eSIM device network access method, device, electronic device and storage medium

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to an eSIM device network access method, device, electronic device and storage medium, wherein the eSIM device includes a device body and an eSIM chip; the device body and the eSIM chip are connected via at least two communication interfaces; a first profile is stored in the eSIM chip; the method includes: in response to an activation instruction for the first profile, determining a first target communication interface among at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface is an idle state; establishing a binding relationship between the first profile and the first target communication interface; based on the binding relationship, activating the first profile for network access. By adopting this technical solution, there is no need to use software or hardware to simulate a network switch, nor is there a need to set up a complex eSIM port management switching and maintenance strategy, which can reduce the development difficulty and promote the promotion of multi-card multi-standby technology based on eSIM technology.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to an eSIM device network access method, device, electronic device and storage medium. Background Art

[0002] Traditional dual-SIM dual-standby systems are usually implemented with two SIM card slots and two independent SIM cards in the mobile phone. However, with the development of eSIM technology, mobile phones do not need physical SIM card slots, but use built-in eSIM chips to implement virtual SIM card functions.

[0003] In actual applications, users often expect to achieve the multi-SIM multi-standby function so that they can use multiple mobile phone numbers on the same device at the same time and enjoy different services. In order to achieve the multi-SIM multi-standby function, the existing technology manages different profiles of eSIM through software or hardware simulation network switch to achieve dual-SIM dual-standby function. However, the technical implementation of this type of solution is complex, especially the switching and maintenance of eSIM port management by the terminal, which brings high development difficulty, resulting in it not yet being commercialized on a large scale. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to solve the above technical problems or at least partially solve the above technical problems, the present disclosure provides an eSIM device network access method, apparatus, electronic device and storage medium.

[0005] In a first aspect, the present disclosure provides a method for network access of an eSIM device, wherein the eSIM device includes a device body and an eSIM chip; the device body is connected to the eSIM chip via at least two communication interfaces; a first profile is stored in the eSIM chip; the method includes:

[0006] In response to an activation instruction for the first Profile, determining a first target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface is an idle state;

[0007] Establishing a binding relationship between the first Profile and the first target communication interface;

[0008] Based on the binding relationship, the first Profile is activated for network access.

[0009] In a second aspect, the present disclosure further provides an eSIM device network access device, wherein the eSIM device includes a device body and an eSIM chip; the device body is connected to the eSIM chip via at least two communication interfaces; the eSIM chip stores a first profile; the device includes:

[0010] a screening module, configured to determine, in response to an activation instruction for the first Profile, a first target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface being an idle state;

[0011] A binding module, used to establish a binding relationship between the first Profile and the first target communication interface;

[0012] An activation module is used to activate the first Profile to access the network based on the binding relationship.

[0013] In a third aspect, the present disclosure further provides an electronic device, wherein the electronic device is a device body of an eSIM device or an eSIM chip, including: a processor and a memory;

[0014] The processor is used to execute the steps of any of the above methods by calling the program or instruction stored in the memory.

[0015] In a fourth aspect, the present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium, which stores a program or instruction, and the program or instruction enables a computer to execute the steps of any of the above methods.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the technical solution provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure has the following advantages:

[0017] The technical solution provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure is to set the device body and the eSIM chip to be connected through at least two communication interfaces; in response to the activation instruction for the first Profile, determine the first target communication interface in the at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface is idle; a binding relationship is established between the first Profile and the first target communication interface; based on the binding relationship, the first Profile is activated and connected to the network. Its essence is that in the process of activating a certain Profile, the corresponding communication interface that was not originally bound to other Profiles is allocated to the Profile. Since each communication interface is independent of each other and can work alone, when multiple cards and multiple standbys are used, each Profile can use the communication interface bound to it to exchange instructions and information with the device body, avoiding the competition for the right to use the same communication interface by different Profiles. Therefore, the technical solution provided by the present application does not need to use software or hardware to simulate the network switch, nor does it need to set up complex eSIM port management switching and maintenance strategies, which can reduce the difficulty of development and promote the promotion of multi-card multi-standby technology based on eSIM technology. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, for ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative labor.

