Information communication system and information processing system

Abstract

An information communication system is provided with a control unit that executes: a process for receiving a first message requesting the number of objects satisfying a specified condition including area information; and in response to the reception of the first message, sending a second message including the number of objects satisfying the specified condition.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information communication system and an information processing system. Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses dynamically performing vertical expansion or horizontal expansion of virtual servers based on operation policies and load conditions. Prior art literature Patent Literature

[0003] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2010-33292 Summary of the invention Technical problem to be solved by the invention

[0004] One aspect of the present disclosure aims to provide a technology capable of appropriately recognizing an object existing in a specific area. Means for solving technical problems

[0005] One aspect of the present disclosure is an information communication system including a control unit that performs the following processing: receiving a first message requesting a number of objects satisfying a specified condition, the specified condition including region information; and In response to receipt of the first message, a second message is sent containing the number of objects that meet the specified condition.

[0006] Another aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing system, which is composed of a plurality of servers capable of dynamically allocating resources. The information processing system includes a control unit, and the control unit performs the following processing: Sending a first message requesting a number of objects that meet a specified condition, the specified condition including region information; receiving a second message including a number of objects satisfying the specified condition; and Resources corresponding to the number of the objects are allocated to the server corresponding to the area information. Effects of the Invention

[0007] According to the aspects of the present disclosure, it is possible to appropriately recognize an object existing in a specific area. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] Figure 1 This is a diagram illustrating components of an information communication system according to an embodiment. Figure 2 It is an explanatory diagram of the information communication system involved in the embodiment. Figure 3A This is a diagram showing a configuration example of an information processing device that can operate as an NF or an external server. Figure 3B This is a diagram showing a configuration example of an information processing device that can operate as a user terminal. Figure 4 This is a sequence diagram showing operations related to the collection and provision of sensing data in the first embodiment. Figure 5 It is a diagram showing an example of a notification message of the number of objects in the embodiment. Figure 6 This is an explanatory diagram of the information processing system involved in Implementation Example 2. Figure 7 This is a flowchart showing the resource allocation process according to the second embodiment. Figure 8 This is an explanatory diagram of the information processing system involved in the third embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0009] (summary) In services such as Metaverse application services that always require large-capacity data transmission and reception and calculation, it is desirable to allocate enough server resources required for stable operation. Generally, the amount of resources required increases or decreases according to the number of users connected to the service. If a reactive method is used to change the allocation of server resources after the user connects to the server, a certain time lag will occur before the resource allocation is completed. Therefore, it is possible that new users cannot use the service before the allocation is completed, or congestion may occur, resulting in deterioration of the service quality of the entire server. In addition, if more server resources than are required are allocated in advance, although there will be no degradation in service quality, the cost will increase.

[0010] Therefore, it is desirable to estimate the extent to which users will use the application server before the users actually connect to the application server and to perform resource allocation in advance.

[0011] In addition, the use of radio waves used in wireless communications by base stations (gNB) or user terminals (UE) in 5G systems to sense objects has been studied. In sensing, it is possible to detect what kind of object is where. However, the use of such sensing to pre-know the number of users connected to the above-mentioned server has not been studied, and optimization for this purpose has not been achieved.

[0012] In the present disclosure, a method for providing new sensing information in an information communication system is proposed.

[0013] One embodiment of the present disclosure is an information communication system comprising a control unit that performs the following processing: receiving a first message requesting the number of objects that satisfy a specified condition, the specified condition including area information; and sending a second message including the number of objects that satisfy the specified condition in response to receipt of the first message.

[0014] In this way, in response to reception of a first message specifying at least area information as a specifying condition, a second message including the number of objects satisfying the specifying condition is transmitted, thereby being able to notify the number of objects existing in the specified area.

[0015] In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the specified condition may include at least one of the type of object, the shape of the object, and the moving speed of the object in addition to the area information. When the type of object is used as the specified condition, one or more object types may be included in the specified condition, and the number of objects of the specified type may be requested, or the number of objects other than the specified type may be requested. In addition, when multiple object types are specified, the total number of objects consistent with the specified object type may be notified, or the number of each of the specified object types may be notified. The shape of the object is typically the size of the object, but it may also be a shape type such as a cube, a rectangular parallelepiped, a sphere, a cylinder, etc. The size of the object may be specified, for example, as at least one of the width, depth, and height, or as the maximum or minimum value of the total value of the multiple items, or as a range of values. Similarly, the moving speed of the object may be specified as a maximum or minimum value, or as a range of values.

