Communication method and related device

Abstract

Disclosed are a communication method and a related device, the communication method comprising: a first core network element receiving a first message sent by a second core network element, the first message comprising identification information of a first terminal and first identification information of a session, the session indicated by the first identification information is used for the second terminal to transmit data to the first terminal; the first core network element obtains terminal context information corresponding to the session according to the identification information of the first terminal; and the first core network element sends a second message to a second core network element, wherein the second message comprises the terminal context information corresponding to the session. The session permission of the terminal equipment can be directly controlled, and the accuracy of performing permission control on the terminal equipment is improved.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application. The application number of the original application is 201980101583.8, and the original application date is October 31, 2019. The entire contents of the original application are incorporated into this application by reference. Technical Field

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and related devices. Background Art

[0003] In the prior art, the multicast data of the set-top box is transmitted through the session established between the home gateway and the mobile network. Since the multicast data needs to be controlled by rights, the existing rights control scheme only controls the rights of the home gateway, resulting in low accuracy of the rights control of the multicast data. Summary of the invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and related apparatus, which can directly control the session authority of a terminal device, thereby improving the accuracy of authority control on the terminal device.

[0005] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, the method comprising:

[0006] The first core network element receives a first message sent by the second core network element, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of a session, where the session indicated by the first identification information is used by the second terminal device to transmit data for the first terminal device;

[0007] The first core network element acquires, according to the identification information of the first terminal, terminal context information corresponding to the session;

[0008] The first core network element sends a second message to the second core network element, where the second message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0009] In the above embodiment, after the first core network network element receives the first message sent by the second core network network element, it obtains the terminal context information of the session indicated by the first identification information based on the identification information of the first terminal included in the message, and sends the terminal context information to the second core network network element through the second message. The terminal context information of the session in which the second terminal transmits data to the first terminal can be directly obtained, thereby realizing permission control over the first terminal and improving the accuracy of permission control over the first terminal.

[0010] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the second message also includes second identification information of the session. The second identification information of the session may be the same as or different from the first identification information. The first identification information may be any identifier that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identifier, an N4 session identifier, an IP address assigned to a PDU session, a policy association identifier (Policy Association ID), or any other information that identifies the session. The second identification information may be any identifier that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identifier, an N4 session identifier, an IP address assigned to a PDU session, a policy association identifier (Policy Association ID), or any other information that identifies the session.

[0011] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the method further includes:

[0012] The first core network element receives terminal context information corresponding to a plurality of terminals from a data network, a unified data management network element or a unified database;

[0013] The data network includes an interactive network television network, an IP multimedia system network, the Internet or other private networks;

[0014] The first core network element acquiring, according to the identification information of the first terminal, terminal context information corresponding to the session, including:

[0015] The first core network element obtains the terminal context information corresponding to the session from the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals according to the identification information of the first terminal.

[0016] In this example, terminal context information corresponding to multiple terminals can be received from a data network, a unified data management network element, or a unified database and can be stored. Terminal context information corresponding to the session can be obtained from the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals. There is no need to obtain terminal context information from the data network, a unified data management network element, or a unified database after each first message is received. Instead, the terminal context information corresponding to the session can be directly obtained from the stored terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals, thereby improving the efficiency of obtaining the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information.

[0017] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the first core network element acquires terminal context information corresponding to the session according to the identification information of the first terminal, including:

[0018] The first core network element sends a third message to a unified data management network element or a unified database, where the third message includes identification information of the first terminal;

[0019] The first core network element receives a fourth message sent by the unified data management network element or the unified database, where the fourth message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0020] In this example, the terminal context information is obtained from the unified data management network element or the unified database by sending a third message to the unified data management network element or the unified database, wherein the third message includes identification information of the first terminal. Therefore, the terminal context information can be obtained from a trusted third party, thereby improving the security and reliability of obtaining the terminal context information.

[0021] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast permission information, service quality information, and policy information.

[0022] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation of the first aspect, the multicast permission information includes permission for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data, wherein the permission for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data is used to indicate whether the first terminal can obtain permission information for multicast data.

[0023] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the first core network element includes a policy control network element; and the second core network element includes a session management function.

[0024] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the first core network element may also include a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0025] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the first terminal includes a set-top box, and the second terminal includes user equipment or a home gateway.

[0026] In combination with the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the session used for the second terminal device to transmit data to the first terminal device includes: the session is a session for the first terminal device to transmit data through the second terminal device.

[0027] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, the method comprising:

[0028] The second core network element sends a first message to the first core network element, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of a session, where the session indicated by the first identification information is used by the second terminal to transmit data for the first terminal;

[0029] The second core network element receives a second message sent by the first core network element, where the second message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session;

[0030] The second core network element sends a fifth message to the third core network element, where the fifth message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session, and the fifth message is used to instruct the third core network element to manage the session based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0031] In the above embodiment, after receiving the second message, the second core network network element sends a third message to the third core network network element. The third message includes terminal context information and instructs the third core network network element to manage the session based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session, thereby realizing the operation of directly managing the terminal session and improving the reliability and accuracy of managing the terminal session.

[0032] In conjunction with the second aspect, in a possible implementation of the second aspect:

[0033] The second core network element receives a session message sent by the second terminal, where the session message includes identification information of the first terminal;

[0034] or,

[0035] The second core network element receives a dynamic host configuration protocol message, where the dynamic host configuration protocol message includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0036] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast permission information, service quality information, and policy information.

[0037] In this example, the identification information of the first terminal can be obtained from the session message or dynamic host configuration protocol message sent by the second terminal, so that the identification information of the first terminal can be obtained by signaling or messaging, which improves the diversity of obtaining the identification information of the first terminal.

[0038] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the multicast permission information includes permission for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data.

[0039] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation of the second aspect, the first core network element includes a policy control network element; the second core network element includes a session management function; and the third core network element includes a user plane function.

[0040] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the first core network network element may also include a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0041] In combination with the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the second aspect, the session used for the second terminal device to transmit data to the first terminal device includes: the session is a session for the first terminal device to transmit data through the second terminal device.

