Communication method and apparatus

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of communications, and provides a communication method and apparatus, used for enabling a terminal to be able to simultaneously establish 3GPP access types of connections with multiple networks, thereby meeting more flexible communication requirements of the terminal. The method comprises: when a terminal does not establish multiple connections, a data management network element acquires indication information, and sends the indication information to the terminal, wherein the indication information is used for indicating that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, the multiple connections refer to simultaneously establishing 3GPP access types of connections, and the 3GPP access types of connections belong to the same or different networks.

Description

Communication method and device

[0001] This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office on January 5, 2024, with application number 202410026771.1 and application name “Communication Method and Device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated by reference into this application. Technical Field

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

[0003] In the network selection process for user equipment (UE) currently defined by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), after the UE selects a network and successfully registers, the UE is in a network state. If the UE triggers network reselection, the UE will select a new network to replace the current network. This approach may not meet the UE's more flexible communication needs in the future. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and apparatus to enable a terminal to simultaneously establish 3GPP access type connections with multiple networks, thereby meeting more flexible communication needs of the terminal.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, this application adopts the following technical solutions:

[0006] In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, applied to a data management network element, comprising: when a terminal has not established multiple connections, the data management network element obtains instruction information and sends the instruction information to the terminal. The instruction information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, where multiple connections refer to establishing multiple Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0007] Based on the method of the first aspect, it can be seen that since the network side, that is, the data management network element, can provide the indication information of multiple connections, the terminal can trigger the establishment of multiple 3GPP access type connections at the same time according to the indication information, that is, access and register to multiple networks at the same time to meet the terminal's more flexible communication needs.

[0008] It is understood that the triggering of the establishment of multiple connections by the terminal when multiple connections have not been established is an example and is not intended to be limiting. The terminal may establish multiple connections without considering whether multiple connections have been established. For example, if multiple connections have already been established, the terminal may continue to establish multiple connections. For example, if the established multiple connections are two 3GPP access type connections, the terminal may continue to establish multiple connections, such as increasing the number to three 3GPP access type connections. Alternatively, if multiple connections have already been established, the terminal may trigger the UE to change the connected network according to the solution of the present invention.

[0009] In one possible design, the indication information includes a network list, where the multiple networks indicated in the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections. In other words, the network side can indicate to the terminal the networks that can be used to establish multiple connections through the network list, ensuring that the network selected by the terminal to access is a network that supports multiple connections, thereby avoiding redundancy caused by the network selected by the terminal not supporting multiple connections. Of course, if the terminal is pre-configured with a network list locally, the network side does not need to send the network list to the terminal, thereby reducing communication overhead.

[0010] Optionally, the method described in the first aspect may further include: the data management network element obtains indication information from the application function.

[0011] Optionally, before the data management network element obtains indication information from the application function, the method described in the first aspect may also include: the data management network element sends slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal session to the application function network element; the multiple networks indicated in the network list are networks that support slice information and / or data network names to ensure that the networks establishing multiple connections with the terminal are all networks that can meet the business needs of the terminal.

[0012] Optionally, the multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include the network currently accessed by the terminal, so as to avoid the terminal continuing to select the network currently accessed by the terminal, which may cause a failure in establishing multiple connections.

[0013] In one possible design scheme, the network list also indicates the wireless access technology types supported by multiple networks for terminals to sign up. These wireless access technology types may be different. For example, the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#2 for terminals to sign up is TN, the wireless access technology types supported by PLMN#3 for terminals to sign up are TN and NTN, and the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#4 for terminals to sign up is NTN. For another example, the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#2 for terminals to sign up is 5G, the wireless access technology types supported by PLMN#3 for terminals to sign up are 5G and 6G, and the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#4 for terminals to sign up is 6G, etc., to avoid the failure of multiple connection establishment due to unsupported wireless access technology types.

[0014] In one possible design, the data management network element obtains the indication information, including: the data management network element receiving capability information of the terminal and obtaining the indication information based on the capability information of the terminal. The capability information of the terminal is used to indicate that the terminal supports multiple connections, thereby avoiding wasting communication resources by instructing the terminal to establish multiple connections if the terminal does not support multiple connections.

[0015] Optionally, the data management network element receives the capability information of the terminal, including: during the terminal registration process, the data management network element receives a context registration request message from the access and mobility management network element, wherein the context registration request message includes the capability information of the terminal, that is, reusing the existing registration process to realize the perception of the multi-connection capability of the terminal, or, it can also be realized through a newly defined process, decoupled from the existing process, and the cell transmission can be more flexible.

[0016] In one possible design, the data management network element obtains the indication information, including: the data management network element obtains slice information requested by the terminal, and obtains the indication information based on whether the network slice corresponds to a multi-connection service. The slice information requested by the terminal is used to indicate the network slice requested by the terminal, that is, the network slice requested by the terminal requires the network to provide multiple connections to ensure the service needs of the terminal.

[0017] Optionally, the data management network element obtains the slice information requested by the terminal, including: during the terminal registration process, the data management network element receives a context registration request message from the access and mobility management network element. The context registration request message includes the slice information requested by the terminal. That is, the existing registration process is reused to realize the perception of the terminal's multi-connection requirements. Alternatively, it can be realized through a newly defined process, which is decoupled from the existing process and can make the information element transmission more flexible.

[0018] In one possible design, the data management network element obtains the indication information, including: the data management network element obtains the terminal's subscription data, and obtains the indication information based on the terminal's subscription data. The terminal's subscription data indicates that the terminal supports multiple connections, i.e., indicates that the terminal is a user who has subscribed to multiple connections, thereby avoiding communication redundancy caused by sending multi-connection related information to non-subscribed users.

[0019] Optionally, the data management network element obtains the terminal's subscription data, including: during the terminal registration process, the data management network element receives a subscription data acquisition request message from the access and mobility management network element, and obtains the terminal's subscription data based on the subscription data acquisition request message. The subscription data acquisition request message is used to request data related to the terminal's subscription with the network; that is, the existing registration process is reused to achieve perception of the terminal's subscription data, or it can be achieved through a newly defined process, decoupling from the existing process and allowing for more flexible information element delivery.

[0020] In one possible design, the data management network element obtains the indication information, including: the data management network element receiving service information from the access and mobility management network element, and obtaining the indication information based on unmet service requirements of the terminal. The service information indicates that the service requirements of the terminal are unmet, requiring the network to trigger establishment of multiple connections to provide additional network resources to meet the service requirements of the terminal.

[0021] Optionally, the terminal's business needs are not met, including: the bandwidth provided to the terminal cannot meet the terminal's business needs for bandwidth, and / or the terminal's signal quality cannot meet the terminal's business needs for signal quality, or there may be any other possible situations, which are not limited to this.

[0022] In one possible design scheme, the data management network element obtains indication information, including: the data management network element can obtain indication information based on preset conditions, wherein the preset conditions include at least one of the following: the terminal is currently within the time period in which multiple connections need to be established, or the terminal is located in the area in which the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, that is, the data management network element can decide on its own to trigger the establishment of multiple connections based on the current time and the current location of the terminal, thereby avoiding additional communication overhead caused by interaction with other network elements.

[0023] Optionally, the method described in the first aspect may also include: the data management network element may obtain the location of the terminal from the access and mobility management network element through a subscription service, or the location of the terminal may be obtained through other means, such as the access network device reporting to the data management network element through the access and mobility management network element. The specific selection can be made based on actual needs and there is no specific restriction on this.

[0024] In one possible design, the data management network element obtains the indication information, including: the data management network element receiving request information from the terminal and obtaining the indication information based on the request information. The request information is used to instruct the terminal to request the establishment of multiple connections. That is, the establishment of multiple connections can be triggered by the terminal itself, making the interaction between the terminal and the network side during the process of triggering the establishment of multiple connections simpler and reducing communication overhead.

[0025] Optionally, the data management network element receives request information from the terminal, including: the data management network element receives a contract data management acquisition request message from the access and mobility management network element, wherein the contract data management acquisition request message includes request information, that is, it is implemented by reusing existing signaling, or it can also be implemented through a newly defined process, which is decoupled from the existing process, and the cell transmission can be more flexible.

[0026] In one possible design, the data management network element obtains the indication information, including: the data management network element obtains slice information and / or a data network name corresponding to the terminal's session, and obtains the indication information based on whether the terminal's service requires establishing multiple connections. The slice information and / or data network name corresponds to the terminal's service, which means that multiple connections can be established based on the terminal's service needs, thereby achieving on-demand establishment and avoiding redundancy.

[0027] Optionally, the data management network element obtains the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal session, including: during the terminal session establishment process, the data management network element receives a context registration request message from the session management network element, wherein the context registration request message includes the slice information and / or data network name, that is, it is achieved by reusing existing signaling in the session establishment process, or it can also be achieved through a newly defined process, which is decoupled from the existing process, and the cell transmission can be more flexible.

[0028] Alternatively, the data management network element may also determine that the current network cannot meet the service requirements of the terminal. For example, the current network intelligently provides part of the slice requested by the terminal, or the service requested by the terminal cannot be provided by the current network. For example, the non-public network (NPN) cannot provide Internet protocol (IP) multimedia service (IMS) service. In the scenario where the UE accesses the NPN, an additional PLMN can be selected to obtain IMS service. In this case, the data management network element triggers the establishment of multiple connections to meet the terminal's service requirements for the network.

[0029] A second aspect provides a communication method, applied to an application function network element, comprising: the application function network element receiving a request message and sending a response message based on the request message. The request message is used to request the application function network element to provide a network that can be used to establish multiple connections, where multiple connections refer to establishing multiple Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks; and the response message includes a network list, where the network list indicates multiple networks that can be used to establish multiple connections.

[0030] It can be understood that the application function network element may specifically be a roaming handover application function SOR-AF network element, or any other possible type of AF network element, and there is no limitation on this.

[0031] In a possible design scheme, the method described in the second aspect may also include: the application function network element receives the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the session of the terminal, and determines the network list based on multiple networks that support the slice information and / or data network name.

[0032] Optionally, the multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include a network that the terminal is currently connected to.

[0033] Optionally, the network list further indicates the types of radio access technologies supported by the terminal.

[0034] It can be understood that the technical effects of the method described in the second aspect can also refer to the relevant introduction of the method described in the first aspect above, and will not be repeated here.

[0035] A third aspect provides a communication method, applied to an access and mobility management network element, comprising: the access and mobility management network element sending service information to a data management network element, receiving instruction information from the data management network element based on the service information, and sending the instruction information to a terminal. The service information indicates that a service requirement of the terminal is not met; the instruction information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, where multiple connections refer to establishing multiple Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access-type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access-type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0036] In one possible design, the method of the third aspect may further include: the access and mobility management network element receiving an N2 message from the access network device, the N2 message including service information. The access and mobility management network element determines, based on the service information, that the access network device cannot meet the service requirements of the terminal.

[0037] Optionally, the method described in the third aspect may further include: the access and mobility management network element obtaining service information based on the terminal being located in a low signal area, wherein the service information is specifically used to indicate that the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the signal quality requirements of the terminal's service.

[0038] It can be understood that the technical effects of the method described in the third aspect can also refer to the relevant introduction of the method described in the first aspect above, and will not be repeated here.

[0039] In a fourth aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal, or by a module applied to the terminal (such as a processor, chip, or chip system, etc.), or by a logical node, logic module or software that can implement all or part of the terminal functions. For the convenience of expression, the following introduction is taken as an example of the method being executed by the terminal. The method includes: receiving indication information, and establishing multiple connections according to the indication information. The indication information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, and multiple connections refer to establishing multiple connections of the Third Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access type at the same time, and the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0040] In one possible design, the terminal has established a 3GPP access type connection with a first network, and establishing multiple connections based on the indication information includes: selecting, based on the indication information, a second network from a plurality of networks indicated in a network list, and establishing a 3GPP access type connection with the second network. The plurality of networks indicated in the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections.

[0041] Optionally, the multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include the first network.

[0042] Optionally, the network list further indicates the types of radio access technologies supported by the terminal.

[0043] Optionally, the indication information is also used to indicate a network list.

[0044] In a possible design scheme, the method described in the fourth aspect may further include: sending capability information of the terminal, wherein the capability information of the terminal is used to indicate that the terminal supports multiple connections.

[0045] In one possible design scheme, the method described in the fourth aspect may further include: sending slice information and / or a data network name corresponding to the session of the terminal. The slice information and / or the data network name corresponds to the service of the terminal, and the service of the terminal is a service that requires establishing multiple connections.

[0046] In a possible design scheme, the method described in the fourth aspect may also include: sending request information when the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, wherein the request information is used to indicate that the terminal requests to establish multiple connections.

[0047] In one possible design scheme, the method described in the fourth aspect may also include: in response to the user's operation of turning on multiple connections, determining that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, that is, establishing multiple connections on demand according to user needs to ensure the user's usage experience; or; when the terminal's business needs to be executed, obtaining policy information that matches the terminal's business; when the policy information indicates that multiple connections need to be established, determining that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections so that the multiple connections can match the business needs to ensure the user's usage experience.

[0048] Among them, the policy information can be a URSP rule. The embodiment of the present application is introduced using the URSP rule as an example, but is not limited to the URSP rule. Any policy and / or rule similar to the URSP rule, or capable of implementing the routing function, can be used to implement the solution in the present application.

[0049] It can be understood that the technical effects of the method described in the fourth aspect can also refer to the relevant introduction of the method described in the first aspect above, and will not be repeated here.

[0050] In a fifth aspect, a communication method is provided, which can be executed by a terminal, or by a module applied to the terminal (such as a processor, chip, or chip system, etc.), or by a logical node, logic module, or software that can implement all or part of the terminal functions. For the convenience of expression, the following is an introduction to the method being executed by the terminal. The method includes: when the terminal's service needs to be executed, obtaining policy information that matches the terminal's service; if the policy information indicates that multiple connections need to be established, establishing multiple connections, wherein multiple connections refer to establishing multiple Third Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access type connections at the same time, and the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0051] Based on the method described in the fifth aspect, it can be seen that the terminal can match the policy information and trigger the establishment of multiple connections with the network side when the business matches the policy information that requires establishing multiple connections to ensure that the multiple connections can meet the business needs and ensure the user experience.

[0052] In one possible design, a terminal has established a 3GPP access type connection with a first network, and establishing a multi-connection includes selecting a second network from a plurality of networks indicated by a network list, and establishing a 3GPP access type connection with the second network. The network list is indicated by policy information, and the plurality of networks indicated by the network list are networks that can be used to establish the multi-connection.

[0053] In a possible design scheme, the method described in the fifth aspect may also include: the terminal receives policy information from the network.

[0054] Among them, the policy information can be a URSP rule. Of course, the embodiment of the present application is introduced using the URSP rule as an example, but is not limited to the URSP rule. Any policy and / or rule similar to the URSP rule, or capable of implementing the routing function, can be used to implement the solution in the present application.

[0055] It can be understood that the technical effects of the method described in the fifth aspect can also refer to the relevant introduction of the method described in the first aspect above, and will not be repeated here.

[0056] In a sixth aspect, a communication method is provided, applied to a policy control network element, comprising: when policy information of a terminal needs to be updated, the policy control network element obtains the new policy information of the terminal and sends the new policy information to the terminal. The new policy information is used to indicate the need to establish multiple connections, where multiple connections refer to establishing multiple Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0057] In a possible design, the new policy information further indicates a combination of radio access technology types required to establish multiple connections.

[0058] Among them, the policy information can be a URSP rule. The embodiment of the present application takes the URSP rule as an example, but is not limited to the URSP rule. Any policy and / or rule similar to the URSP rule, or capable of implementing the routing function, can be used to implement the solution in the present application.

[0059] It can be understood that the technical effects of the method described in the sixth aspect can also refer to the relevant introduction of the method described in the first aspect above, and will not be repeated here.

[0060] In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, which includes a module for executing the method described in any one of the first to sixth aspects.

[0061] In one possible design solution, the communication device described in the seventh aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used for the communication device described in the seventh aspect to communicate with other communication devices.

