Communication method, device and equipment

Abstract

Disclosed are a communication method, apparatus and device, which belong to the field of communications, the communication method comprising: a first communication device receiving a network element search request sent by a data consumer, the network element search request being used for requesting to search a second communication device, the first communication device being a communication device having a network storage function, and the second communication device being a communication device having a network storage function; the second communication device is a communication device having a data plane related capability; and the first communication device sends first response information for the network element search request to the data consumer.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application belongs to the field of communication technology, specifically relating to a communication method, apparatus, and device. Background Technology

[0002] In related technologies, network elements interact based on a service-based architecture (SBA). Under this architecture, after registering with the network repository function (NRF), the network function service consumer (NF service consumer) can search for relevant network elements from the NRF to obtain relevant data.

[0003] However, this service-based architecture for network element interaction has certain limitations, such as limited load capacity and unsuitability for transmitting large amounts of data or large files. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a communication method, apparatus, and device that can solve the problem that the service-based architecture of network element interaction is not suitable for transmitting big data in related technologies.

[0005] Firstly, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: The first communication device receives a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function, and the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability; The first communication device sends a first response message to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

[0006] Secondly, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: The data consumer sends a network element lookup request to the first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function; The data consumer receives a first response message from the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

[0007] Thirdly, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: The second communication device sends first information to the first communication device, wherein the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the first information includes the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, wherein the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

[0008] Fourthly, a communication device is provided for use with a first communication device, the device comprising: The first receiving module is used to receive a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability; The first sending module is used to send a first response message to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

[0009] Fifthly, a communication device is provided for use with a data consumer, the device comprising: The first sending module is used to send a network element lookup request to the first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function; The first receiving module is used to receive the first response information sent by the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

[0010] Sixthly, a communication device is provided for use in a second communication device, the device comprising: A first sending module is used to send first information to a first communication device, wherein the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the first information includes the identification information of the second communication device and the first capability information, wherein the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, the device being configured to perform the steps of the method described in the first aspect, or to implement the steps of the method described in the second aspect, or to implement the steps of the method described in the third aspect.

[0012] Eighthly, a network-side device is provided, the network-side device including a processor and a memory, the memory storing a program or instructions executable on the processor, the program or instructions, when executed by the processor, implementing the steps of the method as described in the first aspect, or implementing the steps of the method as described in the second aspect, or implementing the steps of the method as described in the third aspect.

[0013] A ninth aspect provides a network-side device, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is used to receive a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability; and to send a first response information to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

[0014] In a tenth aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is used to send a network element lookup request to a first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function; and to receive a first response information sent by the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

[0015] Eleventhly, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is used to receive a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function, and the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability; the first communication device sends a first response information to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

[0016] In a twelfth aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is used to send a network element lookup request to a first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function; and to receive a first response information sent by the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

[0017] In a thirteenth aspect, a network-side device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is used to send first information to a first communication device, wherein the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capabilities, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage functions, and the first information includes identification information of the second communication device and first capability information, wherein the first capability information includes capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

[0018] In a fourteenth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, on which a program or instructions are stored, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the method described in the first aspect, or the steps of the method described in the second aspect, or the steps of the method described in the third aspect.

[0019] In a fifteenth aspect, a wireless communication system is provided, comprising: a first communication device, a data consumer, and a second communication device, wherein the first communication device is configured to perform the steps of the method described in the first aspect, the data consumer is configured to perform the steps of the method described in the second aspect, and the second communication device is configured to perform the steps of the method described in the third aspect.

[0020] In a sixteenth aspect, a chip is provided, the chip including a processor and a communication interface coupled to the processor, the processor being configured to run a program or instructions to implement the method as described in the first aspect, or the method as described in the second aspect, or the steps of the method as described in the third aspect.

[0021] In a seventeenth aspect, a computer program / program product is provided, which is stored in a storage medium and is executed by at least one processor to perform the steps of the method of the first aspect, the second aspect, or the third aspect.

[0022] In this embodiment, a second communication device with data plane correlation capability is introduced. Data consumers can find the second communication device from the first communication device with network storage function to obtain data services, which is therefore more suitable for transmitting big data. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Figure 1 This is a block diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to embodiments of this application.

[0024] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a network architecture proposed in an embodiment of this application. Figure 1 .

[0025] Figure 3This is a schematic diagram of a network architecture proposed in an embodiment of this application. Figure 2 .

[0026] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a network architecture proposed in an embodiment of this application. Figure 3 .

[0027] Figure 5 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method proposed in an embodiment of this application.

[0028] Figure 6 This is a flowchart illustrating another communication method proposed in an embodiment of this application.

[0029] Figure 7 This is a flowchart illustrating another communication method proposed in an embodiment of this application.

[0030] Figure 8 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method proposed in Embodiment 1 of this application.

[0031] Figure 9 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method proposed in Embodiment 2 of this application.

[0032] Figure 10 This is a flowchart illustrating a communication method proposed in Embodiment 3 of this application.

[0033] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0034] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device according to another embodiment of this application.

[0035] Figure 13 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device according to another embodiment of this application.

[0036] Figure 14 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device proposed in an embodiment of this application.

[0037] Figure 15 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a terminal proposed in an embodiment of this application.

[0038] Figure 16 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a network-side device proposed in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0039] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of this application. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of this application are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0040] The terms "first," "second," etc., used in this application are used to distinguish similar objects and not to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such terms can be used interchangeably where appropriate so that embodiments of this application can be implemented in orders other than those illustrated or described herein, and the objects distinguished by "first" and "second" are generally of the same class, not limited in number; for example, the first object can be one or more. Furthermore, "or" in this application indicates at least one of the connected objects. For example, the scope of protection for "A or B" covers at least three scenarios: Scenario 1: including A but not B; Scenario 2: including B but not A; Scenario 3: including both A and B. In addition, the terms "A and / or B," "at least one of A and B," and "at least one of A or B" also cover at least the above three scenarios. The character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following objects are in an "or" relationship.

[0041] The term "instruction" in this application can be either a direct instruction (or explicit instruction) or an indirect instruction (or implicit instruction). A direct instruction can be understood as one in which the sender explicitly informs the receiver of specific information, the operation to be performed, or the requested result, etc.; an indirect instruction can be understood as one in which the receiver determines the corresponding information based on the instruction sent by the sender, or makes a judgment and determines the operation to be performed or the requested result, etc., based on the judgment result.

[0042] It is worth noting that the technologies described in this application are not limited to Long Term Evolution (LTE) / LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, but can also be used in other wireless communication systems, such as Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), Single-carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA), or other systems. The terms "system" and "network" in this application are often used interchangeably, and the described technologies can be used with the systems and radio technologies mentioned above, as well as with other systems and radio technologies. The following description describes New Radio (NR) systems for illustrative purposes, and the term NR is used in most of the following description; however, these technologies can also be applied to systems other than NR systems, such as 6th generation (6G) radio systems. th Generation 6G communication system.

[0043] Figure 1This diagram illustrates a block diagram of a wireless communication system applicable to embodiments of this application. The wireless communication system includes a terminal 11 and a network-side device 12. The terminal 11 can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, laptop computer, notebook computer, personal digital assistant (PDA), handheld computer, netbook, ultra-mobile personal computer (UMPC), mobile internet device (MID), augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR) device, robot, wearable device, flight vehicle, vehicle user equipment (VUE), shipboard equipment, pedestrian user equipment (PUE), smart home devices (home appliances with wireless communication capabilities, such as refrigerators, televisions, washing machines, or furniture), game consoles, personal computers (PCs), ATMs, or self-service machines, etc. Wearable devices include: smartwatches, smart bracelets, smart headphones, smart glasses, smart jewelry (smart bracelets, smart chains, smart rings, smart necklaces, smart anklets, smart anklets, etc.), smart wristbands, smart clothing, etc. Among these, in-vehicle devices can also be referred to as in-vehicle terminals, in-vehicle controllers, in-vehicle modules, in-vehicle components, in-vehicle chips, or in-vehicle units, etc. It should be noted that the specific type of terminal 11 is not limited in this application embodiment. Network-side equipment 12 may include access network equipment or core network equipment, wherein access network equipment may also be referred to as Radio Access Network (RAN) equipment, radio access network function, or radio access network unit. Access network equipment may include base stations, Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) access points (AS), or Wireless Fidelity (WiFi) nodes, etc.In this context, a base station may be referred to as a Node B (NB), an Evolved Node B (eNB), a Next Generation Node B (gNB), a New Radio Node B (NR Node B), an Access Point, a Relay Base Station (RBS), a Serving Base Station (SBS), a Base Transceiver Station (BTS), a Radio Base Station, a Radio Transceiver, a Basic Service Set (BSS), an Extended Service Set (ESS), a Home Node B (HNB), a Home Evolved Node B, a Transmit / Receive Point (TRP), or any other suitable term in the relevant field, as long as the same technical effect is achieved. The base station is not limited to any specific technical terminology. It should be noted that in this application embodiment, only a base station in an NR system is used as an example for introduction, and the specific type of base station is not limited.