[0042] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a network device, the device comprising:

[0043] A receiving unit, configured to receive a first message sent by a second core network element, wherein the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of a session, and the session indicated by the first identification information is used by the second terminal to transmit data for the first terminal;

[0044] a processing unit, configured to obtain terminal context information corresponding to the session according to the identification information of the first terminal;

[0045] A sending unit is used to send a second message to the second core network element, where the second message includes the terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0046] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation of the third aspect, the second message also includes second identification information of the session. The second identification information of the session may be the same as or different from the first identification information. The first identification information may be any identifier that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identifier, an N4 session identifier, an IP address assigned to a PDU session, a policy association identifier (Policy Association ID), or any other information that identifies the session. The second identification information may be any identifier that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identifier, an N4 session identifier, an IP address assigned to a PDU session, a policy association identifier (Policy Association ID), or any other information that identifies the session.

[0047] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the receiving unit is further used to:

[0048] receiving terminal context information corresponding to a plurality of terminals from a data network, a unified data management network element or a unified database; the data network includes an interactive network television network, an IP multimedia system network, the Internet or other private networks;

[0049] The processing unit is used for:

[0050] The terminal context information corresponding to the session is acquired from the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals according to the identification information of the first terminal.

[0051] In conjunction with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the processing unit is used to:

[0052] Sending a third message to a unified data management network element or a unified database, wherein the third message includes identification information of the first terminal;

[0053] A fourth message sent by the unified data management network element or the unified database is received, where the fourth message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0054] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast permission information, service quality information, and policy information.

[0055] In conjunction with the third aspect, in a possible implementation of the third aspect, the multicast permission information includes permission for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data. The permission for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data is used to indicate whether the first terminal can obtain permission information for multicast data.

[0056] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the first core network element includes a policy control network element; and the second core network element includes a session management function.

[0057] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the first core network network element may also include a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0058] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the first terminal includes a set-top box, and the second terminal includes user equipment or a home gateway.

[0059] In combination with the third aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the session used by the second terminal device to transmit data to the first terminal device includes: the session is a session in which the first terminal device transmits data through the second terminal device.

[0060] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a network device, the device comprising:

[0061] A sending unit, configured to send a first message to a first core network element, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information, and a session indicated by the first identification information is used by a second terminal to transmit data for the first terminal;

[0062] A receiving unit, configured to receive a second message sent by the first core network element, where the second message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session;

[0063] The sending unit is used to send a fifth message to the third core network network element, where the fifth message includes the terminal context information corresponding to the session, and the fifth message is used to instruct the third core network network element to manage the session based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0064] In combination with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the receiving unit is further used to:

[0065] receiving a session message sent by the second terminal, where the session message includes identification information of the first terminal;

[0066] or,

[0067] A dynamic host configuration protocol message is received, where the dynamic host configuration protocol message includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0068] In combination with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast permission information, service quality information, and policy information.

[0069] In conjunction with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the multicast permission information includes permission for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data.

[0070] In combination with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation of the fourth aspect, the first core network element includes a policy control network element; the second core network element includes a session management function; and the third core network element includes a user plane function.

[0071] In combination with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the first core network network element may also include a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0072] In combination with the fourth aspect, in a possible implementation manner of the fourth aspect, the session used by the second terminal device to transmit data to the first terminal device includes: the session is a session in which the first terminal device transmits data through the second terminal device.

[0073] In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes the network device as described in the third aspect and the network device as described in the fourth aspect.

[0074] In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, wherein the computer program includes program instructions, and when the program instructions are executed by a processor, the processor executes part or all of the method of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0075] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including a processor and a memory, wherein:

[0076] The memory is used to store computer program instructions, and the processor is used to execute the computer program instructions, so as to implement part or all of the method of the first aspect.

[0077] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device, including a processor and a memory, wherein:

[0078] The memory is used to store computer program instructions, and the processor is used to execute the computer program instructions, thereby implementing part or all of the method of the second aspect.

[0079] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip system, which includes a processor for supporting a network device to implement part or all of the methods of the first aspect or the second aspect.

[0080] These and other aspects of the present application will become more clearly understood in the description of the following embodiments. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0081] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0082] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0083] Figure 2 A flow chart of a communication method is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] Figure 3 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] Figure 4 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] Figure 5 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0087] Figure 6 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0088] Figure 7 A schematic block diagram of a network device is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] Figure 8 A schematic block diagram of a communication device is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0090] Fig. 9 A schematic block diagram of a network device is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0091] Fig.10 A schematic block diagram of a communication device is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0092] Fig.11 A hardware structure diagram of a communication device is provided for an embodiment of the present application;

[0093] Fig.12 A structural schematic diagram of a chip system is provided for an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0094] The embodiments of the present application are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0095] In order to better understand a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application, the following first briefly introduces a system to which the communication method is applied. Figure 1 , Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system is provided for an embodiment of the present application. Figure 1The system architecture shown not only supports the access of wireless access technologies defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard group (such as the long-term evolution of universal mobile communication technology (LTE), 5G RAN (5G radio access network, 5G access network), next generation radio access network (NG RAN), etc.) to the core network (CN), but also supports non-3GPP (non-3GPP) access technologies to access the core network through non-3GPP interworking function (N3IWF) or next generation access gateway (next generation packet data gateway, ngPDG). Figure 1 As shown in the figure, the system architecture also supports access to fixed networks / wired networks, such as 5G residential gateway (5G RG) / CPE accessing the core network through a wired 5G access network (W-5GAN). In the scenario where the 5G home gateway accesses the 5G core network (the 5th generation core, 5GC) through a wired 5G access network, a 5GC capable user device (5GC capable UE) can access the 5GC through the 5G home gateway. At this time, the 5GC capable user device is a remote device and the 5G home gateway is a relay device. Of course, the 5G home gateway can also be accessed to the system architecture wirelessly.