[0062] In one possible design, the communication device described in aspect 7 may further include a memory. The memory may be integrated with the processor or provided separately. The memory may be used to store instructions related to the method of any one of aspects 1 to 6.

[0063] In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device described in the seventh aspect may be a network device, or a chip (system) or other parts or components that can be set in the network device, or a device that includes the network device.

[0064] It can be understood that the technical effects of the device described in the seventh aspect can also refer to the relevant introduction of the method in any of the first to sixth aspects above, and will not be repeated here.

[0065] In an eighth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor coupled to a memory, the processor configured to execute instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the method described in any one of the first to sixth aspects.

[0066] In one possible design solution, the communication device described in the eighth aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used for the communication device described in the eighth aspect to communicate with other communication devices.

[0067] In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device described in aspect 8 may be the network device described in any one of aspects 1 to 6, or a chip (system) or other parts or components that may be set in the network device, or a device that includes the network device.

[0068] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the eighth aspect can refer to the technical effects of the methods described in any one of the first to sixth aspects, and will not be repeated here.

[0069] In a ninth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store instructions, and when the processor executes the instructions, the communication device executes the method described in any one of the first to sixth aspects.

[0070] In one possible design solution, the communication device described in the ninth aspect may further include a transceiver. The transceiver may be a transceiver circuit or an interface circuit. The transceiver may be used for the communication device described in the sixth aspect to communicate with other communication devices.

[0071] In an embodiment of the present application, the communication device described in aspect 9 may be the network device described in any one of aspects 1 to 6, or a chip (system) or other parts or components that may be set in the network device, or a device that includes the network device.

[0072] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device described in the ninth aspect can refer to the technical effects of the methods described in any one of the first to sixth aspects, and will not be repeated here.

[0073] In a tenth aspect, a chip is provided, comprising: a controller and an interface circuit, wherein the controller is used to interact with other devices through the interface circuit to execute the method described in any one of the first to sixth aspects.

[0074] In an eleventh aspect, a communication system is provided. The communication system includes a data management network element for executing the method described in the first aspect and a terminal for executing the method described in the fourth aspect. Alternatively, the communication system includes a terminal for executing the method described in the fifth aspect and a policy control network element for executing the method described in the sixth aspect.

[0075] In a twelfth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which includes a computer program or instruction stored therein, and when the computer program or instruction is run, the method described in any one of the first to sixth aspects is executed.

[0076] In a thirteenth aspect, a computer program product is provided, comprising a computer program or instructions, which, when executed, enables the method described in any one of the first to sixth aspects to be executed. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0077] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the 5GS architecture;

[0078] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the SOR process during registration;

[0079] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the SOR process after registration;

[0080] FIG4 is a schematic diagram of a session establishment process;

[0081] FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a dual-connection architecture;

[0082] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of network selection;

[0083] FIG7 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a communication system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0084] FIG8 is a flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0085] FIG9 is a second flow chart of the communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0086] FIG10 is a third flow chart of the communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0087] FIG11 is a fourth flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0088] FIG12 is a fifth flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] FIG13 is a sixth flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0090] FIG14 is a first structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0091] FIG15 is a second structural diagram of the communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0092] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, such as wireless network (Wi-Fi) systems, vehicle to everything (V2X) communication systems, device-to-device (D2D) communication systems, Internet of Vehicles communication systems, fourth-generation (4G) mobile communication systems, such as long-term evolution (LTE) systems, world-wide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX) communication systems, fifth-generation (5G) mobile communication systems, such as new radio (NR) systems, and future communication systems, such as 5.5G and sixth-generation (6G) mobile communication systems.

[0093] For ease of understanding, the technical terms involved in this application are first introduced below.

[0094] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the 5GS architecture. As shown in Figure 1, the 5GS includes an access network (AN) and a core network (CN), and may also include terminals.

[0095] The terminal may be a terminal with transceiver functions, or a chip or chip system that can be provided in the terminal. The terminal may also be referred to as user equipment (UE), access terminal, subscriber unit, user station, mobile station (MS), mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication device, user agent, or user device. The terminal in the embodiments of the present application can be a mobile phone, a cellular phone, a smart phone, a tablet computer, a wireless data card, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a wireless modem, a handset, a laptop computer, a machine type communication (MTC) terminal, a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, a wireless terminal in smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in smart city, a wireless terminal in smart home, a vehicle-mounted terminal, a road side unit (RSU) with terminal function, etc. The terminal of the present application may also be an on-board module, on-board module, on-board component, on-board chip or on-board unit built into the vehicle as one or more components or units.

[0096] The AN implements access-related functions, providing network access for authorized users and determining transmission links of varying quality for user data based on user level and service requirements. The AN forwards control signals and user data between terminals and the CN. The AN may include access network equipment, also known as radio access network (RAN) equipment.

[0097] The CN is primarily responsible for maintaining mobile network subscription data and providing terminal functions such as session management, mobility management, policy management, and security authentication. The CN primarily includes all or part of the following functions: user plane function (UPF), authentication server function (AUSF), access and mobility management function (AMF), session management function (SMF), network slice selection function (NSSF), network exposure function (NEF), network repository function (NRF), policy control function (PCF), unified data management (UDM), unified data repository (UDR), and application function (AF).

[0098] As shown in Figure 1, the UE accesses the 5G network through the RAN equipment. The UE communicates with the AMF through the N1 interface (referred to as N1); the RAN communicates with the AMF through the N2 interface (referred to as N2); the RAN communicates with the UPF through the N3 interface (referred to as N3); the SMF communicates with the UPF through the N4 interface (referred to as N4), and the UPF accesses the data network (DN) through the N6 interface (referred to as N6). In addition, the control plane functions such as AUSF, AMF, SMF, NSSF, NEF, NRF, PCF, UDM, UDR or AF shown in Figure 1 interact using service-based interfaces. For example, the service interface provided by AUSF to the outside world is Nausf; the service interface provided by AMF to the outside world is Namf; the service interface provided by SMF to the outside world is Nsmf; the service interface provided by NSSF to the outside world is Nnssf; the service interface provided by NEF to the outside world is Nnef; the service interface provided by NRF to the outside world is Nnrf; the service interface provided by PCF to the outside world is Npcf; the service interface provided by UDM to the outside world is Nudm; the service interface provided by UDR to the outside world is Nudr; and the service interface provided by AF to the outside world is Naf.

[0099] The RAN device may be a device that provides access to the terminal. For example, the RAN device may include: a next-generation mobile communication system, such as an access network device of 6G, such as a 6G base station, or in the next-generation mobile communication system, the network device may also have other naming methods, which are all included in the protection scope of the embodiments of the present application, and the present application does not impose any restrictions on this. Alternatively, the RAN device may also include 5G, such as a gNB in ​​a new radio (NR) system, or one or a group of (including multiple antenna panels) antenna panels of a base station in 5G, or a network node constituting a gNB, a transmission point (TRP or transmission point, TP) or a transmission measurement function (TMF), such as a baseband unit (BBU), or a centralized unit (CU) or a distributed unit (DU), an RSU with base station function, or a wired access gateway, or a 5G core network. Alternatively, RAN devices may also include access points (APs) in wireless fidelity (WiFi) systems, wireless relay nodes, wireless backhaul nodes, various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations (also known as small stations), relay stations, access points, wearable devices, vehicle-mounted devices, and the like.

[0100] UPF is mainly responsible for user data processing (forwarding, receiving, billing, etc.). For example, UPF can receive user data from the data network (DN) and forward the user data to the terminal through the access network equipment. UPF can also receive user data from the terminal through the access network equipment and forward the user data to the DN. DN refers to the operator network that provides data transmission services to users. For example, the Internet Protocol (IP) Multimedia Service (IMS), the Internet, etc. DN can be an operator's external network or a network controlled by the operator, used to provide business services to the terminal. In the protocol data unit (PDU) session, the UPF directly connected to the DN through N6 is also called the protocol data unit session anchor (PSA).

[0101] AUSF is mainly used to perform terminal security authentication.

[0102] AMF is mainly used for mobility management in mobile networks, such as user location update, user network registration, and user handover.

[0103] The SMF is primarily used for session management in mobile networks, such as session establishment, modification, and release. Specific functions include allocating Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to users and selecting the UPF that provides packet forwarding capabilities.

[0104] PCF primarily supports providing a unified policy framework to control network behavior, providing policy rules to the control layer network functions, and is responsible for obtaining user subscription information related to policy decisions. PCF can provide policies to AMF and SMF, such as quality of service (QoS) policies and slice selection policies.

[0105] NSSF is mainly used to select network slices for terminals.

[0106] NEF is mainly used to support the opening of capabilities and events.

[0107] UDM is mainly used to store user data, such as contract data, authentication / authorization data, etc.

[0108] UDR is mainly used to store structured data, including contract data and policy data, externally exposed structured data, and application-related data.

[0109] AF mainly supports interaction with CN to provide services, such as influencing data routing decisions, policy control functions, or providing some third-party services to the network side.

[0110] It can be understood that the functions mentioned in the embodiments of the present application can also be expressed as functional network elements or functional entities. For example, UPF can be expressed as UPF network element, AMF can be expressed as AMF network element, SMF can be expressed as SMF network element, PCF can be expressed as PCF network element, and so on, without limitation.

[0111] 2. UE route selection policy (URSP):

[0112] URSP rules are policy information sent by the PCF network element to the UE. Whenever a new application needs to establish a session to obtain services, the UE will evaluate the URSP rules and select the most appropriate URSP rule to match the application. When the UE establishes a session for the application, it will establish the session according to the requirements of the selected URSP rule.

[0113] URSP rules specifically include the following:

[0114] 1) Traffic descriptor:

[0115] Traffic descriptors contain parameters for matching applications, such as application descriptors (OS ID and APP ID), IP descriptors, domain name descriptors, and data network names (DNNs). When a UE initiates a new service, it matches the service characteristics with the traffic descriptors and selects the best-matching URSP rule to serve the UE. For example, if a user wants to use social media, and the URSP rule contains a traffic descriptor for the social media app with an APP ID, the UE should match the URSP rule and establish a session to obtain the service according to the URSP rule.

[0116] 2) Route selection descriptors (RSD):

[0117] A URSP rule can contain one or more routing descriptors. Different routing descriptors have different priorities. When the UE establishes a session, it needs to establish the session according to the requirements of the routing descriptor RSD. Specifically, it can be divided into the following two parts:

[0118] a) Route selection components:

[0119] The routing component includes session and service continuity mode (SSC mode), slice information, DNN information, etc. When the UE establishes a session, the UE needs to establish a corresponding session according to the requirements of the routing component. Optionally, the routing component may include an access type preference. This parameter currently has three values, indicating 3GPP, Non-3GPP and Multi-Access. When 3GPP is indicated, it means that the session needs to be established through the 3GPP access type. When Non-3GPP is indicated, it means that the session needs to be established through the non-3GPP access type. When multi-access is indicated, it means that the session needs to be established through both the 3GPP access type and the non-3GPP access type.

[0120] b) Route selection validation criteria:

[0121] The routing verification criterion is an optional parameter that can include time window information and geographic location information. These two parameters are used to verify whether the RSD containing the routing verification criterion is currently available. Only when the UE's current time meets the time window information requirements and the geographic location meets the geographic location information requirements, the UE can establish a corresponding session according to the RSD. When the RSD does not contain the corresponding conditional information, it can be considered that the RSD has no such restrictions, and the UE can establish a session at any time and / or any place.

[0122] 3. Steering of roaming (SOR):

[0123] The SOR process can be used to update the UE's configuration, such as updating the UE's network selection list, so that the UE can select the public land mobile network (PLMN) indicated in the network selection list for access. There are two types of SOR processes: the SOR process initiated during the registration process and the SOR process triggered after the registration process. These are described below.

[0124] As shown in Figure 2, the specific process of the SOR process initiated during the registration process is as follows:

[0125] S201, the UE sends a registration request message to the AMF.

[0126] The registration request message carries the registration type and the identification information of the UE.

[0127] There are several types of registration:

[0128] 1) Initial registration: A registration process initiated when the UE is in the deregistered state.

[0129] 2) Mobility registration update: A registration process initiated when the UE moves.

[0130] 3) Periodic registration update: When the UE is in the registered state, the registration process is initiated due to the expiration of the periodic registration update timer.

[0131] 4) Emergency registration: A registration procedure initiated when the UE is in a service-restricted state.

[0132] The UE's identification information can be a subscription concealed identifier (SUCI), a 5G globally unique temporary identifier (5G-GUTI), which is assigned by the AMF serving the UE, or a permanent equipment identifier (PEI). If the UE can provide a valid 5G-GUTI, the 5G-GUTI is carried in the registration request. If the UE cannot provide a valid 5G-GUTI, the SUCI is carried in the registration request. In emergency registration, if the UE cannot provide a valid 5G-GUTI and cannot provide SUPI (i.e., no SUCI, SUCI is an encrypted SUPI), the PEI is carried in the registration request.

[0133] S202: After the AMF receives the registration request message from the UE, it needs to authenticate the UE.

[0134] S203: AMF sends a Nudm_UECM_Registration request message to UDM.

[0135] S204, UDM sends a registration UE context response (Nudm_UECM_Registration response) message to AMF.

[0136] After the UE is authenticated, the AMF registers the UE context with the UDM, executing S203-S204.

[0137] S205, AMF sends a subscription data acquisition request (Nudm_SDM_Get request) message to UDM.

[0138] If the AMF does not have the UE's subscription data, the AMF also needs to obtain the UE's subscription data from the UDM.

[0139] Optionally, in S206a, the UDM decides to trigger the SOR process.

[0140] If the UE's subscription information indicates that the SOR procedure can be triggered based on the UE's initial registration in the visited public land mobile network (VPLMN), when the UE performs initial registration in the VPLMN (that is, the AMF is the AMF in the VPLMN, or V-AMF), the UDM (that is, the UDM in the home public land mobile network (HPLMN), or H-UDM) shall trigger the SOR procedure to the UE. Alternatively, the UDM may also trigger the SOR procedure based on operator policy.

[0141] It can be understood that the UDM mentioned in the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, can be understood as the UDM in the HPLMN. The AMF mentioned in the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, can be understood as the AMF in the VPLMN, and can also be understood as the AMF in the HPLMN. For example, if the UE is registered with the HPLMN, the AMF is the AMF of the HPLMN, and if the UE is registered with the VPLMN, the AMF is the AMF of the VPLMN.

[0142] Optionally, in S206b, the UDM sends a SOR get request (Nsoraf_SoR_Get request) message to a steering of roaming application function (SOR-AF).

[0143] Optionally, in S206c, the SOR-AF sends a SOR get response (Nsoraf_SoR_Get response) message to the UDM.

[0144] Optionally, in S206d, the UDM performs security verification on the information.

[0145] If the UDM is to provide the UE with a SOR when registering in a VPLMN and no HPLMN policy exists for SOR-AF invocation, S206b-S206c are not executed. The UDM obtains the saved network selection list from the UDR. If the UDM is to provide the UE with a SOR when registering in a VPLMN and no HPLMN policy exists for SOR-AF invocation, the UDM obtains the network selection list from the SOR-AF through S206b-S206c. After obtaining the UE's network selection list from the SOR-AF, the UDM may also execute S206d to perform security verification on the network selection list.

[0146] S207, UDM sends a contract data acquisition response (Nudm_SDM_Get response) message to AMF.

[0147] When UDM determines the SOR information (such as the UE's network selection list), UDM can send a subscription data acquisition response message to AMF, carrying the UE subscription data and the network selection list.

[0148] Optionally, in S208, the AMF sends a Nudm_SDM_Subscribe request message to the UDM.

[0149] The subscription data subscription request message is used to indicate that if the UDM has any changes to the UE's subscription data, the UDM needs to send the UE's latest subscription data to the AMF according to the requirements of the subscription data subscription request message.

[0150] S209: AMF sends a registration accept message to the UE.

[0151] The AMF includes the network selection list of the UE received by the AMF in the registration accept message.