[0044] Core network equipment, also known as core network nodes, core network functions, or core network elements, includes, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Mobility Management Entity (MME), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), User Plane Function (UPF), Policy Control Function (PCF), Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF), Edge Application Server Discovery Function (EASDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Unified Data Repository (UDR), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Centralized network configuration (CNC), Network Repository Function (NRF), Network Exposure Function (NEF), Local NEF (or L-NEF), and Binding Support Function. Support Functions (BSF), Application Functions (AF), Location Management Functions (LMF), Gateway Mobile Location Centres (GMLC), and Network Data Analytics Functions (NWDAF), etc. It should be noted that this application embodiment only uses core network equipment in the NR system as an example for description, and does not limit the specific type of core network equipment. If the name of the core network equipment mentioned in this application embodiment changes in subsequent protocol versions (e.g., 6G), it will also be within the scope of protection of this application.

[0045] Optionally, the core network equipment can be implemented by one or more functional modules in a single device, or by multiple devices working together; this application does not specifically limit this. It is understood that the aforementioned functional modules can be network elements in hardware devices, software functional modules running on dedicated hardware, or virtualized functional modules instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform).

[0046] Existing service-oriented architecture-based network element interaction methods have certain limitations, such as limited load capacity and unsuitability for transmitting large amounts of data or large files.

[0047] To address the aforementioned issues, this application introduces a second communication device—a communication device with data plane capabilities—on the network side. This creates a data-oriented architecture within the network, similar to a Service Based Architecture (SBA), specifically designed for data transfer between communication devices. Figure 2 A schematic diagram of this network architecture is shown. (For example...) Figure 2 As shown, in this network architecture, the second communication device 20, the data consumer, and the data provider can interact via the SBA bus 21.

[0048] In some embodiments, for the purpose of managing and controlling data transmission, and for the purpose of transmitting data, the second communication device may be referred to as a data plane function (DPF). Of course, the second communication device may also have other names, which are not limited in this application.

[0049] In other embodiments, such as Figure 3 or Figure 4 As shown, the second communication device includes at least one of a Data Plane Function-Control (DPF-C) 201 and a Data Plane Function-User (DPF-U) 202. The DPF-C 201 can interact with the data consumer and / or data provider via the SBA bus 21, and the DPF-C 201 and DPF-U 202 can communicate via an internal connection.

[0050] Optionally, such as Figure 3 and Figure 4 As shown, this application embodiment also introduces a DBA bus 22, and the second communication device 20, the data consumer, and the data provider can interact through either the SBA bus 21 or the DBA bus.

[0051] Optionally, the second communication device may also include a message middleware, for example, such as... Figure 4 As shown, the DPF-U202 can also be connected to the message middleware 203. The connection of the DPF-U to the message middleware means that the DPF-U's internal implementation may be based on message middleware. Message middleware refers to a message processing theory that can achieve decoupling (non-direct communication) between message providers and consumers, asynchronous processing, and peak shaving. Specific implementation methods could include Kafka architecture, etc.

[0052] Optionally, the message middleware may specifically be Message Bus. MessageBus is a high-efficiency and stable message passing middleware. It implements a communication protocol from one device to another and supports polling, long polling, and long polling plus streaming modes.

[0053] Based on the above network architecture, this application proposes a communication method. The following description, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, details the communication method provided by this application through some embodiments and application scenarios.

[0054] like Figure 5 As shown, a communication method proposed in one embodiment of this application may include: Step 501: The first communication device receives a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability.

[0055] In some embodiments, the first communication device may be a Network Repository Function (NRF). The first communication device stores the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, or in other words, the second communication device is registered with the first communication device. The first capability information includes capabilities possessed or corresponding to the second communication device.

[0056] In one embodiment, the first capability information is used to indicate a first capability, which includes all or part of the capabilities possessed by a network element or network function.

[0057] It should be noted that the second communication device can be a network element or network function with data plane correlation capabilities, and the network element lookup request can also be called a network function lookup (discovery) request.

[0058] In some embodiments, a data consumer may send a network element lookup request via Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request; wherein the network element lookup request carries at least one of the following: The network element type of the second communication device to be searched; The second capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device that needs to be found or is expected.

[0059] It should be noted that the "expected" refers to the capabilities that the second communication device being searched must meet, etc.

[0060] It should be noted that the aforementioned capability information can refer to the ability information that one possesses or has.

[0061] In one embodiment, the second capability information is used to indicate a second capability, and the second capability information is used to indicate a request to find a network element or network function with the second capability.

[0062] Optionally, before step 501, Figure 5 The method may further include: the first communication device receiving first information sent by the second communication device, wherein the first information includes identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, and the first capability information includes capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

[0063] Based on this, optionally, Figure 5 The method may further include: the first communication device sending a second response message to the second communication device in response to the first information.

[0064] The first information can be carried by a registration message to request the registration of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device. For example, the first information can be carried by a message such as Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister Request; or, the first information can be carried by a message requesting the update of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device.

[0065] In cases where the first communication device successfully processes the first information, such as registering and successfully saving the first information, the second response information can be a response indicating successful processing of the first information. For example, when the second communication device sends the first information via a registration message, after receiving the registration message, the first communication device stores the first information and sends a second response message. Specifically, the second response message can be sent via Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegisterresponse to notify the second communication device of successful registration.

[0066] The identification information of the second communication device may include at least one of the following: Network Function Instance ID (NF instance ID); NF's official domain name (Fully Qualified Domain Name, FQDN); The IP address of NF; Network element instance identification information; Network element type.

[0067] The first capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Data-related capabilities information, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to indicate whether the second communication device can determine whether it can obtain the data to be transmitted, and the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether requested data can be transmitted or whether necessary data can be retrieved; c. Protocol conversion capability, which refers to the ability to convert information from one protocol to another. For example, if a message middleware is provided in the second communication device, the ability to support protocol conversion includes the ability to convert information that is not supported by the message middleware into information that is supported by the message middleware. For example, the ability to convert non-Message Bus information into information that Message Bus can support / recognize. d. The ability to support efficient signaling transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports efficient signaling transmission protocols, such as HTTP3; e. The ability to support big data transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports big data transmission protocols, such as protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0068] It should be noted that the aforementioned data plane-related capability information can be indication information, which is used to indicate the data plane capability information, that is, it can be explicit or implicit.

[0069] 2) Supported service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data can be subscribed to through this service; for example, data consumers can subscribe to location-related data through this service.

[0070] b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you can unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; for example, data consumers can use this service to unsubscribe from location-related data.

[0071] c. A data transmission service, used to indicate that subscribed data can be transmitted through this service; for example, a second communication device can transmit data subscribed to by a data consumer to a data consumer through this service; d. Data Request Service, used to indicate that data of a certain type / topic can be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested data of a certain type / topic can also be returned through the feedback message of this service; for example, a data consumer can request location-related data through this service; a second communication device can return location-related data through the feedback message of this request message; e. A data receiving service through which data can be received from other data providers; for example, a second communication device can receive data from other data providers through this service. f. Data management service, used to indicate data that can be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; for example, data providers can manage the data they generate through this service; g. Data management registration service, used to indicate the data that data consumers can collect or that data providers can generate that can be registered / registered through the service; h. Data update registration service, used to indicate that data that can be collected by data consumers or generated by data producers can be updated through this service; i. Data management registration service, used to indicate whether data consumers can deregister their relevant information through this service; o. Data management configuration service, used to indicate the data and / or targets to be collected and / or sent that can be configured through this service; for example, DPF-C uses this service to inform DPF-U that it needs to collect data X from network element A and send it to network element B; p. Data Management goes to the configuration service, which indicates whether previous configuration information can be canceled through this service.

