Data transmission method and device

Abstract

The invention provides a data transmission method and device, and relates to the technical field of communication. The core network equipment can more reasonably schedule the network slices, and the utilization rate of network resources is improved. The method comprises: when it is determined that a preset condition is satisfied, first information is sent to a terminal device, the first information is used for indicating to open a first network slice and / or close a second network slice, and the preset condition is related to a load and / or a network condition of a core network device; and receiving service data from the terminal equipment based on the first information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a data transmission method and apparatus. Background Art

[0002] The types of terminal devices and the services provided by terminal devices are increasing. For different types of services, it is difficult to meet the diverse service requirements of terminal devices if the same network is used to provide services for them. Therefore, providing differentiated network services for different services through network slicing technology is one of the important ways to improve network quality currently.

[0003] Network slicing is a way of networking on demand, which allows operators to cut out multiple virtual end-to-end networks on the unified infrastructure. Each network slice is logically isolated from the radio access network to the bearer network and then to the core network, and adapts to various types of service applications. However, the core network device has a single scheduling method for network slices, which may result in low utilization rate of network resources.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need to provide a method at present to enable the core network device to schedule network slices more reasonably and improve the utilization rate of network resources. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a data transmission method and apparatus, which can enable the core network device to schedule network slices more reasonably and improve the utilization rate of network resources.

[0006] In a first aspect, a data transmission method is provided, including: when it is determined that a preset condition is satisfied, sending first information to a terminal device, where the first information is used to indicate to activate a first network slice and / or deactivate a second network slice, and the preset condition is related to the load of the core network device and / or the network condition; based on the first information, receiving service data from the terminal device.

[0007] In the data transmission method of this application, the core network device can activate the first network slice and / or deactivate the second network slice based on network load, core network device load, etc. For example, when the network load is large, the network slice corresponding to an application program with high requirements for bandwidth and delay can be deactivated, and / or, an application program with low requirements for bandwidth and delay can be activated; when the load of the core network device is large, for example, when the memory occupancy rate is too high, all network slices can be deactivated. This can enable the core network device to more reasonably instruct the terminal device to activate or deactivate a certain type of network slice through the access network device according to the network condition, core network device load, etc., making the scheduling of network slices by the core network device more reasonable and helping to improve the utilization rate of network resources.

[0008] It should be understood that the load of the core network device may include, for example, the occupancy rate of the following processor resources and / or the occupancy rate of memory resources, etc. The network conditions may include, for example, one or more of the following: the network resource occupancy rate, the ratio of the number of users accessing the second network slice to the saturation value, the disconnection rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice, the packet loss rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice, or the network latency of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice, etc.

[0009] Combined with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the first information is used to indicate to close the second network slice, and the preset conditions include one or more of the following: the occupancy rate of the processor resources is greater than or equal to a first preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the memory resources is greater than or equal to a second preset threshold; the network resource occupancy rate is greater than or equal to a third preset threshold; the ratio of the number of users accessing the second network slice to the saturation value is greater than or equal to a fourth preset threshold; the disconnection rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a fifth preset threshold; the packet loss rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a sixth preset threshold; or, the network latency of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a seventh preset threshold.

[0010] In this way, when the load of the core network device is large, and / or, when the network resource load is large, it can be indicated to close the second network slice. Thereby, the network resources will no longer be overly concentrated on serving the application programs for the second network slice, which helps to balance the distribution of network resources and makes the scheduling of network resources by the core network device more reasonable. When the ratio of the number of users accessing the second network slice to the saturation value is too large, and / or, when the disconnection rate, packet loss rate, and / or network latency of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice are large, it can also make the network resources no longer be overly concentrated on serving the application programs for the second network slice, so that the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice can utilize more network resources, which helps to balance the distribution of network resources.

[0011] Combined with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the method further includes: receiving information from the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice for indicating network data, where the network data includes one or more of the following: disconnection rate, packet loss rate, or network latency.

[0012] Combined with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the first information is used to indicate to open the first network slice, and the preset conditions include one or more of the following: the occupancy rate of the processor resources is less than or equal to an eighth preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the memory resources is less than or equal to a ninth preset threshold; the network resource occupancy rate is less than or equal to a tenth preset threshold.

[0013] In this way, when the load of the core network device is small and / or when the load of network resources is small, the core network device may indicate to activate the first network slice. The first network slice may be all or part of the network slices. For example, it may be for starting game applications, audio and video applications, etc. This helps to meet the differentiated requirements of services and improve the utilization rate of network resources.

[0014] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the first network slice and / or the second network slice is one or more of the following: an uplink network slice, a downlink network slice, a network slice serving a first application, a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, or a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold.

[0015] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the method further includes: sending second information to the terminal device, where the second information is used to indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice. In this way, the core network device can determine the network slice that needs to be closed or activated according to the network situation, the load of the core network device, etc., and then indicate the type of the network slice through the second information.

[0016] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the first information and / or the second information satisfies one of the following: the first information is broadcast; or, the first information is carried in a first request, where the first request is used to request to modify a session; or, the first information is carried in a second request, where the second request is used to request to deregister a session.

[0017] Among them, the first request may be understood as a policy control update notification request, and the second request may be understood as a deregistration request.

[0018] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the method further includes: receiving a third request from the terminal device, where the third request is used to request to activate the first network slice and / or close the second network slice; sending first information to the terminal device, including: in response to the third request, sending the first information to the terminal device. The terminal device can request the core network device to activate or close the network slice according to user needs, which can improve the user experience.

[0019] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementation manners of the first aspect, the first information is used to indicate to activate the first network slice, the service data is the data generated by the operation of the first application, the service data is transmitted through a first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice, and the first network slice matches the first application.

[0020] In this way, the terminal device can use the first PDU session dedicated to the first application to transmit the service data, which helps to meet the differentiated requirements of services and improve the utilization rate of network resources.

[0021] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the first information is used to indicate the closing of the second network slice, the service data is transmitted through the second PDU session, and the second PDU session is the default PDU session.

[0022] In this way, in cases where the core network device has a large load and / or the network has a large load, etc., the terminal device can use the default PDU session to transmit service data, so that network resources are not overly unevenly distributed.

[0023] In a second aspect, another data transmission method is provided, including: receiving first information from a core network device, the first information being used to indicate the opening of a first network slice and / or the closing of a second network slice; and based on the first information, sending service data to the core network device.

[0024] In combination with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first network slice and / or the second network slice are one or more of the following: an uplink network slice, a downlink network slice, a network slice serving a first application, a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, or a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold.

[0025] In combination with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: receiving second information from the core network device, the second information being used to indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice.

[0026] In combination with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first information satisfies one of the following: the first information is broadcast; or, the first information is carried in a first request for requesting modification of a session; or, the first information is carried in a second request for requesting deregistration of a session.

[0027] In combination with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the method further includes: sending a third request to the core network device, the third request being used to request the opening of the first network slice and / or the closing of the second network slice.

[0028] In combination with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first information is used to indicate the opening of the first network slice; sending service data to the core network device includes: using a first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice to send service data to the core network device, the service data being data generated by the operation of the first application, and the first network slice matching the first application.

[0029] In combination with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the first information is used to indicate the closing of the second network slice; sending service data to the core network device includes: using the second PDU session to transmit service data, and the second PDU session is the default PDU session.

[0030] In a third aspect, a data transmission device is provided for performing the method in any possible implementation of the above first aspect and second aspect. Specifically, the device includes modules for performing the method in any possible implementation of the above first aspect and second aspect.

[0031] In a fourth aspect, the present application provides another data transmission device, including a processor coupled to a memory and capable of executing instructions in the memory to implement the method in any possible implementation of the above first aspect and second aspect. Optionally, the device further includes a memory. Optionally, the device further includes a communication interface, and the processor is coupled to the communication interface.

[0032] In one implementation, the device is a terminal device. When the device is a terminal device, the above communication interface may be a transceiver or an input / output interface.

[0033] In another implementation, the device is a chip configured in a terminal device. When the device is a chip configured in a terminal device, the above communication interface may be an input / output interface.

