Communication method and related apparatus

Abstract

A communication method and a related apparatus, relating to the technical field of communications. The method comprises: receiving a service request, the service request being used for requesting execution of a first operation on one or more first terminal devices; and on the basis of the service request, sending a first message, wherein the first message instructs a read / write device to execute the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices, and instructs message aggregation of a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained from the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation. The present application can reduce signaling overhead and improve transmission efficiency.

Description

Communication method and related apparatus

[0001] The present application claims priority to the Chinese patent application No. 202411140905.9, filed on August 16, 2024, with the State Intellectual Property Office of China, and entitled "Communication method and related apparatus", the whole content of which is incorporated herein by reference. TECHNICAL FIELD

[0002] The present application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular, to a communication method and related apparatus. BACKGROUND

[0003] Currently, in a passive Internet of Things (IoT) scenario, an IoT terminal device (for example, a radio frequency identification (RFID) device, an Ambient Internet of Things Device (AIoT Device), etc.) has a large-scale deployment application prospect. For example, in a logistics and warehousing scenario, the IoT terminal device can be used for cargo inventory and tracking, and high-value cargo (for example, vaccines) transportation process environment and cargo state monitoring; for another example, in an industrial manufacturing scenario, the IoT terminal device can be used for environment and device state monitoring.

[0004] The passive or semi-passive IoT terminal device has a simple function, which leads to the need to rely on external excitation to send information, and the excitation generally comes from a card reader (or a reader / writer). The card reader can be integrated in an access network device, and the access network device operates the IoT terminal device according to the indication of a core network element.

[0005] In the prior art, in the process of operating multiple IoT terminal devices by the card reader, the card reader receives response information of the multiple IoT terminal devices and reports the response information to the core network element. Since the card reader sends the response information of the multiple IoT terminal devices to the core network element multiple times, the signaling overhead is large, and the transmission efficiency is low. SUMMARY

[0006] Embodiments of the present application provide a communication method and related apparatus, which can reduce signaling overhead and improve transmission efficiency.

[0007] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method applied to a management network element. The method comprises: receiving a service request, the service request being used to request performing a first operation on one or more first terminal devices; and sending a first message based on the service request, the first message indicating that a read-write device performs the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices and indicating that a plurality of response messages obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation are aggregated into one message. The first terminal device can be an ambient Internet of Things device, a tag, an intelligent tag, a passive device, or a semi-passive device. The read-write device can interact with the first terminal device through a radio frequency signal or a wireless signal. The operation performed by the read-write device on the first terminal device can include, but is not limited to, a counting operation, a reading operation, a writing operation, an activation operation, and a disabling operation. The management network element can include a tag management function (TMF) and perform a tag access management function. It can be understood that the name of the management network element is not limited in the present application. For example, the management network element can be referred to as an Ambient Internet of Things management function (AIoTMF) network element or other names as long as the network element can perform the tag access management function. For the convenience of describing the present application, the management network element is taken as the TMF for example.

[0008] The management network element sends the first message based on the service request. It can also be understood that the management network element determines whether to aggregate the messages by the read-write device based on the service request, and sends the first message in the case of determining to aggregate the messages by the read-write device.

[0009] In the present application, the management network element TMF receives a service request from an application function network element AF, sends a first message to a read-write device Reader based on the service request to instruct performing a first operation on a first terminal device Device, and instructs aggregating response messages of the Device. The interaction between the AF and the Reader needs to be mediated by the TMF, and the instruction of performing the first operation on the Device is actually sent by the TMF. The TMF obtains more information and is more clear about whether it is appropriate to aggregate the plurality of response messages. Therefore, the first message is sent by the TMF, which can improve the reliability of decision-making compared with the way of sending the aggregation instruction by the AF. In addition, the read-write device aggregates the plurality of response messages and sends the aggregated message to the TMF at one time, which reduces the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device, reduces the signaling overhead, and improves the transmission efficiency.

[0010] In a possible implementation, the type of the first operation includes a single-interaction operation or a multi-interaction operation; and the sending of the first message based on the service request includes:

[0011] In a case where the type of the first operation is the single-interaction operation, the first message is sent.

[0012] In the embodiments of the present application, the management network element obtains the type of the first operation based on the service request, and in a case where the type of the first operation indicates that no multi-interaction is needed between the TMF and the device, i.e., in a case where the type of the first operation is the single-interaction operation, the TMF can determine that message aggregation is suitable in the future, and thus the first message is sent to instruct the read-write device to perform message aggregation, which can reduce the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device, reduce signaling overhead, and improve transmission efficiency.

[0013] In a possible implementation, the sending of the first message based on the service request includes:

[0014] In a case where the report sending strategy indicates that the service report sending manner of the management network element does not have real-time performance, the first message is sent based on the service request. The report sending strategy can indicate the service report sending manner of the management network element. The service report sending manner includes but is not limited to one of the following: periodic report, one-time report, instant report, interactive report, and the like. Among them, the periodic report and the one-time report can be understood as not having real-time performance, and the instant report and the interactive report can be understood as having real-time performance.

[0015] In the embodiments of the present application, in a case where the report sending strategy indicates that the service report sending manner does not have real-time performance, the AF has a low requirement for the real-time performance of the result of the service request, and thus the read-write device can be accepted to obtain multiple response messages after a period of time and perform message aggregation on the response messages. The management network element determines whether to send the first message based on the service request in a case where the report sending strategy indicates that the service report sending manner does not have real-time performance, which can meet the demand of the AF and send the message aggregation instruction in a suitable scenario, thereby improving reliability. After message aggregation is performed in the future, the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device is reduced, signaling overhead is reduced, and transmission efficiency is improved.

[0016] In a possible implementation, the service request further includes the report sending strategy.

[0017] Alternatively, the report sending strategy is configured in the management network element.

[0018] Alternatively, the service request further includes a first report sending strategy, the management network element is configured with a second report sending strategy, and the report sending strategy is obtained based on the first report sending strategy and the second report sending strategy.

[0019] In the embodiments of the present application, the reporting sending strategy is obtained in a flexible manner, and the actual management network element can send the service report to the AF based on the reporting sending strategy, thereby meeting the real-time or non-real-time requirements of the AF and being flexible and convenient.

[0020] In a possible implementation, before sending the first message based on the service request, the method further includes:

[0021] obtaining an aggregation capability indication of the read-write device;

[0022] The sending of the first message based on the service request includes:

[0023] In a case where the aggregation capability indication indicates that the read-write device supports message aggregation, the first message is sent based on the service request.

[0024] The aggregation capability indication indicates whether the read-write device supports message aggregation. In other words, the aggregation capability indication indicates whether the read-write device has the capability of message aggregation.

[0025] In the embodiments of the present application, the management network element can also determine whether to send the first message in combination with the aggregation capability indication of the read-write device. When the aggregation capability indication indicates that the read-write device supports message aggregation, the subsequent management network element sends the first message, thereby improving the reliability of the message aggregation decision made by the management network element. The subsequent read-write device performs message aggregation, thereby reducing the number of messages, reducing signaling overhead, and improving transmission efficiency.

[0026] In a possible implementation, the read-write device is located in an access network or a second terminal device.

[0027] The communication method provided in the present application can be applied to a network architecture in which the read-write device is located in an access network or a second terminal device, has a wide application scenario, and can reduce signaling overhead and improve transmission efficiency.

[0028] In a possible implementation, the first message further includes one or more of the following: a sending period of the aggregated message, a maximum number of aggregable messages, and a maximum length of the aggregated message. These pieces of information can constitute a message aggregation strategy.

[0029] In the embodiments of the present application, when the first message sent by the management network element includes the message aggregation strategy, the read-write device can perform message aggregation on multiple response messages at a suitable time based on the message aggregation strategy, and then send the aggregated message to the management network element at one time, thereby reducing the number of messages between the management network element and the read-write device, reducing signaling overhead, and improving communication transmission efficiency.

[0030] In a possible implementation, the report sending strategy further includes a deduplication manner, and the method further includes:

[0031] The processed aggregated message is deduplicated according to the deduplication manner. The processed aggregated message is obtained by processing, by the management network element, the plurality of response messages. The deduplication manner can include, but is not limited to, any one of the following manners: deduplication within a period, deduplication within a service request, deduplication for multiple requests, no deduplication, and the like.

[0032] In the embodiments of the present application, the TMF can further deduplicate the processed aggregated message according to the deduplication manner, and then send the processed aggregated message to the AF, so that the size of the service report can be reduced, the repetition of the service request result can be reduced, the communication efficiency can be improved, and the signaling overhead can be reduced.

[0033] In a second aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication method applied to a read-write device, and the method includes:

[0034] receiving a first message from a management network element, the first message being obtained by the management network element based on a service request, the service request being used to request a first operation on one or more first terminal devices;

[0035] performing the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices to obtain a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0036] In a possible implementation, the first message further includes one or more of the following: a sending period of an aggregated message, a maximum number of aggregable messages, a maximum length of an aggregated message; and the aggregating the plurality of response messages includes:

[0037] message aggregating the plurality of response messages based on the first message.

[0038] In the embodiments of the present application, the read-write device receives the first message, performs the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices to obtain the plurality of response messages, and message aggregates the plurality of response messages, and then sends the obtained aggregated message to the management network element. Since the plurality of response messages are obtained and message aggregation is completed by the read-write device, the efficiency of message aggregation can be improved, the number of message forwarding times can be reduced, the number of messages between the management network element and the read-write device can be reduced after the aggregated message is obtained, the signaling overhead can be reduced, and the communication transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0039] In a possible implementation, the read-write device is located in a second terminal device, and after the plurality of response messages are obtained, the method further includes:

[0040] sending a second message to the access network element, the second message comprising the plurality of response messages.

[0041] In the embodiments of the present application, after receiving the first message, the read-write device performs the first operation on one or more first terminal devices, obtains a plurality of response messages, and forwards the plurality of response messages to the access network element. Subsequently, the access network element performs message aggregation on the plurality of response messages, which can reduce the occupation of resources of the second terminal device where the read-write device is located, reduce the requirements on the second terminal device, and improve the efficiency of message aggregation.

[0042] In a third aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication method applied to an access network element, and the method comprises:

[0043] receiving a second message from a read-write device, the second message comprising a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by one or more first terminal devices in response to a first operation of the read-write device, the read-write device being located in a second terminal device;

[0044] performing message aggregation on the plurality of response messages.

[0045] In the embodiments of the present application, the access network element receives a plurality of response messages from a read-write device and performs message aggregation on the plurality of response messages, which can reduce the occupation of resources of the second terminal device where the read-write device is located, reduce the requirements on the second terminal device, and improve the efficiency of message aggregation.

[0046] In a fourth aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication apparatus, which comprises units for performing the method of any one of the first aspect.

[0047] In a possible design, the apparatus comprises:

[0048] a communication unit, configured to receive a service request, the service request being used to request to perform a first operation on one or more first terminal devices;

[0049] the communication unit is further configured to send a first message, the first message indicating that a read-write device performs the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices, and indicating to perform message aggregation on a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0050] In a possible implementation, the apparatus further comprises:

[0051] a processing unit, configured to generate the first message based on the service request.