[0072] It should be noted that the data provider can be the communication device that generates the data, such as NF, OAM, UE, AF, etc.

[0073] 3) Supported transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus information may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Supported data source information, which indicates the device information corresponding to the data that the second communication device can obtain. The device information can be a device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or a device identifier granularity, such as UE ID, RANID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identifier can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) Supported data consumer information, used to indicate the objects that the second communication device can transmit data to, or the device information that can obtain data from the second communication device. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 6) Supported service range, used to indicate the range covered by the second communication device, or the range corresponding to the data that can be obtained, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other associated data plane related network elements, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the second communication device, or other data plane related network elements managed by the second communication device. For example, if the second communication device includes DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0074] The second capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Expected data-related capabilities, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to instruct the second communication device to be located to obtain the data to be transmitted, as well as the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether the second communication device to be located can transmit the requested data, or to obtain the required data, etc. c. Protocol conversion capability: When a message middleware is set in the second communication device to be searched, the protocol conversion capability includes: the ability to convert information not supported by the message middleware into information supported by the message middleware, for example, the ability to convert non-Message Bus information into information that Message Bus can support / recognize; d. The ability to support efficient signaling transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports efficient signaling transmission protocols, such as the second communication device to be searched supporting the HTTP3 protocol, etc.; e. The ability to support big data transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports big data transmission protocols, such as the network element needing to support protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0075] 2) Expected service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate the need to subscribe to a certain type / topic of data through this service; b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you need to unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; c. Data sending service, used to indicate whether subscribed data needs to be sent through this service; d. Data Request Service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data needs to be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested type / topic of data can also be returned through the feedback message of this service; e. Data receiving service, used to indicate the need to receive data sent by other data providers through this service; f. Data management service, used to indicate data that needs to be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; g. Data management registration service, used to indicate which data consumers can collect that need to be registered / registered through this service; h. Data update registration service, used to indicate data that consumers may generate that needs to be updated through this service; i. Data management registration service, used to indicate the relevant information of data consumers that need to be deregistered through this service.

[0076] 3) Expected transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus information may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Expected data source information, which indicates the device information corresponding to the data that the second communication device to be searched can obtain. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UEID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) The data consumer's own information, used to indicate its own device information, such as device type or device identifier. This information is used to determine whether the network element to be searched can be interacted with, such as for data transmission; 6) Expected coverage area, used to indicate the area covered by the second communication device to be searched, or the range corresponding to the available data, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other data plane related network elements to be associated, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the second communication device to be searched, or other data plane related network elements managed by the second communication device to be searched. For example, if the second communication device to be searched includes DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0077] It should be noted that the above-mentioned category of data or topic of data is used to define the data. It can be distinguished by dataset identifiers, data type set identifiers, or one or more data types, etc., in any specific form. Alternatively, it can be distinguished by data analysis task identifiers (analytics IDs), etc.

[0078] It should be noted that the above-mentioned network elements and communication equipment have similar meanings, both representing communication equipment and / or network functions in a communication network.

[0079] It should be noted that the above services are based on the bus or protocol (per SBA / DBA, per protocol), meaning that a second communication device supports different services for different protocols / buses.

[0080] Step 502: The first communication device sends a first response message to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

[0081] In some embodiments, if the first communication device fails to find the second communication device, the first response information may be a response indicating a search failure. Optionally, the first response information may also carry the reason for the search failure.

[0082] In some embodiments, if the first communication device finds the second communication device, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device; or, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes capability information corresponding to the found second communication device.

[0083] In one implementation, third capability information is used to indicate third capabilities, which include all or part of the capabilities possessed by the found network element or network function.

[0084] It should also be noted that for a certain second communication device, the second capability information or the third capability information may be a part of the first capability information.

[0085] Accordingly, when a data consumer receives a first response message containing information about the found second communication device, it can interact with the found second communication device to transmit data.

[0086] Figure 5 The communication method proposed in the illustrated embodiment is more suitable for transmitting big data and improves the efficiency of big data transmission because it introduces a second communication device with data plane correlation capabilities into the network. Data consumers can find the second communication device from the first communication device with network storage function to obtain data services.

[0087] like Figure 6 As shown, another embodiment of this application proposes a communication method that may include: Step 601: The data consumer sends a network element lookup request to the first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function.

[0088] Step 602: The data consumer receives a first response message from the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

[0089] In some embodiments, the first communication device may be a Network Repository Function (NRF). The first communication device stores the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, or in other words, the second communication device is registered with the first communication device. The first capability information includes capabilities possessed or corresponding to the second communication device.

[0090] In some embodiments, a data consumer may send a network element lookup request via Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request; wherein the network element lookup request carries at least one of the following: The network element type of the second communication device to be searched; The second capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device that needs to be found or is expected.

[0091] It should be noted that the aforementioned capability information can refer to the ability information that one possesses or has.

[0092] The identification information of the second communication device may include at least one of the following: Network Function Instance ID (NF instance ID); NF's official domain name (Fully Qualified Domain Name, FQDN); The IP address of NF; Network element instance identification information; Network element type.

[0093] The second capability information may include at least one of the following: The second capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Expected data-related capabilities, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to instruct the second communication device to be located to obtain the data to be transmitted, as well as the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether the second communication device to be located can transmit the requested data, or to obtain the required data, etc. c. Protocol conversion capability, which refers to the ability to convert information from one protocol to another. For example, if a message middleware is set up in the second communication device to be searched, the protocol conversion capability includes the ability to convert information that the message middleware does not support into information that the message middleware supports. For example, the ability to convert non-messageBus information into information that message Bus can support / recognize. d. The ability to support efficient signaling transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports efficient signaling transmission protocols, such as the second communication device to be searched supporting the HTTP3 protocol, etc.; e. The ability to support big data transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports big data transmission protocols, such as the network element needing to support protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0094] 2) Expected service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate the need to subscribe to a certain type / topic of data through this service; b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you need to unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; c. Data sending service, used to indicate whether subscribed data needs to be sent through this service; d. Data Request Service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data needs to be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested type / topic of data can also be returned through the feedback message of this service; e. Data receiving service, used to indicate the need to receive data sent by other data providers through this service; f. Data management service, used to indicate data that needs to be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; g. Data management registration service, used to indicate which data consumers can collect that need to be registered / registered through this service; h. Data update registration service, used to indicate data that consumers may generate that needs to be updated through this service; i. Data management registration service, used to indicate the relevant information of data consumers that need to be deregistered through this service.

[0095] 3) Expected transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus information may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device to be searched supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Expected data source information, which indicates the device information corresponding to the data that the second communication device to be searched can obtain. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UEID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) The data consumer's own information, used to indicate its own device information, such as device type or device identifier. This information is used to determine whether the network element to be searched can be interacted with, such as for data transmission; 6) Expected coverage area, used to indicate the area covered by the second communication device to be searched, or the range corresponding to the available data, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other data plane related network elements to be associated, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the second communication device to be searched, or other data plane related network elements managed by the second communication device to be searched. For example, if the second communication device to be searched includes DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0096] In some embodiments, if the first communication device fails to find the second communication device, the first response information may be a response indicating a search failure. Optionally, the first response information may also carry the reason for the search failure.

[0097] In some embodiments, if the first communication device finds the second communication device, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device; or, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes capability information corresponding to the found second communication device.

[0098] It should also be noted that for a given second communication device, its corresponding first capability information, second capability information, and third capability information may be the same or different. Generally, the second capability information or third capability information corresponding to the second communication device is part or all of the first capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

[0099] Optionally, Figure 6 The method shown may also include: The data consumer determines the second communication device based on the first response information; The data consumer sends a service acquisition request to the second communication device, wherein the service acquisition request is used to request the acquisition of a target data service.

[0100] The target data service may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

[0101] Figure 6 The communication method proposed in the illustrated embodiment is more suitable for transmitting big data and improves the efficiency of big data transmission because it introduces a second communication device with data plane correlation capabilities into the network. Data consumers can find the second communication device from the first communication device with network storage function to obtain data services.

[0102] like Figure 7 As shown, another embodiment of this application proposes a communication method that may include: Step 701: The second communication device sends first information to the first communication device, wherein the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the first information includes the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, wherein the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

[0103] In some embodiments, the first communication device may be a Network Repository Function (NRF).