[0152] S210, the UE sends a registration complete message to the AMF.

[0153] The UE performs security verification on the received network selection list. If the security verification is successful and the UDM does not require a feedback message to be sent, the UE sends a Registration Complete message to the AMF, which does not include a SOR Confirmation message. If the security verification fails, or the UE is configured to receive SOR information, such as a network selection list, but does not receive the corresponding network selection list in the Registration Accept message, the UE sends a Registration Complete message to the AMF, which does not include a SOR Confirmation message. If the security verification is successful and the UDM requires a feedback message to be sent, the UE sends a Registration Complete message to the AMF, which includes a SOR Confirmation message.

[0154] Optionally, in S211, the AMF sends a SOR confirmation message to the UDM.

[0155] If the AMF receives the SOR confirmation message, the AMF shall provide the SOR confirmation message to the UDM. After the UDM receives the SOR confirmation message, the UDM may determine whether it needs to feedback to the SOR-AF based on the operator policy or the requirements in the UE's subscription data. If the UDM needs to feedback to the SOR-AF, the UDM shall feedback the SOR confirmation message to the SOR-AF.

[0156] Optionally, in S212, the UE re-selects a network according to the received network selection list and selects a network with a high priority for access.

[0157] As shown in Figure 3, the specific process of the SOR process triggered after the registration process is as follows:

[0158] Optionally, in S301 , the SOR-AF sends a parameter provision update request (Nudm_ParameterProvision_Update request) message to the UDM.

[0159] If the UDM supports obtaining a list of preferred PLMN / access technology combinations, ie, a network selection list, from the SOR-AF, the SOR-AF may send a parameter provision update request to the HPLMN UDM to carry the network selection list.

[0160] S302, UDM sends a subscription data notification (Nudm_SDM_Notification) message to AMF.

[0161] The subscription data notification message may include an updated network selection list. The UDM may obtain the updated network selection list (as sent by the SOR-AF in S300 or obtained from the UDR). The UDM notifies the AMF of the user profile update. Optionally, the updated network selection list information may be included in the steering of roaming information. At this time, the UDM may send a subscription data notification message to the AMF to carry the updated network selection list.

[0162] S303: The AMF sends a downlink NAS transport (DL NAS Transport) message to the UE.

[0163] The downlink NAS transport message may include the information obtained by the AMF from the UDM. That is, the AMF transparently transmits the information obtained from the UDM to the UE. In other words, if the UDM sends an updated network selection list to the AMF, the downlink NAS message includes the network selection list. If the UDM sends roaming handover information to the AMF, and the roaming handover information includes the updated network selection list, the downlink NAS transport message also includes the roaming handover information.

[0164] S304: The UE performs a security check.

[0165] If the UE receives the roaming handover information or updated network selection list, it will perform a security check to confirm that the information is provided by the HPLMN. If the security check is successful, the UE will upload the information to the User Service Identity Module (USIM) card or replace the information previously stored by the UE.

[0166] S305: The UE sends an uplink NAS transport (UL NAS Transport) message to the AMF.

[0167] If the UDM requests the UE to feedback a response message, the UE may include the response message in the uplink NAS transmission message. Optionally, the response message may be a message included in a SOR transparent container in the uplink NAS transmission message, specifically a Nudm_SDM_Info request message.

[0168] S306: AMF sends a subscription data information request message to UDM

[0169] The UDM verification subscription data request information message is sent by the UE.

[0170] Optionally, in S307, the UDM sends a subscription data information request (Nsoraf_SoR_Info request) message to the SOR-AF.

[0171] If the updated network selection list is provided by the SOR-AF, the UDM may execute S307 to indicate that the network selection list has been successfully transmitted to the UE.

[0172] 4. Session establishment process:

[0173] As shown in Figure 4, 3GPP defines the session establishment process as follows:

[0174] S401, the UE sends a PDU Session Establishment Request message to the AMF. The PDU Session Establishment Request message is a NAS message that carries parameters such as the PDU session ID, request type, UE requested DNN, and slice information (S-NSSAI).

[0175] S402, AMF selects a suitable SMF.

[0176] S403: AMF sends a PDU session create session context request (Nsmf_PDUSession_CreateSMContext Request) message to SMF. The PDU session create session context request message carries parameters such as the UE's SUPI and PDU session identifier.

[0177] Optionally, at S404, the SMF obtains session management subscription data from the UDM. The subscription data may include information on whether to allow the session to be established.

[0178] S405, SMF sends a PDU session create session context response (Nsmf_PDUSession_CreateSMContext Response) message to AMF.

[0179] Optionally, in S406 , the network performs a PDU session authentication or authorization process.

[0180] S407: The SMF selects the PCF. If dynamic PCC rules are required, the SMF selects the PCF and establishes a session policy association with the PCF. For example, the SMF sends a Policy Association Establishment Request message to the PCF, and the PCF sends a Policy Association Establishment Response message to the SMF.

[0181] S408, SMF selects a suitable UPF.

[0182] Optionally, in step S409, the SMF sends a session policy modification (SMF initiated SM Policy Association Modification) message to the PCF. For example, if the PCF has subscribed to events from the SMF in advance, such as a UE time zone change or location change, the SMF may report the change information to the PCF via the session policy modification message.

[0183] At step S410, the SMF establishes an N4 connection with the UPF. Specifically, as in step S410a, the SMF sends an N4 Session Establishment / Modification Request message to the UPF. This message includes N4 rules, such as packet detection rules (PDRs) and forwarding action rules (FARs). Furthermore, as in step S410b, the UPF sends an N4 Session Establishment / Modification Response message to the SMF.

[0184] S411: The SMF sends an N1N2 message transfer (Namf_Communication_N1N2MessageTransfer) message to the AMF. This message contains information such as the session identifier, N2 interface session management information (N2 SM information), and an N1 interface session management container (N1 SM Container). The N2 interface session management information is a message sent by the SMF to the RAN via the AMF. The N2 interface session management information also contains information such as the tunnel endpoint identifier of the UPF, which is used to inform the RAN where the uplink data should be sent (which can be understood as the destination address of the uplink data). The information in the N1 interface session management container is information sent by the SMF to the UE via the AMF. For example, the AMF will subsequently send this information to the UE via a NAS message.

[0185] S412: The AMF sends an N2 PDU Session Request message to the RAN. The message carries the N2 interface session management information and the NAS message to be sent to the UE. The NAS message includes the session identifier and the N1 interface session management container.

[0186] S413: The RAN establishes air interface resources with the UE. For example, the RAN sends the above-mentioned NAS message to the UE. The NAS message may also carry a PDU session establishment accept message.

[0187] S414: RAN sends an N2 PDU Session Response message to AMF, which carries the tunnel endpoint identifier on the RAN side, that is, the AN tunnel endpoint identifier information.

[0188] S415, AMF sends a PDU session update session context request (Nsmf_PDUSession_UpdateSMContext Request) message to SMF, which carries the AN tunnel endpoint identification information.

[0189] At step S416, the SMF sends the AN tunnel endpoint identifier to the UPF through the N4 session modification process. For example, at step S416a, the SMF sends an N4 session modification request message to the UPF, which includes the AN tunnel endpoint identifier to inform the UPF where the downlink data should be sent. Furthermore, at step S416b, the UPF sends an N4 session modification response message to the SMF.

[0190] S417, SMF sends a PDU session update session context response (Nsmf_PDUSession_UpdateSMContext Response) message to AMF.

[0191] 5. 3GPP connection architecture:

[0192] As shown in Figure 5, the existing 3GPP architecture supports UEs to access the network through both 3GPP access types (3GPP access type) and non-3GPP access types (N3GPP access type). The so-called 3GPP access type means that the access type of the access network is a 3GPP access type. 3GPP access types can include the following access technologies: LTE (corresponding to 4G cellular network), NR (corresponding to 5G cellular network), or satellite access methods defined by 3GPP, including low-orbit satellites, medium-orbit satellites, synchronous satellites, etc. Non-3GPP access types include untrusted non-3GPP access technologies (untrusted non-3GPP access), for example, accessing the core network through wireless access nodes purchased by individuals, trusted non-3GPP access technologies (trusted non-3GPP access), for example, accessing the core network through wireless access nodes deployed by operators, and wired access technologies (wireline access). Non-3GPP access types can be wireless fidelity (WiFi), Bluetooth, ZigBee, etc.

[0193] 6. Network selection:

[0194] When a UE wants to obtain access to a network to obtain services, it must first select a network. After selecting a suitable network and registering, the UE can obtain services normally.

[0195] Currently, 3GPP defines network selection as follows:

[0196] First, when the UE is turned on, it is determined whether the UE has a subscriber identity module (SIM) card. If the UE does not have a SIM card or the UE's SIM card is unavailable, the UE is in the NO SIM state. At this time, it is necessary to wait for the SIM card to be available before network selection can be performed.

[0197] If the UE's current SIM card is available, the UE needs to determine whether there is an RPLMN (register PLMN), that is, the PLMN that was registered last time. When the UE has an RPLMN, it will first try to initiate registration from the RPLMN. The RPLMN information can be saved in the SIM card or in the UE.

[0198] If the UE selects RPLMN, it will attempt to register with the RPLMN. If the registration fails, it will select a network according to the network selection list. If the registration is successful, it will indicate which PLMN is selected and enter the ON PLMN state.

[0199] If the UE does not have an RPLMN, or RPLMN registration fails, the network selection will be carried out according to the network selection list, and registration will be attempted in sequence according to the priority of the network selection list. If registration is successful, the UE enters the online state. If registration fails and there are still networks in the network selection list that have not been tried, the UE will continue to try to register according to the network selection list. If registration fails and there are no networks to be selected in the network selection list, the UE will determine whether there is an available PLMN. If so, the UE will try to register. If not, the UE will enter the waiting state.

[0200] When the UE is online, several situations may trigger network reselection:

[0201] If the UE is currently connected to a VPLMN, the UE will periodically perform network reselection. When a cycle ends, the UE will search for a network with a higher priority. If no network with a higher priority appears, the UE will maintain the current network status. If a network with a higher priority appears, the UE will select the network with the higher priority and try to access it.

[0202] When the network currently accessed by the UE loses coverage, the UE will determine whether there is an available network access. If there is an available network, it will select the network according to priority. If not, it will enter the waiting state. If the last registered network is available at this time, the UE will resume the online state. If other available networks appear, the UE will select the network access according to priority.

[0203] The user can manually trigger network reselection. At this time, the UE adds the last registered network to the temporarily banned list and then reselects a network according to the network selection list.

[0204] If the UE receives a roaming prohibition instruction and the UE is currently connected to a VPLMN, it is necessary to trigger UE network reselection.

[0205] It can be seen that in the existing network selection technology, the UE usually only obtains services in one network. After the UE selects a network and successfully registers, the UE is in the network state. If the UE triggers network reselection, the UE will select a new network to replace the current network. The UE cannot access two or more networks at the same time, which cannot meet more flexible communication needs in the future.

[0206] In response to the above technical problems, the embodiments of the present application propose the following technical solutions.

[0207] The technical solution in this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0208] In the embodiment of the present application, "indication" may include direct indication and indirect indication, and may also include explicit indication and implicit indication. The information indicated by a certain information is called information to be indicated. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the information to be indicated, such as but not limited to, the information to be indicated can be directly indicated, such as the information to be indicated itself or the index of the information to be indicated. The information to be indicated can also be indirectly indicated by indicating other information, wherein there is an association relationship between the other information and the information to be indicated. It is also possible to indicate only a part of the information to be indicated, while the other parts of the information to be indicated are known or agreed in advance. For example, the indication of specific information can also be achieved by means of the arrangement order of each piece of information agreed in advance (such as specified in the protocol), thereby reducing the indication overhead to a certain extent. At the same time, the common parts of each piece of information can also be identified and indicated uniformly to reduce the indication overhead caused by indicating the same information separately.

[0209] In addition, the specific indication method can also be various existing indication methods, such as but not limited to the above-mentioned indication methods and various combinations thereof. The specific details of the various indication methods can be referred to the prior art and will not be repeated herein. As can be seen from the above, for example, when it is necessary to indicate multiple information of the same type, there may be a situation where the indication methods for different information are different. In the specific implementation process, the required indication method can be selected according to specific needs. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the selected indication method. In this way, the indication method involved in the embodiment of the present application should be understood to cover various methods that can enable the party to be indicated to obtain the information to be indicated.

[0210] It should be understood that the information to be indicated can be sent as a whole or divided into multiple sub-information and sent separately, and the sending period and / or sending time of these sub-information can be the same or different. The specific sending method is not limited in the embodiments of this application. The sending period and / or sending time of these sub-information can be predefined, for example, predefined according to a protocol, or can be configured by the transmitting device by sending configuration information to the receiving device.

[0211] In this application, "sending information" can be understood as one device sending information to another device, or as one logic module within a device sending information to another logic module. For example, "a network device sending information" can be understood as a network device sending information to another device (such as a terminal or other network device), or as logic module 1 within a network device sending information to logic module 2 within the network device.

[0212] In this application, "receiving information" can be understood as one device receiving information from another device, or it can also be understood as a logic module within a device receiving information from another logic module. For example, "a network device receiving information" can be understood as the network device receiving information from another device (such as a terminal or other network device), or it can be understood as logic module 1 in the network device receiving information from logic module 2 in the network device.

[0213] In this application, "sending information to... (e.g., a terminal)" or the related illustrations in the accompanying drawings can be understood as the destination end of the information being the terminal. This can include sending information to the terminal directly or indirectly. "Receiving information from... (e.g., a terminal)" or "receiving information from... (e.g., a terminal)" or "receiving information sent by (e.g., a terminal)", or the related illustrations in the accompanying drawings can be understood as the source end of the information being the terminal, which can include receiving information from the terminal directly or indirectly. The information may be processed as necessary between the source end and the destination end of the information transmission, such as format changes, etc., but the destination end can understand the valid information from the source end. Similar expressions in this application can be understood similarly and will not be repeated here.

[0214] "Pre-definition" or "pre-configuration" can be implemented by pre-saving corresponding codes, tables or other methods that can be used to indicate relevant information in the device, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific implementation method. Among them, "saving" can mean saving in one or more memories. The one or more memories can be set separately or integrated in an encoder or decoder, a processor, or a communication device. The one or more memories can also be partially set separately and partially integrated in a decoder, a processor, or a communication device. The type of memory can be any form of storage medium, and the embodiments of the present application do not limit this.

[0215] The "protocol" involved in the embodiments of the present application may refer to a protocol family in the communication field, a standard protocol with a similar protocol family frame structure, or a related protocol used in future communication systems. The embodiments of the present application do not make specific limitations on this.

[0216] In the embodiments of the present application, descriptions such as "when...", "in the case of...", "if" and "if" all mean that the device will perform corresponding processing under certain objective circumstances. It does not limit the time, nor does it require the device to perform judgment actions when implemented, nor does it mean that there are other limitations.

[0217] In the description of the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, " / " indicates that the objects associated with each other are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B can represent A or B. "And / or" in the embodiments of the present application is only a description of the association relationship of the associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and / or B can represent: A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. A and B can be singular or plural. In addition, in the description of the embodiments of the present application, unless otherwise specified, "multiple" refers to two or more than two. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple. In addition, in order to facilitate the clear description of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish between identical or similar items with basically the same functions and effects. Those skilled in the art will understand that words such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity and execution order, and words such as "first" and "second" do not necessarily limit differences. At the same time, in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplary" or "for example" are used to indicate examples, illustrations or explanations. Any embodiment or design described as "exemplary" or "for example" in the embodiments of the present application should not be interpreted as being more preferred or more advantageous than other embodiments or design. Specifically, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "for example" is intended to present related concepts in a concrete way for easy understanding.

[0218] The network architecture and business scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are intended to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application. Ordinary technicians in this field will know that with the evolution of network architecture and the emergence of new business scenarios, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

[0219] To facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, a communication system applicable to the embodiments of the present application is first described in detail using a communication system as an example.

