Communication method, network element, computer readable storage medium and computer program product

Abstract

The invention provides a communication method, a network element, a computer readable storage medium and a computer program product. The communication method comprises the following steps: a first network element establishes a user plane connection with a target second network element based on a QUIC protocol; in the embodiment of the invention, the first network element establishes the user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and the user plane protocol is improved, so that the security of the network is improved, more flexible routing planning is realized, the transmission efficiency of the user plane is improved, and the method adapts to the development trend of the next-generation network.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The embodiments of the present invention relate to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular, to a communication method, a network element, a computer-readable storage medium, and a computer program product. Background Art

[0002] In the existing solutions, the GPRS User Plane Part of GTP (GTP-U) protocol is usually used to establish the Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session of the User Equipment (UE, also known as the terminal). The GTP-U protocol has the following defects:

[0003] Security issues: Although the GTP-U protocol provides certain security guarantees, its security may face challenges as user plane network elements (such as user plane functions (UPF)) continue to move downward and network attacks and threats become increasingly complex.

[0004] Congestion control and flow control functions: Currently, the core network usually only establishes one GTP-U tunnel for one session. In case of sudden large traffic, a single GTP-U tunnel is difficult to cope with; there is currently no relevant process for the emergency establishment of multiple GTP-U tunnels. Even if it can be established, the control plane network elements need to interact before the establishment process can be started. In addition, the GTP-U protocol itself does not directly support congestion control algorithms such as slow start, congestion avoidance, congestion recovery and fast retransmission, and the protocol itself cannot directly implement flow control.

[0005] Lack of self-discovery and self-routing capabilities: The user plane management mechanism based on GTP-U heavily relies on the organization and scheduling of control plane network elements (i.e., control plane network elements are required to complete the mutual notification of information between user plane network elements), such as:

[0006] When a user switches or performs mobility management, the control plane needs to perform centralized scheduling and transmission to transmit the local GTP-U tunnel information to the other end, which brings unnecessary signaling overhead to the control plane network elements;

[0007] The path selection of the user plane will be restricted by the path of the control plane, which will limit the flexibility of network organization and affect the flexibility of business development. Summary of the invention

[0008] The embodiments of the present invention provide a communication method, a network element, a computer-readable storage medium and a computer program product, which are used to solve the problems existing in establishing a PDU session of a UE using the GTP-U protocol.

[0009] In order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, the present invention is achieved as follows:

[0010] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a communication method, including:

[0011] The first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0012] Optionally, the first network element establishing a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol includes:

[0013] In the process of establishing a PDU session, the first network element, acting as a client in the QUIC protocol, establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element, acting as a server in the QUIC protocol.

[0014] Optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and the process also includes:

[0015] The first network element receives user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, where the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, where the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0016] The first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, including:

[0017] The first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

[0018] Optionally, also include:

[0019] When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the source first network element interacts with the target first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0020] Optionally, also include:

[0021] When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target first network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0022] Optionally, during the process of the first network element establishing a user plane connection with the target second network element, the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the first network element and the target second network element includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or a list of IP addresses of network elements along the user plane path and / or a list of IP addresses of the next-hop network element.

[0023] Optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0024] The first network element encapsulates the uplink data to be sent to the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated uplink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0025] The first network element sends the encapsulated uplink data to the target second network element based on the user plane connection;

[0026] and / or

[0027] The first network element receives encapsulated downlink data sent by the target second network element based on the user plane connection, wherein a packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0028] The first network element decapsulates the encapsulated downlink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

[0029] Optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0030] The first network element transmits service data of the target service based on the user plane connection established with the target second network element;

[0031] Wherein, one of the connections corresponds to one session;

[0032] and / or

[0033] One of the connections corresponds to at least one flow group, and each of the flow groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service;

[0034] and / or

[0035] Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream.

[0036] Optionally, also include:

[0037] The first network element interacts with the target second network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

[0038] Optionally, the first network element is a base station, and the second network element is a core network element.

[0039] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a communication method, including:

[0040] The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0041] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, including:

[0042] In the process of establishing a PDU session, the target second network element acts as a server in the QUIC protocol and establishes a user plane connection with the first network element acting as a client in the QUIC protocol.

[0043] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and the process also includes:

[0044] The target second network element receives user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, where the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, where the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0045] The target second network element establishing a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol includes:

[0046] The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

[0047] Optionally, also include:

[0048] When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target second network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0049] Optionally, in the process of the target second network element establishing a user plane connection with the first network element, the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the target second network element and the first network element includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or a list of IP addresses of network elements along the user plane path and / or a list of IP addresses of the next-hop network element.

[0050] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0051] The target second network element encapsulates the downlink data to be sent to the first network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated downlink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0052] The target second network element sends the encapsulated downlink data to the first network element based on the user plane connection;

[0053] and / or

[0054] The target second network element receives the encapsulated uplink data sent by the first network element based on the user plane connection, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0055] The target second network element decapsulates the encapsulated uplink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

[0056] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0057] The target second network element transmits service data of the target service based on the user plane connection established with the first network element;

[0058] Wherein, one of the connections corresponds to one session;

[0059] and / or

[0060] One of the connections corresponds to at least one flow group, and each of the flow groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service;

[0061] and / or

[0062] Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream.

[0063] Optionally, also include:

[0064] The target second network element interacts with the first network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

[0065] Optionally, the first network element is a base station, and the second network element is a core network element.

[0066] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network element, including:

[0067] A processing module is used to establish a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0068] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network element, including:

[0069] A processing module is used to establish a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0070] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a network element, comprising: a processor, a memory, and a program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein when the program is executed by the processor, the steps of the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect are implemented.

[0071] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the communication method described in the first aspect or the second aspect are implemented.