[0096] The network architecture of the present application is not limited to the 5G network architecture, and can also be a network that includes a multicast rights management function. All networks are applicable to the present application, wherein the network in the network architecture can be a private network, a long-term evolution LTE network, a MulteFire network or a home base station network, or a non-3GPP mobile network such as WIFI access, or a global mobile communication system GSM network, or a GPRS network, or a wideband code division multiple access WCDMA network, or a future 6G network, etc. The access network AN in the network can be an NG RAN, or an AGF or BNG or Wireline AN for fixed network access, or a private network access network, or a Multifire network access, or a non-trusted access N3IWF (Non-3GPP Interworking Function), or a trusted access gateway.

[0097] like Figure 1As shown, the system architecture may include 5G core network (5th generation core, 5GC) capable user equipment, 5G RG, NG RAN equipment, W-5G AN equipment and core network equipment. Among them:

[0098] 5GC capable UE: A user equipment (UE) that has the ability to access the 5G core network (5GC) defined by 3GPP. 5GC capable UE can access the core network through NG RAN or 5G RG. 5GC capable UE can be a handheld terminal, a subscriber unit, a cellular phone, a smartphone, a machine type communication (MTC) terminal device, etc. A wireless data card, a personal digital assistant (PDA) computer, a tablet computer, a wireless modem, a handheld device, a laptop computer, a cordless phone or a wireless local loop (WLL) station, or other devices that can access the network. In addition to 5GC capable UE, the system architecture can also support terminal devices with only 3GPP defined wireless access capabilities to access the core network, and can also support terminal devices with only non-3GPP defined access capabilities (such as tablets) to access the core network.

[0099] 5G RG: is a home gateway that can access 5GC through W-5G AN. In this application, 5G RG can also support 5GC-capable user equipment to access 5GC through 5G RG. The home gateway is the core of the entire home network. It mainly realizes Internet access and connection of heterogeneous subnets within the home, as well as remote control and management functions.

[0100] NG RAN equipment: It is a RAN equipment that is mainly responsible for wireless resource management, quality of service (QoS) management, data compression and encryption on the air interface side. In addition to NG RAN equipment, the system architecture can also support other 3GPP-defined wireless access network equipment, such as 5G RAN equipment. RAN equipment may include: macro base stations, micro base stations (also known as small stations), relay stations, etc. In systems using different wireless access technologies, the names of devices with base station functions may be different. For example, in the fifth generation (5G) system, it is called gNB; in the LTE system, it is called evolved NodeB (eNB or eNodeB); in the third generation (3G) system, it is called Node B, etc.

[0101] Core network equipment can be Figure 1 The following are UPF, AMF, SMF, etc. These core network devices constitute 5GC, which can support 3gpp access network and non-3gpp access network.

[0102] User plane function (UPF): responsible for forwarding and receiving data packets. UPF network elements can receive user data from the data network and transmit it to the terminal device through the access network equipment; UPF network elements can also receive user data from the terminal device through the access network equipment and forward it to the data network. The transmission resources and scheduling functions in the UPF network element that provide services to the terminal device are managed and controlled by the SMF network element. UPF network elements can cache data packets.

[0103] Access and mobility management function (AMF) network element: It belongs to the core network element and is mainly responsible for signaling processing, such as access control, mobility management, attachment and detachment, and gateway selection. When the AMF network element provides services for a session in a terminal device, it will provide control plane storage resources for the session to store the session identifier, the SMF network element identifier associated with the session identifier, etc.

[0104] Session management function (SMF): responsible for user plane network element selection, user plane network element redirection, Internet protocol (IP) address allocation, data transmission channel establishment, modification and release, and QoS control. SMF network elements can cache data packets.

[0105] In addition, the system architecture also includes a data network (DN), which is a network composed of application functions and provides application data servers to terminal devices.

[0106] Unified data management (UDM) network element: Unified data management consists of two parts, one is called the application front end (FE), and the other is called the unified data management network element (UDR). FE can access the subscription user information stored in UDR, and supports authentication credit processing, user identity processing, access authorization, subscription management, short message management, etc. UDR is a user subscription data storage server that provides subscription data storage services.

[0107] Policy control function (PCF) network element: mainly supports providing a unified policy framework to control network behavior, provides policy rules to control layer devices and terminal devices to provide policy information, and is responsible for obtaining user contract information related to policy decisions.

[0108] In order to simplify the drawing, the Unified Data Repository (UDR) and the Network Exposure Function (NEF) in the core network are not shown.

[0109] Figure 1 The naming of the various members in the system architecture shown (such as 5G capable UE, 5G RG, W-5G AN, etc.) may change in future communication standards, which does not affect the applicability of the technical solution provided in this application.

[0110] Figure 1 The system architecture shown is only for more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the present application and does not constitute a limitation of the present application. A person skilled in the art will appreciate that with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solution provided by the present application is also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0111] In the embodiment of the present application, the first terminal can be any terminal that obtains services through the second terminal, such as a set-top box, an electronic key, an ID card, etc.; the second terminal can be any device that can access a mobile network, such as a mobile phone, a computer, a home gateway, a car, etc.

[0112] This application is described using a set-top box as an example. Of course, this application is not only applicable to set-top boxes, but also to any device that requires multicast permission management.

[0113] In the present application, the first core network element includes a policy control network element, the second core network element includes a session management function, a unified data management network element or a unified database, the first terminal includes a set-top box, etc., and the second terminal includes a user device or a home gateway, etc.

[0114] See also Figure 2 , Figure 2 A flow chart of a communication method is provided for an embodiment of the present application. Figure 2 As shown, the communication method includes steps S201-S209, which are as follows:

[0115] S201. The second terminal completes the registration process in the mobile network.

[0116] The specific process of the second terminal registering in the mobile network can refer to the specific registration method in the existing solution, which is not described in detail here. The mobile network can be, for example, a 5G network, a private network, a long-term evolution LTE network, a MulteFire network or a home base station network, or a non-3GPP mobile network such as WIFI access, or a global mobile communication system GSM network, or a GPRS network, or a wideband code division multiple access WCDMA network, or a future 6G network, etc. The mobile network access network AN can be an NG RAN, or an AGF or BNG or Wireline AN for fixed network access, or a private network access network, or a Multifire network access, or a non-trusted access N3IWF (Non-3GPP Interworking Function), or a trusted access gateway.