[0052] The processing unit and the communication unit according to the fourth aspect and any possible implementation thereof perform the steps described with reference to the corresponding implementation of the first aspect.

[0053] The technical effects brought about by the fourth aspect and any possible implementation thereof can be referred to the introduction of the technical effects corresponding to the first aspect and the respective implementations.

[0054] In a fifth aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication apparatus, which comprises units for performing the method according to any one of the second aspect.

[0055] In a possible design of the apparatus, the apparatus comprises:

[0056] The communication unit is configured to receive a first message from a management network element, the first message being obtained by the management network element based on a service request, the service request being used to request a first operation on one or more first terminal devices.

[0057] The communication unit is further configured to receive a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0058] The processing unit is configured to perform the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices.

[0059] The processing unit and the communication unit according to the fifth aspect and any possible implementation thereof perform the steps described with reference to the corresponding implementation of the second aspect.

[0060] The technical effects brought about by the fifth aspect and any possible implementation thereof can be referred to the introduction of the technical effects corresponding to the second aspect and the respective implementations.

[0061] In a sixth aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a communication apparatus, which comprises units for performing the method according to the third aspect.

[0062] In a possible design of the apparatus, the apparatus comprises:

[0063] The communication unit is configured to receive a second message from a read-write device, the second message comprising a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by one or more first terminal devices in response to a first operation of the read-write device, the read-write device being located in a second terminal device.

[0064] The processing unit is configured to perform message aggregation on the plurality of response messages.

[0065] The processing unit and the communication unit according to the sixth aspect and any possible implementation thereof perform the steps described with reference to the corresponding implementation of the third aspect.

[0066] As to the technical effects brought by the sixth aspect and any possible implementation, refer to the introduction of the technical effects corresponding to the third aspect.

[0067] Optionally, in the communication apparatus in any of the fourth aspect to the sixth aspect and any possible implementation of the fourth aspect to the sixth aspect, the communication apparatus comprises:

[0068] In an implementation, the communication apparatus is a communication device. When the communication apparatus is a communication device, the communication unit can be a transceiver, or an input / output interface; the processing unit can be at least one processor. Optionally, the transceiver can be a transceiver circuit. Optionally, the input / output interface can be an input / output circuit.

[0069] In another implementation, the communication apparatus is a chip (system) or circuit used in a communication device. When the communication apparatus is a chip (system) or circuit used in a communication device, the communication unit can be a communication interface (input / output interface), an interface circuit, an output circuit, an input circuit, a pin or related circuit on the chip (system) or circuit, etc.; the processing unit can be at least one processor, a processing circuit or a logic circuit, etc.

[0070] In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, comprising a processor. The processor is coupled with a memory and is configured to execute instructions in the memory to implement the method in any of the first aspect to the third aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect to the third aspect. Optionally, the communication apparatus further comprises the memory. Optionally, the communication apparatus further comprises a communication interface, and the processor is coupled with the communication interface.

[0071] In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, comprising a logic circuit and a communication interface. The communication interface is configured to receive information or send information; the logic circuit is configured to receive information or send information through the communication interface, so that the communication apparatus executes the method in any of the first aspect to the third aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect to the third aspect.

[0072] In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer readable storage medium, configured to store a computer program (also referred to as code or instructions); when the computer program runs on a computer, the method in any of the first aspect to the third aspect and any possible implementation of the first aspect to the third aspect is implemented.

[0073] In a tenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, which comprises a computer program (which can also be referred to as code or instructions), and when the computer program is run, the computer program enables a computer to perform the method in any one of the first aspect to the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof.

[0074] In an eleventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a chip, which comprises a processor, and the processor is configured to execute instructions, and when the processor executes the instructions, the chip performs the method in any one of the first aspect to the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof. Optionally, the chip further comprises a communication interface, and the communication interface is configured to receive a signal or send a signal.

[0075] In a twelfth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which comprises at least one communication device according to the fourth aspect, or the communication device according to the fifth aspect, or the communication device according to the sixth aspect, or the communication device according to the seventh aspect, or the communication device according to the eighth aspect, or the chip according to the eleventh aspect.

[0076] In a thirteenth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which comprises a management network element, a read-write device and an access network element, the management network element is configured to perform the method in the first aspect and any possible implementation thereof, the read-write device is configured to perform the method in the second aspect and any possible implementation thereof, and the access network element is configured to perform the method in the third aspect.

[0077] In addition, in the process of performing the method in any one of the first aspect to the third aspect and any possible implementation thereof, the process of sending information and / or receiving information in the above method can be understood as the process of outputting information by the processor, and / or the process of receiving input information by the processor. When outputting information, the processor can output the information to the transceiver (or the communication interface or the sending module) so as to be transmitted by the transceiver. After being output by the processor, the information can need to be further processed before reaching the transceiver. Similarly, when the processor receives input information, the transceiver (or the communication interface or the sending module) receives the information and inputs the information to the processor. Furthermore, after the transceiver receives the information, the information can need to be further processed before being input to the processor.

[0078] Based on the above principle, for example, the sending information mentioned in the foregoing method can be understood as the processor outputting information. For another example, the receiving information can be understood as the processor receiving input information.

[0079] Optionally, for the transmission, sending, receiving and other operations involved by the processor, if no special description is made, or if it is not contrary to the actual role or inherent logic in the related description, it can be more generally understood as the processor output and receiving, input and other operations.

[0080] Optionally, in the process of executing the method of any one of the first aspect to the third aspect and any possible implementation manner, the processor can be a processor specially used for executing the method, or a processor executing the method by executing computer instructions in a memory, such as a general-purpose processor. The memory can be a non-transitory memory, such as a read-only memory (ROM), which can be integrated on the same chip as the processor, or can be separately arranged on different chips. The type of the memory and the arrangement manner of the memory and the processor are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

[0081] In a possible implementation manner, the at least one memory is located outside the device.

[0082] In another possible implementation manner, the at least one memory is located inside the device.

[0083] In another possible implementation manner, part of the at least one memory is located inside the device, and another part of the at least one memory is located outside the device.

[0084] In the present application, the processor and the memory can also be integrated into one device, that is, the processor and the memory can also be integrated together.

[0085] In the embodiments of the present application, the management network element TMF receives a service request, and sends a first message based on the service request. The first message is sent by the TMF, which can improve the reliability of decision-making compared with the mode of sending a message aggregation instruction by the AF. In addition, after the read-write device aggregates a plurality of response messages, the aggregated message is sent to the TMF at one time, which reduces the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device, reduces the signaling overhead, and improves the transmission efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0086] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can also be obtained by those skilled in the art without creative labor on the basis of these drawings.

[0087] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0088] FIG. 2 is another architecture diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0089] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0090] FIG. 4 is yet another architecture diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0091] FIG. 5 is another flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0092] FIG. 6 is yet another architecture diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0093] FIG. 7 is yet another flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0094] FIG. 8 is yet another flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0095] FIG. 9 is yet another architecture diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0096] FIG. 10 is yet another flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0097] FIG. 11 is yet another architecture diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0098] FIG. 12 is yet another flow diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0099] FIG. 13 is a structure diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0100] FIG. 14 is a structure diagram of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application;

[0101] FIG. 15 is a structure diagram of a chip according to an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0102] In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0103] The terms "first" and "second" and the like in the description and in the claims of the present application are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. Furthermore, the terms "comprises", "comprising", "includes", "including", "has", "having" and the like are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises, has, includes or the like a list of elements does not include only those elements but can include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Additionally, the term "coupled" and variations thereof, mean a direct or indirect connection between elements, and can include a wired or wireless connection.

[0104] Reference herein to "an embodiment" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment can be included in at least one embodiment of the application. The appearances of the phrase "in an embodiment" in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are they necessarily mutually exclusive of one another. It is understood that where the application is described herein with "comprising" or "containing" language, it is intended to also include embodiments where the application is described with "consisting of" or "consisting essentially of" language. It is also understood that the terms "a" and "an" and "the" and "at least one" and "one or more" are used interchangeably herein, unless explicitly stated to the contrary.

[0105] It should be understood that, in this application, "at least one" means one or more, "multiple" means two or more, "at least two" means two or three or more, and "and / or" is used to describe the relationship between associated objects, indicating that there can be three relationships, for example, "A and / or B" can mean: only A, only B, and A and B exist at the same time, where A and B can be singular or plural. The character " / " generally represents an "or" relationship between the associated objects. "At least one" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c", where a, b, and c can be singular or plural.

[0106] It should be noted that in this application, "indication" can include direct indication, indirect indication, display indication, and implicit indication. When describing a certain indication information for indicating A, it can be understood that the indication information carries A, directly indicates A, or indirectly indicates A.

[0107] In the present application, the information indicated by the indication information is referred to as to-be-indicated information. In the specific implementation process, there are many ways to indicate the to-be-indicated information, for example, but not limited to, the to-be-indicated information can be directly indicated, such as the to-be-indicated information itself or the index of the to-be-indicated information. The to-be-indicated information can also be indirectly indicated by indicating other information, where the other information and the to-be-indicated information have an association relationship. The to-be-indicated information can also be only indicated in part, and the other part of the to-be-indicated information is known or agreed in advance. For example, the indication of specific information can also be achieved by means of the arrangement order of each information agreed in advance (for example, specified by a protocol), thereby reducing the indication overhead to a certain extent. The to-be-indicated information can be sent as a whole, or can be sent separately into multiple sub-information, and the sending period and / or sending occasion of the sub-information can be the same or different. The specific sending method is not limited in the present application. The sending period and / or sending occasion of the sub-information can be predefined, for example, predefined according to a protocol, or configured by the transmitting end device by sending configuration information to the receiving end device.

[0108] It should be noted that in the present application, "sending" can be understood as "output", and "receiving" can be understood as "input". "Sending information to A", where "to A" only indicates the direction of information transmission, and A is the destination, without limiting that "sending information to A" must be direct sending on the air interface. "Sending information to A" includes directly sending information to A, and also includes indirectly sending information to A through a transmitter, so "sending information to A" can also be understood as "outputting information to A". Similarly, "receiving information from A" indicates that the source of the information is A, including directly receiving information from A, and also including indirectly receiving information from A through a receiver, so "receiving information from A" can also be understood as "inputting information from A".

[0109] In order to facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, some technical terms related to the present application are explained below.

[0110] 1. Terminal device:

[0111] The terminal device can also be referred to as a terminal, an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a subscriber station, a mobile station, a mobile station, a remote station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent, a user equipment or a target terminal, etc. The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application can be an Internet of Things terminal device, or a tag.

[0112] The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application includes a first terminal device, which can be an environmental Internet of Things device, a tag, a smart tag, a passive device, or a semi-passive device, etc. The tag can be a passive tag, which can collect energy through backscattering technology to transceive messages. The passive tag includes, but is not limited to, a radio frequency identification (RFID), Bluetooth, Zigbee, and other power-free terminal tags. In the present application, the first terminal device can be represented as device.