[0016] In this way, by notifying the number of objects satisfying the specified conditions, it is possible to appropriately provide the information required by the user.

[0017] In the present disclosure, the interaction between the first message and the second message may be a subscription-notification (Subscribe / Notify) method or a request-response (Request / Response) method. In the case of the subscription-notification method, the second message is sent when a specified sending trigger is satisfied. As an example, the sending trigger may be one of the number of objects within a specified range, the number of objects having changed by more than a specified amount, and a certain period of time having passed.

[0018] In the present disclosure, the area information included as the specified condition may also be an overlapping area where the first area overlaps the second area. In this case, the specified condition may also include whether the moving direction of the object is from the first area to the second area. Thus, the user can understand whether the object in the overlapping area is moving from the first area to the second area or from the second area to the first area.

[0019] In the present disclosure, the specified conditions may also include that the object is a user terminal that has signed a specified contract. Here, an example of a specified contract is a contract for the use of a wireless communication network such as a mobile communication service. An example of a mobile communication service is a system that utilizes 5G, 4G, LTE, LTE-A, SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, NR, and others, as well as a next-generation system based on the expansion of these systems. In mobile communication services, since the location information of the user terminal is known, by comparing the location of the object obtained as a sensing result with the location of the user terminal known by the core network, it is possible to determine whether the sensed object is a user terminal.

[0020] In the present disclosure, the control unit may obtain information related to the object in any manner, and as an example, may consider obtaining sensing results of other devices. An example of other devices is a base station and a user terminal included in 3GPP (registered trademark) (e.g., 5G system), and the control unit obtains sensing performed by these devices using radio waves. The device performing sensing may also be a sensing device such as a camera or Lidar.

[0021] Another aspect of the present invention is an information processing system composed of a plurality of servers capable of dynamically allocating resources, the information processing system comprising a control unit that performs the following processing: sending a first message requesting the number of objects satisfying a specified condition, the specified condition including area information; receiving a second message including the number of objects satisfying the specified condition; and allocating resources corresponding to the number of objects to a server corresponding to the area information. In the case where the load on the server is determined based on the number of objects in the area, as long as the number of objects in the area is grasped as in this aspect, an appropriate amount of resources can be allocated.

[0022] In this embodiment, the second message may include the number of objects of each object type, and the control unit may allocate resources corresponding to the number of objects of each object type to the server corresponding to the area information. Furthermore, when the load of each object on the server is determined according to the object type, as long as the number of objects of each object type is known, the appropriate amount of resources can be estimated with higher accuracy.

[0023] In this method, the allocation of resources based on the second message may be performed before the service provision of the information processing system starts. Before the service provision starts, it is necessary to estimate the number of connected users at the start of the service provision and allocate the required resources. However, by grasping the number of objects in the area and allocating resources accordingly as in this method, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of excess or shortage of resources.

[0024] The present disclosure also includes a computer program for causing a computer to execute each step of the above method, a computer program for implementing the above network node or information processing system using a computer, and a computer-readable medium having the above computer program recorded thereon.

[0025] (Implementation Method 1) The following describes the embodiments of the present disclosure based on the accompanying drawings. The following embodiments are merely examples for explanation, and the present disclosure is not limited by the configuration of the embodiments. For example, the following description applies the present disclosure to a fifth-generation mobile communication system, but the present disclosure can also be applied to a mobile communication system of the fourth or fifth generation or later. The present disclosure can also be applied to a mobile communication system specified by a third party other than 3GPP, or to any wireless communication system or wired communication system other than a mobile communication system.

[0026] <Composition of information and communication system> Figure 1 The components (constituent elements) constituting the fifth generation mobile communication system (5G network) are shown. Figure 1 In the figure, UE (User Equipment) 2 is the terminal of the user (network entrant). RAN (Radio Access Network) 3 is the access network to the 5G core network (5GC). RAN 3 is composed of base stations (gNB). The 5G network has a 5G core network (5GC) and an access network ((R)AN), and UE 2, DN 5 and AF 12 are connected to the 5G network. NF 11a~11n are functions implemented by one or more computers (information processing devices) executing programs. However, any two or more of NF 11a~11n can also be implemented by a single computer. Each of NF 11a~11n can also be called a network node or a network component.