[0034] In one implementation, the device is a core network device. When the device is a core network device, the above communication interface may be a transceiver or an input / output interface.

[0035] In another implementation, the device is a chip configured in a core network device. When the device is a chip configured in a core network device, the above communication interface may be an input / output interface.

[0036] In a fifth aspect, a processor is provided, including: an input circuit, an output circuit, and a processing circuit. The processing circuit is used to receive a signal through the input circuit and transmit a signal through the output circuit, so that the processor executes the method in any possible implementation of the above first aspect and second aspect.

[0037] In a specific implementation process, the above processor may be a chip, the input circuit may be an input pin, the output circuit may be an output pin, and the processing circuit may be transistors, gate circuits, flip-flops, and various logic circuits, etc. The input signal received by the input circuit may be received and input by, for example, but not limited to, a receiver, and the signal output by the output circuit may be output to, for example, but not limited to, a transmitter and transmitted by the transmitter, and the input circuit and the output circuit may be the same circuit, which serves as the input circuit and the output circuit at different times. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific implementation manners of the processor and various circuits.

[0038] In a sixth aspect, a processing device is provided, including a processor and a memory. The processor is configured to read instructions stored in the memory, and can receive signals through a receiver and transmit signals through a transmitter to execute the method in any one of the possible implementation manners in the above first aspect and second aspect.

[0039] Optionally, there is one or more processors, and there is one or more memories.

[0040] Optionally, the memory may be integrated with the processor, or the memory and the processor are separately arranged.

[0041] In a specific implementation process, the memory may be a non-transitory memory, such as a read only memory (ROM), which may be integrated with the processor on the same chip or may be separately arranged on different chips. The present application does not limit the type of the memory and the arrangement manner of the memory and the processor.

[0042] It should be understood that relevant data interaction processes, such as sending indication information, may be a process of outputting indication information from the processor, and receiving capability information may be a process of the processor receiving input capability information. Specifically, the processed output data may be output to the transmitter, and the input data received by the processor may come from the receiver. Among them, the transmitter and the receiver may be collectively referred to as a transceiver.

[0043] The processing device in the above sixth aspect may be a chip. The processor may be implemented by hardware or by software. When implemented by hardware, the processor may be a logic circuit, an integrated circuit, etc.; when implemented by software, the processor may be a general-purpose processor, which is implemented by reading software code stored in the memory. The memory may be integrated in the processor or may be located outside the processor and exist independently.

[0044] In a seventh aspect, a computer program product is provided. The computer program product includes: a computer program (which may also be referred to as code or instruction). When the computer program is run, it causes a computer to execute the method in any one of the possible implementation manners in the above first aspect and second aspect.

[0045] In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided. The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program (which may also be referred to as code or instruction). When it runs on a computer, it causes the computer to execute the method in any one of the possible implementation manners in the above first aspect and second aspect. Description of the Drawings

[0046] Figure 1Schematic diagram of a communication system applied to an embodiment of this application;

[0047] Figure 2 Schematic diagram of a scenario applicable to the method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0048] Figure 3 Flow schematic diagram of the data transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0049] Figure 4 Flow schematic diagram of a method for a core network device to send a first message and / or a second message to a terminal device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0050] Figure 5 Flow schematic diagram of another method for a core network device to send a first message and / or a second message to a terminal device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0051] Figure 6 Flow schematic diagram of a PDU session establishment method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0052] Figure 7 Schematic block diagram of a data transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0053] Figure 8 Schematic block diagram of another data transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed implementation manners

[0054] Next, the technical solutions in this application will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0055] In some embodiments provided in this application, terms such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish identical or similar items with basically the same function and role. For example, the first value and the second value are only used to distinguish different values, and do not limit their order. Those skilled in the art can understand that terms such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity and execution order, and terms such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily limit being different.

[0056] It should be noted that in the embodiments of this application, words such as "exemplarily" or "for example" are used to represent examples, illustrations or explanations. Any embodiment or design solution described as "exemplarily" or "for example" in this application should not be construed as being more preferred or having more advantages than other embodiments or design solutions. Exactly speaking, using words such as "exemplarily" or "for example" aims to present relevant concepts in a specific manner.

[0057] In the embodiments of the present application, "at least one" means one or more, and "a plurality" means two or more. "And / or" describes the association relationship of associated objects and indicates that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent the cases of: A exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "At least one (item)" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single item or plural items. For example, at least one (item) of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, a - b, a - c, b - c, or a - b - c, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0058] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: Long Term Evolution (LTE) system, LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) system, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD), Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) communication system, 5th generation (5G) system or New Radio (NR), future evolved communication systems such as 6th generation (6G) system, etc.

[0059] The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application can also be referred to as: User Equipment (UE), Mobile Station (MS), Mobile Terminal (MT), access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile terminal, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent or user device, etc.

[0060] The access network device and the core network device in the embodiments of the present application can be collectively referred to as network devices.

[0061] The core network device in the embodiment of this application can be a core network device in a 5G system. For example, it can be a network element such as an access and mobility management function (AMF) network element or a policy control function (PCF) network element. It can also be a core network device with other names, which is not limited in the embodiment of this application.

[0062] The access network device can be any device with wireless transceiver functions. The access network device includes but is not limited to: evolved Node B (eNB), radio network controller (RNC), Node B (NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home base station (for example, home evolved Node B, or home Node B, HNB), baseband unit (BBU), access point (AP) in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system, wireless relay node, wireless backhaul node, transmission point (TP), or transmission and reception point (TRP), etc. It can also be a 5G base station (next-generation Node B, gNB) in a 5G system such as NR, or a transmission point (TRP or TP), one or a group (including multiple antenna panels) of antenna panels of a base station in a 5G system, or it can also be a network node that constitutes a gNB or a transmission point, such as a baseband unit (BBU), or a distributed unit (DU), etc.

[0063] In some deployments, a gNB may include a centralized unit (CU) and a DU. The gNB may also include an active antenna unit (AAU). The CU implements some functions of the gNB, and the DU implements some functions of the gNB. For example, the CU may be responsible for processing non-real-time protocols and services. For instance, it can implement the functions of the radio resource control (RRC) layer, the service data adaptation protocol (SDAP) layer, and / or the packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer. The DU may be responsible for processing physical layer protocols and real-time services. For example, it can implement the functions of the radio link control (RLC) layer, the media access control (MAC) layer, and the physical (PHY) layer. A DU can be connected to only one CU or multiple CUs, while a CU can be connected to multiple DUs, and the CU and the DU can communicate through the F1 interface. The AAU can implement some physical layer processing functions, radio frequency processing, and related functions of the active antenna. Since the information of the RRC layer will ultimately be delivered to the PHY layer and become the information of the PHY layer, or is transformed from the information of the PHY layer, thus, in this architecture, high-layer signaling, such as RRC layer signaling, can also be considered to be sent by the DU, or sent by the DU + AAU.

[0064] It can be understood that the access network device can be a device including one or more of the CU node, the DU node, and the AAU node. In addition, the CU can be classified as an access network device in the radio access network (RAN), or can be classified as an access network device in the core network (CN). This application does not make any limitations in this regard.

[0065] The access network device provides services for the cell, and the terminal device communicates with the cell through the transmission resources (such as frequency domain resources, or in other words, spectrum resources) allocated by the access network device. This cell can belong to a macro base station (such as a macro eNB or a macro gNB, etc.), or can belong to the base station corresponding to a small cell. Here, the small cell can include: metro cell, micro cell, pico cell, femto cell, etc. These small cells have characteristics such as a small coverage range and low transmit power, and are suitable for providing high-rate data transmission services.

[0066] The following introduces some technical terms related to this application.

[0067] 1. Network slicing is a way of networking on demand, which allows operators to cut out multiple virtual end-to-end networks on a unified infrastructure. Each network slice is logically isolated from the radio access network to the bearer network and then to the core network, adapting to various types of business applications. A network slice can include a radio sub-slice, a bearer sub-slice, and a core network sub-slice. Network slicing can also be understood as a logical network formed by combining relevant service functions, network resources, and network configurations in a physical network.

