Air interface information transmission method, air interface information transmission apparatus, and storage medium

Abstract

The present application relates to an air interface information transmission method, an air interface information transmission apparatus, and a storage medium. The method comprises: a UE receiving a continuous handover configuration message, and performing air interface information transmission on the basis of the continuous handover configuration message, wherein the continuous handover configuration message comprises a next-hop chaining counter (NCC) corresponding to a potential target cell.

Description

Air interface information transmission method, air interface information transmission device and storage medium Cross-referencing

[0001] This application incorporates Chinese Patent Application No. 2024105685564, filed on May 9, 2024, entitled “Air Interface Information Transmission Method, Air Interface Information Transmission Apparatus and Storage Medium”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to an air interface information transmission method, an air interface information transmission device, and a storage medium. Background Technology

[0003] In Long Term Evolution (LTE) and 5G wireless communication networks, to improve signaling interaction efficiency, the industry has proposed a "continuous handover configuration" mechanism. This mechanism ensures that after a User Equipment (UE) hands over, the previous wireless configurations for the UE's access to other cells can still be used, in preparation for subsequent UE handovers to those cells. For security and isolation considerations, an "air interface security mechanism" has been proposed. This means that in LTE and 5G wireless communication networks, when a UE connects to multiple nodes consecutively due to handover, each node can only know the air interface root key used by the next node the UE connects to, and cannot know the air interface root key used by the node the UE connects to after that, to ensure the security of information transmission.

[0004] However, the aforementioned continuous switching configuration mechanism is incompatible with the air interface security mechanism, resulting in low security for air interface information transmission. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Based on this, this application provides an air interface information transmission method, an air interface information transmission device, and a storage medium, which can be compatible with continuous switching configuration mechanisms and air interface security mechanisms, thereby improving the security of air interface information transmission.

[0006] In a first aspect, this application provides an air interface information transmission method, which is applied to a user terminal (UE), and the method includes:

[0007] Receive continuous switching configuration messages;

[0008] Air interface information is transmitted according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0009] In some embodiments, when the potential target cell is the UE, the source cell or target cell of the cell change; the cell change includes any one of handover, reselection, reconstruction, and recovery.

[0010] In some embodiments, the transmission of air interface information according to the continuous switching configuration message includes:

[0011] Generate the target air interface root key based on the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell;

[0012] Air interface information is transmitted based on the target air interface root key.

[0013] In some embodiments, generating the target air interface root key based on the next-hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell includes:

[0014] If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the first judgment condition, it is determined that the UE needs to change the air interface root key when performing cell change, and a target air interface root key is generated according to the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell.

[0015] The first judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0016] The continuous configuration message indicates that the change from the source cell of the cell change to the target cell of the cell change requires a change of the air interface root key;

[0017] The first identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the first identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0018] The NCC corresponding to the source cell of the cell change is different from the NCC corresponding to the target cell of the cell change.

[0019] The second identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the second identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0020] In some embodiments, generating the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell includes:

[0021] If the continuous handover configuration message meets the second judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the target cell for the cell change;

[0022] If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the third judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the source cell of the cell change;

[0023] The second judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0024] The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the target cell for the cell change;

[0025] The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change;

[0026] The third judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0027] The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the source cell of the cell change;

[0028] The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is the same as the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0029] In some embodiments, the transmission of air interface information according to the continuous switching configuration message includes:

[0030] If it is determined from the continuous handover configuration message that no change to the air interface root key is required when changing the cell, air interface information is transmitted based on the air interface root key currently held by the UE.

[0031] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0032] An NCC is selected according to a first preset rule as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during cell change; wherein, the first preset rule includes:

[0033] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0034] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during the cell change; wherein, the modulo operation includes:

[0035] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0036] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0037] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0038] The NCC corresponding to the potential target cell is stored as a variable of the UE.

[0039] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission method, which is applied to a first node in an access network, and the method includes:

[0040] Request the potential target nodes in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generate a continuous handover configuration message;

[0041] The continuous handover configuration message is sent to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0042] In some embodiments, the first node is the node to which the source cell of any change occurs during the continuous cell change process of the UE; the potential target node is the node to which the target cell of any change occurs during the continuous cell change process of the UE.

[0043] In some embodiments, requesting a continuous handover configuration from a potential target node in the access network and generating a continuous handover configuration message includes:

[0044] Request the potential target node in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration, determine the potential target cell, and the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell;

[0045] The continuous handover configuration message is generated based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0046] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0047] Send the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the potential target node to the potential target node.

[0048] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0049] Send a first interface message to the core network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node;

[0050] The core network receives a first feedback interface message sent by the core network; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0051] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0052] A second interface message is sent to the core network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0053] The system receives a second feedback interface message sent by the core network; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0054] In some embodiments, requesting a continuous handover configuration from a potential target node in the access network includes:

[0055] Based on the NH indicated by the NCC currently held by the first node, generate the target air interface root key of the potential target cell;

[0056] Send the target air interface root key of the potential target cell to the potential target node.

[0057] In some embodiments, requesting a continuous handover configuration from a potential target node in the access network and generating a continuous handover configuration message includes:

[0058] The core network requests the potential target node to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generates a continuous handover configuration message.

[0059] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission method, which is applied to a second node in an access network, and the method includes:

[0060] When the UE accesses the second node, it sends a first switching request to the core network; the first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message;

[0061] The core network receives a first conversion confirmation message returned based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0062] In some embodiments, the second node is the node to which the target cell belongs during any change in the continuous cell change process of the UE.

[0063] In some embodiments, the first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0064] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0065] According to the second preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion request;

[0066] The second preset rule includes:

[0067] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0068] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion request;

[0069] The modulo operation includes:

[0070] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0071] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0072] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0073] When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it receives the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node sent by the core network;

[0074] Generate the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0075] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0076] Receive the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node sent by the first node in the access network.

[0077] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0078] Send a third interface message to the core network; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node;

[0079] The core network receives a third feedback interface message sent by the core network; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0080] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission method, which is applied to a core network, and the method includes:

[0081] Receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network;

[0082] Send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0083] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0084] Obtain the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node;

[0085] The first conversion confirmation message is generated based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0086] In some embodiments, the first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node, and obtaining the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node includes:

[0087] The NH indicated by the NCC is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0088] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0089] According to the third preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message;

[0090] The third preset rule includes:

[0091] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0092] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message;

[0093] The modulo operation includes:

[0094] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0095] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0096] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0097] When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it sends the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node to the second node.

[0098] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0099] The NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0100] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0101] According to the fourth preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC to be sent to the second node;

[0102] The fourth preset rule includes:

[0103] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0104] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node;

[0105] The modulo operation includes:

[0106] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0107] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0108] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0109] Receive a first interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node;

[0110] Send a first feedback interface message to the first node; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0111] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0112] The system receives a second interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0113] Send a second feedback interface message to the first node; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0114] In some embodiments, the above method further includes:

[0115] Receive a third interface message sent by the second node; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node;

[0116] A third feedback interface message is sent to the second node; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0117] Fifthly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, including: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor.

[0118] The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0119] Receive continuous switching configuration messages;

[0120] Air interface information is transmitted according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0121] Sixthly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, including: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor.

[0122] The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0123] Request the potential target nodes in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generate a continuous handover configuration message;

[0124] The continuous handover configuration message is sent to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0125] Seventhly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, including: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor.

[0126] The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0127] When the UE accesses the second node, it sends a first switching request to the core network; the first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message;

[0128] The core network receives a first conversion confirmation message returned based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0129] Eighthly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, including: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor.

[0130] The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0131] Receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network;

[0132] Send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0133] Ninthly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, comprising:

[0134] The first receiving unit is used to receive continuous switching configuration messages;

[0135] The first processing unit is used to transmit air interface information according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0136] In a tenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, comprising:

[0137] The second processing unit is used to request the preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network and generate a continuous handover configuration message.

[0138] The first sending unit is used to send a continuous handover configuration message to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0139] Eleventhly, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, comprising:

[0140] The second sending unit is used to send a first conversion request to the core network when the UE accesses the second node;

[0141] The second receiving unit is configured to receive a first conversion confirmation message returned by the core network based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0142] The first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message.

[0143] In a twelfth aspect, embodiments of this application provide an air interface information transmission device, comprising:

[0144] The third receiving unit is used to receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network;

[0145] The third sending unit is used to send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0146] In a thirteenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a processor-readable storage medium storing a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the method described in the first aspect above, or the method described in the second aspect above, or the method described in the third aspect above, or the method described in the fourth aspect above.

[0147] In this embodiment, the UE receives a continuous handover configuration message and transmits air interface information according to the continuous handover configuration message. The continuous handover configuration message includes the next-hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell. This method realizes air interface information transmission under the continuous handover configuration mechanism. Since the continuous handover configuration message includes the NCC corresponding to all potential target cells, continuous handover is configured for the UE. This allows the UE to calculate the air interface root key based on the NCC corresponding to each potential target cell during the continuous handover process, thereby enabling secure interaction of signaling and service data with the network. Therefore, the above method achieves the coexistence of the continuous handover configuration mechanism and the NCC-based air interface security mechanism, which to a certain extent guarantees the security performance of the wireless communication system using the continuous handover configuration mechanism.

[0148] The above description is only an overview of the technical solution of this application. In order to better understand the technical means of this application and to implement it in accordance with the contents of the specification, and to make the above and other objects, features and advantages of this application more obvious and understandable, the following are specific embodiments of this application. Attached Figure Description

[0149] Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the detailed description of the embodiments described below. The accompanying drawings are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of this application. Furthermore, the same reference numerals denote the same parts throughout the drawings. In the drawings:

[0150] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario of an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0151] Figure 2 is a flowchart illustrating an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0152] Figure 3 is a flowchart illustrating the implementation of step S202 according to an embodiment of this application;

[0153] Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating the implementation of step S301 according to an embodiment of this application;

[0154] Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating the implementation of step S301 according to an embodiment of this application;

[0155] Figure 6 is a flowchart illustrating an implementation method for transmitting air interface information according to a first preset rule provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0156] Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0157] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating the implementation of step S701 according to an embodiment of this application;

[0158] Figure 9 is a flowchart illustrating an interface message transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0159] Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating an interface message transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0160] Figure 11 is a flowchart illustrating the implementation of step S701 according to an embodiment of this application;

[0161] Figure 12 is a flowchart illustrating an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0162] Figure 13 is a flowchart illustrating a method for generating a target air interface root key according to an embodiment of this application;

[0163] Figure 14 is a flowchart illustrating an interface message transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0164] Figure 15 is a flowchart illustrating an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0165] Figure 16 is a flowchart illustrating a method for generating a first conversion confirmation message according to an embodiment of this application;

[0166] Figure 17 is a flowchart illustrating a method for providing NH to a second node according to an embodiment of this application;

[0167] Figure 18 is a flowchart illustrating an interface message transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0168] Figure 19 is a flowchart illustrating an interface message transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0169] Figure 20 is a flowchart illustrating an interface message transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0170] Figure 21 is a schematic diagram of signaling interaction of an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0171] Figure 22 is a schematic diagram of signaling interaction of an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0172] Figure 23 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0173] Figure 24 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0174] Figure 25 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0175] Figure 26 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0176] Figure 27 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0177] Figure 28 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0178] Figure 29 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0179] Figure 30 is a structural diagram of an air interface information transmission device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0180] The embodiments of the technical solution of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. These embodiments are only used to more clearly illustrate the technical solution of this application and are therefore merely examples, and should not be used to limit the scope of protection of this application.