[0113] The terminal device in the embodiments of the present application can also include a second terminal device, which can be an active device. The active device can be a device with wireless transceiving function, such as a mobile phone, a pad, a computer with wireless transceiving function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical, a wireless terminal in smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in smart city, a wireless terminal in smart home, a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a handheld device with wireless communication function, a computing device, or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, a terminal in a 5G mobile communication system, or a terminal in a future evolution network, etc. In the present application, the second terminal device can be represented as User Equipment (UE).

[0114] Among them, the wearable device can also be called a wearable smart device, which is a general term of devices that can be worn, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing, and shoes, which are designed and developed by applying wearable technology to daily wear. The wearable device is a portable device that can be directly worn on the body or integrated into the user's clothes or accessories. The wearable device is not only a hardware device, but also a powerful function achieved through software support and data interaction, cloud interaction. The general wearable smart device includes a full function, large size, and can realize complete or partial functions without relying on a smart phone, such as a smart watch or smart glasses, and focuses on a certain application function and needs to cooperate with other devices such as a smart phone, such as various smart wristbands, smart jewelry, and the like.

[0115] 2, read-write device:

[0116] The read-write device can also be called a reader or a reader, and the reader interacts with the tag through radio frequency signals or wireless signals. The reader can send instructions from the server or the application function network element to the tag, or the reader can send messages from the tag to the server or the application function network element. The reader can operate the tag according to the instructions issued by the server or the application function network element to achieve the purpose of obtaining the information stored in the tag or writing data into the storage area of the tag. The operation of the tag by the reader can include, but is not limited to, inventory operation, read operation, write operation, activation operation, and disable operation.

[0117] In this application, the read-write device can be located in the second terminal device, and the second terminal device can access to the network; or the read-write device can be located in the access network device (also called access network element), and the application does not limit this.

[0118] 3, service requestor:

[0119] In this application, the service requestor can be understood as a device that sends a service request to request an operation on the tag. The service requestor can be a server, an application function network element, or other devices that send service requests, and the like, which are not limited herein. In the embodiments of the application, the service requestor is taken as an application function network element for example.

[0120] The communication system provided by the application is briefly introduced as follows.

[0121] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application, which shows a service-based architecture based 5th generation (5G) network architecture. The 5G network architecture shown in FIG. 1 can include terminal devices (including the first terminal device and the UE in FIG. 1), radio access network (RAN) devices (which can also be referred to as ANs), and core network (CN) devices. The terminal devices access a data network (DN) through the access network devices and the core network devices. The components of the communication system are described below.

[0122] Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 1 shows a structure of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application. An application function (AF) network element as a service requester is taken as an example for description. In the communication system, the AF can send a service request to a management network element or send the service request to the management network element through a network exposure function (NEF) network element to request performing a certain operation on a tag in a service area. After receiving the service request from the AF, the management network element instructs a read-write device (which is located in an access network device or a UE) to perform a corresponding operation on the tag in the service area according to information contained in the service request. After the read-write device performs the operation, the read-write device feeds back a result of the operation to the management network element. After processing the result, the management network element feeds back the result of the tag operation to the AF.

[0123] The terminal devices include the first terminal device described above. The first terminal device can be a tag. For details, refer to the related description of the tag above. In some embodiments, the terminal devices can also include a second terminal device UE. For details, refer to the related description of the second terminal device above.

[0124] The access network element is also referred to as an access network device or a radio access network (RAN) device or an access device or a base station. It is used to provide wireless access for terminal devices and complete forwarding of data of the terminal devices between the terminal devices and the core network.

[0125] Exemplarily, the access network device in the embodiments of the present application can be any kind of communication device with wireless transceiving function for communicating with user equipment. The access network device can be a next generation node B (gNB), a next generation evolved node B (ng-eNB), or an access network device in future 6G communication, etc. The access network device can be any kind of device with wireless transceiving function, including but not limited to the base station (BS) shown above. The base station can also be a base station in future communication systems such as the sixth generation communication system. Optionally, the access network device can be an access node, a wireless relay node, a wireless backhaul node, etc. in a wireless fidelity (WiFi) system. Optionally, the access network device can be a wireless controller in a cloud radio access network (CRAN) scenario. Optionally, the access network device can be a wearable device or a vehicle-mounted device, etc. Optionally, the access network device can also be a small station, a transmission reception point (TRP) (or also can be referred to as a transmission point), etc. It can be understood that the access network device can also be a base station in a future evolved public land mobile network (PLMN), etc.

[0126] In some deployments, a base station (such as a gNB) can be composed of a centralized unit (CU) and a distributed unit (DU). That is, the functions of a base station in an access network are split, and part of the functions of the base station are deployed in a CU, and the remaining functions are deployed in a DU. And multiple DUs share one CU, which can save costs and facilitate network expansion. In some other deployments of the base station, the CU can also be divided into a CU-control plane (CP) and a CU-user plane (UP), and the like. In some other deployments of the base station, the base station can also be a radio unit (RU), and the like. In some other deployments of the base station, the base station can also be an open radio access network (ORAN) architecture, and the like. The specific type of the base station is not limited in the present application. For example, when the base station is an ORAN architecture, the base station shown in the embodiments of the present application can be an access network device in the ORAN, or a module in the access network device, and the like. In the ORAN system, the CU can also be referred to as an open (O)-CU, the DU can also be referred to as an O-DU, the CU-DU can also be referred to as an O-CU-DU, the CU-UP can also be referred to as an O-CU-UP, and the RU can also be referred to as an O-RU.

[0127] In the embodiments of the present application, the access network device supports the reader function, or the UE supports the reader function, and the wireless access layer communication with the first terminal device (tag) is realized through the reader function.

[0128] The core network device can include part or all of the following network elements: an access and mobility management function (AMF) network element, an application function (AF) network element, a network exposure function (NEF) network element, a unified data management (UDM) function network element, a network repository function (NRF) network element, a policy control function (PCF) network element, an authentication server function (AUSF) network element, a session management function (SMF) network element, or a user plane function (UPF) network element, and the like.

[0129] The AMF is mainly used for mobility management of the UE, access authentication / authorization, and the like. In addition, the AMF is responsible for transmitting user policies between the terminal and the PCF. In the embodiment, the AMF is used for access and mobility management of the UE reader.

[0130] The tag management function (TMF) is responsible for access management of the first terminal device (tag). The TMF can be deployed independently or integrated in the AMF, that is, the TMF is combined with the AMF. The management network element mentioned in the present application refers to the TMF.

[0131] The AF is used to represent the application function of a third party or an operator, and is an interface for the 5G mobile communication system to obtain external application data. The AF is mainly used to transmit the requirements of the application side to the network side.

[0132] The NEF is mainly used to expose the services and capabilities of the 3GPP network function to the AF, and also allows the AF to provide information to the 3GPP network function.

[0133] The UDM is mainly used to generate 3GPP AKA authentication credentials, User ID processing, access authorization based on subscription information, unified management of service NF registration management, subscription information management, and the like. The UDM can simultaneously contain the security function and the subscription information management function of the UE and the first terminal device.

[0134] The NRF is used to provide registration and discovery functions, and can enable network functions (NFs) to discover each other and communicate through API interfaces.

[0135] The PCF is used to guide a unified policy framework for network behavior, and provides policy rule information for control plane function network elements (such as AMF, SMF, and the like).

[0136] The AUSF is used to process user authentication data. It supports 3GPP and non-3GPP access authentication, and protects the “guidance information list” of the requester NF. The AUSF provides services to the UDM, and supports authentication and authorization of user equipment.

[0137] The SMF is mainly used for session management, IP address allocation and management of the terminal device, selection of a manageable user equipment plane function, a policy control, or a charging function interface termination point, and downlink data notification.

[0138] The UPF is used for packet routing and forwarding, or quality of service (QoS) processing of the user plane data.

[0139] It can be understood that "Nnef", "Nnrf", "Npcf", "Nudm", "Naf", "Nausf", "Namf", "Ntmf" and "Nsmf" in FIG. 1 represent the names of service interfaces, which are not described here.

[0140] It can be understood that FIG. 1 is only an example, and the core network device can further include more or fewer network elements, which are not limited in the present application.

[0141] It should be noted that the various network elements shown in FIG. 1 do not necessarily all exist at the same time. The read-write device shown in FIG. 1 can be located in the access network device, or can be located in the UE, etc., which is not limited in the present application. In some architectures, the read-write device is located in the RAN, and the first terminal device is directly connected to the RAN. In some architectures, the read-write device is located in the UE, and the first terminal device is connected to the UE, and the UE is connected to the RAN. In some architectures, the RAN is directly connected to the TMF. In some architectures, the RAN is connected to the TMF through the AMF. The connection relationship shown in FIG. 1 can be understood as a generalization of the connection relationship between network elements in one or more networking modes. In actual applications, the number of network elements and devices included in the communication system and the connection relationship can be the same as some of those shown in FIG. 1.

[0142] FIG. 2 shows another architecture of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 2, the communication system can include a first terminal device, a read-write device, a management network element, and an application function network element AF. The specific content of the first terminal device, the read-write device, the management network element, and the AF can refer to the description of FIG. 1, which will not be repeated here. In this communication system, the read-write device is located in the access network element (not shown in FIG. 2) as an example.

[0143] The TMF can directly communicate with the AF, or communicate with the AF through the NEF network element (not shown in FIG. 2). The TMF can operate the first terminal device through the read-write device after receiving the service request from the AF.

[0144] It should be noted that the communication system shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2 does not constitute a limitation on the communication system to which the embodiments of the present application can be applied. Therefore, the communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application can also be applied to various types of communication systems, such as a long term evolution (LTE) communication system, a 5G communication system, a 6G communication system, a future communication system, vehicle to everything (V2X), LTE-vehicle (LTEV), vehicle to vehicle (V2V), vehicle networking, machine type communications (MTC), IoT, LTE-machine to machine (LTE-M), machine to machine (M2M), Internet of Things, etc. In addition, it should also be noted that the embodiments of the present application do not limit the names of the network elements in the communication system. For example, in different types of communication systems, the network elements can have other names. For example, when multiple network elements are integrated in the same physical device, the physical device can also have other names.

[0145] The various embodiments shown below can be applied to the communication system shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2, or other forms of communication systems, which will not be described below.

[0146] Referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 3 is a flowchart of a communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication method is applied to the communication system shown in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2. It can be understood that the communication method can be executed by a communication device, which can be a management network element, a read-write device, or an access network element, or a chip (system) or circuit used in these devices, which is not limited by the present application. The communication method includes but is not limited to the following steps:

[0147] S301: The management network element receives a service request.

[0148] The service request is used to request a first operation on one or more first terminal devices.

[0149] The management network element can implement access management (such as labels) of the first terminal device, such as access and authentication of the first terminal device. For example, in a 5G network, the management network element can be a TMF network element, which can be seen from the related description above.

[0150] The service request can be issued by an application function network element (AF).

[0151] The first terminal device can be a passive tag or a semi-passive tag, and specific details can be found in the foregoing description. In this application, the first terminal device can be referred to as Device.