[0104] Optionally, Figure 7 The method shown may further include: the second communication device receiving a second response message sent by the first communication device in response to the first information.

[0105] The first information can be carried by a registration message to request the registration of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device. For example, the first information can be carried by a message such as Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister Request; or, the first information can be carried by a message requesting the update of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device.

[0106] In cases where the first communication device successfully processes the first information, such as registering and successfully saving the first information, the second response information can be a response indicating successful processing of the first information. For example, when the second communication device sends the first information via a registration message, after receiving the registration message, the first communication device stores the first information and sends a second response message. Specifically, the second response message can be sent via Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegisterresponse to notify the second communication device of successful registration.

[0107] The identification information of the second communication device may include at least one of the following: Network Function Instance ID (NF instance ID); NF's official domain name (Fully Qualified Domain Name, FQDN); The IP address of NF; Network element instance identification information; Network element type.

[0108] The first capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Data-related capabilities information, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to indicate whether the second communication device can determine whether it can obtain the data to be transmitted, and the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether requested data can be transmitted or whether necessary data can be retrieved; c. Protocol conversion capability, which refers to the ability to convert information from one protocol to another. For example, if a message middleware is provided in the second communication device, the ability to support protocol conversion includes the ability to convert information that is not supported by the message middleware into information that is supported by the message middleware. For example, the ability to convert non-Message Bus information into information that Message Bus can support / recognize. d. The ability to support efficient signaling transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports efficient signaling transmission protocols, such as HTTP3; e. The ability to support big data transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports big data transmission protocols, such as protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0109] 2) Supported service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data can be subscribed to through this service; b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you can unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; c. Data transmission service, used to indicate that subscribed data can be transmitted through this service; d. Data Request Service, used to indicate that data of a certain type / topic can be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested data of a certain type / topic can also be returned through the feedback message of this service; e. Data receiving service, through which data can be received from other data providers; f. Data management service, used to indicate data that can be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; g. Data management registration service, used to indicate the data that consumers can collect and can register / register through this service; h. Data update registration service, used to indicate how data consumers can update data that can be generated by the data consumer; i. Data management registration service, used to indicate whether data consumers can deregister their relevant information through this service; o. Data management configuration service, used to indicate the data and / or targets to be collected and / or sent that can be configured through this service; for example, DPF-C uses this service to inform DPF-U that it needs to collect data X from network element A and send it to network element B; p. Data Management goes to the configuration service, which indicates whether previous configuration information can be canceled through this service.

[0110] 3) Supported transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus information may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the second communication device supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Supported data source information, which indicates the device information corresponding to the data that the second communication device can obtain. The device information can be a device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or a device identifier granularity, such as UE ID, RANID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identifier can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) Supported data consumer information, used to indicate the objects that the second communication device can transmit data to, or the device information that can obtain data from the second communication device. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 6) Supported service range, used to indicate the range covered by the second communication device, or the range corresponding to the data that can be obtained, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other associated data plane related network elements, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the second communication device, or other data plane related network elements managed by the second communication device. For example, if the second communication device includes DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0111] Optionally, Figure 7 The method described may further include: The second communication device receives a service acquisition request sent by a data consumer, wherein the data consumer finds the second communication device from the first communication device, and the service acquisition request is used to request the acquisition of a target data service; The second communication device sends a third response message to the data consumer in response to the service acquisition request.

[0112] The target data service may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

[0113] The third response information can be a response indicating that the service acquisition request failed, or a response indicating that the service acquisition request succeeded.

[0114] Figure 7 The communication method proposed in the illustrated embodiment is more suitable for transmitting big data and improves the efficiency of big data transmission because it introduces a second communication device with data plane correlation capabilities into the network. Data consumers can find the second communication device from the first communication device with network storage function to obtain data services.

[0115] The following describes a communication method proposed in this application through three specific embodiments.

[0116] Example 1 In this embodiment, such as Figure 8 As shown, the first communication device is NRF 81, and the second communication device is DPF 82.

[0117] like Figure 8 As shown, the communication method proposed in Embodiment 1 may include: Step 801, DPF 82 sends first information to NRF 81, wherein the first information includes the identification information of DPF 82 and first capability information, and the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to DPF 82.

[0118] The first information can be carried by a registration message to request the registration of the data plane related capabilities of the DPF 82. For example, the first information can be carried by a message such as Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister Request; or, the first information can be carried by a message requesting the update of the data plane related capabilities of the DPF 82.

[0119] The identification information of the DPF 82 may include at least one of the following: Network Function Instance ID (NF instance ID); NF's official domain name (Fully Qualified Domain Name, FQDN); The IP address of NF; Network element instance identification information; Network element type.

[0120] The first capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Data-related capabilities information, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to indicate whether the second communication device can determine whether it can obtain the data to be transmitted, and the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether requested data can be transmitted or whether necessary data can be retrieved; c. Protocol conversion capability, which refers to the ability to convert information from one protocol to another. For example, when a message middleware is set in DPF82, the protocol conversion capability includes the ability to convert information that the message middleware does not support into information that the message middleware supports. For example, the ability to convert non-Message Bus information into information that Message Bus can support / recognize. d. The ability to support efficient signaling transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports efficient signaling transmission protocols, such as HTTP3; e. The ability to support big data transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports big data transmission protocols, such as protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0121] 2) Supported service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data can be subscribed to through this service; b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you can unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; c. Data transmission service, used to indicate that subscribed data can be transmitted through this service; d. Data Request Service, used to indicate that data of a certain type / topic can be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested data of a certain type / topic can also be returned through the feedback message of this service; e. Data receiving service, through which data can be received from other data providers; f. Data management service, used to indicate data that can be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; g. Data management registration service, used to indicate the data that data consumer 83 can collect through this service; h. Data update registration service, used to indicate that data consumer 83 can update the data that can be generated by the data update service; i. Data management registration service, used to indicate whether data consumer 83's relevant information can be deregistered through this service; o. Data management configuration service, used to indicate the data and / or targets to be collected and / or sent that can be configured through this service; for example, DPF-C uses this service to inform DPF-U that it needs to collect data X from network element A and send it to network element B; p. Data Management goes to the configuration service, which indicates whether previous configuration information can be canceled through this service.

[0122] 3) Supported transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus information may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus. If the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Supported data source information, used to indicate the device information corresponding to the data that the DPF 82 can obtain. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NFID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) Supported data consumer information, used to indicate the objects that the DPF 82 can transmit data to, or the device information that can obtain data from the DPF 82. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 6) Supported service range, used to indicate the range covered by the DPF 82, or the range corresponding to the data that can be obtained, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other associated data plane related network elements, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the DPF 82, or other data plane related network elements managed by the DPF 82. For example, if the DPF 82 includes element DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0123] Step 802, NRF 81 stores the first information.

[0124] In step 803, NRF 81 returns a second response message to DPF 82.

[0125] Wherein, if NRF 81 successfully processes the first information, such as registering and successfully saving the first information, the second response information can be a response indicating successful processing of the first information. For example, when DPF 82 sends the first information via a registration message, after receiving the registration message, NRF 81 stores the first information and sends a second response message, specifically through the Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister response, to notify DPF 82 of successful registration.

[0126] Step 804: Data consumer 83 sends a network element lookup request to DPF 82 based on the second response information.

[0127] In some embodiments, data consumer 83 may send a network element lookup request via Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request; wherein the network element lookup request carries at least one of the following: The network element type of the DPF 82 that needs to be found; The second capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the DPF82 that needs to be found or is expected.

[0128] The second capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Expected data-related capabilities, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to instruct the DPF 82 to be searched to obtain the data to be transmitted, as well as the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether the DPF 82 to be searched can transmit the requested data, or to retrieve the required data, etc.; c. Protocol conversion capability, which refers to the ability to convert information from one protocol to another. For example, if a message middleware is set in the DPF 82 that needs to be searched, the protocol conversion capability includes the ability to convert information that the message middleware does not support into information that the message middleware supports. For example, the ability to convert non-Message Bus information into information that Message Bus can support / recognize. d. Support for efficient signaling transport protocols, used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports efficient signaling transport protocols, such as the DPF 82 to be searched supporting the HTTP3 protocol, etc. e. Support for big data transmission protocols, used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports big data transmission protocols, such as protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0129] 2) Expected service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate the need to subscribe to a certain type / topic of data through this service; b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you need to unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; c. Data sending service, used to indicate whether subscribed data needs to be sent through this service; d. Data Request Service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data needs to be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested type / topic of data can also be returned through the feedback message of this service; e. Data receiving service, used to indicate the need to receive data sent by other data providers through this service; f. Data management service, used to indicate data that needs to be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; g. Data management registration service, used to indicate which data consumers 83 can collect that need to be registered / registered through this service; h. Data update registration service, used to indicate data that needs to be updated through this service and can be generated by data consumer 83; i. Data management registration service, used to indicate the relevant information of data consumer 83 that needs to be deregistered through this service.