[0220] FIG6 and FIG7 are schematic diagrams of the architecture of the communication system. As shown in FIG6 and FIG7 , the communication system mainly includes: network equipment and terminals.

[0221] The communication system 10 includes a radio access network (RAN) 100 and a core network (CN) 200. The network device may specifically be a network element in the core network 200. The network device may be a data management network element, such as the UDM in 5G, or in future communication systems, may be any network element / function / entity used to implement data management or storage and other related functions, without specific limitation. The network device may also be a policy control network element, such as a PCF, or in future communication systems, may be any network element / function / entity used to implement policy management or control and other related functions, without specific limitation. Alternatively, the network device may also be an access and mobility management network element, such as an AMF, or in future communication systems, may be any network element / function / entity used to implement access and mobility management and other related functions, without specific limitation.

[0222] A terminal may also be referred to as a terminal device, user equipment (UE), mobile station, mobile terminal, etc. Terminals can be widely used in various scenarios, such as device-to-device (D2D), vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), Internet of Things (IOT), virtual reality, augmented reality, industrial control, autonomous driving, telemedicine, smart grid, smart furniture, smart office, smart wearable, smart transportation, smart city, etc. A terminal may be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver function, wearable device, vehicle, drone, helicopter, airplane, ship, robot, robotic arm, smart home device, etc. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the device form of the terminal.

[0223] A terminal can also be understood as a terminal device with multiple subscriptions. This terminal device can have multiple SIM card modules, each of which corresponds to a subscription. The subscriptions can be associated with each other; for example, two subscriptions can be associated with the same user. A terminal can be a user device with multiple SIM cards, or a system that integrates multiple user devices, each of which has a SIM card module and a communication module to establish a connection with the network.

[0224] In a communication system, multiple connections can be established between a terminal and a network. Multi-connection requires that a terminal can access multiple networks through multiple 3GPP access type connections at the same time, that is, establish 3GPP access type connections with multiple networks at the same time. Taking dual connection as an example, in the future network evolution process, due to further demands for bandwidth or coverage, the terminal may need to access the network through two 3GPP access type connections at the same time. At this time, the dual connection may have a combination of multiple wireless access technology types, for example, terrestrial network (TN) + TN, or TN + non-terrestrial network (NTN), or after the application of 6G network in the future, the dual connection can also be a combination of networks of different standards, such as 5G + 6G or 6G + satellite, etc.

[0225] It can be understood that multi-connection can also be replaced by the following expressions: support for dual (or multiple) radio capabilities (dual / Multiple radio capability), support for dual (or multiple) 3GPP access technology (Dual / Multiple 3GPP RAT), support for dual (or multiple) offloading capability (Dual / Multiple steer), support for dual (or multiple) 3GPP access (Dual / Multiple 3GPP), support for dual (or multiple) 3GPP access type (Dual / Multiple 3GPP access type), support for dual (or multiple) registration (Dual / Multiple Registration), support for the same access type (same access type), support for the same access technology (same RAT), support for the same access network (same access network), etc. In other words, supporting one or more of the above can be understood as the ability to establish multiple connections.

[0226] Establishing multiple connections between the terminal and the network can also be understood as the terminal device establishing connections with the network separately through the multiple contract data it owns. Taking multi-connection as dual connection as an example, a terminal device has two SIM card modules, each SIM card module corresponds to one contract data, and the terminal device establishes connections with the network through the two SIM card modules respectively, or a terminal device has two contract data (for example, two SUPIs), and the terminal device accesses the network (or establishes a connection with the network) respectively through the two contract data, or a terminal device integrates two sets of user devices, each set of user devices has one contract data, and each set of user devices is connected to the network. At this time, the terminal device as a whole establishes two connections with the network, and it can be considered that the terminal device has established a dual connection with the network.

[0227] In a communication system, there are multiple ways to trigger the establishment of multiple connections, as follows.

[0228] 1) Triggering via network list:

[0229] With reference to the existing SOR process, it can be considered that when the network issues a new network list (or network selection list) to the terminal, it can trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections. To distinguish it from the existing network selection list, the new network list can be a network selection list specifically used to establish multiple connections, which can be distinguished from the existing network selection list by additional instructions or the name of the network list.

[0230] For example, the terminal may trigger the SOR process during the registration process, so that the network list is sent to the terminal through the SOR process.

[0231] During the terminal registration process, the terminal can actively report its own capability information, such as whether the terminal supports multiple connections. Alternatively, during the terminal registration process, the data management network element can determine whether the network can provide multiple connection services for the terminal based on the terminal's subscription data, that is, whether the terminal has signed a subscription for multiple connection services. Alternatively, during the terminal registration process, the data management network element can determine whether the network slice requested by the terminal requires multiple connection services. On this basis, if at least one of the following is met: the terminal supports multiple connections, the terminal has signed a subscription for multiple connection services, or the network slice requested by the terminal requires multiple connection services, and the terminal's subscription data indicates that the terminal has not currently established multiple connections, the data management network element can send the network list to the terminal through the SOR process in the registration process to trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections. For example, the terminal can select a network from the network list to ensure that while accessing the current network, it also accesses the network selected from the network list to establish multiple connections.

[0232] Optionally, the data management network element may also inform the terminal of a policy for establishing multiple connections through the SOR process, such as a combination of radio access technology types for multiple connections, a time period and / or area where multiple connections are allowed to be established, etc. If the data management network element does not inform the terminal of the policy for establishing multiple connections, it means that the network has no policy restrictions on the terminal establishing multiple connections, and the terminal can make its own decision to establish multiple connections.

[0233] For another example, the terminal may trigger the SOR process after the registration process, so as to send the network list to the terminal through the SOR process.

[0234] Considering that the establishment of multiple connections by a terminal does not need to be bound to the terminal's registration process, after the terminal has completed the registration process normally, the data management network element triggers the SOR process at any possible time point and sends the network list to the terminal to trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections. For example, the data management network element can send the network list to the terminal through the SOR process when certain preset conditions are met (such as the terminal is moving within an area where multiple connections need to be established and / or it is currently the time when multiple connections need to be established) and the terminal has not yet established multiple connections.

[0235] 2) Triggered by indication:

[0236] In the above-mentioned "triggering by network list" method, the network list already has the function of indicating that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, or in other words, the network list can be used to implicitly indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections. In other words, this method is suitable for situations where establishing multiple connections requires issuing a network list for establishing multiple connections, or in other words, there is a prerequisite assumption for establishing multiple connections, that is, the terminal needs to select a network based on the issued network list and access the selected network to establish multiple connections. If the terminal does not need a new network list to establish multiple connections, or in other words, the terminal does not need to dynamically issue a network list, such as the terminal is pre-equipped with a network list for establishing multiple connections locally, then the data management network element does not need to issue a network list to the terminal, and can trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections by simply issuing an instruction to the terminal, or the terminal may decide on its own to trigger the establishment of multiple connections.

[0237] For example, the data management network element may send an indication to the terminal to trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections when it determines that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, such as when the terminal moves within an area where multiple connections need to be established and / or it is currently a time when multiple connections need to be established, and the terminal has not yet established multiple connections.

[0238] For another example, the terminal can provide the user with the function of turning on or off multiple connections. If the user turns on multiple connections, the terminal can respond to the user's operation and independently decide to trigger the establishment of multiple connections. Later, if the user turns off multiple connections, the terminal can respond to the user's operation and trigger the release of multiple connections, reverting to a single connection with the network, that is, establishing a 3GPP access type or non-3GPP access type connection with a single network.

[0239] 3) Triggered by business:

[0240] One of the advantages of multiple connections over a single connection is that it can obtain greater bandwidth. Therefore, the establishment of multiple connections can also be triggered by business.

[0241] For example, when a terminal uses certain specific services, if the services have high bandwidth requirements, the terminal may trigger the establishment of multiple connections to obtain greater bandwidth.

[0242] The terminal can trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections based on policy information. The policy information can be a URSP rule, or any possible routing rule or policy, and there is no limitation on this. The URSP rule can be enhanced to include instructions for establishing multiple connections and policies for establishing multiple connections. When the terminal determines that a session needs to be established for a certain service (which may be a service with high bandwidth requirements), if the service matches the URSP rule, the terminal triggers the establishment of multiple connections according to the instructions of the URSP rule. Alternatively, during the process of establishing a session, the terminal can report the single network slice selection assistance information (S-NSSAI) and data network name (DNN) corresponding to the terminal's session to the data management network element or the policy control network element. If the service corresponding to the S-NSSAI and DNN is a service that requires the establishment of multiple connections, the data management network element or the policy control network element can instruct the terminal to establish multiple connections.

[0243] For another example, when the bandwidth currently provided by the network cannot meet the service requirements of the terminal, the network may decide to trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections to obtain greater bandwidth.

[0244] If the access network device finds it cannot guarantee a terminal's service, for example, if the bandwidth it can provide cannot meet the service's bandwidth requirements, it can report this to the data management network element through the access and mobility management network element. Alternatively, if the access and mobility management network element finds it cannot guarantee a terminal's service, for example, if the terminal is currently in a low-signal area and the signal quality cannot guarantee the service, it can report this to the data management network element. In this way, the data management network element can instruct the terminal to establish multiple connections.

[0245] The communication method and device of the embodiment of the present application are further introduced below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It can be understood that the present application uses the network device and the terminal as the execution subject of the interactive schematic as an example for illustration, but the present application does not limit the execution subject of the interactive schematic. For example, the method executed by the network device in the present application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the network device, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module or software that can realize all or part of the functions of the network device; the method executed by the terminal in the present application can also be executed by a module (such as a chip, a chip system, or a processor) applied to the terminal, and can also be implemented by a logical node, a logical module or software that can realize all or part of the functions of the terminal.

[0246] The following method embodiments will specifically introduce the interaction process between the network elements / devices in the above communication system. The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application can be applied to the above communication system and specifically applied to various scenarios mentioned in the above communication system, which will be described in detail below.

[0247] Figure 8 is a flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication method is applicable to the above-mentioned communication system and mainly involves interaction between a data management network element and a terminal.

[0248] S801: When the terminal does not establish multiple connections, the data management network element obtains instruction information.

[0249] Multi-connectivity can refer to establishing multiple 3GPP access type connections at the same time, and the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks. In other words, multi-connectivity can also refer to establishing 3GPP access type connections with one or more networks at the same time, or using multiple 3GPP access types to access the same or different networks. Multiple networks can be different operator networks, such as different PLMNs, or different non-public networks (NPNs), or different PLMNs and NPNs, or any other possible networks, such as WLAN and PLMN. For example, taking PLMN as an example, while the terminal accesses and registers to PLMN#1 through the 3GPP access type, the terminal also accesses and registers to PLMN#2 through the 3GPP access type. At this time, it means that the terminal simultaneously establishes 3GPP access type connections with PLMN#1 and PLMN#2, that is, establishes multiple connections. For another example, taking NPN as an example, if a terminal accesses and registers to NPN#1 through 3GPP access type, and at the same time, it also accesses and registers to NPN#2 through 3GPP access type, this means that the terminal simultaneously establishes 3GPP access type connections with NPN#1 and NPN#2. For another example, taking NPN and PLMN as an example, if a terminal accesses and registers to NPN through 3GPP access type, and at the same time, it also accesses and registers to PLMN through 3GPP access type, this means that the terminal simultaneously establishes 3GPP access type connections with NPN and PLMN.

[0250] The indication information may be used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections.

[0251] In one possible implementation, the indication information may indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections. For example, the indication information may include a 1-bit indication information element, where a value of 1 indicates that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, and a value of 0 indicates that the indication information element is empty, indicating that the terminal does not need to establish multiple connections.

[0252] In another possible implementation, the indication information may also implicitly indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections. For example, the indication information may be used to indicate a network list.

[0253] The multiple networks indicated by the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections. The new network list can be a network selection list specifically used to establish multiple connections. In other words, the network list can be a network selection list specifically used to establish multiple connections. It can be distinguished from the existing network selection list by additional indications or the name of the network list. The terminal establishes multiple connections by selecting and accessing a network in the network list. Optionally, the multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include the network the terminal is currently connected to, to prevent the terminal from continuing to select and access the network it is currently connected to, which may cause multiple connection establishment failure. For example, if the network the terminal is currently connected to is PLMN#1, the network list may include PLMN#2, PLMN#3, and PLMN#4. Of course, the multiple networks indicated by the network list may also include the network the terminal is currently connected to, such as including the identifier of the network the terminal is currently connected to. In this case, the terminal may default to not selecting the currently connected network.

[0254] In this case, since the network list itself has the function of indicating that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, the indication information can implicitly indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections by indicating the network list. For example, the indication information can carry information used to indicate the network list, such as the identifier of the network list. Unlike the existing network selection list, the network list indicated by the identifier can be a network list specifically used for multiple connections, that is, the identifier of the network list can be distinguished from the identifier of the existing network selection list, and can be understood as the above-mentioned "additional indication or name of the network list". For example, the identifier of the existing network selection list is ID#1, and the identifier of the network list in the embodiment of the present application is ID#2. When the terminal receives the indication information, it can be known that the identifier of the network list carried by the indication information indicates the network list used to establish multiple connections, thereby knowing that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections.

[0255] Optionally, the network list can also indicate the wireless access technology types supported by multiple networks for the terminal to sign up. These wireless access technology types may be different. For example, the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#2 for the terminal to sign up is TN, the wireless access technology types supported by PLMN#3 for the terminal to sign up are TN and NTN, and the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#4 for the terminal to sign up is NTN. For another example, the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#2 for the terminal to sign up is 5G, the wireless access technology types supported by PLMN#3 for the terminal to sign up are 5G and 6G, and the wireless access technology type supported by PLMN#4 for the terminal to sign up is 6G, etc., to avoid the failure of multiple connection establishment due to unsupported wireless access technology types.

[0256] Optionally, the indication information may further carry a network list, or may not carry a network list. For example, the network list may be pre-configured locally in the terminal.

[0257] It is understandable that the above two implementations may also be implemented in combination, and the indication information may carry both the above indication information element and the above network list identifier and network list, and there is no specific limitation on this.

[0258] Optionally, the indication information may also be used to indicate a policy for establishing multiple connections, such as including at least one of: a service policy, an access type policy, a location policy, or a time policy.

[0259] The service policy may refer to the need to establish multiple connections when the network that the terminal is currently connected to (unless otherwise specified, it can be understood as a network below) cannot meet the service requirements, that is, to achieve establishment according to the service requirements and avoid redundancy. For example, the service policy may be a threshold value for the service. If the threshold value is exceeded, it is considered that the network cannot meet the service requirements and it is necessary to trigger the establishment of multiple connections. For example, the threshold value for the service may be a delay threshold value. At this time, if the transmission delay of the service (such as the air interface transmission delay or the transmission delay from the user plane anchor point to the terminal, etc.) exceeds the delay threshold value, it is considered that the current network cannot meet the service requirements, such as when network congestion occurs. For another example, the threshold value for the service may also be the threshold value of parameters such as bandwidth and packet loss rate. At this time, if the bandwidth that the network can provide for the service is less than the bandwidth threshold value, and / or the packet loss rate of the service is greater than the packet loss rate threshold value, it is considered that the current network cannot meet the service requirements. Of course, the above-mentioned implementation of the threshold value for the service is some examples and does not serve as a limitation to the embodiments of the present application. Any parameter that may be used to evaluate whether the network can meet the needs of the service can be considered as the threshold value of the embodiment of the present application, such as the queuing waiting time of the service data packet, the number of data packet retransmissions of the service, etc.

[0260] The access type strategy refers to the combination of radio access technology types required to establish multiple connections. For example, in the case where the multiple connections are dual connections, the radio access technology type combination can be TN+TN, or TN+NTN, or after the application of 6G networks in the future, the dual connections can also be a combination of networks of different standards, such as 5G+6G or 6G+satellite, etc. Of course, in the case where the multiple connections are connections of three or more 3GPP access types, the radio access technology type combination can be a combination of more radio access technology types, such as TN+TN+TN, or TN+TN+NTN, or NTN+NTN+NTN, or 4G+5G+6G, or 5G+6G+satellite, etc., which can be arbitrarily combined according to actual needs, and so on, which will not be repeated here. In this way, decoupling of access resources can be achieved, that is, connections of different radio access technology types use different network resources, avoiding the use of the same radio access technology type and causing network resource shortages.