[0072] In a seventh aspect, a computer program product is provided, comprising computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the communication method as described in the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0073] In an embodiment of the present invention, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol and improves the user plane protocol, which not only improves the security of the network, realizes more flexible routing planning, and improves the efficiency of user plane transmission, adapting to the development trend of the next generation network. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0074] Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiments below. The accompanying drawings are only for the purpose of illustrating the preferred embodiments and are not to be considered as limiting the present invention. Moreover, the same reference symbols are used throughout the accompanying drawings to represent the same components. In the accompanying drawings:

[0075] Figure 1This is a schematic diagram of the 5G packet network architecture;

[0076] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the process of establishing (allocating IP addresses) a session;

[0077] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of a process flow of a preparation phase of a switching process based on N2;

[0078] Figure 4 is a flow chart of the execution phase of the switching process based on N2;

[0079] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the GTP-U protocol;

[0080] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the QUIC protocol;

[0081] Figure 7 A flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0082] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the process of establishing a user plane connection based on the QUIC protocol according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0083] Fig. 9 and Fig.10 This is a schematic diagram of a new switching process based on the QUIC protocol according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0084] Fig.11 A schematic diagram showing a comparison of the protocol layer structures of data transmission based on the QUIC protocol and based on the GTP-U protocol;

[0085] Fig.12 A schematic diagram of a process of a first network element sending encapsulated uplink data to a target second network element based on a user plane connection according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0086] Fig.13 This is a schematic diagram of a process in which a target second network element sends encapsulated downlink data to a first network element based on a user plane connection according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0087] Fig.14 and Fig.15 Schematic diagram of a multiplexing mechanism based on the QUIC protocol according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0088] Fig.16 A flow chart of a communication method according to another embodiment of the present invention;

[0089] Fig.17 This is one of the structural diagrams of a network element according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0090] Fig.18This is a second structural diagram of a network element according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0091] Fig.19 This is the third structural diagram of the network element of the embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0092] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0093] First, the technical content involved in the present invention is described below.

[0094] (1) 5G network architecture

[0095] Please refer to Figure 1 The 5G packet network architecture mainly includes Radio Access Network (RAN), Session Management Function (SMF), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), User Plane Function (UPF), Policy Control Function (PCF), Application Function (AF), Unified Data Management (UDM) and other equipment.

[0096] Among them, PCF: is mainly used for overall network policy management and access policy management;

[0097] AMF: Mainly used for registration management, connection management, mobility management, and reachability management;

[0098] SMF: Mainly used for session management, IP address allocation, UPF selection and control, and delivery of flow policies and routing to UPF;

[0099] UDM: Mainly used for generating authentication vectors, user identity SUPI processing, NF management for user services, and contract management;

[0100] UPF: Mainly used for packet routing and forwarding, user plane policy enforcement, legal monitoring, traffic reporting, flow marking, and flow caching.

[0101] (2) Session establishment process

[0102] This procedure assumes that the UE is already registered with the AMF and therefore, unless it is an emergency registered UE, the AMF has already retrieved the user subscription data from the UDM.

[0103] Please refer to Figure 2 , Figure 2 A flow chart of establishing a session (allocating an IP address), wherein the process of establishing a session includes:

[0104] 1) The UE sends a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message (Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information, S-NSSAI(s)), Data Network Name (DNN), Protocol Data Unit (PDU) Session ID, Request Type, Old PDU Session ID, N1 Session Management (SM) Container) to the AMF. The N1 SM container contains a PDU session establishment request.

[0105] 2) AMF selects SMF based on user location, DNN, and S-NSSAI(s), and stores the association between S-NSSAI(s), DNN, PDU session ID, SMF ID, and access type of the PDU session.

[0106] 3) AMF sends Nsmf_PDUSession_CreateSMContext Request message to SMF, which carries the user-related information, such as user location information (ULI), subscription to PDU session status notification, DNN selection mode, etc.

[0107] 4) AMF interacts with UDM to manage subscription data.

[0108] 5) SMF responds to AMF with the Nsmf_PDUSession_CreateSMContext Response message, which carries the cause value and SM context, etc.

[0109] 6) Perform secondary authentication / authorization during initial establishment of a PDU session.

[0110] 7) If dynamic PCC is to be used for the PDU session, SMF selects PCF according to the instructions of AMF or local configuration. Otherwise, SMF can apply local policy. SMF can perform SM policy association establishment process to establish SM policy association with PCF and obtain default PCC rules for PDU session.

[0111] 8) SMF selects UPF according to the location, DNN, slice, weight information, etc. of UPF. If PCC rule is not required as input for UPF selection, step 7 can be performed after step 8.

[0112] 9) The SMF may perform an SMF-initiated SM Policy Association Modification procedure to provide information about the policy control request triggering conditions that have been met. If the request type is "initial request", and a dynamic PCC is deployed, and the PDU session type is IPv4, IPv6, or IPv4v6, then the SMF shall notify the PCF with the allocated UE IP address / prefix (if the policy control request triggering conditions are met).

[0113] 10) SMF initiates the establishment of N4 session and cooperates with UPF to allocate core network (CN) TunnelInfo. Then SMF interacts with the corresponding AAA server for secondary authentication information based on the DNN carried in the message and local configuration. The AAA server completes the authentication and returns the authentication result to SMF.

[0114] 11) After authentication, SMF informs AMF of the CN Tunnel Info related information.

[0115] 12)AMF sends a NAS message to RAN, including an N2 PDU session request, carrying the CN TunnelInfo obtained from SMF.

[0116] 13) RAN allocates access network (AN) Tunnel Info to the UE, and the PDU session is established successfully.

[0117] 14) RAN responds with an N2 PDU session response message to AMF, carrying the cause value and AN Tunnel Info, etc.

[0118] 15)AMF sends Nsmf_PDUSession_UpdateSMContext request (SM context ID, N2 SM information, request type).AMF forwards the N2 SM information (carrying AN Tunnel Info, etc.) received from (R)AN to SMF.

[0119] 16)SMF provides tunnel information and corresponding forwarding rules to UPF.

[0120] 17)SMF responds with Nsmf_PDUSession_UpdateSMContext Response message to AMF, carrying the cause value.