[0068] 2. Network slice selection assistance information (NSSAI) can be information used to identify network slices. For example, NSSAI can include information for indicating the slice / service type (SST) and / or information for indicating the slice differentiator (SD), etc.

[0069] 3. UE route selection policy (URSP) is information that describes the correspondence between applications and network slices. URSP can contain one or more single network slice selection assistance information (S-NSSAI), etc., to implement differentiated control strategies for different users and different services.

[0070] Optionally, URSP includes two types of parameters. One type of parameter is the traffic descriptor (TD) parameter that describes the APP attributes. The TD parameter includes one or more of the following: APP ID, data network name (DNN), IP triple (IP Descriptor), domain descriptor, or connection capabilities. The other set of parameters is the routing descriptor that describes the data bearer attributes. The routing descriptor includes one or more of the following: single network slice selection assistance information, session and service continuity mode (SSC mode), DNN, and other parameters. There can be a correspondence between the traffic descriptor and the routing descriptor.

[0071] To facilitate the understanding of the embodiments of the present application, first, in combination with Figure 1 a detailed description of the communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application will be given.

[0072] Figure 1 FIG. shows a schematic diagram of a communication system 100 to which the embodiments of the present application are applied. The communication system 100 includes an access network and a core network.

[0073] Among them, the access network includes at least one access network device, such as Figure 1 the access network device 110 shown; the access network further includes at least one terminal device, such as Figure 1 the terminal device 120 shown. Among them, the core network device in the core network can be connected to the access network device by wireless or wired means. When the terminal device is within the coverage of the access network device, it can be connected to the access network device by wireless means. For example, when the terminal device 120 is within the coverage of the access network device 110, the terminal device 120 can be connected to the access network device 110 by wireless means.

[0074] The access network device 110 and the terminal device 120 can communicate via a wireless link. The access network device 110 or the terminal device 120 can be configured with multiple antennas, and the multiple antennas can include at least one transmitting antenna for transmitting signals and at least one receiving antenna for receiving signals. In addition, the access network device 110 or the terminal device 120 further additionally includes a transmitter chain and a receiver chain. Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that they can both include multiple components related to signal transmission and reception (such as a processor, a modulator, a multiplexer, a demodulator, a demultiplexer, or an antenna, etc.). Therefore, the access network device 110 and the terminal device 120 can communicate via multi-antenna technology.

[0075] In addition, the access network device 110 can also communicate with the core network device in the core network via a wireless link. Therefore, the terminal device 120 can communicate with the core network device through the access network device 110. Exemplarily, the terminal device 120 can send information 1 to the access network device 110. Correspondingly, the access network device 110 receives information 1 from the terminal device 120; the access network device 110 sends information 1 to the core network device. Correspondingly, the core network device receives information 1 from the access network device 110. Or, the core network device sends information 2 to the access network device 110. Correspondingly, the access network device 110 receives information 2 from the core network device; the access network device 110 sends information 2 to the terminal device 120. Correspondingly, the terminal device 120 receives information 2 from the access network device 110.

[0076] The main functions of the core network are to provide user connections, manage users, and carry services, and to provide an interface to external networks as a bearer network. The establishment of user connections includes functions such as mobility management (MM), call management (CM), switching / routing, and announcement (combining intelligent network services to complete the connection relationship to intelligent network peripheral devices).

[0077] It can be understood that the core network of the 4G network is an evolved packet core (EPC) network. The EPC network is the core network of the 4G mobile communication network. It belongs to the category of core networks, has traditional capabilities of mobile networks such as storing user subscription data, mobility management, and data exchange, and can provide users with an ultra-high-speed Internet experience. The core network of the 5G network is 5G Core (which can be abbreviated as 5GC for short). 5GC will use general network function virtualization devices to replace the dedicated communication devices of the 4G network.

[0078] It should be noted that Figure 1 The core network in the shown network architecture can be obtained by fusing EPC and 5GC. That is to say, the core network in this network architecture can include both network elements in EPC and network elements in 5GC. For example, the core network in this network architecture can include access and mobility management function (AMF) network elements, policy control function (PCF) network elements, mobility management entity (MME) network elements, serving gateway (SGW) network elements, packet data network gateway (PGW) network elements, session management function (SMF) network elements, user plane function (UPF) network elements, unified data management (UDM) network elements, and home subscriber server (HSS) network elements, etc.

[0079] In some embodiments of the present application, the core network in this network architecture can include fused network elements obtained from network elements in EPC and network elements in 5GC. For example, SMF+PGW-C, UPF+PGW-U, UDM+HSS, etc. Among them, PGW-C is the control plane node of the PGW network element, and PGW-U is the user plane node of the PGW network element.

[0080] Each network element in the core network can also be referred to as a functional entity, which can be a network element implemented on dedicated hardware, a software instance running on dedicated hardware, or an instance of a virtualized function on a suitable platform.

[0081] It should be understood that the core network device and the access network device can be independent and different physical devices, or the functions of the core network device and the logical functions of the radio access network device can be integrated on the same physical device, or the functions of part of the core network device and part of the access network device can be integrated on a physical device. The present application does not make specific limitations on this.

[0082] It should be understood that the names of all network elements in the present application are only examples. In future communications, such as in 6G, they can also be called other names, or in future communications, such as in 6G, the network elements involved in the present application can also be replaced by other entities or devices with the same functions, etc. The present application does not make any limitations on this. A unified description is made here and will not be repeated later. Optionally, various network elements in the embodiments of the present application can be communication devices, or chips or chip systems that can be used in the communication devices, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not make limitations on this.

[0083] It can be understood that Figure 1 The core network in the shown network architecture may further include other devices, network elements, network entities or network subsystems, such as a policy control function (PCF) network element. The present application does not make limitations on this. It should be noted that the present application does not make limitations on the distribution method of each network element in the core network. The specific distribution method can refer to relevant technical documents and will not be elaborated here in the present application.

[0084] It should be understood that Figure 1 It is only a schematic diagram. The present application does not limit the specific architecture of the applicable system. The communication system 100 may further include other network devices, for example, a wireless relay device and a wireless backhaul device, Figure 1 which are not shown. The embodiments of the present application do not make limitations on the number and specific forms of the core network devices, access network devices and terminal devices included in the communication system 100.

[0085] Optionally, the above communication system 100 may further include other network entities such as a network controller and a mobility management entity. The embodiments of the present application are not limited thereto.

[0086] At present, there are more and more types of terminal devices and services provided by terminal devices. For different types of services, it is difficult to meet the diverse service requirements of terminal devices if the same network is used to provide services for them. For example, for cloud game applications in terminal devices, the server needs to send real-time audio and video streams to the client; the client needs to send control instruction streams to the server, and the server applies the received control instructions from the client to the game. Therefore, the services of cloud game applications have high requirements for network latency and bandwidth. For weather applications in terminal devices, the latency requirements are usually much lower than those of cloud game applications. For another example, for virtual reality (VR) terminal devices, if the latency is large, it may cause motion sickness to users, and the latency requirements for this type of terminal device are usually within 20 ms.

[0087] Based on this, multiple virtual end-to-end networks can usually be separated on a unified core network infrastructure through network slicing technology, and each virtual end-to-end network can be called a network slice. Each network slice can meet specific service requirements, such as latency, jitter, packet loss rate, bandwidth, etc. within a specific range. Through network slicing, the communication system can provide different service bearing capabilities for different types of services of terminal devices, such as the services of cloud game applications and weather applications, so as to meet the diverse requirements of different services of terminal devices. In this way, the flexibility of the network architecture and service adaptability can be improved.

[0088] Next, in combination with Figure 2 the applicable scenarios of network slicing will be described.

[0089] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the application scenario of the network slice provided by the embodiment of this application. As Figure 2 shown, the scenario 200 includes a terminal device 210, an access network device 220, and a core network device 230. The terminal device 210 can communicate with the core network device 230 through the access network device 220.

