Communication method and related apparatus

Abstract

Disclosed in the present application are a communication method and a related apparatus. In the communication method, a first network element can request, by means of a first request, a second network element to create or modify a first network which provides a network service to a first application, wherein the first request carries network requirement information of the first application, such that the second network element can create or modify, in a mobile network and on the basis of an application requirement, a dedicated network for the first application, thereby helping improve the flexibility of an application service deploying a service in a mobile network.

Description

A communication method and related apparatus

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411015147.8, filed on July 25, 2024, with the China National Intellectual Property Administration, entitled “A Communication Method and Related Device”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and related apparatus. Background Technology

[0003] The future development of mobile networks requires them to not only provide connectivity services but also a variety of additional functions such as computing, sensing, and data processing. Currently, in the Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) architecture of 5G mobile communication systems, application service providers can deploy Edge Application Servers (EAS) at the edge of the mobile network. Operators implement service identification and forwarding rules through User Plane Functions (UPFs), enabling the UPF to identify application data packets processed by the EAS and forward them to the EAS. Although the 5G architecture allows for the deployment of user plane network functions closer to the edge, providing better connectivity for edge servers, the MEC solution requires application service providers to deploy application services locally. This local deployment requires service providers to physically deploy services and applications to specific geographical locations or edge nodes, which may limit their flexibility in deploying and managing their services. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This application provides a communication method and related apparatus that can provide a dedicated network creation and management process for applications based on their needs, thereby improving the flexibility of network deployment and management.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication method applied to a first network element. For example, this method can be executed by the first network element or by a module (e.g., processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.) within the first network element. This module can be a communication module within the first network element, or a circuit or chip within the first network element responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip), or a system-on-a-chip (SoC) chip containing a modem core, or a system-in-package (SIP) chip. Taking the application of this method to a first network element as an example, the method includes:

[0006] The first network element sends a first request to the second network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for the first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application.

[0007] The first network element receives second information from the second network element; the second information is used to indicate the first network; the first network is created or modified by the second network element based on the first information.

[0008] As can be seen from the embodiments of this application, the first network element can request the second network element to create or modify a first network to provide network services for the first application through a first request. The first request carries network requirement information for the first application, which allows the second network element to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on application requirements. This, in turn, improves the flexibility of deploying application services within the mobile network. Furthermore, on-demand service deployment eliminates the need to set up servers in multiple locations, reducing service deployment costs.

[0009] In one possible implementation, the first network element sends a first request to the second network element, including:

[0010] The first network element sends a second request to the third network element; the second request is used to request the third network element to send a first request to the second network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0011] In this implementation, the first network element can send a second request to a third network element with network control functions, requesting the third network element to send a first request to the second network element. The second request can also carry network requirement information for the first application (e.g., third information). The third network element can then generate configuration information for the first network (e.g., first information) based on this network requirement information and include this configuration information in the first request. This allows the second network element to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the application network configuration information, thereby improving the flexibility of deploying application services within the mobile network.

[0012] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0013] The identification information of the first application;

[0014] Address information of the first application;

[0015] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0016] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0017] In this implementation, the first network element can send the identification information of the first application, the address information of the first application, the services required by the first network, and the execution rules corresponding to at least one of the services required by the first network to the second network element, so that the second network element can create or modify a dedicated network (i.e., the first network) for the first application based on the network requirements of the first application.

[0018] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element and / or the address information of the fourth network element; wherein, the fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0019] In this implementation, the first network element can receive the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element, thereby determining that the first network has been created or modified. Based on the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element, the first network element can execute subsequent control procedures and / or service data transmission procedures on the first network.

[0020] In one possible implementation, the fourth network element is determined by the second network element, or the fourth network element is determined by the third network element.

[0021] In this implementation, the second network element can create or select a fourth network element for the first network based on the network requirement information of the first application, or the second network element can request the third network element to create or select a fourth network element for the first network based on the network requirement information of the first application. This allows the first network element to deploy or configure functions for the first network based on the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element (or the third network element).

[0022] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0023] The first network element sends a third request to the fifth network element; the third request includes the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the third request is used to request the fifth network element to use the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0024] In this implementation, the first network element may request the fifth network element to modify the first network's subscription information or policy information by using the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network, provided that the first terminal device or the second network is allowed to request the services of the first network.

[0025] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0026] In this implementation, when a first terminal device requests services from a first network, a first network element can use the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network to which the first terminal device is connected, and / or the address information of the third network to request a fifth network element to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network. Alternatively, when a second network requests services from the first network, the first network element can use the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network.

[0027] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0028] The first network element sends a fourth request to the second network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters, and the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters.

[0029] In this implementation, the first network element can initiate a change to the service parameters of the first network through a fourth request. The fourth request can carry the service parameters to be changed, so that the second network element can perform the change to the service parameters of the first network, thereby improving the flexibility of the service management of the first network.

[0030] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0031] The first network element sends a fifth request to the second network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

[0032] In this implementation, the first network element can initiate a call to the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network through the fifth request. The request can carry the third service parameter of the first service or the fourth service parameter of the second service, which is conducive to the second network element initiating a call to the first service based on the third service parameter or initiating a call to the second service based on the fourth service parameter, thereby enabling the network to achieve cooperation and sharing based on cross-domain communication.

[0033] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a communication method applied to a second network element. For example, this method can be executed by the second network element or by a module (e.g., processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.) within the second network element. This module can be a communication module within the second network element, or a circuit or chip within the second network element responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip), or a SOC chip or SIP chip containing a modem core. Taking the application of this method to a second network element as an example, the method includes:

[0034] The second network element receives a first request from the first network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for a first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application.

[0035] The second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information;

[0036] The second network element sends a second message to the first network element; the second message is used to instruct the first network.

[0037] As can be seen from this embodiment, the second network element can receive a first request from the first network element. Since the first request carries network requirement information of the first application, it is beneficial for the second network element to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the application requirements. This, in turn, improves the flexibility of deploying application services within the mobile network. Furthermore, on-demand service deployment eliminates the need to set up servers in multiple locations, reducing the cost of service deployment.

[0038] In one possible implementation, the second network element receives a first request from the first network element, including:

[0039] The second network element receives a first request sent by the third network element; the first request is sent by the third network element after receiving a second request from the first network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0040] In this implementation, the first request can be sent by the third network element to the second network element after receiving the second request from the first network element. The second request can also carry network requirement information of the first application (e.g., third information). The third network element can then generate configuration information of the first network (e.g., first information) based on the network requirement information and carry the configuration information of the first network in the first request. This allows the second network element to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the configuration information of the application network, thereby improving the flexibility of application services in deploying services within the mobile network.

[0041] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0042] The identification information of the first application;

[0043] Address information of the first application;

[0044] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0045] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0046] In this implementation, the second network element can receive the identification information of the first application, the address information of the first application, the services required by the first network, and the execution rules corresponding to at least one of the services required by the first network, so as to create or modify a dedicated network (i.e., the first network) for the first application based on the network requirements of the first application.

[0047] In one possible implementation, after the second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information, the method further includes:

[0048] The second network element determines the fourth network element; or...

[0049] The second network element sends a sixth request to the third network element; the sixth request is used to request the third network element to determine the fourth network element;

[0050] The fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0051] In this implementation, the second network element can create or select a fourth network element for the first network based on the network requirement information of the first application, or the second network element can request the third network element to create or select a fourth network element for the first network based on the network requirement information of the first application through a sixth request, so that after receiving the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element (or the third network element), the first network element can deploy or configure the first network to perform functions based on the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network element.

[0052] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

[0053] In this implementation, the second network element can feed back the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element to the first network element. This facilitates the first network element in determining whether the first network has been created or modified. Based on the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element, the second network element can execute subsequent control procedures and / or service data transmission procedures on the first network.

[0054] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0055] The second network element sends a service registration request to the sixth network element; the service registration request is used to request the sixth network element to obtain the contract information or policy information of one or more services of the first network.

[0056] The contract information or policy information for one or more services includes at least one of the following:

[0057] Billing and / or incentive rules for one or more services;

[0058] The authorization result of one or more services;

[0059] The scope of access to one or more services;

[0060] The Quality of Service (QoS) parameter for one or more services when data packets are forwarded.

[0061] In this implementation, the second network element can request the sixth network element to register one or more services of the first network. This allows the sixth network element to obtain subscription information or policy information such as the billing and / or incentive rules of one or more services, the authorization results of one or more services, the scope of one or more services, and the QoS parameters of one or more service packets during forwarding from the PCF network element, UDM network element, or UDR network element. This completes the registration of one or more services so that other networks or terminal devices can call the one or more services.

[0062] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0063] When the fifth network element uses the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network, the second network element uses the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the execution rules of the fourth network element; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0064] In this implementation, when the fifth network element uses the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network, the second network element can further use the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the execution rules of the fourth network element, so that the first terminal device and / or the second network can use the services of the first network.

[0065] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0066] In this implementation, when a first terminal device requests services from a first network, a first network element can use the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network to which the first terminal device is connected, and / or the address information of the third network to request a fifth network element to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network. Alternatively, when a second network requests services from the first network, the first network element can use the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network.

[0067] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0068] The second network element receives a fourth request from the first network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters; the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters;

[0069] The second network element sends a seventh request to the fifth network element; the seventh request is used to obtain the contract information or policy information of the first network.

[0070] If the subscription information or policy information of the first network allows the modification of the second service parameters, the second network element sends the first service parameters to the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element to modify the second service parameters in the third network element and / or the sixth network element.

[0071] In this implementation, when the second network element receives the fourth request from the first network element, it can request the subscription information or policy information of the first network from the PCF network element (i.e., the fifth network element). If the subscription information or policy information of the first network allows for changes to the service parameters of the first network, the second network element can modify the service parameters of the first network in the fourth network element (i.e., the execution function network element) and / or the sixth network element (the network management function network element), thereby improving the flexibility of service management of the first network.

[0072] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0073] The second network element receives a fifth request from the first network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application;

[0074] The second network element calls the first service based on the third service parameter; or the second network element calls the second service based on the fourth service parameter.

[0075] In this implementation, when the second network element receives the fifth request from the first network element, it can initiate a call to the first service based on the third service parameter in the fifth request, or initiate a call to the second service based on the fourth service parameter in the fifth request, thereby enabling collaboration and sharing between networks based on cross-domain communication.

[0076] In one possible implementation, the second network element invokes the first service based on the third service parameters, including:

[0077] The second network element sends a first call request to the seventh network element to call the first service through the seventh network element; the first call request includes third service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device;

[0078] The second network element calls the second service based on the fourth service parameter, including:

[0079] The second network element sends a second call request to the seventh network element to call the second service through the seventh network element; the second call request includes the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

[0080] In this implementation, since the gateway function network element (i.e. the seventh network element) deploys routing rules for each terminal device or each network, the second network element can initiate a call to the first or second service through the gateway function network element. The gateway function network element realizes both topological isolation between networks and cooperation and sharing between networks.

[0081] In one possible implementation, the subscription information or policy information of one or more services is also used to determine the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services; the seventh network element is configured with the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services.

[0082] In this implementation, the subscription information or policy information of one or more services can be used to determine the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services. By configuring the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services for the gateway functional network element (i.e., the seventh network element), it is beneficial for the gateway functional network element to route or forward data packets for one or more services based on the corresponding forwarding rules.