[0121] (3) Switching process based on N2

[0122] N2 handover is a handover process based on the N2 interface in the 5G network, which mainly involves signaling interaction between the core network (5GC) and the access network (gNB). In this process, when the user equipment (UE, also known as the terminal) moves from a source gNB to a target gNB, it does not need to reselect the AMF, but the UPF can change.

[0123] 1) Preparation

[0124] Please refer to Figure 3 , Figure 3 FIG. 1 is a flow chart of the preparation phase of the switching process based on N2, and the preparation phase includes:

[0125] Steps 6a and 6b: If SMF determines that UPF (intermidiate) needs to be changed, it will establish an N4 connection with T-UPF (target UPF), and SMF will send information such as packet detection, execution / reporting strategy, and UPF (anchor) to T-UPF; T-UPF returns the N3 tunnel ID for uplink and downlink data transmission; SMF starts a timer, and deletes the S-UPF (source UPF) connection after the time is up, see step 12d.

[0126] Step 6c: For the Local Area Data Network (LADN), if the user location leaves the service area, the SMF initiates the User Plane (UP) connection corresponding to the Modification;

[0127] Step 8: For multiple public data network (PDN) sessions, after AMF waits for all SMF responses or the maximum waiting time expires, AMF starts the N2 switching process.

[0128] Step 9: T-AMF to T-RAN: Handover Request (Source to Target transparent container, MM N2 Information, SM N2 Information list, Handover Restriction List), carrying the new 5G Globally Unique Temporary Identifier (5G-GUTI).

[0129] Step 10: Return the wireless side data channel N3 tunnel ID and address.

[0130] Step 11: Establish an indirect forwarding tunnel.

[0131] 2) Execution phase

[0132] Please refer to Figure 4 , Figure 4 FIG. 1 is a flow chart of the execution phase of the switching process based on N2.

[0133] Downlink data forwarding: step 3a direct forwarding: UPF (PSA) -> S-UPF -> S-RAN -> T-RAN or step 3b indirect forwarding UPF (PSA) -> S-UPF -> S-RAN -> S-UPF -> T-UPF -> T-RAN; uplink data forwarding: T-RAN -> T-UPF -> UPF (PSA).

[0134] Step 5-10: Send the RAN side N3 information to UPF.

[0135] Step 12: Update the location information to UDM.

[0136] Step 15: Delete the indirect forwarding tunnel established in step 3b.

[0137] (4) Introduction to GTP-U protocol

[0138] GTP-U has been used since 2G networks and has been used in the current 5G networks. It mainly implements Internet Protocol (IP) data transmission within the core network and between wireless devices based on the encapsulation and decapsulation mechanism, and realizes efficient data transmission based on tunnels. However, the GTP-U protocol also has some shortcomings. In the subsequent network evolution, it can be considered to use a better protocol for optimization and solution.

[0139] Please refer to Figure 5 , Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the GTP-U protocol.

[0140] The GTP-U protocol working mechanism includes:

[0141] Tunnel establishment: The GTP-U protocol allows tunnels to be established between different network nodes (between UPF and UPF, between UPF and RAN). During the tunnel establishment process, the control plane network element is required to transmit tunnel information so that data can be encapsulated and decapsulated between different network entities.

[0142] Data encapsulation and transmission: When user data needs to be transmitted between different network nodes, the GTP-U protocol will encapsulate the user data. The encapsulated data will contain the necessary protocol header information for routing and identification during the transmission process. Then, the data is transmitted through the previously established tunnel to ensure the correctness and timeliness of the data.

[0143] (5) QUIC protocol introduction

[0144] Please refer to Figure 6 Quick UDP Internet Connection (QUIC) is a UDP-based transmission protocol that implements the functions of Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) + Transport Layer Security Protocol (TLS). Its purpose is to ensure reliability while reducing network latency. It can also avoid operators maintaining multiple lines through multiplexing, thereby saving operating costs.

[0145] The following are the main features of the QUIC protocol:

[0146] Based on UDP protocol: Compared with the traditional TCP-based protocol, QUIC uses UDP protocol as the transport layer protocol, which has lower connection establishment delay and better anti-packet loss capability.

[0147] Multiplexing: QUIC supports multiplexing on the same connection, allowing multiple data streams to be transmitted on a single connection. This improves transmission efficiency, especially when transmitting multiple small objects.

[0148] Low latency in connection establishment: The QUIC handshake process is carried out in parallel with the TLS handshake, which reduces the latency in connection establishment. In addition, QUIC supports 0-RTT connections, which means that the client can send data when it first connects to the server, further reducing the latency in connection establishment. In contrast, the traditional TCP+TLS1.2 connection establishment requires 3 round trip times (RTT), while QUIC only requires 1 RTT.

[0149] Forward Error Correction: QUIC uses forward error correction to quickly repair packet loss and improve reliability. This is especially useful in environments with high packet loss rates such as wireless networks.

[0150] Connection migration: QUIC supports connection migration, which means that there is no need to re-establish the connection in the event of a network switch, thus improving the user experience.

[0151] Built-in security: QUIC has a built-in TLS protocol to encrypt transmitted data. Compared with adding TLS on TCP, QUIC's built-in security can better protect data.

[0152] Congestion control: QUIC has an adaptive congestion control mechanism that can quickly adapt to changes in network conditions and provide better performance.

[0153] Stream control: The streams in QUIC are independent, and the order of data delivery between different streams is irrelevant. This means that even if the data of a stream is lost, it will not affect the data transmission of other streams.

[0154] The QUIC protocol has the following advantages:

[0155] Security issues: The QUIC protocol can perform identity authentication and key negotiation through the TLS handshake process, ensuring that only verified entities can participate in communication; it performs transport layer encryption based on the TLS protocol, reducing the risk of data being monitored and tampered with.

