Method and system

Abstract

To reduce processing loads on a management network element in transferring a subscriber profile.SOLUTION: A method executed by an information processing device includes: temporarily holding a location registration request signal received from a terminal device during transfer from a first profile management device to a second profile management device; and transferring, after the completion of the transfer, the temporarily held location registration request signal to a user data management device, the user data management device setting the second profile management device as a transmission destination of the location registration request signal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a method and system, and more particularly, to a method and system for reducing the processing load on a device that manages a subscriber profile during transfer of the subscriber profile. [Background technology]

[0002] When a product or service is discontinued (End of Sale: EOS) or when maintenance and support is discontinued (End of Life: EOL), the management network element that has a database (UDR: Unified Data Repository in the case of 5G) that manages the subscriber profile of the subscriber needs to transfer the subscriber profile from the old management network element to the new management network element. Here, the transfer process refers to the procedure performed when a subscriber profile, including the subscriber's communication service and contract information, is transferred from one device to another.

[0003] Conventionally, when a subscriber's terminal device moves during a transfer and transmits a location registration request signal, this location registration request signal is transmitted to the old management network element of the transfer source, and may not be reflected in the presence information of the subscriber profile of the new management network element of the transfer destination. For example, when a terminal device moves between mobility management elements (AMF: Access and Mobility Management Function in the case of 5G) during a transfer, the presence information in the new management network element of the transfer destination remains the identifier of the mobility management element before the move, and is not updated to the mobility management element identifier after the move, and the presence information of the subscriber profile of the new management network element may become in an unmatched state different from the actual presence information of the terminal device. Conventionally, in order to resolve this unmatched state, a reset signal is transmitted from the new management network element to all mobility management elements under it. Upon receiving a reset signal, the mobility management element transmits a location registration request signal to the new management network element when it receives a location registration request from the terminal device of the corresponding subscriber identification number.

[0004] However, the reset signal causes the terminal devices of all the subscribers to be transferred to simultaneously send location registration request signals to the new management network element of the transfer destination. Therefore, even if the location information of the subscriber profile of the new management network element of the transfer destination is not in an unmatched state, the mobility management device always sends a location registration request signal to the new management network element of the transfer destination when it receives a reset signal. Therefore, burst traffic is generated from the mobility management device to the new network element, and there is a risk of network congestion between them.

[0005] Meanwhile, a technique for reducing the number of location registration request signals is disclosed in Patent Document 1. In the technique described in Patent Document 1, when a mobility management element transmits a location registration request signal to a management network element based on a reset signal from an integrated data management device, the number of location registration request signals transmitted from the mobility management element is reduced. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2013-168749 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] However, although the technique described in Patent Document 1 reduces the number of transmitted location registration request signals, terminal devices that are not in an unmatched state also transmit location registration request signals to the management network element.

[0008] An object of the present invention is to reduce the processing load of a new management network element when a subscriber profile is transferred from an old management network element to a new management network element. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, one aspect of the present disclosure is a method executed on an information processing device, the method including: temporarily retaining a location registration request signal received from a terminal device during a transfer from a first profile management device to a second profile management device; and, after the transfer is completed, transmitting the temporarily retained location registration request signal to a user data management device, wherein the user data management device has set the second profile management device as a destination of the location registration request signal.

[0010] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, another aspect of the present disclosure is a system including an information processing device, wherein the information processing device is configured to temporarily hold a location registration request signal received from a terminal device during a transfer from a first profile management device to a second profile management device, and after the transfer is completed, transmit the temporarily held location registration request signal to a user data management device, wherein the user data management device has set the second profile management device as a destination of the location registration request signal. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating an overview of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 2] 1 illustrates a process flow for transferring a subscriber profile from an integrated data manager to another integrated data manager in a communication system according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Diagram 3] 1 illustrates an exemplary data structure of a database of subscriber profiles stored in a storage unit of an integrated data management device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] 1 illustrates a process flow in a mobility management device according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0012] [Description of the embodiments of the present disclosure] First, the contents of the embodiment of the present disclosure will be listed and described. One embodiment of the present disclosure has the following configuration.

[0013] [Configuration 1] A characteristic configuration of a method for achieving the above object is a method executed by an information processing device (112), the method including: temporarily storing a location registration request signal received from a terminal device during a transfer from a first profile management device (116a) to a second profile management device (116b) (S212, S406); and, after the transfer is completed, transmitting the temporarily stored location registration request signal to a user data management device (114) (S234, S410), the user data management device setting the second profile management device as a destination of the location registration request signal.