[0090] Multiple applications can run in the terminal device 210, such as Figure 2 the application A, application B, application C, and application D shown. The core network device 230 can provide multiple network slices, such as Figure 2 the network slice 1, network slice 2, network slice 3, and network slice 4 shown. The applications in the terminal device 210 can access different network slices, so that the network slices can provide services for different application services.

[0091] Exemplarily, during the running of an application on the terminal device 210, first, a protocol data unit (PDU) session of the network slice corresponding to the application will be established by accessing the network device 220, and then the PDU session will be used to transmit service data with the core network device 230.

[0092] It should be noted that one application can correspond to one or more network slices, and one network slice can correspond to one or more applications. Each network slice corresponds to one PDU session.

[0093] As Figure 2 shown, application A and application B can be connected to network slice 1 through PDU session 1, so that network slice 1 can provide services for the services of application A and application B; application C can be connected to network slice 2 through PDU session 2, so that network slice 2 can provide services for the service of application C; application D can be connected to network slice 3 through PDU session 3, and can also be connected to network slice 4 through PDU session 4, so that network slice 3 and network slice 4 can provide services for the service of application D.

[0094] During the use of network slicing technology, the core network device usually instructs the terminal device to activate the network slice through the access network device, that is, when the terminal device runs an application, the network slice corresponding to the running application is used to provide services for the application. However, currently, the scheduling method of the core network device for network slices is relatively single. Usually, only the terminal device is instructed to activate the network slice, which may lead to unreasonable allocation of network resources and waste of network resources. Exemplarily, assume that the core network device instructs the terminal device to activate the network slice. Assume that the current network load is large. If there are many applications with high bandwidth requirements continuing to request the use of network slices from the core network device, it may further reduce the available network resources of the network slices providing services for other applications, affecting the running of other applications.

[0095] To solve the above technical problems, the present application provides a data transmission method and apparatus. The core network device can close or open a certain type of network slice according to the network load, core network device load, etc. For example, when the network load is large, the network slice corresponding to the application with high requirements for bandwidth and latency can be closed; when the network load is small, all network slices can be opened, etc.; or, when the uplink data transmission is congested, the network slice for transmitting uplink data can be closed. In this way, the core network device can more reasonably instruct the terminal device to open or close a certain type of network slice through the access network device according to the network conditions, core network device load, etc., making the scheduling of the network slice by the core network device more reasonable and helping to improve the utilization rate of network resources.

[0096] The following will combine Figures 3 to 6 FIG. to introduce the data transmission method of the present application in detail. The embodiments shown in the present application illustrate the data transmission method provided by the present application from the perspective of device interaction. The specific forms and quantities of the devices shown are only examples and should not constitute any limitation to the implementation of the method provided by the present application. Below, taking the terminal device, access network device, and core network device as the execution entities as an example, the data transmission method of the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail.

[0097] It should be understood that the terminal device can be the terminal device itself, a chip, chip system or processor that supports the terminal device to implement the data transmission method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the terminal device; the access network device can be the access network device itself, a chip, chip system or processor that supports the access network device to implement the data transmission method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the access network device; the core network device can be the core network device itself, a chip, chip system or processor that supports the core network device to implement the data transmission method, or a logic module or software that can implement all or part of the core network device. The present application does not make specific limitations on this.

[0098] It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, the information interaction between the terminal device and the core network device can all be implemented through the access network device. In order to make the description more concise, the process of the access network device forwarding the signaling during the signaling interaction between the terminal device and the core network device will not be described in detail below.

[0099] Figure 3 FIG. is a schematic flowchart of a data transmission method 300 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The method 300 can be applied to the system 100. As Figure 3 shown, the method 300 includes the following steps:

[0100] S301. When the preset conditions are met, the core network device sends the first information to the terminal device. The first information is used to indicate the activation of the first network slice and / or the deactivation of the second network slice. The preset conditions are related to the load of the core network device and / or the network conditions. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the first information from the core network device.

[0101] It should be understood that the first network slice may include one or more network slices; the second network slice may also include one or more network slices. The first network slice and / or the second network slice may also refer to all types of network slices. The load of the core network device may include, for example, the occupancy rate of the following processor resources and / or the occupancy rate of memory resources, etc. The network conditions may include, for example, one or several of the following: the network resource occupancy rate, the ratio of the number of users accessing the second network slice to the saturation value, the disconnection rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice, the packet loss rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice, or the network latency of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice. The saturation value can be understood as the maximum number of users that can access the second network slice. The number of users can be understood as the number of terminal devices.

[0102] In addition, the network conditions may also include network security, etc.

[0103] Among them, the activation and deactivation can be indicated in the following ways.

[0104] The first way: The first information may include a first identifier and / or a second identifier. The first identifier indicates activation, and the second identifier indicates deactivation. Exemplarily, the first identifier is 1 and the second identifier is 0, or the first identifier is 0 and the second identifier is 1; or, the first identifier is true and the second identifier is false, or the first identifier is false and the second identifier is true; or, the first identifier is true and the second identifier is false; the first identifier is activate and the second identifier is deactivate; or, the first identifier is enable and the second identifier is de-enable.

[0105] The second way: The first information may include a third identifier, and the third identifier indicates activation. In the case where the first information does not include the third identifier, it indicates deactivation; or, the first information may include a fourth identifier, and the fourth identifier indicates deactivation. In the case where the first information does not include the fourth identifier, it indicates activation. The third identifier may be, for example, one of the following: 0, 1, true, false, activate, or enable; the fourth identifier may be, for example, one of the following: 0, 1, true, false, deactivate, de-enable, or default.

[0106] Optionally, "default" may indicate that all service data is transmitted through the default PDU session, i.e., all network slices are closed.

[0107] The first piece of information may indicate to activate the first network slice and / or deactivate the second network slice in the following ways.

[0108] In the first way, if the first piece of information includes the identifier in the above-mentioned first or second way of indicating activation and deactivation, the first piece of information indicates to activate or deactivate all types of network slices. Exemplarily, if the first piece of information includes "default", it indicates to deactivate all types of network slices; or, if the first piece of information includes the identifier 1 indicating activation, it indicates to activate all types of network slices.

[0109] In the second way, the first piece of information includes the identifier in the above-mentioned first or second way of indicating activation and deactivation, and also includes information for indicating the first network slice and / or information for indicating the second network slice.

[0110] In one example, in combination with the above-mentioned first way of indicating activation and deactivation, the first piece of information includes a first identifier, information for indicating the first network slice, a second identifier, and information for indicating the second network slice. For example, the first piece of information includes 1 and A, and 0 and B; then the first piece of information indicates to activate the network slice indicated by A and deactivate the network slice indicated by B.

[0111] In another example, in combination with the above-mentioned second way of indicating activation and deactivation, the first piece of information includes a third identifier, information for indicating the first network slice, and information for indicating the second network slice. For example, the first piece of information includes 1 and A, and B; then the first piece of information indicates to activate the network slice indicated by A and deactivate the network slice indicated by B.

[0112] In yet another example, in combination with the above-mentioned second way of indicating activation and deactivation, the first piece of information includes information for indicating the first network slice, a fourth identifier, and information for indicating the second network slice. For example, the first piece of information includes A, and "default" and B; then the first piece of information indicates to activate the network slice indicated by A and deactivate the network slice indicated by B.

[0113] S302: Based on the first piece of information, the terminal device sends service data to the core network device. Correspondingly, the core network device receives the service data from the terminal device.

[0114] Among them, the service data may be data generated when the application programs installed in the terminal device are running. For example, music application programs, game application programs, etc.

[0115] After the terminal device receives the first information, where the first information is used to indicate the activation of a first network slice, for the application corresponding to the first network slice, when the terminal device starts the application corresponding to the first network slice, or when the terminal device is running the application corresponding to the first network slice, the terminal device sends a PDU session establishment request to the core network device, and the PDU session establishment request carries information for indicating the first network slice; the core network device sends a PDU session establishment response to the terminal device, and then the terminal device can use the PDU session corresponding to the first network slice to send the data generated by running the application corresponding to the first network slice to the core network device.