[0083] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a communication method applied to a seventh network element. For example, this method can be executed by the seventh network element or by a module (e.g., processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.) within the seventh network element. This module can be a communication module within the seventh network element, or a circuit or chip in a terminal device responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip), or a SOC chip or SIP chip containing a modem core. Taking the application of this method to a seventh network element as an example, the method includes:

[0084] The seventh network element receives a configuration message from the sixth network element; the configuration message is used by the seventh network element to configure forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services, the one or more services being services provided by the first network, and the first network being used to provide network services for the first application;

[0085] The seventh network element sends a configuration feedback message to the sixth network element; the configuration feedback message is used to indicate the configuration result of the forwarding rules of the data packets of the one or more services by the seventh network element.

[0086] As can be seen in this embodiment, after the first network is deployed, the gateway function network element (i.e., the seventh network element) is configured to receive configuration messages from the sixth network element, thereby configuring the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services, which in turn facilitates the gateway function network element to route or forward data packets of one or more services based on the corresponding forwarding rules.

[0087] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0088] The seventh network element receives an update message from the sixth network element; the update message is used by the seventh network element to update the forwarding rules of data packets for the one or more services.

[0089] In this implementation, if the subscription information or policy information of the first network changes, the seventh network element can receive an update message from the sixth network element, thereby updating the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services.

[0090] In one possible implementation, the update message is sent by the sixth network element when the fifth network element changes the subscription information or policy information of the first network using the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting the service of the first network; and the second network is a network requesting the service of the first network.

[0091] In this implementation, if the subscription information or policy information of the first network changes, the sixth network element instructs or requests the seventh network element to reconfigure or update the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network, so that the seventh network element can transmit data between the first terminal device and the first network or between the second network and the first network based on the latest forwarding rules.

[0092] In one possible implementation, the update message includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network, as well as the fourth information; or the update message includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network, as well as the fifth information.

[0093] In this implementation, the identification information and / or address information of the first network facilitate the seventh network element in querying the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network. The fourth information is used to indicate the terminal devices that are allowed to use the services of the first network, and the fifth information is used to indicate the application networks that are allowed to use the services of the first network.

[0094] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0095] In this implementation, the sixth network element can add the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network to the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network. Alternatively, the sixth network element can add the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network to the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network to update the forwarding rules corresponding to those services.

[0096] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0097] The seventh network element receives a first call request from the second network element; the first call request is used to request to call a first service of the second terminal device; the first call request includes a third service parameter of the first service, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device;

[0098] The seventh network element initiates a call to the first service based on the third service parameters, and the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device; or,

[0099] The seventh network element receives a second call request from the second network element; the second call request is used to request to call the second service of the fourth network; the second call request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service, as well as the identification information and / or the address information of the fourth network; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application;

[0100] The seventh network element initiates a call to the second service based on the fourth service parameters, the identification information of the fourth network, and / or the address information of the fourth network.

[0101] In this implementation, since the gateway function network element (i.e. the seventh network element) deploys routing rules for each terminal device or each network, the second network element can initiate a call to the first or second service through the gateway function network element. The gateway function network element realizes both topological isolation between networks and cooperation and sharing between networks.

[0102] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication method applied to the sixth network element side. For example, this method can be executed by the sixth network element or by a module (e.g., processor, chip, chip system, circuit, etc.) within the sixth network element. This module can be a communication module within the sixth network element, or a circuit or chip within the sixth network element responsible for communication functions, such as a modem chip (also known as a baseband chip), or a SOC chip or SIP chip containing a modem core. Taking the application of this method to a sixth network element as an example, the method includes:

[0103] The sixth network element sends a configuration message to the seventh network element; the configuration message is used by the seventh network element to configure the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services, the one or more services being services provided by the first network, and the first network being used to provide network services for the first application;

[0104] The sixth network element receives a configuration feedback message from the seventh network element; the configuration feedback message is used to indicate the configuration result of the forwarding rules of the data packets of the one or more services by the seventh network element.

[0105] As can be seen in this embodiment, after the first network is deployed, the sixth network element can configure the forwarding rules of one or more service data packets to the gateway function network element (i.e., the seventh network element) through configuration messages, which is beneficial for the gateway function network element to route or forward data packets of one or more services based on the corresponding forwarding rules.

[0106] In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

[0107] The sixth network element sends an update message to the seventh network element; the update message is used by the seventh network element to update the forwarding rules of the data packets of the one or more services.

[0108] In this implementation, when the subscription information or policy information of the first network changes, the sixth network element notifies the seventh network element to update the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services by updating the message.

[0109] In one possible implementation, the update message is sent by the sixth network element when the fifth network element changes the subscription information or policy information of the first network using the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting the service of the first network; and the second network is a network requesting the service of the first network.

[0110] In this implementation, when the subscription information or policy information of the first network changes, the sixth network element reconfigures or updates the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network, so that the seventh network element can transmit data between the first terminal device and the first network or between the second network and the first network based on the latest forwarding rules.

[0111] In one possible implementation, the update message includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network, as well as the fourth information; or the update message includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network, as well as the fifth information.

[0112] In this implementation, the identification information and / or address information of the first network facilitate the seventh network element in querying the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network. The fourth information is used to indicate the terminal devices that are allowed to use the services of the first network, and the fifth information is used to indicate the application networks that are allowed to use the services of the first network.

[0113] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0114] In this implementation, the sixth network element can add the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network to the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network. Alternatively, the sixth network element can add the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network to the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network to update the forwarding rules corresponding to those services.

[0115] Fifthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which includes a module for implementing the method in the first aspect described above; for example, the module includes a first transceiver unit; the first transceiver unit is used for:

[0116] Send a first request to the second network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network that provides network services for the first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application.

[0117] Receive second information from the second network element; the second information is used to indicate the first network; the first network is created or modified by the second network element based on the first information.

[0118] In one possible implementation, in sending the first request to the second network element, the first transceiver unit is specifically used for:

[0119] Send a second request to a third network element; the second request is used to request the third network element to send a first request to the second network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0120] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0121] The identification information of the first application;

[0122] Address information of the first application;

[0123] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0124] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0125] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element and / or the address information of the fourth network element; wherein, the fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0126] In one possible implementation, the fourth network element is determined by the second network element, or the fourth network element is determined by the third network element.

[0127] In one possible implementation, the first transceiver unit is also used for:

[0128] A third request is sent to the fifth network element; the third request includes the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the third request is used to request the fifth network element to use the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0129] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0130] In one possible implementation, the first transceiver unit is also used for:

[0131] A fourth request is sent to the second network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters, and the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters.

[0132] In one possible implementation, the first transceiver unit is further configured to: send a fifth request to the second network element; the fifth request is configured to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is configured to provide network services for the second application.

[0133] It should be understood that since the method embodiments and the device embodiments are different presentations of the same technical concept, the content of the first aspect of the embodiments of this application should be adapted to the fifth aspect of the embodiments of this application simultaneously, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects, which will not be repeated here.

[0134] In a sixth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which includes a module for implementing the method in the second aspect described above; for example, the module includes a second transceiver unit and a processing unit;

[0135] The second transceiver unit is used to receive a first request from the first network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for a first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application.

[0136] Processing unit, used to create or modify first network based on first information;

[0137] The second transceiver unit is also used to send second information to the first network element; the second information is used to instruct the first network.

[0138] In one possible implementation, in receiving a first request from the first network element, the second transceiver unit is specifically used for:

[0139] Receive a first request sent by a third network element; the first request is sent by the third network element after receiving a second request from the first network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0140] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0141] The identification information of the first application;

[0142] Address information of the first application;

[0143] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0144] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0145] In one possible implementation, the processing unit is further configured to: determine the fourth network element; or,

[0146] The second transceiver unit is also used to: send a sixth request to the third network element; the sixth request is used to request the third network element to determine the fourth network element;

[0147] The fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0148] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

[0149] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit is also used for:

[0150] Send a service registration request to the sixth network element; the service registration request is used to request the sixth network element to obtain the subscription information or policy information of one or more services of the first network;

[0151] The contract information or policy information for one or more services includes at least one of the following:

[0152] Billing and / or incentive rules for one or more services;

[0153] The authorization result of one or more services;

[0154] The scope of access to one or more services;

[0155] The Quality of Service (QoS) parameter for one or more services when data packets are forwarded.

[0156] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit is also used for:

[0157] When the fifth network element uses the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network, the fourth network element's execution rules are changed using the fourth information and / or the fifth information; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting services from the first network; the second network is a network requesting services from the first network.

[0158] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0159] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit is also used for:

[0160] Receive a fourth request from the first network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters; the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters;

[0161] Send a seventh request to the fifth network element; the seventh request is used to obtain the subscription information or policy information of the first network.

[0162] If the subscription information or policy information of the first network allows for the modification of the second service parameters, the first service parameters are sent to the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element to modify the second service parameters in the third network element and / or the sixth network element.

[0163] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit is also used for:

[0164] The system receives a fifth request from the first network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

[0165] The first service can be invoked based on the third service parameter; or the second service can be invoked based on the fourth service parameter.

[0166] In one possible implementation, in calling the first service based on the third service parameter, the second transceiver unit is specifically used for:

[0167] Send a first call request to the seventh network element to call the first service through the seventh network element; the first call request includes third service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device;

[0168] In terms of calling the second service based on the fourth service parameter, the second transceiver unit is specifically used for:

[0169] A second call request is sent to the seventh network element to invoke the second service through the seventh network element; the second call request includes the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

[0170] In one possible implementation, the subscription information or policy information of one or more services is also used to determine the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services; the seventh network element is configured with the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services.

[0171] It should be understood that since the method embodiments and the device embodiments are different presentations of the same technical concept, the content of the second aspect of the embodiments of this application should be adapted to the sixth aspect of the embodiments of this application simultaneously, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects, which will not be repeated here.

[0172] In a seventh aspect, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which includes a module for implementing the method in the third aspect described above; for example, the module includes a third transceiver unit; the third transceiver unit is used for:

[0173] Receive configuration messages from the sixth network element; the configuration messages are used by the seventh network element to configure the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services, the one or more services being services provided by the first network, and the first network being used to provide network services for the first application;

[0174] Send a configuration feedback message to the sixth network element; the configuration feedback message is used to indicate the configuration result of the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services by the seventh network element.

[0175] In one possible implementation, the third transceiver unit is also used for:

[0176] Receive update messages from the sixth network element; update messages are used by the seventh network element to update the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services.

[0177] In one possible implementation, the update message is sent by the sixth network element when the fifth network element changes the subscription information or policy information of the first network using the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; and the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0178] In one possible implementation, the update message includes the identification information and / or the address information of the first network, as well as a fourth piece of information; or the update message includes the identification information and / or the address information of the first network, as well as a fifth piece of information.

[0179] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0180] In one possible implementation, the third transceiver unit is also used for:

[0181] Receive a first call request from the second network element; the first call request is used to request to call the first service of the second terminal device; the first call request includes the third service parameters of the first service, as well as the identification information and / or the address information of the second terminal device;

[0182] Based on the third service parameters, and the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device, a call to the first service is initiated; or,

[0183] The system receives a second call request from a second network element; the second call request is used to request the invocation of a second service of the fourth network; the second call request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

[0184] Based on the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network, a call to the second service is initiated.

[0185] It should be understood that since the method embodiments and the device embodiments are different presentations of the same technical concept, the content of the third aspect of the embodiments of this application should be adapted to the seventh aspect of the embodiments of this application simultaneously, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects, which will not be repeated here.

