IP address management method, device, equipment, system, storage medium and program product

Abstract

This disclosure relates to an IP address management method, apparatus, device, system, storage medium, and program product. A terminal device connects to an SBI message bus, and can provide or use services through the SBI message bus. Simultaneously, an IP address is assigned to the terminal device to provide or use services. In this embodiment, the terminal device providing or using services through the SBI message bus can reduce data transmission latency, reduce network bandwidth consumption, and reduce the demand on network node processing capabilities.

Description

IP address management methods, devices, equipment, systems, storage media, and software products Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to an IP address management method, apparatus, device, system, storage medium, and program product. Background Technology

[0002] In 5G, a Service Based Architecture (SBA) is introduced into the core network. In this architecture, Network Functions (NFs) can implement system functions by providing services to other authorized network functions. A Service Based Interface (SBI) represents a set of services provided or exposed by a given network function.

[0003] Summary of the Invention

[0004] This disclosure provides an IP address management method, apparatus, device, system, storage medium, and program product for managing the IP addresses of terminal devices, enabling the terminal devices to provide services to core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc., based on their IP addresses, and to use the services provided by core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, an IP address management method is proposed, which is executed by a terminal device, wherein the terminal device accesses the SBI message bus and provides and / or uses services through the SBI message bus;

[0006] The method includes:

[0007] Receive the IP address assigned to the terminal device for use in providing and / or using the service;

[0008] IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices within a network.

[0009] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by assigning an IP address to the terminal device, the terminal device can provide services to core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc., based on the IP address, and use the services provided by core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc.

[0010] According to a second aspect of the embodiments of this disclosure, an IP address management method is provided, executed by an access network device, the method comprising:

[0011] Assigning IP addresses to terminal devices for use when providing and / or using services. IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0012] The terminal device is connected to the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0013] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by assigning an IP address to the terminal device, the terminal device can provide services to core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc., based on the IP address, and use the services provided by core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc.

[0014] According to a third aspect of the embodiments of this disclosure, an IP address management method is proposed, executed by a core network device, the method comprising:

[0015] Assigning IP addresses to terminal devices for use when providing and / or using services. IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0016] The terminal device is connected to the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0017] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by assigning an IP address to the terminal device, the terminal device can provide services to core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc., based on the IP address, and use the services provided by core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc.

[0018] According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, an IP address management device is provided, wherein a terminal device in which the IP address management device is located is connected to an SBI message bus, and the terminal device provides services and / or uses services through the SBI message bus; the IP address management device includes:

[0019] The transceiver module is used to receive the IP address assigned to the terminal device for providing and / or using the service. The IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

[0020] According to a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, an IP address management apparatus is provided, comprising:

[0021] The processing module is used to assign IP addresses to terminal devices when they provide services and / or use services. The IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0022] Among them, the terminal device accesses the Service Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device provides and / or uses services through the SBI message bus.

[0023] According to a sixth aspect of the embodiments of this disclosure, an IP address management device is provided, comprising:

[0024] The processing module is used to assign IP addresses to terminal devices when they provide services and / or use services. The IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0025] Among them, the terminal device accesses the Service Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device provides and / or uses services through the SBI message bus.

[0026] According to a seventh aspect of the embodiments of this disclosure, a terminal device is provided, comprising:

[0027] One or more processors;

[0028] The terminal device is used to execute the IP address management method of any one of the first aspects.

[0029] According to an eighth aspect of the present disclosure, an access network device is provided, comprising:

[0030] One or more processors;

[0031] The access network device is used to execute any of the IP address management methods in the second aspect.

[0032] According to a ninth aspect of the present disclosure, a core network device is provided, comprising:

[0033] One or more processors;

[0034] Among them, the core network equipment is used to implement any of the IP address management methods in the third aspect.

[0035] According to a tenth aspect of the present disclosure, an IP address management system is provided, comprising: a terminal device, an access network device, and / or a core network device;

[0036] The terminal device is configured to implement the IP address management method of any one of the first aspects; the access network device is configured to implement the IP address management method of any one of the second aspects; and the core network device is configured to implement the IP address management method of any one of the third aspects.

[0037] According to the eleventh aspect of the present disclosure, a storage medium is provided that stores instructions, which, when executed on a communication device, implement an IP address management method as described in the first, second, or third aspect.

[0038] According to a twelfth aspect of the present disclosure, a program product is provided, the program product including a program and / or instructions, which, when executed by a communication device, implement an IP address management method as described in any of the first, second, or third aspects. Attached Figure Description

[0039] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this disclosure, the accompanying drawings required for the description of the embodiments are introduced below. The following drawings are only some embodiments of this disclosure and do not impose specific limitations on the protection scope of this disclosure.

[0040] Figure 1a is a schematic diagram of an exemplary architecture of an IP address management system according to an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0041] Figure 1b is an exemplary schematic diagram of signaling transmission according to an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0042] Figure 1c is an exemplary schematic diagram of the SBI protocol stack involved in the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0043] Figure 1d is an exemplary schematic diagram of a service-oriented architecture involved in an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0044] Figure 2a is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0045] Figure 2b is a schematic diagram illustrating the principle of the IP address of the terminal device provided in the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0046] Figure 2c is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0047] Figure 2d is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0048] Figure 2e is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0049] Figure 3a is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0050] Figure 3b is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0051] Figure 4a is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0052] Figure 4b is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0053] Figure 4c is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0054] Figure 4d is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0055] Figure 4e is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0056] Figure 5a is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0057] Figure 5b is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0058] Figure 6a is an exemplary structural diagram of an IP address management device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0059] Figure 6b is an exemplary structural diagram of an IP address management device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0060] Figure 6c is an exemplary structural diagram of an IP address management device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0061] Figure 7a is an exemplary structural diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0062] Figure 7b is an exemplary structural diagram of a chip provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0063] This disclosure provides an IP address management method, apparatus, device, system, storage medium, and program product for managing the IP addresses of terminal devices, enabling the terminal devices to provide services to core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc., based on their IP addresses, and to use the services provided by core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc.

[0064] In a first aspect, embodiments of this disclosure propose an IP address management method, executed by a terminal device, wherein the terminal device accesses an SBI message bus and provides and / or uses services through the SBI message bus; the method includes:

[0065] Receives an IP address assigned to a terminal device for use in providing and / or using services. The IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

[0066] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by assigning an IP address to the terminal device, the terminal device can provide services to core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc., based on the IP address, and use the services provided by core network elements / functions, other terminals, base stations, etc.

[0067] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address belongs to the CIDR block in which the access network device to which the terminal device is connected is located when it acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

[0068] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by using CIDR blocks, IP addresses can be allocated to terminal devices more flexibly and the available IP address space can be utilized more effectively. At the same time, CIDR can aggregate multiple IP address prefixes to simplify the routing table, thereby improving routing efficiency.

[0069] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address of the terminal device is one or more; when the data transmission of the terminal device when providing and / or using the service is associated with a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session, one PDU session corresponds to one IP address.

[0070] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by binding a PDU session to an IP address, network resources can be managed more effectively. This helps ensure that each session has sufficient bandwidth and resources, thereby improving overall network performance. Furthermore, when a terminal device provides and / or uses multiple services, it ensures that each service's session is processed and managed independently, avoiding interference between services.

[0071] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0072] Base station;

[0073] The central unit (CU) of the base station;

[0074] Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station;

[0075] The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station;

[0076] The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

[0077] In this embodiment of the disclosure, access network devices with different architectures allocate IP addresses to terminal devices, enabling the network to achieve a more flexible architecture design and support different deployment strategies and service requirements.

[0078] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, IP addresses are assigned by access network devices and / or core network devices.

[0079] In this embodiment of the disclosure, both the access network and the core network can allocate IP addresses to terminal devices, enabling the solution provided by this embodiment to be flexibly applied to various communication scenarios. When allocating IP addresses to terminal devices through the access network device, since the access network device and the terminal device communicate through a wireless interface, IP addresses can be allocated more quickly, reducing connection establishment latency. Furthermore, the access network device can allocate IP addresses based on local network conditions and policies, providing more flexible management and optimization. When allocating IP addresses to terminal devices through the core network device, the core network device can provide centralized IP address management, ensuring the consistency and coordination of IP address allocation policies across the entire network. Moreover, the core network device can allocate IP addresses based on a network-wide view, optimizing resource utilization and network performance.

[0080] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address is allocated when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, the radio bearer being used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0081] In this embodiment of the disclosure, IP addresses are allocated only when needed, which helps to optimize the utilization of network resources, simplify IP address management, and avoid resource waste.

[0082] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one home address, and / or at least one care-of address;

[0083] The home address is the IP address of the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the transfer address is the IP address of the access network device that serves the terminal device.

[0084] In this embodiment of the disclosure, assigning a home address to the terminal device helps maintain a persistent network connection. Even if the device moves between different networks, the connection can remain continuous through the home address. By assigning a care-of address to the terminal device, dynamic routing and address updates can maintain connection stability and continuity during the movement of the terminal device, effectively transmitting data and reducing data latency and interruptions.

[0085] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0086] Send a request message to the access network device of the serving terminal. The request message requests at least one of the following:

[0087] Service data is sent using a reverse tunnel method;

[0088] Use the home address as the source address when sending business data;

[0089] Service data is sent using a routing optimization mode.

[0090] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by sending a request message to the access network device of the serving terminal device, the terminal device can transmit service data in a manner permitted by the access network device, ensuring smooth transmission of service data. Furthermore, by providing different service transmission methods, this solution can be flexibly applied to various communication scenarios.

[0091] Among them, if the reverse tunnel method is used to send business data, an additional security layer can be provided to prevent the data from being intercepted or tampered with during transmission. The data can also return to the home network through a predefined path, thereby simplifying routing configuration and management. At the same time, the reverse tunnel can help the data flow pass through firewalls and NAT devices, ensuring that the data can be transmitted smoothly in complex network environments.

[0092] Using the home address as the source IP address when sending business data allows for the selection of the optimal path for data transmission, reducing latency and hop count, improving transmission efficiency, and minimizing unnecessary network traffic and load, thus enhancing overall network performance and providing faster response times and higher quality of service. Furthermore, some network gateway routers check whether the mobile host's source address belongs to its subnet; otherwise, they discard the data packet. Therefore, the home address can only be used as the source IP address if no such check is performed in the network.

[0093] If route optimization mode is used to send service data, the optimal path can be selected for data transmission, reducing latency and hop count, improving transmission efficiency, and simultaneously reducing unnecessary network traffic and load, thus improving overall network performance and providing faster response times and higher service quality. This method requires the peer node to support route optimization mode, and the terminal device to register its current binding with the peer node.

[0094] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0095] Receive the handover address sent by the first access network device. The handover address is sent by the first access network device when the access network device of the serving terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0096] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by updating the handover address of the terminal device in a timely manner, data loss or transmission interruption caused by the movement of the terminal device can be reduced, ensuring that the terminal device can maintain the continuity of connection after switching the access network device it is connected to.

[0097] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0098] Obtain the mapping relationship between the care-of address and the home address sent by the first access network device.

[0099] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by obtaining the mapping relationship between the care-of address and the home address, it can be ensured that existing sessions and connections remain unchanged during the movement of the terminal device, avoiding session interruption. Furthermore, the terminal device can use the mapping relationship to optimize the routing of data packets, ensuring that data packets are transmitted to the device's current location through the most efficient path.

[0100] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the terminal device processes the IP packet filter in at least one of the following ways:

[0101] If the second access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, copy a packet filter and replace the source IP address in the copied packet filter with the care-of address;

[0102] Alternatively, if the second access network device is not the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, the source IP address in the packet filter is replaced with the first care-of address, where the source IP address of the packet filter before replacement is the second care-of address, the second care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the second access network device, and the first care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the first access network device;

[0103] Alternatively, if the first access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accesses, remove the packet filter that uses the care-of address as the source IP address.

[0104] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by copying and adjusting packet filters, the terminal device can flexibly adapt to different network environments, ensuring the correct processing and transmission of data packets during movement. When the terminal device moves to a new access network, adjusting the source IP address in the packet filter ensures the continuity of existing connections and sessions, avoiding interruptions or resets. By replacing the source IP address with the currently used care-of address, data packets can be transmitted to the device's current location via the optimal path, improving routing efficiency and transmission speed. When the terminal device connects to the access network device it initially connected to, deleting packet filters that use the care-of address as the source IP address frees up resources, reduces processing and storage overhead, and simplifies network configuration and management.

[0105] Secondly, embodiments of this disclosure provide an IP address management method, which is executed by an access network device, and the method includes:

[0106] Assigning IP addresses to terminal devices for use when providing and / or using services. IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0107] Among them, the terminal device accesses the Service Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device provides and / or uses services through the SBI message bus.

