Communication method and communication device

Abstract

The invention provides a communication method and a communication device applied to the field of communication. In the technical scheme provided by the invention, the UPF entity is selected for the first service based on the service type of the service, and the selected UPF entity is the UPF entity capable of supporting the service type. According to the technical scheme provided by the invention, the UPF entity selected for the service based on the service type of the service can support the service of the service type, so that the selected UPF entity can better meet the service requirement of the service when transmitting the data flow of the service.

Description

Technical Field

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

[0002] With the rise of digital technology and the gradual deployment of the fifth generation mobile communication system (5G), large-bandwidth, low-latency network services (such as extended reality (XR) services) will gradually penetrate into the home and government and enterprise industries as the digital transformation progresses, thus putting forward requirements for large network bandwidth and low-latency performance. Among them, extended reality (XR) services refer to services involved in XR technology, which includes virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR) and mixed reality (MR) and other technologies.

[0003] Therefore, when the communication system provides network services for large-bandwidth, low-latency network services, how to meet the bandwidth and latency requirements of such services has become a technical problem that needs to be solved urgently. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present application provides a communication method and a communication device, so that the UPF entity selected for a service can better meet the service requirements of the service when transmitting the data stream of the service. For example, when the service is a large bandwidth and low latency network service, the network requirements of the service for bandwidth and latency can be met.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to a first network device, and the method includes: determining a service type of a first service; selecting a first user plane function UPF entity for the first service, the first UPF entity being a UPF entity that supports the service type.

[0006] As an example, the first network device may be a session management function (SMF) entity, or a chip system, hardware circuit and / or software module applied to an SMF entity. This application will be described in terms of the SMF entity.

[0007] As an example, the first network device may be a user plane function (UPF) entity, or a chip system, hardware circuit and / or software module applied to a UPF entity. This application is uniformly described in terms of the UPF entity.

[0008] As an example, the first service may be a high-bandwidth, low-latency service, such as an extended reality (XR) service.

[0009] The technical solution selects a first UPF entity for the first service based on the service type of the first service, so that the communication system can meet the service requirements of this type of service when providing network services for the first service.

[0010] In combination with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, selecting the first UPF entity for the first service includes: selecting the first UPF entity for the first service based on first information, wherein the first information is used to indicate one or more UPF entities supporting the service type.

[0011] Optionally, the first information may explicitly or implicitly indicate one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type, which is not specifically limited in the present application. The first service type may be understood as the service type of the first service.

[0012] In this implementation, a first UPF entity may be selected from one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type.

[0013] In combination with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate the service type supported by the corresponding UPF entity.

[0014] As an example, the first information may include three sub-information, sub-information A corresponds to UPF entity A, sub-information B corresponds to UPF entity B, and sub-information C corresponds to UPF entity C. Among them, sub-information A is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity A is the first service type, sub-information B is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity B is the second service type, and sub-information C is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity C is the first service type, so that the first information can implicitly indicate the UPF entities that support the first service type, namely, UPF entity A and UPF entity B.

[0015] In combination with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate that the corresponding UPF entity supports the service type.

[0016] As an example, the sub-information may be a simple identification information, which is used to indicate whether the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type. For example, when the sub-information is "0", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information does not support the first service type, and when the sub-information is "1", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type; for another example, when the sub-information is "1", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information does not support the first service type, and when the sub-information is "0", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type.

[0017] In this implementation, the first information may implicitly indicate a UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0018] In combination with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first information includes an identifier of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities.

[0019] In this implementation, the first information may explicitly indicate the UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0020] In combination with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the first information also includes at least one item of the following information of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities: computing power usage, computing power remaining, or location information.

[0021] In this implementation, after the UPF entity supporting the first service type is determined, if there are more than one UPF entity supporting the first service type, the first UPF entity can also be determined based on the principle of optimal computing power and / or the principle of optimal path. Among them, optimal computing power can be understood as the UPF entity having the most remaining computing power, and optimal path can be understood as when the terminal device establishes a connection with the application server (AS) entity, the first path between the UPF entity and the terminal device is the shortest, or the second path between the UPF entity and the AS entity is the shortest, or the sum of the first path and the second path is the smallest.

[0022] In this implementation, a first UPF entity can be selected for the first service based on at least one of the computing power usage, remaining computing power and location information of the UPF entity, so that the selected first UPF entity is more suitable for the first service.

[0023] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method further includes: sending second information to a network storage function NRF entity, where the second information is used to indicate the service type; and receiving the first information from the NRF entity.

[0024] Optionally, the second information can be carried in the UPF discovery request message.

[0025] Optionally, when indicating the first service type, the second information may indicate the first service type explicitly or implicitly, like the first information.

[0026] In this implementation, the first network device may obtain the first information by accessing a network repository function (NRF) entity.

[0027] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first information is configured in the first network device.

[0028] In this implementation, the first information may be pre-configured for the first network device.

[0029] As an example, when the first network device is an SMF entity, the UPF entity can send network access information such as the location information, remaining computing power, computing power usage, and supported service types of the UPF entity to the SMF entity when registering for network access; the SMF entity can implement local configuration of the first information based on the network access information received from the UPF entity, thereby eliminating the need to access the NRF entity to obtain the first information, thereby saving resources.

[0030] As an example, when the first network device is a UPF entity, the UPF entity can obtain information such as the location information, remaining computing power, computing power usage, and supported service types of each UPF entity in the first area, and implement local configuration of the first information based on the obtained information, so that there is no need to access the NRF entity to obtain the first information, saving resources. The first area is the service area of ​​the SMF entity or other specific range of areas.

[0031] In combination with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, the service type is indicated by at least one of the following information: an identifier of the service type, a slice type of a network slice supporting the service type, or service characteristics of a service data flow of the service type.

[0032] As an example, if the first service is an XR service, the first service type identifier may be an identifier of the XR service.

[0033] As an example, if the first service is an XR service, the slice type of the network slice supporting the first service type may be a high bandwidth and low latency communication (HDLLC).

[0034] As an example, if the first service is an XR service, the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service include at least one of the following: the service flow of the first service is greater than or equal to the flow threshold, the first service is periodic, the first service is jittery, and the service data of the first service includes protocol data unit set (PDUset) information. Among them, the PDU set information includes the importance of the PDU set, the sequence number of the PDU set, and the size of the PDU set.

[0035] In this implementation, the second information may indicate the first service type through the service characteristics of the first service; or, the second information may indicate the first service type through the service type identifier of the first service; or, the second information may indicate the first service type through the slice type of the network slice supporting the first service.

[0036] In combination with the first aspect, in certain implementations of the first aspect, when the at least one information includes the identifier, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity associated with the identifier; or, when the at least one information includes the slice type, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the slice type; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes periodicity, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the periodicity identification function of the service data flow; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes jitter, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the jitter identification function of the service data flow; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes a protocol data unit data set PDU set as the scheduling granularity, the first UPF entity is an identification function that supports the PDU set information and uses PDU set is a UPF entity with scheduling granularity; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes a service flow greater than or equal to a flow threshold, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the function of forwarding service data flows greater than or equal to the flow threshold; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes encrypted service data, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the function of identifying encrypted flow information of service data.