[0020] Figure 1 is a flow chart of a method for network access of an eSIM device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0021] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the structure of an eSIM device provided in this application;

[0022] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of an eSIM chip provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0023] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of an eSIM device network access device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] In order to more clearly understand the above-mentioned objectives, features and advantages of the present disclosure, the scheme of the present disclosure will be further described below. It should be noted that the embodiments of the present disclosure and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict.

[0026] In the following description, many specific details are set forth to facilitate a full understanding of the present disclosure, but the present disclosure may also be implemented in other ways different from those described herein; it is obvious that the embodiments in the specification are only part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, rather than all of the embodiments.

[0027] Before introducing the embodiments of the present application, some terms or concepts involved in the embodiments of the present application are first explained. It should be understood that the present application does not specifically limit the naming of the following terms. The following terms may have other names. The renamed terms still meet the following related term explanations.

[0028] eSIM chip: Embedded subscriber identity module, embedded SIM card, the eSIM in this application refers to embedding the traditional SIM card directly into the mobile device chip, rather than adding it to the device as an independent removable component, and the user does not need to insert a physical SIM card, for example, the global user identity module USIM: Universal Subscriber Identity Module. The eSIM card application solution is to turn the traditional SIM card into an embedded chip embedded in the terminal device, and it is no longer plug-in; it has networking and remote card writing functions, and can write and modify user access numbers and other data through the network management platform, so that the number can be changed without changing the phone, and the phone can be changed without changing the number. In some embodiments, the eSIM card in this application can be extended to other programmable SIM cards, such as softSIM, vSIM, etc. In some embodiments, it can also be called an eSIM card or an embedded SIM.

[0029] Profile: Also known as "configuration file", Profile in this application refers to a collection of various data and applications used on the eSIM chip to provide various services, such as voice services or data services. According to some embodiments, the Profile is signed or subscribed by the user and the relevant mobile operator to provide user network services. According to some embodiments, the Profile may include system files, applications (such as network access applications NAA, security domain names SecurityDomain, and non-communication service applications with other specific functions), Profile metadata (such as Profile Policy Rules), and the mobile network operator security domain name MobileNetwork Operator SecurityDomain when providing OTA services.

[0030] eSIM device: a device with an embedded eSIM chip. In some scenarios, it is also referred to as a "wireless communication device", "wireless device", "mobile device", "terminal device" and "user terminal". It specifically includes cellular phones or smart phones, tablets, laptops, personal computers, netbook computers, media player devices, e-book devices, MiFi devices, wearable devices, and any other type of electronic computing device with wireless communication capabilities. The wireless communication capability may include communication via one or more wireless communication protocols such as for communication on the following networks: wireless wide area network (WWAN), wireless metropolitan area network (WMAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), wireless personal area network (WPAN), near field communication (NFC), cellular wireless network, fourth generation (4G) LTE, advanced LTE (LTE-A), and / or 5G or other existing or future developed advanced cellular wireless networks.

[0031] Device body: the part of an eSIM device other than the eSIM chip.

[0032] The communication interface is an interface connected between the eSIM chip and the device body, and is used to exchange commands and data. In some embodiments, the communication interface may be an ISO7816 interface.

[0033] As described in the background technology, the existing technology manages different profiles of eSIM through software or hardware simulation network switches to achieve dual-card dual-standby function. After a thorough study of the technology, the applicant found that one reason for the prior art to be set up in this way is that the device body and the eSIM chip are usually connected only through one communication interface, which means that there is only one data transmission channel between the two. When multiple cards and multiple standby are implemented, there will be a problem of multiple profiles competing for the right to use the communication interface. To solve this problem, it is necessary to use software or hardware to simulate the network switch and set up complex eSIM port management switching and maintenance strategies to ensure the realization of the purpose of multiple cards and multiple standby. However, the use of software or hardware to simulate the network switch and set up complex eSIM port management switching and maintenance strategies will increase the difficulty of development and hinder the promotion of multi-card multi-standby technology based on eSIM technology.

[0034] In view of this, Figure 1 It is a flowchart of a method for network access of an eSIM device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the structure of an eSIM device provided in this application.

[0035] See also Figure 2 The eSIM device includes a device body and an eSIM chip; the device body and the eSIM chip are connected via at least two communication interfaces (exemplarily, in Figure 2In the process, the device body and the eSIM chip are connected through two communication interfaces).