[0152] The first operation can include, but is not limited to, one of the following: an inventory operation (also referred to as a query operation), a read operation, a write operation, an activation operation, a disable operation, and the like.

[0153] Optionally, the service request can include related parameters, such as the identity of the AF, target area information, target object information (one or more Device identities, or specifying a group of Devices), and the like; the service request can also indicate whether the execution of the service request requires security identity authentication for the first terminal device Device.

[0154] After receiving the service request, the TMF can send a request response to the AF, indicating acceptance or rejection of the service request. After the TMF receives the service request, the subsequent step S302 can be performed.

[0155] In the embodiments of the present application, the management network element TMF receives a service request from the application function network element AF. According to the content carried in the service request, the TMF can determine which first terminal devices Device to perform the first operation and how to perform the operation, which is beneficial to subsequent determination of whether to perform more processing on the response message of the Device and improves communication efficiency.

[0156] S302: The management network element sends a first message based on the service request, and correspondingly, the read-write device receives the first message.

[0157] The first message can indicate that the read-write device performs the above-mentioned first operation on the one or more first terminal devices, and indicates message aggregation on a plurality of response messages. The plurality of response messages are obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0158] The read-write device is a device with read-write function. For example, the read-write device can be a reader Reader, and specific details can be found in the foregoing description. The read-write device can be located in the second terminal device, that is, the read-write device accesses the network as the second terminal device. At this time, the read-write device can be referred to as UE Reader. Alternatively, the read-write device can be located in the access network, that is, in the access network element, for example, in the RAN in the 5G network. At this time, the read-write device can be referred to as RAN Reader.

[0159] The management network element sends the first message based on the service request, and it can also be understood that the management network element determines whether to perform message aggregation by the read-write device based on the service request, and sends the first message in the case of determining to perform message aggregation by the read-write device. It can also be understood that the management network element determines whether to instruct the read-write device to perform message aggregation based on the service request, and sends the first message in the case of determining to instruct the read-write device to perform message aggregation.

[0160] Therefore, the purpose of the TMF sending the first message is to instruct the read-write device to subsequently perform message aggregation. Specifically, the above plurality of response messages are aggregated.

[0161] In the embodiment of the application, the management network element TMF receives a service request from an application function network element AF, sends a first message to the read-write device Reader based on the service request, to instruct a first terminal device Device to perform a first operation, and to instruct the response message of the Device to be aggregated. Then, the interaction between the AF and the Reader needs the TMF to transfer messages, and the instruction to perform the first operation on the Device is actually issued by the TMF, the TMF obtains more information, and the TMF is more clear about whether it is appropriate to subsequently aggregate the plurality of response messages. Therefore, the first message is issued by the TMF, which can improve the reliability of the decision compared with the way of issuing the message aggregation instruction by the AF. In addition, the read-write device subsequently aggregates the plurality of response messages, and sends the aggregated message to the TMF at one time, which reduces the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device, reduces the signaling overhead, and improves the transmission efficiency.

[0162] In a possible embodiment, the management network element sends the first message based on the service request in the following manner one:

[0163] The management network element sends the first message in the case that the type of the above first operation is a single interaction operation.

[0164] The type of the first operation can include a single interaction operation or a multiple interaction operation. The single interaction operation means that the first terminal device does not need to interact with the management network element multiple times after receiving the operation request, and gives a response to complete the entire process operation. The multiple interaction operation is different from the single interaction operation, and the first terminal device needs to interact with the management network element multiple times after receiving the operation request to complete the entire process. The single interaction operation can include a check operation and the like. The multiple interaction operation can include an operation of security identity authentication, a read operation or a write operation in addition to the check operation of the first terminal device.

[0165] Optionally, the management network element can also send the first message in the case that the above first operation includes but is not limited to a read operation or a write operation, and the read operation or the write operation can be issued together with the check operation.

[0166] Specifically, the first operation in the service request includes an inventory operation, and also includes but is not limited to a read operation or a write operation. If the management network element TMF determines that the read operation or the write operation can be issued together with the inventory operation instruction, the response result of the corresponding Device to the first operation can carry the inventory response and the response to the read / write operation at the same time, and the TMF does not need to issue the read / write operation instruction to the Device again after receiving the inventory response of the Device. It is determined that the message aggregation can be performed by the read-write device Reader, thereby reducing the number of interactions, reducing the number of messages, reducing the signaling overhead, and improving the transmission efficiency.

[0167] In the embodiment of the application, the management network element obtains the type of the first operation based on the service request. In the case that the type of the first operation indicates that the TMF and the Device do not need to interact multiple times, that is, in the case that the type of the first operation is a single interaction operation, the TMF can determine that message aggregation is suitable to be performed subsequently, and therefore sends the first message to instruct the read-write device to perform message aggregation. The number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device can be reduced, the signaling overhead can be reduced, and the transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0168] In a possible embodiment, the manner in which the management network element sends the first message based on the service request can include the following manner two:

[0169] The management network element sends the first message based on the service request in the case that the reporting sending strategy indicates that the service reporting sending manner of the management network element does not have real-time performance.

[0170] The reporting sending strategy can be carried in the service request, that is, the service request includes the reporting sending strategy.

[0171] The reporting sending strategy can indicate how the management network element TMF sends the result of the service request to the application function network element AF. In other words, the reporting sending strategy can indicate how the management network element sends the service report related to the above service request to the application function network element, that is, indicates the service reporting sending manner of the management network element.

[0172] For example, the reporting sending strategy can indicate that the service reporting sending manner includes but is not limited to one of the following: periodic reporting, one-time reporting, immediate reporting, interactive reporting, and the like.

[0173] The service reporting sending manners are briefly introduced as follows.

[0174] Periodic reporting: used to indicate that the TMF sends the service request result (i.e. service report) to the AF in a certain period, and further indicates the reporting period, such as 3 seconds, i.e. sending once every 3 seconds; meanwhile, it can further indicate whether to send an empty report if there is no service request result in the reporting period, so as to make the AF aware that the service request is still in normal progress.

[0175] One-time reporting: used to indicate that the TMF sends all the results to the AF once after the completion of the current service request execution; if the content of the service report is too much to be completely carried in one report message, it can also be sent in multiple messages, and the indication information of whether the sending is completed is given in the message.

[0176] Instant reporting: used to indicate that the TMF sends the response of the first terminal device Device to the service request to the AF as soon as possible, i.e. the AF hopes to obtain the response result of the Device as soon as possible; if the TMF itself is configured with a reporting strategy, the TMF can also decide whether to send the instant report according to the configured reporting strategy, or the TMF can also execute the instant report by using a smaller reporting period such as 100 ms.

[0177] Interactive reporting: used to indicate that the TMF needs to send the service response of the Device to the service request to the AF as soon as possible, and the AF also needs to send a message to the Device through the TMF after receiving the service response, to realize the message interaction between the Device and the AF.

[0178] Herein, in the several service report sending modes of the above examples, the periodic reporting and the one-time reporting can be understood as not having real-time, and the instant reporting and the interactive reporting can be understood as having real-time. Further, if the instant reporting is executed by using a small reporting period, it can also be understood as not having real-time. If the instant reporting is not executed by using a small reporting period, it can be understood as having real-time.

[0179] Optionally, the above reporting sending strategy can be configured in the management network element, i.e. the management network element is configured with the reporting sending strategy. Then the management network element can determine how to send the service report to the application function network element according to the reporting sending strategy configured by itself. Herein, the reporting sending strategy configured in the management network element can include the service report sending modes introduced above.

[0180] Optionally, the first report sending strategy is included in the service request, the second report sending strategy is configured in the management network element, and the report sending strategy can be obtained based on the first report sending strategy and the second report sending strategy. In other words, the management network element can determine how to send the service report to the application function network element according to the first report sending strategy carried in the service request and the second report sending strategy configured by itself. Here, the first report sending strategy and the second report sending strategy can both include the service report sending mode introduced above.

[0181] It can be understood that the management network element can determine whether to perform message aggregation by the read-write device based on the type of the first operation in the above-mentioned mode one alone, can determine whether to perform message aggregation by the read-write device based on the report sending strategy in the above-mentioned mode two alone, and can determine whether to perform message aggregation by the read-write device based on the type of the first operation and the report sending strategy together. The present application does not limit this.

[0182] In the embodiments of the present application, in the case where the report sending strategy indicates that the service report sending mode does not have real-time performance, the real-time performance requirement of the AF on the result of the service request is not high, and therefore the read-write device can be accepted to obtain multiple response messages after a period of time and then perform message aggregation on these response messages. The management network element can determine whether to send the first message based on the service request in the case where the report sending strategy indicates that the service report sending mode does not have real-time performance, which can meet the demand of the AF and send the message aggregation instruction in a suitable scenario, thereby improving the reliability. After the subsequent message aggregation, the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device is reduced, the signaling overhead is reduced, and the transmission efficiency is improved.

[0183] In a possible embodiment, before sending the first message based on the service request, the management network element can also obtain an aggregation capability indication of the read-write device.

[0184] Here, the aggregation capability indication indicates whether the read-write device supports message aggregation. In other words, the aggregation capability indication indicates whether the read-write device has the capability of performing message aggregation.

[0185] The read-write device can actively report its aggregation capability indication, or the read-write device reports its aggregation capability indication and the aggregation capability indication is stored in the network storage function network element (NRF), and the management network element (TMF) obtains the aggregation capability indication of the read-write device by querying the NRF.

[0186] After obtaining the aggregation capability indication of the read-write device, the management network element can send the first message based on the service request in the case where the aggregation capability indication indicates that the read-write device supports message aggregation, that is, determine to perform message aggregation by the read-write device according to the above-mentioned mode one and / or mode two, and send the first message.

[0187] In the embodiments of the present application, the management network element can also determine whether to send the first message in combination with the aggregation capability indication of the read-write device. When the aggregation capability indication indicates that the read-write device supports message aggregation, the subsequent management network element sends the first message, thereby improving the reliability of the message aggregation decision made by the management network element. The subsequent read-write device performs message aggregation, thereby reducing the number of messages, reducing signaling overhead, and improving transmission efficiency.

[0188] In some embodiments, if the aggregation capability indication of the read-write device indicates that the read-write device does not support message aggregation, or if the management network element does not obtain the aggregation capability indication of the read-write device, the management network element can still send the first message based on the service request. Correspondingly, after receiving the first message, the read-write device does not perform message aggregation on the multiple response messages of the one or more first terminal devices, because it does not have the capability of message aggregation. That is, the read-write device can ignore the indication of the first message and does not perform message aggregation, without affecting the progress of the service flow.

[0189] In a possible embodiment, after receiving the first message, the read-write device can perform the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices to obtain the multiple response messages.

[0190] The multiple response messages are obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0191] That is, after receiving the first message, the read-write device can initiate a service request to the one or more first terminal devices to perform the first operation on the first terminal devices.

[0192] The first terminal device can complete a random access procedure with the read-write device and send a response message to the first operation of the read-write device.

[0193] The read-write device receives the multiple response messages from the one or more first terminal devices to obtain the multiple response messages.