[0014] [Configuration 2] Another characteristic configuration of the method disclosed herein is that, in response to an instruction from the first profile management device to suspend transmission of the location registration request signal, the information processing device temporarily holds the location registration request signal (S210, S402).

[0015] [Configuration 3] Another characteristic configuration of the method disclosed herein is that, in response to an instruction from the first profile management device to cancel the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal, the information processing device transmits the temporarily held location registration request signal to the user data management device (S234, S410).

[0016] [Configuration 4] Another characteristic configuration of the method disclosed herein is that, upon receiving the transmission hold instruction, the information processing device does not transmit the location registration request signal received from the terminal device to the user data management device until it receives an instruction to cancel the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal from the first profile management device (S406, S408).

[0017] [Configuration 5] Another characteristic configuration of the method disclosed herein is that the location registration request signal received from the terminal device includes a subscriber identification number assigned to the terminal device, and before the transfer, the first profile management device stores a subscriber profile associated with the subscriber identification number, and after completion of the transfer, the second profile management device stores a subscriber profile associated with the subscriber identification number.

[0018] [Configuration 6] A characteristic configuration of a system for achieving the above-mentioned object is a system including an information processing device, the information processing device being configured to temporarily hold a location registration request signal received from a terminal device during transfer from a first profile management device (116a) to a second profile management device (116b) (S212, S406), and to transmit, after the transfer is completed, the temporarily held location registration request signal to a user data management device (114) (S234, S410), wherein the user data management device has set the second profile management device as a destination of the location registration request signal.

[0019] [Configuration 7] Another characteristic configuration of the system according to the present disclosure is that the system further includes the user data management device, and the user data management device is configured to transmit the temporarily stored location registration request signal acquired from the information processing device to a second profile management device (S234).

[0020] [Configuration 8] Another characteristic configuration of the system disclosed herein is that the system further comprises the second profile management device, and the location registration request signal received from the terminal device includes a subscriber identification number assigned to the terminal device, and the second profile management device is configured to determine that the terminal device has moved when an identifier of the information processing device corresponding to the subscriber identification number of the terminal device read from a subscriber profile contained in the second profile management device is different from an identifier of the information processing device corresponding to the subscriber identification number of the location registration request signal received from the terminal device, and to update the subscriber profile with the identifier of the information processing device corresponding to the subscriber identification number of the location registration request signal received from the terminal device.

[0021] [Details of the embodiment of the present disclosure] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the following description is merely an example, and is not intended to limit the technical scope of the present invention to the following embodiment. In the drawings, identical or similar elements are given identical or similar reference symbols, and duplicate descriptions of identical or similar elements may be omitted in the description of each embodiment. In addition, the features shown in each embodiment can be applied to other embodiments as long as they are not mutually inconsistent. However, the embodiment of the present disclosure is not necessarily limited to such an aspect. It will be clear to those skilled in the art that the embodiment of the present disclosure can take various aspects included in the scope defined in the claims.

[0022] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an overview of a communication system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Each information processing device shown in the communication system 100 is a network element that implements main functions provided by the communication system 100, such as a mobility management function, a user data management function, and a subscriber profile management function. In FIG. 1, the network elements are shown as being implemented by devices, but these functions may be implemented as functional entities. In addition to the network elements shown in the figure, other network elements may be used to implement some or all of the main functions of the communication system 100. In addition to the network elements shown in the figure, other network elements may be included.

[0023] The communication system 100 includes a plurality of integrated data management devices 116 (#UDR1 to #UDR n 1 indicates an example of an identifier assigned to each device. Under the integrated data management device 116 (for example, #UDR1), there are a number of user data management devices 114 (#UDM 11 ~#UDM 1n ) are communicatively connected, and further, a user data management device 114 (UDM 11 ~#UDM nn Under the control of the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ~#AMF 4n ) are hierarchically connected so as to be able to communicate with each other. A plurality of user data management devices 114 are connected under one integrated data management device 116. The plurality of user data management devices 114 and the plurality of mobility management devices 112 under the same are mesh-connected, and the plurality of user data management devices and the plurality of mobility management devices are provided with routes for direct connection therebetween. A plurality of base stations 104 are connected under each mobility management device 112 so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0024] A terminal device (UE: User Equipment) 102 can communicate with a core network composed of a mobility management device 112, a user data management device 114, an integrated data management device 116, etc. via a base station 104.