[0027] 5GC is composed of a collection of components with specified functions called NF (Network Function). Figure 1 In FIG. 1 , the following parts are illustrated as NF 11 constituting 5GC. Figure 1 The rectangle shown in bold.

[0028] UPF (User Plane Function) 11a AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function) 11b SMF (Session Management Function) 11c PCF (Policy Control Function) 11d NEF (Network Exposure Function) 11e NRF (Network Repository Function) 11g NSSF (Network Slice Selection Function) 11h AUSF (Authentication Server Function) 11i UDM (Unified Data Management)11j NWDAF (Network Data Analytics Function) 11k SENSING (Sensing Function) 11n

[0029] The UPF 11a performs routing and transmission of user data packets (data packets of the user plane sent and received by the UE 2), packet inspection, and QoS processing.

[0030] AMF 11b is an on-network accommodation device for UE in 5GC. AMF 11b accommodates RAN 3 and performs network entrant authentication control, UE 2 location (mobility) management, etc.

[0031] SMF 11c manages PDU (Protocol Data Unit) sessions and controls UPF 11a to implement QoS (Quality of Service) control and policy control. PDU sessions are virtual communication paths for data exchange between UE 2 and DN (Data Network) 5. DN5 is a data network (Internet, etc.) outside 5GC.

[0032] PCF 11d performs QoS control, policy control, and charging control under the control of SMF 11c. In QoS control, communication quality control such as priority transmission of data packets is performed. In policy control, communication control such as QoS, data packet transmission permission, and charging is performed based on network or subscriber information.

[0033] NEF 11e plays the role of mediating communication between external nodes such as AF (Application Function) 12 and nodes in the control plane. AF 12 is an application server (external server) that provides auxiliary services beyond the 5GC specification.

[0034] NRF 11g stores and manages information of NFs (such as AMF, SMF, UPF, etc.) within 5GC. NRF 11g can return multiple NF candidates to the inquiry source in response to inquiries about the NFs that are expected to be used.

[0035] The NSSF 11h has a function of selecting a network slice to be used by a network entrant from among network slices generated by performing network slicing. A network slice is a virtual network having specifications corresponding to a usage.

[0036] AUSF 11i is a network user authentication server that performs network user authentication under the control of AMF 11b.

[0037] The UDM 11j stores subscriber-related information, provides subscriber information, or acquires, registers, deletes, and changes the status of the UE 2.

[0038] NWDAF 11k has the function of performing the communication from each NF 11 and OAM terminal 8 ( Figure 2 ), external servers, etc. It is a NF that provides analysis information on the network.

[0039] SENSING 11n implements a sensing service including collecting sensing information from UE 2 or other external systems, and providing the collected sensing information to UE 2 or other external systems (AF 12, DN 5, etc.).

[0040] AF 12 is a network node having a function of controlling an application server (external server) located outside 5GC. An example of an application server is a server that provides sensing measurement data or services based on sensing measurement data to UE 2 or other devices.

[0041] In 5GC, multiple NFs of the same type may be prepared. For example, NF 11 may be prepared for each data center (site). In addition, one NF 11 may be shared between data centers. In addition, multiple NFs of the same type may be configured in one data center. The number of data centers, the number of NFs 11, and the correspondence between NFs 11 and data centers may be appropriately set.

[0042] Figure 2It is an explanatory diagram of the information communication system involved in the implementation mode. SENSING 11n receives the sensing result of area A (30A) from gNB 3A or UE 2A, and receives the sensing result of area B (30B) from gNB 3B or UE 3B. gNB 3A and gNB 3B (hereinafter collectively referred to as gNB 3) can sense objects existing on the radio wave propagation path by receiving the reflected waves of the radio waves sent by themselves or the radio waves sent from the wireless transmitter set at a fixed position. Similarly, UE 2A and UE 2B (hereinafter collectively referred to as UE 2) can sense objects existing on the radio wave propagation path by receiving the reflected waves of the radio waves sent by themselves. gNB 3 and UE 2 can also obtain the position, type, shape, size, and moving speed of the object based on the received radio waves. Alternatively, gNB 3 and UE 2 can also send a received signal to SENSING 11n or other entities, and SENSING 11n or other entities can analyze the received signal to obtain the position, type, shape, size, and moving speed of the object.