[0117] S202: The second terminal establishes a PDU session with the mobile network.

[0118] The specific operation of the second terminal to establish a protocol data unit session (PDU session) with the mobile network can refer to the specific PDU session establishment method in the existing solution, which is not described in detail here. After the PDU session is established, the session can be used to obtain service data of the data network, which may include multicast data, etc.

[0119] S203. The first terminal sends an access request message to the second core network element, where the access request message includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0120] The access request message can be sent in the form of a Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) message. When the first terminal sends an access request message to the second core network element, the DHCP access message is sent to the second core network element by forwarding by the second terminal. The identification information of the first terminal is any terminal identification of the first terminal, such as a device identification code, a device physical address, a user name, a VLAN ID, an IP address assigned to the terminal, etc. The first terminal can be, for example, a set-top box, a mobile device, a TV, a computer, an electronic key, an identity card, or any other device connected to the second terminal, and the second terminal can be, for example, a user device, a car, a home gateway, a computer, a mobile phone, a WIFI device, etc.

[0121] S204. The second core network element and the data network complete access message interaction of the first terminal.

[0122] The second core network element completes the DHCP access message interaction of the first terminal with the data network, so that the first terminal can access the data network. The data network includes an interactive network television network (IPTV network), an IP multimedia system network (IMS network), the Internet (Internet network) or other private networks.

[0123] S205. The data network sends an access response message to the first terminal, where the access response message includes address information.

[0124] When the data network sends an access response message to the first terminal, the access response message may be sent to the first terminal by forwarding the second core network element and the second terminal. The address information included in the access response message may be, for example, an IP address.

[0125] S206. The second core network element sends a first message to the first core network element, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of the session.

[0126] The second core network element sends a first message to the first core network element, the first message including identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of the session, for requesting to obtain terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information. The session indicated by the first identification information is used by the second terminal to transmit data for the first terminal, which can be understood as a session in which the first terminal device transmits data through the second terminal device.

[0127] The first identification information may include an identifier of a session established by the second terminal and associated with the first terminal. The associated session may be, for example, a session for multicast data transmission, etc., which may be specifically understood as a PDU session between the second terminal and the data network established for the first terminal in the aforementioned step S202. The session established by the second terminal and associated with the first terminal may be used to transmit data of the first terminal, or may be used to transmit data corresponding to the first terminal. The data of the first terminal may be, for example, multicast data, and the data transmitted corresponding to the first terminal may be, for example, policy information corresponding to the session, etc. The first identification information may be any identifier that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identifier, an N4 session identifier, an IP address assigned to the PDU session, a policy association identifier (Policy Association ID), and at least one of the information that identifies the session.

[0128] The terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast authority information, service quality information, and policy information. The multicast authority information, service quality information, and policy information are used to control the multicast authority of the first terminal.

[0129] S207. The first core network element obtains, according to the identification information of the first terminal, terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information.

[0130] The first core network element may store a mapping relationship between the identification information of the terminal and the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the identification information, and the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information may be acquired according to the mapping relationship.

[0131] The first core network element may also obtain terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information from terminal context information corresponding to multiple terminals, wherein the terminal context information corresponding to multiple terminals may be terminal context information corresponding to multiple terminals received from a data network, a unified data management element, or a unified database.

[0132] The first core network element may also obtain the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information from other core network elements. The other core network elements may be, for example, a unified data management element or a unified database.

[0133] S208. The first core network element sends a second message to the second core network element, where the second message includes terminal context information and second identification information.

[0134] The second identification information may include an identification of a session established by the second terminal and associated with the first terminal. The associated session may be, for example, a session for multicast data transmission, and may be specifically understood as a PDU session between the second terminal and the data network established for the first terminal in the aforementioned step S202. The session established by the second terminal and associated with the first terminal may be used to transmit data of the first terminal, or may be used to transmit data corresponding to the first terminal. The data of the first terminal may be, for example, multicast data, and the data corresponding to the first terminal may be, for example, policy information corresponding to the session.

[0135] The second identification information may be any identification for identifying a session, including at least one of information for identifying a session, such as a PDU session identification, an N4 session identification, an IP address allocated for the PDU session, and a Policy Association ID.

[0136] The second identification information may be the same as or different from the first identification information.

[0137] S209. The second core network element sends a fifth message to the third core network element, where the fifth message includes terminal context information.

[0138] The fifth message is used to instruct the third core network element to manage the session based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session. The session management may be, for example, permission management.

[0139] In the above embodiment, after the first core network network element receives the first message sent by the second core network network element, it obtains the terminal context information of the session indicated by the first identification information according to the identification information of the first terminal included in the message, and sends the terminal context information to the second core network element through the second message. The second core network network element sends the terminal context information to the third core network element, and instructs the third core network element to manage the session based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session, thereby realizing the operation of directly managing the terminal session, thereby improving the reliability and accuracy of managing the terminal session.

[0140] In a possible embodiment, a possible method for a first core network element to obtain terminal context information corresponding to a session according to identification information of a first terminal includes:

[0141] Terminal context information corresponding to multiple terminals is received from a data network, a unified data management network element, or a unified database, and the multiple terminal context information is stored, each of the multiple terminal context information corresponds to a terminal identifier. Then, according to the identifier information of the first terminal, the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identifier information can be obtained from the multiple terminal context information.

[0142] The terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals may be understood as the terminal context information corresponding to each terminal in the multiple terminals.

[0143] In a possible embodiment, another possible method for the first core network element to obtain the terminal context information corresponding to the session according to the identification information of the first terminal includes steps A1-A2, which are specifically as follows:

[0144] A1. The first core network element sends a third message to the unified data management network element or the unified database, where the third message includes identification information of the first terminal;

[0145] A2. The first core network element receives a fourth message sent by the unified data management element or the unified database, where the fourth message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0146] After receiving the third message, the unified data management network element or the unified database obtains the terminal context information corresponding to the identification information of the first terminal according to the identification information of the first terminal, and sends the terminal context information to the first core network network element through the fourth message. Therefore, the first core network network element can obtain the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information from the unified data management network element or the unified database.