[0181] Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application pertains; the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to limit the application; the terms “comprising” and “having”, and any variations thereof, in the specification, claims, and foregoing description of the drawings are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion.

[0182] In the description of the embodiments of this application, technical terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish different objects and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly specifying the number, specific order, or primary and secondary relationship of the indicated technical features. In the description of the embodiments of this application, "multiple" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly defined.

[0183] In this document, the term "embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment may be included in at least one embodiment of this application. The appearance of this phrase in various places throughout the specification does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment, nor is it a separate or alternative embodiment mutually exclusive with other embodiments. It will be explicitly and implicitly understood by those skilled in the art that the embodiments described herein can be combined with other embodiments.

[0184] In the description of the embodiments in this application, the term "and / or" is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, and B existing alone. Additionally, the character " / " in this document generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects have an "or" relationship.

[0185] In the description of the embodiments of this application, the term "multiple" refers to two or more (including two), similarly, "multiple sets" refers to two or more (including two sets), and "multiple pieces" refers to two or more (including two pieces).

[0186] In the description of the embodiments of this application, the technical terms "center," "longitudinal," "lateral," "length," "width," "thickness," "upper," "lower," "front," "rear," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "top," "bottom," "inner," "outer," "clockwise," "counterclockwise," "axial," "radial," and "circumferential" indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are only for the convenience of describing the embodiments of this application and simplifying the description, and are not intended to indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on the embodiments of this application.

[0187] In the description of the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, technical terms such as "installation," "connection," "joining," and "fixing" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. For those skilled in the art, the specific meaning of the above terms in the embodiments of this application can be understood according to the specific circumstances.

[0188] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0189] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario for an air interface information transmission method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 1, the scenario includes a user equipment (UE) 100, a first node 101, a second node 102, a third node 103, and a core network 104. The UE 100 transmits air interface information with the first node 101, the second node 102, and the third node 103. The first node 101, the second node 102, or the third node 103 can respectively transmit data with the core network 104.

[0190] The technical solutions provided in this application can be applied to a variety of systems. For example, applicable systems may include Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) systems, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) systems, Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A) systems, Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) systems, 5G New Radio (NR) systems, and their evolved communication systems. These systems may include terminal equipment and network equipment. The systems may also include a core network component, such as Evolved Packet System (EPS) or 5G systems (5GS).

[0191] The first node 101 can be a base station (BTS) in Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) or Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), a base station (NodeB, NB) in Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), an evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB) in LTE, a relay station or access point, or a base station in a 5G network, etc., and is not limited here.

[0192] The second node 102 can be a base station (BTS) in Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) or Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), a base station (NodeB, NB) in Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), an evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB) in LTE, a relay station or access point, or a base station in a 5G network, etc., and is not limited here.

[0193] The third node 103 can be a base station (BTS) in Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) or Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), a base station (NodeB, NB) in Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), an evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB) in LTE, a relay station or access point, or a base station in a 5G network, etc., and is not limited here.

[0194] User terminal 100 may be a device that provides voice and / or data connectivity to a user, a handheld device with wireless connectivity, or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem. The name of the user terminal may differ in different systems; for example, in a 5G system, the user terminal may be called User Equipment (UE). The user terminal may be a USB storage device, other personal computer memory devices, or a dongle. It may also communicate with one or more core networks (CNs) via a Radio Access Network (RAN). The user terminal may be a mobile terminal device, such as a mobile phone (or "cellular" phone) or a computer with a mobile terminal device, for example, a portable, pocket-sized, handheld, computer-embedded, or vehicle-mounted mobile device that exchanges voice and / or data with the radio access network. Examples of such devices include Personal Communication Service (PCS) telephones, cordless phones, Session Initiated Protocol (SIP) phones, Wireless Local Loop (WLL) stations, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), personal computers, tablets, and Machine-type Communication (MTC) terminal devices. User terminals can also be referred to as systems, subscriber units, subscriber stations, mobile stations, mobile devices, remote stations, access points, remote terminals, access terminals, user terminals, user agents, user devices, and wireless access devices and routers / modems that meet the limitations of this definition; however, this application does not limit the scope of the embodiments.

[0195] In traditional conditional handover, although the source node may provide the UE with radio configurations for different candidate cells, these configurations become invalid immediately after the UE hands over and cannot be used for subsequent handovers. To improve signaling efficiency, the industry has proposed a "continuous handover configuration" mechanism, which allows the radio configurations previously configured for the UE to access other cells to be retained after the UE hands over, so that the UE can use them when it hands over to those cells again.

[0196] In traditional handover, if the source node is different from the target node, the aforementioned radio configuration includes an air interface root key for use by both the target node and the UE after the handover. In most cases, this air interface root key is provided to the target node by the source node. The source node does not directly inform the UE of this air interface root key; instead, the UE is provided with sufficient information, such as the Next Hop Chaining Counter (NCC), to instruct the UE on how to calculate the air interface root key.

[0197] For security and isolation considerations, Long Term Evolution (LTE), 5G, and other wireless communication networks require that when a UE connects to multiple nodes due to handover, each node can only know the air interface root key used by the node the UE connects to next, and cannot know the air interface root key used by the node the UE connects to after that (i.e., two hops later). This security requirement is called "two-hop forward security." To meet this security requirement, LTE, 5G, and other wireless communication networks have introduced a "next hop" security mechanism. In the "next hop" security mechanism, each time a cross-node handover occurs or is completed, the core network provides a "next hop" value to the target node of the handover. This "next hop" value is unknown to the source node of the handover. The target node of the handover will also know the NCC associated with this "next hop" value. After this, whenever this target node needs to calculate a new air interface root key (e.g., when the next cross-node handover is about to occur), it needs to calculate the air interface root key directly or indirectly based on this "next hop" value. In order for the UE to calculate the same air interface root key, the UE will receive the aforementioned NCC through the air interface to indicate which "next hop" value the UE should use to directly or indirectly calculate the air interface root key.

[0198] However, the continuous handover configuration mechanism is incompatible with the aforementioned security mechanisms: as mentioned earlier, the NCC used for each cross-node handover is determined during or after the previous cross-node handover, and cannot be predicted by the network when configuring the continuous handover configuration, and therefore cannot be configured for the UE. This results in the UE not knowing how to calculate the air interface root key during continuous handover, and thus being unable to securely interact with the network for signaling and service data.

[0199] In view of this, embodiments of this application propose an air interface information transmission method that enables the continuous handover configuration mechanism to coexist with the NCC-based air interface security mechanism, thereby ensuring the security performance of wireless communication systems using the continuous handover configuration mechanism.

[0200] It should be noted that the beneficial effects or technical problems solved by the embodiments of this application are not limited to this one, but may also be other implicit or related problems. For details, please refer to the description of the embodiments below.

[0201] Before introducing specific embodiments of the present invention, the technical terms involved in the present invention will be explained:

[0202] 1) Continuous configuration switching:

[0203] In this embodiment, handover refers to a reconfiguration process: the UE (User Equipment) was originally connected to the wireless communication system through a radio cell (also called the first radio cell), and later switched to connecting to the communication system through another radio cell (also called the second radio cell). The first radio cell is called the source cell for handover, and the second radio cell is called the target cell for handover. If the source cell and the target cell are controlled by different radio access network nodes, then the radio access network node controlling the source cell is called the source node for handover, and the node controlling the target cell is called the target node for handover. In this case, the source node can directly execute the handover preparation process with the target node to initiate handover, or indirectly communicate with the target node through the core network to prepare for handover. In the case where the source node and target node directly execute the handover preparation process, the source node sends a handover request message to the target node to trigger the handover preparation process. In the case where they communicate indirectly through the core network, the source node sends a source-to-target transparent transmission container through the core network.

[0204] The two scenarios described above are collectively referred to as the handover preparation phase. The handover preparation phase requires the exchange of a large amount of information between nodes, such as the UE's service information. The purpose of the handover preparation phase is to generate or modify the target configuration for the handover. The target configuration for the handover will be used after the corresponding handover is completed. Correspondingly, the phase after the handover preparation phase, where the UE actually disconnects from the source cell and accesses the target cell, is called the handover execution phase. A relatively long interval can exist between the handover execution phase and the handover preparation phase. That is, even if the current radio channel conditions are not suitable for handover, the network can perform the handover preparation phase in advance to prepare for future handover, and then perform the handover when the radio channel conditions are suitable. The handover execution phase can be triggered by either the source node or the UE. A typical scenario for the latter is "conditional handover," where the network instructs the UE to initiate the handover execution phase if and only if a certain condition is met.

[0205] A radio access network (RAN) node serving a UE can consider multiple cells as potential handover target cells. For any potential handover target cell, if the cell belongs to another RAN node (referred to here as a potential handover target node), the aforementioned RAN node and each potential handover target node perform a handover preparation phase. If successful, the potential handover target cell becomes a candidate target cell, and the potential handover target node becomes a candidate target node. For each candidate target cell, the corresponding candidate target node holds a set of handover target configurations.

[0206] In traditional handover mechanisms, once a UE undergoes handover, reconstruction, connection restoration, or other similar state changes, all target configurations for that UE held by all nodes before the change become invalid, meaning they cannot be used after the next handover (the UE may be applying one of these target configurations, but this configuration immediately becomes the "current configuration" after application, losing its "target configuration" status). If the target node after the handover needs to prepare for the next handover, it needs to re-execute the handover preparation phase.

[0207] Considering that the UE's serving node needs to re-execute the handover preparation phase after each handover, resulting in a large signaling load on the network interface and a large information processing load on the nodes, the industry has proposed the concept of "continuous handover configuration." Under this concept, even if a handover occurs, the target configuration for the UE held by all nodes before the change remains valid and can be used for subsequent handovers.

[0208] 2) Air interface security key:

[0209] In LTE, 5G, and other systems, under normal circumstances, the higher-layer signaling and user data interactions between the UE and the radio access network node are encrypted ciphertext. Furthermore, integrity protection is implemented to prevent man-in-the-middle tampering. These security measures are collectively referred to as the air interface security mechanism. The air interface security mechanism is centered around the air interface root key. This air interface root key is called KeNB in ​​LTE systems and KNG-RAN in 5G systems (which can be further subdivided into Kng-eNB and KgNB depending on the specific type of radio access network node). Similar notations exist in other similar systems. The air interface root key is a bit string of a specified length. The UE and the radio access network node use the air interface root key or its derivatives for encryption, integrity protection, and other security operations.

[0210] The air interface root key is a symmetric key, and both the network and the UE independently calculate the same air interface root key value. The input parameters for calculating the air interface root key are centered around the "superior key," but also include other secondary input parameters. The "superior key" is a bit string held or provided by the Non-Access Stratum (NAS), or it is the air interface root key previously used by the UE. In the latter case, the "superior key" used each time the air interface root key is updated is statistically independent (they have different values ​​unless they happen to be the same, and the same applies below); while in the former case, the security mechanism requires that for each bit string held or provided by the NAS, both the UE and the network perform the operation of "using this bit string to generate the air interface root key" at most once. This design makes the air interface root key statistically irregular, making it difficult for attackers to crack.

[0211] Each air interface root key and its "superior key" are associated with an NCC (Network Control Class). The NCC associated with any air interface root key is equal to the NCC associated with its "superior key." In most cases, when the non-access stratum provides the "superior key," it also provides the NCC associated with that "superior key." In this case, the "superior key" is called the "next hop" (NH). For access stratum network nodes, this means that when the core network provides the "superior key," it also provides the NCC associated with that "superior key"—in other words, the core network provides a combination of "next hop" and NCC. In a few cases, the non-access stratum does not provide the NCC in plaintext when providing the "superior key." In this case, the NCC takes the default value, which is 0.