[0186] Eighthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which includes a module for implementing the method in the fourth aspect described above; for example, the module includes a fourth transceiver unit; the fourth transceiver unit is used for:

[0187] Send a configuration message to the seventh network element; the configuration message is used by the seventh network element to configure the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services, one or more services are services provided by the first network, and the first network is used to provide network services for the first application;

[0188] Receive configuration feedback messages from the seventh network element; the configuration feedback messages are used to indicate the configuration results of the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services by the seventh network element.

[0189] In one possible implementation, the fourth transceiver unit is also used for:

[0190] Send an update message to the seventh network element; the update message is used by the seventh network element to update the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services.

[0191] In one possible implementation, the update message is sent by the sixth network element when the fifth network element changes the subscription information or policy information of the first network using the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; and the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0192] In one possible implementation, the update message includes the identification information and / or the address information of the first network, as well as a fourth piece of information; or the update message includes the identification information and / or the address information of the first network, as well as a fifth piece of information.

[0193] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0194] It should be understood that since the method embodiments and the device embodiments are different presentations of the same technical concept, the content of the fourth aspect of the embodiments of this application should be adapted to the eighth aspect of the embodiments of this application simultaneously, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects, which will not be repeated here.

[0195] Ninthly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device for implementing any one of the first to fourth aspects or any one of the communication methods in any one of the first to fourth aspects. The device may be a core network device, a module applied to the core network device (e.g., a processor, chip, or chip system), or a logical node, logical module, or software capable of implementing all or part of the functions of the core network device.

[0196] In one possible implementation, the communication device in the ninth aspect includes units, modules, or means for respectively executing the methods in any one of the first to fourth aspects or any implementation thereof. Specifically, the units, modules, or means may be implemented in software, in hardware, or in a combination of software and hardware.

[0197] In another possible implementation, the communication device in the ninth aspect above includes at least one processor; the at least one processor is configured to perform the corresponding function in the communication method described above.

[0198] Optionally, the at least one processor may be coupled to at least one memory for storing necessary programs (instructions) and / or data (such as one or more computer programs) of the device. Optionally, the communication device may further include a communication interface for enabling communication between the device and other network elements. Optionally, the at least one memory may be located internally or externally to the communication device.

[0199] Optionally, the communication device may further include a transceiver unit, with the processor coupled to the transceiver unit. The processor executes computer programs or instructions to control the transceiver unit to receive and send information. When the processor executes the computer programs or instructions, it is also used to implement the above method through logic circuits or executed code instructions. The transceiver unit may be a transceiver, transceiver circuit, or input / output interface, used to receive signals from other communication devices outside the communication device and transmit them to the processor, or to send signals from the processor to other communication devices outside the communication device. When the communication device is a chip, the transceiver unit is a transceiver circuit or an input / output interface.

[0200] When the communication device in the ninth aspect above is a chip, the transmitting unit can be an output unit, such as an output circuit or a communication interface; the receiving unit can be an input unit, such as an input circuit or a communication interface. When the communication device is a terminal device, the transmitting unit can be a transmitter or a receiver; the receiving unit can be a receiver or a receiver.

[0201] In a tenth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a chip, including: a processor for calling and running a computer program from a memory, causing a device on which the chip is installed to perform the method as described in any one of the embodiments of the first to fourth aspects above.

[0202] Eleventhly, embodiments of this application provide a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program for execution by a device, wherein the computer program, when executed, implements the method as described in any one of the embodiments of the first to fourth aspects above.

[0203] In a twelfth aspect, embodiments of this application provide a computer program product that, when run by a device, causes the device to perform the method as described in any one of the embodiments of the first to fourth aspects above. Attached Figure Description

[0204] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the background art, the accompanying drawings used in the embodiments of this application or the background art will be described below.

[0205] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a 5G system architecture provided by related technologies;

[0206] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a MEC architecture in 5G provided by related technologies;

[0207] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a system architecture provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0208] Figure 4 is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0209] Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0210] Figure 6 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0211] Figure 7 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0212] Figure 8 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0213] Figure 9 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0214] Figure 10 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0215] Figure 11 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0216] Figure 12 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0217] Figure 13 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0218] Figure 14 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0219] Figure 15 is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0220] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0221] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0222] Figure 18 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0223] The terms "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," etc., used in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish different objects, not to describe a specific order. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that includes a series of steps or units is not limited to the listed steps or units, but may optionally include steps or units not listed, or may optionally include other steps or units inherent to these processes, methods, products, or apparatuses.

[0224] 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.

[0225] The terms “component,” “module,” “system,” etc., used in this specification are used to refer to computer-related entities, hardware, firmware, combinations of hardware and software, software, or software in execution. For example, a component can be, but is not limited to, a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable file, an execution thread, a program, and / or a computer. As illustrated, applications running on terminal devices and terminal devices can both be components. One or more components may reside in a process and / or an execution thread, and components may be located on a single computer and / or distributed among two or more computers. Furthermore, these components can be executed from various computer-readable media on which various data structures are stored. Components can communicate, for example, via local and / or remote processes based on signals having one or more data packets (e.g., data from two components interacting with another component between a local system, a distributed system, and / or a network, such as the Internet interacting with other systems via signals).

[0226] First, a brief introduction to the relevant terms and technical background used in this application will be provided to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

[0227] (1) Fourth generation mobile communication technology: 4G;

[0228] (2) 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP);

[0229] (3) Radio Access Network (RAN): In this application, it mainly refers to access network equipment, which is responsible for radio resource management, uplink and downlink data classification and quality of service (QoS) application, as well as signaling processing with control plane network elements and data forwarding with user plane function network elements. For example, access network equipment can be a base station, a broadband network gateway (BNG), an aggregation switch, a non-3GPP access device, etc. Base stations can include various forms of base stations, such as macro base stations, micro base stations (also known as small stations), relay stations, access points, etc., which are not specifically limited in this application. For equipment that allows terminals to access the core network, it is uniformly referred to as access network equipment in this application and will not be described further. For example, access network equipment can be an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN) device in a 4G network, a next-generation radio access network (NG-RAN) device in a 5G network, etc.

[0230] (4) Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF): Primarily responsible for access management and other related functions;

[0231] (5) Network Function: NF; the smallest service unit of the access network or core network in a mobile network. It is a general term for specific network service providers, such as AMF, PCF, SMF, etc.

[0232] (6) Unified Data Management (UDM): User contract management, access authorization, authentication information generation, etc.

[0233] (7) Unified Data Storage: Unified Data Repository, UDR; provides storage capabilities for contract data, policy data, and capability-related data.

[0234] (8) Session Management Function (SMF): This function is mainly used to establish and manage user sessions, including Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, tunnel maintenance, billing data collection, policy enforcement, and QoS processing rules.

[0235] (9) Policy Control Function (PCF): Responsible for generating user equipment (UE) access policies and QoS flow control policies. It makes decisions and adjusts network policies based on network operator policies and user needs. It can dynamically adjust policy rules according to different scenarios and requirements to meet the needs of different users and applications.

[0236] (10) Application Function (AF): Responsible for conveying the application's requests to the network side, such as QoS requirements or user state event subscriptions. The AF can be a third-party functional entity or an application server deployed by the operator. The UE can send requests to the AF to obtain specific applications and services;

[0237] (11) Sensing function: SF; provides sensing services based on wireless technology, such as environmental perception, environmental modeling, and sensing and localization.

[0238] (14) Network Exposure Function (NEF): Provides third-party service providers such as application servers with capabilities within the mobile network, such as terminal location information, mobile network wireless resource status, network data analysis services, etc.

[0239] (15) Time-Sensitive Communication and Time Synchronization Function (TSCTSF);

[0240] (16) Unique identifier: Identity, ID;

[0241] (17) Network Repository Function (NRF): Provides network function service registration and discovery services within a mobile network.

[0242] (18) User Plane Function (UPF): Provides data packet forwarding services between the terminal and the data network, ensures the quality of data forwarding services, and distributes and aggregates data packets between different access networks.

[0243] (19) Authentication Server Function (AUSF): Provides access authentication and authorization services for terminals.

[0244] (20) Edge Application Server Discovery Function (EASDF): Used to discover edge application servers.

[0245] (21) Data Network (DN): This is a service network that provides data transmission services to users, such as IP Multimedia Service (IMS) and the Internet. The UE accesses the DN through a protocol data unit (PDU) session established between the UE and the DN.

[0246] (22) Service Communication Proxy (SCP): a service that forwards service request messages for network functions.

[0247] (23) Non-Access Stratum (NAS);

[0248] (24) User service node (USN): A USN can be understood as an integration of core network control functions, a core network element that provides dedicated services to the UE, application (APP), or RAN node. The node defined in this application can be a physical entity node with integrated deployment of different functions, or a collective term for a set of logical functions. Furthermore, it can have other names for different implementations, such as user twin node, user-exclusive network, user virtual network, user cloud node, user agent node, user intelligent agent, etc. This application does not specifically limit the name.

[0249] In the development of mobile networks, the primary issue to be solved and optimized is providing ubiquitous access services to users. The task of the mobile network system is to establish a transmission channel for users, enabling fast and reliable transmission of various service data packets between the user and the DN. Please refer to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of a 5G system architecture provided by related technologies. As shown in Figure 1, this system architecture is mainly divided into two parts: the access network and the core network. The access network is used to implement functions related to radio access, while the core network mainly includes the following network elements: AMF, SMF, UPF, PCF, UDM, NEF, NRF, AF, AUSF, etc. Based on this system architecture, various service data packets can be transmitted between the UE and the DN.

[0250] Based on the 5G system architecture, related technologies have proposed the MEC architecture in 5G. In this architecture, the SMF (Service Provider Function) can select UPF (User Server) network elements based on information from the UE (User Equipment) or requests from the AF (Application Provider), enabling the UPF to identify application data packets processed by the EAS (Application Access System) and forward these packets to the EAS. As shown in Figure 2, the UPF in this architecture includes an Uplink Classifier (UL CL) or Branching Point (BP) UPF, a Local PDU Session Anchor (L-PSA) UPF, and a Central PSA (C-PSA) UPF. The SMF executes traffic offloading strategies through these UPFs to forward data packets. The MEC architecture requires application service providers to deploy it locally, which may require setting up and maintaining servers in more locations, significantly increasing costs and hindering business promotion. In addition, future mobile networks will need to provide new services such as computing, data, sensing, and artificial intelligence (AI) in addition to connectivity services. These new services require extensive collaboration and sharing, such as sharing sensing data, sharing AI models, and sharing computing power. The existing network architecture mainly provides access and transmission services, and cannot support collaboration and sharing between application servers.

[0251] To address the shortcomings of related technologies, this application provides a communication method applicable to various communication systems, such as 5G mobile communication systems, future evolution systems, or multi-communication convergence systems, as well as existing communication systems. The application scenarios of the technical solution provided in this application can include various scenarios, such as machine-to-machine (M2M), macro-micro communication, enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low-latency communication (uRLLC), and massive machine-type communication (mMTC). For example, it can be implemented based on the system architecture shown in Figure 3. As shown in Figure 3, in this system architecture, the network-side PCF performs global policy control, network control, and RAN policy control, providing multi-level policy associations, such as: network-level policies, inter-subnetwork communication policies, UE / session management (SM) / access and mobility management (AM) policies, cross-domain communication policies, etc. On the network side, a dedicated network for the app can be deployed on demand. This dedicated network, also known as the application network, includes application network control and execution functions. In other words, this system architecture provides an app-level user space, supports customized network-native functions, custom access control, and flexible on-demand deployment of application network execution functions. The network side provides gateway (GW) functionality. The gateway, in conjunction with network management functions, enables access control, network discovery, load balancing, network isolation, cross-domain communication between sub-networks, and routing. In the system architecture shown in Figure 3, USN-RAN or distributed unit (DU)-RAN is the radio access network node accessed by the UE, and USN-UE is the user network accessed by the UE. The UE's User Routing Selection Policy (URSP) part (network selection) is executed on the network side. The PDU session initiated by the UE is path-selected by the UPF. One PDU session can access multiple application networks to obtain app services. Specifically, DU-RAN nodes communicate with the gateway via the Ny interface, UPF communicates with the gateway and the application network via the Nx interface, and the application network communicates with the app service and the UPF communicates with the app service via the N6 interface.