[0025] The integrated data management device 116 is the integrated data management device 116a (#UDR a ) and the integrated data management device 116b (#UDR b ) (not shown). The "a" in the integrated data management device 116 indicates before the transfer and the "b" indicates after the transfer, and when there is no need to distinguish between before and after the transfer, the "a" and "b" may be omitted.

[0026] In the example of FIG. 1, the mobility management device 112#AMF 11 The terminal device 102 is assumed to be located under the control of the integrated data management device 116 (UDR) before the transfer. a ) subscriber profile to use the network services of mobile carriers.

[0027] Also, in the example of FIG. 1, the terminal device 102 subsequently communicates with the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ) from a different mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 During this movement, if the terminal device 102 is transferred from the integrated data management device 116a to another integrated data management device 116b, the location registration request signal from the terminal device 102 during the transfer is transmitted to the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 After the transfer, the terminal device 102 is held in the integrated data management device 116 (UDR b ) subscriber profile to use the network services of mobile carriers.

[0028] In the following embodiments, the communication system 100 is described as complying with the 3GPP 5G (5th Generation) standard, but the embodiments are not necessarily limited to a specific standard and may comply with other communication standards such as 4th Generation (4G) and 6th Generation (6G).

[0029] (Terminal device 102) The terminal device 102 is realized as a mobile terminal such as a smartphone, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a tablet computer, a laptop computer (a so-called notebook computer), or the like.

[0030] The terminal device 102 has hardware resources such as a control unit, a storage unit, a transmission / reception unit, an antenna, and a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module). The control unit, the storage unit, the transmission / reception unit, and the SIM are connected via a bus. The control unit is a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), etc. Specific examples of the storage unit are a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a hard disk, a flash memory, an optical disk, etc. The control unit of the terminal device 102 is a functional unit that controls the operation and functions of the entire terminal device 102. The control unit realizes various processes in the terminal device 102 by reading and executing various programs stored in the storage unit as necessary. The transmission / reception unit is a functional unit for wirelessly communicating with a base station device in an access network via an antenna.

[0031] The SIM installed in the terminal device 102 stores a contract profile of a user who has a contract with a mobile communication carrier. The SIM contract profile stores subscriber information of the user, and includes individual identifier information such as a subscriber identification number (IMSI: International Mobile Subscriber Identity) assigned to the line contract of the terminal device, a telephone number of the subscriber user (MSISDN: Mobile Subscriber International Subscriber Directory Number), and a SIM card number (ICCID: Integrated Circuit Card Identifier). The terminal device 102 can transmit a location registration request signal to the integrated data management device 116 and use various network services provided by the mobile communication carrier.

[0032] (Integrated Data Management Device 116) The unified data management device 116 includes a UDR (Unified Data Repository). The unified data management device 116 stores in a database a collection of subscriber profiles of all subscribers who have service contracts with mobile communication carriers, which are organized in the UDR so that they can be searched or stored. The unified data management device 116 manages the subscriber profiles.

[0033] The integrated data management device 116 has hardware resources such as a control unit, a storage unit, and a transmission / reception unit. The control unit is a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), etc. Specific examples of the storage unit are a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), a hard disk, a flash memory, an optical disk, etc. The control unit of the terminal device 102 is a functional unit that controls the operation and function of the entire terminal device 102. The control unit, the storage unit, and the transmission / reception unit are connected via a bus. The control unit of the integrated data management device 116 is a functional unit that controls the operation and function of the entire integrated data management device 116. The control unit realizes various processes in the integrated data management device 116 by reading and executing various programs stored in the storage unit as necessary. The transmission / reception unit is a functional unit for the integrated data management device 116 to communicate with the user data management device 114, etc. The storage unit stores a subscriber profile database 300, which is a database of subscriber profiles of subscribers set among all subscribers of the mobile communication carrier. The subscriber profile database 300 of the integrated data management device 116 will be described in detail below with reference to FIG.

[0034] When the sale of a product or service is terminated, the integrated data management device 116 transfers the subscriber profile from the old device to the new device. According to the present disclosure, before the transfer, the transmission of a location registration request signal from the terminal device 102 to the integrated data management device 116 is suspended, and after the transfer is completed, the suspension of the transmission of the location registration request signal is released. The terminal device 102 can use the network service without being aware of the transfer between the integrated data management devices 116.

