number is the number of the base station port, and the number of the backhaul port is 01.

3. The base station core network backhaul communication system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The base stations all broadcast the MAC addresses of their own ports at a preset frequency.

4. A base station core network backhaul communication method, characterized in that: include: Step 1: Cascade the base stations in series in sequence, connect the backhaul port of the first-level base station to the core network for communication, and connect the backhaul port of the base stations at other levels to the cascade port of the base station at the previous level through optical fiber or network cable; Step 2: The base station forwards the data message received through the cascade port and sent to the core network directly to the cascade port and uploads it through the backhaul port. The base station forwards the data message received through the backhaul port and sent to the lower-level base station directly to the cascade port and sends it down through the cascade port.

5. The base station core network backhaul communication method according to claim 4, characterized in that: The MAC addresses of each port of the base station are numbered according to the following rules: 00:11:22: the level of the base station:01:Port number; The Port number is the number of the base station port, and the number of the backhaul port is 01.

6. The base station core network backhaul communication method according to claim 5, characterized in that: The base stations all broadcast the MAC addresses of their own ports at a preset frequency.

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