[0252] For example, the communication systems to which the embodiments of this application can be applied may include access network equipment, terminal equipment, and core network equipment.

[0253] For example, the terminal device in this application embodiment can also be called a terminal, which can be a device with wireless transceiver function. The terminal device can be a UE, or a handheld device, vehicle-mounted device, wearable device, or computing device with wireless communication function. For example, the UE can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, or computer with wireless transceiver function. The terminal device can also be a virtual reality (VR) terminal device, an augmented reality (AR) terminal device, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in autonomous driving, a wireless terminal in telemedicine, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in a smart city, a wireless terminal in a smart home, etc. In this application embodiment, the terminal device can be a device for implementing the functions of the terminal; it can also be a device that supports the terminal in implementing the functions, such as a chip system, which can be installed in the terminal. In this application embodiment, the chip system can be composed of chips, or it can include chips and other discrete components.

[0254] For example, the access network equipment in this application embodiment includes a base station (BS). A BS can be a device deployed in a wireless access network capable of wirelessly communicating with a terminal. The base station can be a macro base station, micro base station, relay station, or access point, etc. For example, the base station involved in this application embodiment can be a 5G base station or an eNB (Evolved Node B) base station in Long Term Evolution (LTE). The 5G base station can also be called a Transmission Reception Point (TRP) or a gNB (Next-Generation Node B) base station. In this application embodiment, the apparatus for implementing the functions of the access network equipment can be the access network equipment itself; it can also be an apparatus capable of supporting the access network equipment in implementing this function, such as a chip system, which can be installed in the access network equipment. In this application embodiment, the technical solution provided by this application embodiment is described using the example of the apparatus for implementing the functions of the access network equipment being an access network equipment. For example, the access network equipment can be a base station. Optionally, in some deployments of the access network equipment, the access network equipment can be a central unit (CU) or a distributed unit (DU), etc. For example, operations or steps at the Radio Link Control (RLC), Media Access Control (MAC), and Radio Resource Control (RRC) layers can be performed by the CU; operations or steps at the Physical (PHY) layer can be performed by the DU. In other deployments of access network equipment, the CU can also be divided into CU-control plane (CP) and CU-user plane (UP), etc. In still other deployments of access network equipment, the access network equipment can also be a radio unit (RU). In still other deployments of access network equipment, the access network equipment can also be an open radio access network (ORAN) architecture, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the deployment method of the access network equipment. In the ORAN architecture, the CU can also be called open (O)-CU, the DU can also be called O-DU, the CU-CP can also be called O-CU-CP, the CU-UP can also be called O-CU-UP, and the RU can also be called O-RU.

[0255] For example, the core network equipment in this application embodiment is mainly used to implement functions such as sensing, positioning, mobility management, data processing, session management, policy and accounting, network creation and management, and gateway routing. The names of the equipment implementing core network functions may differ in systems using different access technologies, and this application embodiment does not limit this. Core network equipment includes, for example, SF, SMF, positioning functions (e.g., location management function (LMF), AMF, PCF, UPF, AF, NEF), application network control functions, application network execution functions, gateway functions, etc.

[0256] The technical solution provided in this application will be described in detail below with reference to specific implementation methods.

[0257] Please refer to Figure 4, which is a flowchart illustrating a communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. This method can be implemented based on the architecture shown in Figure 3. As shown in Figure 4, the method includes steps 401-403:

[0258] 401: The first network element sends a first request to the second network element.

[0259] Correspondingly, the second network element receives a first request from the first network element. The first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for the first application. The first request includes first information describing the network requirements of the first application.

[0260] For example, the first network element can be an AF network element, or it can be an application server for the first application, etc. The first network element can send the first request directly to the second network element, or it can send the first request to the second network element through the NEF network element.

[0261] In this embodiment, the first network can be referred to as the application network or dedicated network of the first application (app). The application network can be understood as a customized network service of the application server within the mobile network, providing dedicated connection services (allowing specific terminals to access and access application services), providing computing power services (allowing the application server to deploy application images, application service function code, graphics rendering algorithms, application execution scripts, etc. within the network, and providing the corresponding service execution environment), and providing data or AI services (such as providing data compression, model training, etc. for the application).

[0262] For example, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0263] The identification information of the first application (i.e., the ID of the first application);

[0264] Address information of the first application;

[0265] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0266] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0267] The address information of the first application includes, but is not limited to, IP address, MAC address, port number, and address triples (IP address, port number, and transmission protocol). The services required by the first network can also be understood as the network functions or capabilities that the first network must possess, including but not limited to computing services, sensing services, communication services, data processing services, AI model training, and AI model inference services. For these services, at least one corresponding execution rule can also be provided, such as billing rules, QoS rules, etc. It should be noted that, in order to create or modify an application network capable of providing corresponding network services to the first application, the first information must at least include the services required by the first network.

[0268] In this implementation, the first network element can send the identification information of the first application, the address information of the first application, the services required by the first network, and the execution rules corresponding to at least one of the services required by the first network to the second network element, so that the second network element can create or modify a dedicated network (i.e., the first network) for the first application based on the network requirements of the first application.

[0269] 402: The second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information.

[0270] In this embodiment, the second network element creates or modifies a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the network requirements of the first application. For example, the second network element can create a completely new network for the first application, or the second network element can select a network slice or network template and modify the network slice or network template based on the network requirements of the first application to obtain the first network.

[0271] For example, the second network element can be a control function network element of the first network, or the second network element can be a control and execution function network element of the first network.

[0272] 403: The second network element sends the second information to the first network element.

[0273] Correspondingly, the first network element receives second information from the second network element. This second information is used to indicate the first network. For example, the second information includes the identification information and / or the address information of the first network.

[0274] As can be seen from the embodiments of this application, the first network element can request the second network element to create or modify a first network to provide network services for the first application through a first request. The first request carries network requirement information for the first application, which allows the second network element to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on application requirements. This, in turn, improves the flexibility of deploying application services within the mobile network. Furthermore, on-demand service deployment eliminates the need to set up servers in multiple locations, reducing service deployment costs.

[0275] Please refer to Figure 5, which is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 5, the method includes steps 501-504:

[0276] 501: The first network element sends a second request to the third network element.

[0277] Correspondingly, the third network element receives a second request from the first network element. The third network element can be a network element with application network control functions and / or user network control functions (UNCF). The third network element can be co-located with a PCF network element or a NEF network element, or it can function as a logical function of a PCF or NEF network element. The third network element is responsible for managing application network resources, service parameters or policies, and lifecycle management (LCM). The second request is used to request the third network element to send a first request to the second network element. The second request includes third information, which includes the first information. For example, the third information includes at least one of the following:

[0278] The identification information of the first application;

[0279] Address information of the first application;

[0280] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0281] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services;

[0282] The identification information of the first network element;

[0283] The Uniform Resource Locator (URL) for the host or service corresponding to the first application; it should be noted that when the first network element is the host or server of the first application, this URL can be the URL of the first network element;

[0284] The full qualified domain name (FQDN) of the host or service corresponding to the first application; it should be noted that when the first network element is the host or server of the first application, the FQDN can be the FQDN of the first network element.

[0285] The first network allows access to user information; for example, this user information may be the UE's identification information and / or the UE's address information;

[0286] The first network's LCM control information includes, for example, the service status, service location, and service time.

[0287] It should be noted that, in order to create or modify an application network capable of providing corresponding network services to the first application, the third information must at least include the services required by the first network. This can be understood as the third information also describing the network requirements of the first application.

[0288] 502: The third network element sends the first request to the second network element.

[0289] Correspondingly, the second network element receives the first request from the third network element.

[0290] In this embodiment of the application, the third network element can generate first information based on the third information carried in the second request, and carry the first information in the first request. The first information can be understood as the configuration information of the first network; for example, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0291] The identification information of the first application;

[0292] Address information of the first application;

[0293] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0294] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services;

[0295] The identification information of the first network;

[0296] Address information for the first network.

[0297] In this implementation, the first network element can send a second request to a third network element with network control functions, requesting the third network element to send a first request to the second network element. The second request can also carry network requirement information for the first application (e.g., third information). The third network element can then generate configuration information for the first network (e.g., first information) based on this network requirement information and include this configuration information in the first request. This allows the second network element to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the application network configuration information, thereby improving the flexibility of deploying application services within the mobile network.

[0298] For example, the third network element obtains the subscription information or policy information of the first network from the PCF network element or UDM network element based on the network demand information of the first application, and determines the second network element based on the subscription information or policy information of the first network, such as generating the second network element or selecting the second, and then sends the first request to the second network element.

[0299] 503: The second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information.

[0300] In this embodiment, the second network element creates or modifies a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the configuration information of the first network. For example, the second network element can create a completely new network for the first application and configure the network with the configuration information, or the second network element can select a network slice or network template and modify the network slice or network template based on the configuration information of the first network to obtain the first network.

[0301] 504: The second network element sends the second information to the first network element.

[0302] Correspondingly, the first network element receives the second information from the second network element.

[0303] For example, the control function network element or the execution function network element of the first network can both be the second network element. For example, when the second network element is only the control function network element of the first network, after the second network element completes the creation or modification of the first network, it needs to determine a fourth network element (i.e., the execution function network element) for the first network.

[0304] For example, the second network element can create or select a fourth network element for the first network based on the network requirement information of the first application (or the configuration information of the first network), and assign corresponding identification information and / or address information to the fourth network element (i.e., the second network element assigns a user plane anchor point to the first network). For example, the address information can be a URL, IP address, etc. This address information can be used by the AF network element to communicate with the fourth network element through the N6 interface. Alternatively, this address information can be used by the AF network element to communicate with other application networks or user networks (such as network slices, private networks) through the fourth network element.

[0305] For example, the second network element can send a request message to the third network element, which requests the third network element to create or select a fourth network element for the first network. For example, the request message may carry the capabilities or services of the fourth network element to be created or selected (such as data processing services, data storage services, data forwarding services, AI services, etc.), or it may carry the identification information and / or address information of the first network. For example, after determining the fourth network element, the third network element can allocate corresponding identification information and / or address information to the fourth network element (i.e., the third network element allocates a user plane anchor point to the first network), as well as the service level that the fourth network element can support (such as transmission bandwidth, computing resources, AI models, etc.).

[0306] In this implementation, the second network element can create or select a fourth network element for the first network based on the network requirement information of the first application, or the second network element can request the third network element to create or select a fourth network element for the first network based on the network requirement information of the first application. This allows the first network element to deploy or configure functions for the first network based on the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element (or the third network element).