[0130] 3) Expected transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus information may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus. If the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Expected data source information, which indicates the device information corresponding to the data that can be obtained by the DPF 82 to be searched. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RANID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) The data consumer 83's own information, used to indicate its own device information, such as device type or device identifier. This information is used to determine whether the network element to be searched can interact with that network element, such as to transfer data; 6) Expected service coverage area, used to indicate the area covered by the DPF 82 to be searched, or the range of available data, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other data plane related network elements to be associated, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the DPF 82 to be searched, or other data plane related network elements managed by the DPF 82 to be searched. For example, if the DPF 82 to be searched includes DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0131] In step 805, NRF 81 returns the first response information to data consumer 83.

[0132] In some embodiments, if NRF 81 does not find DPF 82, the first response information may be a response indicating a search failure. Optionally, the first response information may also carry the reason for the search failure.

[0133] In some embodiments, if NRF 81 finds DPF 82, the first response information may include the identification information of the found DPF 82, or the first response information may include the identification information of the found DPF 82 and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the found DPF 82.

[0134] It should also be noted that for a given DPF 82, the second or third capability information may be part of the first capability information.

[0135] Step 806: Data consumer 83 determines DPF 81 based on the first response information and interacts with DPF 81 to obtain target data service.

[0136] The target data service may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

[0137] Figure 8 The communication method proposed in the illustrated embodiment is more suitable for transmitting big data and improves the efficiency of big data transmission because a communication device with data plane correlation capability, DPF 82, is introduced into the network. Data consumer 83 can find DPF 82 from a communication device with network storage function, NRF 81, to obtain data services.

[0138] Example 2 In this embodiment, such as Figure 9 As shown, the first communication device is NRF 81, and the second communication device includes DPF-C821.

[0139] like Figure 9 As shown, the communication method proposed in Embodiment 2 may include: Step 901, DPF-C 821 sends first information to NRF 81, wherein the first information includes the identification information of DPF-C821 and first capability information, and the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to DPF 82.

[0140] The first information can be carried by a registration message to request the registration of the data plane related capabilities of the DPF-C 821. For example, the first information can be carried by a message such as Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister Request; or, the first information can be carried by a message requesting the update of the data plane related capabilities of the DPF-C 821.

[0141] The identification information of the DPF-C 821 may include at least one of the following: Network Function Instance ID (NF instance ID); NF's official domain name (Fully Qualified Domain Name, FQDN); The IP address of NF; Network element instance identification information; Network element type.

[0142] The first capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Data-related capabilities information, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to indicate whether the second communication device can determine whether it can obtain the data to be transmitted, and the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. The ability to support efficient signaling transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports efficient signaling transmission protocols, such as HTTP3.

[0143] 2) Supported service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data can be subscribed to through this service; b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you can unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; c. Data Request Service, used to indicate that data of a certain type / topic can be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested data of a certain type / topic can also be returned through the feedback message of this service; d. Data management service, used to indicate data that can be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; e. Data management registration service, used to indicate the data that data consumers 83 can collect that can be registered / registered through this service; f. Data update registration service, used to indicate how data consumer 83 can update the data that can be generated by the data update service; g. Data Management Registration Service, used to indicate whether data consumer 83's relevant information can be deregistered through this service.

[0144] 3) Supported transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus. If the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Supported data source information, used to indicate the device information corresponding to the data that the DPF-C 821 can obtain. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) Supported data consumer information, used to indicate the objects that the DPF-C 821 can transmit data to, or the device information that can obtain data from the DPF-C 821. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 6) Supported service range, used to indicate the range covered by the DPF-C 821, or the range corresponding to the available data, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other associated data plane related network elements, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the DPF-C 821, or other data plane related network elements managed by the DPF-C 821. For example, if the DPF-C 821 includes the element DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0145] Step 902, NRF 81 stores the first information.

[0146] In step 903, NRF 81 returns a second response message to DPF-C 821.

[0147] Wherein, if the NRF 81 successfully processes the first information, such as registering and successfully saving the first information, the second response information can be a response indicating successful processing of the first information. For example, when the DPF-C 821 sends the first information via a registration message, after receiving the registration message, the NRF 81 stores the first information and sends a second response message. Specifically, the second response message can be sent via the Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister response to notify the DPF-C 821 of successful registration.

[0148] Step 904: Data consumer 83 sends a network element lookup request to DPF-C 821 based on the second response information.

[0149] In some embodiments, data consumer 83 may send a network element lookup request via Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request; wherein the network element lookup request carries at least one of the following: The network element type of the DPF 82 that needs to be found; The second capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the DPF82 that needs to be found or is expected.

[0150] The second capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Expected data-related capabilities, which may include at least one of the following: a. The ability to control data transmission, used to instruct the DPF 82 to obtain the data to be transmitted, as well as the protocol, method (CP / UP / DP plane), encoding method, etc. used to transmit the data; b. Indication information supporting efficient signaling transmission protocols, used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports efficient signaling transmission protocols, such as HTTP3.

[0151] 2) Expected service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data subscription service, used to indicate the need to subscribe to a certain type / topic of data through this service; b. Cancel data subscription service, used to indicate that you need to unsubscribe from a certain type / topic of data through this service; c. Data Request Service, used to indicate that a certain type / topic of data needs to be requested through this service; it should be noted that the requested type / topic of data can also be returned through the feedback messages of this service; d. Data management service, used to indicate data that needs to be managed through this service or collected by data plane related network elements; e. Data management registration service, used to indicate which data consumers 83 can collect that need to be registered / registered through this service; f. Data update registration service, used to indicate data that needs to be updated through this service and can be generated by data consumer 83; g. Data Management Registration Service, used to indicate the information of data consumer 83 that needs to be deregistered through this service.

[0152] 3) Expected transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus. If the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Expected data source information, which indicates the device information corresponding to the data that can be obtained by the DPF-C 821 to be searched. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) The data consumer 83's own information, used to indicate its own device information, such as device type or device identifier. This information is used to determine whether the network element to be searched can interact with that network element, such as to transfer data; 6) Expected service coverage area, used to indicate the area covered by the DPF-C 821 to be searched, or the range of available data, such as a region information or an IP range; 7) Other data plane related network elements to be associated, used to indicate other data plane related network elements corresponding to the DPF-C 821 to be searched, or other data plane related network elements managed by the DPF-C 821 to be searched. For example, if the DPF-C 821 to be searched includes the DPF-C, then the associated other data plane related network elements may include DPF-U.

[0153] In step 905, NRF 81 returns the first response information to data consumer 83.

[0154] In some embodiments, if NRF 81 does not find DPF-C 821, the first response information may be a response indicating a search failure. Optionally, the first response information may also carry the reason for the search failure.

[0155] In some embodiments, if NRF 81 finds DPF-C 821, the first response information may include the identification information of the found DPF-C 821; or, the first response information may include the identification information of the found DPF-C 821 and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the found DPF 82.

[0156] It should also be noted that for a given DPF 82, the second or third capability information may be part of the first capability information.

[0157] Step 906: Data consumer 83 determines DPF 81 based on the first response information and interacts with DPF 81 to obtain the target data service.

[0158] The target data service may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

[0159] Figure 9 The communication method proposed in the illustrated embodiment is more suitable for transmitting big data and improves the efficiency of big data transmission because a communication device with data plane correlation capability, DPF-C 821, is introduced into the network. Data consumer 83 can find DPF-C 821 from a communication device with network storage function, NRF 81, to obtain data services.

[0160] Example 3 In this embodiment, such as Figure 10 As shown, the first communication device is NRF 81, and the second communication device is DPF-U 822.

[0161] like Figure 10 As shown, the communication method proposed in Embodiment 3 may include: Step 1001, DPF-U 822 sends first information to NRF 81, wherein the first information includes the identification information of DPF-U 822 and the first capability information, and the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to DPF 82.