[0035] Furthermore, the integrated data management device 116 presets the subscriber identification numbers that it accommodates. For example, as shown in the figure, the integrated data management device 116 (#UDR1) stores a database of subscriber profiles of subscriber identification numbers *****a to *aaaa, and the integrated data management device 116 (#UDR2) stores a database of subscriber profiles of subscriber identification numbers *****n to *nnnn.

[0036] Hereinafter, the mobility management device 112 and the user data management device 114 have the same hardware configuration as the integrated data management device 116, and therefore a duplicated description of the hardware configuration will be omitted.

[0037] (Mobility management device 112) The mobility management device 112 is a network element that provides the function of AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function). The mobility management device 112 manages the location registration of the terminal device 102, calling, handover between base stations, and the like.

[0038] The mobility management device 112 associates the identifier of the user data management device 114, which is the destination of the location registration request signal, with the subscriber identification number read from the terminal device 102 and sets it in advance. 11 ~#AMF 4n For example, for the subscriber identification numbers "****a" to "*aaaa", the identifier (#UDM) of the user data management device 114 under the integrated data management device 116 (#UDR1) which sets these subscriber identification numbers is 11 ~#UDM 1n ) is set in advance. Also, the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ~#AMF 4n For example, for the subscriber identification numbers "****n" to "*nnnn", the integrated data management device 116 (#UDR n ) Identifier of the user data management device 114 under n1 From #UDM nnDuring the transfer of the subscriber profile, a location registration request signal from the terminal device 102 is temporarily held in the mobility management device 112 and is not transmitted to the user data management device 114.

[0039] (User data management device 114) The user data management device 114 is a network element that provides a UDM (User Data Management) function. The user data management device 114 stores and manages subscriber data, session information, location information of the terminal device 102, and authentication information for AKA (Authentication and Key Agreement) authentication of the terminal device 102. AKA authentication refers to a method of authentication / encryption key delivery exchanged between the SIM of the terminal device 102 and the mobile communication carrier network. The user data management device 114 is connected to the integrated data management device 116.

[0040] The user data management device 114 can switch the connection destination of the integrated data management device 116 from the old device (integrated data management device 116a) to the new device (integrated data management device 116b) when the product / service sales end (End of Sale: EOS), the maintenance / support end (End of Life: EOL), etc. The user data management device 114 sets the identifier of the integrated data management device 116, which is the transmission destination of the location registration request signal.

[0041] In the present disclosure, a location registration request signal from the terminal device 102 is transmitted to the integrated data management device 116 as follows.

[0042] When there is no handover, the terminal device 102 to which the subscriber identification number (e.g., "****a") is assigned sends a message to the mobility management device 112 (e.g., #AMF 11 A location registration request signal is transmitted to the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ) is associated with this subscriber identification number and is preset in the user data management device 114 (UDM 11 From #UDM 1n), a location registration request signal is sent to the user data management device 114 selected in a round robin fashion. The location registration request signal is then sent from the selected user data management device 114 to the integrated data management device 116 (#UDR1) that contains the subscriber identification number "****a". After that, the user data management device 114 transfers the location registration request signal to the integrated data management device 116a (#UDR a ) to transmit a location registration request signal.

[0043] During the transfer, when a location registration request signal is transmitted from the terminal device 102 to which the subscriber identification number "****a" is assigned, the location registration request signal is transmitted to the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 When the transfer is completed, the buffered location registration request signal is temporarily stored in the buffer of the storage unit of the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ), the user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 From #UDM 1n ) to the selected user data management device 114. After the transfer, the user data management device 114 transfers the data to the integrated data management device 116b (#UDR b ) to transmit a location registration request signal.

[0044] During the transfer, the terminal device 102 moves, and the destination of the location registration request signal changes to the first mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ) to the second mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 The first location registration request signal before the movement may be sent from the first mobility management device (AMF 11 ), the second location registration request signal after the movement is sent to the second mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 When the handover is completed, the buffered first location registration request signal is transmitted from the first mobility management device 112 to the user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 From #UDM 1n), the location registration request signal is sent to the selected user data management device 114. When the handover is completed, the buffered second location registration request signal is sent to the second mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 ), a user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 From #UDM 1n ), the selected user data management device 114 transmits the first and second location registration request signals to the integrated data management device 116b (#UDR b ) to

[0045] <Subscriber profile transfer> FIG. 2 shows a flow of a process 200 for creating and transferring a subscriber profile in a communication system 100 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The process of switching the integrated data management device 116 (#UDR1) shown in FIG. 1 to a new integrated data management device 116 will be described. In FIG. 2, the first integrated data management device 116a is the child integrated data management device before the transfer, and the second integrated data management device 116b is the integrated data management device after the transfer. The first integrated data management device 116a is the user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 ~UDM 1n ), while the second integrated data manager 116b has a communication route established between the user data manager 114 (UDM 11 ~UDM 1n ) communication route has not been established.