[0116] And / or, after the terminal device receives the first information, where the first information is used to indicate the deactivation of a second network slice, for the application corresponding to the second network slice, when the terminal device starts the application corresponding to the second network slice, the terminal device uses a default PDU session to send the data generated by running the application corresponding to the second network slice to the core network device; or, when the terminal device is running the application corresponding to the second network slice, the terminal device deactivates the second network slice, that is, uses a default PDU session to send the data generated by running the application corresponding to the second network slice to the core network device.

[0117] Among them, the default PDU session can also be understood as the PDU session corresponding to the default slice. The default PDU session is the default PDU session used to transmit the data generated by the applications running in the terminal device when the terminal device does not use network slicing technology, that is, when the network slice is deactivated. This PDU session is not a PDU session dedicated to a certain type of application, but a PDU session that can be used by multiple or all applications, and can also be called a common PDU session, etc.

[0118] In the data transmission method of this application, the core network device can activate the first network slice and / or deactivate the second network slice based on conditions such as network load; for example, when the network load is large, it can deactivate the network slices corresponding to the applications with high requirements for bandwidth and latency, and / or activate the applications with low requirements for bandwidth and latency; when the load of the core network device is large, such as when the memory occupancy rate is too high, it can deactivate all network slices. This can enable the core network device to more reasonably instruct the terminal device to activate or deactivate a certain type of network slice according to the network situation, the load of the core network device, etc., making the scheduling of network slices by the core network device more reasonable and helping to improve the utilization rate of network resources.

[0119] Next, the preset conditions in S301 will be described.

[0120] In the first case, the first piece of information is used to indicate the closure of the second network slice. The preset conditions may include one or more of the following: the occupancy rate of the processor resources is greater than or equal to a first preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the memory resources is greater than or equal to a second preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the network resources is greater than or equal to a third preset threshold; the ratio of the number of users accessing the second network slice to the saturation value is greater than or equal to a fourth preset threshold; the disconnection rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a fifth preset threshold; the packet loss rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a sixth preset threshold; or, the network latency of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a seventh preset threshold.

[0121] Among them, the first preset threshold, the second preset threshold, the third preset threshold, the fourth preset threshold, the fifth preset threshold, the sixth preset threshold, and the seventh preset threshold are preset positive values, such as 80% and the like.

[0122] When the load of the core network device is large, for example, the occupancy rate of the processor resources and / or the occupancy rate of the memory resources of the core network device is large, the core network device may indicate to close all or some of the network slices.

[0123] When the network resource load is large, for example, when the occupancy rate of the network resources is large, the core network device may indicate to close some or all of the network slices, such as closing the network slice corresponding to a game application with high requirements for latency and bandwidth. This can prevent the network resources from being overly concentrated on serving the applications corresponding to the second network slice, helping to balance the distribution of network resources and making the scheduling of network resources by the core network device more reasonable.

[0124] When the ratio of the number of users accessing the second network slice to the saturation value is too large, it is possible that more network resources are concentrated on the second network slice, or the second network slice may have poor network security conditions. Therefore, the core network device may indicate to close the second network slice. On the one hand, this can prevent the network resources from being overly concentrated on serving the applications corresponding to the second network slice, helping to balance the distribution of network resources; on the other hand, if the second network slice serves a banking application with high requirements for network security and the second network slice may have poor network security conditions, the second network slice can be closed, thus reducing the situation where the banking application is attacked due to the network security of the second network slice.

[0125] When the disconnection rate, packet loss rate, and / or network latency of a terminal device not connected to the second network slice are relatively high, it indicates that network resources may be overly concentrated on serving applications for the second network slice, resulting in fewer network resources available for terminal devices not connected to the second network slice and making it difficult to meet the requirements of such terminal devices. Therefore, the core network device can shut down the second network slice, so that network resources will no longer be overly concentrated on serving applications for the second network slice, which helps to balance the distribution of network resources.

[0126] Optionally, the network resource occupancy rate can also be the uplink network resource occupancy rate or the downlink network resource occupancy rate. For example, when the uplink network resource occupancy rate is greater than or equal to a third preset threshold, the second network slice can include an uplink network slice; when the downlink network resource occupancy rate is greater than or equal to a third preset threshold, the second network slice can include a downlink network slice.

[0127] In a possible implementation manner, method 300 further includes: a terminal device not connected to the second network slice sends information for indicating network data to the core network device, and the network data includes one or more of the following: disconnection rate, packet loss rate, or network latency. Correspondingly, the core network device receives the information for indicating network data from the terminal device not connected to the second network slice.

[0128] It should be understood that the disconnection rate, packet loss rate, and network latency of the terminal device not connected to the second network slice above can be obtained by the core network device from the terminal device not connected to the second network slice. Optionally, the core network device can send a request 1 for requesting network data to the terminal device not connected to the second network slice; in response to request 1, the terminal device sends information for indicating network data to the core network device.

[0129] In the second case, the first information is used to indicate the activation of the first network slice, and the preset conditions include one or more of the following: the occupancy rate of the processor resources is less than or equal to an eighth preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the memory resources is less than or equal to a ninth preset threshold; the network resource occupancy rate is less than or equal to a tenth preset threshold.

[0130] Among them, the eighth preset threshold, the ninth preset threshold, and the tenth preset threshold are preset positive values, such as 60% etc.

[0131] When the load of the core network device is relatively small and / or the network resource load is relatively small, the core network device can indicate the activation of the first network slice. The first network slice can be all or part of the network slices. For example, it can be to start game applications and audio - video applications, etc.

[0132] Optionally, the network resource occupancy rate may also be the uplink network resource occupancy rate or the downlink network resource occupancy rate. For example, when the uplink network resource occupancy rate is less than or equal to the tenth preset threshold, the first network slice may include an uplink network slice; when the downlink network resource occupancy rate is less than or equal to the tenth preset threshold, the first network slice may include a downlink network slice.

[0133] In the third case, the above first case and second case may also be executed in parallel. For example, the first information is used to indicate to activate the first network slice and deactivate the second network slice.

[0134] For example, when the core network device determines that the load of the current core network device is small, the uplink network resource load is small, and the disconnection rate, packet loss rate, and network latency of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice are large, the core network device may indicate to activate the first network slice and deactivate the second network slice. The first network slice may be, for example, an uplink network slice; the second network slice may be, for example, a downlink network slice.

[0135] It should be understood that for the third case, reference may be made to the descriptions of the first case and the second case above, and details will not be listed here one by one.

[0136] As an optional embodiment, method 300 further includes: the terminal device sends a third request to the core network device for requesting to activate the first network slice and / or deactivate the second network slice; correspondingly, the core network device receives the third request. S301 may be implemented in the following manner: in response to the third request, the core network device sends the first information to the terminal device.

[0137] Exemplarily, when the terminal device is running a game application, however, the network latency of the game application is large, resulting in a poor user experience. At this time, the terminal device may send a third request to the core network device, and the third request is used to request to activate the network slice corresponding to the game application. Or, when the network slice corresponding to the download application is in an activated state and the terminal device uses the download application to download a file, the download speed is too slow. The terminal device may send a third request to the core network device, and the third request is used to request to deactivate the network slice corresponding to the download application. Thus, in such a manner, the terminal device may request to activate or deactivate a network slice from the core network device according to user needs, which can improve the user experience.

[0138] As an optional embodiment, the first network slice and / or the second network slice may include, but are not limited to, one or more of the following: an uplink network slice, a downlink network slice, a network slice serving a first application, a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, or a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold.

[0139] Among them, the uplink network slice can be understood as a network slice serving data for uplink transmission; the downlink network slice can be understood as a network slice serving data for downlink transmission. The first application program can be one or several application programs, or one or several types of application programs. The first threshold and the second threshold can be preset positive values.

[0140] Optionally, the first network slice and / or the second network slice can be configured by protocol agreement or by the core network device through signaling.