[0212] In cases where the source and target nodes directly perform the handover preparation process, the core network provides the target node with a combination of "next hop" and NCC after the handover is complete. This combination of "next hop" and NCC will be used for the next air interface root key calculation. In cases where communication is indirect via the core network, the core network directly provides the target node with a "superior key" during the handover preparation phase, and if applicable (where the "superior key" is the "next hop"), also provides NCC. This "superior key" and any applicable NCC are directly used for this handover, i.e., for calculating the air interface root key used by the UE and the target node after the handover.

[0213] In handover scenarios, if there are source and target nodes (i.e., different nodes), the air interface root key will inevitably change after the handover compared to before. On the network side, the updated air interface root key is provided to the target node during the handover preparation phase. If the source and target nodes directly perform the handover preparation process, the updated air interface root key is included in the handover request message sent by the source node to the target node. If communication is indirect via the core network, the "superior key" is included in the handover request message sent by the core network to the target node, and the updated air interface root key is calculated by the target node itself based on the "superior key."

[0214] For ease of description, in this embodiment, "calculating the air interface root key directly using NH as the 'upper-level key'" is referred to as "calculating the air interface root key directly based on (this) NH". Correspondingly, if the "upper-level key" used in calculating the air interface root key is the air interface root key previously used by the UE, then we trace back to which air interface root key was used as the "upper-level key" to calculate this "air interface root key previously used by the UE". If it is also an air interface root key, we continue tracing back until we reach an NH. In this case, the process of calculating the "air interface root key" mentioned at the beginning is referred to as "calculating the air interface root key indirectly based on (this) NH". The two cases mentioned above are collectively referred to as "calculating the air interface root key directly or indirectly based on (this) NH".

[0215] The technical solution of this application and how the technical solution of this application solves the above-mentioned technical problems are described in detail below with specific embodiments. These specific embodiments can be combined with each other, and the same or similar concepts or processes may not be described again in some embodiments. The embodiments of this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0216] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG2, an air interface information transmission method is provided. Taking the application of this method to the UE in FIG1 as an example, the method includes the following steps:

[0217] S201, Receive continuous switching configuration message.

[0218] In this embodiment, the UE can receive a continuous handover configuration message sent by the first node in the access network. In some embodiments, the UE can also receive continuous handover configuration messages sent by other nodes or terminals.

[0219] In this embodiment, the continuous handover configuration message received by the UE from the first node in the access network is used as an example for illustration. In Figure 1, the first node is the node to which the source cell of any change in the continuous cell change process belongs. The first node initiates the handover to configure the continuous handover process for the UE. That is, the first node decides which cells to configure as potential target cells for continuous handover configuration. If these cells all belong to the first node, the second node, or the third node, the first node can decide the NCC value corresponding to the first node, the second node, and the third node respectively. That is, the first node decides the NCC value corresponding to the potential target cell, and then carries the NCC value corresponding to the potential target cell in the continuous handover configuration message. It can be encapsulated in the RRC (Radio Resource Control) message and sent to the UE, or it can be encapsulated in the Medium Access Control Control Element (MAC CE) and sent to the UE. Continuous handover is configured for the UE so that the UE can transmit air interface information with the corresponding potential target cell based on the NCC corresponding to each potential target cell.

[0220] S202, air interface information is transmitted according to the continuous handover configuration message, wherein the continuous handover configuration message includes the next-hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0221] In some embodiments, the potential target cell can be the source cell for the cell change when the UE performs a cell change; the cell change includes any one of handover, reselection, reconstruction, and recovery. In some embodiments, the potential target cell can be the target cell for the cell change when the UE performs a cell change; the cell change includes any one of handover, reselection, reconstruction, and recovery.

[0222] In this embodiment of the application, the first node in Figure 1 is the node corresponding to the cell to which the UE belongs. The first node can configure continuous handover for the UE. That is, after the first node completes the continuous handover configuration, it generates a continuous handover configuration message and sends the continuous handover configuration message to the UE. The UE can then receive the continuous handover configuration message. Since the continuous handover configuration message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell, when the UE receives the continuous handover configuration message, it can further calculate the air interface root key based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell and transmit air interface information with the potential target cell based on the air interface root key.

[0223] The method described in this application embodiment uses the UE as the execution subject. The UE receives a continuous handover configuration message and transmits air interface information according to the continuous handover configuration message. The continuous handover configuration message includes the next-hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell. This method realizes air interface information transmission under the continuous handover configuration mechanism. Since the continuous handover configuration message includes the NCC corresponding to all potential target cells, continuous handover is configured for the UE. This allows the UE to calculate the air interface root key based on the NCC corresponding to each potential target cell during the continuous handover process, thereby enabling secure interaction of signaling and service data with the network. Therefore, the above method achieves the coexistence of the continuous handover configuration mechanism and the NCC-based air interface security mechanism, which to a certain extent guarantees the security performance of the wireless communication system using the continuous handover configuration mechanism.

[0224] In some embodiments, a method for transmitting air interface information is provided, as shown in FIG3, namely, the above-mentioned S202 "transmitting air interface information according to the continuous switching configuration message", including:

[0225] S301, Generate the target air interface root key based on the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0226] S302, transmit air interface information according to the target air interface root key.

[0227] In this embodiment of the application, when the UE obtains the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell based on the aforementioned steps, it can further determine the next hop NH indicated by the NCC, calculate the target air interface root key based on the NH, and then use the calculated air interface root key to transmit air interface information, such as interactive signaling and service data.

[0228] In some embodiments, an implementation of S301 is provided, as shown in Figure 4, namely, S301 "generating the target air interface root key according to the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell", including:

[0229] S401, determine whether the continuous switching configuration message meets the first judgment condition. If the continuous switching configuration message meets the first judgment condition, then execute step S402; if the continuous switching configuration message does not meet the first judgment condition, then execute step S403.

[0230] S402, determine that the UE needs to change the air interface root key when performing cell change, and generate the target air interface root key according to the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell.

[0231] S403, determine that the UE does not need to change the air interface root key when performing cell change, and transmit air interface information according to the air interface root key currently held by the UE.

[0232] In some embodiments, the first determination condition includes any one of the following: the continuous configuration message indicates that the change from the source cell of the cell change to the target cell of the cell change requires a change of the air interface root key; the first identifier of the source cell of the cell change is different from the first identifier of the target cell of the cell change; the NCC corresponding to the source cell of the cell change is different from the NCC corresponding to the target cell of the cell change; and the second identifier of the source cell of the cell change is different from the second identifier of the target cell of the cell change.

[0233] In this embodiment, when a UE undergoes handover, if it disconnects from a cell under the jurisdiction of the first node and connects to a cell under the jurisdiction of the second node, the UE determines, based on the previously received continuous handover configuration message, that this handover requires a change to the air interface root key. If a change to the air interface root key is required, the UE can directly or indirectly calculate the air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the first node, and use the calculated air interface root key as the target air interface root key to connect with the second node, for example, to exchange signaling and service data. If a change to the air interface root key is not required, the UE's current air interface root key is used as the target air interface root key for air interface information transmission, for example, to exchange signaling and service data.

[0234] It should be noted that the UE can determine whether an air interface root key update is needed based on either explicit or implicit criteria. For example, the UE may explicitly specify in the received continuous configuration message which cell handovers require an air interface root key update. Alternatively, the UE may assign an identifier to each potential target cell in the received continuous configuration message. For handovers, if the identifiers of the source and target cells are the same, it is determined that an air interface root key update is not needed; if the identifiers of the source and target cells are different, it is determined that an air interface root key update is needed. Another example is that for handovers, the UE compares the NCC corresponding to the source cell with the NCC corresponding to the target cell. If they are the same, it is determined that an air interface root key update is not needed; if they are different, it is determined that an air interface root key update is needed.

[0235] In some embodiments, another implementation of S301 is provided, as shown in Figure 5, namely, S301 "generating the target air interface root key according to the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell", including:

[0236] S501, determine whether the continuous handover configuration message meets the second judgment condition or the third judgment condition; if the continuous handover configuration message meets the second judgment condition, then execute step S502; if the continuous handover configuration message meets the third judgment condition, then execute step S503.

[0237] S502, identify potential target cells as target cells for cell change.

[0238] S503, identify the potential target cell as the source cell for cell change.

[0239] The second judgment condition includes any one of the following: the continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the target cell for the cell change; the third identifier of the source cell for the cell change is different from the third identifier of the target cell for the cell change. The third judgment condition includes any one of the following: the continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the source cell for the cell change; the third identifier of the source cell for the cell change is the same as the third identifier of the target cell for the cell change.

[0240] In this embodiment, when a change in the air interface root key occurs during intra-node handover or inter-node indirect handover, the UE determines whether a change in the air interface root key is necessary. The UE can further determine whether the continuous handover configuration message meets a second judgment condition or a third judgment condition. If the continuous handover configuration message meets the second judgment condition, the potential target cell is determined to be the target cell for cell change (i.e., it is for an inter-node indirect handover scenario), and then the target air interface root key can be generated based on the NH indicated by the NCC of the target cell for cell change. If the continuous handover configuration message meets the third judgment condition, the potential target cell is the source cell for cell change (i.e., it is for an intra-node handover scenario where a change in the air interface root key occurs), and then the target air interface root key can be generated based on the NH indicated by the NCC of the source cell for cell change.

[0241] In some embodiments, an implementation method for transmitting air interface information according to a first preset rule is provided, as shown in Figure 6. The method includes:

[0242] S601, Select an NCC according to the first preset rule as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used when changing the cell.

[0243] S602, transmits air interface information according to the NCC corresponding to the selected potential cell.

[0244] In some embodiments, the first preset rule includes: performing a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the calculated value corresponding to each NCC; and determining the NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during cell change. The modulo operation includes: performing a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulo value of the NCC; and subtracting the NCC held by the node to which the UE belongs before the cell change from the modulo value of the NCC. Exemplarily illustrating the above first preset rule, among all NCCs, the NCC that satisfies the conditions described below is determined as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during cell change: this NCC, after subtracting the NCC held by the first node to which the UE belongs before the handover by performing a modulo-N operation, is the smallest among the results of performing a similar modulo-N operation on all NCCs, or other mathematically equivalent representations of the aforementioned rule. Here, N is a pre-given value; for example, N could be 8.

[0245] In this embodiment of the application, when the UE receives a continuous handover configuration message indicating that the target potential cell belongs to a node with multiple NCCs, for example, the target potential cell belongs to a second node, which corresponds to multiple NCCs, in this scenario, the UE can select one NCC from these multiple NCCs according to the first preset rule mentioned above as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used when changing the cell, and calculate the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the selected NCC.

[0246] In some embodiments, when the UE determines the NCC corresponding to a potential target cell, it may also perform the step of storing the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell as a variable of the UE.

[0247] In this embodiment, the UE determines which NH (for example, the NH corresponding to the second node) to use based on the above embodiments. This can happen at any time during the current handover process or after the current handover and before the next handover. Therefore, at any time, the UE can determine which NH (for the NH corresponding to the NCC of the node) it should use to directly or indirectly calculate the air interface root key when it needs to calculate the air interface root key next time. Then, it stores this NCC as a UE variable. When the UE performs the next handover, it can read this UE variable and then directly or indirectly calculate the air interface root key based on the NH (for the NH) indicated by the NCC value stored in the variable.