[0108] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address belongs to the CIDR block where the access network device to which the terminal device is connected is located when it acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

[0109] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0110] Base station;

[0111] The central unit (CU) of the base station;

[0112] Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station;

[0113] The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station;

[0114] The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

[0115] In conjunction with some embodiments of the first aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0116] Send the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the core network equipment.

[0117] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data generated when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0118] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one home address, and / or at least one care-of address;

[0119] The home address is the IP address of the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the care address is the IP address of the access network device that serves the terminal device.

[0120] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the access network device is an access network device for a serving terminal device; the method further includes:

[0121] Receive a request message sent by the terminal device, the request message being used to request at least one of the following:

[0122] Service data is sent using a reverse tunnel method;

[0123] Use the home address as the source address when sending business data;

[0124] Service data is sent using a routing optimization mode.

[0125] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0126] Receive the first service data sent by the terminal device, and establish an IP tunnel to send the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed, or forward the first service data to the SBI message bus;

[0127] The access network equipment initially connected to the terminal device is used to forward the first service data.

[0128] In this embodiment, sending service data via an IP tunnel enhances data transmission security. Furthermore, by sending service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connected, the terminal device can maintain its original IP address and connection status, ensuring session continuity even when the terminal device moves between different networks. By sending service data to the SBI message bus, the terminal device can provide or use services based on the SBI message bus.

[0129] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, when the access network device is the initial access network device to which the terminal device accesses; the method further includes:

[0130] Acquire the second service data and establish an IP tunnel to forward the second service data to the access network device of the current service terminal device;

[0131] The destination address of the second service data is the home address of the terminal device. The access network device currently serving the terminal device is used to tunnel the second service data and forward it to the terminal device.

[0132] In this embodiment of the disclosure, sending service data via an IP tunnel can improve the security of data transmission. Furthermore, by sending service data to the access network device of the current serving terminal device via an IP tunnel, routing can be managed more effectively, ensuring that data packets are transmitted to the terminal device through the optimal path, reducing latency and improving transmission efficiency.

[0133] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0134] Receive first indication information from the access network device of the core network device and / or the service terminal device, and delete the binding between the terminal device and the home address according to the first indication information;

[0135] The first indication message is sent when it is determined that the home address is not in use.

[0136] In this embodiment of the disclosure, since the binding of each home address occupies network resources, including IP address space and routing table entries, deleting the binding between the terminal device and the home address when the home address is not in use can release resources, reduce processing and storage overhead, and simplify network configuration and management.

[0137] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the access network device includes a first access network device and a second access network device; the method further includes:

[0138] When the access network device of the service terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device, the second access network device is used to send the home address of the terminal device to the first access network device, and the first access network device is used to send the care-of address to the second access network device and / or the terminal device.

[0139] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by updating the home address and care-of address of the terminal device in a timely manner, data loss or transmission interruption caused by the movement of the terminal device can be reduced, ensuring that the terminal device can maintain the continuity of connection after switching the access network device it is connected to.

[0140] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0141] The second access network device receives the third service data from the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses, and forwards the third service data to the first access network device through an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel.

[0142] The first access network device is used to send third service data to the terminal device.

[0143] In this embodiment, transmitting service data via an IP tunnel or GTP-U tunnel enhances data transmission security. Furthermore, even when the terminal device is moving, service data can continue to be transmitted to the terminal device, maintaining the continuity and stability of the existing session and preventing interruption or reset.

[0144] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0145] The second access network device receives the fourth service data sent by the terminal device and establishes an IP tunnel to send the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed, or forwards the fourth service data to the SBI message bus.

[0146] In this embodiment, sending service data via an IP tunnel enhances data transmission security. Furthermore, by sending service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connected, the terminal device can maintain its original IP address and connection status, ensuring session continuity even when the terminal device moves between different networks. By sending service data to the SBI message bus, the terminal device can provide or use services based on the SBI message bus.

[0147] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0148] The first access network device sends a second indication message to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses. The second indication message indicates at least one of the following: the care-of address of the terminal device, the home address, and the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses uses a tunnel to forward service data.

[0149] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by sending a second indication message to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, routing can be managed more effectively, ensuring that data packets are transmitted through the optimal path, reducing latency and improving transmission efficiency.

[0150] In conjunction with some embodiments of the second aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0151] The first access network device sends a handover request to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses, and receives an end instruction forwarded by the second access network device.

[0152] The handover request is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch to the first access network device. The termination instruction is sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed after receiving the handover request. The termination instruction is used to instruct the second access network device to terminate the service to the terminal device.

[0153] In this embodiment of the disclosure, by sending an end instruction to the second access network device, the second access network can release the network resources allocated to the terminal device, which helps to utilize resources and reduces unnecessary load and processing overhead.

[0154] Thirdly, this disclosure provides an IP address management method, executed by a core network device, the method comprising:

[0155] Assigning IP addresses to terminal devices for use when providing and / or using services. IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0156] Among them, the terminal device accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0157] In conjunction with some embodiments of the third aspect, in some embodiments, allocating an IP address to a terminal device for use when providing and / or using services includes:

[0158] Obtain the IP address pool from the access network devices and assign IP addresses to the terminal devices according to the IP address pool.

[0159] In conjunction with some embodiments of the third aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0160] Send the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the access network device.

[0161] In conjunction with some embodiments of the third aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address belongs to the CIDR block where the access network device to which the terminal device is connected is located when it acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

[0162] In conjunction with some embodiments of the third aspect, in some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0163] Base station;

[0164] The central unit (CU) of the base station;

[0165] Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station;

[0166] The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station;

[0167] The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

[0168] In conjunction with some embodiments of the third aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data generated when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0169] In conjunction with some embodiments of the third aspect, in some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one home address, and / or at least one care-of address;

[0170] The home address is the IP address of the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the transfer address is the IP address of the access network device that serves the terminal device.

[0171] In conjunction with some embodiments of the third aspect, in some embodiments, the method further includes:

[0172] When it is determined that the home address is not in use, a first indication message is sent to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses.

[0173] The first instruction information is used to instruct the removal of the binding between the terminal device and the home address.

[0174] Fourthly, embodiments of this disclosure provide an IP address management device, wherein a terminal device containing the IP address management device is connected to an SBI message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus; the terminal device includes:

[0175] The transceiver module is used to receive the IP address assigned to the terminal device for providing and / or using services. The IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

[0176] Fifthly, embodiments of this disclosure provide an IP address management device, comprising:

[0177] The processing module is used to assign IP addresses to terminal devices when they provide services and / or use services. The IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0178] The terminal device is connected to the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0179] Sixthly, embodiments of this disclosure provide an IP address management device, including:

[0180] The processing module is used to assign IP addresses to terminal devices when they provide services and / or use services. The IP addresses are used to address or route terminal devices in the network.

[0181] The terminal device is connected to the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0182] In a seventh aspect, embodiments of this disclosure provide a terminal device, including:

[0183] One or more processors;

[0184] The terminal device is used to execute the IP address management method of any one of the first aspects.

[0185] Eighthly, an access network device is proposed, comprising:

[0186] One or more processors;

[0187] The access network device is used to execute any of the IP address management methods in the second aspect.

[0188] Ninthly, a core network device is proposed, including:

[0189] One or more processors;

[0190] Among them, the core network equipment is used to implement any of the IP address management methods in the third aspect.

[0191] In the tenth aspect, an IP address management system is proposed, including: terminal equipment, access network equipment and / or core network equipment;

[0192] The terminal device is configured to implement the IP address management method of any one of the first aspects; the access network device is configured to implement the IP address management method of any one of the second aspects; and the core network device is configured to implement the IP address management method of any one of the third aspects.

[0193] In the eleventh aspect, a storage medium is proposed, which stores instructions that, when executed on a communication device, implement an IP address management method as described in the first, second, or third aspect.

[0194] In the twelfth aspect, a program product is proposed, which includes a program and / or instructions, which, when executed by a communication device, implement an IP address management method as described in the first, second, or third aspect.

[0195] In a thirteenth aspect, embodiments of this disclosure provide a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform an IP address management method as described in the first, second, or third aspect.

[0196] In a fourteenth aspect, embodiments of this disclosure provide a chip or chip system. The chip or chip system includes processing circuitry configured to perform the IP address management method according to any one of the first, second, or third aspects described above.

[0197] It is understood that the aforementioned IP address management device, terminal device, access network device, core network device, IP address management system, storage medium, program product, computer program, chip, or chip system are all used to execute the methods proposed in the embodiments of this disclosure. Therefore, the beneficial effects they can achieve can be referred to the beneficial effects in the corresponding methods, and will not be repeated here.

[0198] This disclosure provides an IP address management method, apparatus, device, system, storage medium, and program product. In some embodiments, the terms IP address management method, bearer processing method, and communication method are interchangeable; the terms IP address management apparatus method, bearer processing apparatus, and communication apparatus are interchangeable.

[0199] This disclosure is not exhaustive, but merely illustrative of some embodiments, and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of this disclosure. Unless otherwise specified, each step in a particular embodiment can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the steps can be arbitrarily combined. For example, a solution after removing some steps in a particular embodiment can also be implemented as an independent embodiment, and the order of the steps in a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily interchanged. Furthermore, the optional implementation methods in a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily combined; moreover, the embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, for example, some or all steps of different embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and a particular embodiment can be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementation methods of other embodiments.

[0200] In each of the disclosed embodiments, unless otherwise specified or in case of logical conflict, the terminology and / or descriptions of the embodiments are consistent and can be referenced by each other. Technical features in different embodiments can be combined to form new embodiments based on their inherent logical relationships.

[0201] The terminology used in the embodiments of this disclosure is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure.

[0202] In this embodiment of the disclosure, unless otherwise stated, elements expressed in the singular form, such as "a," "an," "the," "the aforementioned," "the," "this," etc., can mean "one and only one," or "one or more," "at least one," etc. For example, when using articles such as "a," "an," "the," etc. in translation, the noun following the article can be understood as either a singular expression or a plural expression.

[0203] In the embodiments of this disclosure, "multiple" refers to two or more.

[0204] In some embodiments, the terms “at least one of”, “one or more”, “a plurality of”, “multiple”, etc., may be used interchangeably.

[0205] In some embodiments, the notation "at least one of A and B", "A and / or B", "A in one case, B in another", "in response to one case A, in response to another case B", etc., may include the following technical solutions depending on the situation: in some embodiments, A (execute A regardless of B); in some embodiments, B (execute B regardless of A); in some embodiments, execution is selected from A and B (A and B are selectively executed); in some embodiments, A and B (both A and B are executed). The same applies when there are more branches such as A, B, C, etc.

[0206] In some embodiments, the notation "A or B" may include the following technical solutions, depending on the situation: in some embodiments, A (execution of A regardless of B); in some embodiments, B (execution of B regardless of A); in some embodiments, execution is selected from A and B (A and B are selectively executed). The same applies when there are more branches such as A, B, C, etc.

[0207] The prefixes "first," "second," etc., used in the embodiments of this disclosure are merely for distinguishing different descriptive objects and do not impose restrictions on the position, order, priority, quantity, or content of the descriptive objects. The description of the descriptive objects is found in the claims or the context of the embodiments, and the use of prefixes should not constitute unnecessary restrictions. For example, if the descriptive object is a "field," the ordinal numbers preceding "field" in "first field" and "second field" do not restrict the position or order of the "fields." "First" and "second" do not restrict whether the "fields" they modify are in the same message, nor do they restrict the order of "first field" and "second field." Similarly, if the descriptive object is a "level," the ordinal numbers preceding "level" in "first level" and "second level" do not restrict the priority between "levels." Furthermore, the number of descriptive objects is not limited by ordinal numbers and can be one or more. For example, in "first device," the number of "devices" can be one or more. Furthermore, the objects modified by different prefixes can be the same or different. For example, if the object being described is "device", then "first device" and "second device" can be the same device or different devices, and their types can be the same or different. Similarly, if the object being described is "information", then "first information" and "second information" can be the same information or different information, and their content can be the same or different.

[0208] In some embodiments, “including A,” “containing A,” “for indicating A,” and “carrying A” can be interpreted as directly carrying A or indirectly indicating A.

[0209] In some embodiments, the terms “in response to…”, “in response to determining…”, “in the case of…”, “when…”, “if…”, “if…”, etc., can be used interchangeably.

[0210] In some embodiments, the terms “greater than,” “greater than or equal to,” “not less than,” “more than,” “more than or equal to,” “not less than,” “higher than,” “higher than or equal to,” “not lower than,” and “above” can be used interchangeably, as can the terms “less than,” “less than or equal to,” “not greater than,” “less than,” “less than or equal to,” “not more than,” “lower than,” “lower than or equal to,” “not higher than,” and “below”.