[0037] This implementation method provides a correspondence between a service type and a UPF entity function, thereby making the selected first UPF entity more suitable for the first service.

[0038] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the method also includes: receiving a first message, the first message including a session establishment request message, a UPF entity switching request message or a policy message, the first message including third information, the third information indicating the service type; determining the service type of the first service includes: determining the service type based on the third information.

[0039] As an example, when the first message is a session establishment request, the third information may indicate the first service type by the slice type of the network slice supporting the first service. The first network device is an SMF entity, and the SMF entity receives the session establishment request from the terminal device.

[0040] As an example, when the first message is a UPF entity switching request message, the third information may indicate the first service type through a first service type identifier and / or a service feature of a service data flow of the first service. Wherein, the first network device is an SMF entity, and the SMF entity receives a UPF entity switching request message from a UPF entity.

[0041] As an example, when the first message is a policy message, the third information may indicate the first service type through a first service type identifier and / or a service feature of a service data flow of the first service. Wherein, the first network device is an SMF entity, and the SMF entity receives a policy message from a policy control function (PCF) entity.

[0042] Optionally, the information contained in the second information and the third information may be consistent or inconsistent, and this application does not impose any specific limitation on this.

[0043] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, determining the service type of the first service includes: acquiring a service data flow of the first service; and determining the service type according to service characteristics of the service data flow.

[0044] The method can be executed by a UPF entity, and the UPF entity can obtain the service data flow of the first service from the AS entity, and determine the first service type based on the service characteristics of the service data flow.

[0045] In a second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to an NRF entity, and the method includes: receiving second information from a first network device, wherein the second information is used to indicate a service type of a first service; and sending first information to the first network device, wherein the first information is used to indicate one or more UPF entities that support the service type.

[0046] Exemplarily, the second information may be carried in a UPF discovery request message.

[0047] Exemplarily, the first service may be a high-bandwidth, low-latency service, such as an XR service.

[0048] Exemplarily, the second information may indicate the first service type through a service characteristic of the first service; or, the second information may indicate the first service type through a service type identifier of the first service; or, the second information may indicate the first service type through a slice type of a network slice supporting the first service. The first service type may be understood as the service type of the first service.

[0049] Optionally, the first information may explicitly or implicitly indicate one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type, without specific limitation herein.

[0050] In this technical solution, after receiving the second information sent by the first network device, the NRF entity can send the first information to the first network device, so that the first network device can select the first UPF entity for the first service based on the first information.

[0051] In combination with the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate the service type supported by the corresponding UPF entity.

[0052] As an example, the first information may include three sub-information, sub-information A corresponds to UPF entity A, sub-information B corresponds to UPF entity B, and sub-information C corresponds to UPF entity C. Among them, sub-information A is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity A is the first service type, sub-information B is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity B is the second service type, and sub-information C is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity C is the first service type, so that the first information can implicitly indicate the UPF entities that support the first service type, namely, UPF entity A and UPF entity B.

[0053] In combination with the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate that the corresponding UPF entity supports the service type.

[0054] As an example, the sub-information may be a simple identification information, which is used to indicate whether the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type. For example, when the sub-information is "0", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information does not support the first service type, and when the sub-information is "1", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type; for another example, when the sub-information is "1", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information does not support the first service type, and when the sub-information is "0", it is considered that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type.

[0055] In this implementation, the first information may implicitly indicate a UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0056] In combination with the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the first information includes an identifier of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities.

[0057] In this implementation, the first information may explicitly indicate the UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0058] In combination with the second aspect, in certain implementations of the second aspect, the first information also includes at least one item of the following information of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities: computing power usage, remaining computing power, or location information.

[0059] In this implementation, the NRF entity can also send at least one piece of information including the computing power usage, remaining computing power and location information of the UPF entity to the first network device, so that the first network device can select the first UPF entity based on at least one piece of information of the UPF entity, thereby making the selected first UPF entity more suitable for the first service.

[0060] In the third aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to a UPF entity, and the method includes: obtaining a service data flow of a first service; determining a service type of the first service based on service characteristics of the service data flow; sending a UPF entity switching request message to an SMF entity, wherein the UPF entity switching request message includes third information, and the third information is used to indicate the service type.

[0061] Exemplarily, the first service may be a high-bandwidth, low-latency service, such as an XR service.

[0062] As an example, the UPF entity may be a UPF entity in a PDU session established in the terminal device.

[0063] As an example, the third information may indicate the first service type through a service feature of the first service; or the third information may indicate the first service type through a service type identifier of the first service. The first service type may be understood as the service type of the first service.

[0064] In this technical solution, the UPF entity can determine the service type of the first service based on the service characteristics of the acquired service data flow, and when the UPF entity in the current PDU session cannot meet the service requirements of the first service, the UPF entity can send a UPF entity switching request message to the SMF entity to instruct the SMF entity to reselect the first UPF entity for the first service and switch the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity.

[0065] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to a PCF entity, and the method includes: receiving indication information from an application function (AF) entity, wherein the indication information is used to indicate the service characteristics of a first service; and sending a policy message to an SMF entity based on the indication information, wherein the policy message includes third information, and the third information is used to indicate the service type of the first service.

[0066] Exemplarily, the first service may be a high-bandwidth, low-latency service, such as an XR service.

[0067] As an example, the third information may indicate the first service type through a service feature of the first service; or the third information may indicate the first service type through a service type identifier of the first service. The first service type may be understood as the service type of the first service.

[0068] In this technical solution, the PCF entity can convert the indication information from the AF entity into a policy message and transmit it to the SMF entity. The SMF entity can determine the service type of the first service based on the policy message.

[0069] In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, which includes modules for implementing the method in the first aspect or any one of the implementations thereof, and each module can be implemented in the form of hardware and / or software.

[0070] For example, the device may include: a processing module. The processing module is used to determine the service type of the first service; the processing module is also used to select a first UPF entity for the first service, where the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the service type.

[0071] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the processing module is also used to select the first UPF entity for the first service based on first information, and the first information is used to indicate one or more UPF entities supporting the service type.

[0072] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate the service type supported by the corresponding UPF entity.

[0073] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate that the corresponding UPF entity supports the service type.

[0074] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the first information includes an identifier of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities.

[0075] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the first information also includes at least one item of the following information of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities: computing power usage, remaining computing power, or location information.

[0076] In combination with the fifth aspect, in some implementations of the fifth aspect, the device further includes a sending module and a receiving module. The sending module is used to send second information to a network storage function NRF entity, where the second information is used to indicate the service type; and the receiving module is used to receive the first information from the NRF entity.

[0077] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the first information is configured in the first network device.

[0078] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the service type is indicated by at least one of the following information: an identifier of the service type, a slice type of a network slice supporting the service type, or service characteristics of a service data flow of the service type.

[0079] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, when the at least one information includes the identifier, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity associated with the identifier; or, when the at least one information includes the slice type, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the slice type; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes periodicity, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the periodic identification function of the service data flow; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes jitter, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the jitter identification function of the service data flow; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes a protocol data unit data set PDU set as the scheduling granularity, the first UPF entity is an identification function that supports the PDU set information and uses PDU set is a UPF entity with scheduling granularity; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes a service flow greater than or equal to a flow threshold, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the function of forwarding service data flows greater than or equal to the flow threshold; or, when the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes encrypted service data, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the function of identifying encrypted flow information of service data.