[0248] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG7, an air interface information transmission method is provided. Taking the application of this method to the first node in FIG1 as an example, the method includes the following steps:

[0249] S701 requests the potential target node in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generates a continuous handover configuration message.

[0250] The first node is the node to which the source cell belongs in any one of the continuous cell changes during the UE's continuous cell change process; the potential target node is the node to which the target cell belongs in any one of the continuous cell changes during the UE's continuous cell change process.

[0251] S702, a continuous handover configuration message is sent to the UE, wherein the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to transmit air interface information; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next-hop chain count value NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0252] The method described in this application embodiment is basically the same as the method described in steps S201 and S202 above. For detailed description, please refer to the foregoing content, which will not be repeated here.

[0253] The method described in this application embodiment uses a first node as the execution subject. The first node sends a continuous handover configuration message to the UE, wherein the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission, and the continuous handover configuration message includes the next-hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell. This method realizes air interface information transmission under the continuous handover configuration mechanism. Since the continuous handover configuration message includes the NCC corresponding to all potential target cells, that is, the first node configures continuous handover for the UE, the UE can calculate the air interface root key based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell to be handed over each time during the continuous handover process, thereby realizing secure interaction of signaling and service data with the network. Therefore, the above method achieves the coexistence of the continuous handover configuration mechanism and the NCC-based air interface security mechanism, which to a certain extent guarantees the security performance of the wireless communication system using the continuous handover configuration mechanism.

[0254] In some embodiments, an implementation of S701 is provided, as shown in FIG8, namely, S701 "requests a potential target node in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generates a continuous handover configuration message", including:

[0255] S801 requests the configuration for continuous handover from the potential target node in the access network, and determines the potential target cell and the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0256] S802 generates a continuous handover configuration message based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0257] In this embodiment, the first node determines which cells to configure as potential target cells for continuous handover. If these cells belong to the first node, the second node, or the third node, the first node can determine the NCC value corresponding to each of the first, second, and third nodes. That is, the first node determines the NCC value corresponding to the potential target cells, and then carries the NCC value corresponding to the potential target cells in the continuous handover configuration message. It can be encapsulated in the RRC message and sent to the UE, or it can be encapsulated in the MAC CE and sent to the UE, thus configuring continuous handover for the UE so that the UE can transmit air interface information with the corresponding potential target cells based on the NCC corresponding to each potential target cell.

[0258] In some embodiments, when the first node determines the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell based on the steps of S801 described above, it may also perform the step of sending the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the potential target node to the potential target node.

[0259] In some embodiments, the first node may also inform the corresponding potential target nodes of the NCCs corresponding to each potential target node, so that they can include these NCCs in the information sent to the UE. This information is encapsulated in RRC messages, and in some embodiments, it may also be encapsulated in MAC CEs. In some embodiments, the corresponding potential target nodes may encapsulate these NCCs and send them to the first node, so that the first node can generate a continuous handover configuration message based on these NCCs and its own currently held NCCs and send it to the UE.

[0260] In some embodiments, an interface message transmission method is provided, as shown in FIG9. The method described in the embodiment of FIG7 further performs the following steps:

[0261] S901 sends a first interface message to the core network, wherein the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0262] S902, receive the first feedback interface message sent by the core network, wherein the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0263] In this embodiment, when the first node determines the NCC values ​​corresponding to the first node, the second node, and the third node (i.e., each potential target node), it can inform the core network through an interface message, i.e., send a first interface message to the core network, which carries the NCC corresponding to the potential target node. Specifically, the NCC currently held by the first node is either the NCC corresponding to the first node itself, or one of many NCCs corresponding to the first node. After receiving the first interface message sent by the first node, the core network can send a first feedback interface message to the first node to inform it that it has received the NCC values ​​corresponding to the first, second, and third nodes. The first node requests the second and third nodes to prepare for continuous handover configuration. In some embodiments, based on the NH indicated by the NCC it currently holds (i.e., the NCC corresponding to the first node (or one of many NCCs corresponding to the first node), the first node directly or indirectly generates an air interface root key for each potential target cell and provides it to the corresponding potential target node.

[0264] In some embodiments, another interface message transmission method is provided, as shown in Figure 10. The method described in the embodiment of Figure 7 further includes the following steps:

[0265] S1001, send a second interface message to the core network, wherein the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0266] S1002, Receive the second feedback interface message sent by the core network, wherein the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0267] In this embodiment, the message sent by the first node to the core network may not include the NCC corresponding to each potential target node. Instead, the first node sends a second interface message to the core network, which contains a request for the core network to specify the NCC for each potential target node. The core network then specifies the NCC for each node accordingly and includes it in a second feedback interface message, feeding it back to the first node.

[0268] In some embodiments, a method is provided for a first node to request preparation for continuous handover configuration, namely, the above-described S701 "requesting a potential target node in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration", as shown in Figure 11, including:

[0269] S1101, Generate the target air interface root key for the potential target cell based on the NH indicated by the NCC currently held by the first node.

[0270] S1102, send the target air interface root key of the potential target cell to the potential target node.

[0271] In this embodiment of the application, the first node can directly or indirectly generate an air interface root key for each potential target cell based on the NH indicated by the NCC it currently holds, that is, the NCC corresponding to the first node (or one of the many NCCs corresponding to the first node), and provide it to the corresponding potential target node.

[0272] In some embodiments, indirect switching between nodes can also be performed. For example, the switching between the first node and the second node needs to be completed indirectly through the core network. To this end, another method for the first node to request preparation of continuous switching configuration is also provided, namely, the above-mentioned S701 "requesting preparation of continuous switching configuration from a potential target node in the access network and generating a continuous switching configuration message" includes: requesting preparation of continuous switching configuration from a potential target node through the core network and generating a continuous switching configuration message.

[0273] In this embodiment, the first node can request continuous handover configuration from the second node via the core network. In some embodiments, the core network determines the NH indicated by the NCC (or one of many NCCs corresponding to the second node) based on the NCC corresponding to the second node, and then provides the NH and the NCC together to the second node. In this step, the second node can generate the corresponding air interface root key for each potential target cell under its jurisdiction based on the NH. In some embodiments, the corresponding air interface root key can also be generated based on the NH after the UE is actually counted in the cell.

[0274] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG12, an air interface information transmission method is provided. Taking the application of this method to the second node in FIG1 as an example, the method includes the following steps:

[0275] S1201, when the UE accesses the second node, a first conversion request is sent to the core network.

[0276] S1202, Receive the first conversion confirmation message returned by the core network based on the first conversion request.

[0277] The first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message; in some embodiments, the first switching request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node, used to request the NH indicated by the NCC. The first switching confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node. The second node is the node to which the target cell belongs for any change during the continuous cell change process of the UE. The first switching request can be a path switch request acknowledgement or a handover notification message, and is not limited thereto. The first switching confirmation message can be a path switch request acknowledgement message or a UE context modification request message.

[0278] In this embodiment, when a UE accesses a second node, the second node can send a first conversion request to the core network. Upon receiving this first conversion request, the core network can determine the NH corresponding to the NCC provided by the first node, and send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node, which includes both the NCC and the NH. This NCC then becomes the NCC held by the second node. In some embodiments, if the first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node, upon receiving the first conversion request, the core network can determine the corresponding NH based on the NCC and send a first conversion confirmation message carrying the NH to the second node.

[0279] In some embodiments, when the second node corresponds to multiple NCCs, the method described in the embodiment of FIG12 further includes the step of: selecting an NCC as the NCC carried in the first conversion request according to a second preset rule.

[0280] The second preset rule includes: performing a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; and determining the NCC corresponding to the smallest operation value as the NCC carried in the first conversion request. The modulo operation includes: performing a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulo value of the NCC; and subtracting the NCC held by the node to which the UE belongs before the cell change from the modulo value of the NCC.

[0281] In this embodiment, since the UE accesses the second node, the second node sends a first switching request to the core network. This first switching request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node. Specifically, if multiple NCCs corresponding to the second node are provided, the second node determines which NCC it should provide according to a second preset rule. This second preset rule may be, but is not limited to: among all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, the NCC that satisfies the conditions described below is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node: this NCC, when modulo N is subtracted from the NCCs held by the first node before the handover, is the smallest among the results of performing a similar modulo N operation on all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, or other mathematically equivalent representations of the aforementioned rule. Here, N is a pre-given value, for example, N can be 8.

[0282] In some embodiments, for scenarios involving indirect switching between nodes, a method for generating a target air interface root key is provided, as shown in Figure 13. This method includes:

[0283] S1301, when the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it receives the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node sent by the core network.

[0284] S1302, Generate the target air interface root key according to the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0285] In this embodiment, the first node requests a continuous handover configuration from the second node via the core network. The core network determines the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node (or one of many NCCs corresponding to the second node), and then provides this NH along with the NCC to the second node. The second node can generate corresponding air interface root keys for each potential target cell under its jurisdiction based on this NH in this step, or it can postpone the generation of corresponding air interface root keys based on this NH to the cell the UE actually accesses. In some embodiments, the core network determines which NCC and its corresponding NH it should send to the second node according to a pre-specified rule. This rule can be, but is not limited to: among all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, the NCC that satisfies the following condition is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node: this NCC, when modulo N minus the NCCs held by the first node before the handover occurs, is the smallest among the results of performing a similar modulo N operation on all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, or other mathematically equivalent representations of the aforementioned rule. Here, N is a pre-given value; for example, N can be 8.

[0286] In some embodiments, a method for obtaining the NCC corresponding to a potential target cell under the jurisdiction of a second node is also provided, wherein the method includes: receiving the NCC corresponding to a potential target cell under the jurisdiction of a second node sent by a first node in the access network.

[0287] In this embodiment of the application, when the first node determines the NCC corresponding to each potential target cell, it can send the NCC of each potential target cell to the corresponding potential target node to inform the potential target node of the NCC of its subordinate potential target cells. For example, the first node can send the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node to the second node so that the second node can calculate the air interface root key according to the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node.

[0288] In some embodiments, an interface message transmission method is provided, as shown in FIG14. The method described in the embodiment of FIG12 further includes:

[0289] S1401, send a third interface message to the core network; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node.

[0290] S1402, Receive the third feedback interface message sent by the core network; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0291] In this embodiment, when the first node sends the NCC of a potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node to the second node, the second node can inform the core network through an interface message, that is, send a third interface message to the core network, which carries the NCC corresponding to the potential target node. Specifically, the NCC currently held by the second node is the NCC corresponding to the second node, or one of many NCCs corresponding to the second node. After receiving the third interface message sent by the second node, the core network can send a third feedback interface message back to the second node to inform the second node that it has received the NCC value corresponding to the second node. The second node can request other nodes to prepare for continuous handover configuration. In some embodiments, based on the NH indicated by the NCC it currently holds, that is, the NCC corresponding to the second node (or one of many NCCs corresponding to the second node), the second node directly or indirectly generates an air interface root key for each potential target cell and provides it to the corresponding potential target node.

[0292] In some embodiments, as shown in Figure 15, an air interface information transmission method is provided. Taking the application of this method to the core network in Figure 1 as an example, the method includes the following steps:

[0293] S1501, Receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network.

[0294] S1502, send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0295] The method described in this application embodiment is basically the same as the method described in the embodiment of Figure 12 above. For detailed description, please refer to the foregoing content, which will not be repeated here.