[0036] Assume that the first profile is stored in the eSIM chip, and now the first profile needs to be activated. The eSIM device network access method can be executed by the eSIM chip or by the device body. Figure 1 , the method comprising:

[0037] S110: In response to an activation instruction for a first profile, determine a first target communication interface among at least two communication interfaces; the first target communication interface is in an idle state.

[0038] The activation instruction of the first profile is an instruction indicating that the first profile needs to be activated currently.

[0039] The status of a communication interface includes idle status and occupied status. If a communication interface is idle, it means that the communication interface is not bound to any profile. If a communication interface is occupied, it means that the communication interface is bound to a profile.

[0040] S120: Establish a binding relationship between the first Profile and the first target communication interface.

[0041] S130: Based on the binding relationship, activate the first Profile to access the network.

[0042] The device body is connected to the eSIM chip through at least two communication interfaces, which means that there are at least two information transmission channels between the device body and the eSIM chip. And each information transmission channel can work independently. Binding a Profile to a communication interface means that the subsequent activation of the Profile, and the use of the network access parameters in the Profile for network communication after activation, involving the exchange of instructions or data between the eSIM chip and the device body, are all completed through the communication interface bound to the Profile.

[0043] The state of the first target communication interface is an idle state, which means that the first target communication interface is not bound to any other Profile.

[0044] The above technical method sets the device body and the eSIM chip to be connected through at least two communication interfaces; in response to the activation instruction for the first Profile, the first target communication interface is determined in the at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface is idle; a binding relationship is established between the first Profile and the first target communication interface; based on the binding relationship, the first Profile is activated and connected to the network. Its essence is that in the process of activating a certain Profile, the corresponding communication interface that was not originally bound to other Profiles is allocated to the Profile. Since each communication interface is independent of each other and can work independently, when multiple cards and multiple standbys are used, each Profile can use the communication interface bound to it to exchange instructions and information with the device body, avoiding the competition for the right to use the same communication interface by different Profiles. Therefore, the above scheme does not require the use of software or hardware to simulate the network switch, nor does it require the setting of complex eSIM port management switching and maintenance strategies, which can reduce the difficulty of development and promote the promotion of multi-card multi-standby technology based on eSIM technology.

[0045] On the basis of the above technical solution, optionally, if the status of at least two communication interfaces are both busy, a prompt message of activation failure is generated. If the status of at least two communication interfaces are both busy, it means that all communication interfaces are bound to other profiles, and there is no communication interface in an idle state. If the status of at least two communication interfaces are both busy, a prompt message of activation failure is generated, which can ensure that the user is aware of the activation result for the first profile in a timely manner.

[0046] Furthermore, the eSIM chip includes multiple profiles; at least two of the multiple profiles are in an activated state, and different activated profiles are bound to different communication interfaces. This setting ensures that each profile can use the communication interface bound to it to exchange instructions and information with the device body, avoiding competition between different profiles for the right to use the same communication interface.

[0047] On the basis of the above-mentioned technical solutions, optionally, the method may also include: if the status of at least two communication interfaces are both occupied, determining a second target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; there is a binding relationship between the second target communication interface and the second Profile; deactivating the second Profile, and releasing the binding relationship between the second target communication interface and the second Profile; using the unbound second target communication interface as the first target communication interface. The essence of such a setting is that when the first Profile must be activated, it is necessary to first unbind the binding relationship between a certain communication interface and other Profiles, so that the status of the communication interface is switched from an occupied state to an idle state, and then the communication interface can be bound to the first Profile. Such a setting can further avoid the situation where multiple Profiles are bound to the same communication interface, thereby avoiding the undesirable situation of different Profiles competing for the right to use the same communication interface.

[0048] On the basis of the above technical solutions, optionally, after activating the first profile, when network communication is performed based on the network access parameters in the first profile, the eSIM chip exchanges information with the device body through the communication interface bound to the first profile. The purpose of this setting is to avoid the undesirable situation of different profiles competing for the right to use the same communication interface during the network communication stage after activation.

[0049] On the basis of the above technical solutions, optionally, the communication interface includes a plurality of connection pins; at least some of the connection pins of some of the communication interfaces are shared.

[0050] Furthermore, the connection pins shared by different communication interfaces include at least one of the following: a power supply voltage signal pin, a ground pin, and a programming voltage pin. The pins are contacts for electrically connecting the device main body circuit board and the eSIM chip.