[0156] Multi-stream mechanism: QUIC divides data transmission into multiple streams, each of which has its own data queue and processing logic, which can effectively cope with sudden large traffic. The QUIC protocol supports congestion control algorithms such as slow start, congestion avoidance, congestion recovery, and fast retransmission; at the same time, QUIC is a two-level flow control, which not only has connection-level flow control, but also flow-level flow control, allowing QUIC to perform refined flow control for different streams or the entire connection.

[0157] Routing self-organization: The relevant mechanisms based on the QUIC protocol can be combined with the programmable routing mechanism to realize the user plane routing self-organization function, without the need for the control plane to centrally schedule and transmit, thereby reducing signaling overhead and user plane establishment and switching delays.

[0158] Please refer to Figure 7 , an embodiment of the present invention provides a communication method, including:

[0159] Step S11: The first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0160] In an embodiment of the present invention, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol and improves the user plane protocol, which not only improves the security of the network, realizes more flexible routing planning, and improves the efficiency of user plane transmission, adapting to the development trend of the next generation network.

[0161] In some embodiments, optionally, the first network element is a base station (also referred to as RAN), and the second network element is a core network element, such as a UPF.

[0162] In some embodiments, optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: in the process of establishing a PDU session, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0163] In some embodiments, optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: in the process of establishing a PDU session, the first network element acts as a client in the QUIC protocol and establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element which acts as a server in the QUIC protocol.

[0164] In some embodiments, optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and the process also includes: the first network element receives user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0165] Among them, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

[0166] Optionally, the third network element may be an AMF, but other network elements are certainly not excluded.

[0167] The above process may also be referred to as centralized path planning. That is, in the embodiment of the present invention, when a PDU session is established, centralized path planning is first performed, and based on the centralized path planning result, the first network element and the target second network element perform QUIC connection establishment protocol interaction and finally complete the establishment of the PDU session.

[0168] Please refer to Figure 8 , Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of a process for establishing a user plane connection based on the QUIC protocol in an embodiment of the present invention. The establishment process includes:

[0169] Step 1: UE initiates PDU session establishment;

[0170] Step 2: AMF determines whether the user corresponding to this UE requires centralized path planning;

[0171] Optionally, AMF can query UDM whether the user corresponding to this UE requires centralized path planning.

[0172] The following steps 3 to 6 are centralized path planning steps.

[0173] Step 3: AMF queries the available user plane security function (User Plane Safety Function, UPSF) from the network data repository function (NF Repository Function, NRF) based on the region / province where the user is located;

[0174] Step 4: AMF carries user subscription information, service identification, location, etc. to request user plane path information from UPSF (specify UPF, path ID, base station (RAN) along the way);

[0175] Step 5: AMF sends user plane path information to RAN (specifying UPF along the way and path ID);

[0176] Step 6: AMF sends user plane path information to the UPF along the way (specifying the UPF along the way, path ID, and base station);

[0177] The following steps 7 to 11 are to establish a user plane channel between the PDU Session Anchor (PSA) UPF and the RAN based on the QUIC protocol.

[0178] Step 7: RAN sends Inchoate Client Hello (ICHLO) to PSA UPF (requesting the server to transmit configuration parameters); (including some versions and configuration information supported by the client (i.e., RAN));

[0179] Step 8: PSA UPF sends a Rejection (REJ) to RAN (including the server (PSA UPF) configuration (server config), and the long-term Diffie-Hellman (key exchange) public key);

[0180] Step 9: The client (RAN) extracts the configuration information of the server (PSA UPF), authenticates and stores it;

[0181] Step 10: RAN and PSA UPF exchange Client Hello & Server Hello messages; complete key exchange through Diffie-Hellman key, and both parties use this shared key for encryption handshake;

[0182] Step 11: The user plane has been initially connected.

[0183] The connection migration mechanism of the QUIC protocol is an important feature of the protocol. It allows the data flow and state information to be migrated from the old connection to the new connection without re-establishing the connection when the network connection changes. This feature can be used to optimize the switching process and implement user plane switching without control plane scheduling (there is no similar mechanism in the core network now).

[0184] In order to combine the QUIC protocol with the core network, the first network element (such as a base station) can be used as the client (Client side) and the second network element as the server (Server side). When the user moves and needs to switch base stations, the first network element actively initiates a connection migration process to the second network element to establish a forwarding tunnel between base stations to ensure business continuity, and then migrates the current user's business from the source first network element to the target first network element.

[0185] In some embodiments, optionally, the communication method also includes: when the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the source first network element interacts with the target first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, wherein the first path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0186] In some embodiments, optionally, when the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the source first network element interacts with the target first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element, including:

[0187] When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the first network element, as the source first network element of the switching, sends a switching request message to the target first network element;

[0188] The first network element receives a switching response message sent by the target first network element;

[0189] The first network element receives a first detection data packet sent by the target first network element and forwards it to the target second network element;

[0190] The first network element receives a second detection data packet sent by the target second network element and forwards it to the target first network element;

[0191] The first network element receives the connection update request sent by the target first network element and forwards it to the target second network element;

[0192] The first network element receives a connection update request response sent by the target second network element and forwards the response to the target first network element.

[0193] In some embodiments, the first network element may be a base station, the source first network element is a source base station, and the target second network element is a target base station.

[0194] In some embodiments, optionally, the communication method further includes:

[0195] When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target first network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0196] In some embodiments, optionally, when the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target first network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element, including:

[0197] When the terminal needs to switch to the first network element, the first network element receives a switching request message sent by the source first network element as the target first network element of the switching;

[0198] The first network element sends a user plane path switching request to the third network element;

[0199] The first network element receives user plane path information sent by the third network element, where the user plane path information includes a user plane path identifier and network elements along the user plane path, where the network elements along the user plane path include a source first network element, a target first network element, and at least one second network element, where the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0200] The first network element sends a switching response message to the source first network element;

[0201] The first network element sends a first detection data packet to the target second network element through the source first network element;

[0202] The first network element receives a second detection data packet sent by the target second network element and forwarded by the source first network element;

[0203] The first network element sends a connection update request to the target second network element through the source first network element;

[0204] The first network element receives a connection update request response sent by the target second network element and forwarded by the source first network element.