[0296] In some embodiments, a method for generating a first conversion confirmation message is provided, as shown in FIG16, the method comprising:

[0297] S1601, obtain the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node;

[0298] S1602, generate a first conversion confirmation message based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0299] In this embodiment, the core network will pre-receive the NCC corresponding to the second node sent by the first node, or receive the NCC sent by the second node. When the core network receives the first conversion request sent by the second node, it can further determine the NH indicated by the NCC according to the NCC corresponding to the second node, and then send the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node back to the second node in the first conversion confirmation message.

[0300] In some embodiments, when there are multiple NCCs corresponding to the second node, the method described in the embodiment of FIG15 further includes: selecting an NCC as the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message according to a third preset rule.

[0301] The third preset rule includes: performing a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the calculated value for each NCC; and determining the NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value as the NCC carried in the first handover confirmation message. The modulo operation includes: performing a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulo value of the NCC; and subtracting the NCC held by the UE's node before the cell change from the modulo value of the NCC. For example, the third preset rule could be, but is not limited to: among all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, determining the NCC that satisfies the following condition as the NCC to be sent to the second node: this NCC, after performing a modulo-N operation and subtracting the NCC held by the first node before the handover, is the smallest among the results of performing a similar modulo-N operation on all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, or other mathematically equivalent representations of the aforementioned rule. Here, N is a pre-given value; for example, N could be 8.

[0302] In some embodiments, for scenarios involving indirect handover between nodes, a method is provided for the core network to provide the NH indicated by the NCC to the second node, as shown in Figure 17. The method described in the embodiment of Figure 15 further includes the following steps:

[0303] S1701, determine the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0304] S1702, when the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it sends the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node to the second node.

[0305] The method described in this application embodiment is basically the same as the method described in the embodiment of FIG13 above. For detailed description, please refer to the foregoing content, which will not be repeated here.

[0306] In some embodiments, when there are multiple NCCs corresponding to the second node, the method described in the embodiment of FIG15 further includes: selecting an NCC as the NCC to be sent to the second node according to a fourth preset rule.

[0307] The fourth preset rule includes: performing a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; and determining the NCC corresponding to the smallest operation value as the NCC to be sent to the second node. The modulo operation includes: performing a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulo value of the NCC; and subtracting the NCC held by the node to which the UE belongs before the cell change from the modulo value of the NCC.

[0308] In some embodiments, an interface message transmission method is provided, as shown in Figure 18, the method comprising:

[0309] S1801, Receive a first interface message sent by the first node in the access network, wherein the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0310] S1802, send a first feedback interface message to the first node, wherein the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0311] The method described in this application embodiment is consistent with the method described in the embodiment of FIG9 above. For detailed description, please refer to the foregoing content, which will not be repeated here.

[0312] In some embodiments, another interface message transmission method is provided, as shown in Figure 19, which includes:

[0313] S1901, Receive a second interface message sent by the first node in the access network, wherein the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0314] In this embodiment of the application, when the core network receives the second interface message, it can further determine the NCC of the potential target cell and carry it back to the first node in the second feedback interface message.

[0315] S1902, send a second feedback interface message to the first node, wherein the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0316] The method described in this application embodiment is consistent with the method described in the embodiment of FIG10 above. For detailed description, please refer to the foregoing content, which will not be repeated here.

[0317] In some embodiments, another interface message transmission method is provided, as shown in Figure 20, which includes:

[0318] S2001, Receive the third interface message sent by the second node, wherein the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node.

[0319] S2002, send a third feedback interface message to the second node, wherein the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0320] The method described in this application embodiment is consistent with the method described in the embodiment of FIG14 above. For detailed description, please refer to the foregoing content, which will not be repeated here.

[0321] Based on the above embodiments, the following six examples of air interface information transmission methods are provided. These six examples can be applied to the methods described in any of the above embodiments. The six examples are described in detail below:

[0322] Example 1: The source node in a continuous handover determines the NCC associated with each potential target node, and the source node in a continuous handover informs the core network in advance of the NCC associated with each potential target node. The air interface root key is only changed when a direct handover between nodes occurs. The method described in Example 1, as shown in Figure 21, includes:

[0323] Step S1: The first node initiates a process to configure continuous handover for the UE. The first node first determines which cells to configure as potential target cells for continuous handover. Let's assume these cells belong to the first, second, or third node. To this end, the first node determines the NCC values ​​corresponding to each of the first, second, and third nodes, and then informs the core network of these NCC values ​​through an interface message. Specifically, the NCC currently held by the first node is either the NCC corresponding to the first node itself, or one of many NCCs corresponding to the first node.

[0324] Step S2: The core network sends an interface message to the first node to inform it that it has received the NCC values ​​corresponding to the first, second and third nodes provided in step S1, and agrees to perform subsequent operations in accordance with the method specified in step S7.

[0325] Step S3: The first node requests the second and third nodes to prepare for continuous handover configuration. Based on the NCC it currently holds, that is, the NCC corresponding to the first node (or one of many NCCs corresponding to the first node), and the NH indicated by it, the first node directly or indirectly generates an air interface root key for each potential target cell and provides it to the corresponding potential target node. In some embodiments, the first node may also inform the corresponding nodes of the NCCs corresponding to each node so that they can include these NCCs in the information sent to the UE, and this information is encapsulated in the RRC (Radio Resource Control) message described in step S4 (corresponding to the continuous handover configuration message in the aforementioned embodiments).

[0326] Step S4: The first node sends an RRC message to the UE, configuring continuous handover for the UE. This RRC message specifies the NCC corresponding to each potential target cell.

[0327] Step S5: The UE performs a handover, disconnecting from a cell under the jurisdiction of the first node and connecting to a cell under the jurisdiction of the second node. Based on the continuous handover configuration received in step S4, the UE determines that this handover requires a change to the air interface root key. Therefore, the UE calculates the air interface root key directly or indirectly based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the first node, and uses the calculated air interface root key to connect with the second node, for example, to exchange signaling and service data.

[0328] Step S6: Since the UE has accessed the second node, the second node sends a path conversion request message to the core network (corresponding to the first conversion request in the aforementioned embodiment).

[0329] Step S7: Based on the NCC corresponding to the second node provided by the first node in step S1, the core network determines the NH corresponding to this NCC and sends a Path Switch Request Acknowledge message (corresponding to the first conversion confirmation message in the aforementioned embodiment) to the second node, which includes this NCC and this NH. This NCC becomes the NCC held by the second node. In particular, if multiple NCCs corresponding to the second node are provided in step S1, the core network determines which NCC and its corresponding NH it should send to the second node according to a pre-specified rule. This rule (corresponding to the aforementioned first preset rule) may be, but is not limited to: among all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, the NCC that satisfies the following condition is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node: this NCC, when modulo n is subtracted from the NCC held by the first node before the handover described in step S5, is the smallest among the results of performing a similar modulo n operation on all the NCCs corresponding to the second node, or other mathematically equivalent representations of the aforementioned rule. Here, n is a pre-given value, for example, n may be 8.

[0330] Step S8: The second node requests the third node to prepare the continuous handover configuration (usually, it will also request the first node to prepare the continuous handover configuration, but this is omitted here for simplicity). Based on the NCC it currently holds (that is, the NCC it received in step S7), which is the NCC corresponding to the second node (or one of the many NCCs corresponding to the second node), the second node directly or indirectly generates an air interface root key for each potential target cell and provides it to the third node.

[0331] Step S9: The UE performs a handover, disconnecting from a cell under the jurisdiction of the second node and connecting to a cell under the jurisdiction of the third node. Based on the continuous handover configuration received in step S4, the UE determines that this handover requires a change to the air interface root key. Therefore, the UE calculates the air interface root key directly or indirectly based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node, and uses the calculated air interface root key to connect with the third node, for example, to exchange signaling and service data. Specifically, if multiple NCCs corresponding to the second node are provided in step S4, the UE determines, in a manner similar to step S7, which NCC's NH should be used to directly or indirectly calculate the air interface root key.

[0332] In this embodiment, the NCCs corresponding to different nodes are generally different. For example, the NCC corresponding to the first node is 0, the NCC corresponding to the second node is 1 and 3, and the NCC corresponding to the third node is 2 and 5. This ensures that no matter how the UE switches between the first, second, and third nodes, the NHs provided by the core network to different nodes are statistically independent. Consequently, the air interface root key calculated directly or indirectly based on these NHs is also statistically independent, thus guaranteeing network security.

[0333] It should be noted that the step S9, "determining which NH (the one corresponding to the second node) NCC should be used," can occur earlier than step S5 or any time after step S5 and before step S9. Therefore, the UE can determine, during or after step S5 and before step S9, which NH (the one corresponding to the second node's NCC) it should use to directly or indirectly calculate the air interface root key the next time it needs to calculate the air interface root key (in this embodiment, step S9), and then store this NCC as a UE variable. When step S9 occurs, this UE variable is read, and the air interface root key is calculated directly or indirectly based on the NH indicated by the value of the NCC stored in the variable.

[0334] It should be noted that the UE's determination in step S9 that an air interface root key update is required can be explicit or implicit. For example, the UE may explicitly specify which cell handovers require an air interface root key update in the RRC message (continuous handover configuration message) received in step S4. Alternatively, the UE may specify an identifier for each potential target cell in the RRC message received in step S4. For the handover described in step S9, if the identifiers of the source cell and the target cell are the same, it is determined that an air interface root key update is not required; if the identifiers of the source cell and the target cell are different, it is determined that an air interface root key update is required. Another example is that for the handover described in step S9, the UE compares the NCC corresponding to the source cell (in this embodiment, the NCC corresponding to the second node) with the NCC corresponding to the target cell (in this embodiment, the NCC corresponding to the third node). If they are the same, it is determined that an air interface root key update is not required; if they are different, it is determined that an air interface root key update is required. This determination corresponds to the first determination condition in the aforementioned embodiment.

[0335] Example 2: The source node in a continuous handover determines the NCC associated with each potential target node and informs these nodes. The source node in a continuous handover informs the core network of the NCC associated with each potential target node beforehand. Only direct handovers between nodes occur, and the air interface root key is changed only when a direct handover between nodes occurs. This embodiment is based on Embodiment 1, with the difference being (i.e., all other descriptions are the same):

[0336] In step S1, the first node does not send the described interface message to the core network, and the core network does not send the feedback described in step S2.

[0337] Alternatively, during the execution of step S3, the first node informs each node involved in the continuous handover (i.e., the first node, the second node, and the third node) of their respective associated NCCs, and each node involved in the continuous handover sends an interface message to the core network, informing its respective associated NCC. The core network then sends acceptance information back to each node.

[0338] Example 3: The source node in a continuous handover determines the NCC associated with each potential target node and informs these nodes. After the handover occurs, each node determines its own NCC and requests the core network to provide the corresponding NH. Only direct handover between nodes occurs, and the air interface root key is changed only when direct handover between nodes occurs. In some embodiments, the method described in Example 3, as shown in Figure 22, includes: (Note: The following text only describes the differences from Example 1; for other differences, please refer to the steps in Example 1).

[0339] This embodiment is based on Embodiment 1, with the following differences:

[0340] In step S1, the first node does not send the described interface message to the core network, and the core network does not send the feedback described in step S2.

[0341] Alternatively, during the execution of step S3, the first node informs each node involved in the continuous switching (i.e., the first node, the second node, and the third node) of their respective associated NCC, and the behavior of steps S6 and S7 is changed as follows:

[0342] Step S6: Since the UE has accessed the second node, the second node sends a path switching request message to the core network. This path switching request message contains the NCC corresponding to the second node. In particular, if multiple NCCs corresponding to the second node are provided in step S3, the second node determines which NCC it should provide in a manner similar to step S7 in Example 1.