[0261] A location strategy means that multiple connections need to be established within a predefined area, such as a low-signal area that requires communication signal boosting, to ensure communication quality for users within that area. For example, a location strategy may include information indicating the location of the predefined area, such as network-recognizable information like a cell identifier, or any other possible location information, such as latitude and longitude.

[0262] A time policy means that multiple connections need to be established within a preset time period, such as a time period with high service demand, to ensure the service experience within that time period. For example, a time policy may include information indicating the preset time period. For example, if the preset time period is a periodic time period, the information indicating the preset time period may include information about the interval length between adjacent periods, and information about the time period within each period during which multiple connections need to be established, such as the time period from t1 to t2 after the start time of each period, or the time period from t1 to t2 before the end time of each period.

[0263] It can be understood that if the indication information indicates the above-mentioned strategy for establishing multiple connections, it means that subsequent terminals need to establish multiple connections when necessary according to the instructions. If the indication information does not indicate the above-mentioned strategy for establishing multiple connections, it means that the network has no policy restrictions on the terminal establishing multiple connections, and the terminal can decide to establish multiple connections on its own.

[0264] It can also be understood that the triggering of the establishment of multiple connections by the terminal when multiple connections have not been established is an example and is not intended to be limiting. The terminal may establish multiple connections without considering whether multiple connections have been currently established. For example, the terminal may continue to establish multiple connections when multiple connections have already been established. For example, if the established multiple connections are two 3GPP access type connections, the terminal may continue to establish multiple connections, such as increasing the number to three 3GPP access type connections. Alternatively, if the terminal has already established multiple connections, the UE may be triggered to change the connected network according to the solution of the present invention.

[0265] S802: The data management network element sends instruction information to the terminal, and the terminal receives the instruction information.

[0266] It is understood that the data management network element sending a message to the terminal may include the data management network element sending the message to the terminal via different core network devices and / or access network devices. The message types and parameter formats sent may be the same or different. It is understood that as long as the content sent has the same function, it can be understood that the data management network element sends the message to the terminal.

[0267] S803: The terminal establishes multiple connections according to the instruction information.

[0268] In summary, since the network side, that is, the data management network element, can provide the indication information of multiple connections, the terminal can trigger the establishment of 3GPP access type connections with multiple networks at the same time according to the indication information, that is, access and register to multiple networks at the same time to meet the terminal's more flexible communication needs.

[0269] Each step is introduced below.

[0270] S801:

[0271] There are many ways for the data management network element to obtain indication information, such as triggering acquisition based on terminal reports, triggering acquisition based on reports from other network elements on the network side, or triggering acquisition by the data management network element itself, which are introduced below.

[0272] Method 1: The terminal may send its capability information to the network. Accordingly, the data management network element may obtain the capability information of the terminal and obtain the indication information based on the capability information of the terminal.

[0273] The terminal's capability information (or the terminal's multi-connection capability) can be used to indicate whether the terminal supports simultaneous establishment of 3GPP access type connections with multiple networks. In other words, whether the terminal supports multi-connection. This avoids wasting communication resources by instructing the terminal to establish multiple connections when the terminal does not support multi-connection. For example, the terminal's capability information can be a 1-bit information element, where the values ​​of 0 / 1 indicate whether the terminal supports simultaneous establishment of 3GPP access type connections with multiple networks.

[0274] The capability information of the terminal can be reported to the network through the registration process. For example, during the terminal registration process, the terminal can send a registration request message to the access and mobility management network element. The registration request message can carry the registration type (registration type) and the identification information of the terminal (such as SUCI or 5G-GUTI or PEI). The registration type can be the following existing ones: initial registration, mobility registration update, periodic registration update, or emergency registration. Alternatively, the registration type can also be a newly defined registration type, such as multi-connection registration, dual-connection registration, etc., or it can also be any possible named registration type, which indicates that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections after registration, that is, it can trigger the network to obtain and send indication information.

[0275] The capability information of the terminal can be carried in the registration request message as an independent information element, or it can be carried in the registration request message as an information element in the wireless capability report of the terminal. After receiving the capability information of the terminal, the access and mobility management network element can report the capability information of the terminal to the data management network element when registering the context of the terminal with the data management network element. In other words, during the terminal registration process, the data management network element can receive a context registration request message from the access and mobility management network element, and the context registration request message includes the capability information of the terminal, that is, the existing registration process is reused to realize the perception of the multi-connection capability of the terminal, or it can be realized through a newly defined process, which is decoupled from the existing process and the information element transmission can be more flexible.

[0276] The data management network element determines whether the terminal supports multiple connections based on the terminal's capability information and whether the terminal has not established multiple connections, and obtains indication information. For example, since the terminal needs to save the terminal's context in the data management network element when registering in the network, the data management network element can make a judgment based on the terminal's context. For example, if the data management network element currently saves a context for the terminal, it means that the terminal is currently connected to and registered in a network, and it can be considered that the terminal currently has not established multiple connections. If the data management network element currently saves two or more contexts for the same terminal, it means that the terminal is currently connected to and registered in multiple networks at the same time, and it can be considered that the terminal currently has established multiple connections, and there is no need to execute the subsequent processes of the embodiments of the present application.

[0277] The data management network element can obtain indication information locally from the data management network element, that is, the information carried in the indication information, such as indication cells, network lists, etc., can be pre-configured locally in the data management network element. The data management network element can obtain information such as the network list locally and encapsulate this information to obtain indication information, so as to avoid the communication overhead caused by obtaining the network list from other network elements.

[0278] Alternatively, the data management network element can obtain the indication information from other network elements. For example, the data management network element obtains the indication information from the application function. Specifically, if a network list needs to be dynamically delivered, the data management network element sends a request message, such as an SOR Get Request (Nsoraf_SoR_Get request) message, to an application function network element, such as the SOR-AF. This request message can be used to request the application function network element to provide a network that can be used to establish multiple connections. Accordingly, the application function network element can receive the request message and, based on the request message, send a response message, such as an SOR Get Response (Nsoraf_SoR_Get response) message. The response message can include a network list, specifically indication information including the network list. For example, based on the request message, the application function network element can locally search for information about networks that can support establishing multiple connections, and based on information about these networks, such as the network identifier (PLMN ID) and the type of radio access technology subscribed to by the terminal, determine the network list and further determine the indication information. The application function network element then carries the indication information in a response message and sends the response message to the data management network element. Correspondingly, the data management network element may receive the response message returned by the application function network element according to the above request message, thereby obtaining the indication information.

[0279] Optionally, when the data management network element requests a network list from the application function network element, the data management network element may also send the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal session to the application function network element. The slice information mentioned in the embodiment of the present application may be S-NSSAI, or may be replaced by any possible naming or information type, without specific limitation. The data network name mentioned in the embodiment of the present application may be DNN, or may be replaced by any possible naming or information type, without specific limitation. The slice information and / or data network name may be saved in advance in the contract data of the terminal local to the data management network element. At this time, the data management network element carries it in the above-mentioned request message and sends it to the application function network element, or may also send it to the application function network element through other messages, without specific limitation. Correspondingly, the application function network element can also receive the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal's session. Then, the application function network element can also determine the network list based on multiple networks that support the slice information and / or data network name. That is, the application function network element can further determine the information of multiple networks that support the slice information and / or data network name from the information of the network that supports establishing multiple connections found locally, and determine the network list based on the information of these multiple networks to ensure that the network that establishes multiple connections with the terminal can provide the same service as the network currently connected to the terminal to meet the business needs of the terminal.

[0280] It can be understood that if the terminal has pre-configured a network list locally, that is, if the indication information does not include a network list, the terminal can be configured to use the local network list to select multiple networks (or select additional networks) to establish multiple connections only when the indication information is received. Otherwise, it should be processed according to the logic of the prior art.

[0281] Method 2: The terminal can send the terminal's slice information to the network. Correspondingly, the data management network element can obtain the slice information requested by the terminal and obtain relevant information about multiple connections based on whether the network slice corresponds to a multi-connection service.

[0282] The slice information requested by the terminal can be used to indicate the network slice requested by the terminal, such as the same or different network slices. For example, the terminal can indicate a request to use S-NSSAI#1 and / or S-NSSAI#2 in the registration request message.

[0283] The slice information requested by the terminal can also be reported to the network through the registration process. For example, during the terminal registration process, the terminal can send a registration request message carrying the slice information requested by the terminal to the access and mobility management network element. The registration type carried in the registration request message can also refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here. After receiving the slice information requested by the terminal, the access and mobility management network element can report the terminal's capability information to the data management network element when registering the context of the terminal with the data management network element. In other words, during the terminal registration process, the data management network element can receive a context registration request message from the access and mobility management network element, and the context registration request message includes the slice information requested by the terminal, that is, the existing registration process is reused to realize the perception of the terminal's multi-connection needs, or it can be realized through a newly defined process, decoupled from the existing process, and the information element transmission can be more flexible.

[0284] The data management network element can determine whether there is a network slice corresponding to a service that needs to establish multiple connections (or a service with multiple connections) in the network slice requested by the terminal based on the correspondence between the network slice and the service. For example, the service that needs to establish multiple connections is the extended reality media service (XRM). The bandwidth requirement for the XRM service is relatively high, so it is necessary to establish multiple connections to ensure a large bandwidth to meet the bandwidth requirement for the XRM service. In this case, the XRM service can also be understood as a service with multiple connections. Of course, the XRM service is only an example and is not intended to be limiting. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific service form of the service with multiple connections. If there is a network slice corresponding to the service with multiple connections in the network slice requested by the terminal, and the terminal has not established multiple connections, the data management network element can obtain the indication information. The specific acquisition method can refer to the relevant introduction of the above method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0285] Method 3: The data management network element may obtain the contract data of the terminal and obtain relevant information of the multiple connections based on the contract data.

[0286] The contract data of the terminal refers to the relevant data when the terminal signs a contract for a service with the network in advance, and can be pre-stored in the data management network element. If the contract data of the terminal contains information for indicating that the network can provide multi-connection services for the terminal, that is, it means that the terminal is a user who has signed a contract for multiple connections, or the terminal has signed a contract for multi-connection services, so as to avoid communication redundancy caused by sending multi-connection related information to unsigned users. If the contract data of the terminal does not contain information for indicating that the network can provide multi-connection services for the terminal, it means that the terminal has not signed a contract for multi-connection services. Of course, this information can also be a 1-bit information element, and the contract data of the terminal contains this information by default. At this time, the two values ​​0 / 1 of this information can be used to indicate whether the terminal has signed a contract for multi-connection services. Alternatively, if the contract data of the terminal contains a service that requires the establishment of multiple connections, such as an XRM service, it can also be considered that the terminal has signed a contract for a multi-connection service.

[0287] The data management network element can obtain the terminal's subscription data during the terminal's registration process. For example, during the terminal registration process, the access and mobility management network element can send a subscription data acquisition request message to the data management network element to request data related to the terminal's subscription with the network. Accordingly, the data management network element can receive the subscription data acquisition request message from the access and mobility management network element and, based on the subscription data acquisition request message, obtain the terminal's subscription data. In this way, the data management network element can determine whether the terminal's subscription data contains information indicating that the network can provide multi-connection services for the terminal, or determine the value of this information. This allows the perception of the terminal's subscription data to be achieved by reusing the existing registration process, or by implementing a newly defined process that is decoupled from the existing process and provides more flexible information transfer. If the terminal's subscription data contains information indicating that the network can provide multi-connection services for the terminal, or if the value of this information indicates that the terminal has subscribed to multi-connection services, and the terminal has not established multi-connection, the data management network element can obtain the indication information. The specific acquisition method can refer to the description of Method 1 above and will not be further described here.

[0288] Mode 4: The data management network element may receive service information from the access and mobility management network element, and obtain indication information according to whether the service requirements of the terminal are not met.

[0289] The service information is used to indicate that the service requirements of the terminal are not met, such as the bandwidth provided by the network currently connected to the terminal (unless otherwise specified, it can be understood as a network) cannot meet the bandwidth requirements of the terminal's service, and / or the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the signal quality requirements of the terminal's service, or there may be any other possible situations, which are not limited to this. In this case, the network currently connected to the terminal needs to trigger the establishment of multiple connections to provide additional network resources to meet the service requirements of the terminal. For example, the service information can be a bitmap of multiple bits, which indicates various situations in which the service requirements of the terminal are not met through different value combinations of the bitmap. For example, the bitmap is 2 bits, 00 indicates that the bandwidth provided by the network currently connected to the terminal cannot meet the bandwidth requirements of the terminal's service, 01 indicates that the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the signal quality requirements of the terminal's service, 10 indicates that the bandwidth provided by the network to the terminal cannot meet the bandwidth requirements of the terminal's service, and the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the signal quality requirements of the terminal's service, and 11 is reserved. For another example, the service information can be an enumerated multiple bits, and the value of each bit corresponds to a situation indicating whether the service requirements of the terminal are met.

[0290] The service information may be reported by the access network device to the data management network element via the access and mobility management network element, or may be reported directly by the access and mobility management network element to the data management network element. The access network device or the access and mobility management network element is a network element in the network currently accessed by the terminal.

[0291] For example, if an access network device determines that the bandwidth it can provide to a terminal cannot meet the bandwidth requirements of the terminal's service, it may send an N2 message to the access and mobility management network element. The N2 message includes service information, indicating that the bandwidth provided by the network currently accessed by the terminal cannot meet the bandwidth requirements of the terminal's service. Accordingly, the access and mobility management network element may receive the N2 message from the access network device and send the service information to the data management network element. In this case, the service information may be included in any possible messages exchanged between the access and mobility management network element and the data management network element. Alternatively, the access network device may not be aware of the total bandwidth requirements of the terminal. When the bandwidth requested by the service exceeds the bandwidth it can provide, the access network device may report the bandwidth it can currently provide to the access and mobility management network element. The access and mobility management network element may then calculate the difference between the total bandwidth requirements of the terminal and the currently available bandwidth, which is the additional bandwidth provided to the terminal.

[0292] For another example, the access and mobility management network element can perform mobility management on the terminal to determine whether the terminal has moved to a low signal area. The low signal area can be pre-configured in the access and mobility management network element. The low signal area can be an area with cell granularity, such as one or more cells, which can be represented by the cell identifier, or the low signal area can also be an area defined by longitude and latitude information, which is not limited. If the terminal currently moves to a low signal area, the access and mobility management network element can obtain service information based on the terminal being located in the low signal area, such as obtaining pre-configured service information locally or generating service information locally, and send the service information to the data management network element. At this time, the service information can be carried in any possible message exchanged between the access and mobility management network element and the data management network element to indicate that the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the signal quality requirements of the terminal's service.

[0293] It can be understood that the access and mobility management network element can also combine the service information reported by the access network device when obtaining service information. For example, the service information reported by the access network device indicates that the bandwidth provided by the access network device to the terminal cannot meet the terminal's service requirements for bandwidth, and at this time the access and mobility management network element also determines that the terminal has moved to a low signal area. The access and mobility management network element can generate service information indicating that the bandwidth provided by the network currently accessed by the terminal cannot meet the terminal's service requirements for bandwidth, and the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the terminal's service requirements for signal quality.

[0294] When the data management network element obtains the service information, the data management network element can obtain the indication information based on the service information and the terminal has not established multiple connections. The specific acquisition method can refer to the relevant introduction of the above method 1 and will not be repeated here.