[0162] The first information can be carried by a registration message to request the registration of the data plane related capabilities of the DPF-U 822. For example, the first information can be carried by a message such as Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister Request; or, the first information can be carried by a message requesting the update of the data plane related capabilities of the DPF-U 822.

[0163] The identification information of the DPF-U 822 may include at least one of the following: Network Function Instance ID (NF instance ID); NF's official domain name (Fully Qualified Domain Name, FQDN); The IP address of NF; Network element instance identification information; Network element type.

[0164] The first capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Data-related capabilities information, which may include at least one of the following: a. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether requested data can be transmitted or necessary data can be retrieved; b. Protocol conversion capability, which refers to the ability to convert information from one protocol to another. For example, when a message middleware is set in the DPF-U822, the protocol conversion capability includes the ability to convert information that the message middleware does not support into information that the message middleware supports. For example, the ability to convert non-Message Bus information into information that Message Bus can support / recognize. c. Support for big data transmission protocols, used to indicate that the second communication device supports big data transmission protocols, such as protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0165] 2) Supported service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data transmission service, used to indicate that subscribed data can be transmitted through this service; b. Data receiving service, through which data can be received from other data providers; c. Data management configuration service, used to indicate the data and / or targets to be collected and / or sent that can be configured through this service; for example, DPF-C uses this service to inform DPF-U that it needs to collect data X from network element A and send it to network element B; d. Data management configuration service, used to indicate how to cancel previous configuration information.

[0166] 3) Supported transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus. If the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Supported data source information, used to indicate the device information corresponding to the data that the DPF-U 822 can obtain. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) Supported data consumer information, used to indicate the objects that the DPF-U 822 can transmit data to, or the device information that can obtain data from the DPF-U 822. The device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identification granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identification can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 6) Supported service range, used to indicate the range covered by the DPF-U 822, or the range corresponding to the data that can be obtained, such as a region information or an IP range.

[0167] Step 1002, NRF 81 stores the first information.

[0168] Step 1003, NRF 81 returns a second response message to DPF-U 822.

[0169] Wherein, if the NRF 81 successfully processes the first information, such as registering and successfully saving the first information, the second response information can be a response indicating successful processing of the first information. For example, when the DPF-U 822 sends the first information via a registration message, after receiving the registration message, the NRF 81 stores the first information and sends a second response message. Specifically, the second response message can be sent via the Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister response to notify the DPF-U 822 of successful registration.

[0170] Step 1004: Data consumer 83 sends a network element lookup request to DPF-U 822 based on the second response information.

[0171] In some embodiments, data consumer 83 may send a network element lookup request via Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request; wherein the network element lookup request carries at least one of the following: The network element type of the DPF 82 that needs to be found; The second capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the DPF82 that needs to be found or is expected.

[0172] The second capability information includes at least one of the following: 1) Expected data-related capabilities, which may include at least one of the following: a. Data transmission capability, used to indicate whether the DPF 82 to be searched can transmit the requested data or retrieve the required data, etc.; b. Protocol conversion capability: When a message middleware is set in the DPF-U 822 that needs to be searched, the protocol conversion capability includes: the ability to convert information that is not supported by the message middleware into information that is supported by the message middleware. For example, the ability to convert non-Message Bus information into information that Message Bus can support / recognize. c. Support for big data transfer protocols, used to indicate whether the DPF 82 to be searched supports big data transfer protocols, such as protocol buf, FTP protocol, etc.

[0173] 2) Expected service information, which may specifically include at least one of the following: a. Data transmission service, used to indicate whether subscribed data needs to be transmitted through this service; b. Data receiving service, used to indicate the need to receive data sent by other data providers through this service; c. Data management configuration service, used to indicate the data and / or targets to be collected and / or sent that need to be configured through this service; for example, DPF-C uses this service to inform DPF-U that it needs to collect data X from network element A and send it to network element B; d. Data management is used to configure services to indicate whether previous configuration information needs to be canceled through this service.

[0174] 3) Expected transmission bus information, wherein the transmission bus information may include at least one of SBA bus and DBA bus. If the transmission bus information includes SBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports SBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to SBA bus; if the transmission bus information includes DBA bus, then the transmission bus information is used to indicate that the DPF 82 to be searched supports DBA bus and / or the protocol corresponding to DBA bus. 4) Expected data source information, which indicates the device information corresponding to the data that the DPF-U 822 can obtain. This device information can be the device type, such as UE, RAN, network element, etc., or the device identifier granularity, such as UE ID, RAN ID, NF ID, etc. It should be noted that the device identifier can be presented in the form of a list, such as UE ID list, etc. 5) The data consumer 83's own information, used to indicate its own device information, such as device type or device identifier. This information is used to determine whether the network element to be searched can interact with that network element, such as to transfer data; 6) Expected service coverage area, used to indicate the area covered by the DPF-U 822 that needs to be searched, or the range of data that can be obtained, such as a region information or an IP range.

[0175] Step 1005, NRF 81 returns the first response information to data consumer 83.

[0176] In some embodiments, if NRF 81 does not find DPF-U 822, the first response information may be a response indicating a search failure. Optionally, the first response information may also carry the reason for the search failure.

[0177] In some embodiments, if NRF 81 finds DPF-U 822, the first response information may include the identification information of the found DPF-U 822; or, the first response information may include the identification information of the found DPF-U 822 and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the found DPF 82.

[0178] It should also be noted that for a given DPF 82, the second or third capability information may be part of the first capability information.

[0179] Step 1006: Data consumer 83 determines DPF 81 based on the first response information and interacts with DPF 81 to obtain target data service.

[0180] The target data service may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

[0181] Figure 10 The communication method proposed in the illustrated embodiment is more suitable for transmitting big data and improves the efficiency of big data transmission because a communication device with data plane correlation capability, DPF-U 822, is introduced into the network. Data consumer 83 can find DPF-U 822 from a communication device with network storage function, NRF 81, to obtain data services.

[0182] This application provides a communication method in which the executing entity can be a virtual device. This application uses a virtual device executing the communication method as an example to illustrate the communication device provided in this application.

[0183] like Figure 11 As shown, one embodiment of this application proposes a communication device 1100, which can be used in a first communication device. The device 1100 may include a first receiving module 1101 and a first transmitting module 1102.

[0184] The first receiving module 1101 is used to receive a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability.

[0185] In some embodiments, the first communication device may be a Network Repository Function (NRF). The first communication device stores the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, or in other words, the second communication device is registered with the first communication device. The first capability information includes capabilities possessed or corresponding to the second communication device.

[0186] In some embodiments, a data consumer may send a network element lookup request via Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request; wherein the network element lookup request carries at least one of the following: The network element type of the second communication device to be searched; The second capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device that needs to be found or is expected.

[0187] Optionally, Figure 11 The device 1100 shown may further include: The second receiving module is used to receive first information sent by the second communication device before receiving the network element lookup request sent by the data consumer. The first information includes the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device. The first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device. The second sending module is used to send a second response message to the second communication device in response to the first information.

[0188] The first information can be carried by a registration message to request the registration of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device. For example, the first information can be carried by a message such as Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister Request; or, the first information can be carried by a message requesting the update of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device.

[0189] In cases where the first communication device successfully processes the first information, such as registering and successfully saving the first information, the second response information can be a response indicating successful processing of the first information. For example, when the second communication device sends the first information via a registration message, after receiving the registration message, the first communication device stores the first information and sends a second response message. Specifically, the second response message can be sent via Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegisterresponse to notify the second communication device of successful registration.

[0190] The identification information of the second communication device may include at least one of the following: Network Function Instance ID (NF instance ID); NF's official domain name (Fully Qualified Domain Name, FQDN); The IP address of NF; Network element instance identification information; Network element type.

[0191] The first sending module 1102 is used to send a first response information to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

[0192] In some embodiments, if the first communication device fails to find the second communication device, the first response information may be a response indicating a search failure. Optionally, the first response information may also carry the reason for the search failure.

[0193] In some embodiments, if the first communication device finds the second communication device, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device; or, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes capability information corresponding to the found second communication device.

[0194] For details regarding the first capability information, second capability information, and third capability information corresponding to the second communication device, please refer to the above text; they will not be repeated here.

[0195] like Figure 12 As shown, one embodiment of this application proposes a communication device 1200 that can be used for data consumers. The device 1200 may include a first receiving module 1201 and a first transmitting module 1202.