[0307] For example, when both the control function network element and the execution function network element of the first network are second network elements, the second information may only include the identification information and / or the address information of the first network. When a fourth network element is determined for the first network, the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

[0308] For example, the second network element can directly feed back the second information to the first network element (including sending the second information directly to the first network element or sending the second information to the first network element through NEF), or the second network element can also send the second information to the first network element through the third network element. For example: when the second network element determines the fourth network element, the second network element can first feed back the identification information and / or the address information of the fourth network element to the third network element, and then the third network element feeds back the identification information and / or the address information of the fourth network element to the first network element; when the third network element determines the fourth network element, the third network element can feed back the identification information and / or the address information of the fourth network element to the first network element based on the request of the second network element; when the control function network element or execution function network element of the first network is the second network element, the second network element can directly feed back the identification information and / or the address information of the first network to the first network element, or the second network element can request the third network element to feed back the identification information and / or the address information of the first network in the configuration information to the first network element through a request message, and so on.

[0309] In this implementation, the first network element can receive the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element, thereby determining that the first network has been created or modified. Based on the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element fed back by the second network element, the first network element can execute subsequent control procedures and / or service data transmission procedures on the first network.

[0310] To facilitate a better understanding of the creation or modification process of the first network in this application embodiment, a brief explanation is provided below using the complete interaction process between core network elements as an example. Please refer to Figure 6, which mainly includes the following steps:

[0311] 1a: The AF network element sends a second request to the NEF network element;

[0312] Correspondingly, the NEF network element receives a second request from the AF network element; wherein the second request carries third information.

[0313] 1b: The NEF network element sends a second request to the third network element; before sending the second request, the NEF network element can perform security procedures such as authentication on the AF network element to confirm that the AF can send the second request to the mobile network.

[0314] Correspondingly, the third network element receives the second request from the NEF network element.

[0315] 2: The third network element obtains the contract information or policy information of the first network from the PCF network element;

[0316] Based on the contract information or strategy information, the third network element can determine the second network element. If the third network element is co-located with the PCF or NEF, then the corresponding step 1b or step 2 can be omitted.

[0317] 3: The third network element sends the first request to the second network element;

[0318] Correspondingly, the second network element receives the first request from the third network element and completes the creation or modification of the first network; wherein, the first request carries first information, which may be the configuration information of the first network.

[0319] When a second network element needs to be created or a fourth network element needs to be selected:

[0320] 4: The second network element creates or selects the fourth network element based on the network requirement information of the first application;

[0321] 5: The fourth network element sends a feedback message to the second network element;

[0322] This feedback message is used to instruct the creation or selection of the fourth network element to be completed.

[0323] 6a: The second network element sends relevant information about the fourth network element to the third network element;

[0324] Among them, the relevant information of the fourth network element carries the identification information and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

[0325] When a third network element needs to be created or a fourth network element needs to be selected:

[0326] 6b: The second network element sends a request to the third network element to create or select a fourth network element;

[0327] Correspondingly, the third network element receives the request from the second network element and creates or selects the fourth network element based on the network requirement information of the first application.

[0328] 7: The third network element feeds back relevant information about the fourth network element to the second network element;

[0329] 8: The third network element sends the second information to the NEF network element;

[0330] Correspondingly, the NEF network element receives second information from the third network element; wherein, the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

[0331] 9: The NEF network element sends the second information to the AF network element;

[0332] 10: The AF network element performs corresponding control on the first network based on the second information;

[0333] For example, this control could involve deploying an APP image on the fourth network element (i.e., the execution function network element), controlling access to the first network, sending deployment requests for the execution function, and granting open authorization for services or data.

[0334] 11: The second network element configures the execution rules for the fourth network element based on AF control;

[0335] 12: After receiving the configuration feedback from the fourth network element, the second network element feeds back the control result to the AF network element.

[0336] Please refer to Figure 7, which is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 7, the method includes steps 701-708:

[0337] 701: The first network element sends a first request to the second network element;

[0338] 702: The second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information;

[0339] 703: The second network element sends a second message to the first network element;

[0340] The specific implementation of steps 701-703 can be referred to the relevant descriptions of steps 401-403 in Figure 4 or steps 501-504 in Figure 5, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects.

[0341] 704: The second network element sends a service registration request to the sixth network element;

[0342] Correspondingly, the sixth network element receives a service registration request from the second network element. The sixth network element can be a network management function network element or a network storage function network element (NRF). The service registration request is used to request the sixth network element to obtain subscription information or policy information for one or more services of the first network. For example, these one or more services can be services that the first network element allows the first network to open. The service registration request may carry the service type, service name, service interface information, service address information, etc. (or may be collectively referred to as service parameters of one or more services) of one or more services.

[0343] 705: The sixth network element obtains one or more service subscription or policy information from the PCF network element, UDM network element, or UDR network element;

[0344] In this embodiment, the sixth network element can request subscription information or policy information for one or more services from the PCF network element, UDM network element, or UDR network element via a subscription information or policy information request message. This request message can carry the service type, service name, service interface information, and service address information of one or more services. The PCF network element, UDM network element, or UDR network element can record the service parameters of one or more services along with the corresponding subscription information or policy information, or generate subscription information or policy information corresponding to the service parameters of one or more services. For example, the PCF network element, UDM network element, or UDR network element can also record relevant information about the sixth network element, such as its identification information, address information, and / or URL, so that when the subscription information or policy information of the first network changes subsequently, the network function can be notified to update the policy or subscription.

[0345] The contract information or policy information for one or more services includes at least one of the following:

[0346] (1) Billing and / or incentive rules for one or more services; such as: traffic billing, frequency billing, time billing and other billing or incentive methods, and the corresponding billing units.

[0347] (2) The authorization result of one or more services; the authorization result is used to indicate whether one or more services are open to other sub-networks or terminal devices. For example, if service 1 can be opened to UE1, the corresponding authorization result can be represented by 1 or Y. If service 1 cannot be opened to UE1, the corresponding authorization result can be represented by 0 or N. Of course, the above is only an example and does not limit the authorization result of one or more services.

[0348] (3) The scope of one or more services; for example: provide a list of terminal devices that can provide one or more services (which may be a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI), International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), generic public subscription identifier (GPSI)), a list of networks (such as application network identification information / address information, user network identification information / address information, network slice identifier, public land mobile network (PLMN) identifier, non-public network (NPN) identifier), etc.

[0349] (4) Quality of Service (QoS) parameters of one or more services when forwarding data packets; such as bandwidth, latency, packet loss rate, etc.

[0350] In this implementation, the second network element can request the sixth network element to register one or more services of the first network. This allows the sixth network element to obtain subscription information or policy information such as the billing and / or incentive rules of one or more services, the authorization results of one or more services, the scope of one or more services, and the QoS parameters of one or more service packets during forwarding from the PCF network element, UDM network element, or UDR network element. This completes the registration of one or more services so that other networks or terminal devices can call the one or more services.

[0351] 706: The sixth network element sends a configuration message to the seventh network element;

[0352] Correspondingly, the seventh network element receives configuration messages from the sixth network element. The seventh network element can be a network element with gateway functionality. The configuration message is used by the seventh network element to configure forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services. Specifically, the sixth network element configures which network element executes and transmits the service. In short, the sixth network element can determine the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services based on subscription or policy information and configure them for the seventh network element. For example, these forwarding rules may include address mapping, access control rules, privacy protection rules, etc., and may further include portions of subscription or policy information for one or more services. For instance, if QoS guarantees are involved in the forwarding process, corresponding QoS enforcement rules may be included; if the forwarding process requires billing by the seventh network element, billing rules may also be included.

[0353] In this implementation, the subscription information or policy information of one or more services can be used to determine the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services. By configuring the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services for the gateway functional network element (i.e., the seventh network element), it is beneficial for the gateway functional network element to route or forward data packets for one or more services based on the corresponding forwarding rules.

[0354] 707: The seventh network element sends a configuration feedback message to the sixth network element;

[0355] Correspondingly, the sixth network element receives a configuration feedback message from the seventh network element. This configuration feedback message indicates the configuration result of the seventh network element's forwarding rules for one or more services.

[0356] 708: The sixth network element sends a service registration feedback message to the second network element.

[0357] Correspondingly, the second network element receives a service registration feedback message from the sixth network element. The service registration feedback message is used to indicate the registration result of one or more services.

[0358] It should be noted that the service registration process in steps 704-708 above also applies to the user network. The user network, based on the control of the UE (network tenant, etc.), can register open services to the network management function.

[0359] To better understand the service registration process and routing forwarding policy configuration process of the first network in this embodiment, a brief explanation is given below using the complete interaction process between core network elements as an example. Please refer to Figure 8, which mainly includes the following steps:

[0360] 0: First network deployment completed (corresponding to steps 701-703 above);

[0361] 1: The second network element sends a service registration request to the network management function network element;

[0362] The service registration request is used to request network management function elements to obtain subscription information or policy information for one or more services of the first network. The service registration request may carry information such as the service type, service name, service interface information, and service address information of one or more services.

[0363] 2: Network management function network elements request subscription information or policy information for one or more services from PCF network elements, UDM network elements, or UDR network elements;

[0364] The message may carry information such as the service type, service name, service interface information, and service address information of one or more services.

[0365] 3: PCF network element, UDM network element, or UDR network element feeds back the subscription information or policy information of one or more services to the network management function network element;

[0366] 4: The network management function network element sends configuration messages to the gateway function network element;

[0367] Among them, the configuration message is used by the gateway function network element to configure the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services;

[0368] 5: The gateway function network element sends a configuration feedback message to the network management function network element;

[0369] 6: The network management function network element sends a service registration feedback message to the second network element.

[0370] Please refer to Figure 9, which is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 9, the method includes steps 901-906:

[0371] 901: The first network element sends a first request to the second network element;

[0372] 902: The second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information;

[0373] 903: The second network element sends the second information to the first network element;

[0374] The specific implementation of steps 901-903 can be referred to the relevant descriptions of steps 401-403 in Figure 4 or steps 501-504 in Figure 5, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects.

[0375] 904: The first network element sends a third request to the fifth network element;

[0376] Correspondingly, the fifth network element receives a third request from the first network element. The fifth network element can be a PCF network element. The third request includes fourth information from the first terminal device and / or fifth information from the second network; the third request is used to request the fifth network element to modify the subscription information or policy information of the first network using the fourth information and / or the fifth information; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting services from the first network (e.g., access services); the second network is a network requesting services from the first network, such as other application networks or user networks.

[0377] For example, the first network element can send the third request directly to the fifth network element, or it can send the third request to the fifth network element through the NEF network element.

[0378] In this implementation, the first network element may request the fifth network element to modify the first network's subscription information or policy information by using the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network, provided that the first terminal device or the second network is allowed to request the services of the first network.

[0379] For example, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network. For example, the third network may be the user network accessed by the first terminal device. For example, the third request may also carry the identification information of the AF network element corresponding to the second network and / or the address information of the AF network element, or the fifth information may include the identification information of the AF network element corresponding to the second network and / or the address information of the AF network element.

[0380] In this implementation, when a first terminal device requests services from a first network, a first network element can use the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network to which the first terminal device is connected, and / or the address information of the third network to request a fifth network element to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network. Alternatively, when a second network requests services from the first network, the first network element can use the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network.

[0381] 905: The fifth network element changes the contract information or policy information of the first network based on a third request;

[0382] 906: The second network element uses the fourth and / or fifth information to change the execution rules of the fourth network element;

[0383] For example, if the first terminal device and / or the second network request to access the first network, the second network element can add the fourth information and / or the fifth information to the execution rules of the fourth network element.

[0384] In this implementation, when the fifth network element uses the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network, the second network element can further use the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the execution rules of the fourth network element, so that the first terminal device and / or the second network can use the services of the first network.