[0080] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive a first message, the first message including a session establishment request message, a UPF entity switching request message or a policy message, the first message containing third information, and the third information indicating the service type; the processing module is also used to determine the service type based on the third information.

[0081] In combination with the fifth aspect, in certain implementations of the fifth aspect, the processing module is further used to obtain a service data flow of the first service; the processing module is further used to determine the service type based on service characteristics of the service data flow.

[0082] In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, which includes modules for implementing the method in the second aspect or any one of the implementation methods thereof, and each module can be implemented in the form of hardware and / or software.

[0083] For example, the apparatus may include: a receiving module and a sending module. The receiving module is used to receive second information from a first network device, where the second information is used to indicate a service type of a first service; and the sending module is used to send first information to the first network device, where the first information is used to indicate one or more user plane function (UPF) entities supporting the service type.

[0084] In combination with the sixth aspect, in certain implementations of the sixth aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate the service type supported by the corresponding UPF entity.

[0085] In combination with the sixth aspect, in certain implementations of the sixth aspect, the first information includes at least one sub-information, the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate that the corresponding UPF entity supports the service type.

[0086] In combination with the sixth aspect, in certain implementations of the sixth aspect, the first information includes an identifier of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities.

[0087] In combination with the sixth aspect, in certain implementations of the sixth aspect, the first information also includes at least one item of the following information of each UPF entity among the one or more UPF entities: computing power usage, remaining computing power, or location information.

[0088] In a seventh aspect, the present application provides a communication device, which includes modules for implementing the method in the third aspect or any one of the implementation methods therein, and each module can be implemented in the form of hardware and / or software.

[0089] For example, the device may include: a processing module and a sending module. The processing module is used to obtain a service data flow of a first service; the processing module is also used to determine the service type of the first service according to the service characteristics of the service data flow; the sending module is used to send a UPF entity switching request message to a session management function SMF entity, wherein the UPF entity switching request message includes third information, and the third information is used to indicate the service type.

[0090] In an eighth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, which includes modules for implementing the method in the fourth aspect or any one of the implementation methods thereof, and each module can be implemented in the form of hardware and / or software.

[0091] For example, the device may include: a receiving module and a sending module. The receiving module is used to receive indication information from an application function AF entity, where the indication information is used to indicate the service characteristics of a first service; the sending module is used to send a policy message to a session management function SMF entity based on the indication information, where the policy message includes third information, where the third information is used to indicate the service type of the first service.

[0092] In a ninth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, including a processor, which can be coupled to a memory and is used to call a program code in the memory to execute the method as described in the first aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Optionally, the device also includes a memory. Optionally, the device also includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface.

[0093] Optionally, the device may be an SMF entity, or a chip system, a hardware circuit and / or a software module applied in an SMF entity.

[0094] Optionally, the device may be a UPF entity, or a chip system, a hardware circuit and / or a software module applied in a UPF entity.

[0095] In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, including a processor, which can be coupled to a memory and is used to call a program code in the memory to execute the method as described in the second aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Optionally, the device also includes a memory. Optionally, the device also includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface.

[0096] Optionally, the device may be an NRF entity, or a chip system, a hardware circuit and / or a software module applied in the NRF entity.

[0097] In an eleventh aspect, the present application provides a communication device, including a processor, which can be coupled to a memory, and is used to call a program code in the memory to execute the method as described in the third aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Optionally, the device also includes a memory. Optionally, the device also includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface.

[0098] Optionally, the device may be a UPF entity, or a chip system, a hardware circuit and / or a software module applied in a UPF entity.

[0099] In a twelfth aspect, the present application provides a communication device, including a processor, which can be coupled to a memory and is used to call a program code in the memory to execute the method as described in the fourth aspect or any possible implementation thereof. Optionally, the device also includes a memory. Optionally, the device also includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface.

[0100] Optionally, the device may be a PCF entity, or a chip system, a hardware circuit and / or a software module applied in a PCF entity.

[0101] In the thirteenth aspect, the present application provides a communication system, which includes the device in the fifth aspect or the ninth aspect, the device in the sixth aspect or the tenth aspect, the device in the seventh aspect or the eleventh aspect, and the device in the eighth aspect or the twelfth aspect.

[0102] In a fourteenth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions, which, when executed on a computer, enables the computer to execute the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect, the third aspect, the fourth aspect, or any possible implementation thereof.

[0103] In a fifteenth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable medium storing a program code for execution by a device, wherein the program code includes a method for executing the method described in the first aspect, the second aspect, the third aspect, the fourth aspect, or any possible implementation method thereof. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0104] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a network architecture of a communication system provided for one embodiment of the present application;

[0105] Figure 2 A schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 1 of the present application;

[0106] Figure 3 A schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 2 of the present application;

[0107] Figure 4 A schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 3 of the present application;

[0108] Figure 5 A schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 4 of the present application;

[0109] Figure 6 A schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 5 of the present application;

[0110] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0111] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in yet another embodiment of the present application.

[0112] The above drawings have shown clear embodiments of the present application, which will be described in more detail later. These drawings and text descriptions are not intended to limit the scope of the present application in any way, but to illustrate the concept of the present application to those skilled in the art by referring to specific embodiments. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0113] Exemplary embodiments will be described in detail herein, examples of which are shown in the accompanying drawings. When the following description refers to the drawings, the same numbers in different drawings represent the same or similar elements unless otherwise indicated. The implementations described in the following exemplary embodiments do not represent all implementations consistent with the present application. Instead, they are merely examples of devices and methods consistent with some aspects of the present application as detailed in the appended claims.

[0114] In order to clearly describe the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish the same or similar items with substantially the same functions and effects. Those skilled in the art can understand that words such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity and execution order, and words such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily limit the difference.

[0115] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or descriptions. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the present application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or designs. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a specific way.

[0116] In the embodiments of the present application, "at least one" refers to one or more, and "plurality" refers to two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects, indicating that three relationships may exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the previous and next associated objects are in an "or" relationship. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, c can be single or multiple.

[0117] The present application provides a communication method and a communication device. The method determines the service type of a service and selects a user plane function (UPF) entity supporting the service type for the service based on the service type, so that the UPF entity in the communication system can meet the service requirements of the service.

[0118] It should be noted that the communication method and communication device provided in the present application are based on the same technical concept. Since the principles of solving problems by the method and the device are similar, the implementation of the method and the device can refer to each other, and the repeated parts will not be repeated.

[0119] The technical solution provided in this application can be applied to various communication systems, including but not limited to: narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) system, long term evolution (LTE) system, advanced long term evolution (LTE-A) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (TDD), fifth generation mobile communication system (5G) or new radio (NR), or other evolved communication systems. 5G system usually includes the following three application scenarios: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low latency communications (URLLC) and massive machine type of communication (mMTC).

[0120] Taking the fifth generation mobile communication system (5th generation, 5G) as an example, Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the network architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application. Figure 1 As shown, the communication system includes terminal equipment, access network, core network and data network.