[0196] The first sending module 1201 is used to send a network element lookup request to the first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function.

[0197] The first receiving module 1202 is used to receive the first response information sent by the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

[0198] In some embodiments, the first communication device may be a Network Repository Function (NRF). The first communication device stores the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, or in other words, the second communication device is registered with the first communication device. The first capability information includes capabilities possessed or corresponding to the second communication device.

[0199] In some embodiments, a data consumer may send a network element lookup request via Nnrf_NFDiscovery_Request; wherein the network element lookup request carries at least one of the following: The network element type of the second communication device to be searched; The second capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device that needs to be found or is expected.

[0200] In some embodiments, if the first communication device fails to find the second communication device, the first response information may be a response indicating a search failure. Optionally, the first response information may also carry the reason for the search failure.

[0201] In some embodiments, if the first communication device finds the second communication device, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device; or, the first response information may include the identification information of the found second communication device and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes capability information corresponding to the found second communication device.

[0202] For details regarding the identification information of the second communication device, and the specific contents of the first capability information, second capability information, and third capability information corresponding to the second communication device, please refer to the above text, which will not be repeated here.

[0203] Optionally, Figure 12 The device 1200 may further include: The determining module is used to determine the second communication device based on the first response information; The second sending module is used to send a service acquisition request to the second communication device, wherein the service acquisition request is used to request the acquisition of target data service.

[0204] The target data service may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

[0205] like Figure 13 As shown, one embodiment of this application proposes a communication device 1300, which can be used for a second communication device. The device 1300 may include: a first receiving module 1301.

[0206] The first sending module 1301 is used to send first information to the first communication device, wherein the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the first information includes the identification information of the second communication device and the first capability information, wherein the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

[0207] Optionally, the device 1300 may further include: a first receiving module, configured to receive second response information sent by the first communication device in response to the first information.

[0208] The first information can be carried by a registration message to request the registration of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device. For example, the first information can be carried by a message such as Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegister Request; or, the first information can be carried by a message requesting the update of the data plane related capabilities of the second communication device.

[0209] In cases where the first communication device successfully processes the first information, such as registering and successfully saving the first information, the second response information can be a response indicating successful processing of the first information. For example, when the second communication device sends the first information via a registration message, after receiving the registration message, the first communication device stores the first information and sends a second response message. Specifically, the second response message can be sent via Nnrf_NFManagement_NFRegisterresponse to notify the second communication device of successful registration.

[0210] Optionally, Figure 13 The device 1300 shown may further include: The second receiving module is used to receive a service acquisition request sent by a data consumer, wherein the data consumer finds the second communication device from the first communication device, and the service acquisition request is used to request the acquisition of a target data service. The second sending module is used to send a third response message to the data consumer in response to the service acquisition request.

[0211] The target data service may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

[0212] The third response information can be a response indicating that the service acquisition request failed, or a response indicating that the service acquisition request succeeded.

[0213] Regarding the identification information of the second communication device and the first capability information corresponding to the second communication device, please refer to the above text, and it will not be repeated here.

[0214] The communication device 1100 provided in this application embodiment can achieve... Figure 5 The various processes implemented in the method embodiments of this application achieve the same technical effect, and will not be described again here to avoid repetition. The communication device 1200 provided in the embodiments of this application can realize Figure 6 The various processes implemented in the method embodiments of this application achieve the same technical effect, and will not be described again here to avoid repetition. The communication device 1300 provided in the embodiments of this application can realize Figure 7 The various processes implemented in the method embodiments achieve the same technical effect.

[0215] like Figure 14 As shown in the illustration, this application also provides a communication device 1400, including a processor 1401 and a memory 1402. The memory 1402 stores a program or instructions that can run on the processor 1401. For example, when the communication device 1400 is a terminal, the program or instructions executed by the processor 1401 implement the various steps of the above-described communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effect. When the communication device 1400 is a network-side device, the program or instructions executed by the processor 1401 implement the various steps of the above-described communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, further details are omitted here.

[0216] This application also provides a terminal, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions. This terminal embodiment corresponds to the terminal-side method embodiment described above; all implementation processes and methods of the above method embodiments can be applied to this terminal embodiment and achieve the same technical effects. Specifically, Figure 15 A schematic diagram of the hardware structure of a terminal to implement an embodiment of this application. The terminal 1500 includes, but is not limited to, at least some of the following components: radio frequency unit 1501, network module 1502, audio output unit 1503, input unit 1504, sensor 1505, display unit 1506, user input unit 1507, interface unit 1508, memory 1509, and processor 1510.

[0217] Those skilled in the art will understand that the terminal 1500 may also include a power supply (such as a battery) for supplying power to various components. The power supply may be logically connected to the processor 1510 through a power management system, thereby enabling functions such as managing charging, discharging, and power consumption through the power management system. Figure 15 The terminal structure shown does not constitute a limitation on the terminal. The terminal may include more or fewer components than shown, or combine certain components, or have different component arrangements, which will not be elaborated here.

[0218] It should be understood that, in this embodiment, the input unit 1504 may include a graphics processor 15041 and a microphone 15042. The graphics processor 15041 processes image data of still images or videos obtained by an image capture device (such as a camera) in video capture mode or image capture mode. The display unit 1506 may include a display panel 15061, which may be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode, or the like. The user input unit 1507 includes a touch panel 15071 and at least one of other input devices 15072. The touch panel 15071 is also called a touch screen. The touch panel 15071 may include a touch detection device and a touch controller. Other input devices 15072 may include, but are not limited to, physical keyboards, function keys (such as volume control buttons, power buttons, etc.), trackballs, mice, and joysticks, which will not be described in detail here.

[0219] In this embodiment, after receiving downlink data from the network-side device, the radio frequency unit 1501 can transmit it to the processor 1510 for processing; in addition, the radio frequency unit 1501 can send uplink data to the network-side device. Typically, the radio frequency unit 1501 includes, but is not limited to, antennas, amplifiers, transceivers, couplers, low-noise amplifiers, duplexers, etc.

[0220] The memory 1509 can be used to store software programs or instructions, as well as various data. The memory 1509 may primarily include a first storage area for storing programs or instructions and a second storage area for storing data. The first storage area may store the operating system, application programs or instructions required for at least one function (such as sound playback, image playback, etc.). Furthermore, the memory 1509 may include volatile memory or non-volatile memory. The non-volatile memory may be read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory can be random access memory (RAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDRSDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (SLDRAM), and direct memory bus RAM (DRRAM). The memory 1509 in this embodiment includes, but is not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memory.

[0221] Processor 1510 may include one or more processing units; optionally, processor 1510 integrates an application processor and a modem processor, wherein the application processor mainly handles operations involving the operating system, user interface, and applications, and the modem processor mainly handles wireless communication signals, such as a baseband processor. It is understood that the aforementioned modem processor may also not be integrated into processor 1510.

[0222] This application embodiment also provides a network-side device, including a processor and a communication interface, wherein the communication interface is coupled to the processor, and the processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement, for example... Figure 5 , Figure 6 and Figure 7The steps of any one of the method embodiments shown in the figures. This network-side device embodiment corresponds to the above-described network-side device method embodiment, and all implementation processes and methods of the above-described method embodiments can be applied to this network-side device embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect.

[0223] This application also provides a network-side device. For example... Figure 16 As shown, the network-side device 1600 includes: a processor 1601, a network interface 1602, and a memory 1603. This network-side device can be... Figure 11 , Figure 12 and Figure 13 The communication device shown in any one of the following. Among them, network interface 1602 is, for example, a common public radio interface (CPRI).

[0224] Specifically, the network-side device 1600 in this application embodiment further includes: instructions or programs stored in memory 1603 and executable on processor 1601, wherein processor 1601 calls the instructions or programs in memory 1603 to execute. Figure 11 , Figure 12 and Figure 13 The methods executed by each module shown in any of the above items achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, they will not be described in detail here.

[0225] This application also provides a readable storage medium storing a program or instructions. When the program or instructions are executed by a processor, they implement the various processes of the above-described communication method embodiments and achieve the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, they will not be described again here.

[0226] The processor mentioned above is the processor in the terminal described in the above embodiments. The readable storage medium includes computer-readable storage media, such as computer read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disk, or optical disk. In some examples, the readable storage medium may be a non-transient readable storage medium.