[0211] In some embodiments, the apparatus and device may be interpreted as physical or virtual, and their names are not limited to the names recorded in the embodiments. In some cases, they may also be understood as "equipment", "device", "circuit", "network element", "node", "function", "unit", "section", "system", "network", "chip", "chip system", "entity", "body", etc.

[0212] In some embodiments, the acquisition of data, information, etc., may comply with the laws and regulations of the country where the location is situated.

[0213] In some embodiments, data, information, etc., may be obtained with the user's consent.

[0214] Furthermore, each element, each row, or each column in the table of this disclosure can be implemented as an independent embodiment, and any combination of any element, any row, or any column can also be implemented as an independent embodiment.

[0215] [Correction 26.12.2024 based on Rule 91] Figure 1a is an exemplary architecture diagram of an IP address management system according to an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 1a, the IP address management system 100 includes a terminal device 101, an access network device 102, and a core network device 103. It should be understood that the number and form of each device shown in Figure 1a are for illustrative purposes only and do not constitute a limitation on the embodiments of this disclosure. In actual applications, it may include two or more terminal devices, two or more access network devices, and two or more core network devices. The IP address management system 100 shown in Figure 1a is only illustrated by example, which includes one terminal device 101, one access network device 102, and one core network device 103.

[0216] In some embodiments, terminal device 101 includes, but is not limited to, at least one of the following: mobile phone, wearable device, Internet of Things device, car with communication function, smart car, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver function, virtual reality (VR) terminal device, augmented reality (AR) terminal device, wireless terminal device in industrial control, wireless terminal device in self-driving, wireless terminal device in remote medical surgery, wireless terminal device in smart grid, wireless terminal device in transportation safety, wireless terminal device in smart city, and wireless terminal device in smart home.

[0217] In some embodiments, the access network device 102 may be a node or device that connects a terminal to a wireless network. The access network device may include, but is not limited to, at least one of the following in a 5G communication system: evolved Node B (eNB), next-generation eNB (ng-eNB), next-generation Node B (gNB), node B (NB), home node B (HNB), home evolved node B (HeNB), radio backhaul device, radio network controller (RNC), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), base band unit (BBU), mobile switching center, base station in a 6G communication system, open RAN, cloud RAN, base station in other communication systems, and access node in a Wi-Fi system.

[0218] In some embodiments, the technical solutions of this disclosure can be applied to the Open RAN architecture. In this case, the interfaces between or within access network devices involved in the embodiments of this disclosure can be transformed into internal interfaces of Open RAN. The processes and information interactions between these internal interfaces can be implemented by software or programs.

[0219] In some embodiments, the access network device 102 may be composed of a central unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). The CU may also be called a control unit. The CU-DU structure can separate the protocol layer of the access network device. Some of the protocol layer functions are centrally controlled by the CU, while the remaining part or all of the protocol layer functions are distributed in the DU and centrally controlled by the CU. However, this is not the only possibility.

[0220] In some embodiments, the core network device 103 may be a single device, including a first network element, a second network element, etc., or it may be multiple devices or a group of devices, each including all or part of the first network element, the second network element, etc. Network elements may be virtual or physical. Core network devices may include, for example, at least one of an Evolved Packet Core (EPC), a 5G Core Network (5GCN), and a Next Generation Core (NGC).

[0221] In some embodiments, the first network element and the second network element are, for example, one or more network elements selected from the following: Session Management Function (SMF) network element, Policy Control Function (PCF) network element, Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) network element, Location Management Function (LMF) network element, etc.

[0222] It is understood that the IP address management system described in this disclosure is for the purpose of more clearly illustrating the technical solutions of this disclosure, and does not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions proposed in this disclosure. As those skilled in the art will know, with the evolution of system architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions proposed in this disclosure are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0223] The following embodiments of this disclosure can be applied to the IP address management system 100 shown in FIG1a, or to some of the entities, but are not limited thereto. The entities shown in FIG1a are illustrative. The IP address management system may include all or some of the entities in FIG1a, or may include other entities other than those in FIG1a. The number and form of each entity are arbitrary. Each entity may be physical or virtual. The connection relationship between the entities is illustrative. The entities may not be connected or may be connected. The connection may be in any way, such as direct connection or indirect connection, wired connection or wireless connection.

[0224] The embodiments disclosed herein can be applied to Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), LTE-Beyond (LTE-B), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), 5G new radio (NR), Future Radio Access (FRA), New-Radio Access Technology (RAT), New Radio (NR), New radio access (NX), Future generation radio access (FX), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), and IEEE 802.20, Ultra-Wideband (UWB), Bluetooth (a registered trademark), Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) networks, Device-to-Device (D2D) systems, Machine-to-Machine (M2M) systems, Internet of Things (IoT) systems, Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) systems, systems utilizing other communication methods, and next-generation systems built upon them, etc. Furthermore, multiple systems can be combined (e.g., a combination of LTE or LTE-A with 5G).

[0225] For 5G, data transmission occurs between the terminal device and the data network (DN). Signaling is transmitted between the terminal device and the data network via the control plane (CP) or the user plane (UP).

[0226] For example, please refer to FIG1b, which is an exemplary schematic diagram of signaling transmission according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0227] As shown in Figure 1b, taking LPP signaling between a terminal device and the Location Management Function (LMF) as an example, the transmission path of LPP signaling is: terminal device, access network device (e.g., gNB), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), LMF. When transmitting LPP signaling through the user plane, a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session needs to be established to transmit data. The PDU session refers to the association between the terminal and the data network, which provides PDU connection services. Based on the terminal device's request, the data network can establish a PDU session. The data interaction path between the terminal device and the data network is: terminal device, access network device, User Plane Function (UPF), data network.

[0228] With the advent of the 6th Generation Mobile Communication Technology (6G) era, 6G services take on various forms. Service producers and consumers are no longer limited to the terminal device and data network, but can also be between the terminal device and core network equipment, between terminal devices, between the terminal device and access network equipment (core network equipment is such as a base station, where the base station can be a base station that communicates with the terminal device through an air interface, i.e., the terminal's serving base station, or it can be a non-serving base station), and so on.

[0229] However, for services between terminal devices and core network equipment, if existing control plane or user plane methods are still used to establish data channels, data transmission efficiency will be relatively low. For example, transmission through the control plane requires forwarding via AMF, while transmission through the user plane requires forwarding via UPF. These forwardings increase data transmission latency, consume network bandwidth, and increase the processing capacity requirements of the corresponding nodes. In addition, the protocol stacks used by terminal devices as service producers and consumers (e.g., NAS / RRC signaling used in the control plane scheme) differ from the service interfaces used by the core network equipment, which also increases the complexity of standardization and implementation.

[0230] To address the aforementioned issues, this disclosure provides an IP address management method, apparatus, device, system, storage medium, and program product. Terminal devices access a Service Based Interface (SBI) message bus, enabling them to provide services to core network elements / functions, other terminal devices, base stations, etc., and to utilize these services. Simultaneously, IP addresses are assigned to the terminal devices, allowing them to provide or use services via their IP addresses. Through this disclosure, terminal devices do not need to communicate via the aforementioned control plane or user plane, reducing data transmission latency, network bandwidth consumption, and network node processing capacity requirements, thereby improving data transmission efficiency.

[0231] The IP address management methods, devices, equipment, systems, storage media, and program products provided in this disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0232] In some embodiments, a Network Function Service (NF service) is a capability provided by a Network Function Producer to other authorized Network Function Consumers (NF Service Consumers) through a service interface. A Network Function Service may support one or more Network Function Service operations. Network functions may provide different functionalities and therefore provide different Network Function Services.

[0233] In some embodiments, an SBI represents a set of services provided or exposed by a given network function, and the SBI is where NF service operations are invoked. Referring to Figure 1c, which is an exemplary schematic diagram of the protocol stack of an SBI according to an embodiment of this disclosure. In a service-oriented architecture, various network functions that provide and use network function services are connected to the SBI message bus.

[0234] In some embodiments, in a service-oriented architecture, various network functions that provide and use services are connected to the SBI Message Bus. For example, please refer to FIG1d, which is an exemplary schematic diagram of a service-oriented architecture according to an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in FIG1d, core network functions (e.g., AMF, Session Management Function (SMF), Policy Control Function (PCF), etc.) are all connected to the SBI bus.

[0235] In some embodiments, the aforementioned terminal device access to the SBI message bus means that, from the perspective of Internet Protocol Address (IP), the network functions of the terminal device and the core network device are equivalent, and the IP address of the terminal device can be addressed and routed in the transport network composed of the access network device and the core network device.

[0236] In some embodiments, the services that the terminal device can provide or use include, but are not limited to, artificial intelligence (AI) services, sensing services, and services deployed on core network equipment.

[0237] In some embodiments, for AI services, terminal devices, access network devices, and core network devices can all be producers (i.e., providers of AI services) or consumers (i.e., users of AI services provided by other network nodes).

[0238] In some embodiments, for sensing services, the terminal device can collect sensing data based on wireless sensing capabilities, such as collecting 3D point cloud data, which includes spatial information and velocity information of the sensed objects. In this case, the terminal device is the producer of sensing data. Correspondingly, the terminal device can also obtain sensing data from access network devices, core network devices, and other terminal devices, in which case the terminal device is the consumer of sensing data.

[0239] In some embodiments, for services deployed on core network equipment, such as Extended Reality (XR) services, terminal devices can send data (e.g., pose information) to the core network equipment. The core network equipment then performs the corresponding rendering calculations using its computing capabilities before sending the data back to the terminal device. In this case, the core network equipment is the producer of the XR service, and the terminal device is the consumer of the service.

[0240] In some embodiments, the terminal device provided in this disclosure may be a general commercial terminal, or it may be a low-cost terminal.

[0241] Referring to Figure 2a, Figure 2a is an exemplary interactive schematic diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 2a, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0242] Step S2101: The access network device assigns an IP address to the terminal device for use when providing and / or using services.

[0243] In some embodiments, the terminal device accesses the SBI message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0244] In some embodiments, a terminal device receives an IP address assigned to it by an access network device in order to provide services and / or use services through that IP address, wherein the IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

[0245] In some embodiments, the IP address belongs to the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) where the access network device to which the terminal device is connected acts as a gateway. Optionally, an access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block. For example, if the CIDR of the access network device to which the terminal device is connected is 10.189.80.1 / 24 when it acts as a gateway, the IP address assigned to the terminal device can be 10.189.80.120; wherein, the IP address 10.189.80.120 belongs to CIDR block 10.189.80.1 / 24.

[0246] In some embodiments, the IP address used by the terminal device when providing or using a service can be one or more. When data transmission when the terminal device provides and / or uses a service is associated with a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session, one PDU session corresponds to one IP address.

[0247] In some embodiments, an IP address may correspond to a type of service. For example, a terminal device may be assigned an IP address associated with an AI service and an IP address associated with a sensing service. When the terminal device provides or uses the AI ​​service, it uses the IP address associated with the AI ​​service; when the terminal device provides or uses the sensing service, it uses the IP address associated with the sensing service.

[0248] In some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0249] Base stations (e.g., next-generation base stations with an integrated architecture (gNB));

[0250] gNB-CU features a split architecture between the Central Unit (CU) and the Distributed Unit (DU).

[0251] gNB-DU in the CU-DU split architecture;

[0252] gNB-CU-CP in a CU-DU separated architecture and a control plane (CP) - user plane (UP) separated architecture;

[0253] gNB-CU-UP in a CU-DU separated and CP-UP separated architecture.

[0254] In some embodiments, an access network device may have one or more CIDR blocks. Optionally, an access network device may have multiple physical network interface cards (NICs), each NIC corresponding to one CIDR block.

[0255] In some embodiments, the IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0256] In some embodiments, when the access network device of the serving terminal device changes due to mobility, for example, when the access network device of the serving terminal device is switched from the source access network device to the target access network device, the terminal device is reassigned an IP address associated with the target access network device, that is, the IP address reassigned to the terminal device belongs to the CIDR block where the target access network device is the gateway.

[0257] In some embodiments, the terminal device provides services through domain names (e.g., Fully Qualified Domain Names, FQDNs), meaning that consumers of the services provided by the terminal device access the terminal device through domain names (rather than IP addresses). When the terminal device is assigned an IP address to provide services, and when the IP address changes, the terminal device, access network device, or core network device notifies the DNS resolver of the corresponding domain name and IP address mapping.

[0258] In some embodiments, when the terminal device uses an HTTP / 3+QUIC+UDP-based protocol stack as the SBI protocol stack, the terminal device continues to use the original associated QUIC connection ID when the IP address of the terminal device changes.

[0259] In some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one home address. The home address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects. Optionally, the home address is assigned by the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects.

[0260] In some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one care-of address; wherein the care-of address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device serving the terminal device. Optionally, the care-of address is assigned by the access network device serving the terminal device.