[0043] exist Figure 2 In the example of FIG. 1 , pedestrians 31, vehicles 32, and drones (UAVs) 33 exist in each area. Based on the information obtained from gNBs 3a and 3B and UEs 2A and 2E, SENSING 11 can grasp the number of objects of each object type, that is, pedestrians 31, vehicles 32, and drones 33, existing in area A and area B. Therefore, SENSING 11n can notify the number of objects of each object type related to the specified area in response to the request from AF 12.

[0044] In addition, Figure 2 In the example, gNB 3A senses area A, and gNB 3B senses area B. However, multiple gNBs may sense one area, or one gNB may sense multiple areas. Similarly, multiple UEs may sense one area, or one UE may sense multiple areas.

[0045] The SENSING 11n can notify the AF 12 of the moving direction of the object. For example, regarding the overlapping area C (30C) of the area A and the area B, the SENSING 11n can notify the moving direction of the object existing in the area C. The notification of the moving direction can be expressed in terms of direction, or in terms of how the object moves in the overlapping area, such as the direction from the area A to the area B or the direction from the area B to the area A.

[0046] <Configuration of information processing device and terminal> Figure 3A 1 is a diagram showing a configuration example of an information processing device that can operate as NFs 11a to 11k and an external server. Figure 3AIn the embodiment, the information processing device 20 can be formed by using a dedicated or general-purpose information processing device (computer) such as a personal computer (PC), a workstation (WS) or a server machine. Of course, the information processing device 20 can also be a collection of one or more computers (cloud).

[0047] The information processing device 20 includes a processor 21 as a processing unit or a control unit (controller), a storage device 22 , a communication interface 23 (communication IF 23 ), an input device 24 , and a display 25 , which are interconnected via a bus 26 .

[0048] The storage device 22 includes a main storage device and an auxiliary storage device. The main storage device is used as at least one of a storage area for programs and data, a program expansion area, a program operation area, and a buffer area for communication data. The main storage device is composed of a RAM (Random Access Memory) or a combination of RAM and ROM (Read Only Memory). The auxiliary storage device is used as a storage area for data and programs. As an auxiliary storage device, a non-volatile storage medium can be applied. Non-volatile storage media are, for example, hard disks, solid-state drives (Solid State Drive, SSD), flash memories, or EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory). In addition, the storage device 22 may include a drive device for a disk recording medium.

[0049] The communication IF 23 is a circuit that performs communication processing. For example, the communication IF 23 is a network interface card (NIC). In addition, the communication IF 23 may also be a wireless communication circuit that performs wireless communication (5G, wireless LAN (Wi-Fi (registered trademark)), BLE, etc.). In addition, the communication IF 23 may also be a combination of a circuit that performs wired communication processing and a wireless communication circuit.

[0050] The input device 24 includes keys, buttons, pointing devices, and touch panels, etc., for inputting information. The display 25 is, for example, a liquid crystal display, etc., for displaying information and data.

[0051] The processor 21 performs various processes by executing various programs stored in the storage device 22. By executing the programs stored in the storage device 22 by the processor 21, the information processing device 20 can operate as the NFs 11a to 11k, the OAM terminal 8, and the external servers 12a and 12b.

[0052] Figure 3B4 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a terminal 40 that can operate as a UE 2. The terminal 40 includes a processor 41, a storage device 42, a communication interface 43 (communication IF 43), an input device 44, and a display 45 that are connected to each other via a bus 46. The processor 41, the storage device 42, the communication IF 43, the input device 44, and the display 45 can use the same components as the processor 21, the storage device 22, the communication IF 23, the input device 24, and the display 25. Therefore, the description thereof is omitted.

[0053] Processors 21 and 41 are, for example, central processing units (CPU). CPU is also called microprocessor unit (MPU). Processors 21 and 41 may be single processor structures or multi-processor structures. In addition, a single physical CPU connected through a single slot may have a multi-core structure. Processors 21 and 41 may include computing devices of various circuit structures such as digital signal processors (DSP) or graphics processing units (GPU). In addition, processors 21 and 41 may also have a structure that cooperates with at least one of integrated circuits (IC), other digital circuits, and analog circuits. Integrated circuits include LSIs, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), and programmable logic devices (PLDs). PLDs include, for example, field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). Processors 21 and 41 also include, for example, processors called microcontrollers (MCUs), system-on-a-chip (SoCs), system LSIs, or chipsets.