[0046] It is assumed that customer information is stored in the storage unit of the customer management device 160 prior to processing. The customer management device 160 has various information required to manage the network services provided by the mobile communication carrier to users. The customer information stores various information related to user contracts for each subscriber identification number of all subscribers who subscribe to the network services provided by the mobile communication carrier.

[0047] In step S202, the customer management device 160 reads data related to a service order from a user and transmits it to the integrated data management device 116a. The service order data includes the subscriber identification number of the user who has subscribed to the network service and user contract information.

[0048] Next, in step S204, the integrated data management device 116a creates a subscriber profile database 300 shown in Fig. 3 based on the received service order data (subscriber identification number, user contract information) and stores it in the storage unit. After storing the subscriber profile database 300, the integrated data management device 116 transmits a notification to the customer management device 160 that the contract procedure based on the service order data has been completed. The subscriber profile database 300 manages various information related to user contracts for each set subscriber identification number (in this example, "****a" to "*aaaa") among all subscribers who subscribe to network services provided by the mobile communication carrier.

[0049] FIG. 3 illustrates a data structure of a subscriber profile database 300 stored in a storage unit of the integrated data management device 116 (#UDR1) according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The integrated data management device 116 (#UDR1) manages various information corresponding to the subscriber identification numbers ("****a" to "*aaaa" in this example) of subscribers set in advance among all subscribers who have contracts with a mobile communication carrier. The subscriber profile database 300 may include items of a set subscriber identification number, service contents (data communication, emergency call origination, voice, SMS contract existence, etc.) to which the subscriber corresponding to this subscriber identification number has contracted, and a telephone number. The subscriber profile database 300 may further include items of location information of the terminal device 102, detailed information of the contract plan, authentication information used for user authentication, and the like. The subscriber identification number is an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), which is generally composed of 15 digits, but is described as "****a" or the like for convenience of explanation in this disclosure. The identifier of the mobility management device 112 in the area where the terminal device 102 is located is set as the location information in the subscriber profile database 300 that is created upon a service order.

[0050] Returning to FIG. 2, the integrated data management device 116a creates the subscriber profile database 300 shown in FIG. 3, and then, upon receiving a transfer instruction, carries out a series of transfer processes described below.

[0051] First, in step S206, a communication route is established between the first integrated data management device 116a and the second integrated data management device 116b.

[0052] Next, in step S208, the first integrated data management device 116a notifies the user data management device 114 (for example, #UDM 11) that suspends the transmission of a location registration request signal addressed to the first integrated data management device 116a. The location registration request signal suspension instruction includes all the subscriber identification numbers (****a to *aaaa) that are set in the first integrated data management device 116a. Each user data management device 114 transmits a transmission suspension instruction to all the mobility management devices 112 (#AMF) that constitute the communication system 100. 11 ~#AMF 4n ), the first integrated data management device 116a can connect to one user data management device 114 (UDM 11 ) to transmit a location registration request signal hold instruction to the subordinate user data management devices 114 (#UDM 12 ~#UDM 1n ) does not need to transmit a location registration request signal hold instruction.

[0053] Next, in step S210, one user data management device 114 (UDM 11 When the location registration request signal transmission prohibition instruction is received, all the mobility management devices 112 (#AMF 11 ~#AMF 4n ) to each of the first integrated data control device 116a. The location registration request signal hold instruction includes all the subscriber identification numbers (****a to *aaaa) set in the first integrated data control device 116a.

[0054] Next, when the location registration request signal hold instruction is received, in step S212, the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ~#AMF 4n ) each sets hold control for the location registration request signal for the subscriber identification number included in the location registration request signal hold instruction, and when the hold control setting is completed, sends an acknowledgment (ACK) to the user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 The details of the hold control of the location registration request signal will be described later with reference to FIG.

[0055] Next, in step S214, the user data management device 114 (UDM 11 When the mobility management device 112 receives an acknowledgment (ACK) from all the mobility management devices 112, the mobility management device 112 transmits an acknowledgment (ACK) to the first integrated data management device 116a before the handover.