[0261] In some embodiments, Mobile IP technology is used when the access network device of the serving terminal device changes due to mobility. The access network device that initially provides services to the terminal device or assigns an IP address for the service is called the initial access network device (i.e., the Home Agent (HA) in Mobile IP). The corresponding IP address is the home address. The current access network device serving the terminal device is the external agent in Mobile IP, and the IP address assigned to the terminal device is the care-of address (CoA). It should be noted that in this embodiment, the care-of address is set to the external agent care-of address, that is, the care-of address is the IP address of the terminal device's current serving access network device (i.e., the external agent). Furthermore, even if the transport network is an IPv6 network, the external agent is still deployed.

[0262] For example, please refer to Figure 2b, which is a schematic diagram of the IP address principle of the terminal device provided in this embodiment of the disclosure. As shown in Figure 2b, taking the access network device as a base station as an example, base station 1 is the initial access network device of the terminal device, and its corresponding CIDR block is 10.189.80.1 / 24, while the home address of the terminal device is 10.189.80.120. When the access network device serving the terminal device is switched from base station 1 to base station 2, base station 2 becomes the external proxy of the terminal device, and its corresponding CIDR block is 10.189.96.1 / 24. At this time, the care-of address of the terminal device is 10.189.96.1 (i.e., the CIDR block where the IP address of base station 2 is located).

[0263] In some embodiments, a terminal device may have multiple home addresses, each corresponding to a different initial access network device (or home agent). Optionally, the terminal device may decide to provide / use different services at different times, thereby obtaining different home addresses. For example, when the terminal device connects to access network device A, it provides AI-related services, thereby obtaining IP address x. When the terminal device connects to access network device B, it provides AI-related services, thereby obtaining IP address y; both access network devices A and B are the initial access network devices (home agents) of the terminal device, and IP addresses x and y are both home addresses of the terminal device.

[0264] In some embodiments, a terminal device can have multiple care-of addresses, each corresponding to a different access network device (or external agent) serving the terminal device. In a Multi-Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC, or DC for short) scenario, a terminal device with multiple Rx / Tx capabilities can be configured to utilize resources provided by two different nodes connected via a non-ideal backhaul, where one node provides NR access and the other provides E-UTRA or NR access. One node acts as the master node (MN), and the other as the secondary node (SN), where MN and SN are connected via a network interface, with at least MN connected to the core network. In this scenario, both MN and SN can be serving access network devices (or external agents) serving the terminal device, and the IP addresses provided by MN and SN to the terminal device are both care-of addresses for the terminal device.

[0265] Step S2102: The access network device sends the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the core network device.

[0266] In some embodiments, core network equipment includes, but is not limited to, one or more of the following: access AMF network element, SMF network element, and PCF network element.

[0267] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S2101 to S2102. For example, step S2101 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment.

[0268] In some embodiments, step S2102 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or substituted in different embodiments.

[0269] Referring to Figure 2c, which is an exemplary interactive schematic diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 2c, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0270] Step S2201: The core network equipment assigns an IP address to the terminal equipment for use when providing and / or using services.

[0271] In some embodiments, the core network device obtains an IP address pool from the access network device and assigns an IP address to the terminal device according to the IP address pool.

[0272] In some embodiments, the IP address pool contains at least one IP address, and the core network device can select an available IP address from the IP address pool and assign it to the terminal device.

[0273] In some embodiments, the IP address pool can be pre-configured. Core network devices can obtain the IP address pool from access network devices or other network configuration management systems through configuration files, a network management system (NMS), or protocols.

[0274] In some embodiments, an access network device may have one or more CIDR blocks. Optionally, an access network device may have multiple physical network interface cards (NICs), each NIC corresponding to a CIDR block. The IP address pool may be the IP addresses contained in one or more CIDR blocks corresponding to the access network device. Optionally, the IP address assigned to the terminal device belongs to the CIDR in which the access network device accessed by the terminal device is located when it acts as a gateway. For example, if the CIDR of the access network device accessed by the terminal device when it acts as a gateway is 10.189.80.1 / 24, the IP address assigned to the terminal device may be 10.189.80.120; wherein, IP address 10.189.80.120 belongs to CIDR block 10.189.80.1 / 24.

[0275] In some embodiments, core network equipment includes, but is not limited to, one or more network elements such as AMF, PCF, SMF, and UPF.

[0276] In some embodiments, the IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0277] In some embodiments, the terminal device accesses the SBI message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0278] In some embodiments, a terminal device receives an IP address assigned to it in order to provide and / or use services through that IP address, wherein the IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in a network.

[0279] In some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0280] Base stations, for example, gNBs with an integrated architecture;

[0281] gNB-CU;

[0282] gNB-DU;

[0283] gNB-CU-CP;

[0284] gNB-CU-UP.

[0285] In some embodiments, an IP address may correspond to a type of service. For example, a terminal device may be assigned an IP address associated with an AI service and an IP address associated with a sensing service. When the terminal device provides or uses the AI ​​service, it uses the IP address associated with the AI ​​service; when the terminal device provides or uses the sensing service, it uses the IP address associated with the sensing service.

[0286] In some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one home address. The home address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects. Optionally, the home address is assigned by the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects.

[0287] In some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one care-of address; wherein the care-of address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device serving the terminal device. Optionally, the care-of address is assigned by the access network device serving the terminal device.

[0288] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S2201 can be found in optional implementations of step S2101 in FIG2a and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2a, which will not be repeated here.

[0289] In step S2202, the core network device sends the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the access network device.

[0290] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S2201 to S2202. For example, step S2201 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment.

[0291] In some embodiments, step S2202 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or substituted in different embodiments.

[0292] Referring to Figure 2d, which is an exemplary interactive schematic diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0293] Step S2301: The terminal device sends a request message to the access network device that serves the terminal device.

[0294] In some embodiments, the request message is used to request confirmation of how the terminal device sends service data.

[0295] In step S2302, the access network device serving the terminal device sends instruction information to the terminal device according to the request message.

[0296] In some embodiments, the indication information is used to indicate how the terminal device sends service data.

[0297] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends service data in a manner including but not limited to at least one of the following:

[0298] Method 1: Send service data using a reverse tunnel method;

[0299] Method 2: Use the home address as the source address when sending business data;

[0300] Method 3: Send business data using the routing optimization mode.

[0301] In step S2303, the terminal device sends the first service data to the access network device serving the terminal device based on the method of sending service data.

[0302] Step S2304: The access network device serving the terminal device is used to establish an IP tunnel and send the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses.

[0303] In step S2305, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects forwards the first service data to the SBI message bus.

[0304] In this embodiment, the terminal device transmits the first service data using a reverse tunneling method. Specifically, when transmitting the first service data using the reverse tunneling method, the access network device serving the terminal device (i.e., the external agent) can encapsulate and forward the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses (i.e., the home agent) using reverse tunneling technology. The access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses then forwards the first service data to the communication peer node. Optionally, in this embodiment, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses is used to send the first service data to the SBI message bus, thereby sending the first service data to the corresponding node via the SBI message bus.

[0305] In step S2306, the access network device of the service terminal device forwards the first service data to the SBI message bus.

[0306] In some embodiments, when the terminal device sends the first service data using a method other than the reverse tunnel method (for example, the terminal device sends the first service data using the methods 2 and 3 described above), the access network device serving the terminal device can directly forward the first service data to the internal transmission network (i.e., the SBI message bus) after receiving the first service data.

[0307] Step S2307: The initial access network device obtains the second service data.

[0308] Step S2308: Initially, the access network device establishes an IP tunnel to forward the second service data to the access network device of the current service terminal device.

[0309] In step S2309, the access network device serving the terminal device tunnels the second service data and forwards the second service data to the terminal device.

[0310] In some embodiments, the second service data is sent based on a reverse tunneling method. The destination address of the second service data is the home address of the terminal device. That is, when the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects (i.e., the home agent) receives a data packet with the destination address being the home address of the terminal device, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects establishes an IP tunnel and forwards the data packet to the access network device serving the terminal device (i.e., the external agent). The access network device serving the terminal device then detunes the data packet and sends it to the terminal device.

[0311] Step S2310: The initial access network device obtains the first indication information.

[0312] In some embodiments, when a home address is no longer in use, the access network device and / or core network element (e.g., AMF element, SMF element, etc.) of the serving terminal device send a first indication message to the access network device that initially accessed the device, for instructing the initial access network device (home agent) to delete the binding between the terminal device and the home address through the first indication message.

[0313] Step S2311: The initial access network device deletes the binding between the terminal device and the home address according to the first instruction information.

[0314] Correspondingly, the access network device (home agent) to which the terminal device initially connects can delete the binding corresponding to the home address.

[0315] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S2301 to S310. For example, steps S2301 to S2302 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; steps S2303 to S2305 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; the combination of steps S2303 to S2304 and S2306 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; steps S2307 to S2309 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; and steps S2310 to S2311 may be implemented as an independent embodiment.

[0316] In some embodiments, steps S2205 and S2306 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or substituted in different embodiments.

[0317] Referring to Figure 2e, Figure 2e is an exemplary interactive schematic diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 2e, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0318] In step S2401, when the access network device of the serving terminal device switches from the second access network device to the first access network device, the second access network device sends the home address of the terminal device to the first access network device.

[0319] In some embodiments, the names of the first access network device and the second access network device are not limited in this disclosure. For example, "first access network device" can be interchanged with terms such as "target access network device," "destination access network device," "destination base station," "target cell," "target base station," and "target cell." "Second access network device" can be interchanged with terms such as "source access network device," "original access network device," "source base station," "source cell," "original base station," and "original cell."

[0320] In this embodiment, by sending the home address of the terminal device to the first access network device, the first access network device can perform reverse tunneling processing on the data packets sent by the terminal device based on the home address of the terminal device. The destination address in the IP tunnel header is the IP address of the home proxy.

[0321] In step S2402, the first access network device sends a handover address to the terminal device.

[0322] In some embodiments, during the process of a terminal device switching from a second access network device to a first access network device, the first access network device may send a care-of address to the terminal device. If the terminal device has multiple home addresses, the first access network device may also notify the terminal device of the mapping relationship between the care-of address and the home address.

[0323] In step S2403, the first access network device sends a handover address to the second access network device.

[0324] In some embodiments, the first access network device may include the care-of address and the aforementioned mapping relationship in an RRC message, and include the RRC message in the signaling sent by the first access network device to the second access network device. Optionally, the second access network device may send the RRC message to the terminal device.

[0325] In some embodiments, when the terminal device configures the care-of address, it is not necessary to reconfigure the IP packet filter set via the NAS process. Optionally, the terminal device processes the packet filter in at least one of the following ways:

[0326] 1. If the second access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, copy a packet filter and replace the source IP address in the copied packet filter with the care-of address.

[0327] That is, when a terminal device switches from the initial access network device (i.e., the second access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed (or the home agent)) to the first access network device, for each packet filter that contains the home address as the source IP address, the terminal device copies the packet filter and replaces the source IP address in the packet filter with the care-of address.

[0328] 2. If the second access network device is not the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, then the source IP address in the packet filter is replaced with the first care-of address. The source IP address of the packet filter before replacement is the second care-of address, which is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the second access network device, and the first care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the first access network device.

[0329] That is, when the terminal switches from the second access network device (wherein the second access network device is not the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed) to the first access network device, taking the terminal device using the care-of address x in the second access network device and the care-of address y in the first access network device as an example, for each packet filter that contains the care-of address x as the source IP address, the terminal device replaces the source IP address in the packet filter with the care-of address y.

[0330] 3. If the first access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accesses, delete the packet filter that uses the handover address as the source IP address.

[0331] That is, when a terminal device switches from a second access network device to the access network device (i.e., the home agent) that the terminal device initially accessed, the terminal device can delete every packet filter that contains the care-of address as the source IP address.

[0332] In step S2404, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects sends the third service data to the second access network device.

[0333] In some embodiments, the third service data is transmitted by core network equipment (e.g., AMF network element, SMF network element, PCF network element, etc.). The third service data is downlink data.

[0334] In some embodiments, the third service data is received during the process of the terminal device switching to the first access network device.

[0335] In some embodiments, after receiving the third service data, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects sends the third service data to the second access network device.

[0336] In step S2405, the second access network device forwards the third service data to the first access network device through an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel.

[0337] Step S2406: The first access network device sends the third service data to the terminal device.

[0338] In some embodiments, during the process of a terminal device switching from a second access network device to a first access network device, when the terminal device provides or uses downlink data (e.g., the aforementioned third service data) while sending downlink data using a reverse tunneling method, the second access network device can encapsulate the downlink data using reverse tunneling technology and forward the downlink data to the access network device (i.e., the first access network device) currently serving the terminal device, and then the first access network device forwards the third service data to the terminal device.