[0194] Since the first message indicates that the multiple response messages are to be aggregated, the read-write device can first cache the multiple response messages so as to subsequently aggregate the response messages. For example, the read-write device can directly cache the multiple response messages, or the read-write device can first parse the content of the response messages and then cache the content of the response messages when the read-write device can parse the response messages.

[0195] In the embodiments of the present application, after receiving the first message, the read-write device performs the first operation on one or more first terminal devices, obtains response messages of the first terminal devices, and can cache a plurality of response messages to prepare for subsequent message aggregation operation. Since the read-write device does not receive a plurality of response messages and send the response messages to the TMF respectively, but caches the response messages and waits for message aggregation and then sends out the response messages at one time, the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device can be reduced, the signaling overhead can be reduced, and the transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0196] In a possible embodiment, the first message can further include, but is not limited to, one or more of the following: a sending period of the aggregated message, a maximum number of aggregatable messages, a maximum length of the aggregated message, and the like. The read-write device can perform message aggregation on the plurality of response messages based on the first message.

[0197] It can be understood that after caching a plurality of response messages, if the first message further includes a strategy (which can be referred to as a message aggregation strategy) indicating how to perform message aggregation, the read-write device can perform message aggregation on the plurality of response messages based on the message aggregation strategy.

[0198] The message aggregation strategy can specifically include, but is not limited to, one or more of the following parameters: a sending period of the aggregated message, a maximum number of aggregatable messages, a maximum length of the aggregated message, and the like.

[0199] The sending period of the aggregated message is used to indicate how long the read-write device Reader sends the aggregated service response message (i.e., the aggregated message) at one time, and can further indicate whether the read-write device sends an empty report if the read-write device does not receive the service response sent by the first terminal device Device at the end of the sending period of the aggregated message, so that the management network element can perceive that the read-write device is still normally performing the service process.

[0200] In addition, if the management network element performs service reporting in the periodic reporting manner in the reporting sending strategy, the sending period of the aggregated message can also be associated with the period of the periodic reporting in the reporting sending strategy, such as setting the sending period of the aggregated message to be the same period as the reporting sending period, or setting the sending period of the aggregated message to be a period smaller than the reporting sending period.

[0201] The maximum number of aggregatable messages is used to indicate the maximum number of response messages that can be aggregated by the read-write device at one time, and when the number of aggregated response messages reaches the maximum number, the read-write device can be triggered to send the aggregated service response message (i.e., the aggregated message) to the management network element.

[0202] Maximum length of aggregated message: used to indicate the maximum message length of the aggregated message sent by the read-write device, and when the aggregated message reaches the maximum length, the read-write device can be triggered to send the aggregated service response message (i.e., the aggregated message) to the management network element.

[0203] It can be understood that the read-write device performs message aggregation based on the message aggregation strategy, and when sending the aggregated service response message, a flexible implementation manner can be adopted. For example, if multiple parameters are included in the message aggregation strategy, the read-write device can send the aggregated service response message when any one parameter meets the requirement, such as sending the aggregated service response message when the sending period of the aggregated message is reached; or the read-write device is triggered to send the aggregated service response message when multiple parameters meet the requirement. For another example, since message aggregation requires the read-write device to cache messages first, the read-write device can send multiple response messages in advance or directly send the response message without message aggregation when the cache of the read-write device is not enough or any parameter in the aggregation strategy does not meet the requirement.

[0204] It can be understood that the read-write device performs message aggregation on multiple response messages based on the above message aggregation strategy to obtain an aggregated service response message (i.e., an aggregated message), and sends the aggregated message to the management network element.

[0205] In the embodiment of the present application, when the first message sent by the management network element includes the message aggregation strategy, the read-write device can perform message aggregation on multiple response messages at an appropriate time based on the message aggregation strategy, and then send the aggregated message to the management network element at one time, thereby reducing the number of messages between the management network element and the read-write device, reducing signaling overhead, and improving communication transmission efficiency. In addition, the above reporting sending strategy and the message aggregation strategy are independent of each other, which is beneficial to decoupling of the application and the network.

[0206] In a possible embodiment, the read-write device is located in the second terminal device, and after obtaining the multiple response messages, the read-write device can send a second message to the access network element, and correspondingly, the access network element receives the second message and performs message aggregation on the multiple response messages.

[0207] The second message includes the multiple response messages, and the multiple response messages are obtained by responding to the first operation of the read-write device by one or more first terminal devices.

[0208] It can be understood that in this embodiment, the message aggregation is no longer performed by the read-write device, but by the access network element. At this time, the read-write device is not located in the access network element, but in the second terminal device.

[0209] The communication system in this embodiment has a second terminal device added compared with the communication system shown in FIG. 1, and the read-write device is located in the second terminal device. The access network element aggregates messages instead of the read-write device in the second terminal device.

[0210] It can be understood that the message sent by the management network element to the read-write device needs to be forwarded by the access network element. Therefore, after the management network element sends the first message, the first message is first received by the access network element and then received by the read-write device. When the access network element receives the first message, the message aggregation strategy carried in the first message can be obtained, so as to subsequently aggregate messages according to the message aggregation strategy. The related description of the message aggregation strategy can be referred to the foregoing, and will not be described here again.

[0211] When the access network element aggregates the multiple response messages, the multiple response messages can be aggregated based on the message aggregation strategy, the aggregated service response message (i.e., the aggregated message) is obtained, and the aggregated message is sent to the management network element.

[0212] In the embodiment of the present application, after the read-write device receives the first message, the read-write device performs the first operation on one or more first terminal devices, obtains multiple response messages, and forwards the multiple response messages to the access network element. The access network element aggregates the multiple response messages, and then sends the obtained aggregated message to the management network element. The multiple response messages are obtained by the read-write device, but are not aggregated by the read-write device, but are aggregated by the access network element. This can reduce the occupation of the resources of the second terminal device where the read-write device is located, reduce the requirements on the second terminal device, and improve the efficiency of message aggregation. After the aggregated message is obtained, the number of messages between the management network element and the read-write device can be reduced, the signaling overhead can be reduced, and the communication transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0213] In a possible embodiment, the read-write device is located in the access network element, as shown in FIG. 2. The read-write device obtains multiple response messages, aggregates the multiple response messages to obtain an aggregated message, and sends the aggregated message to the management network element.

[0214] In the embodiment of the present application, after the read-write device receives the first message, the read-write device performs the first operation on one or more first terminal devices, obtains multiple response messages, and aggregates the multiple response messages. Then, the read-write device sends the obtained aggregated message to the management network element. Since the read-write device obtains the multiple response messages and aggregates the multiple response messages, the efficiency of message aggregation can be improved, the number of message forwarding times can be reduced, the number of messages between the management network element and the read-write device can be reduced after the aggregated message is obtained, the signaling overhead can be reduced, and the communication transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0215] In a possible embodiment, after receiving the aggregated message, the management network element TMF can first process the aggregated service response message (which can also be referred to as a processed aggregated message), and meanwhile, based on the reporting sending strategy described above, determine whether the processed service response result needs to be cached, that is, determine whether the processed aggregated message needs to be cached.

[0216] It can be understood that if the reporting sending strategy indicates that the reporting sending manner is not real-time, for example, the reporting sending manner is a periodic reporting or one-time reporting manner, etc., the TMF can first cache the processed aggregated message to obtain a cached message. When a suitable reporting opportunity is reached, the TMF sends a service report to the application function network element AF. The service report can be obtained based on the cached message. In this way, the service report sending opportunity can meet the needs of the AF, and the communication transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0217] In a possible embodiment, the reporting sending strategy can further include a deduplication manner, and the method can further include the following steps:

[0218] The processed aggregated message is deduplicated according to the deduplication manner. The processed aggregated message is obtained based on message aggregation of the plurality of response messages.

[0219] It can be understood that after the TMF obtains the aggregated message, the TMF processes the aggregated message to obtain a processed aggregated message, and caches the processed aggregated message according to the reporting sending strategy to obtain a cached message. Further, in the case where the reporting sending strategy includes a deduplication manner, the TMF can further deduplicate the cached message according to the deduplication manner.

[0220] The deduplication manner can include, but is not limited to, any one of the following manners: intra-period deduplication, intra-service request deduplication, multi-request deduplication, no deduplication, etc.

[0221] For example, the intra-period deduplication, that is, if the TMF receives repeated service responses of the same Device within a reporting period, the TMF sends the service request result to the AF only once, and other repeated service responses are not sent to the AF as the service request result, but repeated service responses of the Device in different periods are not deduplicated.

[0222] For example, the intra-service request deduplication, that is, within the current service request, repeated service responses of the same Device are sent to the AF only once.

[0223] For example, the multi-request deduplication, that is, for multiple service requests sent by the same AF, only the service responses of new Devices are sent to the AF, which is equivalent to the incremental reporting mode. This mode can usually increase more rich indication parameters to realize complete functions, such as adding an indication of whether the current service request is restarted.

[0224] After the deduplication is completed, a service report is obtained, and the TMF can send the service report to the AF based on a report sending policy, and the AF receives the service report accordingly.

[0225] In the embodiment of the application, the TMF can also deduplicate the processed aggregated message according to the deduplication manner and then send it to the AF, which can reduce the size of the service report, reduce the repetition of the service request result, improve the communication efficiency, and reduce the signaling overhead.

[0226] Based on the communication method shown in FIG. 3, the communication method provided in the embodiment of the application is described below with reference to specific embodiments of FIGS. 4-12. The steps in FIGS. 5, 7, 8, 10, 12 and 3 can be referred to each other, and the terms and concepts can also be referred to each other.

[0227] The communication method provided in the application can be applied to different networking architectures and can match the characteristics and networking requirements of actual network devices.

[0228] Please refer to FIG. 4, which is another architecture diagram of a communication system provided in the embodiment of the application. As shown in FIG. 4, in this architecture, the reader and writer device Reader is located in the access network, that is, the reader and writer device is the RAN Reader. In this architecture, message aggregation is performed by the RAN Reader.

[0229] The dashed box in FIG. 4 represents an optional network element. As shown in FIG. 4, the NEF is optional, that is, the TMF can be directly connected to the AF, or the TMF can be connected to the AF through the NEF. The AMF is optional, that is, the RAN Reader can be directly connected to the TMF, or the RAN Reader can be connected to the TMF through the AMF, or the AMF can be combined with the TMF.

[0230] In the communication method provided in the embodiment, the AMF and the NEF mainly perform message forwarding, and the service process of the UDM or the authentication, authorization and charging (AAA) network element is not involved, so the following flowchart is simplified.

[0231] Please refer to FIG. 5, which is another flowchart of the communication method provided in the embodiment of the application.

[0232] The communication method includes but is not limited to the following steps:

[0233] S501: Connection establishment between the RAN Reader and the TMF.

[0234] The TMF is the above-mentioned management network element.