[0147] In this example, the first core network element obtains the terminal context information corresponding to the identification information of the first terminal from a trusted third party (a unified data management network element or a unified database), thereby improving the reliability of obtaining the terminal context information.

[0148] See also Figure 3 , Figure 3 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for the embodiment of the present application. Figure 3 As shown, in this embodiment, the first terminal is a set-top box, the second terminal is 5G-RG, the first core network element is PCF, the second core network element is SMF, the third core network element is UPF, and the data network is an IPTV network. The communication method includes steps S301-S309, which are as follows:

[0149] S301. 5G-RG completes the registration process on the mobile network.

[0150] S302. 5G-RG establishes a PDU session with the mobile network.

[0151] After the PDU session is established, the session can be used to obtain IPTV service data, which may specifically include multicast data and the like.

[0152] The specific implementation of steps S301-S302 can refer to the specific implementation of the aforementioned steps S201-S202, which will not be repeated here.

[0153] S303: The set-top box sends an access request message to the SMF, where the access request message includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0154] The access request message can be sent in the form of a DHCP message. When the set-top box sends an access request message to the SMF, the DHCP access message is sent to the SMF by forwarding through 5G-RG, NG-RAN, and UPF. The identification information of the first terminal is the terminal identification of the set-top box.

[0155] S304, SMF and IPTV network complete the access message interaction of the set-top box.

[0156] Among them, SMF and IPTV network complete the DHCP access message interaction of the set-top box, so that the set-top box can access the IPTV network.

[0157] S305. The IPTV network sends an access response message to the set-top box, where the access response message includes address information.

[0158] When the IPTV network sends an access response message to the set-top box, the access response message can be sent to the set-top box by forwarding through SMF, UPF, NG-RAN, and 5G-RG. The address information included in the access response message can be, for example, an IP address.

[0159] S306. The SMF sends a first message to the PCF, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of the session.

[0160] The SMF sends a first message to the PCF, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information, and is used to request to obtain terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information.

[0161] The first identification information may include an identifier of a session associated with the set-top box established by 5G-RG. The associated session may be a session for multicast data transmission, etc., which may be specifically understood as a PDU session between the set-top box and the IPTV network established by 5G-RG for the set-top box in the aforementioned step S202. The session associated with the set-top box established by 5G-RG may be used to transmit data of the set-top box, or may be used to transmit data corresponding to the set-top box. The first identification information may be any identifier that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identifier, an N4 session identifier, an IP address assigned to the PDU session, a policy association identifier (PolicyAssociation ID), and at least one of the information that identifies the session.

[0162] The terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast permission information, service quality information, and policy information. The multicast permission information, service quality information, and policy information are used to control the multicast permission of the set-top box. Among them, the multicast permission information is used to indicate whether the first terminal can obtain permission information for multicast data.

[0163] S307: The PCF obtains terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information according to the identification information of the first terminal.

[0164] The PCF may store a mapping relationship between the identification information of the terminal and the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the identification information, and the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information may be acquired according to the mapping relationship.

[0165] The PCF may also obtain the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information from the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals, wherein the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals may be the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals received from a data network, a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0166] The PCF may also obtain the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information from other core network elements. For example, the other core network elements may be a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0167] The above-mentioned method of acquiring the terminal context information may refer to the specific implementation method of acquiring the terminal context information by the first terminal device in the above-mentioned embodiment, which will not be described in detail here.

[0168] S308. The PCF sends a second message to the SMF, where the second message includes the terminal context information and the second identification information.

[0169] The second identification information may include an identifier of a session associated with the set-top box established by 5G-RG. The associated session may be, for example, a session for multicast data transmission, etc., which may be specifically understood as a PDU session between the set-top box and the IPTV network established by 5G-RG in the aforementioned step S302. The session associated with the set-top box established by 5G-RG may be used to transmit data of the set-top box, or may be used to transmit data corresponding to the set-top box. The data transmitted to the set-top box may be, for example, multicast data, and the data transmitted corresponding to the set-top box may be, for example, policy information corresponding to the session. The second identification information includes: at least one of the information identifying the session, such as a PDU session identifier, an N4 session identifier, an IP address assigned to the PDU session, and a policy association identifier (Policy Association ID).

[0170] The second identification information and the first identification information may be the same identification or different identifications.

[0171] S309. SMF sends a fifth message to UPF, where the fifth message includes terminal context information.

[0172] The fifth message is used to instruct the UPF to manage the session indicated by the first identification information based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session. The operation of managing the session may be, for example, permission management.

[0173] In this example, the PCF completes the operation of obtaining the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information, can directly obtain the terminal context information, and send the terminal context information to the UPF. The UPF can perform permission control on the set-top box, thereby improving the accuracy of permission control on the set-top box.

[0174] See also Figure 4 , Figure 4 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for the embodiment of the present application. Figure 4 As shown, in this embodiment, the first terminal is a set-top box, the second terminal is 5G-RG, the first core network element is PCF, the second core network element is SMF, the third core network element is UPF, and the data network is an IPTV network. The communication method includes steps S401-S409, which are as follows:

[0175] S401. 5G-RG completes the registration operation in the mobile network.

[0176] S402. 5G-RG establishes a PDU session with the mobile network.

[0177] S403: The set-top box sends an access request message to the SMF, where the access request message includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0178] S404: SMF and the IPTV network complete the access message interaction of the set-top box.

[0179] S405. The IPTV network sends an access response message to the set-top box, where the access response message includes address information.

[0180] S406. The SMF sends a first message to the PCF, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of the session.

[0181] The above steps S401-S406 can refer to the specific implementation of the above steps S301-S306, which will not be repeated here.

[0182] S407. The PCF sends a third message to the UDR, where the third message includes the identification information of the first terminal and the first identification information.

[0183] S408. The UDR sends a fourth message to the PCF, where the fourth message includes terminal context information.

[0184] The UDR may store a mapping relationship between the identification information of the terminal and the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the identification information, and the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information may be acquired according to the mapping relationship.

[0185] In a possible implementation, the UDR may also obtain the terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information from other network elements. The other network elements may be core network elements or other network elements, which are not specifically limited here.