[0339] In some embodiments, downlink data when a terminal device provides or uses a service can be forwarded via a GTP-U tunnel or an IP tunnel (where the tunnel used between the home agent and the external agent is an IP tunnel). This IP forwarding is primarily applicable to SDAP SDUs (i.e., IP packets), while PDCP SDUs with sequence numbers can be forwarded via a GTP-U tunnel. GTP-U tunnels require an additional three-layer protocol (GTP-U / UDP / IP) for forwarding, while IP tunnels only require an additional IP protocol layer.

[0340] In step S2407, the terminal device sends the fourth service data to the second access network device.

[0341] In some embodiments, the fourth business data is uplink data.

[0342] In step S2408, the second access network device establishes an IP tunnel and sends the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses.

[0343] In some embodiments, during the process of a terminal device switching from a second access network device to a first access network device, for uplink data received sequentially, when the terminal device sends uplink data using a reverse tunneling method (e.g., the fourth service data mentioned above), the second access network device can establish an IP tunnel and forward the uplink data sent by the terminal device to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed through the IP tunnel. Correspondingly, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed sends the uplink data to the internal transmission network (i.e., the SBI message bus). When uplink data is sent using a method other than the reverse tunneling method (e.g., the fourth service data mentioned above) (e.g., using methods 2 and 3 in the embodiment shown in Figure 2c), the second access network device can directly forward the uplink data to the internal transmission network (i.e., the SBI message bus) after receiving it.

[0344] In some embodiments, during the process of a terminal device switching from a second access network device to a first access network device, for out-of-order received data packets, when the terminal device sends uplink data (e.g., the fourth service data mentioned above) using a reverse tunneling method, the second access network device forwards the PDCP SDU and SDAP end marker to the first access network device via a GTP-U tunnel, starting from the first out-of-sequence received PDCP SDU. The first access network device reorders the received data and forwards the uplink data to the access network device (i.e., the home agent) to which the terminal device initially accessed (i.e., the home agent) in the sorted order via an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel. Correspondingly, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed forwards the uplink service data after detuning. When uplink data is sent using a method other than the reverse tunneling method (e.g., the fourth service data mentioned above) (e.g., using methods 2 and 3 in the embodiment shown in Figure 2c), the access network device serving the terminal device sends the uplink data to the internal transport network (i.e., the SBI message bus).

[0345] Step S2409: The first access network device sends a second instruction message to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses.

[0346] In some embodiments, the second indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following: the care-of address of the terminal device, the home address, and the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses the use of tunneling to forward service data.

[0347] In some embodiments, the second indication information is sent during the process of the terminal device switching from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0348] In step S2410, the first access network device sends a handover request to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed.

[0349] In some embodiments, a handover request is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch to a first access network device.

[0350] In step S2411, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects sends an end instruction to the second access network device.

[0351] In some embodiments, the termination indication is sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses after receiving the handover request, and the termination indication is used to instruct the second access network device to terminate service to the terminal device.

[0352] In some embodiments, the names of end indications, etc., are not limited to the names described in the embodiments. Terms such as "indication", "information", "message", "signal", "signaling", "report", "marker", "instruction", "command", and "parameter" can be used interchangeably.

[0353] In step S2412, the second access network device sends an end instruction to the first access network device.

[0354] In step S2413, the first access network device sends a handover response to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed.

[0355] In some embodiments, the handover response is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0356] In some embodiments, the names of handover responses, etc., are not limited to those described in the embodiments, and terms such as "handover response", "handover request confirmation", "response message", and "handover request confirmation message" can be used interchangeably.

[0357] Step S2414: The first access network device releases the context of the terminal device.

[0358] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S2401 to S2414. For example, steps S2401 to S2403 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; steps S2401 to S2406 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; steps S2407 to S2408 may be implemented as an independent embodiment; and a combination of steps S2410 to S2414 may be implemented as an independent embodiment.

[0359] In some embodiments, steps S2413 and S2414 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or substituted in different embodiments.

[0360] Referring to Figure 3a, Figure 3a is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The execution subject of the IP address management method involved in this embodiment is a terminal device. It should be understood that this IP address management method can be executed alone, or it can be executed together with any embodiment of this disclosure or possible implementations within the embodiments, or it can be executed together with any technical solution in related technologies.

[0361] In some embodiments, the terminal device accesses the SBI message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0362] As shown in Figure 3a, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0363] Step S3101: Receive the IP address assigned to the terminal device by the core network device and / or access network device.

[0364] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S3101 can be found in step S2101 of FIG2a, optional implementations of steps S2201 to S2202 of FIG2c, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2a and FIG2c, which will not be repeated here.

[0365] Step S3102: Send a request message to the access network device of the service terminal.

[0366] In some embodiments, the request message is used to request confirmation of the method by which the terminal device sends service data. Optionally, the request message is used to request at least one of the following:

[0367] Service data is sent using a reverse tunnel method;

[0368] Use the home address as the source address when sending business data;

[0369] Service data is sent using a routing optimization mode.

[0370] Step S3103: Receive instruction information sent by the access network device of the service terminal.

[0371] In some embodiments, after receiving a request message, the access network device of the serving terminal sends an instruction message to the terminal device.

[0372] In some embodiments, the indication information is used to indicate how the terminal device sends service data.

[0373] Step S3104: Send the first service data based on the method of sending service data.

[0374] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S3104 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2303 to S2306 in FIG2c, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2c, which will not be repeated here.

[0375] Step S3105: Receive the second service data sent by the access network device of the service terminal device.

[0376] In some embodiments, the second service data is sent based on a reverse tunneling method. The destination address of the second service data is the home address of the terminal device. That is, when the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects (i.e., the home agent) receives a data packet with the destination address being the home address of the terminal device, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects establishes an IP tunnel and forwards the data packet to the access network device serving the terminal device (i.e., the external agent). The access network device serving the terminal device then detunes the data packet and sends it to the terminal device.

[0377] It should be noted that the optional implementation of step S3105 can be found in the optional implementation of steps S2307 to S2309 in Figure 2c, as well as other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figure 2c, which will not be repeated here.

[0378] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S3101 to S3105. For example, step S3101 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment; steps S3102 to S3104 may be implemented as standalone embodiments; and a combination of steps S3102 to S3103 and S3105 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment.

[0379] In some embodiments, step S3103 is optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or substituted in different embodiments.

[0380] Referring to Figure 3b, Figure 3b is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The execution subject of the IP address management method involved in this embodiment is a terminal device. It should be understood that this IP address management method can be executed alone, or it can be executed together with any embodiment of this disclosure or possible implementations within the embodiments, or it can be executed together with any technical solution in related technologies.

[0381] In some embodiments, the terminal device accesses the SBI message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0382] As shown in Figure 3b, this IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0383] Step S3201: Receive the handover address sent by the first access network device.

[0384] In some embodiments, the care-of address is sent by the first access network device when the service terminal device switches from the second access network device to the first access network device. Specifically, during the process of the terminal device switching from the second access network device to the first access network device, the first access network device may send the care-of address to the terminal device. If the terminal device has multiple home addresses, the first access network device may also notify the terminal device of the mapping relationship between the care-of address and the home address.

[0385] In some embodiments, the first access network device may include the care-of address and the aforementioned mapping relationship in an RRC message, and include the RRC message in the signaling sent by the first access network device to the second access network device. Optionally, the second access network device may send the RRC message to the terminal device.

[0386] In some embodiments, when the terminal device configures the care-of address, it is not necessary to reconfigure the IP packet filter set via the NAS process. Optionally, the terminal device processes the packet filter in at least one of the following ways:

[0387] 1. If the second access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, copy a packet filter and replace the source IP address in the copied packet filter with the care-of address.

[0388] That is, when a terminal device switches from the initial access network device (i.e., the second access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed (or the home agent)) to the first access network device, for each packet filter that contains the home address as the source IP address, the terminal device copies the packet filter and replaces the source IP address in the packet filter with the care-of address.

[0389] 2. If the second access network device is not the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, then the source IP address in the packet filter is replaced with the first care-of address. The source IP address of the packet filter before replacement is the second care-of address, which is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the second access network device, and the first care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the first access network device.

[0390] That is, when the terminal switches from the second access network device (wherein the second access network device is not the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed) to the first access network device, if the terminal device uses care-of address x in the second access network device and care-of address y in the first access network device, for each packet filter that contains care-of address x as the source IP address, the terminal device replaces the source IP address in the packet filter with care-of address y.

[0391] 3. If the first access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accesses, delete the packet filter that uses the handover address as the source IP address.

[0392] That is, when a terminal device switches from a second access network device to the access network device (i.e., the home agent) that the terminal device initially accessed, the terminal device can delete every packet filter that contains the care-of address as the source IP address.

[0393] Step S3202: Receive the third service data sent by the first access network device.

[0394] In some embodiments, the third service data is transmitted by core network equipment (e.g., AMF network element, SMF network element, PCF network element, etc.). The third service data is downlink data.

[0395] In some embodiments, the third service data is sent during the process of the terminal device switching to the first access network device.

[0396] In some embodiments, after receiving the third service data, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects sends the third service data to the second access network device; the second access network device forwards the third service data to the first access network device through an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel; and the first access network device sends the third service data to the terminal device.

[0397] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S3202 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2404 to S2406 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0398] Step S3203: Send the fourth service data to the second access network device.

[0399] In some embodiments, the fourth business data is uplink data.

[0400] In some embodiments, after receiving the fourth service data, the second access network device establishes an IP tunnel and sends the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses. Correspondingly, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses sends the fourth service data to the internal transport network (i.e., the SBI message bus).

[0401] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S3203 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2407 to S2408 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0402] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S3201 to S3203. For example, step S3201 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment; step S3202 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment; step S3203 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment; steps S3201 to S3202 may be implemented as standalone embodiments; and a combination of steps S3201 and S3203 may be implemented as a standalone embodiment.

[0403] Referring to Figure 4a, Figure 4a is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The execution subject of the IP address management method involved in this embodiment is an access network device. It should be understood that the IP address management method can be executed alone, or it can be executed together with any embodiment of this disclosure or possible implementations in the embodiments, or it can be executed together with any technical solution in related technologies.

[0404] In some embodiments, the access network device is used to allocate IP addresses to the terminal device based on the IP address management method. The terminal device accesses the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus. The radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses services.

[0405] In some embodiments, the access network device in this disclosure is the access network device of the current serving terminal device. As shown in FIG4a, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0406] Step S4101: Receive a request message sent by the terminal device.

[0407] In some embodiments, the request message is used to request confirmation of how the terminal device sends service data.

[0408] Step S4102: Send instruction information to the terminal device.

[0409] In some embodiments, the indication information is used to indicate how the terminal device sends service data.

[0410] In some embodiments, the terminal device sends service data in a manner including but not limited to at least one of the following:

[0411] Method 1: Send service data using a reverse tunnel method;

[0412] Method 2: Use the home address as the source address when sending business data;

[0413] Method 3: Send business data using the routing optimization mode.

[0414] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S4101 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2301 to S2302 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0415] Step S4103: Receive the first service data sent by the terminal device.

[0416] In some embodiments, the first service data is sent by the terminal device in the manner indicated by the access network device.

[0417] Step S4104: Establish an IP tunnel and send the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects.

[0418] In some embodiments, when the terminal device sends the first service data using a reverse tunnel, the access network device serving the terminal device (i.e., the external agent) can encapsulate and forward the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses (i.e., the home agent) using reverse tunneling technology. The access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses then forwards the first service data to the peer node. Optionally, in this embodiment, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses is used to send the first service data to the SBI message bus, and then to the corresponding node via the SBI message bus.

[0419] In some embodiments, when the terminal device sends the first service data using a method other than the reverse tunnel method (for example, the terminal device sends the first service data using the methods 2 and 3 described above), the access network device serving the terminal device can directly forward the first service data to the internal transmission network (i.e., the SBI message bus) after receiving the first service data.

[0420] Step S4105: Receive the second service data sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects.

[0421] Step S4106: Detuning the second service data and forwarding the second service data to the terminal device.

[0422] In some embodiments, the second service data is sent based on a reverse tunneling method. The destination address of the second service data is the home address of the terminal device. That is, when the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects (i.e., the home agent) receives a data packet with the destination address being the home address of the terminal device, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects establishes an IP tunnel and forwards the data packet to the access network device serving the terminal device (i.e., the external agent). The access network device serving the terminal device then detunes the data packet and sends it to the terminal device.

[0423] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S4101 to S4106. For example, steps S4101 to S4102 may be implemented as independent embodiments; steps S4103 to S4104 may be implemented as independent embodiments; and steps S4105 to S4106 may be implemented as independent embodiments.