[0054] <Action example: Sensor data provision processing> Figure 4 1 is a timing diagram showing an example of actions related to the collection and provision of sensing data in the method disclosed in the present invention. In addition, the timing diagram shown here is only an example, and may include processing other than the diagram, or omit part of the processing shown in the diagram, and the execution order of the processing shown in the diagram may be changed. In addition, in Figure 4 Although an example of data provision based on the Subscribe / Notify method is described, data provision can also be performed using the Request / Response method.

[0055] In step S12, the AF 12 sends a subscription message for the sensing data of the SENSING 11n to the NEF 11e. The subscription message is equivalent to the first message in the present disclosure.

[0056] The subscription message includes specified conditions related to the sensory data that is the object of the subscription. The specified conditions include at least one of the area information, the type of object, the shape of the object, and the moving speed of the object. The area information is a designation of which area the notification of the sensory data is to be received, and can be expressed in the form of longitude and latitude, or in the form of a predetermined area ID. The type of object indicates the type of object to be notified. The shape of the object is typically a designation related to the size of the object to be notified, and the size of the object to be notified can be specified by a lower limit, an upper limit, or a range. The shape of the object can also be specified by shape types such as a cube, a rectangular parallelepiped, a sphere, a cylinder, etc. Regarding the moving speed of the object, similar to the size of the object, the lower limit, the upper limit, or the range of the moving speed of the object to be notified can be specified.

[0057] The subscription message also contains conditions related to the trigger for receiving notifications. The trigger can be arbitrary, for example, as examples of sending triggers, there can be: the number of objects is within a specified range, the number of objects has changed by more than a specified value since the last notification, a certain amount of time has passed since the last notification, etc.

[0058] In step S14, the NEF 11e transmits the subscribe message received from the AF 12 to the SENSING 11n.

[0059] In step S16, SENSING 11n selects a gNB and / or UE to sense the area included in the subscription message. SENSING 11n can make this selection based on AMF 11b or LMF 11m.

[0060] In step S18, sensing processing is performed between SENSING 11n and the selected gNB 3 and UE 2. For example, SENSING 11n sends a sensing execution request to the gNB 3 and UE 2 selected in step S16. The gNB 3 and UE 2 that receive the request periodically send sensing results or sensing signals to SENSING 11n, or send sensing results or sensing signals to SENSING11n whenever an object is sensed. SENSING 11n can obtain sensing results such as what kind of object exists where from this information. Typically, the sensing results include the location of the object, the type of the object, the shape of the object, the moving direction of the object, and the moving speed of the object. The analysis of the sensing results can be performed by gNB 3 and UE 2, by SENSING 11n, or by other entities.

[0061] In step S20, the SENSING 11n counts the number of objects satisfying the specified condition for each object type. In addition, when conditions other than the area are specified as the specified conditions, the count may be performed for each of these conditions.

[0062] When the conditions for sending the trigger are met, SENSING 11n sends the sensed statistical results to AF 12. Specifically, in step S22, SENSING 11n sends a notification message to NEF 11e, based on which, in step S24, NEF 11e sends a notification message to AF 12. The notification message includes, for example, the area information of the sensed object and the number of objects of each object type contained in the area. The notification message is equivalent to the second message in the present disclosure.

[0063] Figure 5 (A)~ Figure 5 (C) shows Figure 2 An example of the information included in a notification message under the conditions shown. Figure 5 (A) shows an example of a message notifying that a total of 6 objects exist in area A, and a message notifying that a total of 5 objects exist in area B. Figure 5 (B) shows an example of a message indicating that there are 6 pedestrians, 2 vehicles, and 1 drone in area A, for a total of 6 objects, and a message indicating that there are 2 pedestrians, 2 vehicles, and 1 drone in area B, for a total of 5 objects. Figure 5 (C) shows an example of a message indicating that, for area C, which is an overlapping area between area A and area B, there are two objects in total, namely, one pedestrian moving from area A to area B and one vehicle moving from area B to area A.

[0064] In addition, in the case where a user terminal or user who has signed a contract for the use of 5G cellular services is designated as a sensing object as a designated condition, in step S20, SENSING 11n determines whether the sensed object is a user terminal or user who has signed a contract. Specifically, SENSING 11n asks AMF 11b or LMF 11m whether there is a user terminal that has signed a service contract at the location of the object obtained from gNB 3 or UE 2. If a response is received that the user terminal exists at the location, it can be determined that the sensed object is a user terminal that has signed a contract for the use of 5G cellular services or a user holding the user terminal. Therefore, SENSING 11n can notify the number of user terminals or users who have signed a contract for the use of 5G cellular services.