[0186] S409: The PCF sends a second message to the SMF, where the second message includes the terminal context information and the second identification information.

[0187] The second identification information may include an identification of a session associated with the set-top box established by the 5G-RG. The associated session may be, for example, a session for multicast data transmission, etc., which may be specifically understood as a PDU session between the IPTV network and the set-top box established by the 5G-RG for the set-top box in the aforementioned step S402. The session associated with the set-top box established by the 5G-RG may be used to transmit data of the set-top box, or may be used to transmit data corresponding to the set-top box. The data transmitted to the set-top box may be, for example, multicast data, and the data transmitted corresponding to the set-top box may be, for example, policy information corresponding to the session.

[0188] S410. SMF sends a fifth message to UPF, where the fifth message includes terminal context information.

[0189] Steps S409 and S410 may refer to the specific implementation of the aforementioned steps S308 and S309, which will not be repeated here.

[0190] In this example, after receiving the first message, the PCF sends a third message to the UDR so that the PCF obtains the terminal context information from the UDR, and thus can obtain the terminal context information from a trusted third party (UDR), thereby improving the reliability and security of obtaining the terminal context information.

[0191] See also Figure 5 , Figure 5 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for the embodiment of the present application. Figure 5As shown, in this embodiment, the first terminal is a set-top box, the second terminal is 5G-RG, the first core network element is PCF, the second core network element is SMF, the third core network element is UPF, and the data network is an IPTV network. The communication method includes steps S501-S509, which are as follows:

[0192] S501. 5G-RG completes the registration operation in the mobile network.

[0193] S502. 5G-RG sends a PDU session establishment request to AMF, where the PDU session establishment request includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0194] Among them, 5G-RG can obtain the identification information of the first terminal in advance through other methods. For example, the identification information of the first terminal can be obtained when the first terminal device applies for access to 5G-RG, or the identification information of the first terminal can be obtained by receiving the input identification information of the first terminal. Of course, the identification information of the first terminal can also be obtained through other methods, which are not specifically limited here.

[0195] S503. AMF sends a PDU session establishment request to SMF, where the PDU session establishment request includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0196] S504. SMF sends a PDU session establishment response to AMF.

[0197] S505. The SMF sends a first message to the PCF, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of the session.

[0198] There is no execution order between step S504 and step S505, that is, it can be understood that step S504 can be executed before step S505, step S504 can be executed simultaneously with step S505, or step S505 can be executed after step S505.

[0199] The first identification information may be an identifier of the PDU session.

[0200] S506: The PCF obtains terminal context information corresponding to the session indicated by the first identification information according to the identification information of the first terminal.

[0201] S507: The PCF sends a second message to the SMF, where the second message includes the terminal context information and the second identification information.

[0202] S508. SMF sends a fifth message to UPF, where the fifth message includes terminal context information.

[0203] The above steps S506-S508 can refer to the specific implementation of the above steps S307-S309, which will not be repeated here.

[0204] In this example, when the 5G-RG (second terminal device) establishes a PDU session for the first terminal device (set-top box), the PDU session establishment request includes the identification information of the first terminal, and after the SMF receives the identification information of the first terminal, the SMF sends a first message to the PCF to obtain the terminal context information. The terminal context information can be obtained when the PDU session is established, and the terminal context information can be obtained before the first terminal sends an access request message to the data network, thereby improving the efficiency of obtaining the terminal context information.

[0205] See also Figure 6 , Figure 6 A flow chart of another communication method is provided for the embodiment of the present application. Figure 6 As shown, in this embodiment, the first terminal is a set-top box, the second terminal is 5G-RG, the first core network element is PCF, the second core network element is SMF, the third core network element is UPF, and the data network is an IPTV network. The communication method includes steps S601-S608, which are as follows:

[0206] S601. 5G-RG completes the registration process on the mobile network.

[0207] S602. 5G-RG establishes a PDU session with the mobile network.

[0208] S603: The set-top box sends an access request message to the SMF, where the access request message includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0209] S604: The SMF and the IPTV network complete the access message interaction of the set-top box.

[0210] S605: The IPTV network sends an access response message to the set-top box, where the access response message includes address information.

[0211] The specific implementation of the above steps S601-S605 can refer to the specific implementation of steps S301-S305, which will not be repeated here.

[0212] S606: The IPTV network determines the terminal context information according to the address information.

[0213] The IPTV network obtains the terminal context information of the terminal indicated by the address information according to the address information. Specifically, for example, the terminal context information may be obtained according to the session authority information owned by the terminal device indicated by the address information.

[0214] The IPTV network can receive access request messages sent by multiple terminals, and thus can determine the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals.

[0215] S607: The IPTV network sends multiple terminal context information and corresponding terminal identifiers to the PCF.

[0216] The multiple terminal context information and the terminal identification correspond to each other one by one. The terminal identification is the identification information of the first terminal, and the first terminal here can be multiple terminals. The terminal identification can be understood as the identification information of the terminal.

[0217] When the IPTV network sends multiple terminal context information and corresponding terminal identifiers to the PCF, it can send them to the PCF through NEF and UDR forwarding.

[0218] S608. The PCF sends multiple terminal context information and corresponding terminal identifiers to the UPF.

[0219] After receiving multiple terminal context information and corresponding terminal identifiers, the UPF performs session management on the terminals indicated by the corresponding terminal identifiers based on the multiple terminal context information.

[0220] PCF sends multiple terminal context information and corresponding terminal identifiers to UPF, which can be sent to UPF via SMF forwarding.

[0221] In this example, after the first terminal is registered, the IPTV network determines the corresponding terminal context information based on the address information of the first terminal, and sends multiple terminal context information to the PCF. The PCF then sends the multiple terminal context information and the corresponding terminal identifier to the UPF. The UPF performs session management on the terminal indicated by the corresponding terminal identifier based on the multiple terminal context information, so that multiple terminal context information can be sent to the UPF at the same time, thereby improving the efficiency of sending the terminal context information.