[0141] In the case where the first network slice and / or the second network slice is configured by protocol agreement, the first information can indicate to turn off and / or turn on, and then the terminal device can correspondingly use the first network slice and / or turn off the second network slice. Exemplarily, the second network slice is a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to the first threshold, and the first network slice is a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to the second threshold. Then, in the case of network congestion, the core network device can send the first information to the terminal device. After receiving the first information, the terminal device can use the network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to the second threshold and / or not use the network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to the first threshold.

[0142] In the case where the first network slice and / or the second network slice is configured by the core network device through signaling, method 300 further includes: the core network device sends second information to the terminal device, and the second information is used to indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the second information.

[0143] It should be understood that the first information and the second information can be sent through the same signaling or through different signals. In the case where the first information and the second information are sent through the same signaling, the first information and the second information can be carried in the same or different fields, or the first information and the second information can be carried in the same or different cells. This application does not make specific limitations on this.

[0144] The second information can indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice in the following manner.

[0145] In the case where the first network slice or the second network slice includes an uplink network slice, the second information can include a first preset identifier, and the first preset identifier represents the uplink network slice. The first preset identifier can be, for example, up, 0, 1, or 11, etc.

[0146] In the case where the first network slice or the second network slice includes a downlink network slice, the second information can include a second preset identifier, and the second preset identifier represents the downlink network slice. The second preset identifier can be, for example, down, 0, 1, or 00, etc.

[0147] In the case where the first network slice or the second network slice includes a network slice serving the first application, the second information may include a third preset identifier, and the third preset identifier represents the network slice serving the first application. For example, the third preset identifier may be "bank", and "bank" represents the network slice serving banking applications, or the third preset identifier may be "00" and "11", where "00" represents the network slice serving music applications and "11" represents the network slice serving game applications. Alternatively, the second information may use a bitmap to represent the first application. For example, 1 represents selection and 0 represents non-selection, and the second information may include "1100", and "1100" may represent that the first application includes Application A and Application B.

[0148] In the case where the first network slice or the second network slice includes a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, the second information may include a fourth preset identifier. The fourth preset identifier represents the network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to the first threshold.

[0149] The fourth preset identifier may be, for example, the first threshold, 0, 1, etc.

[0150] In the case where the first network slice or the second network slice includes a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold, the second information may include a fifth preset identifier. The fifth preset identifier represents the network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to the second threshold.

[0151] The fifth preset identifier may be, for example, the second threshold, 0, 1, etc.

[0152] As an alternative embodiment, the first information and / or the second information satisfy any one of the following: the first information is broadcast; or, the first information is carried in a first request, and the first request is used to request modification of a session; or, the first information is carried in a second request, and the second request is used to request deregistration of a session.

[0153] 1. The first information and / or the second information are broadcast. That the first information is broadcast can be understood as that the first information is indicated by the core network device to be broadcast by the access network device. In this way, the terminal devices within the coverage area of the access network device can obtain the first information and / or the second information.

[0154] 2. The first information and / or the second information are carried in a first request. The first request may be a policy control update notify request. The policy control update notify request may be a request sent by a PCF network element to an SMF network element to perform the provision, update, or deletion of PDU session-related policies and policy and charging control (PCC) rules.

[0155] In this case, the core network device can indicate the first information and / or the second information to the terminal device by means such as Figure 4 shown in method 400. Method 400 includes the following steps:

[0156] S401. The PCF network element sends a policy control update notification request to the SMF network element. The policy control update notification request carries the first information and / or the second information. Correspondingly, the SMF network receives the policy control update notification request.

[0157] S402. The SMF network element sends third information to the AMF network element. The third information includes the first information and / or the second information. Correspondingly, the AMF network element receives the third information. The third information is the information sent by the SMF network element to the AMF network element in response to the policy control update notification request. Exemplarily, the third information may be a PDU session update SM context response; or, a PDU session release SM context response; or N1 N2 message transfer, etc. The N2 message may be a message carrying information such as a PDU session ID and SM information.

[0158] S403. The AMF network element sends fourth information to the access network device. The fourth information includes the first information and the second information. Correspondingly, the access network device receives the fourth information. The fourth information is the information sent by the AMF network element to the access network device in response to the third information. Exemplarily, the fourth information may be an N2 resource release request, etc.

[0159] S404. The access network device sends fifth information to the terminal device. The fifth information includes the first information and the second information. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the fifth information. The fifth information is the information sent by the access network device to the terminal device in response to the fourth information. Exemplarily, the fifth information may be specific resource modification information, for example, a PDU session modification command.

[0160] It should be noted that the method 400 may be a PDU session release signaling process triggered by a core network device when it determines that a preset condition is met, or it can also be understood as an update process or a modification process of the PDU session. The first information and / or the second information are sent in the signaling carried in this process. This application does not specifically limit the signaling involved in this process and the signaling used to carry the first information and / or the second information.

[0161] 3. The first information and / or the second information are carried in the second request. The second request may be a de-registration request.

[0162] In this case, the core network device may indicate the first information and / or the second information to the terminal device by the method 500 as shown in Figure 5 . The method 500 includes the following steps:

[0163] S501. The AMF network element sends a de-registration request to the terminal device through the access network device. The de-registration request carries the first information and / or the second information. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the de-registration request. Among them, the AMF network element belongs to a type of core network device.

[0164] Optionally, the terminal device may further execute S502. The terminal device sends a de-registration response or a de-registration accept message to the AMF network element through the access network device.

[0165] It should be noted that the method 500 may be a de-registration process triggered by a core network device when it determines that a preset condition is met. The first information and / or the second information are sent in the signaling carried in this process. This application does not specifically limit the signaling involved in this process and the signaling used to carry the first information and / or the second information.

[0166] As an optional embodiment, the first information is used to indicate to enable the first network slice. S302 may be implemented in the following manner: Use the first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice to send service data to the core network device. The service data is data generated by the operation of the first application program, and the first network slice matches the first application program.

[0167] It should be understood that the first application program can be, for example, a game application program, a banking application program, a music application program, etc. That the first network slice matches the first application program can be understood as the correspondence between the traffic descriptor corresponding to the first application program and the routing descriptor corresponding to the first network slice included in the URSP. Different traffic descriptors included in the URSP can correspond to different routing descriptors, that is, different network service qualities can be provided for different application programs. For example, when a game application program connects to the network, the network slice with the lowest latency can be matched for the game application program; when a download application program connects to the network, the network slice with the largest bandwidth and the fastest average network speed can be matched for the download application program; when a banking application program connects to the network, the network slice with the highest network security can be matched for the banking application program.

[0168] For the examples shown in the above Method 400 and Method 500, the first information carried in the first request or the second request is used to indicate the activation of the first network slice, and the terminal device can also continue to execute the implementation manner of S302 above.

[0169] In a possible implementation manner, the first PDU session can be established through Method 600 as shown in FIG. 6. That is, when using the first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice to send service data to the core network device, the terminal device can first establish the first PDU session by using Method 600.

[0170] S601. The terminal device obtains the traffic descriptor corresponding to the first application program.

[0171] S602. The terminal device determines the first network slice by using the URSP and the traffic descriptor. The URSP can include the traffic descriptor and the routing descriptor used to indicate the first network slice.

[0172] S603. The terminal device sends a PDU session establishment request to the AMF network element through the access network device, and the PDU session establishment request carries the routing descriptor used to indicate the first network slice. Correspondingly, the AMF network element receives the PDU session establishment request.

[0173] S604. The AMF network element sends a PDU session establishment request to the SMF network element, and the PDU session establishment request carries the routing descriptor used to indicate the first network slice. Correspondingly, the SMF network element receives the PDU session establishment request.

[0174] It should be understood that the routing descriptor used to indicate the first network slice can also be understood as the information used to describe the attributes of the first PDU session. Based on the routing descriptor used to indicate the first network slice, the core network device can create the first PDU session.

[0175] S605. The SMF network element sends a PDU session establishment response to the AMF network element. The PDU session establishment response is used to indicate that the PDU session establishment is successful. Correspondingly, the AMF network element receives the PDU session establishment response.

[0176] S606. The AMF network element sends a PDU session establishment response to the terminal device through the access network device. The PDU session establishment response is used to indicate that the PDU session establishment is successful. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the PDU session establishment response.