[0295] Furthermore, in mode 4, the access and mobility management network element may be replaced with a session management network element, such as a session management network element within the network to which the terminal is currently connected. For example, the session management network element may subscribe to the access and mobility management network element for the bandwidth provided by the network to which the terminal is currently connected. The access and mobility management network element may obtain the bandwidth provided by the network to which the terminal is currently connected from the access network device based on the subscription of the session management network element and return the information to the session management network element via a subscription response. If the session management network element determines that the bandwidth provided by the network to which the terminal is currently connected cannot meet the bandwidth requirements of the terminal's service, such as the bandwidth requirements of a session of the terminal managed by the session management network element, the session management network element may obtain service information, such as locally pre-configured service information or locally generated service information, and send the service information to the data management network element. In this case, the service information may be included in any possible messages exchanged between the session management network element and the data management network element to indicate that the bandwidth provided by the network to which the terminal is currently connected cannot meet the bandwidth requirements of the terminal's service.

[0296] It can also be understood that the above is an introduction to whether the network can meet the business needs using bandwidth and / or location as an example, which is not a limitation. Whether the network can meet the business needs can also be realized in other ways, such as whether the transmission delay of the business on the network side meets the business transmission delay requirements, whether the data packet queuing waiting time of the business meets the data packet queuing waiting time requirements of the business, etc. In other words, any parameter that can be used to characterize whether the business needs can be met by the network can be applied to the embodiments of the present application.

[0297] Method 5: The data management network element can obtain the indication information according to the preset conditions.

[0298] The preset conditions can be pre-configured locally in the data management network element, and may specifically include at least one of the following: the terminal is currently within the time period where multiple connections need to be established, or the terminal is located in the area where the terminal needs to establish multiple connections. That is, the data management network element can decide on its own to trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections based on the current time and the current location of the terminal, thereby avoiding the additional overhead caused by interacting with other network elements.

[0299] The time period during which the terminal needs to establish multiple connections is similar to the preset time period indicated by the above-mentioned time policy, and can be understood with reference to it. Therefore, when the current time is the start time of the preset time period and the terminal has not currently established multiple connections, the data management network element can obtain the indication information. The specific acquisition method can refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here. For example, the preset time period is the time period from t1 to t2 after the start time of each cycle, such as 18:00-22:00 every day, that is, the time period frequently used by users. When the current time is 18:00, the data management network element can obtain the indication information and execute the subsequent process of the embodiment of this application to trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections to ensure the user's service experience within this time period. Afterwards, when the current time is 22:00, the data management network element can instruct the terminal to release multiple connections to reduce communication overhead and facilitate terminal energy saving.

[0300] The area where the terminal needs to establish multiple connections is similar to the preset area indicated by the above-mentioned location strategy. If it is the above-mentioned low-signal area, you can refer to it for understanding. The data management network element obtains the location of the terminal from the terminal-related access and mobility management network element (or the access and mobility management network element serving the terminal) through subscription services, or the terminal location can be obtained through other methods, such as the access network device reporting to the data management network element through the access and mobility management network element. The specific selection can be based on actual needs, and there is no specific restriction on this. In this way, when the terminal currently moves to the preset area and the terminal has not currently established multiple connections, the data management network element can obtain the indication information. The specific acquisition method can refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0301] Method 6: The terminal sends the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal's session to the network. Accordingly, the data management network element can obtain the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal's session and obtain relevant information about multiple connections based on whether the terminal's service requires multiple connections.

[0302] Among them, the slice information and / or data network name can correspond to the terminal's service.

[0303] The slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal's session can be reported to the network through the session establishment process. For example, in the process of the terminal establishing a session, the terminal can send a PDU session establishment request message carrying the slice information and / or data network name to the access and mobility management network element. The access and mobility management network element can select a session management network element and send the slice information and / or data network name to the session management network element through a PDU session create session context request message. After receiving the slice information and / or data network name, the session management network element can report the slice information and / or data network name to the data management network element when registering the terminal's session context with the data management network element. In other words, during the terminal registration process, during the terminal's session establishment process, the data management network element receives a context registration request message from the session management network element, and the context registration request message may include slice information and / or data network name.

[0304] The data management network element can determine the service corresponding to the slice information and / or data network name in the context registration request message based on the correspondence between the slice information or the data network name and the service. At this time, one implementation method is: the data management network element can determine whether the service is a service that requires multiple connections, such as an XRM service, or any other possible type of service. If the service is a multi-connection service, such as an XRM service, and the terminal has not currently established multiple connections, the data management network element can obtain indication information. The specific acquisition method can refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here. Another implementation method is: the data management network element can determine whether the demand for the service is met, such as initiating a subscription to the access and mobility management network element or the session management network element to determine whether the bandwidth provided by the network currently accessed by the terminal can meet the bandwidth demand of the service. The specific implementation can also refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 5. When the bandwidth provided by the network currently accessed by the terminal cannot meet the bandwidth demand of the service, and the terminal has not currently established multiple connections, the data management network element can obtain indication information. The specific acquisition method can refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0305] Alternatively, the data management network element may determine that the current network cannot meet the terminal's service requirements. For example, the current network may only provide a portion of the slice requested by the terminal, or the service requested by the terminal may not be available on the current network. For example, if the NPN cannot provide IMS services, the UE may select an additional PLMN to obtain IMS services when accessing the NPN. In this case, the data management network element triggers the establishment of multiple connections to meet the terminal's service requirements.

[0306] Method 7: When a terminal needs to establish multiple connections, the terminal may send a request message to the network. Correspondingly, the data management network element may receive the request message from the terminal and obtain relevant information about the multiple connections based on the request message.

[0307] The request information is used to instruct the terminal to request the establishment of multiple connections, that is, the establishment of multiple connections can be triggered by the terminal at its own discretion, making the interaction between the terminal and the network side simpler and the communication overhead smaller. For example, the terminal can provide the user with the function of turning on or off multiple connections. For example, the terminal provides a user interaction interface for multiple connections, and the user interaction interface is provided with a button to turn on or off multiple connections. The user can choose to turn on or off the function of multiple connections by clicking the button. For another example, the terminal can provide an interface for selecting a network mode. On this interface, if the user selects the network model as multiple networks, it means turning on the function of multiple connections. If the user selects the network model as a single network, it means turning off the function of multiple connections. At this time, it is necessary to release the multiple connections and establish a single connection. Alternatively, there may be other implementations for the user to turn on or off the function of multiple connections, which is not limited by this application.

[0308] If the user operation turns on multiple connections, the terminal can respond to the user operation and send request information to the network, such as sending a UL NAS message carrying the request information to the access and mobility management network element. After obtaining the request information, the access and mobility management network element can send request information to the data management network element, such as sending a subscription data acquisition request message carrying the request information. Correspondingly, the data management network element can receive request information from the terminal, such as receiving a subscription data acquisition request message carrying the request information, that is, by reusing existing signaling, or it can also be implemented through a newly defined process, decoupling from the existing process, and the information element transmission can be more flexible. The data management network element can obtain indication information based on the request information. For the specific acquisition method, please refer to the relevant introduction of the above method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0309] It should be pointed out that the above-mentioned methods 1 to 7 can also be implemented in combination. For example, method 1 is implemented in combination with method 2, and the data management network element can obtain indication information when the terminal supports multiple connections and the network slice requested by the terminal is the network slice corresponding to the multi-connection service. For another example, method 1 is implemented in combination with method 3, and the data management network element can obtain indication information when the terminal supports multiple connections and the terminal has signed a contract for a multi-connection service. For another example, method 1, method 3 and method 3 are implemented in combination, and the data management network element can obtain indication information when the terminal supports multiple connections, the network slice requested by the terminal is the network slice corresponding to the multi-connection service, and the terminal has signed a contract for a multi-connection service. Of course, there are other combinations, such as the combination of method 1 and method 4, the combination of method 1 and method 5, etc., which can be understood by reference, and the embodiments of this application will not be repeated.

[0310] S802:

[0311] The data management network element can send the indication information to the terminal through the SOR process. For example, for the SOR process in the registration process, the data management network element sends a subscription data acquisition response message carrying the indication information to the access and mobility management network element. Accordingly, the access and mobility management network element receives the indication information from the data management network element, such as the subscription data acquisition response message carrying the indication information, and the access and mobility management network element can carry the indication information in the registration acceptance message and then send it to the terminal. For the SOR process after the registration process, the data management network element sends a subscription data acquisition response message carrying the indication information to the access and mobility management network element. Accordingly, after receiving the indication information from the data management network element, the access and mobility management network element can send the indication information to the terminal through the DL NAS transport container.

[0312] It is understood that the SOR process can also be understood by referring to the relevant content in the above technical terminology introduction, which will not be repeated here.

[0313] S803:

[0314] The network currently accessed by the terminal is recorded as the first network, that is, the terminal has established a 3GPP access type connection with the first network. Based on this, the terminal can select a second network from the multiple networks indicated in the network list according to the indication information, such as selecting one or more second networks in order of priority from the highest to the lowest, and establish a 3GPP access type connection with the second network.

[0315] If the network list also indicates that multiple networks each support the type of wireless access technology that the terminal has signed a contract with, after selecting the second network, the terminal can also access the second network according to the type of wireless access technology that the terminal has signed a contract with and supported by the second network indicated in the network list, such as NT access or NTN access.

[0316] If the indication information also indicates a strategy for establishing multiple connections, the terminal needs to select a second network from the multiple networks indicated in the network list and establish a 3GPP access type connection with the second network when the strategy is met, such as when the terminal determines that the network the terminal is currently connected to cannot meet the service requirements, or the terminal is currently moving to a preset area, or the current time is the starting moment of a preset time period. Alternatively, the terminal may also select the second network in advance so as to trigger the establishment of a 3GPP access type connection with the second network when the strategy is met. In addition, if the strategy for establishing multiple connections indicates an access type strategy, the terminal should consider the type of wireless access technology that the network supports and that the terminal has subscribed to when selecting a network, so that the combination of the wireless access technology type of the selected second network and the first network can meet the requirements of the access type strategy.

[0317] It can be understood that in the above S801-S803, the data management network element usually sends indication information to the terminal to trigger the terminal to establish multiple connections only when the terminal has not currently established multiple connections. Of course, the data management network element may also not consider whether the terminal has currently established multiple connections. The data management network element sends indication information to the terminal by default. At this time, if the terminal has already established multiple connections, the terminal may ignore the indication information, or the terminal may also update the multiple connections according to the indication information, such as selecting a new network access from the network list indicated by the indication information. For example, if the terminal has established multiple connections, the terminal has established 3GPP access type connections with PLMN#1 and PLMN#2 respectively. At this time, the terminal can establish an additional 3GPP access type connection with PLMN#3 according to the latest issued network list, or it can first release the 3GPP access type connection with PLMN#2, and then establish a 3GPP access type connection with PLMN#3.

[0318] It can be understood that the above is an example of the network sending a network list or the network list being pre-stored locally in the terminal, but it is not a limitation. The terminal can also have other ways to obtain the network list. For example, the terminal can dynamically build a network list locally. One implementation is: the terminal obtains a network selection list in advance, and the network selection list can be an existing list, such as that obtained through the process defined in the above "3. Steering of roaming (SOR)". The above-mentioned indication information sent by the network to the terminal can be the type of wireless access technology supported by multiple connections, or the type of wireless access technology supported by the second network. The terminal can select a network that supports the type of wireless access technology from the network selection list, and use these networks to construct the network list in the embodiment of the present application.

[0319] The above describes the arrangement process of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application in conjunction with Figure 8. The following describes in detail the specific process of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application in a specific scenario in conjunction with Figures 9 to 12.

[0320] Scenario 1:

[0321] Figure 9 is a second flow diagram of the communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. In scenario 1, the UDM (the aforementioned data management network element) can send the indication information to the UE (the aforementioned terminal) through the SOR process during the registration process of the UE.

[0322] Specifically, as shown in FIG9 , the process of the communication method is as follows:

[0323] S901, the UE sends a registration request message to the AMF (the above-mentioned access and mobility management network element).

[0324] Among them, the registration request message can carry the UE capability information (such as the capability information of the above-mentioned terminal) to indicate whether the UE supports multiple connections. The specific principle can also refer to the relevant introduction in the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0325] S902: AMF sends a register UE context request message to UDM.

[0326] In the case where the UE provides the UE capability information, the UE context request message may carry the UE capability information.

[0327] S903: The UDM determines whether the UE has subscribed to the multi-connection service.

[0328] When the UE's capability information indicates that the UE supports multiple connections, the UDM can determine whether there is a multi-connection service in the UE's contract data, that is, determine whether the UE has signed a multi-connection service. The specific principle can also refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 2, which will not be repeated here. If the UE has signed a multi-connection service, the subsequent process of the embodiment of the present application is continued. Otherwise, if the UE's capability information indicates that the UE does not support multiple connections, or the UE has not signed a multi-connection service, the process of the prior art is executed.

[0329] S904: UDM sends a register UE context response message to AMF.

[0330] S905: AMF sends a subscription data acquisition request message to UDM.

[0331] The specific implementation principles of S904-S905 can be found in the relevant introduction of the registration process defined by 3GPP, which will not be repeated here.

[0332] S906: The UDM determines whether the UE has currently established multiple connections.

[0333] The AMF requests the UDM to obtain the UE's subscription data through a subscription data acquisition request message, which can trigger the UDM to determine whether the UE is currently establishing multiple connections. For example, the UDM can determine whether the UDM stores one or multiple subscription data of the UE. If it is one subscription data of the UE, the subsequent process of the embodiment of the present application is continued; otherwise, the UDM does not trigger the subsequent SOR process.

[0334] It is understandable that S903 and S906 may also be executed together.

[0335] S907 , UDM sends an SOR acquisition request message to SOR-AF (the above-mentioned application function network element).

[0336] S908: The SOR-AF sends an SOR acquisition response message to the UDM.

[0337] The SOR acquisition request message can be used to request the SOR-AF to provide a network that can be used to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the SOR acquisition request message may also carry the S-NSSAI and / or DNN corresponding to the UE's session. The SOR acquisition request message may carry the above-mentioned network list. The specific principle can also be referred to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0338] S909, UDM verifies information security.

[0339] The UDM can verify the security of the network list. If the verification is successful, the subsequent process of the embodiment of the present application will continue; otherwise, the process will fail.

[0340] It should be understood that S907-S909 are optional processes, and the UDM network element can obtain the network list locally, or when the UE is pre-configured with a network list, that is, when the network does not need to dynamically send the network list, S907-S909 are not executed.

[0341] S910, UDM sends a subscription data acquisition response message to AMF.

[0342] The subscription data acquisition response message may carry the UE's subscription data and indication information, where the indication information may be used to indicate that the UE needs to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the indication information may also include a network list.

[0343] S911, UDM sends a registration acceptance message to the UE.

[0344] The registration accept message may be used to indicate that the UE has successfully registered with the network, and the registration accept message may further include the above-mentioned indication information.

[0345] It can be seen that S910-S911 is the SOR process in the registration process. By reusing the messages of the registration process, the SOR information, such as the network list, is sent to the UE.

[0346] S912: The UE establishes multiple connections.

[0347] The specific implementation principle of S912 can be referred to the related introduction of S803 above, which will not be repeated here.

[0348] Scenario 2:

[0349] Figure 10 is a flow chart of the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application. In scenario 2, the UDM (the aforementioned data management network element) can send the indication information to the UE (the aforementioned terminal) through the SOR process during the registration process of the UE.

[0350] Specifically, as shown in FIG10 , the process of the communication method is as follows:

[0351] S1001, the UE sends a registration request message to the AMF (the above-mentioned access and mobility management network element).

[0352] Among them, the registration request message can carry the UE capability information (such as the capability information of the above-mentioned terminal) to indicate whether the UE supports multiple connections. The specific principle can also refer to the relevant introduction in the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0353] S1002: AMF sends a register UE context request message to UDM.

[0354] In the case where the UE provides the UE capability information, the UE context request message may carry the UE capability information.

[0355] S1003: The UE registers with the network.

[0356] S1003 is the registration process that continues to be completed after S1002. The specific implementation principle can be referred to the relevant introduction in the registration process defined by 3GPP, which will not be repeated here.

[0357] S1004: UDM determines whether the UE needs to establish multiple connections.