[0235] In this step, the RAN Reader can report an aggregation capability indication to the TMF at connection establishment, which indicates whether the RAN Reader supports message aggregation. The aggregation capability indication can be used to assist the TMF to decide whether to issue an aggregation policy to the RAN Reader. If the RAN Reader supports message aggregation, the message aggregation policy can be issued; if the RAN Reader does not support message aggregation, the message aggregation policy can not be issued. If the RAN Reader does not support message aggregation, and the TMF issues the message aggregation policy, the RAN Reader can ignore the message and not perform message aggregation, which does not affect the business process.

[0236] In this architecture, the RAN Reader can also pass through the AMF between the TMF, and the RAN Reader only establishes a connection with the AMF and reports whether it supports message aggregation. After establishing a connection with the RAN Reader, the AMF can notify the TMF Reader whether it supports message aggregation by sending a message to the TMF; or the AMF can report the information of the RAN Reader to the NRF, while carrying an indication message of whether the RAN Reader supports message aggregation, and the TMF learns whether the RAN Reader supports message aggregation by querying the NRF.

[0237] S502.1: The AF sends a service request to the TMF.

[0238] Specifically, the AF is configured to request operations on one or more Devices, including but not limited to one of the following: inventory operation (also referred to as query operation), read operation, write operation, activation operation, disable operation, etc. These operations are open capabilities provided by the environmental Internet of Things network to the AF.

[0239] The service request can include related parameters, such as the identity of the AF, target area information, target object information (one or more Device identities, or specifying a group of Devices), etc.; the service request can also indicate whether the execution of the service request requires security identity authentication for the first terminal Device.

[0240] S502.2: The TMF sends a request response to the AF.

[0241] Specifically, the request response indicates that the TMF receives or rejects the service request from the AF. If the request response indicates that the TMF receives the service request, step S503 is performed.

[0242] S503: The TMF determines whether message aggregation can be performed by the Reader.

[0243] The TMF can determine whether message aggregation by the Reader is possible according to one or more of the type of operation, the report sending strategy, the aggregation capability indication of the RAN Reader, and the like. The related description of the determination process can be referred to in the foregoing.

[0244] For example, the TMF first determines whether message aggregation by the Reader is possible according to the characteristics of the service request. If it is determined according to the characteristics of the service request that the entire service process can be completed after the Device receives the service request and gives a service response, and multiple message interactions between the Device and the TMF are not required, for example, the service request is used to request an inventory operation on the Device, it can be indicated that message aggregation by the Reader is possible.

[0245] If the service request of the AF carries an indication that security identity authentication of the Device is required, or the TMF obtains through other means that the service request requires security identity authentication of the Device, for example, the TMF itself is configured to require security identity authentication of the Device, or the TMF obtains an indication that security identity authentication of the Device is required by requesting other network elements such as a UDM, and the security identity authentication process can require multiple message interactions between the Device and the TMF, the TMF can determine that message aggregation by the Reader is not suitable.

[0246] Further, the TMF can also make auxiliary determination in combination with the report sending strategy. If the report sending strategy indicates that the service report sending manner of the TMF does not have real-time performance, the TMF determines that message aggregation by the Reader is possible.

[0247] In addition, the TMF can also make auxiliary determination in combination with the aggregation capability indication of the RAN Reader. It is determined whether to issue a message aggregation strategy. If the aggregation capability indication indicates that the RAN Reader supports message aggregation, it is indicated that message aggregation by the RAN Reader is possible, and the message aggregation strategy is issued; if the aggregation capability indication indicates that the RAN Reader does not support message aggregation, the message aggregation strategy is not issued.

[0248] If it is determined through the foregoing determination process that message aggregation by the Reader is possible, step S504.1 is performed.

[0249] S504.1: The TMF sends an inventory request (fast inventory mode, message aggregation strategy) to the RAN Reader.

[0250] The inventory request can be carried in the first message mentioned above. The inventory request indicates the RAN Reader to adopt a fast inventory mode, i.e. indicates the Reader can directly end the service procedure of the Device after receiving the service response of the Device, and start the inventory of the next Device, without waiting for the TMF indication to end the service procedure of the current Device. Only in this fast inventory mode, the Reader can perform message aggregation.

[0251] Optionally, the TMF can also issue a message aggregation policy, indicating the Reader to perform message aggregation, and indicating how the Reader performs message aggregation. The message aggregation policy is described above.

[0252] S504.2: The RAN Reader sends an inventory request to the Device.

[0253] S505.1-1: The Device and the RAN Reader complete the random access procedure.

[0254] S505.2-1: The Device sends an inventory response to the RAN Reader.

[0255] The inventory response is the response message mentioned above.

[0256] S505.3-1: The RAN Reader caches the inventory response.

[0257] S505.1-2: The Device and the RAN Reader complete the random access procedure.

[0258] S505.2-2: The Device sends an inventory response to the RAN Reader.

[0259] S505.3-2: The RAN Reader caches the inventory response.

[0260] …

[0261] S505.1-n: The Device and the RAN Reader complete the random access procedure.

[0262] S505.2-n: The Device sends an inventory response to the RAN Reader.

[0263] S505.3-n: The RAN Reader caches the inventory response.

[0264] Wherein, n can be an integer greater than or equal to 2. The related description of caching the inventory response is described above.

[0265] S506: The RAN Reader aggregates the n inventory responses, and sends the aggregated inventory responses to the TMF.

[0266] The RAN Reader can perform message aggregation on the n inventory responses according to a message aggregation policy to obtain the aggregated inventory responses (i.e., the aggregated message mentioned above), and send the aggregated inventory responses to the TMF.

[0267] Since the message aggregation is performed, the n inventory responses can be aggregated and then sent to the TMF, so that the number of messages between the Reader and the TMF can be reduced, and the transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0268] S507: The TMF processes the inventory responses.

[0269] The TMF can first process the aggregated inventory responses, and then determine whether to perform a caching, deduplication, or the like process, and complete the caching and deduplication if needed. Details can be referred to the above.

[0270] S508.1: The TMF determines how to send the service report according to a report sending policy.

[0271] S508.2: The TMF sends the service report to the AF.

[0272] In the embodiment of the application, the TMF receives a service request from the AF, sends an inventory request to the RAN Reader based on the service request to instruct the fast inventory of the Device, and instructs the aggregation of the multiple inventory responses from the Device. The interaction between the AF and the RAN Reader needs the message relay of the TMF, and the instruction of the fast inventory of the Device is actually sent by the TMF, the TMF obtains more information, and the TMF is more clear about whether the message aggregation of the multiple inventory responses is suitable. Therefore, the TMF sends the inventory request to instruct the message aggregation, compared with the way of sending the message aggregation instruction by the AF, the reliability of the decision can be improved. In addition, after the RAN Reader performs the message aggregation on the multiple inventory responses, the aggregated message is sent to the TMF, the number of messages between the TMF and the RAN Reader is reduced, the signaling overhead is reduced, and the transmission efficiency is improved.

[0273] Please refer to FIG. 6, which is another architecture of a communication system provided by the embodiment of the application. As shown in FIG. 6, in the architecture, the reading and writing device Reader is located in the second terminal device, i.e., the reading and writing device is the UE Reader. The UE Reader is connected with the TMF through the access network element RAN. In the architecture, the message aggregation is performed by the UE Reader. The architecture further includes the AMF, which is used to communicate the UE Reader and the TMF.

[0274] The dashed box in FIG. 6 represents an optional network element. As shown in FIG. 6, the NEF is optional, that is, the TMF can be directly connected with the AF, or the TMF can be connected with the AF through the NEF. The RAN can be connected with the TMF through the AMF, and the AMF can be co-located with the TMF.

[0275] In the communication method provided by the embodiment, the NEF mainly forwards messages, and the service process of network elements such as the UDM / AAA is not involved, so the following flowchart is simplified.

[0276] Since the UE Reader is first a user terminal UE, the communication process of the UE is followed, and when the TMF needs to send a message to the UE Reader through the signaling plane, the AMF needs to be executed.

[0277] Referring to FIG. 7, FIG. 7 is another flowchart of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the application.

[0278] The communication method includes but is not limited to the following steps:

[0279] S701.1: The UE Reader completes the registration process.

[0280] S701.2: The AMF sends the UE Reader online notification to the TMF.

[0281] In the above two steps, the UE Reader completes the process of registering the UE Reader to the network through the registration process. The UE can carry the UE Reader aggregation capability indication in the initial registration process, the AMF and the UDM / AUSF cooperate to complete the authorization of the UE Reader, and the RAN is notified through the UE context synchronization that the UE is a Reader, so that the RAN identifies the UE Reader. Alternatively, the UE can first complete the registration process of the ordinary UE, and then activate the UE Reader function at any time as needed, the AMF and the UDM / AUSF cooperate to complete the authorization of the UE Reader, and the RAN is notified through the UE context synchronization that the UE is a Reader, so that the RAN identifies the UE Reader.

[0282] The embodiment does not limit the implementation of the registration process of the UE Reader, but in the registration or activation process of the UE Reader, the aggregation capability indication of the UE Reader can be additionally carried to the AMF. In one embodiment, the AMF can send a message to the TMF to inform the TMF whether the UE Reader supports message aggregation; in another embodiment, the AMF can report the information of the UE Reader to the NRF while carrying an indication message of whether the UE Reader supports message aggregation, and the TMF learns whether the UE Reader supports message aggregation by querying the NRF.

[0283] Whether the UE Reader supports message aggregation can be used to assist the TMF in deciding whether to issue an aggregation message strategy to the UE Reader, which is similar to the description above and will not be repeated.

[0284] S702.1: The AF sends a service request to the TMF.

[0285] S702.2: The TMF sends a request response to the AF.

[0286] S703: The TMF determines whether message aggregation can be performed by the Reader.

[0287] S704.1: The TMF sends a check request (fast check mode, message aggregation strategy) to the UE Reader.

[0288] The check request can indicate that the UE Reader adopts the fast check mode, that is, the Reader can directly end the service process of the Device after receiving the service response of the Device and start checking the next Device without waiting for the TMF to indicate the end of the service process of the current Device.

[0289] The check request can also include a message aggregation strategy, indicating that the Reader performs message aggregation and indicating how the Reader performs message aggregation. The specific description of the message aggregation strategy can be referred to the above.

[0290] S704.2: The UE Reader sends a check request to the Device.

[0291] S705.1-1: The Device performs random access.

[0292] S705.2-1: The Device sends a check response to the UE Reader.

[0293] S705.3-1: The UE Reader caches the check response.

[0294] S705.1-2: Device random access.

[0295] S705.2-2: Device sends inventory response to UE Reader.

[0296] S705.3-2: UE Reader caches inventory response.

[0297] …

[0298] S705.1-n: Device random access.

[0299] S705.2-n: Device sends inventory response to UE Reader.

[0300] S705.3-n: UE Reader caches inventory response.

[0301] S706: UE Reader aggregates inventory responses, UE Reader sends aggregated response message to TMF.

[0302] S707: TMF processes inventory responses.

[0303] S708.1: TMF decides how to send traffic report according to reporting policy.

[0304] S708.2: TMF sends traffic report to AF.