[0177] Based on the PDU session establishment response, the terminal device can determine that the first PDU session is successfully established, and then can transmit the data stream of the first application program through the first PDU session.

[0178] Optionally, before S601, method 600 further includes: S607 The terminal device sequentially sends a registration request to the PCF network element through the access network device and the AMF network element to request to obtain the URSP; in response to the registration request, the PCF network element sequentially sends information indicating the URSP to the terminal device through the AMF network element and the access network device. In this way, the terminal device can obtain the URSP from the core network device, which is convenient for the terminal device to match the network slice for the application program running in the terminal device. In such a case, assuming that the first information is used to indicate to enable the first network slice, and the second information is used to indicate that the first network slice is the network slice corresponding to the game application program, then when the terminal device runs the game application program, it can establish a PDU session for transmitting the data stream generated by the operation of the game application program through method 600.

[0179] As an optional embodiment, the first information is used to indicate to close the second network slice. S302 can be implemented in the following manner: use the second PDU session to transmit service data, and the second PDU session is the default PDU session.

[0180] It should be understood that the default PDU session can refer to the description above and will not be elaborated here. Assuming that the service data is the data generated by the operation of the second application program matched by the second network slice, and the second network slice corresponds to the third PDU session; when the first information is used to indicate the relationship with the second network slice, the terminal device does not use the third PDU session to transmit the service data, but uses the default PDU session to transmit the service data.

[0181] If before the terminal device receives the first information, the terminal device uses the third PDU session to transmit the service data, then after the terminal device receives the first information, the terminal device can delete the resource information corresponding to the third PDU session, such as the third PDU session ID, etc., and transmit the service data through the default PDU session.

[0182] It should be noted that the default PDU session can be an already established PDU session. Alternatively, if the default PDU session is not established, the terminal device can establish the default PDU session in the manner of S603 to S606 above. For the sake of brevity, it will not be elaborated here.

[0183] It should also be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, enabling or disabling a network slice can also be replaced by activating or deactivating a network slice, or enabling or disabling a network slice. The present application does not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0184] It should be understood that the magnitudes of the sequence numbers of the above methods do not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic.

[0185] It should also be understood that in some possible implementation manners, the PDU session in the embodiments of the present application can also be replaced by other sessions, such as a packet data network (PDN) session, etc. The present application does not make specific limitations in this regard.

[0186] As described above in conjunction with Figures 3 to 6 , the data transmission method of the embodiments of the present application has been described in detail. Below, in conjunction with Figure 7 and Figure 8 , the data transmission device of the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail. The data transmission device includes modules or units corresponding to each part in the above embodiments for execution. The module or unit can be software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware. Only a brief example of the data transmission device is given below. For the implementation details of the solution, reference can be made to the description of the foregoing method embodiments and will not be elaborated below.

[0187] Figure 7 It is a schematic block diagram of a data transmission device 700 provided by an embodiment of the present application. As Figure 7 shown, the device 700 includes: a sending module 701 and a receiving module 702.

[0188] In a possible implementation manner, the device 700 is used to implement the steps corresponding to the core network devices (AMF network, SMF network element, PCF network element) in the above method 300, method 400, method 500, and method 600.

[0189] The sending module 701 is configured to send a first message to the terminal device when it is determined that a preset condition is met. The first message is used to indicate enabling a first network slice and / or disabling a second network slice. The preset condition is related to the load of the core network device and / or the network situation. The receiving module 702 is configured to receive service data from the terminal device based on the first message.

[0190] Optionally, the first information is used to indicate closing the second network slice. The preset conditions include one or more of the following: the occupancy rate of the processor resources is greater than or equal to a first preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the memory resources is greater than or equal to a second preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the network resources is greater than or equal to a third preset threshold; the ratio of the number of user devices accessing the second network slice to the saturation value is greater than or equal to a fourth preset threshold; the disconnection rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a fifth preset threshold; the packet loss rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a sixth preset threshold; or, the network latency of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a seventh preset threshold.

[0191] Optionally, the receiving module 702 is further configured to: receive information for indicating network data from a terminal device not accessing the second network slice, where the network data includes one or more of the following: disconnection rate, packet loss rate, or network latency.

[0192] Optionally, the first information is used to indicate opening the first network slice. The preset conditions include one or more of the following: the occupancy rate of the processor resources is less than or equal to an eighth preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the memory resources is less than or equal to a ninth preset threshold; the occupancy rate of the network resources is less than or equal to a tenth preset threshold.

[0193] Optionally, the first network slice and / or the second network slice is one or more of the following: an uplink network slice, a downlink network slice, a network slice serving a first application, a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, or a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold.

[0194] Optionally, the sending module 701 is further configured to: send second information to the terminal device, where the second information is used to indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice.

[0195] Optionally, the first information and / or the second information satisfies one of the following: the first information is broadcast; or, the first information is carried in a first request for requesting to modify a session; or, the first information is carried in a second request for requesting to deregister a session.

[0196] Optionally, the receiving module 702 is further configured to: receive a third request from the terminal device for requesting to open the first network slice and / or close the second network slice; the sending module 701 is specifically configured to: in response to the third request, send the first information to the terminal device.

[0197] Optionally, the first information is used to indicate opening the first network slice. The service data is data generated by running the first application, and the service data is transmitted through a first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice, and the first network slice matches the first application.

[0198] Optionally, the first information is used to indicate to close the second network slice, the service data is transmitted through the second PDU session, and the second PDU session is the default PDU session.

[0199] In another possible implementation, the apparatus 700 is used to implement the steps corresponding to the terminal device in the above method 300, method 400, method 500, and method 600.

[0200] A receiving module 702, configured to receive first information from a core network device, where the first information is used to indicate to open the first network slice and / or close the second network slice; a sending module 701, configured to send service data to the core network device based on the first information.

[0201] Optionally, the first network slice and / or the second network slice is one or more of the following: an uplink network slice, a downlink network slice, a network slice serving a first application, a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, or a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold.

[0202] Optionally, the receiving module 702 is further configured to: receive second information from the core network device, where the second information is used to indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice.

[0203] Optionally, the first information satisfies one of the following: the first information is broadcast; or, the first information is carried in a first request, where the first request is used to request to modify a session; or, the first information is carried in a second request, where the second request is used to request to deregister a session.

[0204] Optionally, the sending module 701 is further configured to: send a third request to the core network device, where the third request is used to request to open the first network slice and / or close the second network slice.

[0205] Optionally, the first information is used to indicate to open the first network slice; specifically, the sending module 701 is configured to: use the first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice to send service data to the core network device, where the service data is data generated by running the first application, and the first network slice matches the first application.

[0206] Optionally, the first information is used to indicate to close the second network slice; specifically, the sending module 701 is configured to: use the second PDU session to transmit service data, and the second PDU session is the default PDU session.

[0207] It should be understood that the device 700 herein is embodied in the form of functional modules. The term "module" herein may refer to an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), an electronic circuit, a processor for executing one or more software or firmware programs (such as a shared processor, a proprietary processor or a group of processors, etc.), a memory, a combined logic circuit and / or other suitable components that support the described functions.

[0208] In an optional example, those skilled in the art can understand that the device 700 may specifically be the terminal device or the core network device (AMF network, SMF network element, PCF network element) in the above embodiments. The device 700 may be used to execute each process and / or step corresponding to the terminal device or the core network device (AMF network, SMF network element, PCF network element) in the above method embodiments. To avoid repetition, it will not be elaborated herein.

[0209] The above device 700 has the function of implementing the corresponding steps executed by the terminal device or the core network device (AMF network, SMF network element, PCF network element) in the above method; the above function may be implemented by hardware or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

[0210] In the embodiments of the present application, Figure 7 the device 700 therein may also be a chip, such as: SOC, Modem, etc.

[0211] Figure 8 FIG. shows a schematic block diagram of a data transmission device 800 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The device 800 includes a processor 801, a transceiver 802, and a memory 803. Among them, the processor 801, the transceiver 802, and the memory 803 communicate with each other through an internal connection path. The memory 803 is used to store instructions, and the processor 801 is used to execute the instructions stored in the memory 803 to control the transceiver 802 to send signals and / or receive signals.