[0424] Referring to Figure 4b, Figure 4b is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The execution subject of the IP address management method involved in this embodiment is an access network device. It should be understood that the IP address management method can be executed alone, or it can be executed together with any embodiment of this disclosure or possible implementations in the embodiments, or it can be executed together with any technical solution in related technologies.

[0425] In some embodiments, the access network device is used to allocate IP addresses to the terminal device based on the IP address management method. The terminal device accesses the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus. The radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses services.

[0426] In some embodiments, the access network device in this disclosure is the access network device that the terminal device initially accesses. As shown in FIG4b, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0427] Step S4201: Receive the first service data sent by the access network device of the service terminal device.

[0428] In some embodiments, the first service data is sent by the terminal device according to the method of sending service data as instructed by the access network device. Specifically, the terminal device sends the first service data to the access network device serving the terminal device according to the method of sending service data. Correspondingly, the access network device serving the terminal device is used to establish an IP tunnel and send the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses.

[0429] Step S4202: Forward the first business data.

[0430] In some embodiments, when a terminal device sends first service data using a reverse tunneling method, the access network device serving the terminal device (i.e., the external agent) can encapsulate and forward the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses (i.e., the home agent) using reverse tunneling technology. The access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses then forwards the first service data to the communication peer node. Optionally, in this embodiment, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses is used to send the first service data to the SBI message bus, thereby sending the first service data to the corresponding node via the SBI message bus.

[0431] Step S4203: Obtain the second business data.

[0432] Step S4204: Establish an IP tunnel and forward the second service data to the access network device of the current service terminal device through the IP tunnel.

[0433] In some embodiments, the second service data is sent based on a reverse tunneling method. The destination address of the second service data is the home address of the terminal device. That is, when the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects (i.e., the home agent) receives a data packet with the destination address being the home address of the terminal device, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects establishes an IP tunnel and forwards the data packet to the access network device serving the terminal device (i.e., the external agent). The access network device serving the terminal device then detunes the data packet and sends it to the terminal device.

[0434] Step S4205: Obtain the first instruction information.

[0435] Step S4206: According to the first instruction information, delete the binding between the terminal device and the home address.

[0436] In some embodiments, when a home address is no longer in use, the access network device and / or core network element (e.g., AMF element, SMF element, etc.) of the serving terminal device send a first indication message to the access network device that initially accessed the device, for instructing the initial access network device (home agent) to delete the binding between the terminal device and the home address through the first indication message.

[0437] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S4201 to S4206. For example, steps S4201 to S4202 may be implemented as independent embodiments; steps S4203 to S4204 may be implemented as independent embodiments; and steps S4205 to S4206 may be implemented as independent embodiments.

[0438] Referring to Figure 4c, Figure 4c is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The execution subject of the IP address management method involved in this embodiment is an access network device. It should be understood that the IP address management method can be executed alone, or it can be executed together with any embodiment of this disclosure or possible implementations in the embodiments, or it can be executed together with any technical solution in related technologies.

[0439] In some embodiments, the access network device is used to allocate IP addresses to the terminal device based on the IP address management method. The terminal device accesses the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus. The radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses services.

[0440] In some embodiments, the access network device in this disclosure is a second access network device. The second access network device is the access network device serving the terminal device before the terminal device switches services. As shown in Figure 4c, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0441] Step S4301: When the access network device of the serving terminal device switches from the second access network device to the first access network device, the home address of the terminal device is sent to the first access network device.

[0442] Step S4302: Receive the handover address sent by the first access network device.

[0443] In some embodiments, the optional implementations of steps S4301 to S4302 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2401 to S2403 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0444] Step S4303: Receive the third service data sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects.

[0445] Step S4304: Forward the third service data to the first access network device through an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel.

[0446] In some embodiments, the third service data is transmitted by core network equipment (e.g., AMF network element, SMF network element, PCF network element, etc.). The third service data is downlink data.

[0447] In some embodiments, the third service data is received during the process of the terminal device switching to the first access network device.

[0448] In some embodiments, after receiving the third service data, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects sends the third service data to the second access network device. Correspondingly, the second access network device forwards the third service data to the first access network device via an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel, and the first access network device is used to send the third service data to the terminal device.

[0449] Step S4305: Receive the fourth service data sent by the terminal device.

[0450] In some embodiments, the fourth business data is uplink data.

[0451] Step S4306: Establish an IP tunnel and send the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects.

[0452] In some embodiments, when the terminal device sends the fourth service data using a reverse tunneling method, the second access network device establishes an IP tunnel to send the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses. Correspondingly, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses sends this uplink data to the internal transport network (i.e., the SBI message bus).

[0453] In some embodiments, the optional implementations of steps S4305 to S4306 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2407 to S2408 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0454] Step S4307: Receive the termination instruction sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially connected.

[0455] In some embodiments, the termination indication is sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses after receiving the handover request, and the termination indication is used to instruct the second access network device to terminate service to the terminal device.

[0456] Step S4308: Send an end instruction to the first access network device.

[0457] In some embodiments, the optional implementations of steps S4307 to S4308 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2411 to S2412 in Figure 2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figure 2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0458] In some embodiments, after receiving the termination indication, the first access network device may also send a handover response to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed. Optionally, the handover response is used to instruct the access network device serving the terminal device to switch from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0459] In some embodiments, the first access network device is further configured to release the context of the terminal device according to an end instruction.

[0460] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S4301 to S4308. For example, steps S4301 to S4302 may be implemented as independent embodiments; steps S4303 to S4304 may be implemented as independent embodiments; steps S4305 to S4306 may be implemented as independent embodiments; and steps S4307 to S4308 may be implemented as independent embodiments.

[0461] Referring to Figure 4d, Figure 4d is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The execution subject of the IP address management method involved in this embodiment is an access network device. It should be understood that this IP address management method can be executed alone, or it can be executed together with any embodiment of this disclosure or possible implementations within the embodiments, or it can be executed together with any technical solution in related technologies.

[0462] In some embodiments, the access network device is used to allocate IP addresses to the terminal device based on the IP address management method. The terminal device accesses the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus. The radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses services.

[0463] In some embodiments, the access network device in this disclosure is a first access network device. The first access network device is the access network device that serves the terminal device after the terminal device switches services. As shown in Figure 4d, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0464] Step S4401: Receive the home address of the terminal device sent by the second access network device.

[0465] In some embodiments, the home address is sent by the second access network device when the access network device of the serving terminal device switches from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0466] In this embodiment, by sending the home address of the terminal device to the first access network device, the first access network device can perform reverse tunneling processing on the data packets sent by the terminal device based on the home address of the terminal device. The destination address in the IP tunnel header is the IP address of the home proxy.

[0467] Step S4402: Send the handover address of the terminal device to the terminal device.

[0468] In some embodiments, during the process of a terminal device switching from a second access network device to a first access network device, the first access network device may send a care-of address to the terminal device. If the terminal device has multiple home addresses, the first access network device may also notify the terminal device of the mapping relationship between the care-of address and the home address.

[0469] Step S4403: Send the handover address of the terminal device to the second access network device.

[0470] In some embodiments, the first access network device may include the care-of address and the aforementioned mapping relationship in an RRC message, and include the RRC message in the signaling sent by the first access network device to the second access network device. Optionally, the second access network device may send the RRC message to the terminal device.

[0471] In some embodiments, the optional implementations of steps S4401 to S4403 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2401 to S2403 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0472] Step S4404: Receive the third service data sent by the second access network device.

[0473] In some embodiments, the third service data is transmitted by core network equipment (e.g., AMF network element, SMF network element, PCF network element, etc.). The third service data is downlink data.

[0474] In some embodiments, the third service data is received by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses during the process of the terminal device switching to the first access network device. Upon receiving the third service data, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses sends the third service data to the second access network device. The second access network device then forwards the third service data to the first access network device via an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel. Correspondingly, the first access network device receives the third service data sent by the second access network device.

[0475] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S4404 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2405 to S2406 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0476] Step S4405: Send the second instruction information to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects.

[0477] In some embodiments, the second indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following: the care-of address of the terminal device, the home address, and the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses the device using tunnel forwarding service data.

[0478] In some embodiments, the second indication information is sent during the process of the terminal device switching from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0479] Step S4406: Send a handover request to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connected.

[0480] In some embodiments, a handover request is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch to a first access network device.

[0481] Step S4407: Receive the termination instruction sent by the second access network device.

[0482] In some embodiments, the termination indication is used to instruct the second access network device to terminate service to the terminal device. Specifically, after receiving a handover request, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed sends a termination indication to the second access network device, and correspondingly, the second access network device sends the termination indication to the first access network device.

[0483] Step S4408: Send a handover response to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connected.

[0484] In some embodiments, the handover response is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0485] Step S4409: Release the context of the terminal device.

[0486] In some embodiments, the optional implementations of steps S4405 to S4409 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2409 to S2414 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0487] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S4401 to S4409. For example, steps S4401 to S4403 may be implemented as independent embodiments; step S4404 may be implemented as independent embodiments; and steps S4405 to S4409 may be implemented as independent embodiments.

[0488] In some embodiments, steps S4408 and S4409 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or substituted in different embodiments.

[0489] Referring to Figure 4e, Figure 4e is an exemplary flowchart of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of this disclosure. The execution subject of the IP address management method involved in this embodiment is an access network device. It should be understood that the IP address management method can be executed alone, or it can be executed together with any embodiment of this disclosure or possible implementations in the embodiments, or it can be executed together with any technical solution in related technologies.

[0490] In some embodiments, the access network device is used to allocate IP addresses to the terminal device based on the IP address management method. The terminal device accesses the SBI message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus. The radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses services.

[0491] In some embodiments, the access network device in this disclosure is the access network device that the terminal device initially accesses. As shown in FIG4e, the IP address management method includes the following steps:

[0492] Step S4501: Obtain the third business data.

[0493] In some embodiments, the third service data is transmitted by core network equipment (e.g., AMF network element, SMF network element, PCF network element, etc.). The third service data is downlink data.

[0494] In some embodiments, the third service data is received during the process of the terminal device switching to the first access network device.

[0495] Step S4502: Send the third service data to the second access network device.

[0496] In some embodiments, after receiving the third service data, the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects sends the third service data to the second access network device. Correspondingly, the second access network device forwards the third service data to the first access network device via an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel, and the first access network device then sends the third service data to the terminal device.

[0497] In some embodiments, the optional implementations of steps S4501 to S4502 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2404 to S2406 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0498] Step S4503: Receive the fourth service data sent by the second access network device.

[0499] Step S4504: Forward the fourth business data to the SBI message bus.

[0500] In some embodiments, the fourth business data is uplink data.

[0501] In some embodiments, the fourth service data is sent by the terminal device to the second access network device. Upon receiving the fourth service data, the second access network device establishes an IP tunnel and, based on the IP tunnel, sends the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses. Correspondingly, upon receiving the fourth service data, the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses forwards the fourth service data to the SBI message bus.

[0502] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S4503 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2407 to S2408 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0503] Step S4505: Receive the second indication information sent by the first access network device.

[0504] In some embodiments, the second indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following: the care-of address of the terminal device, the home address, and the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses the use of tunneling to forward service data.

[0505] In some embodiments, the second indication information is sent by the first access network device to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses during the process of the terminal device switching from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0506] Step S4506: Receive a handover request sent by the first access network device.

[0507] In some embodiments, a handover request is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch to a first access network device.

[0508] Step S4507: Send an end instruction to the second access network device.

[0509] In some embodiments, the termination instruction is sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed the device after receiving the handover request.

[0510] In some embodiments, after receiving an end instruction, the second access network device sends an end instruction to the first access network device.

[0511] Step S4508: Receive the handover response sent by the first access network device.

[0512] In some embodiments, after receiving a termination indication, the first access network device sends a handover response to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed. Optionally, after receiving a termination indication, the first access network device may also release the context of the terminal device.

[0513] In some embodiments, the handover response is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0514] In some embodiments, optional implementations of steps S4505 to S4508 can be found in the optional implementations of steps S2410 to S2414 in FIG2d, and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2d, which will not be repeated here.

[0515] It should be noted that the IP address management method involved in the embodiments of this disclosure may include at least one of steps S4501 to S4508. For example, steps S4501 to S4502 may be implemented as independent embodiments; steps S4503 to S4504 may be implemented as independent embodiments; and steps S4505 to S4508 may be implemented as independent embodiments.

[0516] In some embodiments, steps S4505 and S4508 are optional, and one or more of these steps may be omitted or substituted in different embodiments.

[0517] Figure 5a is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 5a, the IP address management method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes the following steps:

[0518] Step S5101: The access network device assigns an IP address to the terminal device for use when providing and / or using services.