[0205] In some embodiments, the first network element may be a base station, the source first network element is a source base station, and the target second network element is a target base station.

[0206] Optionally, the third network element may be an AMF, but other network elements are certainly not excluded.

[0207] In an embodiment of the present invention, the connection migration mechanism of the QUIC protocol is innovatively used to optimize the switching process in mobile communications, thereby realizing user plane switching without the need for control plane scheduling.

[0208] Please refer to Fig. 9 and Fig.10 , Fig. 9 and Fig.10 This is a schematic diagram of a new switching process based on the QUIC protocol in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0209] Step 1: Switch preparation;

[0210] Step 2: The source RAN (source base station) sends a handover request message to the target RAN (target base station);

[0211] Step 3: The target RAN sends an N2 path switching request to the AMF;

[0212] Step 4: AMF requests UPSF to plan the path after switching. After planning, it is shown that I-UPF (Intermediate UPF) needs to be inserted.

[0213] Step 5: AMF informs the target RAN of the planned path information (including inter-base station forwarding tunnels, i.e., target RAN, source RAN, I-UPF, PSA UPF);

[0214] Step 6: The target RAN sends a handover response message to the source RAN;

[0215] Step 7: The target RAN sends a probe packet (PATH_CHALLENGE) to the PSA UPF via the source RAN.

[0216] Step 8: PSA UPF sends a probe packet (PATH_RESPONSE) to the target RAN via the source RAN.

[0217] Step 9: The target RAN sends a connection update request (carrying a new connection ID generated by the target RAN) to the PSA UPF through the source RAN.

[0218] Step 10: The PSA UPF sends a connection update request response (carrying a new connection ID generated by the PSA UPF) to the target RAN through the source RAN;

[0219] Step 11: The target RAN sends an Inchoate Client Hello (ICHLO) (including some versions and configuration information supported by the client) directly to the PSA UPF;

[0220] Step 12: PSA UPF sends a Rejection (REJ) directly to the target RAN (including the server configuration (server config) and the long-term Diffie-Hellman public key);

[0221] Step 13: The target RAN, as a client, extracts the configuration information of the server, authenticates and stores it;

[0222] Step 14: The target RAN and PSA UPF exchange Client Hello & Server Hello. Key exchange is completed through Diffie-Hellman key. Both parties use this shared key for encryption handshake.

[0223] Step 15: PSAUPF sends an End Marker to the target RAN through the source RAN;

[0224] Step 16: After switching, the user plane is updated.

[0225] In summary, the above process can be summarized as follows: the control plane re-plans the path containing the inter-base station forwarding tunnel -> data is forwarded through the path containing the inter-base station forwarding tunnel (connection migration process based on connection ID) -> QUIC connection is directly established between the target base station and PSAUPF -> the original inter-base station forwarding tunnel path is abandoned -> subsequent data is forwarded through the new data plane channel.

[0226] In an embodiment of the present invention, a QUIC connection is established between the first network element and the target second network element, and relevant data packets are transmitted as payloads of the QUIC protocol.

[0227] In order to realize the integration of the QUIC protocol and the core network, a QUIC connection can be established between the first network element and the target second network element (regardless of how many second network elements are between the first network element and the target second network element) based on a programmable IP protocol designed based on a programmable user plane, thereby realizing a new user plane design.

[0228] In some embodiments, optionally, during the process of the first network element establishing a user plane connection with a target second network element, the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the first network element and the target second network element includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or a list of IP addresses of network elements along the user plane path and / or a list of IP addresses of the next-hop network element.

[0229] Please refer to Fig.11 , Fig.11 This is a comparison diagram of the protocol layer structure of data transmission based on the QUIC protocol and based on the GTP-U protocol. Fig.11 It can be seen that in the protocol layer structure of data transmission based on the QUIC protocol, a programmable IP protocol is adopted, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of the next-hop network element.

[0230] Fig.11 The T-PDU (Transport PDU) in the protocol refers to a user data packet, such as an IP datagram, which is a user data packet sent between a terminal and a network entity in an external packet data network. The Q-PDU (QUIC encapsulated user Plane Data Unit) refers to a user data packet (T-PDU) plus a QUIC header, which is a data packet sent between QUIC network nodes.

[0231] In some embodiments, optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0232] The first network element encapsulates the uplink data to be sent to the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated uplink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0233] The first network element sends the encapsulated uplink data to the target second network element based on the user plane connection.

[0234] Please refer to Fig.12 , Fig.12 The figure is a flow chart of a first network element sending encapsulated uplink data to a target second network element based on a user plane connection according to an embodiment of the present invention. The uplink data is encapsulated by QUIC protocol + programmable IP protocol on the first network element side (such as RAN), and the target second network element (such as UPF3) completes the decapsulation of QUIC protocol + programmable IP protocol. Fig.12 It can be seen that there are two UPFs (UPF1 and UPF2) between the first network element (such as RAN) and the target second network element (such as UPF3). The packet header of the encapsulated uplink data contains a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header. The programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier (path ID=1), an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path, and an IP address list of the next-hop network element. The IP address list of network elements along the user plane path is such as Node List[0]=A5::5, Node List[1]=A4::4, Node List[2]=A3::3, wherein A5::5 is the IP address of UPF3, A4::4 is the IP address of UPF2, and A3::3 is the IP address of UPF1. Node Left in the programmable IP protocol header indicates the next-hop network element. For example, Node Left=2 indicates that the next-hop network element is UPF1 with an identifier of 2.