[0343] Step S7: Based on the NCC provided by the second node in step S6, the core network determines the NH corresponding to this NCC and sends a path conversion request confirmation message to the second node, which includes this NCC and this NH. This NCC then becomes the NCC held by the second node.

[0344] Example 4: The core network determines the NCC associated with each potential target node and informs the source node, and only performs direct handover between nodes and changes the air interface root key only when direct handover between nodes occurs.

[0345] This embodiment is based on Embodiment 1, with the difference (i.e., all other descriptions are the same): In step S1, the message sent by the first node to the core network does not contain the NCC corresponding to each potential target node. Instead, this message contains a request to the core network to specify the NCC (including the NCC of the first node) for each potential target node. The core network specifies the NCC for each node accordingly and includes them in the message described in step S2, feeding them back to the first node.

[0346] Example 5: An air interface root key change occurs during intra-node handover.

[0347] Example 5 can be based on any of Examples 1 to 4, the difference being (i.e., all other descriptions are the same): the second node and the third node are the same node, therefore their corresponding NCCs are the same. Note that in step S9, the following descriptions from Examples 1 to 4 still hold true: the UE determines that this handover requires a change to the air interface root key based on the continuous handover configuration it received in step S4.

[0348] Generally, in the scenario described in this embodiment, the second node (i.e., the third node) includes user plane resources deployed in multiple locations. Some of these user plane resources serve a subset of cells under the second node's jurisdiction, while others serve a different subset. To ensure security isolation and prevent a compromise in one location's user plane resources from affecting the security performance of another location's user plane resources, these two locations should ideally use different access layer security contexts. Therefore, when the UE switches from one subset of cells to another subset, such as in the scenario of step S9, the second node needs to change the UE's air interface root key.

[0349] It should be noted that the UE's determination in step S9 that an air interface root key update is required can be explicit or implicit. For example, the UE may explicitly specify which cell handovers require an air interface root key update in the RRC message received in step S4. Alternatively, the UE may assign an identifier to each potential target cell in the RRC message received in step S4. For the handover described in step S9, if the identifiers of the source cell and the target cell are the same, it is determined that an air interface root key update is not required; if the identifiers of the source cell and the target cell are different, it is determined that an air interface root key update is required.

[0350] Example 6: Scenario of indirect handover between nodes. This embodiment is based on any one of Examples 1, 2, and 4, with the difference (i.e., all other descriptions are the same): the handover between the second node and the third node needs to be completed indirectly via the core network. Therefore, steps S8 and S9 are changed as follows:

[0351] Step S8: The second node requests the third node to prepare for continuous handover configuration via the core network. The core network determines the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the third node (or one of many NCCs corresponding to the third node), and then provides this NH along with the NCC to the third node. The third node can generate the corresponding air interface root key for each potential target cell under its jurisdiction based on this NH in this step, or it can postpone this to step S9, generating the corresponding air interface root key only for the cell actually accessed by the UE based on this NH. Specifically, the core network determines which NCC and its corresponding NH it should send to the third node according to a pre-specified rule. This rule can be, but is not limited to: among all the NCCs corresponding to the third node, the NCC that satisfies the following condition is determined as the NCC to be sent to the third node: this NCC, when modulo n minus the NCC held by the first node before the handover described in step S9 (i.e., the NCC sent by the core network in step S7), is the smallest among the results of performing a similar modulo n operation on all the NCCs corresponding to the third node, or other mathematically equivalent representations of the aforementioned rule. Here, n is a pre-given value; for example, n could be 8.

[0352] Step S9: The UE performs a handover, disconnecting from a cell under the jurisdiction of the second node and connecting to a cell under the jurisdiction of the third node. Based on the continuous handover configuration received in step S4, the UE determines that this handover requires a change to the air interface root key, and that the changed air interface root key is generated based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the third node, rather than the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node. Therefore, it calculates the air interface root key directly or indirectly based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the third node, and uses the calculated air interface root key to connect with the third node, for example, to exchange signaling and service data. Specifically, if multiple NCCs corresponding to the third node are provided in step S4, the UE determines, in a manner similar to step S8, which NCC's NH it should use to directly or indirectly calculate the air interface root key.

[0353] It should be noted that the basis for the UE's above-mentioned judgment can be explicit or implicit. For example, in the RRC message received by the UE in step S4, it explicitly specifies which cell handovers need to be performed in the above manner, using the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the target cell rather than the source cell (in this embodiment, the third node rather than the second node's NCC) to calculate the air interface root key after the handover. Another example is that in the RRC message received by the UE in step S4, an identity identifier is specified for each potential target cell. For the handover described in step S9, if the identity identifiers of the source cell and the target cell are the same, and it is determined that the air interface root key needs to be updated, then the air interface root key after the handover is calculated using the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the source cell; if the identifiers of the source cell and the target cell are different, then the air interface root key after the handover is calculated using the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the target cell. (Note: This identifier is different from the identifiers described in Embodiments 1 and 5. The identifier described in this embodiment can coexist with the identifiers described in Embodiments 1 and 5 in the configuration provided in step S4.)

[0354] The air interface information transmission method described in any of the above embodiments enables the continuous handover configuration mechanism to coexist with the NCC-based air interface security mechanism, thus ensuring the security performance of the wireless communication system using the continuous handover configuration mechanism.

[0355] It should be understood that although the steps in the flowcharts of Figures 2-22 are shown sequentially according to the arrows, these steps are not necessarily executed in the order indicated by the arrows. Unless explicitly stated herein, there is no strict order restriction on the execution of these steps, and they can be executed in other orders. Moreover, at least some of the steps in Figures 2-22 may include multiple steps or stages, which are not necessarily completed at the same time, but can be executed at different times. The execution order of these steps or stages is not necessarily sequential, but can be performed alternately or in turn with other steps or at least some of the steps or stages in other steps.

[0356] As shown in Figure 23, the air interface information transmission device of this application embodiment, applied to a UE, includes: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor; the memory is used to store a computer program; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0357] Receive continuous switching configuration messages;

[0358] Air interface information is transmitted according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0359] In Figure 23, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking various circuits of one or more processors represented by processor 2300 and memory represented by memory 2320. The bus architecture may also link various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. Transceiver 2310 may be multiple components, including transmitters and receivers, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium. For different user equipment, user interface 2330 may also be an interface capable of connecting external or internal devices, including but not limited to keypads, displays, speakers, microphones, joysticks, etc.

[0360] The processor 2300 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, while the memory 2320 can store the data used by the processor 2300 when performing operations.

[0361] The processor 2300 can be a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or a complex programmable logic device (CPLD). The processor can also adopt a multi-core architecture.

[0362] The processor executes any of the methods described in the embodiments of this application according to the obtained executable instructions by calling a computer program stored in memory. The processor and memory may also be physically separated.

[0363] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0364] Generate the target air interface root key based on the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell;

[0365] Air interface information is transmitted based on the target air interface root key.

[0366] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0367] If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the first judgment condition, it is determined that the UE needs to change the air interface root key when performing cell change, and a target air interface root key is generated according to the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell.

[0368] The first judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0369] The continuous configuration message indicates that the change from the source cell of the cell change to the target cell of the cell change requires a change of the air interface root key;

[0370] The first identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the first identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0371] The NCC corresponding to the source cell of the cell change is different from the NCC corresponding to the target cell of the cell change.

[0372] The second identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the second identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0373] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0374] If the continuous handover configuration message meets the second judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the target cell for the cell change;

[0375] If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the third judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the source cell of the cell change;

[0376] The second judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0377] The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the target cell for the cell change;

[0378] The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change;

[0379] The third judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0380] The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the source cell of the cell change;

[0381] The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is the same as the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0382] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0383] If it is determined from the continuous handover configuration message that no change to the air interface root key is required when changing the cell, air interface information is transmitted based on the air interface root key currently held by the UE.

[0384] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0385] An NCC is selected according to a first preset rule as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during cell change; wherein, the first preset rule includes:

[0386] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0387] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during the cell change; wherein, the modulo operation includes:

[0388] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0389] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0390] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0391] The NCC corresponding to the potential target cell is stored as a variable of the UE.

[0392] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0393] As shown in Figure 24, the air interface information transmission device of this application embodiment, applied to a first node, includes: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor; the memory is used to store a computer program; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0394] Request the potential target nodes in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generate a continuous handover configuration message;

[0395] The continuous handover configuration message is sent to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0396] In Figure 24, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking various circuits of one or more processors represented by processor 2400 and memory represented by memory 2420. The bus architecture may also link various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. Transceiver 2410 may be multiple elements, including transmitters and receivers, providing units for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium. Processor 2400 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and memory 2420 may store data used by processor 2400 during operation.

[0397] The processor 2400 can be a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or a complex programmable logic device (CPLD). The processor can also adopt a multi-core architecture.

[0398] The processor 2400 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, while the memory 2420 can store the data used by the processor 2400 during operation.

[0399] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0400] Request the potential target node in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration, determine the potential target cell, and the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell;

[0401] The continuous handover configuration message is generated based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0402] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0403] Send the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the potential target node to the potential target node.

[0404] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0405] Send a first interface message to the core network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node;

[0406] The core network receives a first feedback interface message sent by the core network; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0407] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0408] A second interface message is sent to the core network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0409] The system receives a second feedback interface message sent by the core network; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0410] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0411] Based on the NH indicated by the NCC currently held by the first node, generate the target air interface root key of the potential target cell;

[0412] Send the target air interface root key of the potential target cell to the potential target node.

[0413] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0414] The core network requests the potential target node to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generates a continuous handover configuration message.

[0415] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0416] As shown in Figure 25, the air interface information transmission device of this application embodiment, applied to a second node, includes: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor; the memory is used to store a computer program; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0417] When the UE accesses the second node, it sends a first switching request to the core network; the first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message;

[0418] The core network receives a first conversion confirmation message returned based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0419] In Figure 25, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking various circuits of one or more processors represented by processor 2500 and memory represented by memory 2520. The bus architecture may also link various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. Transceiver 2510 may be multiple elements, including transmitters and receivers, providing units for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium. Processor 2500 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and memory 2520 may store data used by processor 2500 during operation.

[0420] The processor 2500 can be a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or a complex programmable logic device (CPLD). The processor can also adopt a multi-core architecture.

[0421] The processor 2500 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, while the memory 2520 can store the data used by the processor 2500 when performing operations.

[0422] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0423] According to the second preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion request;

[0424] The second preset rule includes:

[0425] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0426] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion request;

[0427] The modulo operation includes:

[0428] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0429] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0430] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0431] When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it receives the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node sent by the core network;

[0432] Generate the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0433] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0434] Receive the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node sent by the first node in the access network.

[0435] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0436] Send a third interface message to the core network; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node;

[0437] The core network receives a third feedback interface message sent by the core network; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0438] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0439] As shown in Figure 26, the air interface information transmission device of this application embodiment, applied to the core network, includes: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor; the memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0440] Receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network;

[0441] Send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0442] In Figure 26, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically linking various circuits of one or more processors represented by processor 2600 and memory represented by memory 2620. The bus architecture may also link various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and therefore will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. Transceiver 2610 may be multiple elements, including transmitters and receivers, providing a unit for communicating with various other devices over a transmission medium. Processor 2600 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and memory 2620 may store data used by processor 2600 during operation.