[0519] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S5101 can be found in optional implementations of step S2101 in FIG2a and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2a, which will not be repeated here.

[0520] In step S5102, the terminal device receives the IP address assigned to the terminal device for use when providing and / or using the service.

[0521] In some embodiments, the IP address received in step S5102 may be the one assigned to the terminal device by the access network device in step S5101. Alternatively, the IP address received in step S5102 may also be assigned to the terminal device by the core network device. For the optional implementation of the core network device assigning the IP address to the terminal device, please refer to the optional implementation of step S2201 in Figure 2b and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figure 2b, which will not be repeated here.

[0522] Figure 5b is an exemplary interactive diagram of an IP address management method provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 5b, the IP address management method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes the following steps:

[0523] Step S5201: The core network equipment assigns an IP address to the terminal equipment for use when providing and / or using services.

[0524] In some embodiments, optional implementations of step S5201 can be found in optional implementations of step S2201 in FIG2b and other related parts in the embodiments involved in FIG2b, which will not be repeated here.

[0525] In step S5202, the terminal device receives the IP address assigned to the terminal device for use when providing and / or using the service.

[0526] In some embodiments, the IP address received in step S5202 may be the one allocated to the terminal device by the core network device in step S5201. Alternatively, the IP address received in step S5202 may also be allocated to the terminal device by the access network device. For the optional implementation of the access network device allocating the IP address to the terminal device, please refer to the optional implementation of step S2101 in Figure 2a and other related parts in the embodiments involved in Figure 2a, which will not be repeated here.

[0527] In the embodiments disclosed herein, some or all of the steps and their optional implementations may be arbitrarily combined with some or all of the steps in other embodiments, or may be arbitrarily combined with the optional implementations in other embodiments.

[0528] This disclosure also provides embodiments of an apparatus for implementing any of the above methods. For example, an apparatus is provided that includes units or modules for implementing the steps performed by the first device in any of the above methods. Alternatively, another apparatus is provided that includes units or modules for implementing the steps performed by the second device in any of the above methods.

[0529] It should be understood that the division of units or modules in the above device is only a logical functional division. In actual implementation, they can be fully or partially integrated into a single physical entity, or they can be physically separated. Furthermore, the units or modules in the device can be implemented by a processor calling software: for example, the device includes a processor connected to a memory containing instructions. The processor calls the instructions stored in the memory to implement any of the above methods or to implement the functions of the units or modules in the above device. The processor can be, for example, a general-purpose processor, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU) or a microprocessor, and the memory can be internal or external to the device. Alternatively, the units or modules in the device can be implemented in the form of hardware circuits. The functionality of some or all of the units or modules can be achieved through the design of these hardware circuits, which can be understood as one or more processors. For example, in one implementation, the hardware circuit is an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC). The functionality of some or all of the units or modules is achieved through the design of the logical relationships between the components within the circuit. In another implementation, the hardware circuit can be implemented using a programmable logic device (PLD). Taking a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) as an example, it can include a large number of logic gates. The connection relationships between the logic gates are configured through configuration files, thereby achieving the functionality of some or all of the units or modules. All units or modules of the above device can be implemented entirely through processor-called software, entirely through hardware circuits, or partially through processor-called software with the remaining parts implemented through hardware circuits.

[0530] In this embodiment, the processor is a circuit with signal processing capabilities. In one implementation, the processor can be a circuit with instruction read and execute capabilities, such as a Central Processing Unit (CPU), a microprocessor, a graphics processing unit (GPU) (which can be understood as a microprocessor), or a digital signal processor (DSP). In another implementation, the processor can implement certain functions through the logical relationships of hardware circuits. The logical relationships of the aforementioned hardware circuits are fixed or reconfigurable. For example, the processor is a hardware circuit implemented using an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) or a programmable logic device (PLD), such as an FPGA. In a reconfigurable hardware circuit, the process of the processor loading a configuration document and configuring the hardware circuit can be understood as the process of the processor loading instructions to implement the functions of some or all of the above units or modules. Furthermore, it can also be a hardware circuit designed for artificial intelligence, which can be understood as an ASIC, such as a Neural Network Processing Unit (NPU), a Tensor Processing Unit (TPU), or a Deep Learning Processing Unit (DPU).

[0531] Figure 6a is an exemplary structural diagram of an IP address management device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The terminal device containing this IP address management device is connected to the SBI message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0532] As shown in Figure 6a, the IP address management device 6100 may include:

[0533] The transceiver module 6101 is used to receive an IP address assigned to a terminal device for providing and / or using services. The IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

[0534] In some embodiments, the IP address belongs to the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) block in which the access network device to which the terminal device is connected acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

[0535] In some embodiments, the IP address of the terminal device is one or more;

[0536] When data transmission during service provision and / or service usage by a terminal device is associated with a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session, one PDU session corresponds to one IP address.

[0537] In some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0538] Base station;

[0539] The central unit (CU) of the base station;

[0540] Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station;

[0541] The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station;

[0542] The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

[0543] In some embodiments, IP addresses are assigned by access network devices and / or core network devices.

[0544] In some embodiments, the IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0545] In some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one home address and / or at least one care-of address;

[0546] The home address is the IP address of the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the transfer address is the IP address of the access network device that serves the terminal device.

[0547] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 6101 is further configured to:

[0548] Send a request message to the access network device of the serving terminal. The request message requests at least one of the following:

[0549] Service data is sent using a reverse tunnel method;

[0550] When sending business data, use the home address as the source address;

[0551] Service data is sent using a routing optimization mode.

[0552] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 6101 is further configured to: receive a handover address sent by the first access network device, wherein the handover address is sent by the first access network device when the access network device of the serving terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device.

[0553] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 6101 is further configured to: obtain the mapping relationship between the care-of address and the home address sent by the first access network device.

[0554] In some embodiments, the IP address management device 6100 further includes a processing module 6102, configured to process the IP packet filter in at least one of the following ways:

[0555] If the second access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, copy a packet filter and replace the source IP address in the copied packet filter with the care-of address;

[0556] Alternatively, if the second access network device is not the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, the source IP address in the packet filter is replaced with the first care-of address, where the source IP address of the packet filter before replacement is the second care-of address, the second care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the second access network device, and the first care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the first access network device;

[0557] Alternatively, if the first access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accesses, remove the packet filter that uses the care-of address as the source IP address.

[0558] Optionally, the transceiver module 6101 described above is also used to perform at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving performed by the terminal device in any of the above methods (e.g., steps S2407, S2301, S2303, S3101, S3102, S3103, S3104, S3105, S3201, S3202, S3203, but not limited thereto), which will not be elaborated here.

[0559] Figure 6b is an exemplary structural diagram of an IP address management device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 6b, the IP address management device 6200 may include:

[0560] The processing module 6201 is used to assign an IP address to the terminal device when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service. The IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

[0561] Among them, the terminal device accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0562] In some embodiments, the IP address belongs to the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) block in which the access network device to which the terminal device is connected acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

[0563] In some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0564] Base station;

[0565] The central unit (CU) of the base station;

[0566] Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station;

[0567] The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station;

[0568] The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

[0569] In some embodiments, the IP address management device 6200 further includes a transceiver module 6202, configured to send the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the core network device.

[0570] In some embodiments, the IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data generated when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0571] In some embodiments, the IP address includes at least one home address and / or at least one care-of address;

[0572] The home address is the IP address of the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the care address is the IP address of the access network device that serves the terminal device.

[0573] In some embodiments, the access network device is an access network device serving a terminal device; the transceiver module 6202 is further configured to:

[0574] Receive a request message sent by the terminal device, the request message being used to request at least one of the following:

[0575] Service data is sent using a reverse tunnel method;

[0576] Use the home address as the source address when sending business data;

[0577] Service data is sent using a routing optimization mode.

[0578] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 6202 is further used for

[0579] Receive the first service data sent by the terminal device, and establish an IP tunnel to send the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed, or forward the first service data to the SBI message bus;

[0580] The access network equipment initially connected to the terminal device is used to forward the first service data.

[0581] In some embodiments, where the access network device is the initial access network device to which the terminal device accesses; the transceiver module 6202 is further configured to: acquire second service data and establish an IP tunnel to forward the second service data to the access network device currently serving the terminal device;

[0582] The destination address of the second service data is the home address of the terminal device. The access network device currently serving the terminal device is used to tunnel the second service data and forward it to the terminal device.

[0583] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 6202 is further configured to: receive first indication information from the access network device of the core network device and / or the service terminal device, and delete the binding between the terminal device and the home address according to the first indication information;

[0584] The first indication message is sent when it is determined that the home address is not in use.

[0585] In some embodiments, the access network device includes a first access network device and a second access network device; when the access network device of the serving terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device, the second access network device is used to send the home address of the terminal device to the first access network device based on the transceiver module 6202, and the first access network device is used to send the care-of address to the second access network device and / or the terminal device based on the transceiver module 6202.

[0586] In some embodiments, the second access network device receives third service data from the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses via the transceiver module 6202, and forwards the third service data to the first access network device via an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel.

[0587] The first access network device is used to send third service data to the terminal device.

[0588] In some embodiments, the second access network device is used to receive the fourth service data sent by the terminal device based on the transceiver module 6202, and establish an IP tunnel to send the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses, or to forward the fourth service data to the SBI message bus.

[0589] In some embodiments, the first access network device is used to send second indication information to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses based on the transceiver module 6202. The second indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following: the care-of address of the terminal device, the home address, and the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses uses tunnel forwarding service data.

[0590] In some embodiments, the first access network device is configured to send a handover request to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses based on the transceiver module 6202, and receive an end indication forwarded by the second access network device.

[0591] The handover request is used to instruct the access network device of the serving terminal device to switch to the first access network device. The termination instruction is sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed after receiving the handover request. The termination instruction is used to instruct the second access network device to terminate the service to the terminal device.

[0592] Optionally, the processing module 6201 described above is also used to execute at least one of the other steps (e.g., steps S2101, S2311, S2414, S4206, and S4409) performed by the access network device in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail here.

[0593] Optionally, the transceiver module 6202 described above is also used to perform at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving performed by the access network device in any of the above methods (e.g., steps S2302, S2304 to S2310, S2401 to S2406, steps S2408 to S2413, but not limited thereto), which will not be elaborated here.

[0594] Figure 6c is an exemplary structural diagram of an IP address management device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 6c, the IP address management device 6300 may include:

[0595] The processing module 6301 is used to assign an IP address to the terminal device when the terminal device provides services and / or uses services. The IP address is used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

[0596] Among them, the terminal device accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

[0597] In some embodiments, the processing module 6301 is specifically used to: obtain the IP address pool from the access network device, and allocate an IP address to the terminal device according to the IP address pool.

[0598] In some embodiments, the IP address management device further includes a transceiver module 6303, used to send the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the access network device.

[0599] In some embodiments, the IP address belongs to the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) block in which the access network device to which the terminal device is connected acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

[0600] In some embodiments, the access network device includes at least one of the following:

[0601] Base station;

[0602] The central unit (CU) of the base station;

[0603] Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station;

[0604] The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station;

[0605] The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

[0606] In some embodiments, the IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data generated when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

[0607] An IP address includes at least one home address and / or at least one care-of address;

[0608] The home address is the IP address of the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the transfer address is the IP address of the access network device that serves the terminal device.

[0609] In some embodiments, the transceiver module 6302 is further configured to: send first indication information to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses when it is determined that the home address is not in use;

[0610] The first instruction information is used to instruct the removal of the binding between the terminal device and the home address.

[0611] Optionally, the processing module 6301 described above is also used to execute at least one of the other steps (e.g., step S2201, but not limited thereto) executed by the access network device in any of the above methods, which will not be described in detail here.

[0612] Optionally, the transceiver module 6302 described above is also used to perform at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving performed by the access network device in any of the above methods (e.g., step S2202, but not limited thereto), which will not be described in detail here.

[0613] Figure 7a is an exemplary structural diagram of a communication device provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The communication device can be any of a terminal device, an access network device, or a core network device, or it can be a chip, chip system, or processor, etc., that supports any of the terminal devices, access network devices, or core network devices in implementing any of the above methods. It can be used to implement the methods described in the above method embodiments, and for details, please refer to the description in the above method embodiments.

[0614] As shown in Figure 7a, the communication device 7100 includes one or more processors 7101. The processor 7101 can be a general-purpose processor or a special-purpose processor, such as a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The communication device 7100 is used to execute any of the above methods.

[0615] In some embodiments, the communication device 7100 further includes one or more memories 7102 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 7102 may also be located outside the communication device 7100.

[0616] In some embodiments, the communication device 7100 further includes one or more transceivers 7103. When the communication device 7100 includes one or more transceivers 7103, the transceivers 7103 perform at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above method (e.g., steps S2407, S2301, S2303, S3101, S3102, S3103, S3104, S3105, S3201, S3202, S3203, S2302, S2304 to S2310, S2401 to S2406, S2408 to S2413, step S2202, but not limited thereto).