[0065] In the above embodiment, SENSING 11n obtains the sensing result from gNB 3A or UE 2A, but it can also obtain the sensing result from other non-3GPP devices such as cameras (including any cameras such as visible light cameras and infrared cameras) and Lidar. There is no particular limitation on how SENSING 11n obtains the sensing result.

[0066] (Implementation Method 2) This embodiment is an information processing system that utilizes the information communication system according to Embodiment 1 to allocate resources to a server.

[0067] Figure 6 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of an information processing system 100 according to the present embodiment. The information processing system 100 includes a resource control unit 110 and a server infrastructure 120. As an example, the information processing system 100 is a system that provides a metaverse application service, and the resources of the server infrastructure 120 are dynamically allocated for processing of various servers.

[0068] Metaverse application service is a service that reproduces the real space in the virtual space. In this embodiment, Figure 6As shown, it is assumed that pedestrians 31, vehicles 32, and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) 33 are service users. In addition, the target area includes area A and area B. In the server base 120, a pedestrian-oriented server 122A, a vehicle-oriented server 123A, and a drone-oriented server 124A are used to process pedestrians, vehicles, and drones in area A, and a pedestrian-oriented server 122B, a vehicle-oriented server 123B, and a drone-oriented server 124B are used to process pedestrians, vehicles, and drones in area B. The amount of resources required for each server depends on the number of service users in each area. Here, it is assumed that all pedestrians, vehicles, and drones in each area are service users. Therefore, the amount of resources required for each server varies according to the number of objects of each type in each area. Calculating and allocating sufficient required resources contributes to efficient resource utilization.

[0069] Figure 7 This is a flowchart showing the flow of processing performed by the information processing system 100 before the provision of the Metaverse application service starts in this embodiment.

[0070] In step S71, the resource control unit 110 uses the method described in Embodiment 1 to query the SENSING 131 for the number of pedestrians, vehicles, and drones in area A and area B, and obtains the number of objects. This request may be a subscription-notification method or a request-response method.

[0071] In step S72, the resource control unit 110 calculates the amount of resources required for each server based on the number of objects in each area and each object type. The resources referred to here are, for example, at least one of computing resources, memory resources, and communication resources. In addition, with respect to objects existing in the overlapping area C, the amount of resources required for both the server for area A and the server for area B can also be used in the calculation. Alternatively, when it is known that the objects existing in the overlapping area C are moving to area A or area B, the amount of resources required for the server in the area of ​​the moving destination can also be used only.

[0072] In step S73 , the resource control unit 110 requests the server infrastructure 120 to allocate the calculated resource amount to each server.

[0073] In step S74, the resource control unit 110 activates each server to start providing services.

[0074] In addition, the resource allocation amount can also be controlled by the same method after the service provision starts. However, the resource amount can also be adjusted after the service provision starts so that a predetermined surplus is generated relative to the currently required resource amount. However, since a sharp increase in objects will lead to a sharp increase in the required resource amount, SENSING 131 can also be used to confirm the increase or decrease of objects after the service provision starts.

[0075] According to this embodiment, the required amount of resources to be prepared on the server side can be understood before the service user connects to the server, so that even at the start of service provision, a sufficient amount of required resources can be ensured.

[0076] (Implementation 3) The present embodiment is an information processing system that utilizes the information communication system according to Embodiment 1 for edge discovery in edge computing (MEC: Multi-access Edge Computing).

[0077] Figure 8 (A) is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information processing system 800 involved in the present embodiment. The information processing system 800 includes a UE 801, a core network 804, an edge data network (EDN) 805, and an edge configuration server (ECS) 808. UE 801 includes an application client (AS) 802 and an edge enabler client (EEC) 803. EDN 805 includes an edge application server (EAS) 806 and an edge enabler server (EES) 807. EAS 806 is registered on EES 807, and EES 807 is registered on ECS 808. EES 807 has functions such as pre-configuration of setting information to EEC 808, registration of EEC 808 and EAS 806, etc. EES 806 has functions such as acquisition of configuration information that enables communication between AC 801 and EAS 806, and discovery of EAS 806. ECS 808 supports the collaboration of EEC 803 and EES 807.