[0121] The terminal device may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), which refers to a device that provides voice / data connectivity to users. At present, some examples of terminal devices are: mobile phones, tablet computers, laptop computers, PDAs, mobile internet devices (MID), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (AR) devices, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self driving, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, wireless terminals in smart grids, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, cellular phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocol (SIP) phones, wireless local loop (WLL) stations, personal digital assistants (PDA), handheld devices with wireless communication functions, computing devices or other processing devices connected to wireless modems, vehicle-mounted devices, wearable devices, etc., and the embodiments of the present application do not specifically limit this.

[0122] The access network may be a (radio) access network ((radio) access network, (R)AN), which is used to implement functions related to wireless access and is located between the UE and the core network (CN). As an example, the (R)AN may be a base station, a relay station or an access point. The base station may be a base transceiver station (BTS) in a global system for mobile communication (GSM) or a code division multiple access (CDMA) network, or a node base station (NB) in a wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), or an evolutionary NB (eNB or eNodeB) in long term evolution (LTE), or a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario, or a base station device in a future 5G network or an access network device in a future evolved PLMN network, or a wearable device or a vehicle-mounted device.

[0123] CN includes any one of the following functional entities: access and mobility management function (AMF) entity, session management function (SMF) entity, policy control function (PCF) entity, application function (AF) entity, network slice selection function (NSSF) entity, authentication server function (AUSF) entity, unified data management function (UDM) entity, and UPF entity.

[0124] As an example, the AMF entity is mainly responsible for managing user registration, reachability detection, SMF entity selection, mobile state transition management, etc.

[0125] The SMF entity is mainly responsible for controlling the establishment, modification and deletion of sessions, executing the control policies issued by the PCF entity, and selecting the UPF entity.

[0126] The PCF entity is a policy decision point that provides rules based on business data flow and application detection, gating, quality of service (QoS) and flow-based charging control.

[0127] The AF entity is mainly responsible for interacting with the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) core network to provide services, influence business flow routing, access network capability exposure, policy control, etc.

[0128] The NSSF entity mainly determines the network slice instance that the terminal is allowed to access based on the terminal's slice selection auxiliary information, contract information, etc.; the AUSF entity is mainly used to provide authentication services.

[0129] The UDM entity is mainly used to store user subscription data; the UPF entity is mainly responsible for data packet routing and forwarding, mobility anchor point, uplink classifier to support routing service flows to the data network, branch point to support multi-homing protocol data unit (PDU) sessions, etc.

[0130] Data network (DN) refers to the operator network that provides data transmission services to users, such as Internet protocol multi-media service (IMS), Internet, etc.

[0131] Among them, the UE can access the DN by establishing a protocol data unit (PDU) session between the UE and the (R)AN and the UPF entity and the DN.

[0132] See also Figure 1, the UE and AMF entities can communicate through the N1 interface, the (R)AN and AMF entities can communicate through the N2 interface, the (R)AN and UPF entities can communicate through the N3 interface, the UPF entity and SMF entity can communicate through the N4 interface, the PCF entity and AF entity can communicate through the N5 interface, the UPF entity and DN can communicate through the N6 interface, the SMF entity and PCF entity can communicate through the N7 interface, the AMF entity and UDM entity can communicate through the N8 interface, the UPF entities can communicate through the N9 interface, the UDM entity and SMF entity can communicate through the N10 interface, the AMF entity and SMF entity can communicate through the N11 interface, the AMF entity and AUSF entity can communicate through the N12 interface, the AUSF entity and UDM entity can communicate through the N13 interface, the AMF entities can communicate through the N14 interface, the AMF entity and PCF entity can communicate through the N15 interface, and the AMF entity and NSSF entity can communicate through the N22 interface.

[0133] The technical solution provided by this application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0134] Figure 2 This is a schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Example 1 of the present application. Figure 2 As shown, the method may include S201 to S205.

[0135] S201, the SMF entity receives a PDU session establishment request message from a UE, where the PDU session establishment request message is used to request establishment of a PDU session for a first service.

[0136] As an example, when the UE establishes a new PDU session for the first service, it can send a PDU session establishment request message to the SMF entity to request the SMF entity to establish a PDU session for the first service.

[0137] As an example, the PDU session establishment request message may carry third information, where the third information indicates the service type of the first service. In order to describe the solution, in this embodiment, the service type of the first service is referred to as the first service type.

[0138] As an example, the third information may include at least one of the following information: an identifier of the first service type, a slice type of a network slice supporting the first service type, or a service characteristic of a service data flow of the first service type. In this implementation, the service type may be characterized by a service type identifier, a slice type of a network slice supporting the service type, and a service characteristic of a service data flow belonging to the service type.

[0139] As an example, different identifiers may be defined for different service types, and the third information includes an identifier predefined for the first service type. For example, when the first service is an extended reality (XR) service, the third information may include an identifier for the XR service.

[0140] As an example, when the first service type is XR, the slice type included in the third information may be a high bandwidth and low latency slice (high data rate and low latency communication, HDLLC).

[0141] As an example, when the first service type is XR, the third information may include at least one of the following service characteristics: periodicity, jitter, scheduling granularity based on protocol data unit data set (PDU set), service traffic greater than or equal to the traffic threshold, or encrypted service data.

[0142] As an example, when the first service is an XR service, the UE may be a virtual reality (VR) device, an augmented reality (AR) device, or a mixed reality (MR) device.

[0143] S202: The SMF entity determines the service type of the first service.

[0144] After receiving the PDU session establishment request message, the SMF entity determines which service type the first service belongs to.

[0145] As an example, the SMF entity may obtain the third information carried in the PDU session establishment request message, and thus may determine the service type of the first service based on the third information.

[0146] S203, the SMF entity sends a UPF request message to the NRF entity, where the UPF request message is used to request discovery of the UPF entity. Correspondingly, the NRF entity receives the UPF request message from the SMF entity.

[0147] As an example, the UPF request message may include second information, and the second information is used to indicate the first service type. The method for the second information to indicate the first service type can refer to the method for the third information to indicate the first service type, which will not be repeated here.

[0148] As an example, the second information and the third information may be the same or different. In other words, the second information and the third information may indicate the first service type in the same manner or in different manners.

[0149] When the second information and the third information indicate the first service type in the same way, as an example, the third information includes the slice type of the network slice supporting the first service type, and the second information also includes the slice type of the network slice supporting the first service type.

[0150] When the second information and the third information indicate the first service type in different ways, as an example, the third information includes service characteristics of a service data flow of the first service type or a slice type of a network slice supporting the first service type, and the second information includes an identifier of the first service type.

[0151] It can be understood that when the second information and the third information indicate the first service type in different ways, after obtaining the third information, the SMF entity can determine the information that should be included in the second information based on the mapping relationship between the way in which the third information indicates the first service type and the way in which the second information indicates the first service type.

[0152] For example, the SMF entity may be configured with a mapping relationship between the service characteristics of a service data flow of a first service type and the identifier of the first service type. Thus, when the third information acquired by the SMF entity contains the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type, the SMF entity may determine the identifier of the first service type based on the aforementioned mapping relationship, thereby carrying the identifier of the first service type in the second information.