[0235] In some embodiments, optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0236] The first network element receives encapsulated downlink data sent by the target second network element based on the user plane connection, wherein a packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0237] The first network element decapsulates the encapsulated downlink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

[0238] Please refer to Fig.13 , Fig.13 The following is a flow chart of the target second network element sending encapsulated downlink data to the first network element based on the user plane connection according to an embodiment of the present invention. The downlink data is encapsulated by the QUIC protocol + programmable IP protocol in the target second network element (such as UPF3), and the first network element (such as RAN) completes the decapsulation of the QUIC protocol + programmable IP protocol. Fig.13It can be seen that there are two UPFs (UPF1 and UPF2) between the first network element (such as RAN) and the target second network element (such as UPF3), and the packet header of the encapsulated downlink data contains a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header. The programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier (path ID=3), an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path, and an IP address list of the next-hop network element. For example, the IP address list of network elements along the user plane path is Node List[0]=A2::2, Node List[1]=A3::3, Node List[2]=A4::4, wherein A4::4 is the IP address of UPF2, A3::3 is the IP address of UPF1, and A2::2 is the IP address of RAN. Node Left in the programmable IP protocol header indicates the next-hop network element. For example, Node Left=0 indicates that the next-hop network element is the RAN with an identifier of 0.

[0239] In some embodiments, optionally, the first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0240] The first network element transmits service data of the target service based on the user plane connection established with the target second network element;

[0241] Among them, please refer to Fig.14 and Fig.15 , one connection (Connect) corresponds to one session;

[0242] and / or

[0243] One of the connections corresponds to at least one stream group, and each of the stream groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service;

[0244] and / or

[0245] Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream (Stream).

[0246] QUIC's multiplexing mechanism can be applied to the user plane evolution of the next-generation core network to achieve more flexible user plane resource scheduling, improve service throughput, enhance data transmission reliability, and avoid head-of-line congestion. The QUIC protocol is based on UDP. There is no fixed connection at the transport layer level, and any logical link can be opened as needed. The QUIC protocol establishes a connection (Connection) at a time. A Connection contains one or more stream groups, and a stream group includes one or more streams (Stream). The stream groups are independent of each other, so the disconnection of any link will not cause other data to be blocked. The streams are independent of each other, so the disconnection of any link will not cause other data to be blocked.

[0247] In some embodiments, optionally, the communication method further includes: the first network element interacting with the target second network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

[0248] That is to say, for a service in a session, the first network element and the target second network element can dynamically transmit service data based on one or more flow groups according to the current network situation.

[0249] For a service in a QoS Flow, the first network element and the target second network element can dynamically transmit service data based on one or more data flows according to the QoS of the actual service, the current network situation, etc.

[0250] In the embodiments of the present invention, the concept of flow group is innovatively proposed based on the original QUIC protocol, which corresponds to the QoS Flow concept in the existing 5G communication, and effectively applies the multiplexing technology of the QUIC protocol to mobile communications, thereby improving service throughput, enhancing the reliability of data transmission, and avoiding head-of-line congestion.

[0251] Please refer to Fig.16 , an embodiment of the present invention further provides a communication method, comprising:

[0252] Step S21: The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0253] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: in the process of establishing a PDU session, the target second network element acts as a server in the QUIC protocol and establishes a user plane connection with the first network element acts as a client in the QUIC protocol.

[0254] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: in the process of establishing a PDU session, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0255] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and the process also includes:

[0256] The target second network element receives user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, where the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, where the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0257] The target second network element establishing a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol includes:

[0258] The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

[0259] Optionally, the third network element may be an AMF, but other network elements are certainly not excluded.

[0260] Optionally, the communication method further includes:

[0261] When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target second network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0262] Optionally, when the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target second network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and migrates the first path to the second path, where the first path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element, including:

[0263] The target second network element receives a first detection data packet sent by the target first network element through the first network element as the source first network element;

[0264] The target second network element sends a second detection data packet to the target first network element through the first network element;

[0265] The target second network element receives a connection update request sent by the target first network element through the first network element;

[0266] The target second network element sends a connection update request response to the target first network element through the first network element.

[0267] Optionally, when the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target second network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and migrates the first path to the second path, where the first path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element, including:

[0268] The target second network element receives user plane path information sent by the third network element, where the user plane path information includes a user plane path identifier and network elements along the user plane path, where the network elements along the user plane path include a source first network element, a target first network element, and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0269] The target second network element receives a first detection data packet sent by the first network element as the target first network element through the source first network element;

[0270] The target second network element sends a second detection data packet to the first network element through the source first network element;

[0271] The target second network element receives a connection update request sent by the first network element through the source first network element;

[0272] The target second network element sends a connection update request response to the first network element through the source first network element.

[0273] Optionally, in the process of the target second network element establishing a user plane connection with the first network element, the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the target second network element and the first network element includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or a list of IP addresses of network elements along the user plane path and / or a list of IP addresses of the next-hop network element.

[0274] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0275] The target second network element encapsulates the downlink data to be sent to the first network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated downlink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0276] The target second network element sends the encapsulated downlink data to the first network element based on the user plane connection;

[0277] and / or

[0278] The target second network element receives the encapsulated uplink data sent by the first network element based on the user plane connection, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0279] The target second network element decapsulates the encapsulated uplink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

[0280] Optionally, the target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes:

[0281] The target second network element transmits service data of the target service based on the user plane connection established with the first network element;

[0282] Wherein, one of the connections corresponds to one session;

[0283] and / or

[0284] One of the connections corresponds to at least one flow group, and each of the flow groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service;

[0285] and / or

[0286] Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream.

[0287] Optionally, the communication method further includes: the target second network element interacting with the first network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

[0288] Optionally, the first network element is a base station, and the second network element is a core network element.

[0289] Please refer to Fig.17 The embodiment of the present invention further provides a network element 100, the network element 100 comprising:

[0290] The processing module 101 is used to establish a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0291] Optionally, the processing module 101 is used to establish a user plane connection with the target second network element which is a server in the QUIC protocol during the process of establishing a PDU session, wherein the first network element acts as a client in the QUIC protocol.