[0385] To better understand the control flow (specifically, the policy change flow) of the first network element to the first network, the following is a brief explanation using the complete interaction flow of a UE requesting access to the first network as an example. Please refer to Figure 10; the main steps include:

[0386] 0a: The user network deployment is complete and registration is finished; the UE connects to the corresponding user network.

[0387] 0b: The first network deployment is complete and registration is finished (corresponding to steps 901-903 above);

[0388] 1: The UE interacts with the AF network element to confirm that the UE needs to access the first network;

[0389] When an AF network element confirms that a UE can access the first network, it can obtain the UE's identification information and / or address information. The UE's address information can be an address assigned by the functional network element managing the UE's connection session, such as an SMF network element or a UPF network element.

[0390] 2: The AF network element sends a policy change request for the first network to the PCF network element;

[0391] The policy change request carries the UE's identification information, the UE's address information, the identification information of the user network accessed by the UE, and / or the address information of the user network accessed by the UE.

[0392] 3: PCF network elements modify the subscription information or policy information of the first network based on the policy change request of the first network;

[0393] For example, the PCF network element records the UE's identification information, UE's address information, the identification information of the user network accessed by the UE, and / or the address information of the user network accessed by the UE into the subscription information or policy information of the first network, so as to allow the UE to access the first network.

[0394] 4: The second network element changes the execution rules of the fourth network element based on the contract information or policy information updated by the first network;

[0395] For example: adding the UE's identification information, the UE's address information, the identification information of the user network accessed by the UE, and / or the address information of the user network accessed by the UE.

[0396] 5: The PCF network element sends a policy change message to the SMF network element;

[0397] Among them, the SMF network element is the UE's connection management function network element.

[0398] 6: SMF network element changes UPF network element session rules;

[0399] For example, the SMF network element can also send session configuration change messages to the RAN to change the QoS parameter configuration of the UE's data packets, etc.

[0400] 7: The SMF network element changes the UE's user policy or session rules;

[0401] 8a: The PCF network element updates the forwarding rules for one or more services of the first network through the network management function network element;

[0402] 8b: Network management function network elements send update messages to gateway function network elements;

[0403] Among them, update messages are used by gateway function network elements to update the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services.

[0404] 9: The UE sends the data packet for the first application based on the acquired user policy or session rules;

[0405] The source address of the data packet is the user address assigned to the session, and the destination address is the address corresponding to the first network configured in the user policy or session rules.

[0406] 10: The UPF network element identifies the data packet corresponding to the first application based on the session rules and forwards it to the gateway function network element;

[0407] 11: The gateway function network element forwards data packets to the first network based on the corresponding forwarding rules (specifically, it can be an execution function network element that forwards data packets to the first network).

[0408] The forwarding logic of downlink data packets initiated by the first network is similar to that of uplink data packets initiated by the UE, and will not be elaborated here.

[0409] In this implementation, a gateway function network element is added to the network side. This gateway function network element not only enables topological isolation between the user network and the first network (i.e., the application network), but also performs forward and reverse proxying for service requesters and providers, including load balancing, privacy processing, data transmission, and network discovery. This eliminates the need for multiple UPFs for route management in the network, thus simplifying the functions of the UPFs. For terminal devices accessing the user network (e.g., the first terminal device), based on the interaction flow shown in Figure 10, they can access multiple application networks through a single PDU session via the UPF. The correspondence between the PDU session and the accessed network changes from one-to-one (e.g., DN) to one-to-many (e.g., multiple application networks).

[0410] Please refer to Figure 11, which is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 11, the method includes steps 1101-1108b:

[0411] 1101: The first network element sends a first request to the second network element;

[0412] 1102: The second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information;

[0413] 1103: The second network element sends the second information to the first network element;

[0414] The specific implementation of steps 1101-1103 can be referred to the relevant descriptions of steps 401-403 in Figure 4 or steps 501-504 in Figure 5, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects.

[0415] 1104: The first network element sends a fourth request to the second network element;

[0416] Correspondingly, the second network element receives a fourth request from the first network element. This fourth request includes a first service parameter, and is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameter of the first network based on the first service parameter. The first service parameter is the service parameter that the first network needs to change (e.g., it could be a newly added service, or a new QoS parameter for a data packet corresponding to an existing service), and the second service parameter is the original service parameter of the first network.

[0417] 1105: The second network element sends a seventh request to the fifth network element;

[0418] Correspondingly, the fifth network element receives a seventh request from the second network element. This seventh request is used to obtain the subscription information or policy information of the first network, which specifies whether changes to the service parameters of the first network are permitted.

[0419] If the subscription or policy information of the first network allows for changes to the parameters of the second service:

[0420] 1106: The second network element sends the first service parameters to the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element;

[0421] This step is used to change the second service parameters in the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element.

[0422] In this implementation, the first network element can initiate a change to the service parameters of the first network through a fourth request, which can carry the service parameters to be changed. When the second network element receives the fourth request from the first network element, it can request the subscription information or policy information of the first network from the PCF network element (i.e., the fifth network element). If the subscription information or policy information of the first network allows for the modification of the service parameters of the first network, the second network element can modify the service parameters of the first network in the fourth network element (i.e., the execution function network element) and / or the sixth network element (the network management function network element), thereby improving the flexibility of service management of the first network.

[0423] 1107: The first network element sends a fifth request to the second network element;

[0424] Correspondingly, the second network element receives a fifth request from the first network element. This fifth request requests the second network element to invoke a first service of the second terminal device (e.g., data collection or uploading) or a second service of the fourth network (e.g., AI service, data processing service). In other words, the first network element can initiate a service call from the first network to the terminal device or other application networks. The fifth request includes a third service parameter of the first service; or it may include a fourth service parameter of the second service. The fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application. For example, the third service parameter may be service type, service name, service interface information, service address information, etc.; the fourth service parameter may be service type, service name, service interface information, service address information, etc.

[0425] In this implementation, the first network element can initiate a call to the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network through the fifth request. The request can carry the third service parameter of the first service or the fourth service parameter of the second service, which is conducive to the second network element initiating a call to the first service based on the third service parameter or initiating a call to the second service based on the fourth service parameter, thereby enabling the network to achieve cooperation and sharing based on cross-domain communication.

[0426] 1108a: The second network element calls the first service based on the third service parameters;

[0427] For example, the second network element can initiate a call to the first service through the fourth network element, and the request can carry the third service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device.

[0428] For example, the second network element calls the first service based on the third service parameters, including:

[0429] The second network element sends a first call request to the seventh network element to call the first service through the seventh network element; the first call request includes third service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device.

[0430] The second network element can send a first call request to the seventh network element through the fourth network element. If the seventh network element does not have a forwarding rule corresponding to the third service parameter, it can obtain the third service parameter and the corresponding forwarding rule from the network management function network element, wherein the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device is the destination address. If the seventh network element has a forwarding rule corresponding to the third service parameter, or obtains the third service parameter and the corresponding forwarding rule from the network management function network element, it initiates a first call request to the destination address (i.e., the second terminal device) through the user network accessed by the second terminal device based on the forwarding rule.

[0431] Or 1108b: The second network element calls the second service based on the fourth service parameter;

[0432] For example, the second network element can initiate a call to the second service through the fourth network element, and the request can carry the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

[0433] For example, the second network element invokes the second service based on the fourth service parameter, including:

[0434] The second network element sends a second call request to the seventh network element to call the second service through the seventh network element; the second call request includes the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

[0435] The second network element can send a second call request to the seventh network element through the fourth network element. If the seventh network element does not have a forwarding rule corresponding to the fourth service parameter, it can obtain the fourth service parameter and the corresponding forwarding rule from the network management function network element, where the identification information of the fourth network and / or the address information of the second terminal device are the destination address. If the seventh network element has a forwarding rule corresponding to the fourth service parameter, or obtains the fourth service parameter and the corresponding forwarding rule from the network management function network element, it initiates a second call request to the destination address (i.e., the fourth network) based on the forwarding rule.

[0436] In this implementation, upon receiving a fifth request from the first network element, the second network element can initiate a call to the first service based on the third service parameter in the fifth request, or initiate a call to the second service based on the fourth service parameter in the fifth request. This enables collaboration and sharing between networks based on cross-domain communication. Furthermore, since the gateway function network element (i.e., the seventh network element) deploys routing rules for each terminal device or network, the second network element can initiate calls to the first or second service through the gateway function network element. The gateway function network element achieves both topological isolation between networks and collaboration and sharing between networks.

[0437] To better understand the service invocation process of the first network to terminal devices or other application networks, the following is a brief explanation using the example of invoking a UE to report data. Please refer to Figure 12; the main steps include:

[0438] 0: The first network deployment is complete and registration is finished (corresponding to steps 1101-1103 above);

[0439] 1: The AF network element sends a fourth request to the second network element;

[0440] 2: The second network element sends a seventh request to the PCF network element;

[0441] If the subscription or policy information of the first network allows for changes to the parameters of the second service:

[0442] 3: The second network element sends the first service parameter to the fourth network element and / or the network management network element to change the original service parameter (i.e., the second service parameter) of the first network in the fourth network element and / or the network management network element;

[0443] 4: The AF network element sends a fifth request to the second network element;

[0444] 5: The second network element sends the first call request to the fourth network element;

[0445] The first call request includes the third service parameters, as well as the identification information of the second terminal device (UE in Figure 12) and / or the address information of the second terminal device.

[0446] 6: The fourth network element sends the first call request to the gateway function network element;

[0447] 7: If the gateway function network element does not have a forwarding rule corresponding to the third service parameter, it shall obtain the forwarding rule corresponding to the third service parameter from the network management function network element;

[0448] If the gateway function network element has a forwarding rule corresponding to the third service parameter, then proceed to step 8.

[0449] 8: The gateway function network element initiates a data reporting instruction or request to the UE through the user network accessed by the UE (as shown in Figure 12, the SMF network element is used as the UE's connection management function network element);

[0450] It should be noted that if calling services from other application networks, the gateway function network element will directly initiate a call request to the destination address based on the service parameters.

[0451] 9: The UE sends data to the UPF network element;

[0452] 10: The UPF network element identifies the data corresponding to the first application and forwards it to the gateway function network element;

[0453] 11: The gateway function network element forwards data to the fourth network element based on the data forwarding rules;

[0454] The fourth network element can perform corresponding processing on the received data, such as training AI models and calling AI models for inference.

[0455] 12: The fourth network element reports the UE's call result to the AF network element.

[0456] Please refer to Figure 13, which is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 13, the method includes steps 1301-1302:

[0457] 1301: The sixth network element sends a configuration message to the seventh network element.

[0458] Correspondingly, the seventh network element receives a configuration message from the sixth network element. This configuration message is used by the seventh network element to configure forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services. These services are provided by the first network, which is used to provide network services for the first application. The sixth network element is a network element with network management functions, and the seventh network element is a network element with gateway functions on the network side.

[0459] Among them, the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services are determined by the sixth network element based on the subscription information or policy information of the one or more services.

[0460] 1302: The seventh network element sends a configuration feedback message to the sixth network element.

[0461] Correspondingly, the sixth network element receives a configuration feedback message from the seventh network element. This configuration feedback message indicates the configuration result of the seventh network element's forwarding rules for one or more services. In other words, the configuration feedback message is sent by the seventh network element after configuring the forwarding rules for one or more services.