[0056] Next, in step S216, the first integrated data management device 116a transmits the user data management device 114 (UDM 11 ), the second integrated data management device 116b transmits an instruction to launch an application for processing the transfer of the subscriber profile.

[0057] Next, in step S218, when the second integrated data control device 116b receives the instruction to launch the application, it refers to the storage unit, reads out the program for transfer, and executes it.

[0058] In step S220, when the program for the transfer is executed, the second integrated data management device 116b transfers all the user data management devices 114 (UDM) under the control of the first integrated data management device 116a, which is the transfer source. 11 ~#UDM 1n When the communication route is established, each user data management device 114 (UDM 11 ~#UDM 1n ) transmits a notification to the first integrated data control device 116a that the communication route has been established.

[0059] In step S222, the first integrated data management device 116a starts a subscriber profile transfer process with the second integrated data management device 116b. The transfer process may include a process of reading all subscriber profiles corresponding to the set subscriber identification number (****a to *aaaa) from the first integrated data management device 116a, verifying the read subscriber profiles to confirm that they are legitimate subscribers, and then transferring the subscriber profiles to the second integrated data management device 116b.

[0060] Next, when the transfer of the subscriber profile is completed, in step S224, the first integrated data management device 116a transfers the subscriber profile to all the user data management devices 114 (UDM 11 From #UDM 1n ) to switch the route from the first integrated data control device 116a to the second integrated data control device 116b.

[0061] Next, in step S226, each user data management device 114 (UDM n1 From #UDM 1n ) sets the destination of the location registration request signal from the first integrated data management device 116a to the second integrated data management device 116b after the transfer based on the route switching instruction, and when the route switching setting is completed, transmits an affirmative response to the first integrated data management device 116a.

[0062] Next, in step S228, when the first integrated data management device 116a receives an acknowledgment for the route switching, it notifies the first user data management device 114 (#UDM) that transmitted the location registration request signal hold instruction in step S208. 11 The location registration hold cancellation instruction includes the subscriber identification number (****a to *aaaa) set in the first integrated data control device 116a.

[0063] Next, in step S230, one user data management device 114 (UDM 11 When the location registration hold release instruction is received, the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 From #AMF 4n ) to cancel the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal. The instruction to cancel the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal includes all of the subscriber identification numbers (****a to *aaaa) set in the first integrated data management device 116a.

[0064] Next, in step S232, the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 From #AMF4n ) receives an instruction to cancel the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal. Upon receiving the instruction to cancel the hold on transmission, the mobility management device 112 cancels the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal. Details of the hold on transmission cancel control of the location registration request signal will be described later with reference to FIG.

[0065] Next, in step S234, when the mobility management device 112 receives a location registration request signal from the terminal device 102, the mobility management device 112 registers the user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 From #UDM 1n ) to the user data management device 114 selected in a round robin fashion. Furthermore, in response to receiving a transmission hold release instruction, each mobility management device 112 can transmit to the user data management device 114 the location registration request signal that it has received and held from the start of hold control of the location registration request signal in step S212 until the hold is released in step S232. Thereafter, the user data management device 114 transmits the location registration request signal to the second integrated data management device 116b (e.g., #UDR b ) to the terminal device 102. This location registration request signal includes a subscriber identification number (for example, *****a) assigned to the terminal device 102.

[0066] Next, during the transfer, the terminal device 102 moves, and the destination of the location registration request signal changes to the first mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ) to the second mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 ) will be described.

[0067] During the transfer, in step S212, when the mobility management device 112 receives a location registration request signal hold instruction, the first location registration request signal before the movement is transmitted to the first mobility management device (#AMF 11 ), the second location registration request signal after the movement is sent to the second mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 ), respectively.

[0068] When the handover is completed, in step S234, the buffered first location registration request signal is transmitted from the first mobility management device 112 to the user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 From #UDM 1n ), the terminal device 102 transmits a location registration request signal to the selected first user data management device 114. This first location registration request signal includes the subscriber identification number "****a" of the terminal device 102 and the identifier of the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 ).

[0069] In step S234, the buffered second location registration request signal is transmitted to the second mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 ), a user data management device 114 (#UDM 11 From #UDM 1n ), the terminal device 102 transmits a location registration request signal to the selected second user data management device 114. This second location registration request signal includes the subscriber identification number "****a" of the terminal device 102 and the identifier of the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 31 ).