[0292] Optionally, the network element 100 further includes:

[0293] A first receiving module, configured to receive user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, wherein the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, wherein the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0294] Among them, the processing module 101 is used to establish a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

[0295] Optionally, the network element 100 further includes:

[0296] The first switching module is used to interact with the target first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path when the terminal needs to switch the first network element. The first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0297] Optionally, the first switching module includes:

[0298] A first sending submodule, configured to, when the terminal needs to switch to a first network element, cause the first network element to serve as a source first network element for switching to send a switching request message to a target first network element;

[0299] A second receiving submodule, configured to receive a switching response message sent by the target first network element;

[0300] A third receiving submodule, configured to receive a first detection data packet sent by the target first network element and forward it to the target second network element;

[0301] A fourth receiving submodule, configured to receive a second detection data packet sent by the target second network element and forward the data packet to the target first network element;

[0302] A fifth receiving submodule, configured to receive a connection update request sent by the target first network element and forward the request to the target second network element;

[0303] The sixth receiving submodule is used to receive the connection update request response sent by the target second network element and forward it to the target first network element.

[0304] Optionally, the network element 100 further includes:

[0305] The second switching module is used to interact with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path when the terminal needs to switch the first network element. The first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0306] Optionally, the second switching module includes:

[0307] A seventh receiving submodule, configured to receive, when the terminal needs to switch the first network element, a switching request message sent by the source first network element as the switching target first network element;

[0308] A second sending submodule, used for sending a user plane path switching request to a third network element;

[0309] an eighth receiving submodule, configured to receive user plane path information sent by the third network element, the user plane path information including a user plane path identifier and network elements along the user plane path, the network elements along the user plane path including a source first network element, a target first network element and at least one second network element, the at least one second network element including the target second network element;

[0310] A third sending submodule, configured to send a switching response message to the source first network element;

[0311] A fourth sending submodule, configured to send a first detection data packet to the target second network element through the source first network element;

[0312] A ninth receiving submodule, configured to receive a second detection data packet sent by the target second network element and forwarded by the source first network element;

[0313] A fifth sending submodule, configured to send a connection update request to the target second network element through the source first network element;

[0314] The tenth receiving submodule is used to receive a connection update request response sent by the target second network element and forwarded by the source first network element.

[0315] Optionally, in the process of the processing module 101 establishing a user plane connection with the target second network element, the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the target second network element and the processing module 101 includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of the next-hop network element.

[0316] Optionally, the network element 100 further includes:

[0317] an encapsulation module, configured to encapsulate the uplink data to be sent to the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated uplink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0318] A sixth sending module, configured to send the encapsulated uplink data to the target second network element based on the user plane connection;

[0319] and / or

[0320] An eleventh receiving module, configured to receive, based on the user plane connection, encapsulated downlink data sent by the target second network element, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0321] The decapsulation module is used to decapsulate the encapsulated downlink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

[0322] Optionally, the network element 100 further includes:

[0323] A transmission module, configured to transmit service data of a target service based on a user plane connection established with the target second network element;

[0324] Wherein, one of the connections corresponds to one session;

[0325] and / or

[0326] One of the connections corresponds to at least one flow group, and each of the flow groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service;

[0327] and / or

[0328] Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream.

[0329] Optionally, the network element 100 further includes:

[0330] An interaction module is used to interact with the target second network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

[0331] Please refer to Fig.18 The embodiment of the present invention further provides a network element 200, including:

[0332] The processing module 201 is used to establish a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol.

[0333] Optionally, the processing module 201 is used to establish a user plane connection between the target second network element serving as a server in the QUIC protocol and the first network element serving as a client in the QUIC protocol during the process of establishing a PDU session.

[0334] Optionally, the network element 200 further includes:

[0335] A first receiving module, configured to receive user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, wherein the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, wherein the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0336] Among them, the processing module 201 is used to establish a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

[0337] Optionally, the network element 200 further includes:

[0338] A switching module is used for, when the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target second network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, the first path being the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path being the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

[0339] Optionally, the switching module includes:

[0340] A second receiving submodule, configured to receive a first detection data packet sent by a target first network element through the first network element serving as a source first network element;

[0341] A first sending submodule, configured to send a second detection data packet to the target first network element through the first network element;

[0342] A third receiving submodule, configured to receive a connection update request sent by a target first network element through the first network element;

[0343] The second sending submodule is used to send a connection update request response to the target first network element through the first network element.

[0344] Optionally, the switching module includes:

[0345] a fourth receiving submodule, configured to receive user plane path information sent by a third network element, wherein the user plane path information includes a user plane path identifier and network elements along the user plane path, wherein the network elements along the user plane path include a source first network element, a target first network element, and at least one second network element, wherein the at least one second network element includes the target second network element;

[0346] A fifth receiving submodule, configured to receive a first detection data packet sent by the first network element as a target first network element through a source first network element;

[0347] A third sending submodule, configured to send a second detection data packet to the first network element through the source first network element;

[0348] A sixth receiving submodule, configured to receive a connection update request sent by the first network element through a source first network element;

[0349] The fourth sending submodule is used to send a connection update request response to the first network element through the source first network element.

[0350] Optionally, the processing module 201 is used to establish a user plane connection with the first network element, and the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the first network element includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of the next-hop network element.

[0351] Optionally, the network element 200 further includes:

[0352] an encapsulation module, configured to encapsulate the downlink data to be sent to the first network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated downlink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0353] a fifth sending module, configured to send the encapsulated downlink data to the first network element based on the user plane connection;

[0354] and / or

[0355] a seventh receiving module, configured to receive, based on the user plane connection, encapsulated uplink data sent by the first network element, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element;

[0356] The decapsulation module is used to decapsulate the encapsulated uplink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

[0357] Optionally, the network element 200 further includes:

[0358] A transmission module, configured to transmit service data of a target service based on a user plane connection established with the first network element;

[0359] Wherein, one of the connections corresponds to one session;

[0360] and / or

[0361] One of the connections corresponds to at least one flow group, and each of the flow groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service;

[0362] and / or

[0363] Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream.