[0227] This application embodiment also provides a chip, which includes a processor and a communication interface. The communication interface is coupled to the processor. The processor is used to run programs or instructions to implement the various processes of the above-described communication method embodiments and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0228] It should be understood that the chip mentioned in the embodiments of this application may also be referred to as a system-on-a-chip, system chip, chip system, or system-on-a-chip, etc.

[0229] This application also provides a computer program / program product, which is stored in a storage medium and executed by at least one processor to implement the various processes of the above-described communication method embodiments, and can achieve the same technical effect. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0230] This application also provides a communication system, including: a terminal and a network-side device, wherein the terminal can be used to perform... Figure 2 The network-side device can be used to execute the steps of the communication method described above. Figure 13 The steps of the communication method described above.

[0231] It should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitations, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes that element. Furthermore, it should be noted that the scope of the methods and apparatuses in the embodiments of this application is not limited to performing functions in the order shown or discussed, but may also include performing functions substantially simultaneously or in the reverse order, depending on the functions involved. For example, the described methods may be performed in a different order than described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. Additionally, features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

[0232] From the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by means of computer software products plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms, and of course, they can also be implemented by hardware. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM, RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk, etc.) and includes several instructions to cause the terminal or network-side device to execute the methods described in the various embodiments of this application.

[0233] The embodiments of this application have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. The specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art can make many other implementations under the guidance of this application without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims. All of these implementations are within the protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The first communication device receives a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function, and the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability; The first communication device sends a first response message to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Before the first communication device receives the network element lookup request sent by the data consumer, the method further includes: The first communication device receives first information sent by the second communication device, wherein the first information includes identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, and the first capability information includes capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first capability information includes at least one of the following: Information on data-related capabilities; Supported service information; Supported transmission bus information; Supported data source information; Supported data consumer information; Supported service scope; Other related data plane network elements.

4. The method according to any one of claims 1-3, characterized in that, The network element lookup request carries second capability information, which includes capability information corresponding to the second communication device to be looked up.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The second capability information includes at least one of the following: Expected data-related capabilities; Expected service information; Expected transmission bus information; Expected data source information; The data refers to the consumer's own information; Expected service coverage; Other data plane related network elements that are expected to be associated.

6. The method according to claim 3 or 5, characterized in that, The data plane-related capability information includes at least one of the following: The ability to control data transmission; Data transmission capability; The ability to convert protocols; Supports the ability to use efficient signaling transmission protocols; Supports the ability to transmit large data protocols.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The second communication device is equipped with a message middleware, and the protocol conversion capability includes the ability to convert information that is not supported by the message middleware into information that is supported by the message middleware.

8. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The service information includes at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

9. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The transmission bus information includes at least one of a service-based structured SBA bus and a data-based structured DBA bus.

10. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The second communication device includes a data plane control network element DPF-C, and the associated other data plane related network elements include the data plane user network element DPF-U associated with the DPF-C.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1-10, characterized in that, The first response information includes the identification information of the found second communication device, or the first response information includes the identification information of the found second communication device and the capability information corresponding to the found second communication device.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1-11, characterized in that, The first communication device is a Network Storage Function (NRF).

13. The method according to any one of claims 1-12, characterized in that, The second communication device is a data plane network element DPF, or the second communication device includes at least one of a data plane control network element DPF-C and a data plane user network element DPF-U.

14. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The data consumer sends a network element lookup request to the first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function; The data consumer receives a first response message from the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

15. The method according to claim 14, characterized in that, The method further includes: The data consumer determines the second communication device based on the first response information; The data consumer sends a service acquisition request to the second communication device, wherein the service acquisition request is used to request the acquisition of a target data service.

16. The method according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that, The network element lookup request carries second capability information, which includes capability information corresponding to the second communication device to be looked up.

17. The method according to any one of claims 14-16, characterized in that, The first response information includes the identification information of the found second communication device, or the first response information includes the identification information of the found second communication device and third capability information, wherein the third capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the found second communication device.

18. The method according to any one of claims 14-17, characterized in that, The second capability information includes at least one of the following: Expected data-related capabilities; Expected service information; Expected transmission bus information; Expected data source information; The data refers to the consumer's own information; Expected service coverage; Other data plane related network elements that are expected to be associated.

19. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The data plane-related capability information includes at least one of the following: The ability to control data transmission; Data transmission capability; The ability to convert protocols; Supports the ability to use efficient signaling transmission protocols; Supports the ability to transmit large data protocols.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that, The second communication device is equipped with a message middleware, and the protocol conversion capability includes the ability to convert information that is not supported by the message middleware into information that is supported by the message middleware.

21. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The service information includes at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, The transmission bus information includes at least one of a service-based structured SBA bus and a data-based structured DBA bus.

23. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that, The second communication device includes a data plane control network element DPF-C, and the associated other data plane related network elements include the data plane user network element DPF-U associated with the DPF-C.

24. The method according to any one of claims 14-23, characterized in that, The first communication device is a Network Storage Function (NRF).

25. The method according to any one of claims 14-24, characterized in that, The second communication device is a data plane network element DPF, or the second communication device includes at least one of a data plane control network element DPF-C and a data plane user network element DPF-U.

26. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The second communication device sends first information to the first communication device, wherein the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the first information includes the identification information and first capability information of the second communication device, wherein the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

27. The method according to claim 26, characterized in that, The method further includes: The second communication device receives a service acquisition request sent by a data consumer, wherein the data consumer finds the second communication device from the first communication device, and the service acquisition request is used to request the acquisition of a target data service; The second communication device sends a third response message to the data consumer in response to the service acquisition request.

28. The method according to claim 26 or 27, characterized in that, The first capability information includes at least one of the following: Information on data-related capabilities; Supported service information; Supported transmission bus information; Supported data source information; Supported data consumer information; Supported service scope; Other related data plane network elements.

29. The method according to claim 28, characterized in that, The data plane-related capability information includes at least one of the following: The ability to control data transmission; Data transmission capability; The ability to convert protocols; Supports the ability to use efficient signaling transmission protocols; Supports the ability to transmit large data protocols.

30. The method according to claim 29, characterized in that, The second communication device is equipped with a message middleware, and the protocol conversion capability includes the ability to convert information that is not supported by the message middleware into information that is supported by the message middleware.

31. The method according to claim 28, characterized in that, The service information includes at least one of the following: Data subscription service; Cancel data subscription service; Data transmission service; Data request service; Data receiving service; Data management services; Data management registration service; Data update registration service; Data management requires registration services; Data management configuration service; Data management is used to configure services.

32. The method according to claim 28, characterized in that, The transmission bus information includes at least one of a service-based structured SBA bus and a data-based structured DBA bus.

33. The method according to claim 28, characterized in that, The second communication device includes a data plane control network element DPF-C, and the associated other data plane related network elements include the data plane user network element DPF-U associated with the DPF-C.

34. The method according to any one of claims 26-33, characterized in that, The first communication device is a Network Storage Function (NRF).

35. The method according to any one of claims 26-34, characterized in that, The second communication device is a data plane network element DPF, or the second communication device includes at least one of a data plane control network element DPF-C and a data plane user network element DPF-U.

36. A communication device, characterized in that, Applied to a first communication device, the device includes: The first receiving module is used to receive a network element lookup request sent by a data consumer, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability; The first sending module is used to send a first response message to the data consumer in response to the network element lookup request.

37. A communication device, characterized in that, For use by data consumers, the device includes: The first sending module is used to send a network element lookup request to the first communication device, wherein the network element lookup request is used to request the lookup of a second communication device, the second communication device being a communication device with data plane correlation capability, and the first communication device being a communication device with network storage function; The first receiving module is used to receive the first response information sent by the first communication device in response to the network element lookup request.

38. A communication device, characterized in that, Applied to a second communication device, the device includes: A first sending module is used to send first information to a first communication device, wherein the second communication device is a communication device with data plane correlation capability, the first communication device is a communication device with network storage function, and the first information includes the identification information of the second communication device and the first capability information, wherein the first capability information includes the capability information corresponding to the second communication device.

39. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes a processor and a memory, the memory storing a program or instructions that can run on the processor, the program or instructions being executed by the processor to implement the steps of the communication method as described in any one of claims 1 to 35.

40. A readable storage medium, characterized in that, The readable storage medium stores a program or instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement the communication method as described in any one of claims 1 to 35.

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