[0305] It can be understood that, compared with Figure 5, the difference points of Figure 7 include: in Figure 5, the RAN Reader obtains multiple inventory responses, caches multiple inventory responses, and performs message aggregation on multiple inventory responses, and sends the aggregated inventory responses to the TMF. In Figure 7, the UE Reader obtains multiple inventory responses, caches multiple inventory responses, and performs message aggregation on multiple inventory responses, and sends the aggregated inventory responses to the TMF through the RAN.

[0306] Another difference point includes: in Figure 5, the RAN Reader establishes a connection with the TMF, and in Figure 7, the UE Reader establishes a connection with the TMF through the AMF.

[0307] Other steps are basically the same, and can be referred to the step description of Figure 5, and will not be repeated here.

[0308] In the embodiment of the present application, the TMF receives a service request from the AF, sends an inventory request to the UE Reader based on the service request to instruct the Device to perform a quick inventory, and instructs to aggregate multiple inventory responses from the Device. The interaction between the AF and the UE Reader needs the TMF to relay messages, and the instruction to perform a quick inventory on the Device is actually issued by the TMF, the TMF obtains more information, and the TMF is more clear whether it is appropriate to subsequently aggregate multiple inventory responses. Therefore, the TMF issues an inventory request to instruct to aggregate messages, compared with the way of issuing an aggregation instruction by the AF, the reliability of the decision can be improved. In addition, after the UE Reader subsequently aggregates multiple inventory responses, the aggregated messages are sent to the TMF together, reducing the number of messages between the TMF and the UE Reader, reducing signaling overhead, and improving transmission efficiency.

[0309] In the architecture as shown in FIG. 6, the read-write device Reader is located in the second terminal device, that is, the read-write device is the UE Reader. The UE Reader is connected with the TMF through the access network element RAN.

[0310] In combination with the architecture shown in FIG. 6 and the flowchart shown in FIG. 7 above, the process of performing message aggregation by the UE Reader is introduced.

[0311] Optionally, in combination with the architecture shown in FIG. 6 and the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 below, another communication method can also be introduced, in which the RAN performs message aggregation of the UE Reader.

[0312] Please refer to FIG. 8, which is another flowchart of a communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application.

[0313] The communication method includes but is not limited to the following steps:

[0314] S801.1: Connection establishment between the RAN and the AMF.

[0315] S801.2: The UEReader completes the registration process.

[0316] S801.3: The AMF reports the aggregation capability indication to the TMF.

[0317] In the above three steps, the RAN can report the aggregation capability indication to the AMF when establishing a connection with the AMF, indicating whether the RAN can perform message aggregation of the UE Reader, that is, whether the RAN supports message aggregation of the UE Reader, or in other words, whether message aggregation can be performed by the RAN; the AMF can notify the TMF whether the RAN supports message aggregation of the UE Reader by sending a message to the TMF; the AMF can also report the information of the RAN to the NRF while carrying an indication message of whether the RAN supports message aggregation of the UE Reader, and the TMF obtains whether the RAN supports message aggregation of the UE Reader by querying the NRF.

[0318] Whether the RAN supports message aggregation of the UE Reader can be used to assist the TMF to determine whether to issue a message aggregation strategy to the RAN when issuing a service request to the UE Reader. If the RAN does not support message aggregation of the UE Reader, the message aggregation strategy can not be issued to the RAN, or the TMF issues the message aggregation strategy to the RAN, which does not affect the progress of the service process, and the RAN will not perform message aggregation.

[0319] The UE Reader completes the registration process of the UE Reader in the network through the registration process. The UE can carry the UE Reader aggregation capability indication in the initial registration process, the AMF and the UDM / AUSF cooperate to complete the authentication and authorization of the UE Reader, and notify the RAN that the UE is a Reader through the UE context synchronization, so that the RAN identifies the UE Reader. Or the UE can first complete the registration process of the ordinary UE, and then activate the UE Reader function at any time as needed, the AMF and the UDM / AUSF cooperate to complete the authorization of the UE Reader, and notify the RAN that the UE is a Reader through the UE context synchronization, so that the RAN identifies the UE Reader. The aggregation capability indication reported in S801.3 can also include the aggregation capability indication of the UE Reader itself, or the aggregation capability indication of the UE Reader itself can also be reported through a separate message, which is not limited here.

[0320] If the UE Reader and the RAN both support message aggregation, one of them can be selected to perform message aggregation, for example, message aggregation is performed by the UE Reader, or message aggregation is performed by the RAN. Both of them can also be selected to perform message aggregation, that is, the UE Reader performs message aggregation first, and then the RAN performs aggregation on the multiple messages aggregated by the UE Reader, and then sends them to the TMF through the AMF. The following step S806 is an example of letting the RAN perform message aggregation.

[0321] S802.1: The AF sends a service request to the TMF.

[0322] S802.2: The TMF sends a request response to the AF.

[0323] S803: The TMF determines whether message aggregation can be performed.

[0324] S804.1: The TMF sends an inventory request (fast inventory mode, message aggregation strategy) to the RAN.

[0325] The inventory request can indicate that the UE Reader adopts the fast inventory mode, and the inventory request can further include the message aggregation strategy, indicating that the RAN performs message aggregation and indicating how the RAN performs message aggregation. The specific description of the message aggregation strategy can be referred to the above.

[0326] S804.2: The RAN sends an inventory request (fast inventory mode) to the UE Reader.

[0327] The inventory request can indicate that the UE Reader adopts the fast inventory mode, and the specific description of the fast inventory mode can be referred to the above.

[0328] S804.3: The UE Reader sends an inventory request to the Device.

[0329] S805.1-1: The Device performs random access.

[0330] S805.2-1: The Device sends an inventory response to the UE Reader, and the UE Reader sends the inventory response to the RAN.

[0331] S805.3-1: The RAN caches the inventory response.

[0332] S805.1-2: The Device performs random access.

[0333] S805.2-2: The Device sends an inventory response to the UE Reader, and the UE Reader sends the inventory response to the RAN.

[0334] S805.3-2: The RAN caches the inventory response.

[0335] …

[0336] S805.1-n: The Device performs random access.

[0337] S805.2-n: The Device sends an inventory response to the UE Reader, and the UE Reader sends the inventory response to the RAN.

[0338] S805.3-n: RAN cache inventory response.

[0339] S806: The RAN aggregates the inventory responses, and sends the aggregated response message to the TMF.

[0340] S807: The TMF processes the inventory responses.

[0341] S808.1: The TMF decides how to send the service report according to the reporting sending policy.

[0342] S808.2: The TMF sends the service report to the AF.

[0343] Compared with FIG. 7, the difference points include:

[0344] In FIG. 7, when the TMF judges that message aggregation can be performed, the TMF sends the inventory request to the UE Reader through the AMF and the RAN, and carries the fast inventory mode and the message aggregation policy. The inventory process corresponding to the fast inventory mode and the message aggregation process corresponding to the message aggregation policy are both performed by the UE Reader. After the UE Reader obtains multiple inventory responses, the UE Reader caches the multiple inventory responses, performs message aggregation on the multiple inventory responses, obtains the aggregated inventory response, and sends the aggregated inventory response to the TMF through the RAN and the AMF.

[0345] In FIG. 8, when the TMF judges that message aggregation can be performed, the TMF sends the inventory request to the UE Reader through the AMF and the RAN, and carries the fast inventory mode; at the same time, the TMF sends the message aggregation policy to the RAN through the AMF; that is, the inventory process corresponding to the fast inventory mode is performed by the UE Reader, and the message aggregation process corresponding to the message aggregation policy is performed by the RAN. After the UE Reader obtains each inventory response, the UE Reader immediately forwards the inventory response message to the RAN; the RAN caches multiple inventory responses, performs message aggregation on the multiple inventory responses, obtains the aggregated inventory response, and sends the aggregated inventory response to the TMF through the AMF.

[0346] In the embodiment of the present application, the TMF sends the inventory request instruction to perform message aggregation, which can improve the reliability of decision-making compared with the mode of sending the message aggregation instruction by the AF. After the RAN performs message aggregation on multiple inventory responses, the RAN sends the aggregated message to the AMF, and the AMF forwards the aggregated message to the TMF, which can reduce the number of messages between the RAN and the AMF and between the AMF and the TMF, reduce signaling overhead, and improve transmission efficiency. In addition, the UE Reader obtains the inventory response, and the RAN performs message aggregation, which can reduce the resource occupation of the UE.

[0347] If both the UE Reader and the RAN support message aggregation, one of them can be selected as the device performing message aggregation, and message aggregation is performed according to the method shown in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8; or, the UE Reader and the RAN can both perform message aggregation, that is, the UE Reader performs message aggregation first, and the RAN performs message aggregation on the multiple messages aggregated by the UE Reader again, and then sends the aggregated messages to the TMF through the AMF, at this time, the message aggregation strategies sent by the TMF to the UE Reader and the RAN can be different, for example, the parameters sent to the RAN can be longer in message sending period, the number of aggregatable messages, or the length of aggregated messages, etc., to match the difference in message aggregation capability between the UE Reader and the RAN.

[0348] Please refer to FIG. 9, which is another architecture of a communication system provided by the embodiments of the present application. The architecture shown in FIG. 9 is basically the same as the network elements included in the architecture shown in FIG. 6, but in the architecture shown in FIG. 9, the RAN can be directly connected with the TMF.

[0349] Please refer to FIG. 10, which is another flowchart of a communication method provided by the embodiments of the present application. The communication method shown in FIG. 10 can be implemented in the communication system shown in FIG. 9. As shown in FIG. 10, the method includes but is not limited to the following steps:

[0350] S1001.1: Connection establishment between the RAN and the TMF.

[0351] In this step, the RAN can directly establish a connection with the TMF.

[0352] S1001.2: The UE Reader completes the registration process.

[0353] S1001.3: The AMF reports the aggregation capability indication to the TMF.

[0354] In this step, the AMF can report the aggregation capability indication of the UE Reader to the TMF, or report the aggregation capability indication of the UE Reader to the NRF through the AMF, and the TMF obtains the aggregation capability indication of the UE Reader from the NRF.

[0355] In addition, after the TMF establishes a connection with the RAN, the TMF can directly obtain the aggregation capability indication of the RAN, which indicates whether the RAN can perform message aggregation of the UE Reader, that is, whether the RAN supports message aggregation of the UE Reader, or in other words, whether the RAN can perform message aggregation.

[0356] If both the UE Reader and the RAN support message aggregation, one of them can be selected to perform message aggregation, for example, message aggregation is performed by the UE Reader, or message aggregation is performed by the RAN. Both of them can also be selected to perform message aggregation, that is, the UE Reader performs message aggregation first, and the RAN performs aggregation on the multiple messages aggregated by the UE Reader again.

[0357] The following step S1006 is an example of performing message aggregation by the RAN.

[0358] S1002.1: The AF sends a service request to the TMF.

[0359] S1002.2: The TMF sends a request response to the AF.

[0360] S1003: The TMF determines whether message aggregation can be performed.

[0361] S1004.1: The TMF sends an inventory request (fast inventory mode, message aggregation strategy) to the RAN.

[0362] The inventory request can carry the fast inventory mode and the message aggregation strategy.