[0358] If the UE supports multiple connections and the UE has not currently established multiple connections, the UDM can determine whether the UE needs to establish multiple connections based on the UE's location and / or the current time. The specific implementation principle can also refer to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 5, which will not be repeated here. If the UE wants to establish multiple connections, the subsequent process of the embodiment of the present application is continued. Otherwise, the UDM does not trigger the subsequent SOR process.

[0359] S1005 , UDM sends an SOR acquisition request message to SOR-AF (the aforementioned application function network element).

[0360] S1006 , the SOR-AF sends an SOR acquisition response message to the UDM.

[0361] The SOR acquisition request message can be used to request the SOR-AF to provide a network that can be used to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the SOR acquisition request message may also carry the S-NSSAI and / or DNN corresponding to the UE's session. The SOR acquisition request message may carry the above-mentioned network list. The specific principle can also be referred to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0362] S1007, UDM verifies information security.

[0363] The UDM can verify the security of the network list. If the verification is successful, the subsequent process of the embodiment of the present application will continue; otherwise, the process will fail.

[0364] It should be understood that S1005-S1007 are optional processes. The UDM network element can obtain the network list locally, or if the UE is pre-configured with a network list, that is, if the network does not need to dynamically send the network list, S1005-S1007 will not be executed.

[0365] S1008, UDM sends a contract data notification message to AMF.

[0366] The subscription data notification message may carry indication information, which may be used to indicate that the UE needs to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the indication information may also include a network list.

[0367] S1009: AMF sends a DL NAS message to the UE.

[0368] The DL NAS message may carry the above indication information.

[0369] It can be seen that S1008-S1009 is the SOR process after the registration process, which is used to send SOR information, such as the network list, to the UE.

[0370] S1010: The UE establishes multiple connections.

[0371] The specific implementation principle of S1010 can be found in the above-mentioned introduction to S803 and will not be repeated here.

[0372] Scenario 3:

[0373] Figure 11 is a fourth flow chart of the communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. In scenario 4, the UDM (the aforementioned data management network element) can trigger the sending of indication information to the UE (the aforementioned terminal) based on the UE's request to establish multiple connections.

[0374] Specifically, as shown in FIG11 , the process of the communication method is as follows:

[0375] S1101, UE enables the multi-connection function.

[0376] S1102: The UE completes registration in the network.

[0377] The specific implementation principle of S1101 can refer to the relevant introduction of method 7 in the above S801, which will not be repeated here. The specific implementation principle of S1102 can refer to the relevant introduction of the registration process defined in 3GPP, which will not be repeated here. In addition, the execution order of S1101 and S1102 is not limited.

[0378] S1103: The UE sends a UL NAS message to the AMF.

[0379] The UL NAS message may carry request information for the terminal to request to establish multiple connections.

[0380] S1104: AMF sends a subscription data acquisition request message to UDM.

[0381] The contract data acquisition request message sent may carry the above request information.

[0382] S1105 , UDM sends an SOR acquisition request message to SOR-AF (the aforementioned application function network element).

[0383] S1106 , the SOR-AF sends an SOR acquisition response message to the UDM.

[0384] The SOR acquisition request message can be used to request the SOR-AF to provide a network that can be used to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the SOR acquisition request message may also carry the S-NSSAI and / or DNN corresponding to the UE's session. The SOR acquisition request message may carry the above-mentioned network list. The specific principle can also be referred to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0385] S1107, UDM verifies information security.

[0386] The UDM can verify the security of the network list. If the verification is successful, the subsequent process of the embodiment of the present application will continue; otherwise, the process will fail.

[0387] It should be understood that S1105-S1107 are optional processes. The UDM network element can obtain the network list locally, or if the UE is pre-configured with a network list, that is, if the network does not need to dynamically send the network list, S1105-S1107 will not be executed.

[0388] S1108, UDM sends a contract data acquisition response message to AMF.

[0389] The subscription data notification message may carry indication information, which may be used to indicate that the UE needs to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the indication information may also include a network list.

[0390] S1109: AMF sends a DL NAS message to the UE.

[0391] The DL NAS transmission may carry the above indication information.

[0392] S1110, the UE establishes multiple connections.

[0393] The specific implementation principle of S1110 can be found in the above-mentioned introduction to S803 and will not be repeated here.

[0394] Scenario 4:

[0395] Figure 12 is a flow chart 5 of the communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application. In scenario 4, the UDM (the aforementioned data management network element) can send the instruction information to the UE (the aforementioned terminal) through the session establishment process of the UE.

[0396] Specifically, as shown in FIG12 , the process of the communication method is as follows:

[0397] S1201, session establishment process.

[0398] The session establishment process may be performed by executing S401 - S416b shown in FIG. 4 . For details, please refer to the relevant introduction of FIG. 4 , which will not be described again here.

[0399] S1202, SMF sends a UE session context registration request (Nudm_UECM_Registration request) message to UDM.

[0400] The UE session context registration request may carry the UE's S-NSSAI and / or DNN (the S-NSSAI and / or DNN of the above-mentioned terminal).

[0401] S1203, UDM sends an SOR acquisition request message to SOR-AF (the above-mentioned application function network element).

[0402] S1204, the SOR-AF sends an SOR acquisition response message to the UDM.

[0403] The SOR acquisition request message can be used to request the SOR-AF to provide a network that can be used to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the SOR acquisition request message may also carry the S-NSSAI and / or DNN of the UE. The SOR acquisition request message may carry the above-mentioned network list. The specific principle can also be referred to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned method 1, which will not be repeated here.

[0404] S1205, UDM verifies information security.

[0405] The UDM can verify the security of the network list. If the verification is successful, the subsequent process of the embodiment of the present application will continue; otherwise, the process will fail.

[0406] It should be understood that S1203-S1205 are optional processes. The UDM network element can obtain the network list locally, or if the UE is pre-configured with a network list, that is, if the network does not need to dynamically send the network list, S1203-S1205 will not be executed.

[0407] S1206, UDM sends a contract data notification message to AMF.

[0408] The subscription data notification message may carry indication information, which may be used to indicate that the UE needs to establish multiple connections. Optionally, the indication information may also include a network list. That is, the UDM may trigger the acquisition of indication information based on the UE's S-NSSAI and / or DNN, and execute S1205-S1206. The specific implementation principle may refer to the relevant introduction of mode 6 in the above S801, which will not be repeated here.

[0409] S1207: AMF sends a DL NAS message to the UE.

[0410] The DL NAS transmission may carry the above indication information.

[0411] S1208: The UE establishes multiple connections.

[0412] The specific implementation principle of S1208 can be found in the above-mentioned introduction to S803 and will not be repeated here.

[0413] Figure 13 is a sixth flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application. This communication method is applicable to the above-mentioned communication system, and mainly involves interaction between a terminal and a network.

[0414] S1301: When a service of a terminal needs to be executed, the terminal obtains policy information matching the service of the terminal.

[0415] The policy information may be a URSP rule, or any routing-related policy or rule, without limitation. The URSP rule may be an enhanced URSP rule, which may indicate multiple connections, such as defining that the terminal needs to simultaneously establish 3GPP access type connections with multiple networks. That is, the meaning of the above-mentioned indication information is similar to that of the above-mentioned indication information, and the specific meaning may also be understood by reference, and will not be repeated here. Optionally, the URSP rule may also indicate a multi-connection policy, such as a combination of radio access technology types required to establish multiple connections, or other policies. The specific meaning may also be referred to the relevant introduction of the above-mentioned policies, and will not be repeated here.

[0416] When a terminal needs to execute a service, for example, when the terminal responds to a user operation to launch an application, such as an XRM application or any other possible application, the terminal needs to execute the service corresponding to the application, such as the XRM service or any other possible service. At this time, the terminal can determine a URSP rule based on the service volume descriptor, such as matching a URSP rule with a service characteristic indicated by the service volume descriptor, thereby determining a URSP rule that matches the service.

[0417] S1302: If the policy information indicates that multiple connections need to be established, multiple connections are established.

[0418] If the URSP rule matching the service is the enhanced URSP rule mentioned above, the terminal can establish multiple connections with the network according to the instructions of the URSP rule (such as according to policy information or the terminal's own decision). The specific implementation principle is similar to that of S803 above, and can be understood by reference, so it will not be repeated here.

[0419] Of course, the embodiment of the present application takes URSP rules as an example, but is not limited to URSP rules. Any strategy and / or rule similar to URSP rules, or capable of implementing routing functions, can be used to implement the solution in the present application.

[0420] In summary, the terminal can match policy information and trigger the establishment of multiple connections when the service matches policy information that requires the establishment of multiple connections, so as to ensure that the multiple connections can meet the needs of the service and guarantee the user experience.

[0421] In one possible design, in conjunction with S1301-S1302 above, before S1301, the method may further include: when the terminal's policy information needs to be updated, the policy control network element may obtain the terminal's new policy information and send the new policy information to the terminal. Accordingly, the terminal may also receive policy information from the network and configure it locally. In this case, the new policy information may be the enhanced URSP rules described above. The policy control network element may obtain the new policy information from the application function, or the new policy information may be manually configured for the policy control network element, without limitation.

[0422] The communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described in detail above in conjunction with Figures 8 to 13. The communication device for executing the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application is described in detail below in conjunction with Figures 14 and 15.

[0423] Figure 14 is a structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 14 , the communication device 1400 includes a transceiver module 1401 and a processing module 1402. For ease of illustration, Figure 14 only shows the main components of the communication device.

[0424] In a first possible embodiment, the communication device 1400 can be applied to the data management network element in the above communication method to implement the functions of the data management network element, as follows.

[0425] Processing module 1402 is configured to obtain indication information if the terminal has not established multiple connections, and transceiver module 1401 is configured to send indication information to the terminal. The indication information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, where multiple connections refer to establishing multiple Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0426] In one possible design, the indication information includes a network list, and the multiple networks indicated in the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections.

[0427] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to obtain indication information from an application function.

[0428] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 is also used to send the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal session to the application function network element before obtaining the indication information from the application function; the multiple networks indicated in the network list are networks that support the slice information and / or data network name.

[0429] Optionally, the multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include a network that the terminal is currently connected to.

[0430] In one possible design, the network list further indicates types of radio access technologies supported by the terminal that are subscribed to by the multiple networks.

[0431] In one possible design, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive capability information of the terminal, and the processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain indication information based on the capability information of the terminal. The capability information of the terminal is used to indicate that the terminal supports multiple connections.

[0432] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive a context registration request message from an access and mobility management network element during terminal registration, wherein the context registration request message includes capability information of the terminal.

[0433] In one possible design, processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain slice information requested by the terminal, and obtain indication information based on whether the network slice corresponds to a multi-connected service. The slice information requested by the terminal is used to indicate the network slice requested by the terminal.

[0434] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive a context registration request message from an access and mobility management network element during terminal registration, wherein the context registration request message includes slice information requested by the terminal.

[0435] In one possible design, the processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain subscription data of the terminal and obtain indication information based on the subscription data of the terminal, wherein the subscription data of the terminal indicates that the terminal supports multiple connections.

[0436] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive a subscription data acquisition request message from the access and mobility management network element during terminal registration, and the processing module 1402 is further configured to acquire the terminal's subscription data based on the subscription data acquisition request message. The subscription data acquisition request message is used to request data related to the subscription between the terminal and the network.

[0437] In one possible design, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive service information from an access and mobility management network element, and the processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain indication information based on the unmet service requirements of the terminal. The service information is used to indicate that the service requirements of the terminal are not met.

[0438] Optionally, the terminal's business needs are not met, including: the bandwidth provided to the terminal cannot meet the terminal's business needs for bandwidth, and / or the terminal's signal quality cannot meet the terminal's business needs for signal quality, or there may be any other possible situations, which are not limited to this.

[0439] In one possible design scheme, the processing module 1402 is also used to obtain indication information based on preset conditions, wherein the preset conditions include at least one of the following: the terminal is currently in the time period where multiple connections need to be established, or the terminal is located in the area where the terminal needs to establish multiple connections.

[0440] Optionally, the processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain the location of the terminal from an access and mobility management network element through a subscription service.

[0441] In a possible design, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive request information from a terminal, and the processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain instruction information according to the request information, wherein the request information is used to instruct the terminal to request to establish multiple connections.

[0442] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive a subscription data management acquisition request message from an access and mobility management network element, wherein the subscription data management acquisition request message includes request information.

[0443] In one possible design, processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain slice information and / or a data network name corresponding to a session of the terminal, and obtain indication information based on whether the terminal's service requires establishing multiple connections. The slice information and / or data network name corresponds to the terminal's service.

[0444] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 is also used to receive a context registration request message from the session management network element during the terminal session establishment process, wherein the context registration request message includes slice information and / or data network name.

[0445] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 may include a sending module (not shown in FIG14 ) and a receiving module (not shown in FIG14 ). The sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1400 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1400 .

[0446] Optionally, the communication device 1400 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG. 14 ) storing a program or instruction. When the processing module 1402 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 1400 may perform the functions of the method shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 .

[0447] It can be understood that the communication device 1400 can be a network device, a chip (system) or other parts or components that can be set in the network device, or a device that includes a network device. This application does not limit this.

[0448] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1400 can refer to the technical effects of the above-mentioned communication method, which will not be repeated here.

[0449] In a second possible embodiment, the communication device 1400 can be applied to the application function network element in the above communication method to implement the functions of the application function network element, as follows.

[0450] The transceiver module 1401 is configured to receive a request message, and the processing module 1402 is configured to control the transceiver module 1401 to send a response message based on the request message. The request message is used to request the application function network element to provide a network that can be used to establish multiple connections. Multiple connections refer to establishing multiple Third Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks. The response message includes a network list, where the multiple networks indicated in the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections.

[0451] It can be understood that the application function network element may specifically be a roaming handover application function SOR-AF network element, or any other possible type of AF network element, and there is no limitation on this.

[0452] In one possible design scheme, the transceiver module 1401 is also used to receive the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the terminal session, and the processing module 1402 is also used to determine the network list based on multiple networks that support the slice information and / or data network name.

[0453] Optionally, the multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include a network that the terminal is currently connected to.

[0454] Optionally, the network list further indicates the types of radio access technologies supported by the terminal.

[0455] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 may include a sending module (not shown in FIG14 ) and a receiving module (not shown in FIG14 ). The sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1400 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1400 .

[0456] Optionally, the communication device 1400 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG. 14 ) storing a program or instruction. When the processing module 1402 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 1400 may perform the functions of the method shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 .

[0457] It can be understood that the communication device 1400 can be a network device, a chip (system) or other parts or components that can be set in the network device, or a device that includes a network device. This application does not limit this.

[0458] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1400 can refer to the technical effects of the above-mentioned communication method, which will not be repeated here.

[0459] In a third possible embodiment, the communication device 1400 may be applied to the access and mobility management network element in the above communication method to implement the functions of the access and mobility management network element, as follows.

[0460] Processing module 1402 is configured to control transceiver module 1401 to send service information to the data management network element. Transceiver module 1401 is configured to receive instruction information from the data management network element based on the service information and send the instruction information to the terminal. The service information indicates that the service requirements of the terminal are not met; the instruction information indicates that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections. Multiple connections refer to establishing multiple 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0461] In one possible design, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive an N2 message from the access network device, the N2 message including service information. The processing module 1402 is further configured to determine, based on the service information, that the access network device cannot meet the service requirements of the terminal.

[0462] Optionally, the processing module 1402 is further configured to obtain service information according to the terminal being located in a low signal area, wherein the service information is specifically used to indicate that the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the signal quality requirements of the terminal's service.

[0463] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 may include a sending module (not shown in FIG14 ) and a receiving module (not shown in FIG14 ). The sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1400 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1400 .

[0464] Optionally, the communication device 1400 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG. 14 ) storing a program or instruction. When the processing module 1402 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 1400 may perform the functions of the method shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 .

[0465] It can be understood that the communication device 1400 can be a network device, a chip (system) or other parts or components that can be set in the network device, or a device that includes a network device. This application does not limit this.