[0070] Then, the first user data management device 114 receives the identifier (#AMF 11 The second user data management device 114 receives the first location registration request signal including the identifier (#AMF) of the second mobility management device 112. 31 ) to the integrated data management device 116b (#UDR b ) respectively.

[0071] The integrated data management device 116b reads out the subscriber profile database 300. When the location information corresponding to the read out subscriber identification number "****a" differs from the location information of the terminal device 102 included in the location registration request signal of the subscriber identification number "****a", the integrated data management device 116b determines that the terminal device 102 to which the subscriber identification number "****a" is assigned has moved, and updates the location information with the identifier of the second mobility management device 112. In other words, the integrated data management device 116b receives the first location registration request signal and the second location registration request signal, and updates the location information (#AMF) in the subscriber profile database 300. 11 ), which is different from the location information (#AMF 31 ) to update the database 300 of subscriber profiles.

[0072] Conventionally, at the time of transfer, a reset signal was transmitted from the integrated data management device to all mobility management devices under its control. When the mobility management device 112 that received the reset signal received a location registration request signal, it instructed all the terminal devices 102 to transmit a location registration request signal, and all the terminal devices 102 transmitted a location registration request signal to the integrated data management device in accordance with the transmission instruction. According to the present disclosure, even after the transfer, the terminal devices do not transmit location registration request signals all at once to the second integrated data management device 116b after the transfer. The terminal device 102 transmits a location registration request signal at any timing, such as at a predetermined interval, when the terminal device 102 is turned on or when the terminal device 102 moves to a new area. According to the present disclosure, the integrated data management device 116 does not transmit a reset signal to the mobility management device 112 in the first place. The transmission of the location registration request signal at the time of transfer is suspended, and after the transfer is completed, the suspended location registration request signal is transmitted to the second integrated data management device 116b after the transfer. This can reduce the load of processing the location registration request signal in second integrated data management device 116b after the transfer.

[0073] <Processing in the mobility management device> 4 shows details of processing by the mobility management device 112 of FIG. 2 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. The terminal device 102 transmits a location registration request signal at any timing, such as when the terminal device 102 is powered on, when the terminal device 102 moves to a new area, or at predetermined intervals. Prior to processing, the location registration request signal is transmitted to the mobility management device 112 via the base station 104 (FIG. 1).

[0074] In step S402, each mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 From #AMF 4n ) judges whether or not a transmission hold control for the location registration request signal has been received from the user data management device 114. If the mobility management device 112 has not received a hold control for the location registration request signal, the process proceeds to step S404.

[0075] In step S404, each mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 From #AMF 4n ) is the user data management device 114 (e.g., #UDM 11 ) to the mobility management device 112. This location registration request signal from the mobility management device 112 includes the subscriber identification number (for example, "****a") read from the SIM of the terminal device 102.

[0076] On the other hand, in step S402, when each mobility management device 112 receives a hold control of the location registration request signal from the user data management device 114 (step S210 in FIG. 2), the process proceeds to step S406 (step S212 in FIG. 2).

[0077] In step S406, each mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 From #AMF 4n ) stores in a storage unit the location registration request signal received from the terminal device 102 in response to a location registration request signal hold instruction. This location registration request signal includes a subscriber identification number (for example, *****a).

[0078] Next, in step S408, each mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 From #AMF 4n ) determines whether or not to receive a hold release instruction for the location registration request signal. If a hold release instruction has not been received, the process returns to step S406. That is, when the mobility management device 112 receives a location registration request signal from the terminal device 102, the mobility management device 112 temporarily stores the signal in the storage unit without transmitting the signal to the user data management device 114. Each mobility management device 112 additionally writes the location registration request signal from the terminal device 102 in the storage unit until it receives a hold release notification for the location registration request signal.

[0079] On the other hand, when the mobility management device 112 receives the hold release instruction, the process proceeds to step S410.

[0080] In step S410 (step S230 in FIG. 2), each mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 From #AMF 4n ) reads out the location registration request signal stored in the storage unit, and transmits the location registration request signal to the user data management device 114 (e.g., #UDM 1n As a result, each mobility management device 112 can transmit the location registration request signal received from the start of the hold control of the location registration request signal until the hold is released to the transferred integrated data management device 116b via the user data management device 114.

[0081] In addition, when the terminal device 102 does not move during the transfer of the subscriber profile, that is, when the terminal device 102 is under the control of the same mobility management device 112 in steps S406 (S212) and S410 (S234) (for example, #AMF 11 ), the mobility management device 112 reads out the location registration request signal temporarily stored in the storage unit, and transmits the location registration request signal to the user data management device 114 (e.g., #UDM 1n ) to transmit a location registration request signal.