[0462] As can be seen in this embodiment, after the first network is deployed, the sixth network element can configure the forwarding rules of one or more service data packets to the gateway function network element (i.e., the seventh network element) through configuration messages, which is beneficial for the gateway function network element to route or forward data packets of one or more services based on the corresponding forwarding rules.

[0463] For example, please refer to Figure 14. Based on the communication method flow shown in Figure 13, the communication method may further include step 1303:

[0464] 1303: The sixth network element sends an update message to the seventh network element.

[0465] Correspondingly, the seventh network element receives update messages from the sixth network element. These update messages are used by the seventh network element to update the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services.

[0466] For example, the update message is sent by the sixth network element when the fifth network element changes the subscription information or policy information of the first network using the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0467] In this implementation, when the subscription information or policy information of the first network changes, the sixth network element reconfigures or updates the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network, so that the seventh network element can transmit data between the first terminal device and the first network or between the second network and the first network based on the latest forwarding rules.

[0468] For example, the update message includes the identification information and / or address information of the first network, as well as fourth information; or the update message includes the identification information and / or address information of the first network, as well as fifth information. Specifically, the identification information and / or address information of the first network facilitates the seventh network element in querying the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network, the fourth information is used to indicate the terminal devices allowed to use the services of the first network, and the fifth information is used to indicate the application networks allowed to use the services of the first network.

[0469] For example, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0470] In this implementation, the sixth network element can add the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network to the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network. Alternatively, the sixth network element can add the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network to the forwarding rules corresponding to one or more services of the first network to update the forwarding rules corresponding to those services.

[0471] Please refer to Figure 15, which is a flowchart illustrating another communication method provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 15, the method includes steps 1501-1506:

[0472] 1501: The sixth network element sends a configuration message to the seventh network element;

[0473] 1502: The seventh network element sends a configuration feedback message to the sixth network element;

[0474] Steps 1501-1502 can be referred to as steps 1301-1302.

[0475] 1503: The second network element sends the first call request to the seventh network element;

[0476] Correspondingly, the seventh network element receives a first invocation request from the second network element. The first invocation request is used to request the invocation of a first service of the second terminal device; the first invocation request includes third service parameters of the first service, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device.

[0477] For example, the second network element can send a first call request to the seventh network element through the fourth network element.

[0478] Or 1504: The second network element sends a second call request to the seventh network element;

[0479] 1505: The seventh network element initiates a call to the first service based on the third service parameters, the identification information of the second terminal device, and / or the address information of the second terminal device;

[0480] Alternatively, 1506: The seventh network element initiates a call to the second service based on the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

[0481] The specific implementation methods of steps 1503-1506 are explained in Figures 11 and 12, and can achieve the same or similar beneficial effects.

[0482] The methods of the embodiments of this application have been described above, and the apparatus of the embodiments of this application is provided below.

[0483] Please refer to Figure 16, which is a schematic diagram of a communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 16, the device includes at least a first transceiver unit 1601; wherein, the first transceiver unit 1601 is used for:

[0484] Send a first request to the second network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network that provides network services for the first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application.

[0485] Receive second information from the second network element; the second information is used to indicate the first network; the first network is created or modified by the second network element based on the first information.

[0486] As can be seen, the device shown in Figure 16 can request a second network element to create or modify a first network to provide network services for a first application through a first request. The first request carries the network requirement information of the first application, which allows the second network element to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the application's requirements. This, in turn, improves the flexibility of deploying application services within the mobile network. Furthermore, on-demand service deployment eliminates the need to set up servers in multiple locations, reducing service deployment costs.

[0487] In one possible implementation, in sending the first request to the second network element, the first transceiver unit 1601 is specifically used for:

[0488] Send a second request to a third network element; the second request is used to request the third network element to send a first request to the second network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0489] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0490] The identification information of the first application;

[0491] Address information of the first application;

[0492] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0493] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0494] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element and / or the address information of the fourth network element; wherein, the fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0495] In one possible implementation, the fourth network element is determined by the second network element, or the fourth network element is determined by the third network element.

[0496] In one possible implementation, the first transceiver unit 1601 is further configured to:

[0497] A third request is sent to the fifth network element; the third request includes the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the third request is used to request the fifth network element to use the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0498] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0499] In one possible implementation, the first transceiver unit 1601 is further configured to:

[0500] A fourth request is sent to the second network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters, and the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters.

[0501] In one possible implementation, the first transceiver unit 1601 is further configured to: send a fifth request to the second network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

[0502] It should be noted that the implementation of each unit described in FIG16 can also be described with reference to the corresponding descriptions of the embodiments shown in FIG4 to FIG12. Furthermore, the beneficial effects of the communication device described in FIG16 can be described with reference to the corresponding descriptions of the embodiments shown in FIG4 to FIG12, and will not be repeated here.

[0503] Please refer to Figure 17, which is a schematic diagram of another communication device provided in an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 17, the device includes at least a second transceiver unit 1701 and a processing unit 1702; wherein:

[0504] The second transceiver unit 1701 is used to receive a first request from the first network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for a first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application.

[0505] Processing unit 1702 is used to create or modify a first network based on first information;

[0506] The second transceiver unit 1701 is also used to send second information to the first network element; the second information is used to instruct the first network.

[0507] As can be seen, the device shown in Figure 17 can receive a first request from a first network element. Since the first request carries network requirement information for the first application, it is beneficial for the device to create or modify a dedicated network for the first application within the mobile network based on the application requirements. This, in turn, improves the flexibility of deploying application services within the mobile network. Furthermore, on-demand service deployment eliminates the need to set up servers in multiple locations, reducing service deployment costs.

[0508] In one possible implementation, in receiving a first request from the first network element, the second transceiver unit 1701 is specifically used for:

[0509] Receive a first request sent by a third network element; the first request is sent by the third network element after receiving a second request from the first network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0510] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0511] The identification information of the first application;

[0512] Address information of the first application;

[0513] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0514] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0515] In one possible implementation, the processing unit 1702 is further configured to: determine the fourth network element; or,

[0516] The second transceiver unit 1701 is also used to: send a sixth request to the third network element; the sixth request is used to request the third network element to determine the fourth network element;

[0517] The fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0518] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

[0519] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit 1701 is further configured to:

[0520] Send a service registration request to the sixth network element; the service registration request is used to request the sixth network element to obtain the subscription information or policy information of one or more services of the first network;

[0521] The contract information or policy information for one or more services includes at least one of the following:

[0522] Billing and / or incentive rules for one or more services;

[0523] The authorization result of one or more services;

[0524] The scope of access to one or more services;

[0525] The Quality of Service (QoS) parameter for one or more services when data packets are forwarded.

[0526] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit 1701 is further configured to:

[0527] When the fifth network element uses the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network, the fourth network element's execution rules are changed using the fourth information and / or the fifth information; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting services from the first network; the second network is a network requesting services from the first network.

[0528] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0529] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit 1701 is further configured to:

[0530] Receive a fourth request from the first network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters; the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters;

[0531] Send a seventh request to the fifth network element; the seventh request is used to obtain the subscription information or policy information of the first network.

[0532] If the subscription information or policy information of the first network allows for the modification of the second service parameters, the first service parameters are sent to the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element to modify the second service parameters in the third network element and / or the sixth network element.

[0533] In one possible implementation, the second transceiver unit 1701 is further configured to:

[0534] The system receives a fifth request from the first network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

[0535] The first service can be invoked based on the third service parameter; or the second service can be invoked based on the fourth service parameter.

[0536] In one possible implementation, in calling the first service based on the third service parameter, the second transceiver unit 1701 is specifically used for:

[0537] Send a first call request to the seventh network element to call the first service through the seventh network element; the first call request includes third service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device;

[0538] In terms of calling the second service based on the fourth service parameter, the second transceiver unit 1701 is specifically used for:

[0539] A second call request is sent to the seventh network element to invoke the second service through the seventh network element; the second call request includes the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

[0540] In one possible implementation, the subscription information or policy information of one or more services is also used to determine the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services; the seventh network element is configured with the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services.

[0541] It should be noted that the implementation of each unit described in FIG17 can also refer to the corresponding descriptions of the embodiments shown in FIG4 to FIG12. Furthermore, the beneficial effects of the communication device described in FIG17 can be described with reference to the corresponding descriptions of the embodiments shown in FIG4 to FIG12, and will not be repeated here.

[0542] Based on the description of the above method and device embodiments, this application also provides a communication device. Please refer to FIG18, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of a communication device provided in this application embodiment. The communication device includes at least one processor 1801. Optionally, the communication device may further include an interface circuit 1802 (shown as dashed lines in the figure), with the processor 1801 and the interface circuit 1802 coupled to each other. It is understood that the interface circuit 1802 can be a transceiver or an input / output interface. Optionally, the communication device may further include at least one memory 1803 (shown as dashed lines in the figure), which is used to store instructions (such as one or more computer programs) executed by at least one processor 1801, or to store input data required for at least one processor 1801 to execute instructions, or to store data generated after at least one processor 1801 executes instructions. This communication device can be used to execute relevant steps of the communication method. The at least one processor 1801 in the communication device is used to read the computer program code stored in the at least one memory 1803 and execute the method of any one of the embodiments shown in FIG4 to FIG15.

[0543] At least one memory 1803 includes, but is not limited to, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM).

[0544] At least one processor 1801 may be one or more central processing units (CPUs). If the processor 1801 is a CPU, the CPU may be a single-core CPU or a multi-core CPU.

[0545] For example, when the communication device is used to implement the function of the first network element, at least one processor 1801 in the communication device can be used to read one or more programs stored in the at least one memory 1803 and perform the following operations:

[0546] Send a first request to the second network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network that provides network services for the first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application.

[0547] Receive second information from the second network element; the second information is used to indicate the first network; the first network is created or modified by the second network element based on the first information.

[0548] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 executes sending a first request to the second network element, including:

[0549] Send a second request to a third network element; the second request is used to request the third network element to send a first request to the second network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0550] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0551] The identification information of the first application;

[0552] Address information of the first application;

[0553] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0554] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0555] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element and / or the address information of the fourth network element; wherein, the fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0556] In one possible implementation, the fourth network element is determined by the second network element, or the fourth network element is determined by the third network element.

[0557] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0558] A third request is sent to the fifth network element; the third request includes the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network; the third request is used to request the fifth network element to use the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network; the first terminal device is the terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is the network requesting the service of the first network.

[0559] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0560] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0561] A fourth request is sent to the second network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters, and the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters.

[0562] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0563] A fifth request is sent to the second network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

[0564] For example, when the communication device is used to implement the function of the second network element, at least one processor 1801 in the communication device can be used to read one or more programs stored in the at least one memory 1803 and perform the following operations:

[0565] Receive a first request from a first network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for a first application, and the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application;

[0566] Create or modify the first network based on the first information;

[0567] Send the second information to the first network element; the second information is used to instruct the first network.

[0568] In one possible implementation, at least one memory 1803 performs the action of receiving a first request from the first network element, including:

[0569] Receive a first request sent by a third network element; the first request is sent by the third network element after receiving a second request from the first network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

[0570] In one possible implementation, the first information includes at least one of the following:

[0571] The identification information of the first application;

[0572] Address information of the first application;

[0573] The services that the first network needs to provide;

[0574] The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

[0575] In one possible implementation, after the second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0576] Determine the fourth network element; or,

[0577] Send a sixth request to the third network element; the sixth request is used to request the third network element to determine the fourth network element.