[0443] The processor 2600 can be a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), or a complex programmable logic device (CPLD). The processor can also adopt a multi-core architecture.

[0444] The processor 2600 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, while the memory 2620 can store the data used by the processor 2600 when performing operations.

[0445] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0446] Obtain the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node;

[0447] The first conversion confirmation message is generated based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0448] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0449] The NH indicated by the NCC is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0450] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0451] According to the third preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message;

[0452] The third preset rule includes:

[0453] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0454] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message;

[0455] The modulo operation includes:

[0456] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0457] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0458] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0459] When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it sends the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node to the second node.

[0460] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0461] The NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0462] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0463] According to the fourth preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC to be sent to the second node;

[0464] The fourth preset rule includes:

[0465] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0466] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node;

[0467] The modulo operation includes:

[0468] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0469] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0470] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0471] Receive a first interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node;

[0472] Send a first feedback interface message to the first node; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0473] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0474] The system receives a second interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0475] Send a second feedback interface message to the first node; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0476] The processor is also configured to read the computer program in the memory and perform the following operations:

[0477] Receive a third interface message sent by the second node; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node;

[0478] A third feedback interface message is sent to the second node; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0479] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0480] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG27, an air interface information transmission device is provided, applied to a UE, comprising:

[0481] The first receiving unit 2701 is used to receive continuous switching configuration messages.

[0482] The first processing unit 2702 is used to transmit air interface information according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0483] In some embodiments, when the potential target cell is the UE, the source cell or target cell of the cell change; the cell change includes any one of handover, reselection, reconstruction, and recovery.

[0484] In some embodiments, the first processing unit 2702 includes:

[0485] The first generation subunit is used to generate the target air interface root key according to the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell;

[0486] The first transmission subunit is used to transmit air interface information according to the target air interface root key.

[0487] In some embodiments, the first generation subunit is specifically used to determine, when the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the first judgment condition, that the UE needs to change the air interface root key when performing cell change, and generate the target air interface root key according to the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell.

[0488] The first judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0489] The continuous configuration message indicates that the change from the source cell of the cell change to the target cell of the cell change requires a change of the air interface root key;

[0490] The first identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the first identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0491] The NCC corresponding to the source cell of the cell change is different from the NCC corresponding to the target cell of the cell change.

[0492] The second identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the second identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0493] In some embodiments, the first generation subunit is specifically used to determine the potential target cell as the target cell for the cell change when the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the second judgment condition; and to determine the potential target cell as the source cell for the cell change when the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the third judgment condition.

[0494] The second judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0495] The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the target cell for the cell change;

[0496] The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change;

[0497] The third judgment condition includes any one of the following:

[0498] The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the source cell of the cell change;

[0499] The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is the same as the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

[0500] In some embodiments, the first processing unit 2702 is further configured to transmit air interface information based on the air interface root key currently held by the UE when it is determined from the continuous handover configuration message that no change of the air interface root key is required when the cell change is determined.

[0501] In some embodiments, the above-described air interface information transmission method further includes:

[0502] The first selection unit is configured to select an NCC (Neural Control Center) as the NCC corresponding to a potential cell for use during cell change, according to a first preset rule; wherein the first preset rule includes:

[0503] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0504] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during the cell change; wherein, the modulo operation includes:

[0505] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0506] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0507] In some embodiments, the above-described air interface information transmission method further includes:

[0508] A storage unit is used to store the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell as a variable of the UE.

[0509] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0510] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG28, an air interface information transmission device is provided, applied to a first node, comprising:

[0511] The second processing unit 2801 is used to request a continuous handover configuration from a potential target node in the access network and generate a continuous handover configuration message.

[0512] The first sending unit 2802 is used to send a continuous handover configuration message to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0513] In some embodiments, the first node is the node to which the source cell of any change occurs during the continuous cell change process of the UE; the potential target node is the node to which the target cell of any change occurs during the continuous cell change process of the UE.

[0514] In some embodiments, the second processing unit 2801 includes:

[0515] The request subunit is used to request a continuous handover configuration from a potential target node in the access network, and to determine the potential target cell and the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0516] The second generation subunit is used to generate the continuous handover configuration message based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0517] In some embodiments, the second processing unit 2801 further includes:

[0518] The first transmitting subunit is used to transmit the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the potential target node to the potential target node.

[0519] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0520] The first sending interface message unit is used to send a first interface message to the core network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0521] The first receiving feedback message unit is used to receive a first feedback interface message sent by the core network; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0522] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0523] The second sending interface message unit is used to send a second interface message to the core network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node;

[0524] The second receiving feedback message unit is used to receive the second feedback interface message sent by the core network; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0525] In some embodiments, the second processing unit includes:

[0526] The third generation subunit is used to generate the target air interface root key of the potential target cell based on the NH indicated by the NCC currently held by the first node.

[0527] The second transmitting subunit is used to transmit the target air interface root key of the potential target cell to the potential target node.

[0528] In some embodiments, the second processing unit includes:

[0529] The fourth generation subunit is used to request the preparation of continuous handover configuration from the potential target node through the core network and generate a continuous handover configuration message.

[0530] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0531] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG29, an air interface information transmission device is provided, applied to a second node, comprising:

[0532] The second sending unit 2901 is used to send a first conversion request to the core network when the UE accesses the second node;

[0533] The second receiving unit 2902 is configured to receive a first conversion confirmation message returned by the core network based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0534] The first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message.

[0535] In some embodiments, the second node is the node to which the target cell belongs during any change in the continuous cell change process of the UE.

[0536] In some embodiments, the first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0537] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0538] The second selection unit is configured to select an NCC as the NCC carried in the first conversion request according to a second preset rule; wherein the second preset rule includes:

[0539] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0540] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion request;

[0541] The modulo operation includes:

[0542] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0543] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0544] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0545] The NH receiving unit is used to receive the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node sent by the core network when the UE accesses the second node through the core network;

[0546] The first generation unit generates the target air interface root key according to the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0547] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0548] The first receiving NCC unit is used to receive the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node sent by the first node in the access network.

[0549] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0550] The third sending interface message unit is used to send a third interface message to the core network; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node.

[0551] The third receiving feedback message unit is used to receive the third feedback interface message sent by the core network; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0552] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0553] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG30, an air interface information transmission device is provided, applied to a core network, comprising:

[0554] The third receiving unit 3001 is used to receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network;

[0555] The third sending unit 3002 is used to send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0556] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0557] The acquisition unit is used to acquire the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node;

[0558] The second generation unit is used to generate the first conversion confirmation message according to the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0559] In some embodiments, the acquisition unit described above is specifically used to determine the NH indicated by the NCC based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0560] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0561] The third selection unit is used to select an NCC as the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message according to a third preset rule.

[0562] The third preset rule includes:

[0563] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0564] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message;

[0565] The modulo operation includes:

[0566] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0567] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0568] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0569] The NH sending unit is used to send the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node to the second node when the UE accesses the second node through the core network.

[0570] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0571] The determining unit is used to determine the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

[0572] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0573] The fourth selection unit is used to select an NCC as the NCC to be sent to the second node according to the fourth preset rule;

[0574] The fourth preset rule includes:

[0575] Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC;

[0576] The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node;

[0577] The modulo operation includes:

[0578] Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC;

[0579] Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

[0580] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0581] The second receiving NCC unit is used to receive a first interface message sent by the first node in the access network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0582] The NCC sending unit is used to send a first feedback interface message to the first node; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0583] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0584] The first receiving interface message unit is used to receive a second interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node;

[0585] The first feedback message sending unit is used to send a second feedback interface message to the first node; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

[0586] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned air interface information transmission device further includes:

[0587] The second receiving interface message unit is used to receive a third interface message sent by the second node; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node;

[0588] The second feedback message sending unit is used to send a third feedback interface message to the second node; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

[0589] It should be noted that the apparatus provided in this application embodiment can implement all the method steps implemented in the above method embodiment and can achieve the same technical effect. Here, the parts that are the same as those in the method embodiment and the beneficial effects will not be described in detail.

[0590] It should be noted that the division of units in the embodiments of this application is illustrative and only represents one logical functional division. In actual implementation, other division methods may be used. Furthermore, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit. The integrated units described above can be implemented in hardware or as software functional units.

[0591] If the integrated unit is implemented as a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a processor-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) or processor to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0592] This application also provides a processor-readable storage medium storing a program. When executed by a processor, this program implements the various processes of the above-described air interface information transmission method embodiments and achieves the same technical effects. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here. The readable storage medium can be any available medium or data storage device that the processor can access, including but not limited to magnetic storage (e.g., floppy disks, hard disks, magnetic tapes, magneto-optical disks (MO), etc.), optical storage (e.g., CDs, DVDs, BDs, HVDs, etc.), and semiconductor storage (e.g., ROMs, EPROMs, EEPROMs, non-volatile memory (NAND flash), solid-state drives (SSDs)).

[0593] It should be noted that, in this document, the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Unless otherwise specified, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes that element.

[0594] Through the above description of the embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the methods of the above embodiments can be implemented by means of software plus necessary general-purpose hardware platforms. Of course, they can also be implemented by hardware, but in many cases the former is a better implementation method. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of this application, in essence, or the part that contributes to the prior art, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM / RAM, disk, optical disk) and includes several instructions to cause a terminal (which may be a mobile phone, computer, server, air conditioner, or network device, etc.) to execute the methods described in the various embodiments of this application.

[0595] The embodiments of this application have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, this application is not limited to the specific embodiments described above. The specific embodiments described above are merely illustrative and not restrictive. Those skilled in the art can make many other forms under the guidance of this application without departing from the spirit and scope of the claims, and all of these forms are within the protection scope of this application.

[0596] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and not to limit them. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that modifications can still be made to the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or equivalent substitutions can be made to some or all of the technical features therein. These modifications or substitutions do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, and they should all be covered within the scope of the claims and specification of this application. In particular, as long as there is no structural conflict, the various technical features mentioned in the embodiments can be combined in any way. This application is not limited to the specific embodiments disclosed herein, but includes all technical solutions falling within the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for transmitting air interface information, wherein, The method is applied to a user terminal (UE), and the method includes: Receive continuous switching configuration messages; Air interface information is transmitted according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The potential target cell is the source cell or target cell of the UE when performing cell change; the cell change includes any one of handover, reselection, reconstruction, and recovery.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The step of transmitting air interface information according to the continuous switching configuration message includes: Generate the target air interface root key based on the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell; Air interface information is transmitted based on the target air interface root key.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein, The step of generating the target air interface root key based on the next-hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell includes: If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the first judgment condition, it is determined that the UE needs to change the air interface root key when performing cell change, and a target air interface root key is generated according to the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell. The first judgment condition includes any one of the following: The continuous configuration message indicates that the change from the source cell of the cell change to the target cell of the cell change requires a change of the air interface root key; The first identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the first identifier of the target cell in the cell change. The NCC corresponding to the source cell of the cell change is different from the NCC corresponding to the target cell of the cell change. The second identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the second identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

5. The method according to claim 3, wherein, The step of generating the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell includes: If the continuous handover configuration message meets the second judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the target cell for the cell change; If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the third judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the source cell of the cell change; The second judgment condition includes any one of the following: The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the target cell for the cell change; The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change; The third judgment condition includes any one of the following: The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the source cell of the cell change; The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is the same as the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

6. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The step of transmitting air interface information according to the continuous switching configuration message includes: If it is determined from the continuous handover configuration message that no change to the air interface root key is required when changing the cell, air interface information is transmitted based on the air interface root key currently held by the UE.

7. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The method further includes: An NCC is selected according to a first preset rule as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during cell change; wherein, the first preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during the cell change; wherein, the modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

8. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein, The method further includes: The NCC corresponding to the potential target cell is stored as a variable of the UE.

9. An air interface information transmission method, wherein, The method is applied to a first node in an access network, and the method includes: Request the potential target nodes in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generate a continuous handover configuration message; The continuous handover configuration message is sent to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein, The first node is the node to which the source cell belongs in any one of the continuous cell changes of the UE; the potential target node is the node to which the target cell belongs in any one of the continuous cell changes of the UE.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein, The step of requesting preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network and generating a continuous handover configuration message includes: Request the potential target node in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration, determine the potential target cell, and the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell; The continuous handover configuration message is generated based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein, The method further includes: Send the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the potential target node to the potential target node.

13. The method according to any one of claims 9-12, wherein, The method further includes: Send a first interface message to the core network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node; The core network receives a first feedback interface message sent by the core network; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

14. The method according to any one of claims 9-12, wherein, The method further includes: A second interface message is sent to the core network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node. The system receives a second feedback interface message sent by the core network; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

15. The method according to any one of claims 9-12, wherein, The step of requesting the preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network includes: Based on the NH indicated by the NCC currently held by the first node, generate the target air interface root key of the potential target cell; Send the target air interface root key of the potential target cell to the potential target node.

16. The method according to any one of claims 9-12, wherein, The step of requesting preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network and generating a continuous handover configuration message includes: The core network requests the potential target node to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generates a continuous handover configuration message.

17. An air interface information transmission method, wherein, The method is applied to a second node in an access network, and the method includes: When the UE accesses the second node, it sends a first switching request to the core network; the first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message; The core network receives a first conversion confirmation message returned based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein, The second node is the node to which the target cell belongs during any change in the continuous cell change process of the UE.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein, The first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein, The method further includes: According to the second preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion request; The second preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion request; The modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

21. The method according to claim 17, wherein, The method further includes: When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it receives the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node sent by the core network; Generate the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

22. The method according to claim 17, wherein, The method further includes: Receive the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node sent by the first node in the access network.

23. The method according to claim 17, wherein, The method further includes: Send a third interface message to the core network; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node; The core network receives a third feedback interface message sent by the core network; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

24. An air interface information transmission method, wherein, The method is applied to the core network, and the method includes: Receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network; Send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein, The method further includes: Obtain the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node; The first conversion confirmation message is generated based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein, The first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node, and obtaining the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node includes: The NH indicated by the NCC is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

27. The method according to claim 24 or 25, wherein, The method further includes: According to the third preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message; The third preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message; The modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

28. The method according to claim 24 or 25, wherein, The method further includes: When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it sends the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node to the second node.

29. The method according to claim 28, wherein, The method further includes: The NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

30. The method according to claim 24 or 25, wherein, The method further includes: According to the fourth preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC to be sent to the second node; The fourth preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node; The modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

31. The method according to claim 24 or 25, wherein, The method further includes: Receive a first interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node; Send a first feedback interface message to the first node; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

32. The method according to claim 24 or 25, wherein, The method further includes: The system receives a second interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node. Send a second feedback interface message to the first node; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

33. The method according to claim 24 or 25, wherein, The method further includes: Receive a third interface message sent by the second node; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node; A third feedback interface message is sent to the second node; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

34. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device is applied to the UE and includes: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor. The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations: Receive continuous switching configuration messages; Air interface information is transmitted according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell.

35. The apparatus according to claim 34, wherein, The potential target cell is the source cell or target cell of the UE when performing cell change; the cell change includes any one of handover, reselection, reconstruction, and recovery.

36. The apparatus according to claim 34 or 35, wherein, The step of transmitting air interface information according to the continuous switching configuration message includes: Generate the target air interface root key based on the next hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell; Air interface information is transmitted based on the target air interface root key.

37. The apparatus according to claim 36, wherein, The step of generating the target air interface root key based on the next-hop NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell includes: If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the first judgment condition, it is determined that the UE needs to change the air interface root key when performing cell change, and a target air interface root key is generated according to the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell. The first judgment condition includes any one of the following: The continuous configuration message indicates that the change from the source cell of the cell change to the target cell of the cell change requires a change of the air interface root key; The first identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the first identifier of the target cell in the cell change. The NCC corresponding to the source cell of the cell change is different from the NCC corresponding to the target cell of the cell change. The second identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the second identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

38. The apparatus according to claim 36, wherein, The step of generating the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC of the potential target cell includes: If the continuous handover configuration message meets the second judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the target cell for the cell change; If the continuous handover configuration message satisfies the third judgment condition, then the potential target cell is determined to be the source cell of the cell change; The second judgment condition includes any one of the following: The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the target cell for the cell change; The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is different from the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change; The third judgment condition includes any one of the following: The continuous configuration message indicates that the potential target cell is the source cell of the cell change; The third identifier of the source cell in the cell change is the same as the third identifier of the target cell in the cell change.

39. The apparatus according to claim 34, wherein, The step of transmitting air interface information according to the continuous switching configuration message includes: If it is determined from the continuous handover configuration message that no change to the air interface root key is required when changing the cell, air interface information is transmitted based on the air interface root key currently held by the UE.

40. The apparatus according to claim 34, wherein, The processor reads the computer program from the memory and also performs the following operations: An NCC is selected according to a first preset rule as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during cell change; wherein, the first preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC corresponding to the potential cell used during the cell change; wherein, the modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

41. The apparatus according to claim 34 or 35, wherein, The processor reads the computer program from the memory and also performs the following operations: The NCC corresponding to the potential target cell is stored as a variable of the UE.

42. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device is applied to the first node and includes a memory, a transceiver, and a processor. The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations: Request the configuration for continuous handover from potential target nodes in the access network and generate a continuous handover configuration message; The continuous handover configuration message is sent to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

43. The apparatus according to claim 42, wherein, The first node used by the device is the node to which the source cell of any change occurs during the continuous cell change process of the UE; the potential target node is the node to which the target cell of any change occurs during the continuous cell change process of the UE.

44. The apparatus according to claim 42, wherein, The step of requesting preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network and generating a continuous handover configuration message includes: Request the potential target node in the access network to prepare for continuous handover configuration, determine the potential target cell, and the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell; The continuous handover configuration message is generated based on the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

45. The apparatus according to claim 44, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: Send the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the potential target node to the potential target node.

46. ​​The apparatus according to any one of claims 42-45, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: Send a first interface message to the core network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node; The core network receives a first feedback interface message sent by the core network; the first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

47. The apparatus according to any one of claims 42-45, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: A second interface message is sent to the core network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node. The system receives a second feedback interface message sent by the core network; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

48. The apparatus according to any one of claims 42-45, wherein, The step of requesting the preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network includes: Based on the NH indicated by the NCC currently held by the first node, generate the target air interface root key of the potential target cell; Send the target air interface root key of the potential target cell to the potential target node.

49. The apparatus according to any one of claims 42-45, wherein, The step of requesting preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network and generating a continuous handover configuration message includes: The core network requests the potential target node to prepare for continuous handover configuration and generates a continuous handover configuration message.

50. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device is applied to the second node and includes a memory, a transceiver, and a processor. The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations: When the UE accesses the second node, it sends a first switching request to the core network; the first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message; The core network receives a first conversion confirmation message returned based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

51. The apparatus according to claim 50, wherein, The second node is the node to which the target cell belongs during any change in the continuous cell change process of the UE.

52. The apparatus according to claim 51, wherein, The first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node.

53. The apparatus according to claim 52, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: According to the second preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion request; The second preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion request; The modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

54. The apparatus according to claim 50, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it receives the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node sent by the core network; Generate the target air interface root key based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

55. The apparatus according to claim 50, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: Receive the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node sent by the first node in the access network.

56. The apparatus according to claim 50, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: Send a third interface message to the core network; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node; The core network receives a third feedback interface message sent by the core network; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

57. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device is used in the core network and includes a memory, a transceiver, and a processor. The memory is used to store computer programs; the transceiver is used to send and receive data under the control of the processor; the processor is used to read the computer programs in the memory and perform the following operations: Receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network; Send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

58. The apparatus according to claim 57, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: Obtain the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node; The first conversion confirmation message is generated based on the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

59. The apparatus according to claim 58, wherein, The first conversion request includes the NCC corresponding to the second node, and obtaining the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node includes: The NH indicated by the NCC is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

60. The apparatus according to claim 57 or 58, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: According to the third preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message; The third preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined to be the NCC carried in the first conversion confirmation message; The modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

61. The apparatus according to claim 57 or 58, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: When the UE accesses the second node through the core network, it sends the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node to the second node.

62. The apparatus according to claim 61, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: The NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node is determined based on the NCC corresponding to the second node.

63. The apparatus according to claim 57 or 58, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: According to the fourth preset rule, an NCC is selected as the NCC to be sent to the second node; The fourth preset rule includes: Perform a modulo operation on each NCC to determine the operation value corresponding to each NCC; The NCC corresponding to the smallest calculated value is determined as the NCC to be sent to the second node; The modulo operation includes: Perform a modulo-N operation on the NCC to obtain the modulus value of the NCC; Subtract the NCC value of the UE from the NCC held by the node before the cell change.

64. The apparatus according to claim 57 or 58, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: Receive a first interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the first interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node; Send the first feedback interface message to the first node; The first feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

65. The apparatus according to claim 57 or 58, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: The system receives a second interface message sent by a first node in the access network; the second interface message includes an NCC request; the NCC request is used to instruct the core network to provide feedback on the NCC corresponding to the potential target node. Send a second feedback interface message to the first node; the second feedback interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target node.

66. The apparatus according to claim 57 or 58, wherein, The processor, for reading the computer program in the memory, also performs the following operations: Receive a third interface message sent by the second node; the third interface message includes the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell under the jurisdiction of the second node; A third feedback interface message is sent to the second node; the third feedback interface message is used to indicate that the core network has successfully received the NCC corresponding to the potential target cell.

67. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device includes: The first receiving unit is used to receive continuous switching configuration messages; The first processing unit is used to transmit air interface information according to the continuous handover configuration message; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count (NCC) value corresponding to the potential target cell.

68. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device includes: The second processing unit is used to request the preparation of continuous handover configuration from potential target nodes in the access network and generate a continuous handover configuration message. The first sending unit is used to send the continuous handover configuration message to the UE; the continuous handover configuration message is used to instruct the UE to perform air interface information transmission; the continuous handover configuration message includes the next hop chain count value (NCC) corresponding to the potential target cell.

69. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device includes: The second sending unit is used to send a first conversion request to the core network when the UE accesses the second node; The second receiving unit is configured to receive a first conversion confirmation message returned by the core network based on the first conversion request; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node. The first switching request is used to request the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node from the core network; the UE accesses the second node according to the continuous handover configuration message.

70. An air interface information transmission device, wherein, The device includes: The third receiving unit is used to receive the first conversion request sent by the second node in the access network; The third sending unit is used to send a first conversion confirmation message to the second node; the first conversion confirmation message includes the NH indicated by the NCC corresponding to the second node.

71. A processor-readable storage medium, wherein, The processor-readable storage medium stores a computer program that causes the processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, or the program causes the processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 9 to 16, or the program causes the processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 17 to 23, or the program causes the processor to perform the method according to any one of claims 24 to 33.

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