[0051] Exemplarily, if the communication interface is an ISO7816 interface, the ISO7816 interface includes all the pins given in Table 1.

[0052] Table 1

[0053] Pin Number Function Pin Number Function C1 Access power supply voltage (VCC) C5 Ground (GND) C2 Access reset (RST) C6 Access programming voltage (VPP) C3 Access clock (CLK) C7 Input / Output (I / O)

[0054] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an eSIM chip provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3The eSIM chip includes two communication interfaces, namely communication interface 1 and communication interface 2. The two communication interfaces reuse connection pins C1, C5 and C6. C1 is a power supply voltage signal pin for connecting to the power supply voltage (VCC). C5 is a ground pin for grounding. C6 is a programming voltage pin for connecting to the programming voltage (VPP).

[0055] By setting at least some of the connection pins of some communication interfaces to be shared, the number of pins required to be set on the eSIM chip and the device main circuit board can be effectively reduced, which is conducive to the miniaturization of the eSIM chip and the eSIM device.

[0056] It should be noted that, for the above-mentioned method embodiments, for the sake of simplicity, they are all described as a series of action combinations, but those skilled in the art should know that the present invention is not limited by the described action sequence, because according to the present invention, certain steps can be performed in other sequences or simultaneously. Secondly, those skilled in the art should also know that the embodiments described in the specification are all preferred embodiments, and the actions and modules involved are not necessarily required by the present invention.

[0057] Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the structure of an eSIM device access device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure, such as Figure 4 As shown, the eSIM device includes a device body and an eSIM chip; the device body is connected to the eSIM chip via at least two communication interfaces; the eSIM chip stores a first profile; the apparatus includes:

[0058] The screening module 210 is used to determine a first target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces in response to an activation instruction for the first Profile; the state of the first target communication interface is an idle state;

[0059] A binding module 220, configured to establish a binding relationship between the first Profile and the first target communication interface;

[0060] The activation module 230 is used to activate the first Profile to access the network based on the binding relationship.

[0061] Furthermore, the device also includes a prompt module, which is used to:

[0062] If the states of the at least two communication interfaces are both busy, a prompt message indicating activation failure is generated.

[0063] Furthermore, the eSIM chip includes multiple Profiles; at least two of the multiple Profiles are in an activated state, and different activated Profiles are bound to different communication interfaces.

[0064] Furthermore, the screening module 210 is also used for:

[0065] If the states of the at least two communication interfaces are both in an occupied state, determining a second target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; a binding relationship is established between the second target communication interface and the second Profile;

[0066] Deactivating the second Profile, and releasing the binding relationship between the second target communication interface and the second Profile;

[0067] The unbound second target communication interface is used as the first target communication interface.

[0068] Furthermore, after activating the first Profile, when network communication is performed based on the network access parameters in the first Profile, the eSIM chip interacts with the device body through the communication interface bound to the first Profile.

[0069] The device disclosed in the above embodiments can implement the process of the method disclosed in the above method embodiments, and has the same or corresponding beneficial effects. To avoid repetition, it will not be described here.

[0070] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown in FIG. Figure 5 As shown, the electronic device may be a device body or an eSIM chip of an eSIM device, and the electronic device includes:

[0071] One or more processors 301, Figure 5 A processor 301 is taken as an example;

[0072] Memory 302;

[0073] The electronic device may further include: an input device 303 and an output device 304 .

[0074] The processor 301, memory 302, input device 303 and output device 304 in the electronic device may be connected via a bus or other means. Figure 5 The example of connecting through bus is taken in the following.

[0075] The memory 302 is a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium that can be used to store software programs, computer executable programs and modules, such as program instructions / modules corresponding to the eSIM device network access method in the embodiment of the present disclosure. The processor 301 executes various functional applications and data processing of the server by running the software programs, instructions and modules stored in the memory 302, that is, the eSIM device network access method of the above method embodiment is implemented.