[0082] On the other hand, when the terminal device 102 moves during the transfer of the subscriber profile, that is, when the terminal device 102 is under the control of different mobility management devices 112 in step S406 (S212) and step S410 (S234), the first mobility management device stores the location registration request signal before the movement, and the second mobility management device stores the location registration request signal after the movement in the storage unit. The first mobility management device 112 reads out the location registration request signal before the movement from the storage unit, and the second mobility management device 112 reads out the location registration request signal after the movement from the storage unit, and transmits the location registration request signal to the user data management device 114 (e.g., #UDM 1n ) to each of them.

[0083] For example, in step S406, the mobility management device 112 (#AMF 11 When the terminal device 102 with the subscriber identification number ****a located in the area of ​​the AMF 100 moves during the transfer, the mobility management device 112 after the move (#AMF 31 ) reads out the location registration request signal stored in the storage unit, and transmits the location registration request signal to the user data management device 114 (e.g., #UDM 1n ) to transmit a location registration request signal.

[0084] According to the present disclosure, a reset signal is not transmitted from the integrated data management device to the mobility management device 112 during the transfer, and therefore location registration request signals are not transmitted from the terminal device 102 to the child integrated data management device all at once based on the reset signal. The location registration request signal is transmitted from the terminal device 102 to the integrated data management device 116 via the mobility management device 112 and the user data management device 114 at any timing, such as when there is an update to the location information. For this reason, no burst traffic of location registration request signals is generated from the mobility management device 112 to the integrated data management device 116b.

[0085] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the above-mentioned embodiment of the invention is intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention and does not limit the present invention. The present invention may be modified or improved without departing from the spirit thereof, and the present invention naturally includes equivalents thereof. Furthermore, within the scope of solving at least a part of the above-mentioned problems or achieving at least a part of the effects, any combination of the embodiments and modifications is possible, and any combination or omission of each component described in the claims and specification is possible. [Explanation of symbols]

[0086] 100…Communication systems 102...Terminal device 104...Base station 112...Mobility management device 114...User data management device 116...Integrated data management device 160…Customer management device 300…Subscriber profile database

Claims

1. A method executed on an information processing device, the method comprising: temporarily holding a location registration request signal received from the terminal device during a transfer from the first profile management device to the second profile management device; After the handover is completed, transmitting the temporarily stored location registration request signal to a user data management device, the user data management device setting the second profile management device as a destination of the location registration request signal; and A method comprising:

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the location registration request signal is temporarily held by the information processing device in response to an instruction to suspend transmission of the location registration request signal from the first profile management device.

3. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the temporarily held location registration request signal is transmitted to the user data management device by the information processing device in response to an instruction from the first profile management device to release the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal.

4. The method according to claim 2, wherein, when the information processing device receives the transmission hold instruction, the information processing device does not transmit the location registration request signal received from the terminal device to the user data management device until the information processing device receives an instruction to cancel the hold on transmission of the location registration request signal from the first profile management device.

5. the location registration request signal received from the terminal device includes a subscriber identification number assigned to the terminal device, Prior to the transfer, the first profile management device contains a subscriber profile associated with the subscriber identification number; 5. A method according to claim 1, wherein after completion of the transfer, the second profile management device contains a subscriber profile associated with the subscriber identification number.

6. A system including an information processing device, The information processing device includes: temporarily holding a location registration request signal received from the terminal device during a transfer from the first profile management device to the second profile management device; After the handover is completed, transmitting the temporarily stored location registration request signal to a user data management device, the user data management device setting the second profile management device as a destination of the location registration request signal; and A system configured to run

7. The system further comprises the user data management device, the user data management device transmits the temporarily stored location registration request signal acquired from the information processing device to a second profile management device; The system of claim 6 configured to execute:

8. The system further comprises the second profile management device; the location registration request signal received from the terminal device includes a subscriber identification number assigned to the terminal device, the second profile management device determines that the terminal device has moved when an identifier of the information processing device corresponding to the subscriber identification number of the terminal device read from the subscriber profile stored therein is different from an identifier of the information processing device corresponding to the subscriber identification number of the location registration request signal received from the terminal device, and updates the subscriber profile with the identifier of the information processing device corresponding to the subscriber identification number of the location registration request signal received from the terminal device; The system of claim 7 configured to execute:

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