[0222] Figure 7 A schematic block diagram of a network device is provided for an embodiment of the present application. The network device 700 includes: a receiving unit, a processing unit and a sending unit, wherein:

[0223] The receiving unit 710 is configured to receive a first message sent by a second core network element, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of a session, and the session indicated by the first identification information is used by the second terminal to transmit data for the first terminal;

[0224] The processing unit 720 is configured to obtain terminal context information corresponding to the session according to the identification information of the first terminal;

[0225] The sending unit 730 is configured to send a second message to a second core network element, where the second message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0226] In a possible embodiment, the second message also includes second identification information of the session. The second identification information of the session may be the same as or different from the first identification information. The first identification information may be any identification that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identification, an N4 session identification, an IP address assigned to a PDU session, a policy association identification (PolicyAssociation ID), or any other information that identifies the session. The second identification information may be any identification that identifies the session, including: a PDU session identification, an N4 session identification, an IP address assigned to a PDU session, a policy association identification (PolicyAssociation ID), or any other information that identifies the session.

[0227] In a possible embodiment, the receiving unit 710 is further configured to:

[0228] receiving terminal context information corresponding to a plurality of terminals from a data network, a unified data management network element or a unified database;

[0229] The processing unit is used to:

[0230] The terminal context information corresponding to the session is acquired from the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals according to the identification information of the first terminal.

[0231] In a possible embodiment, the processing unit 720 is configured to:

[0232] Sending a third message to the unified data management network element or the unified database, where the third message includes identification information of the first terminal;

[0233] A fourth message sent by the unified data management network element or the unified database is received, where the fourth message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0234] In a possible embodiment, the terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast authority information, quality of service information, and policy information.

[0235] In a possible embodiment, the multicast authority information includes authority for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data.

[0236] In a possible embodiment, the first core network element includes a policy control network element; and the second core network element includes a session management function.

[0237] In a possible embodiment, the first core network element may further include a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0238] In a possible embodiment, the first terminal includes a set-top box, and the second terminal includes user equipment or a home gateway.

[0239] In a possible implementation manner, the session used by the second terminal device to transmit data to the first terminal device includes: the session is a session in which the first terminal device transmits data via the second terminal device.

[0240] like Figure 8 As shown, the embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device 800, which includes a processor 810, a memory 820 and a transceiver 830, wherein the memory 820 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 810 is used to execute the instructions or programs stored in the memory 820. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 820 are executed, the processor 810 is used to execute the operations performed by the processing unit 720 in the above embodiment, and the transceiver 830 is used to execute the operations performed by the receiving unit 710 or the sending unit 730 in the above embodiment.

[0241] It should be understood that the network device 700 or the communication device 800 according to the embodiment of the present application may correspond to the first core network device in the communication method of the embodiment of the present application, and the operations and / or functions of each module in the network device 700 or the communication device 800 are respectively to implement Figures 2 to 6 For the sake of brevity, the corresponding processes of each method in are not repeated here.

[0242] like Fig. 9 As shown, it is a schematic block diagram of a network device provided in an embodiment of the present application, the network device 900 includes: a sending unit 910 and a receiving unit 920, wherein:

[0243] A sending unit 910 is configured to send a first message to a first core network element, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of a session, and the session indicated by the first identification information is used by the second terminal to transmit data for the first terminal;

[0244] A receiving unit 920 is configured to receive a second message sent by a first core network element, where the second message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session;

[0245] The sending unit 910 is used to send a fifth message to the third core network element, where the fifth message includes the terminal context information corresponding to the session, and the fifth message is used to instruct the third core network element to manage the session based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session.

[0246] In a possible embodiment, the receiving unit 920 is further configured to:

[0247] receiving a session message sent by the second terminal, where the session message includes identification information of the first terminal;

[0248] or,

[0249] A DHCP message is received, where the DHCP message includes identification information of the first terminal.

[0250] In a possible embodiment, the terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast authority information, quality of service information, and policy information.

[0251] In a possible embodiment, the multicast authority information includes authority for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data.

[0252] In a possible embodiment, the first core network element includes a policy control network element; the second core network element includes a session management function; and the third core network element includes a user plane function.

[0253] In a possible embodiment, the first core network element may further include a unified data management network element or a unified database.

[0254] In a possible implementation manner, the session used by the second terminal device to transmit data to the first terminal device includes: the session is a session in which the first terminal device transmits data via the second terminal device.

[0255] like Fig.10 As shown, the embodiment of the present application further provides a communication device 1000, which includes a processor 1010, a memory 1020 and a transceiver 1030, wherein the memory 1020 stores instructions or programs, and the processor 1010 is used to execute the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1020. When the instructions or programs stored in the memory 1020 are executed, the transceiver 1030 is used to perform the operations performed by the receiving unit 910 or the sending unit 920 in the above embodiment.

[0256] It should be understood that the network device 900 or the communication device 1000 according to the embodiment of the present application may correspond to the second core network device in the communication method of the embodiment of the present application, and the operations and / or functions of each module in the network device 900 or the communication device 1000 are respectively to implement Figures 2 to 6 For the sake of brevity, the corresponding processes of each method in are not repeated here.

[0257] An embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium on which a computer program is stored. When the program is executed by a processor, it can implement the process related to the communication device in the communication method provided in the above method embodiment.

[0258] Fig.11A hardware structure diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application is provided. The communication device includes a processor, and may also include a receiver, a transmitter, and a memory. The receiver, the transmitter, the memory, and the processor are interconnected via a bus.

[0259] The memory includes, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or portable read-only memory (CD-ROM), which is used for related instructions and data.

[0260] The receiver is used to receive data and / or signals, and the transmitter is used to send data and / or signals. The transmitter and the receiver can be independent devices or an integrated device.

[0261] The processor may include one or more processors, for example, one or more central processing units (CPUs). When the processor is a CPU, the CPU may be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

[0262] The memory is used to store program codes and data of the network device.