[0578] The fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

[0579] In one possible implementation, the first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element, and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

[0580] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0581] Send a service registration request to the sixth network element; the service registration request is used to request the sixth network element to obtain the subscription information or policy information of one or more services of the first network;

[0582] The contract information or policy information for one or more services includes at least one of the following:

[0583] Billing and / or incentive rules for one or more services;

[0584] The authorization result of one or more services;

[0585] The scope of access to one or more services;

[0586] The Quality of Service (QoS) parameter for one or more services when data packets are forwarded.

[0587] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0588] When the fifth network element uses the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network, the fourth network element's execution rules are changed using the fourth information and / or the fifth information; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting services from the first network; the second network is a network requesting services from the first network.

[0589] In one possible implementation, the fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

[0590] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0591] Receive a fourth request from the first network element; the fourth request includes the first service parameters; the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameters of the first network based on the first service parameters;

[0592] Send a seventh request to the fifth network element; the seventh request is used to obtain the subscription information or policy information of the first network.

[0593] If the subscription information or policy information of the first network allows for the modification of the second service parameters, the first service parameters are sent to the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element to modify the second service parameters in the third network element and / or the sixth network element.

[0594] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 is also used to perform:

[0595] The system receives a fifth request from the first network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

[0596] The first service can be invoked based on the third service parameter; or the second service can be invoked based on the fourth service parameter.

[0597] In one possible implementation, at least one processor 1801 executes a call to the first service based on a third service parameter, including:

[0598] Send a first call request to the seventh network element to call the first service through the seventh network element; the first call request includes third service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device;

[0599] The second service is invoked based on the fourth service parameter, including:

[0600] A second call request is sent to the seventh network element to invoke the second service through the seventh network element; the second call request includes the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

[0601] In one possible implementation, the subscription information or policy information of one or more services is also used to determine the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services; the seventh network element is configured with the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services.

[0602] For example, when the communication device is used to implement the function of the seventh network element, at least one processor 1801 in the communication device can be used to read one or more programs stored in the at least one memory 1803 and perform the following operations:

[0603] Receive configuration messages from the sixth network element; the configuration messages are used by the seventh network element to configure the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services, the one or more services being services provided by the first network, and the first network being used to provide network services for the first application;

[0604] Send a configuration feedback message to the sixth network element; the configuration feedback message is used to indicate the configuration result of the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services by the seventh network element.

[0605] For example, when the communication device is used to implement the function of the sixth network element, at least one processor 1801 in the communication device can be used to read one or more programs stored in the at least one memory 1803 and perform the following operations:

[0606] Send a configuration message to the seventh network element; the configuration message is used by the seventh network element to configure the forwarding rules of data packets for one or more services, one or more services are services provided by the first network, and the first network is used to provide network services for the first application;

[0607] Receive configuration feedback messages from the seventh network element; the configuration feedback messages are used to indicate the configuration results of the forwarding rules for data packets of one or more services by the seventh network element.

[0608] It should be noted that the implementation of each operation can also correspond to the description of the method in any of the embodiments shown in Figures 4 to 15.

[0609] It should be noted that although the communication device shown in FIG18 only illustrates at least one processor 1801, interface circuit 1802, and at least one memory 1803, those skilled in the art should understand that in specific implementations, the communication device may also include other devices necessary for normal operation. Furthermore, depending on specific needs, those skilled in the art should understand that the communication device may also include hardware devices for implementing other additional functions. Moreover, those skilled in the art should understand that the communication device may only include the devices necessary for implementing the embodiments of this application, and not necessarily all the devices shown in FIG18.

[0610] This application also provides a chip, including: a processor for calling and running a computer program from a memory, causing a device with the chip installed to perform the method described in any of the embodiments shown in Figures 4 to 15 above. This chip may be a chip in a communication device.

[0611] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium (memory) storing a computer program that, when executed, implements the method described in any of the embodiments shown in Figures 4 to 15. It is understood that the computer-readable storage medium here may include built-in storage media in a device, or it may include extended storage media supported by the device. The computer-readable storage medium provides storage space containing the device's operating system. Furthermore, one or more computer programs suitable for loading and execution by the device's processor are also stored in this storage space. It should be noted that the computer-readable storage medium here may be high-speed RAM or non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device; optionally, it may also be at least one computer-readable storage medium located remotely from the aforementioned processor.

[0612] This application also provides a computer program product, which includes computer program code. When the computer program code is run by a communication device, the method flow described in any one of the embodiments in Figures 4 to 15 is implemented.

[0613] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts not described in detail in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions in other embodiments.

[0614] It should be understood that the processor mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be a CPU, or other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. A general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0615] It should also be understood that the memory mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be volatile memory or non-volatile memory, or may include both volatile and non-volatile memory. Non-volatile memory can be ROM, Programmable Read-Only Memory (PROM), EPROM, Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM), or flash memory. Volatile memory can be RAM, which is used as an external cache. By way of example, but not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM), Double Data Rate Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (DDR SDRAM), Enhanced Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (ESDRAM), Synchlink Dynamic Random Access Memory (SLDRAM), and Direct Rambus RAM (DR RAM).

[0616] It should be noted that when the processor is a general-purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, FPGA, or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, or discrete hardware component, the memory (storage module) is integrated into the processor.

[0617] It should be noted that the memories described herein are intended to include, but are not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memories.

[0618] It should be understood that in the various embodiments of this application, the order of the above-mentioned processes does not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

[0619] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely exemplary. For instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0620] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0621] 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. 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 computer-readable storage medium.

[0622] In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more than one" means two or more. "And / or" describes the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A alone, A and B simultaneously, or B alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. In the textual description of this application, the character " / " generally indicates that the preceding and following related objects have an "or" relationship.

[0623] The steps in the method of this application embodiment can be adjusted, combined, or deleted according to actual needs.

[0624] The modules in the device of this application embodiment can be merged, divided, and deleted according to actual needs.

[0625] The above-described embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of this application, and are not intended to limit it. 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 of the technical features. Such 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.

Claims

1. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The first network element sends a first request to the second network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for the first application; the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application. The first network element receives second information from the second network element; the second information is used to indicate the first network; the first network is created or modified by the second network element based on the first information.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first network element sends a first request to the second network element, including: The first network element sends a second request to the third network element; the second request is used to request the third network element to send the first request to the second network element; the second request includes third information, and the third information includes the first information.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The first information includes at least one of the following: The identification information of the first application; The address information of the first application; The services that the first network needs to provide; The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

4. The method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element and / or the address information of the fourth network element; wherein, the fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, The fourth network element is determined by the second network element, or the fourth network element is determined by the third network element.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The method further includes: The first network element sends a third request to the fifth network element; the third request includes fourth information of the first terminal device and / or fifth information of the second network; the third request is used to request the fifth network element to use the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is a network requesting the service of the first network.

7. The method according to claim 6, characterized in that, The fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The method further includes: The first network element sends a fourth request to the second network element; the fourth request includes a first service parameter, and the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change the second service parameter of the first network based on the first service parameter.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, characterized in that, The method further includes: The first network element sends a fifth request to the second network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes the third service parameters of the first service; or the fifth request includes the fourth service parameters of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application.

10. A communication method, characterized in that, The method includes: The second network element receives a first request from the first network element; the first request is used to request the creation or modification of a first network to provide network services for a first application, and the first request includes first information, which describes the network requirements of the first application. The second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information; The second network element sends second information to the first network element; the second information is used to instruct the first network.

11. The method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The second network element receives a first request from the first network element, including: The second network element receives the first request sent by the third network element; the first request is sent by the third network element upon receiving the second request from the first network element; the second request includes third information, which includes the first information.

12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that, The first information includes at least one of the following: The identification information of the first application; The address information of the first application; The services that the first network needs to provide; The first network must have execution rules for at least one of the services.

13. The method according to claim 12, characterized in that, After the second network element creates or modifies the first network based on the first information, the method further includes: The second network element determines the fourth network element; or, The second network element sends a sixth request to the third network element; the sixth request is used to request the third network element to determine the fourth network element; The fourth network element is the execution function network element of the first network.

14. The method according to claim 13, characterized in that, The first information further includes the identification information of the first network and / or the address information of the first network; the second information includes the identification information of the first network, the address information of the first network, the identification information of the fourth network element and / or the address information of the fourth network element.

15. The method according to any one of claims 10-14, characterized in that, The method further includes: The second network element sends a service registration request to the sixth network element; the service registration request is used to request the sixth network element to obtain the subscription information or policy information of one or more services of the first network; The contract information or policy information for the one or more services includes at least one of the following: Billing and / or incentive rules for one or more of the services; The authorization result of the one or more services; The scope of access to the one or more services mentioned above; The Quality of Service (QoS) parameters for data packets of one or more services during forwarding.

16. The method according to any one of claims 11-15, characterized in that, The method further includes: When the fifth network element uses the fourth information of the first terminal device and / or the fifth information of the second network to change the subscription information or policy information of the first network, the second network element uses the fourth information and / or the fifth information to change the execution rules of the fourth network element; the first terminal device is a terminal device requesting the service of the first network; the second network is a network requesting the service of the first network.

17. The method according to claim 16, characterized in that, The fourth information includes the identification information of the first terminal device, the address information of the first terminal device, the identification information of the third network accessed by the first terminal device, and / or the address information of the third network; the fifth information includes the identification information of the second network and / or the address information of the second network.

18. The method according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The method further includes: The second network element receives a fourth request from the first network element; the fourth request includes a first service parameter; the fourth request is used to request the second network element to change a second service parameter of the first network based on the first service parameter; The second network element sends a seventh request to the fifth network element; the seventh request is used to obtain the subscription information or policy information of the first network. If the subscription information or policy information of the first network allows the modification of the second service parameter, the second network element sends the first service parameter to the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element to modify the second service parameter in the fourth network element and / or the sixth network element.

19. The method according to claim 16 or 17, characterized in that, The method further includes: The second network element receives a fifth request from the first network element; the fifth request is used to request the second network element to invoke the first service of the second terminal device or the second service of the fourth network; the fifth request includes a third service parameter of the first service; or the fifth request includes a fourth service parameter of the second service; the fourth network is used to provide network services for the second application; The second network element invokes the first service based on the third service parameter; or the second network element invokes the second service based on the fourth service parameter.

20. The method according to claim 19, characterized in that, The second network element invokes the first service based on the third service parameter, including: The second network element sends a first call request to the seventh network element to call the first service through the seventh network element; the first call request includes the third service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the second terminal device; The second network element invokes the second service based on the fourth service parameter, including: The second network element sends a second invocation request to the seventh network element to invoke the second service through the seventh network element; the second invocation request includes the fourth service parameters, as well as the identification information and / or address information of the fourth network.

21. The method according to claim 20, characterized in that, The subscription information or policy information of the one or more services is also used to determine the forwarding rules of the data packets of the one or more services; the seventh network element is configured with the forwarding rules of the data packets of the one or more services.

22. A communication device, characterized in that, It includes modules for performing the method as described in any one of claims 1-9, or modules for performing the method as described in any one of claims 10-21.

23. A communication device, characterized in that, The device includes at least one processor coupled to at least one memory for storing one or more computer programs; the at least one processor is configured such that when the communication device executes the one or more computer programs, it implements the method as described in any one of claims 1-21.

24. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program for execution by the device, which, when executed, implements the method as described in any one of claims 1-21.

25. A computer program product, characterized in that, When the computer program product is run by the device, the device performs the method as described in any one of claims 1-21.

26. A chip, characterized in that, Includes a processor configured to perform the method as described in any one of claims 1-21.

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