[0153] S204, the NRF entity sends first information to the SMF entity, where the first information is used to indicate one or more UPF entities that support the first service type. Correspondingly, the SMF entity receives the first information from the NRF entity.

[0154] In this embodiment, the NRF may be configured with relevant information of the UPF entity. For example, when the UPF entity accesses the network, relevant information of the UPF entity may be configured in the NRF entity.

[0155] The relevant information of the UPF entity includes fourth information, and the fourth information indicates the service types supported by the UPF. The manner in which the fourth information indicates the service types supported by the UPF entity can refer to the manner in which the third information indicates the first service type, for example, the manner in which the first service type in the manner in which the third information indicates the first service type is replaced with the service type supported by the UPF entity, which will not be repeated here.

[0156] It can be understood that the fourth information may be the same as or different from the second information in the UPF entity request message.

[0157] When the fourth information is different from the second information, after the NRF entity obtains the second information, it can determine whether the second information and the fourth information indicate the same service type based on the mapping relationship between the way the second information indicates the first service type and the way the fourth information indicates the first service type.

[0158] For example, the NRF entity may be configured with a mapping relationship between the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type and the identifier of the first service type. In this way, when the second information acquired by the NRF entity contains the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type, and the fourth information contained in the relevant information of the UPF contains the identifier of the service type, the NRF entity may determine, based on the aforementioned mapping relationship, that the identifier of the service type corresponding to the second information is the identifier of the first service type, thereby determining that the UPF containing the identifier of the first service type in the fourth information is the UPF entity supporting the first service type, that is, the UPF entity that should be discovered.

[0159] As an example, the relevant information of the UPF entity may also include at least one of the following information: computing power usage, computing power remaining, or location information.

[0160] As an example, the UPF entity may periodically update its relevant information to the NRF entity; or, the UPF entity may update its relevant information to the NRF entity when the change value of the relevant information exceeds a preset threshold. For example, when the change value of the remaining computing power is greater than or equal to a preset threshold, the UPF entity may update the changed remaining computing power to the NRF entity. The preset threshold can be set according to actual needs.

[0161] After receiving the UPF request message from the SMF entity, the NRF entity can determine the first information based on the second information in the UPF request message and send the first information to the SMF entity.

[0162] Optionally, the first information may explicitly or implicitly indicate one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type. It can be understood that the one or more UPF entities indicated by the first information may all be UPF entities within the service scope of the SMF entity.

[0163] As an example, the first information may include at least one sub-information, and the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity. Each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type, thereby implicitly indicating one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type.

[0164] In this example, the sub-information can be a simple identification information, which is used to indicate whether the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type. For example, when the sub-information is "0", it means that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information does not support the first service type, and when the sub-information is "1", it means that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type; for another example, when the sub-information is "1", it means that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information does not support the first service type, and when the sub-information is "0", it means that the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information supports the first service type.

[0165] As an example, the first information may include an identifier of each UPF entity in one or more UPF entities, each of which supports the first service type, thereby explicitly indicating the one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type.

[0166] Optionally, the first information may also include at least one of the computing power usage, computing power remaining and location information of each UPF entity supporting the first service type.

[0167] S205, the SMF entity selects a first UPF entity for the first service based on the first information, and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0168] In this embodiment, after the SMF entity receives the first information from the NRF entity, it can select a UPF entity that meets the requirements for the first service type from one or more UPF entities indicated by the first information. For the sake of ease of description, the selected UPF entity is referred to as the first UPF entity.

[0169] As an example, the SMF entity may determine the first UPF entity for the first service according to the principle of optimal computing power based on the computing power information of each UPF entity in one or more UPF entities indicated by the first information. Among them, the optimal computing power can be understood as the UPF entity with the most remaining computing power. The computing power information may include computing power usage and / or computing power remaining.

[0170] As an example, the SMF entity can determine the first UPF entity for the first service according to the path optimal principle based on the location information of each UPF entity in one or more UPF entities indicated by the first information. The path optimality can be understood as when the terminal device establishes a connection with the application server (AS) entity, the first path between the UPF entity and the terminal device is the shortest, or the second path between the UPF entity and the AS entity is the shortest, or the sum of the first path and the second path is the smallest.

[0171] As an example, the SMF entity may determine the first UPF entity for the first service according to the principle of optimal computing power and the principle of optimal path based on the computing power information and location information of each UPF entity in one or more UPF entities indicated by the first information. Among them, the selected first UPF entity may be the UPF entity with the best path among the UPF entities with the best computing power, or may be the UPF entity with the best computing power among the UPF entities with the best path.

[0172] As an example, the SMF entity can select the UPF entity with the best comprehensive score of computing power and path for the first service based on the computing power information and location information of each UPF entity in one or more UPF entities indicated by the first information. For example, the computing power is divided into multiple computing power ranges, and each computing power range defines a certain score; the path is divided into multiple path ranges, and each path range defines a certain score; the total score or average score of the computing power score and path score of each UPF entity indicated by the first information is calculated, and the UPF entity with the highest total score or average score is selected as the first UPF entity.

[0173] In this embodiment, after the SMF entity determines the first UPF entity for the first service, a user plane connection can be established with the first UPF entity, and a communication link can be established from the UE to the base station to the first UPF entity, so that the UE can access the target DN through the communication link for data interaction.

[0174] In this embodiment, when the UE requests the SMF entity to establish a new PDU session, the SMF entity can select a UPF entity that supports the first service type for the first service, so as to better meet the service requirements of the first service.

[0175] In this embodiment, optionally, in S203, the UPF request message sent by the SMF entity to the NRF entity may not carry the second information. In this case, the first information sent by the NRF entity to the SMF entity in S204 may include at least one sub-information, and the at least one sub-information corresponds to at least one UPF entity one-to-one, and each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate the service type supported by the UPF entity corresponding to the sub-information.

[0176] For example, the first information may include three sub-information, sub-information A corresponds to UPF entity A, sub-information B corresponds to UPF entity B, and sub-information C corresponds to UPF entity C. Among them, sub-information A is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity A is the first service type, sub-information B is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity B is the second service type, and sub-information C is used to indicate that the service type supported by UPF entity C is the first service type, so that the first information can implicitly indicate the UPF entities supporting the first service, namely, UPF entity A and UPF entity B.

[0177] It can be understood that the first information in this example may also include at least one of the following information of each UPF entity: computing power usage, computing power remaining, or location information.

[0178] In this example, after the SMF entity receives the first information, it can select a first UPF entity for the first service based on the first service type and the first information determined by the SMF entity in S202.

[0179] For example, the SMF entity can first select one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type from the one or more UPF entities indicated by the first information, and select the first UPF entity based on one or more of the computing power usage, computing power remaining and location information contained in the first information.

[0180] It can be understood that in this embodiment, the UE sending a PDU session establishment request message in S201 to trigger the SMF entity to select the first UPF entity for the first service is only an example. In this embodiment, the message that triggers the SMF entity to select the first UPF entity for the first service is not limited to this, as long as the trigger message carries first information indicating the service type of the first service.