[0263] The processor is used to call the program code and data in the memory to execute the steps in the above method embodiment. For details, please refer to the description in the method embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

[0264] Understandably, Fig.11 Only a simplified design of the communication device is shown. In practical applications, the communication device may also include other necessary components, including but not limited to any number of transceivers, processors, controllers, memories, etc., and all communication devices that can implement the embodiments of the present invention are within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0265] It should be understood that Fig.11 The communication device in the embodiment of the present application may correspond to the first core network device or the second core network device in the communication method, and the operations and / or functions of each module in the communication device are respectively to implement Figures 2 to 6 For the sake of brevity, the corresponding processes of each method in are not repeated here.

[0266] See also Fig.12 , Fig.12The present invention provides a schematic diagram of the structure of a chip system provided by the present invention. Fig.12 As shown, the chip system 1200 may include: a processor 1210, and one or more interfaces 1220 coupled to the processor 1210. Exemplary:

[0267] The processor 1210 can be used to read and execute computer-readable instructions. In a specific implementation, the processor 1210 may mainly include a controller, an arithmetic unit and a register. Exemplarily, the controller is mainly responsible for instruction decoding and sends control signals for operations corresponding to the instructions. The arithmetic unit is mainly responsible for performing fixed-point or floating-point arithmetic operations, shift operations, and logical operations, etc., and may also perform address operations and conversions. The register is mainly responsible for storing register operands and intermediate operation results temporarily stored during the execution of instructions. In a specific implementation, the hardware architecture of the processor 1210 may be an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC) architecture, a microprocessor without interlocked piped stages architecture (MIPS) architecture, an advanced RISC machines (ARM) architecture or an NP architecture, etc. The processor 1210 may be single-core or multi-core.

[0268] Exemplarily, the interface 1220 can be used to input data to be processed to the processor 1210, and can output the processing results of the processor 1210. In a specific implementation, the interface 1220 can be a general purpose input output (GPIO) interface. The interface 1220 is connected to the processor 1210 via the bus 1230.

[0269] In a possible implementation, the processor 1210 may be used to call from the memory an implementation program or data of the communication method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application on the network device side, so that the chip can implement the aforementioned Figures 2 to 6 The method shown. The memory can be integrated with the processor 1210, or it can be coupled to the communication chip 1200 through the interface 1220, that is, the memory can be a part of the chip system 1200 (for example, a communication chip), or it can be independent of the chip system 1200. The interface 1220 can be used to output the execution result of the processor 1210. In the present application, the interface 1220 can be specifically used to output the decoding result of the processor 1210. Regarding the communication method provided in one or more embodiments of the present application, reference can be made to the aforementioned embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0270] It should be noted that the functions corresponding to the processor 1210 and the interface 1220 can be implemented through hardware design, software design, or a combination of hardware and software, and there is no limitation here.

[0271] It should also be understood that the memory mentioned in the embodiments of the present application may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory may be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), sync link DRAM (SLDRAM) and direct memory bus random access memory (DirectRambus RAM, DR RAM).

[0272] It should be noted that when the processor is a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA or other programmable logic device, transistor logic device, discrete hardware component, the memory (storage module) is integrated in the processor.

[0273] The embodiment of the present application also provides a communication system, the communication system includes the network device provided in the above embodiment, and is used to execute Figures 2 to 6 The corresponding process of each method in .

[0274] 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.

[0275] In the above embodiments, the description of each embodiment has its own emphasis. For parts that are not described in detail in a certain embodiment, reference can be made to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments.

[0276] In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed device can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only schematic, such as the division of units, which is only a logical function division. There may be other division methods in actual implementation, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, and the indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units can be electrical or other forms.

[0277] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0278] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present invention may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated unit may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of software functional units.

[0279] If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer-readable memory. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present invention, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a memory, including several instructions for a computer device (which can be a personal computer, server or network device, etc.) to perform all or part of the steps of the methods of each embodiment of the present invention. The aforementioned memory includes: U disk, read-only memory (ROM, Read-Only Memory), random access memory (RAM, Random Access Memory), mobile hard disk, magnetic disk or optical disk and other media that can store program codes.

[0280] A person skilled in the art can understand that all or part of the steps in the various methods of the above embodiments can be completed by instructing related hardware through a program, and the program can be stored in a computer-readable memory, and the memory can include: a flash drive, a read-only memory (English: Read-Only Memory, abbreviated as: ROM), a random access memory (English: Random Access Memory, abbreviated as: RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, etc.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that: The method comprises: The second core network network element sends a first message to the first core network network element; The first core network element receives the first message, where the first message includes identification information of the first terminal and first identification information of a session, where the session indicated by the first identification information is used for a second terminal to transmit data for the first terminal, where the first terminal is any terminal that obtains a service through the second terminal, and where the second terminal is any device that accesses a mobile network; The first core network element acquires, according to the identification information of the first terminal, terminal context information corresponding to the session; The first core network element sends a second message to the second core network element, where the second message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session, and the terminal context information includes at least one of the following information corresponding to the first terminal: multicast permission information, service quality information, and policy information; The second core network element receives the second message; The first core network element acquiring, according to the identification information of the first terminal, terminal context information corresponding to the session, including: The first core network element sends a third message to a unified data management network element or a unified database, where the third message includes identification information of the first terminal; The first core network element receives a fourth message sent by the unified data management network element or the unified database, where the fourth message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session; The second core network element sends a fifth message to the third core network element, where the fifth message includes terminal context information corresponding to the session, and the fifth message is used to instruct the third core network element to manage the session based on the terminal context information corresponding to the session.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The second message also includes second identification information of the session.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The first core network element receives terminal context information corresponding to a plurality of terminals from a data network, a unified data management network element or a unified database; The first core network element acquiring, according to the identification information of the first terminal, terminal context information corresponding to the session, including: The first core network element obtains the terminal context information corresponding to the session from the terminal context information corresponding to the multiple terminals according to the identification information of the first terminal.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The multicast authority information includes authority for the first terminal to obtain multicast channel data.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that: The first core network element includes a policy control network element; the second core network element includes a session management function.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The first terminal includes a set-top box, and the second terminal includes user equipment or a home gateway.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: The method further comprises: The second core network element receives a session message sent by the second terminal, where the session message includes identification information of the first terminal; or, The second core network element receives a dynamic host configuration protocol message, where the dynamic host configuration protocol message includes identification information of the first terminal.

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