[0076] The memory 302 may include a program storage area and a data storage area, wherein the program storage area may store an operating system, an application required for at least one function; the data storage area may store data created according to the use of the electronic device, etc. In addition, the memory 302 may include a high-speed random access memory, and may also include a non-transient memory, such as at least one disk storage device, a flash memory device, or other non-transient solid-state storage device. In some embodiments, the memory 302 may optionally include a memory remotely arranged relative to the processor 301, and these remote memories may be connected to the terminal device via a network. Examples of the above-mentioned network include, but are not limited to, the Internet, an intranet, a local area network, a mobile communication network, and combinations thereof.

[0077] The input device 303 may be used to receive input digital or character information and generate signal input related to user settings and function control of the electronic device. The output device 304 may include a display device such as a display screen.

[0078] The embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores a program or instruction, and the program or instruction is used to execute a method for network access of an eSIM device when the computer executes the program or instruction, and the method includes:

[0079] In response to an activation instruction for the first Profile, determining a first target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface is an idle state;

[0080] Establishing a binding relationship between the first Profile and the first target communication interface;

[0081] Based on the binding relationship, the first Profile is activated for network access.

[0082] Optionally, when the computer executable instructions are executed by a computer processor, they can also be used to execute the technical solution of the eSIM device network access method provided in any embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0083] Through the above description of the implementation methods, the technical personnel in the relevant field can clearly understand that the present disclosure can be implemented by means of software and necessary general hardware, and of course it can also be implemented by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method. Based on such an understanding, the technical solution of the present disclosure can be essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art can be embodied in the form of a software product, and the computer software product can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, such as a computer floppy disk, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), flash memory (FLASH), hard disk or optical disk, etc., including a number of instructions for a computer device (which can be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in each embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0084] It should be noted that, in this article, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are only used to distinguish one entity or operation from another entity or operation, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Moreover, the terms "include", "comprise" or any other variants thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that a process, method, article or device including a series of elements includes not only those elements, but also other elements not explicitly listed, or also includes elements inherent to such process, method, article or device. In the absence of further restrictions, the elements defined by the sentence "comprise a ..." do not exclude the existence of other identical elements in the process, method, article or device including the elements.

[0085] The above description is only a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, so that those skilled in the art can understand or implement the present disclosure. Various modifications to these embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be implemented in other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the present disclosure will not be limited to the embodiments described herein, but will conform to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for accessing an eSIM device, characterized in that: The eSIM device includes a device body and an eSIM chip; the device body is connected to the eSIM chip via at least two communication interfaces; the eSIM chip stores a first profile; and the method includes: In response to an activation instruction for the first Profile, determining a first target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface is an idle state; Establishing a binding relationship between the first Profile and the first target communication interface; Based on the binding relationship, the first Profile is activated for network access.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Also includes: If the states of the at least two communication interfaces are both busy, a prompt message indicating activation failure is generated.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The eSIM chip includes multiple Profiles; at least two of the multiple Profiles are in an activated state, and different activated Profiles are bound to different communication interfaces.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: If the states of the at least two communication interfaces are both in an occupied state, determining a second target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; There is a binding relationship between the second target communication interface and the second Profile; Deactivating the second Profile, and releasing the binding relationship between the second target communication interface and the second Profile; The unbound second target communication interface is used as the first target communication interface.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that Also includes: After the first Profile is activated, when network communication is performed based on the network access parameters in the first Profile, the eSIM chip interacts with the device body through the communication interface bound to the first Profile.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The communication interface includes a plurality of connection pins; At least some of the connection pins of some of the communication interfaces are shared.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that The connection pins shared by different communication interfaces include at least one of the following: a power supply voltage signal pin, a ground pin, and a programming voltage pin.

8. An eSIM device network access device, characterized in that: The eSIM device includes a device body and an eSIM chip; the device body is connected to the eSIM chip via at least two communication interfaces; the eSIM chip stores a first profile; the apparatus includes: a screening module, configured to determine, in response to an activation instruction for the first Profile, a first target communication interface among the at least two communication interfaces; the state of the first target communication interface being an idle state; A binding module, used to establish a binding relationship between the first Profile and the first target communication interface; An activation module is used to activate the first Profile to access the network based on the binding relationship.

9. An electronic device, characterized in that: The electronic device is a device body or an eSIM chip of an eSIM device, including: a processor and a memory; The processor is used to execute the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 by calling the program or instruction stored in the memory.

10. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores a program or instruction, and the program or instruction enables a computer to execute the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.

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