[0181] Figure 2 In the illustrated embodiment, optionally, the SMF entity may be locally configured with relevant information of the UPF entity. For example, the UPF entity configures relevant information of the UPF entity in the SMF entity during network registration and subsequent updating of relevant information. In this scenario, the receiving and sending operations in S202, S203, and S204 may not be performed, that is, the SMF entity may not discover the UPF entity through the NRF entity, but in S205, the SMF entity selects the first UPF entity for the first service based on the relevant information of the locally configured UPF entity.

[0182] Figure 3 This is a schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 2 of the present application. Figure 3 As shown, the method may include S301 to S307.

[0183] Applicable Figure 3 One scenario of the communication method in the illustrated embodiment is as follows: the UE has established a PDU session, and a high-bandwidth, low-latency service (such as an XR service) shares a PDU session with other services. At this time, if the current PDU session is not established based on a network slice type that supports the service type of the high-bandwidth, low-latency service, the UPF entity in the current PDU session may not be able to meet the service requirements of the high-bandwidth, low-latency service. In this scenario, it is necessary to reselect the UPF entity in the current PDU session to meet the service requirements of the high-bandwidth, low-latency service.

[0184] S301, the UPF entity receives a service data flow from an AS entity.

[0185] It should be noted that the UPF entity refers to the UPF entity that has established a PDU session with the UE, and may also be referred to as the source UPF entity.

[0186] S302, the UPF entity identifies the service characteristics of the service data flow.

[0187] In this embodiment, after receiving the service data flow, the UPF entity can identify whether the service data flow contains at least one of the following characteristics: service identification, periodicity, jitter, contains PDU set information, service traffic is greater than or equal to the traffic threshold, or is encrypted service data.

[0188] S303, the UPF entity sends a UPF entity switching request message to the SMF entity based on the service feature identification result, the UPF entity switching request message carries third information, the third information indicates the first service type, and the first service type is the service type of the first service to which the service data flow belongs. Accordingly, the SMF entity receives the UPF entity switching request message from the UPF entity.

[0189] As an example, when the UPF entity identifies the service characteristics of the service data flow and determines that the service data flow includes at least one of the following characteristics: the service identifier is an identifier of a large-bandwidth, low-latency service, the service data flow contains PDUset information, the service data flow is periodic, the service data flow has jitter (such as uneven data fluctuations), the service traffic of the service data flow is greater than or equal to the traffic threshold, or the service data flow is encrypted service data, a UPF entity switching request message can be sent to the SMF entity. Among them, the PDU set information can include at least one of the following information: the importance of the PDUset, the sequence number of the PDU set, or the size of the PDU set.

[0190] As an example, the UPF entity can determine the service identifier of the first service and / or whether the service data stream contains PDUset information based on the information in the real-time transport protocol (RTP) header or the secure real-time transport protocol (SRTP) header of the service data stream.

[0191] In this embodiment, the manner in which the third information indicates the first service type can refer to Figure 2 The manner in which the third information indicates the first service type in the illustrated embodiment will not be described in detail here.

[0192] It can be understood that if the third information does not contain the service characteristics obtained by the aforementioned identification, the UPF entity can first determine the third information based on the mapping relationship between the service characteristics and the indication information of the service type. For example, the UPF entity can determine the identifier of the service type corresponding to the identified service characteristics based on the mapping relationship between the service characteristics and the identifier of the service type, and include the determined service type identifier in the third information.

[0193] For example, after the UPF entity recognizes the aforementioned service characteristics, it can determine that the first service is a high-bandwidth, low-latency service. In order to meet the service requirements of the first service, it is necessary to reselect a UPF entity that can support high-bandwidth, low-latency services for the first service so that the service transmission requirements of the first service can be met. Therefore, the UPF entity can send a UPF entity switching request message to the SMF entity to request the switching of the UPF entity for the first service, that is, to reselect the UPF entity in the current PDU session.

[0194] S304, the SMF entity sends a UPF request message to the NRF entity, and the UPF request message is used to request the discovery of the UPF entity.

[0195] S305, the SMF entity receives first information from the NRF entity, where the first information is used to indicate one or more UPF entities supporting the first service type.

[0196] S306, the SMF entity selects a first UPF entity for the first service based on the first information, and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0197] S304, S305 and S306 in this embodiment may refer to S203, S204 and S205 respectively, and will not be described in detail here.

[0198] In this embodiment, when the first service type is represented by the identifier of the first service type, as an example, the third information in the UPF entity switching request message includes the identifier of the first service type, and the first UPF entity is the UPF entity associated with the service type identifier.

[0199] When the first service type is characterized by the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type, as an example, the third information in the UPF entity switching request message includes the service characteristic "periodicity", and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the periodic identification function of the service data flow.

[0200] When the first service type is characterized by the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type, as an example, the third information in the UPF entity switching request message includes the service characteristic "jitter", and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the jitter identification function of the service data flow.

[0201] When the first service type is characterized by the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type, as an example, the third information in the UPF entity switching request message includes the service characteristic "scheduling granularity with PDU set", and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the identification function of PDU set information and uses PDU set as the scheduling granularity.

[0202] When the first service type is characterized by the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type, as an example, the third information in the UPF entity switching request message includes the service characteristic "service traffic is greater than or equal to the traffic threshold", and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the function of forwarding service data flows greater than or equal to the traffic threshold.

[0203] When the first service type is characterized by the service characteristics of the service data flow of the first service type, as an example, the third information in the UPF entity switching request message includes the service characteristic "for encrypted service data", and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the identification function of encrypted flow information of service data.

[0204] S307, the SMF entity triggers the PDU session modification process and switches the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity.

[0205] In this embodiment, after the SMF entity selects the first UPF entity for the first service, it can trigger the PDU session modification process, switch the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity, and establish a user plane connection with the first UPF entity, and establish a communication link from the UE to the base station to the first UPF entity, so that the UE can access the target DN through the communication link for data interaction.

[0206] In this embodiment, when the UPF entity determines that the service type of the first service is a high-bandwidth, low-latency service, it requests the SMF entity to switch the UPF entity for the first service to meet the service requirements of the first service. This method switches the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity, so that when the communication system provides services for the first service, the service requirements of the first service can be met.

[0207] Figure 4 This is a schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Example 3 of the present application. Figure 4 As shown, the method may include S401 to S407. The applicable scenario of the communication method in this embodiment is similar to Figure 3 The applicable scenarios of the communication methods shown are the same or similar and will not be described in detail here.

[0208] S401, the UPF entity receives a service data flow from the AS entity.

[0209] S402, the UPF entity identifies the service characteristics of the service data flow.

[0210] In this embodiment, the specific implementation methods of S401 and S402 may refer to S301 and S302 respectively, and will not be described in detail here.

[0211] S403, the UPF entity sends a UPF request message to the NRF entity, where the UPF request message is used to request discovery of the UPF entity.

[0212] S404, the UPF entity receives first information from the NRF entity, where the first information is used to indicate one or more UPF entities supporting a first service type, where the first service type is a service type of the first service.

[0213] S405, the UPF entity selects a first UPF entity for the first service based on the first information, and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0214] In this embodiment, the specific implementation methods of S403, S404 and S405 can refer to S304, S305 and S306 respectively. For example, the SMF entity in S304, S305 and S306 can be replaced by the UPF entity, so it will not be repeated here.