[0212] It should be understood that the apparatus 800 may specifically be the terminal device or the core network device (AMF network, SMF network element or PCF network element) in the foregoing embodiments, and may be used to execute the respective steps and / or processes corresponding to the terminal device or the core network device (AMF network, SMF network element or PCF network element) in the foregoing method embodiments. Optionally, the memory 803 may include a read-only memory and a random access memory, and provide instructions and data to the processor. A part of the memory may further include a non-volatile random access memory. For example, the memory may further store information about the device type. The processor 801 may be used to execute the instructions stored in the memory, and when the processor 801 executes the instructions stored in the memory, the processor 801 is used to execute the respective steps and / or processes of the foregoing method embodiments. The transceiver 802 may include a transmitter and a receiver. The transmitter may be used to implement the respective steps and / or processes corresponding to the foregoing transceiver for performing a sending action, and the receiver may be used to implement the respective steps and / or processes corresponding to the foregoing transceiver for performing a receiving action.

[0213] It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the processor may be a central processing unit (CPU), and the processor may also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or the processor may also be any conventional processor, etc.

[0214] In the implementation process, the respective steps of the foregoing method may be completed by the integrated logic circuit in the hardware of the processor or the instructions in the form of software. The steps of the method disclosed in combination with the embodiments of the present application may be directly embodied as being executed and completed by the hardware processor, or executed and completed by the combination of the hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module may be located in a mature storage medium in the art such as a random access memory, a flash memory, a read-only memory, a programmable read-only memory, or an electrically erasable programmable memory, a register, etc. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor executes the instructions in the memory and combines its hardware to complete the steps of the foregoing method. To avoid repetition, details are not described herein again.

[0215] Some embodiments of the present application provide a chip system, which is applied to a terminal. The chip system includes at least one processor and an interface. The interface is used to receive instructions and transmit them to at least one processor; the at least one processor runs the instructions to enable the terminal to execute the foregoing paging message processing method. Wherein, the chip system may be a Modem, or a system on chip (Soc) including a Modem, and the foregoing method may be implemented by a Modem, etc.

[0216] The present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program for implementing the method shown in the above method embodiments.

[0217] The present application also provides a computer program product including a computer program (which may also be referred to as code or instructions), and when the computer program runs on a computer, the computer can execute the method shown in the above method embodiments.

[0218] Those of ordinary skill in the art can realize that the modules and algorithm steps of each example described in combination with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented by electronic hardware or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are executed in a hardware or software manner depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional technicians can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered to exceed the scope of the present application.

[0219] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that for the convenience and conciseness of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and modules described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments and will not be elaborated herein.

[0220] In several embodiments provided by the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely illustrative. For example, the division of the modules is only a logical function division, and there can be other division methods in actual implementation. For example, multiple modules or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the displayed or discussed couplings, direct couplings, or communication connections to each other can be through some interfaces. The indirect couplings or communication connections of the devices or modules can be in an electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0221] The modules described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as modules may or may not be physical modules, that is, they can be located in one place or distributed to multiple network modules. Some or all of the modules can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

[0222] In addition, the functional modules in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated into one processing module, or each module can exist physically alone, or two or more modules can be integrated into one module.

[0223] When the above-mentioned functions are implemented in the form of software function modules and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or a part of this technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to enable a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as USB flash drives, mobile hard disks, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical discs.

[0224] As described above, the above is only the specific implementation manner of this application, but the protection scope of the embodiments of this application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the embodiments of this application can easily think of changes or substitutions, which should all be covered within the protection scope of the embodiments of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of the embodiments of this application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A data transmission method, characterized in that, The method includes: When it is determined that a preset condition is met, sending a first piece of information to the terminal device, where the first piece of information is used to indicate to activate a first network slice and / or deactivate a second network slice, and the preset condition is related to the load of the core network device and / or the network situation; Based on the first piece of information, receiving service data from the terminal device.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein The first piece of information is used to indicate deactivating the second network slice, and the preset condition includes one or more of the following: The occupancy rate of the processor resources is greater than or equal to a first preset threshold; The occupancy rate of the memory resources is greater than or equal to a second preset threshold; The occupancy rate of the network resources is greater than or equal to a third preset threshold; The ratio of the number of users accessing the second network slice to the saturation value is greater than or equal to a fourth preset threshold; The disconnection rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a fifth preset threshold; The packet loss rate of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a sixth preset threshold; Or, The network delay of the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice is greater than or equal to a seventh preset threshold.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving information from the terminal devices not accessing the second network slice for indicating network data, where the network data includes one or more of the following: disconnection rate, packet loss rate, or network delay.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The first piece of information is used to indicate activating the first network slice, and the preset condition includes one or more of the following: The occupancy rate of the processor resources is less than or equal to an eighth preset threshold; The occupancy rate of the memory resources is less than or equal to a ninth preset threshold; The occupancy rate of the network resources is less than or equal to a tenth preset threshold.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that, The first network slice and / or the second network slice is one or more of the following: an uplink network slice, a downlink network slice, a network slice serving a first application, a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, or a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The method further includes: Sending a second piece of information to the terminal device, where the second piece of information is used to indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein The first piece of information and / or the second piece of information meets one of the following: The first piece of information is broadcast; or, The first piece of information is carried in a first request for requesting to modify a session; or, The first piece of information is carried in a second request for requesting to deregister a session.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving a third request from the terminal device for requesting to activate the first network slice and / or deactivate the second network slice; The sending the first piece of information to the terminal device includes: In response to the third request, sending the first piece of information to the terminal device.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, The first piece of information is used to indicate activating the first network slice, the service data is data generated by the operation of the first application, the service data is transmitted through a first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice, and the first network slice matches the first application.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that The first piece of information is used to indicate deactivating the second network slice, and the service data is transmitted through a second PDU session, and the second PDU session is the default PDU session.

11. A data transmission method, characterized in that The method includes: Receiving first information from a core network device, where the first information is used to indicate enabling a first network slice and / or disabling a second network slice; Based on the first information, sending service data to the core network device.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein The first network slice and / or the second network slice is one or more of the following: an uplink network slice, a downlink network slice, a network slice serving a first application, a network slice with a bandwidth greater than or equal to a first threshold, or a network slice with a bandwidth less than or equal to a second threshold.

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receiving second information from the core network device, where the second information is used to indicate the first network slice and / or the second network slice.

14. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, characterized in that, The first information satisfies one of the following: The first information is broadcast; or, The first information is carried in a first request for requesting modification of a session; or, The first information is carried in a second request for requesting de-registration of a session.

15. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that The method further includes: Sending a third request to the core network device, where the third request is used to request enabling the first network slice and / or disabling the second network slice.

16. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 15, characterized in that, The first information is used to indicate enabling the first network slice; The sending the service data to the core network device includes: Using a first PDU session corresponding to the first network slice to send the service data to the core network device, where the service data is data generated by running a first application, and the first network slice matches the first application.

17. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 16, characterized in that, The first information is used to indicate disabling the second network slice; The sending the service data to the core network device includes: Using a second PDU session to transmit the service data, where the second PDU session is a default PDU session.

18. A data transmission device, characterized in that Includes a module for performing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or any one of claims 11 to 17.

19. A data transmission device, characterized in that, Includes: A processor, where the processor is coupled to a memory for storing a computer program. When the processor calls the computer program, the device is caused to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or any one of claims 11 to 17.

20. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, For storing a computer program, where the computer program includes instructions for implementing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or any one of claims 11 to 17.

21. A chip system, characterized in that, Includes at least one processor and a communication interface, where the communication interface and the at least one processor are interconnected by a line, and the at least one processor is used to run a computer program or instructions to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or any one of claims 11 to 17.

22. A computer program product, characterized in that, The computer program product includes computer program code. When the computer program code runs on a computer, the computer is caused to implement the method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, or any one of claims 11 to 17.

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