[0364] Optionally, the network element 200 further includes: an interaction module, configured to interact with the first network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

[0365] Please refer to Fig.19 The embodiment of the present invention further provides a network element 300, including a processor 301, a memory 302, and a computer program stored in the memory 302 and executable on the processor 301. When the computer program is executed by the processor 301, each process of the above-mentioned communication method embodiment is implemented, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, it will not be described here.

[0366] The embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer-readable storage medium, on which a computer program is stored, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, each process of the above-mentioned communication method embodiment is implemented, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, it is not repeated here. The computer-readable storage medium is, for example, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

[0367] The present application also provides a computer program product, including computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, implement the above Figure 7 or Fig.16 The various processes of the method embodiment shown can achieve the same technical effect, and will not be described again here to avoid repetition.

[0368] It should be noted that, in this article, the terms "include", "comprises" or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, an element defined by the sentence "comprises a ..." does not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the element.

[0369] Through the description of the above implementation methods, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the above-mentioned embodiment methods can be implemented by means of software plus a necessary general hardware platform, and of course by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method. Based on such an understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM / RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk), and includes a number of instructions for enabling a terminal (which can be a mobile phone, a computer, a server, an air conditioner, or a network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in each embodiment of the present invention.

[0370] The embodiments of the present invention are described above in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned specific implementation modes, which are merely illustrative rather than restrictive. Under the guidance of the present invention, ordinary technicians in this field can also make many forms without departing from the scope of protection of the present invention and the claims, all of which are within the protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol.

2. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first network element establishes a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: In the process of establishing a PDU session, the first network element, acting as a client in the QUIC protocol, establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element, acting as a server in the QUIC protocol.

3. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first network element establishes a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and the process also includes: The first network element receives user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, where the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, where the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element; The first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: The first network element establishes a user plane connection with the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

4. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the source first network element interacts with the target first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is a data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

5. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target first network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

6. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: During the process of the first network element establishing a user plane connection with the target second network element, the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the first network element and the target second network element includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of the next-hop network element.

7. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first network element establishes a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes: The first network element encapsulates the uplink data to be sent to the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated uplink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element; The first network element sends the encapsulated uplink data to the target second network element based on the user plane connection; and / or The first network element receives encapsulated downlink data sent by the target second network element based on the user plane connection, wherein a packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element; The first network element decapsulates the encapsulated downlink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

8. The communication method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The first network element establishes a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes: The first network element transmits service data of the target service based on the user plane connection established with the target second network element; Wherein, one of the connections corresponds to one session; and / or One of the connections corresponds to at least one flow group, and each of the flow groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service; and / or Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream.

9. The communication method according to claim 8, characterized in that: Also includes: The first network element interacts with the target second network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

10. The communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that: The first network element is a base station, and the second network element is a core network element.

11. A communication method, characterized in that: include: The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol.

12. The communication method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, including: In the process of establishing a PDU session, the target second network element acts as a server in the QUIC protocol and establishes a user plane connection with the first network element acting as a client in the QUIC protocol.

13. The communication method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and the process also includes: The target second network element receives user plane path information for establishing a PDU session sent by a third network element, where the user plane path information includes an identifier of the user plane path and network elements along the user plane path, where the network elements along the user plane path include the first network element and at least one second network element, and the at least one second network element includes the target second network element; The target second network element establishing a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol includes: The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol according to the user plane path information.

14. The communication method according to claim 11, characterized in that: Also includes: When the terminal needs to switch the first network element, the target second network element interacts with the source first network element and the target second network element based on the QUIC protocol to migrate the first path to the second path, where the first path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element via the source first network element, and the second path is the data forwarding path from the target first network element to the target second network element.

15. The communication method according to claim 11, characterized in that: During the process of the target second network element establishing a user plane connection with the first network element, the packet header of the data packet transmitted between the target second network element and the first network element includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of the next-hop network element.

16. The communication method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes: The target second network element encapsulates the downlink data to be sent to the first network element based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol to obtain the encapsulated downlink data, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated downlink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element; The target second network element sends the encapsulated downlink data to the first network element based on the user plane connection; and / or The target second network element receives the encapsulated uplink data sent by the first network element based on the user plane connection, wherein the packet header of the encapsulated uplink data includes a QUIC header and a programmable IP protocol header, and the programmable IP protocol header includes a user plane path identifier and / or an IP address list of network elements along the user plane path and / or an IP address list of a next-hop network element; The target second network element decapsulates the encapsulated uplink data based on the QUIC protocol and the programmable IP protocol.

17. The communication method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The target second network element establishes a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol, and then further includes: The target second network element transmits service data of the target service based on the user plane connection established with the first network element; Wherein, one of the connections corresponds to one session; and / or One of the connections corresponds to at least one flow group, and each of the flow groups corresponds to a QoS flow of the target service; and / or Each of the stream groups includes at least one data stream.

18. The communication method according to claim 17, characterized in that: Also includes: The target second network element interacts with the first network element to increase or decrease the flow group and / or the data flow.

19. The communication method according to any one of claims 11 to 18, characterized in that: The first network element is a base station, and the second network element is a core network element.

20. A network element, characterized in that: include: A processing module is used to establish a user plane connection with a target second network element based on the QUIC protocol.

21. A network element, characterized in that: include: A processing module is used to establish a user plane connection with the first network element based on the QUIC protocol.

22. A network element, characterized in that: include: A processor, a memory, and a program stored in the memory and executable on the processor, wherein the program, when executed by the processor, implements the steps of the communication method as described in any one of claims 1 to 10, or the program, when executed by the processor, implements the steps of the communication method as described in any one of claims 11 to 19.

23. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the computer program implements the steps of the communication method as described in any one of claims 1 to 10; or, when the computer program is executed by a processor, the computer program implements the steps of the communication method as described in any one of claims 11 to 19.

24. A computer program product, characterized in that The method comprises computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or the computer instructions, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the communication method according to any one of claims 11 to 19.

Images