[0466] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1400 can refer to the technical effects of the above-mentioned communication method, which will not be repeated here.

[0467] In a fourth possible embodiment, communication device 1400 may be implemented by a terminal module (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system) in the aforementioned communication method. Alternatively, it may be implemented by a logical node, logic module, or software that implements all or part of the terminal's functions. For ease of description, the following description uses the method executed by a terminal as an example.

[0468] The transceiver module 1401 is configured to receive instruction information, and the processing module 1402 is configured to establish multiple connections based on the instruction information. The instruction information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections. Multiple connections refer to establishing multiple 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access type connections simultaneously, where the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks.

[0469] In one possible design, the terminal has established a 3GPP access type connection with the first network. The processing module 1402 is further configured to select, based on the indication information, a second network from a plurality of networks indicated in the network list, and establish a 3GPP access type connection with the second network. The plurality of networks indicated in the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections.

[0470] Optionally, the multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include the first network.

[0471] Optionally, the network list further indicates the types of radio access technologies supported by the terminal.

[0472] Optionally, the indication information is also used to indicate a network list.

[0473] In a possible design scheme, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to send capability information of the terminal, where the capability information of the terminal is used to indicate that the terminal supports multiple connections.

[0474] In one possible design, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to send slice information and / or a data network name corresponding to the terminal's session, where the slice information and / or the data network name corresponds to the terminal's service, and the terminal's service requires establishing multiple connections.

[0475] In a possible design, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to send request information when the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, where the request information is used to indicate that the terminal requests to establish multiple connections.

[0476] In one possible design scheme, the processing module 1402 is also used to determine that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections in response to the user's operation of turning on multiple connections; or; the processing module 1402 is also used to obtain policy information matching the terminal's business when the terminal's business needs to be executed; and determine that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections when the policy information indicates that multiple connections need to be established.

[0477] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 may include a sending module (not shown in FIG14 ) and a receiving module (not shown in FIG14 ). The sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1400 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1400 .

[0478] Optionally, the communication device 1400 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG. 14 ) storing a program or instruction. When the processing module 1402 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 1400 may perform the functions of the method shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 .

[0479] It can be understood that the communication device 1400 can be a terminal, or a chip (system) or other parts or components that can be set in the terminal, or a device including a terminal, which is not limited in this application.

[0480] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1400 can refer to the technical effects of the above-mentioned communication method, which will not be repeated here.

[0481] In a fifth possible embodiment, communication device 1400 may be implemented by a terminal module (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system) in the above-described communication method. Alternatively, it may be implemented by a logical node, logic module, or software that implements all or part of the terminal's functions. For ease of description, the following description uses the method executed by a terminal as an example.

[0482] The processing module 1402 is used to obtain policy information matching the terminal's business when the terminal's business needs to be executed; if the policy information indicates that multiple connections need to be established, the transceiver module 1401 is controlled to establish multiple connections, where multiple connections refer to the simultaneous establishment of connections of the Third Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access type, and the connections of the 3GPP access type belong to the same or different networks.

[0483] In one possible design, the terminal has established a 3GPP access type connection with a first network. Processing module 1402 is configured to select a second network from multiple networks indicated by a network list, and control transceiver module 1401 to establish a 3GPP access type connection with the second network. The network list is indicated by policy information, and the multiple networks indicated by the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections.

[0484] In one possible design, the transceiver module 1401 is further configured to receive policy information from the network.

[0485] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 may include a sending module (not shown in FIG14 ) and a receiving module (not shown in FIG14 ). The sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1400 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1400 .

[0486] Optionally, the communication device 1400 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG. 14 ) storing a program or instruction. When the processing module 1402 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 1400 may perform the functions of the method shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 .

[0487] It can be understood that the communication device 1400 can be a terminal, or a chip (system) or other parts or components that can be set in the terminal, or a device including a terminal, which is not limited in this application.

[0488] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1400 can refer to the technical effects of the above-mentioned communication method, which will not be repeated here.

[0489] In a sixth possible embodiment, the communication device 1400 may be applied to the policy control network element in the above communication method to implement the functions of the policy control network element, as follows.

[0490] Processing module 1402 is configured to obtain new policy information for the terminal if the terminal's policy information needs to be updated, and transceiver module 1401 is configured to send the new policy information to the terminal. The policy information indicates the need to establish multiple connections. Multiple connections refer to the simultaneous establishment of multiple Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access-type connections, where the 3GPP access-type connections belong to the same or different networks. In other words, by updating the policy information, the terminal is enabled to establish multiple connections.

[0491] In a possible design, the new policy information further indicates a combination of radio access technology types required to establish multiple connections.

[0492] Optionally, the transceiver module 1401 may include a sending module (not shown in FIG14 ) and a receiving module (not shown in FIG14 ). The sending module is used to implement the sending function of the communication device 1400 , and the receiving module is used to implement the receiving function of the communication device 1400 .

[0493] Optionally, the communication device 1400 may further include a storage module (not shown in FIG. 14 ) storing a program or instruction. When the processing module 1402 executes the program or instruction, the communication device 1400 may perform the functions of the method shown in FIG. 6 to FIG. 8 .

[0494] It can be understood that the communication device 1400 can be a network device, a chip (system) or other parts or components that can be set in the network device, or a device that includes a network device. This application does not limit this.

[0495] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1400 can refer to the technical effects of the above-mentioned communication method, which will not be repeated here.

[0496] Figure 15 is a second structural diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of the present application. Exemplarily, the communication device may be a terminal, or a chip (system) or other component or assembly that can be provided in a terminal. As shown in Figure 15, the communication device 1500 may include a processor 1501. Optionally, the communication device 1500 may further include a memory 1502 and / or a transceiver 1503. The processor 1501 is coupled to the memory 1502 and the transceiver 1503, such as by a communication bus.

[0497] The following is a detailed introduction to the various components of the communication device 1500 with reference to FIG15 :

[0498] The processor 1501 is the control center of the communication device 1500 and can be a single processor or a collective term for multiple processing elements. For example, the processor 1501 can be one or more central processing units (CPUs), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits configured to implement the embodiments of the present application, such as one or more digital signal processors (DSPs) or one or more field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs).

[0499] Optionally, the processor 1501 can execute various functions of the communication device 1500 by running or executing software programs stored in the memory 1502 and calling data stored in the memory 1502, such as executing the communication methods shown in Figures 8 to 13 above.

[0500] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 1501 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 shown in FIG15 .

[0501] In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the communication device 1500 may also include multiple processors, such as the processor 1501 and the processor 1504 shown in FIG15 . Each of these processors may be a single-core processor (single-CPU) or a multi-core processor (multi-CPU). The processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and / or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

[0502] Among them, the memory 1502 is used to store the software program for executing the solution of this application, and the execution is controlled by the processor 1501. The specific implementation method can refer to the above method embodiment and will not be repeated here.

[0503] Alternatively, the memory 1502 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disc storage, an optical disc storage (including a compact disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, Blu-ray disc, etc.), a magnetic disk storage medium or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited thereto. The memory 1502 may be integrated with the processor 1501 or exist independently and be coupled to the processor 1501 via an interface circuit (not shown in FIG. 15 ) of the communication device 1500. This embodiment of the present application does not specifically limit this.

[0504] Transceiver 1503 is used for communication with other communication devices. For example, if communication device 1500 is a terminal, transceiver 1503 can be used to communicate with a network device or another terminal device. For another example, if communication device 1500 is a network device, transceiver 1503 can be used to communicate with a terminal or another network device.

[0505] Optionally, the transceiver 1503 may include a receiver and a transmitter (not shown separately in FIG15 ), wherein the receiver is used to implement a receiving function, and the transmitter is used to implement a sending function.

[0506] Optionally, the transceiver 1503 can be integrated with the processor 1501, or can exist independently and be coupled to the processor 1501 through the interface circuit of the communication device 1500 (not shown in Figure 15). This embodiment of the present application does not specifically limit this.

[0507] It is understandable that the structure of the communication device 1500 shown in FIG15 does not constitute a limitation on the communication device, and the actual communication device may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently.

[0508] In addition, the technical effects of the communication device 1500 can refer to the technical effects of the methods described in the above method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0509] It should be understood that the processor in the embodiments of the present application may be a central processing unit (CPU), and the processor may also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application-specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. The general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor, etc.

[0510] It should also be understood that the memory in the embodiments of the present application may be a volatile memory or a non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memories. Among them, the non-volatile memory may be a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), or a flash memory. The volatile memory may be a random access memory (RAM), which is used as an external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of random access memory (RAM) are available, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (ESDRAM), synchronous link DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM).

[0511] The above embodiments can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware (such as circuits), firmware or any other combination. When implemented using software, the above embodiments can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions or computer programs. When the computer instructions or computer program are loaded or executed on a computer, the process or function described in the embodiment of the present application is generated in whole or in part. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server or data center to another website, computer, server or data center via a wired (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) method. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center that contains one or more available media sets. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (for example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a tape), an optical medium (for example, a DVD), or a semiconductor medium. The semiconductor medium can be a solid-state drive.

[0512] It should be understood that the term "and / or" as used herein simply describes a relationship between associated objects, indicating that three possible relationships exist. For example, "A and / or B" can represent: A alone, A and B together, or B alone. A and B can be singular or plural. Furthermore, the character " / " as used herein generally indicates an "or" relationship between the associated objects, but it may also indicate an "and / or" relationship. For specific understanding, please refer to the context.

[0513] In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "plurality" means two or more. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or plural.

[0514] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of the present application, the size of the serial numbers of the above-mentioned processes does not mean the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of the present application.

[0515] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example 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 performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Professional and technical personnel 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 application.

[0516] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the systems, devices and units described above can refer to the corresponding processes in the aforementioned method embodiments and will not be repeated here.

[0517] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely schematic. For example, the division of the units is merely a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, such as multiple units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. Another point is that the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed can be through some interfaces, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, which can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0518] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate, and the components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of these units may be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0519] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

[0520] If the functions are implemented in the form of software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present application, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or the part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions for enabling a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the method described in each embodiment of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media that can store program codes, such as a USB flash drive, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

[0521] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this application should be included in the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be based on the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to a data management network element, including: When the terminal does not establish multiple connections, the data management network element obtains indication information, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multiple connections. Multiple connections refer to establishing multiple connections of the 3GPP access type at the same time, and the connections of the 3GPP access type belong to the same or different networks; The data management network element sends the indication information to the terminal.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The indication information includes a network list, and the multiple networks indicated by the network list are networks that can be used to establish multiple connections.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The method further includes: The data management network element obtains the indication information from an application function.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein Before the data management network element obtains the indication information from the application function, the method further includes: The data management network element sends the slice information and / or data network name corresponding to the session of the terminal to the application function network element; The multiple networks indicated by the network list are networks that support the slice information and / or the data network name.

5. The method according to any one of claims 2-4, characterized in that: The multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include the network to which the terminal is currently connected.

6. The method according to any one of claims 2-5, characterized in that: The network list further indicates that the multiple networks support the radio access technology type subscribed by the terminal.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The data management network element obtains indication information, including: The data management network element receives the capability information of the terminal, where the capability information of the terminal is used to indicate that the terminal supports multiple connections; The data management network element obtains the indication information according to the capability information of the terminal.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that The data management network element obtains indication information, including: The data management network element obtains the slice information requested by the terminal, where the slice information requested by the terminal is used to indicate the network slice requested by the terminal; The data management network element obtains the indication information according to the network slice being the slice corresponding to the multiple-connection service.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that The data management network element obtains indication information, including: The data management network element obtains the subscription data of the terminal, where the subscription data of the terminal indicates that the terminal supports multiple connections; The data management network element obtains the indication information according to the subscription data of the terminal.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The data management network element obtains indication information, including: The data management network element receives service information from an access and mobility management network element, where the service information is used to indicate that the service requirements of the terminal are not met; The data management network element obtains the indication information according to the service requirements of the terminal not being met.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The data management network element obtains indication information, including: The data management network element obtains the indication information according to a preset condition, where the preset condition includes at least one of the following: currently within the time period when the terminal needs to establish multiple connections, or the location of the terminal is within the area where the terminal needs to establish multiple connections.

12. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The data management network element obtains indication information, including: The data management network element receives request information from a terminal, where the request information is used to indicate that the terminal requests to establish a multi-connection; The data management network element obtains the indication information according to the request information.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The data management network element obtaining the indication information includes: The data management network element obtains slice information and / or a data network name corresponding to a session of the terminal, where the slice information and / or the data network name correspond to the service of the terminal; The data management network element obtains the indication information according to whether the service of the terminal is a service that requires establishing a multi-connection.

14. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to an application function network element, it includes: The application function network element receives a request message, where the request message is used to request the application function network element to provide a network that can be used to establish a multi-connection. A multi-connection means establishing multiple connections of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access type simultaneously, and the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks; The application function network element sends a response message according to the request message, where the response message includes a network list, and the multiple networks indicated by the network list are networks that can be used to establish a multi-connection.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein The method further includes: The application function network element receives slice information and / or a data network name corresponding to a session of the terminal; The application function network element determines the network list according to multiple networks that support the slice information and / or the data network name.

16. The method according to claim 14 or 15, characterized in that: The multiple networks indicated by the network list do not include the network to which the terminal is currently connected.

17. The method according to any one of claims 14 - 16, characterized in that: The network list further indicates that the multiple networks support the radio access technology type subscribed by the terminal.

18. A communication method, characterized in that, Applied to an access and mobility management network element, it includes: The access and mobility management network element sends service information to the data management network element, where the service information indicates that the service requirement of the terminal is not met; The access and mobility management network element receives the indication information from the data management network element according to the service information, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish a multi-connection. A multi-connection means establishing multiple connections of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access type simultaneously, and the 3GPP access type connections belong to the same or different networks; The access and mobility management network element sends the indication information to the terminal.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein, The method further includes: The access and mobility management network element receives an N2 message from an access network device, and the N2 message includes the service information; The access and mobility management network element determines that the access network device cannot meet the service requirement of the terminal according to the service information.

20. The method according to claim 18, characterized in that The method further includes: The access and mobility management network element obtains the service information according to the fact that the terminal is located in a low-signal area, where the service information is specifically used to indicate that the signal quality of the terminal cannot meet the signal quality requirement of the service of the terminal.

21. A communication method, characterized in that, It includes: Receive indication information, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal needs to establish multi-connections. Multi-connections refer to establishing multiple connections of the 3GPP access type simultaneously, and the connections of the 3GPP access type belong to the same or different networks; Establish multi-connections according to the indication information.

22. The method according to claim 21, wherein The terminal has established a connection of the 3GPP access type with a first network. The establishing multi-connections according to the indication information includes; Select a second network from multiple networks indicated by a network list according to the indication information, where the multiple networks indicated by the network list are networks that can be used to establish multi-connections; Establish a connection of the 3GPP access type with the second network.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein: The first network is not included in the multiple networks indicated by the network list.

24. The method according to claim 22 or 23, wherein: The network list also indicates that the multiple networks support the radio access technology types subscribed by the terminal.

25. The method according to any one of claims 22 - 24, characterized in that, The indication information is also used to indicate the network list.

26. The method according to any one of claims 22-25, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send the capability information of the terminal, where the capability information of the terminal is used to indicate that the terminal supports multi-connections.

27. The method according to any one of claims 22-25, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send the slice information corresponding to the session of the terminal and / or the data network name, where the slice information and / or the data network name correspond to the service of the terminal, and the service of the terminal is a service that needs to establish multi-connections.

28. The method according to any one of claims 22-25, characterized in that, The method further includes: Send a request information when the terminal needs to establish multi-connections, where the request information is used to indicate that the terminal requests to establish multi-connections.

29. A communication device, characterized in that, The communication device includes: a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store computer instructions, and when the processor executes the instructions, the communication device is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-28.

30. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium includes a computer program or instruction, and when the computer program or instruction runs on a computer, the computer is caused to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-28.

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