[0617] The processor 7101 performs at least one of the other steps (e.g., step S2101, step S2311, step S2414, step S4206, step S4409, step S2201).

[0618] In some embodiments, transceiver 7103 may include a receiver and / or a transmitter, which may be separate or integrated together. Optionally, the terms transceiver, transceiver unit, transceiver, transceiver circuit, etc., may be used interchangeably; the terms transmitter, transmitting unit, transmitter, transmitting circuit, etc., may be used interchangeably; and the terms receiver, receiving unit, receiver, receiving circuit, etc., may be used interchangeably.

[0619] In some embodiments, the communication device 7100 may include one or more interface circuits 7104. Optionally, the interface circuit 7104 is connected to the memory 7102, and the interface circuit 7104 can be used to receive signals from the memory 7102 or other devices, and can be used to send signals to the memory 7102 or other devices. For example, the interface circuit 7104 can read instructions stored in the memory 7102 and send the instructions to the processor 7101.

[0620] The communication device 7100 described in the above embodiments can be any of the terminal device, access network device, or core network device, but the scope of the communication device 7100 described in this disclosure is not limited thereto, and the structure of the communication device 7100 may not be limited by FIG. 6a. The communication device can be a standalone device or part of a larger device. For example, the communication device can be at least one of the following: (1) a standalone integrated circuit IC, or chip, or chip system or subsystem; (2) a collection of one or more ICs, optionally, the IC collection may also include storage components for storing data and programs; (3) an ASIC, such as a modem; (4) a module that can be embedded in other devices; (5) a receiver, terminal device, access network device or core network device, cellular phone, wireless device, handheld device, mobile unit, vehicle device, cloud device, artificial intelligence device, etc.; (6) others, etc.

[0621] Figure 7b is an exemplary structural diagram of a chip provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. For cases where the communication device can be a chip or a chip system, please refer to the structural diagram of chip 727200 shown in Figure 7b, but it is not limited thereto.

[0622] Chip 7200 includes one or more processors 7201, which are used to perform any of the above methods.

[0623] In some embodiments, chip 7200 further includes one or more interface circuits 7202. Optionally, the interface circuit 7202 is connected to memory 7203, and the interface circuit 7202 can be used to receive signals from memory 7203 or other devices, and the interface circuit 7202 can be used to send signals to memory 7203 or other devices. For example, the interface circuit 7202 can read instructions stored in memory 7203 and send the instructions to processor 7201.

[0624] In some embodiments, the interface circuit 7202 performs at least one of the communication steps such as sending and / or receiving in the above method (e.g., steps S2407, S2301, S2303, S3101, S3102, S3103, S3104, S3105, S3201, S3202, S3203, S2302, S2304 to S2310, S2401 to S2406, S2408 to S2413, S2202, but not limited thereto).

[0625] The processor 7201 performs at least one of other steps (e.g., steps S2101, S2311, S2414, S4206, S4409, S2201, but not limited thereto).

[0626] In some embodiments, the terms interface circuit, interface, transceiver pin, transceiver, etc., can be used interchangeably.

[0627] In some embodiments, chip 7200 further includes one or more memories 7203 for storing instructions. Optionally, all or part of the memories 7203 may be located outside of chip 7200.

[0628] The modules and / or devices described in the various embodiments, such as virtual devices, physical devices, and chips, can be combined or separated arbitrarily as needed. Optionally, some or all steps can also be performed collaboratively by multiple modules and / or devices, which is not limited here.

[0629] This disclosure also proposes a storage medium storing instructions that, when executed on the communication device 7100, cause the communication device 7100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the storage medium is an electronic storage medium. Optionally, the storage medium is a computer-readable storage medium, but not limited thereto; it may also be a storage medium readable by other devices. Optionally, the storage medium may be a non-transitory storage medium, but not limited thereto; it may also be a temporary storage medium.

[0630] This disclosure also proposes a program product, including a program and / or instructions, which, when executed by the communication device 7100, cause the communication device 7100 to perform any of the above methods. Optionally, the above program product is a computer program product.

[0631] This disclosure also proposes a computer program that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform any of the above methods.

[0632] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the units and algorithm steps of the various examples described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of this disclosure.

[0633] Those skilled in the art will understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be referred to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0634] The above are merely specific embodiments of this disclosure, but the scope of protection of this disclosure is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this disclosure should be included within the scope of protection of this disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of this disclosure should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for managing Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, characterized in that, The method is executed by a terminal device, which accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus and is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus. The method includes: Receive an IP address assigned to the terminal device for providing and / or using services, the IP address being used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The IP address belongs to the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) block in which the access network device to which the terminal device is connected acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The terminal device may have one or more IP addresses; When the terminal device provides and / or uses services, the data transmission is associated with a Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session, and one PDU session corresponds to one IP address.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The access network device includes at least one of the following: Base station; The central unit (CU) of the base station; Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station; The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station; The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The IP address includes at least one home address, and / or at least one care-of address; Wherein, the home address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the handover address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device serving the terminal device.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, Also includes: Send a request message to the access network device serving the terminal, the request message being used to request at least one of the following: Service data is sent using a reverse tunnel method; Use the home address as the source address when sending business data; The service data is sent using a routing optimization mode.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that, Also includes: The system receives a handover address sent by a first access network device, wherein the handover address is sent by the first access network device when the access network device serving the terminal device is switched from a second access network device to the first access network device.

9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that, Also includes: Obtain the mapping relationship between the care-of address and the home address sent by the first access network device.

10. The method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that, The terminal device processes the IP packet filter in at least one of the following ways: If the second access network device is the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, copy a packet filter and replace the source IP address in the copied packet filter with the handover address; Alternatively, if the second access network device is not the access network device that the terminal device initially accessed, the source IP address in the packet filter is replaced with the first care-of address, wherein the source IP address of the packet filter before replacement is the second care-of address, the second care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the second access network device, and the first care-of address is the address used by the terminal device when accessing the first access network device; Alternatively, if the first access network device is the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses, delete the packet filter that uses the handover address as the source IP address.

11. A method for managing Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, characterized in that, The method is executed by an access network device, and the method includes: Assigning an IP address to a terminal device for use when providing and / or using services, the IP address being used in... Addressing or routing the terminal device in the network; The terminal device accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, The IP address belongs to the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) block in which the access network device to which the terminal device is connected acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that, The access network device includes at least one of the following: Base station; The central unit (CU) of the base station; Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station; The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station; The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

14. The method according to any one of claims 11-13, characterized in that, Also includes: Send the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the core network equipment.

15. The method according to any one of claims 11-14, characterized in that, The IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data generated when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

16. The method according to any one of claims 11-15, characterized in that, The IP address includes at least one home address, and / or at least one care-of address; The home address is the IP address of the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the handover address is the IP address of the access network device serving the terminal device.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that, The access network device is an access network device that serves the terminal device; the method further includes: The terminal device receives a request message, which requests at least one of the following: Service data is sent using a reverse tunnel method; Use the home address as the source address when sending business data; The service data is sent using a routing optimization mode.

18. The method according to claim 17, characterized in that, The method further includes: Receive the first service data sent by the terminal device, and establish an IP tunnel to send the first service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed, or forward the first service data to the SBI message bus; The access network device initially connected to the terminal device is used to forward the first service data.

19. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that, When the access network device is the initial access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses; the method further includes: Acquire the second service data and establish an IP tunnel to forward the second service data to the access network device currently serving the terminal device; Wherein, the destination address of the second service data is the home address of the terminal device, and the access network device currently serving the terminal device is used to tunnel the second service data and forward the second service data to the terminal device.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that, Also includes: Receive first indication information from the core network device and / or the access network device serving the terminal device, and delete the binding between the terminal device and the home address according to the first indication information; The first indication information is sent when it is determined that the home address is not in use.

21. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that, The access network equipment includes a first access network equipment and a second access network equipment; the method further includes: When the access network device serving the terminal device switches from the second access network device to the first access network device, the second access network device sends the home address of the terminal device to the first access network device, and the first access network device sends the care-of address to the second access network device and / or the terminal device.

22. The method according to claim 21, characterized in that, Also includes: The second access network device receives the third service data from the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses, and forwards the third service data to the first access network device through an IP tunnel or a GTP-U tunnel; The first access network device is used to send the third service data to the terminal device.

23. The method according to claim 21 or 22, characterized in that, Also includes: The second access network device receives the fourth service data sent by the terminal device and establishes an IP tunnel to send the fourth service data to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed, or forwards the fourth service data to the SBI message. bus.

24. The method according to any one of claims 21-23, characterized in that, Also includes: The first access network device sends a second indication information to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses. The second indication information is used to indicate at least one of the following: the care-of address of the terminal device, the home address, and the use of tunnel forwarding service data by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses.

25. The method according to any one of claims 21-24, characterized in that, The method further includes: The first access network device sends a handover request to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses, and receives an end indication forwarded by the second access network device; The handover request is used to instruct the access network device serving the terminal device to switch to the first access network device. The termination instruction is sent by the access network device to which the terminal device initially accessed after receiving the handover request. The termination instruction is used to instruct the second access network device to terminate its service to the terminal device.

26. A method for managing Internet Protocol (IP) addresses, characterized in that, The method is executed by a core network device, and the method includes: Assign an IP address to the terminal device for providing and / or using the service, the IP address being used to address or route the terminal device in the network; The terminal device accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

27. The method according to claim 26, characterized in that, The process of allocating an IP address to a terminal device for providing and / or using services includes: Obtain the IP address pool from the access network device, and allocate the IP address to the terminal device according to the IP address pool.

28. The method according to claim 27, characterized in that, Also includes: Send the IP address assigned to the terminal device to the access network device.

29. The method according to claim 28, characterized in that, The IP address belongs to the Classless Inter-Domain Routing (CIDR) block in which the access network device to which the terminal device is connected acts as a gateway, and the access network device corresponds to at least one CIDR block.

30. The method according to any one of claims 26-29, characterized in that, The access network device includes at least one of the following: Base station; The central unit (CU) of the base station; Distribution Unit (DU) of a base station; The control plane unit (CU-CP) of the central unit of the base station; The user plane unit (CU-UP) of the central unit of the base station.

31. The method according to any one of claims 26-30, characterized in that, The IP address is assigned when the terminal device establishes a radio bearer and / or PDU session, and the radio bearer is used to transmit service data generated when the terminal device provides and / or uses the service.

32. The method according to any one of claims 26-31, characterized in that, The IP address includes at least one home address, and / or at least one care-of address; Wherein, the home address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device to which the terminal device initially connects, and the care-of address is the IP address corresponding to the access network device serving the terminal device.

33. The method according to claim 32, characterized in that, Also includes: When it is determined that the home address is not in use, a first indication message is sent to the access network device to which the terminal device initially accesses. The first indication information is used to instruct the deletion of the binding between the terminal device and the home address.

34. An IP address management device, characterized in that, The terminal device where the IP address management device is located accesses the Service Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide and / or use services through the SBI message bus; the terminal device includes: The transceiver module is used to receive an IP address assigned to the terminal device for providing and / or using services, the IP address being used to address or route the terminal device in the network.

35. An IP address management device, characterized in that, include: The processing module is used to assign an IP address to the terminal device for providing and / or using services, the IP address being used to address or route the terminal device in the network; The terminal device accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

36. An IP address management device, characterized in that, include The processing module is used to assign an IP address to the terminal device for providing and / or using services, the IP address being used to address or route the terminal device in the network; The terminal device accesses the Service-Oriented Interface (SBI) message bus, and the terminal device is used to provide services and / or use services through the SBI message bus.

37. A terminal device, characterized in that, include: One or more processors; The terminal device is used to execute the IP address management method according to any one of claims 1-10.

38. An access network device, characterized in that, include: One or more processors; The access network device is used to execute the IP address management method according to any one of claims 11-25.

39. A core network device, characterized in that, include: One or more processors; The core network device is used to execute the IP address management method according to any one of claims 26-33.

40. An IP address management system, characterized in that, include: Terminal equipment, access network equipment and / or core network equipment; The terminal device is configured to implement the IP address management method according to any one of claims 1-10; the access network device is configured to implement the IP address management method according to claims 11-25; and the core network device is configured to implement the IP address management method according to claims 26-33.

41. A storage medium storing instructions, characterized in that, When the instruction is executed on the communication device, the communication device performs the IP address management method as described in any one of claims 1-10, 11-25 or 26-33.

42. A program product comprising a program and / or instructions, characterized in that, When the program and / or instructions are executed by the communication device, they implement the IP address management method as described in any one of claims 1-10, 11-25, or 26-33.

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