[0078] Figure 8(B) is a diagram illustrating the collaboration between the information processing system 800 and the 5G core 810. ECS 808 uses the method shown in Implementation 1 to request SENSING 811 (11n) included in the 5G core 810 to determine the number of objects existing in the area (service area) near the location where EAS 806 is set. ECS 808 implements EAS discovery that takes into account the number of objects existing near EAS 806. In EAS discovery, the distance and communication delay between UE 801 and EAS 806, and the load of EAS 806 are taken into account. Here, the load of EAS 806 can also be judged based on the number of objects near EAS 806. Alternatively, in addition to the load of EAS 806, EAS discovery can also be implemented by considering the number of objects near EAS 806.

[0079] <Other Modifications> The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and the present disclosure can be implemented with appropriate modifications without departing from the gist of the disclosure.

[0080] In the above embodiment, the data provided and used by the user terminal is the sensory measurement data measured by the user terminal. However, the data provided and used may also be the sensory measurement data measured by a device other than the user terminal, or any data other than the sensory measurement data.

[0081] In the above-mentioned embodiment, data provision to the user terminal is performed by the Subscribe / Notify method, but it may also be performed by the Request / Response method.

[0082] In the above-mentioned embodiment, incentives are given for data provision and charges are requested for data use, but charges for data use may not be requested. In the case where charges are not requested for data use, the generation of CDRs related to data use (step S30) may not be performed, but it is preferred to generate CDRs related to data use in order to give incentives corresponding to data use performance. If only incentives corresponding to data use performance are given, it is not necessary to identify the user terminal that uses the data, so the identifier of the second user terminal may not be included in the data use CDR.

[0083] The present disclosure can also be implemented by providing a computer program that implements the functions described in the above embodiments to a computer and enabling one or more processors of the computer to read and execute the program. Such a computer program can be provided to the computer via a non-temporary computer-readable storage medium that can be connected to the system bus of the computer, or it can be provided to the computer via a network. Non-temporary computer-readable storage media include any type of disks such as disks (floppy disks (registered trademark), hard disk drives (HDDs), etc.), optical disks (CD-ROMs, DVD disks, Blu-ray disks, etc.), read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), EPROMs, EEPROMs, magnetic cards, flash memories, or optical cards that are suitable for storing electronic instructions. Any type of medium. [Explanation of Reference Numerals]

[0084] 2: User terminal (UE) 3: gNB 11n: SENSING (Sensing Function) 12: AF 12 13: BD (Billing Domain)

Claims

1. An information communication system comprising a control unit, wherein the control unit performs the following processing: receiving a first message requesting a number of objects satisfying a specified condition, the specified condition including region information; and In response to receipt of the first message, a second message is sent containing the number of objects that meet the specified condition.

2. The information communication system according to claim 1, wherein: The specified condition includes, in addition to the area information, at least one of a type of object, a shape of the object, and a moving speed of the object.

3. The information communication system according to claim 1, wherein: The first message includes information related to the sending trigger of the second message, The control unit sends the second message when the sending trigger is satisfied, The transmission trigger is one of the number of the objects being within a specified range, the number of the objects changing, and the elapse of a certain period of time.

4. The information communication system according to claim 1, wherein: The area information is an overlapping area where the first area overlaps with the second area, The specified condition includes, in addition to the area information, that the moving direction of the object is from the first area to the second area.

5. The information communication system according to claim 1, wherein: The specified condition includes, in addition to the area information, that the target is a user terminal that has signed a predetermined contract.

6. The information communication system according to claim 1, wherein: The control unit acquires information related to an object sensed by another device, and transmits the second message based on the acquired information.

7. An information processing system comprising a plurality of servers capable of dynamically allocating resources, The information processing system includes a control unit, and the control unit performs the following processing: Sending a first message requesting a number of objects that meet a specified condition, the specified condition including region information; receiving a second message including a number of objects satisfying the specified condition; and Resources corresponding to the number of the objects are allocated to the server corresponding to the area information.

8. The information processing system according to claim 7, wherein: The second message contains the number of objects of each object type, The control unit allocates resources corresponding to the number of objects of each type of the object to the server corresponding to the area information.

9. The information processing system according to claim 7, wherein: The control unit allocates resources based on the second message before provision of services by the information processing system starts.

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