[0215] S406, the UPF entity sends a UPF entity switching request message to the SMF entity. The UPF entity switching request message is used to request switching of the UPF entity for the first service. The UPF entity switching request message carries indication information of the first UPF entity.

[0216] In this embodiment, after the UPF entity selects the first UPF entity for the first service, it can send a UPF entity switching request message to the SMF entity to request switching the UPF entity for the first service, that is, switching the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity.

[0217] Optionally, the indication information of the first UPF entity may include address information or an identifier of the first UPF entity.

[0218] S407, the SMF entity triggers the PDU session modification process and switches the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity.

[0219] In this embodiment, after receiving the UPF entity switching request message sent by the UPF entity, the SMF entity can trigger the PDU session modification process, switch the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity, and establish a user plane connection with the first UPF entity, and establish a communication link from the UE to the base station to the first UPF entity, so that the UE can access the target DN through the communication link for data interaction.

[0220] In this embodiment, when the UPF entity determines that the service type of the first service is a large-bandwidth and low-latency service, it accesses the NRF entity to obtain the UPF entity that supports the first service type, thereby determining the first UPF entity for the first service, and requests the SMF entity to switch the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity, so that when the communication system provides services for the first service, the service requirements of the first service can be met.

[0221] Figure 5 This is a schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 4 of the present application. Figure 5 As shown, the method may include S501 to S505. The applicable scenario of the communication method in this embodiment is similar to Figure 3 The applicable scenarios of the communication methods shown are the same or similar and will not be described in detail here.

[0222] S501, the UPF entity receives a service data flow from an AS entity.

[0223] S502, the UPF entity identifies the service characteristics of the service data flow.

[0224] In this embodiment, the specific implementation of S501 and S502 may refer to S301 and S302, which will not be described in detail here.

[0225] S503, the UPF entity selects a first UPF entity for the first service based on the identified service characteristics, and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0226] The UPF entity may be locally configured with relevant information about itself and other UPF entities. For example, when other UPF entities register with the network and subsequently update relevant information, relevant information about other UPF entities (such as nearby UPF entities, or UPF entities whose distance is less than or equal to the distance threshold) is configured in the UPF entity.

[0227] The implementation method of this step may refer to the relevant contents in S403, S404 and S405. For example, this step may include operations other than receiving and sending in S403, S404 and S405, that is, the UPF entity may not discover other UPF entities through the NRF entity, but the UPF entity may select the first UPF entity for the first service based on its own locally configured related information of other UPF entities.

[0228] S504, the UPF entity sends a UPF entity switching request message to the SMF entity, where the UPF entity switching request message is used to request switching of the UPF entity for the first service.

[0229] S505, the SMF entity triggers the PDU session modification process and switches the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity.

[0230] In this embodiment, the specific implementation of S504 and S505 can refer to S406 and S407, which will not be repeated here.

[0231] In this embodiment, the UPF entity may locally configure the first information, and select the first UPF entity for the first service based on the locally configured first information, thereby saving resources.

[0232] Figure 6 This is a schematic flow chart of a communication method provided in Embodiment 5 of the present application. Figure 6 As shown, the method may include S601 to S604. The applicable scenarios of the communication method in this embodiment are similar to Figure 3 The applicable scenarios of the communication methods shown are the same or similar and will not be described in detail here.

[0233] S601: A PCF entity receives indication information from an AF entity, where the indication information is used to indicate a service feature of a first service.

[0234] As an example, the indication information may include a service identifier of the first service, whether PDU set information exists in the service data flow of the first service, whether the first service has periodicity, whether the first service has jitter, and other information.

[0235] Optionally, whether the first service has jitter may be determined by measuring whether data exchanged through the N6 interface has jitter.

[0236] Optionally, the indication information may also include periodic and / or jitter measurement indication information, which may be transmitted to the UPF entity via the PCF entity and the SMF entity to instruct the UPF entity to measure the periodicity and / or jitter of the service data flow of the first service, thereby determining that the first service has periodicity and / or jitter.

[0237] S602, the PCF entity sends a policy message to the SMF entity, where the policy message is used to indicate the service type of the first service. Correspondingly, the SMF entity receives the policy message from the PCF entity.

[0238] The implementation method of the policy message in this step can refer to the implementation method of the third information in S201, which will not be repeated here.

[0239] S603, the SMF entity determines to select a first UPF entity for the first service based on the policy message, and the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the first service type.

[0240] As an example, the implementation method of S603 may refer to the relevant contents in S304, S305 and S306. For example, this step may include operations other than receiving and sending in S304, S305 and S306, that is, the SMF entity may not discover other UPF entities through the NRF entity, but the SMF entity may select the first UPF entity for the first service based on the relevant information of the locally configured UPF entity.

[0241] S604, the SMF entity triggers the PDU session modification process and switches the UPF entity in the current PDU session to the first UPF entity.

[0242] In this embodiment, the SMF entity can determine the service type of the first service based on the policy message sent by the PCF entity. If the first service is a large-bandwidth and low-latency service, the SMF entity needs to reselect the UPF entity for the first service to meet the service requirements of the first service.

[0243] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application. Figure 7 As shown, the device 700 of this embodiment can be used to implement the method shown in any of the above embodiments. Figure 7 As shown, the device 700 of this embodiment may include: a processing module 710 , a sending module 720 and a receiving module 730 .

[0244] The device 700 is used to implement Figure 2When the method is shown, the processing module 710 can be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S202 and S205; the sending module 720 can be used to implement the operations performed by the UE in S201, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S203, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the NRF entity in S204; the receiving module 730 can be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S201 and S204, and the receiving module 730 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the NRF entity in S203.

[0245] The device 700 is used to implement Figure 3 When the method is shown, the processing module 710 can be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S302, and the processing module 710 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S306 and S307; the sending module 720 can be used to implement the operations performed by the AS entity in S301, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S303, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S304, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the NRF entity in S305; the receiving module 730 can be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S301, and the receiving module 730 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S303 and S305, and the receiving module 730 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the NRF entity in S304.

[0246] The device 700 is used to implement Figure 4 When the method is shown, the processing module 710 can be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S402 and S405, and the processing module 710 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S407; the sending module 720 can be used to implement the operations performed by the AS entity in S401, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S403 and S406, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the NRF entity in S404; the receiving module 730 can be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S401 and S404, and the receiving module 730 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the NRF entity in S403, and the receiving module 730 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S406.

[0247] The device 700 is used to implement Figure 5When the method is shown, the processing module 710 can be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S502 and S503, and the processing device 710 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S505; the sending module 720 can be used to implement the operations performed by the AS entity in S501, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S504; the receiving module 730 can be used to implement the operations performed by the UPF entity in S501, and the receiving module 730 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S504.

[0248] The device 700 is used to implement Figure 6 When the method is shown, the processing module 710 can be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S603 and S604; the sending module 720 can be used to implement the operations performed by the AF entity in S601, and the sending module 720 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the PCF entity in S602; the receiving module 730 can be used to implement the operations performed by the PCF entity in S601, and the receiving module 730 can also be used to implement the operations performed by the SMF entity in S602.

[0249] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in yet another embodiment of the present application. Figure 8 As shown, the device 800 is used to implement the method shown in any one of the above embodiments.

[0250] like Figure 8 As shown, the device 800 of this embodiment includes: a memory 810, a processor 820, a communication interface 830 and a bus 840. The memory 810, the processor 820 and the communication interface 830 are connected to each other through the bus 840.

[0251] The memory 810 may be a read only memory (ROM), a static storage device, a dynamic storage device or a random access memory (RAM). The memory 810 may store a program. When the program stored in the memory 810 is executed by the processor 820, the processor 820 is used to execute each step in any of the aforementioned embodiments.

[0252] The processor 820 may be a general-purpose central processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits to execute related programs.

[0253] The processor 820 may also be an integrated circuit chip with signal processing capability. In the implementation process, each relevant step in the embodiment of the present application may be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in the processor 820 or by instructions in the form of software.

[0254] The processor 820 may also be a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gates or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components. The methods, steps and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be implemented or executed. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may be any conventional processor, etc.

[0255] The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiment of the present application can be directly embodied as being executed by a hardware decoding processor, or being executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module can be located in a mature storage medium in the art such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory, or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory 810, and the processor 820 reads the information in the memory 810, and completes the functions required to be performed by the units included in the device of the present application in combination with its hardware.

[0256] Optionally, the memory 810 and the processor 820 may be integrated together.

[0257] The communication interface 830 may use, but is not limited to, a transceiver or other transceiver device to implement communication between the apparatus 800 and other devices or apparatuses.

[0258] The bus 840 may include a path for transmitting information between the various components of the device 800 (eg, the memory 810 , the processor 820 , and the communication interface 830 ).

[0259] In some embodiments of the present application, a computer program product is also provided, which can implement the method shown in any of the above embodiments when the computer program product is run on a processor. In some embodiments of the present application, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided, which contains computer instructions, which can implement the method shown in any of the above embodiments when the computer instructions are run on a processor.

[0260] It should be noted that the modules or components shown in the above embodiments may be one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the above methods, such as one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), or one or more microprocessors (DSPs), or one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). For another example, when a module above is implemented in the form of a processing element calling a program code, the processing element may be a general-purpose processor, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or other processors that can call program codes, such as a controller. For another example, these modules may be integrated together and implemented in the form of a system-on-a-chip (SOC).

[0261] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware, software module or any combination thereof. When software is used for implementation, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on the computer, the process or function according to the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from a website site, a computer, a server or a data center by wired (e.g., coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) mode to another website site, computer, server or data center. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server, a data center, etc. that contains one or more available media integrated. The available medium can be a magnetic medium, (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (e.g., a DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., a solid-state hard disk Solid State Disk (SSD)), etc.

[0262] It should be understood that the various numerical numbers involved in the embodiments of the present application are only used for the convenience of description and are not used to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

[0263] It can be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the size of the serial numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not mean the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a first network device, and the method includes: determining a business type of the first business; A first user plane function UPF entity is selected for the first service, where the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the service type.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The selecting a first UPF entity for the first service includes: The first UPF entity is selected for the first service based on first information, where the first information is used to indicate one or more UPF entities that support the service type.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that The first information includes at least one sub-information, and the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity. Each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate a service type supported by the corresponding UPF entity.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first information includes at least one sub-information, and the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity. Each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate that the corresponding UPF entity supports the service type.

5. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that: The first information includes an identifier of each UPF entity in the one or more UPF entities.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 5, characterized in that The first information also includes at least one of the following information of each UPF entity in the one or more UPF entities: computing power usage, computing power remaining, or location information.

7. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 6, characterized in that The method further comprises: Sending a UPF discovery request message to a network storage function NRF entity, where the UPF discovery request message carries second information, where the second information is used to indicate the service type; The first information is received from the NRF entity.

8. The method according to any one of claims 2 to 6, characterized in that The first information is configured in the first network device.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that The service type is indicated by at least one of the following information: an identifier of the service type, a slice type of a network slice supporting the service type, or a service characteristic of a service data flow of the service type.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that When the at least one information includes the identifier, the first UPF entity is the UPF entity associated with the identifier; or, When the at least one information includes the slice type, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the slice type; or, When the at least one information includes the service characteristic and the service characteristic includes periodicity, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity supporting a periodic identification function of a service data flow; or, When the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes jitter, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity supporting a jitter identification function of a service data flow; or, When the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes a protocol data unit data set PDUset as the scheduling granularity, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the identification function of PDU set information and uses PDU set as the scheduling granularity; or, When the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes a service flow greater than or equal to a flow threshold, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports a function of forwarding a service data flow greater than or equal to the flow threshold; or, When the at least one information includes the service feature and the service feature includes encrypted service data, the first UPF entity is a UPF entity that supports the identification function of encrypted flow information of the service data.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that The method further comprises: receiving a first message, where the first message includes a session establishment request message, a UPF entity switching request message, or a policy message, and the first message includes third information, where the third information indicates the service type; The determining the service type of the first service includes: The service type is determined based on the third information.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that The determining the service type of the first service includes: Acquire a service data flow of the first service; The service type is determined according to the service characteristics of the service data flow.

13. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a network storage function NRF entity, and the method comprises: receiving a UPF discovery request message from a first network device, where the UPF discovery request message carries second information, where the second information is used to indicate a service type of the first service; Send first information to the first network device, where the first information is used to indicate one or more user plane function UPF entities that support the service type.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The first information includes at least one sub-information, and the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity. Each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate a service type supported by the corresponding UPF entity.

15. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The first information includes at least one sub-information, and the at least one sub-information corresponds one-to-one to at least one UPF entity. Each sub-information in the at least one sub-information is used to indicate that the corresponding UPF entity supports the service type.

16. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that The first information includes an identifier of each UPF entity in the one or more UPF entities.

17. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 16, characterized in that The first information also includes at least one of the following information of each UPF entity in the one or more UPF entities: computing power usage, computing power remaining, or location information.

18. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a user plane function UPF entity, and the method comprises: Obtaining a service data stream of a first service; determining a service type of the first service according to a service characteristic of the service data flow; A UPF entity switching request message is sent to a session management function SMF entity, wherein the UPF entity switching request message includes third information, and the third information is used to indicate the service type.

19. A communication method, characterized in that: The method is applied to a policy control function PCF entity, and the method comprises: receiving indication information from an application function AF entity, where the indication information is used to indicate a service feature of a first service; Based on the indication information, a policy message is sent to a session management function SMF entity, where the policy message includes third information, and the third information is used to indicate a service type of the first service.

20. A communication device, characterized in that: The method comprises various functional modules for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, any one of claims 13 to 17, claim 18 or claim 19.

21. A communication device, characterized in that: include: A processor, the processor is coupled to a memory, the memory is used to store a computer program, when the processor calls the computer program, the device executes the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, any one of claims 13 to 17, claim 18 or claim 19.

22. A computer program product, characterized in that The method comprises a computer program code, which, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, any one of claims 13 to 17, claim 18 or claim 19.

23. A computer readable medium, characterized in that The computer-readable medium stores a program code for computer execution, the program code including instructions for executing the method of any one of claims 1 to 12, any one of claims 13 to 17, claim 18 or claim 19.

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