[0363] In this step, the TMF sends an inventory request to the RAN, which can be forwarded through the AMF or not. That is, the TMF can directly send an inventory request to the RAN, or the TMF can first send an inventory request to the AMF, and the AMF sends the inventory request to the RAN. The present application does not limit this. When the inventory request is not forwarded through the AMF, the number of network elements through which the request message passes can be reduced, and the message transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0364] S1004.2: The RAN sends an inventory request (fast inventory mode) to the UE Reader.

[0365] The inventory request can carry the fast inventory mode.

[0366] S1004.3: The UE Reader sends an inventory request to the Device.

[0367] S1005.1-1: The Device performs random access.

[0368] S1005.2-1: The Device sends an inventory response to the UE Reader, and the UE Reader sends an inventory response to the RAN.

[0369] S1005.3-1: The RAN caches the inventory response.

[0370] S1005.1-2: The Device performs random access.

[0371] S1005.2-2: Device sends inventory response to UE Reader, UE Reader sends inventory response to RAN.

[0372] S1005.3-2: RAN caches inventory response.

[0373] …

[0374] S1005.1-n: Device random access.

[0375] S1005.2-n: Device sends inventory response to UE Reader, UE Reader sends inventory response to RAN.

[0376] S1005.3-n: RAN caches inventory response.

[0377] S1006: RAN aggregates inventory responses, RAN sends aggregated response message to TMF.

[0378] In this step, RAN can send the aggregated response message to TMF directly, which does not need to be forwarded by AMF, so that the number of message forwarding times can be reduced, and the message transmission efficiency can be improved.

[0379] S1007: TMF processes inventory responses.

[0380] S1008.1: TMF decides how to send traffic report according to reporting sending policy.

[0381] S1008.2: TMF sends traffic report to AF.

[0382] Comparing Figure 10 with Figure 8, the difference points include: in Figure 10, RAN can establish connection with TMF directly. Therefore, when TMF sends inventory request to RAN, the inventory request does not need to be forwarded by AMF; when RAN sends response message to TMF, the response message does not need to be forwarded by AMF. Therefore, the network elements that need to be passed through in the message transmission process can be reduced, the number of message forwarding times can be reduced, the message transmission efficiency can be improved, and the signaling overhead can be reduced. In addition to these difference points, the related description of other steps in Figure 10 can be referred to the similar steps in Figure 8, which will not be repeated here.

[0383] Please refer to FIG. 11, which is another architecture diagram of a communication system provided by the embodiment of the present application. As shown in FIG. 11, in the architecture, the reader / writer device Reader is located in the second terminal device, that is, the reader / writer device is a UE Reader. The UE Reader is connected with the TMF through the access network element RAN. In the architecture, the message aggregation is performed by the UE Reader. The architecture further includes a UPF, and the UE Reader establishes a connection with the TMF through the UPF.

[0384] The dashed box in FIG. 11 represents an optional network element. As shown in FIG. 11, the NEF is optional, that is, the TMF can be directly connected with the AF, or the TMF can be connected with the AF through the NEF. The RAN can be connected with the TMF through the UPF.

[0385] In the communication method provided by the embodiment, the UE Reader establishes a connection with the TMF through the user plane UPF, and the establishment of the user plane session of the UE Reader involves no network elements such as UDM / AAA, AMF and SMF in the embodiment, so the following flowchart is simplified.

[0386] Please refer to FIG. 12, which is another flowchart of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application.

[0387] The communication method includes but is not limited to the following steps:

[0388] S1201.1: The UE Reader completes the session establishment process.

[0389] In the embodiment, the UE Reader first completes the registration and the establishment of the user plane session, and the process can refer to related technologies and will not be described in detail.

[0390] S1201.2: The UE Reader sends a UE Reader online notification to the TMF.

[0391] In the embodiment, the UE Reader establishes a connection with the TMF through the RAN and the UPF in the user plane, and can carry an aggregation capability indication in the connection request to assist the TMF in deciding whether to issue a message aggregation strategy to the UE Reader. If the UE Reader does not support message aggregation, the TMF can not issue the message aggregation strategy, or the TMF issues the message aggregation strategy to the UE Reader, which does not affect the business process, and the UE Reader can ignore the message and not perform message aggregation.

[0392] S1202.1: The AF sends a business request to the TMF.

[0393] S1202.2: The TMF sends a request response to the AF.

[0394] S1203: The TMF determines whether message aggregation can be performed by the Reader.

[0395] S1204.1: The TMF sends a check request (fast check mode, message aggregation strategy) to the UE Reader.

[0396] Wherein, when the TMF determines that message aggregation can be performed, the check request is issued to the UE Reader through the UPF and the RAN, carrying the fast check mode and the message aggregation strategy, and subsequently a plurality of response messages are obtained by the UE Reader and the plurality of response messages are aggregated.

[0397] S1204.2: The UE Reader sends a check request to the Device.

[0398] S1205.1-1: The Device performs random access.

[0399] S1205.2-1: The Device sends a check response to the UE Reader.

[0400] S1205.3-1: The UE Reader caches the check response.

[0401] S1205.1-2: The Device performs random access.

[0402] S1205.2-2: The Device sends a check response to the UE Reader.

[0403] S1205.3-2: The UE Reader caches the check response.

[0404] …

[0405] S1205.1-n: The Device performs random access.

[0406] S1205.2-n: The Device sends a check response to the UE Reader.

[0407] S1205.3-n: The UE Reader caches the check response.

[0408] S1206: The UE Reader aggregates the check responses, and the UE Reader sends the aggregated response message to the TMF.

[0409] S1207: The TMF processes the check responses.

[0410] S1208.1: The TMF decides how to send the service report according to the reporting sending strategy.

[0411] S1208.2: The TMF sends a service report to the AF.

[0412] Figure 12, compared with figure 7, the network element that relays messages in the interaction process between the RAN and the TMF changes from the AMF to the UPF, and other steps S1202.1 to S1208.2 are basically the same as steps S702.1 to S702.1, which will not be repeated here.

[0413] In the embodiment of the present application, the TMF sends a message aggregation instruction to indicate inventory request, which can improve the reliability of decision-making compared with the way of sending a message aggregation instruction by the AF. After the UE Reader aggregates multiple inventory responses, the aggregated message is sent to the TMF through the UPF and the AMF at one time, which can reduce the whole link between the UE Reader and the TMF, including the number of messages between the UE Reader and the RAN, the RAN and the UPF, and the UPF and the TMF, reduce the signaling overhead, and improve the transmission efficiency.

[0414] The above describes the method of the embodiment of the present application in detail, and the following provides an apparatus for implementing any one of the methods in the embodiment of the present application, for example, an apparatus including units (or means) for implementing each step performed by the device in any one of the above methods.

[0415] Please refer to figure 13, which is a structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus provided by the embodiment of the present application.

[0416] As shown in figure 13, the communication apparatus 130 can include a communication unit 1301 and a processing unit 1302. The communication unit 1301 and the processing unit 1302 can be software, hardware, or a combination of software and hardware.

[0417] The communication unit 1301 can implement the sending function and / or the receiving function, and the communication unit 1301 can also be described as a transceiver unit. The communication unit 1301 can also be a unit integrated with an acquisition unit and a sending unit, wherein the acquisition unit is used to implement the receiving function, and the sending unit is used to implement the sending function. Optionally, the communication unit 1301 can be used to receive information sent by other apparatuses, and also can be used to send information to other apparatuses.

[0418] In a possible design, the communication apparatus 130 can correspond to the management network element in the method embodiments of any of the above-described FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, and can be the management network element or a chip in the management network element. The communication apparatus 130 can include units for performing the operations performed by the management network element in the method embodiments of any of the above-described FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, and each unit in the communication apparatus 130 is configured to implement the operations performed by the management network element in the method embodiments of any of the above-described FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12. Details of each unit are as follows:

[0419] The communication unit 1301 is configured to receive a service request, where the service request is used to request to perform a first operation on one or more first terminal devices.

[0420] The communication unit 1301 is further configured to send a first message, where the first message is used to instruct a read-write device to perform the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices, and to perform message aggregation on a plurality of response messages, where the plurality of response messages are obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0421] In a possible implementation, the apparatus further includes:

[0422] The processing unit 1302 is configured to generate the first message based on the service request.

[0423] The communication unit 1301 and the processing unit 1302 described in this design perform steps that can be referred to the implementation corresponding to the terminal device in the method embodiments of any of the above-described FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0424] The implementation performed by the communication unit 1301 and the processing unit 1302 described in this design can bring the technical effects that can be referred to the introduction of the technical effects of the method embodiments of any of the above-described FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0425] In another possible design, the communication apparatus 130 can correspond to the read-write device in the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, i.e., the communication apparatus 130 can be the read-write device or a chip in the read-write device. The communication apparatus 130 can include units for performing the operations performed by the read-write device in the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, and each unit in the communication apparatus 130 is configured to implement the operations performed by the read-write device in the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12. Details of each unit are as follows:

[0426] The communication unit 1301 is configured to receive a first message from a management network element, where the first message is obtained by the management network element based on a service request, and the service request is used to request a first operation on one or more first terminal devices.

[0427] The communication unit 1301 is further configured to receive a plurality of response messages, where the plurality of response messages are obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0428] The processing unit 1302 is configured to perform the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices.

[0429] The communication unit 1301 and the processing unit 1302 described in this design perform the steps as described in the corresponding implementation of the read-write device in the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0430] The technical effects brought by the implementation of the communication unit 1301 and the processing unit 1302 described in this design can be referred to the introduction of the technical effects of the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0431] In another possible design, the communication apparatus 130 can correspond to the access network element in the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, i.e., the communication apparatus 130 can be the access network element or a chip in the access network element. The communication apparatus 130 can include units for performing the operations performed by the access network element in the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, and each unit in the communication apparatus 130 is configured to implement the operations performed by the access network element in the method embodiments of any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12. Details of each unit are as follows:

[0432] The communication unit 1301 is configured to receive a second message from the read-write device, the second message comprising a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by one or more first terminal devices in response to a first operation of the read-write device, the read-write device being located in the second terminal device.

[0433] The processing unit 1302 is configured to perform message aggregation on the plurality of response messages.

[0434] The communication unit 1301 and the processing unit 1302 described in the present design perform the steps which can refer to the implementation of the access network element corresponding to the method embodiment corresponding to any one of the above-mentioned FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0435] The technical effects brought by the implementation of the communication unit 1301 and the processing unit 1302 described in the present design can refer to the introduction of the technical effects of the method embodiment corresponding to any one of the above-mentioned FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0436] According to the embodiments of the present application, each unit in the apparatus shown in FIG. 13 can be combined into one or several other units respectively or all, or some of the units can be further split into a plurality of units with smaller functions to constitute, which can realize the same operation without affecting the implementation of the technical effects of the embodiments of the present application. The above-mentioned units are divided based on logical functions, and in actual application, the function of one unit can also be realized by multiple units, or the functions of multiple units can be realized by one unit. In other embodiments of the present application, based on the electronic device can also include other units, and in actual application, these functions can also be realized by other units, and can be realized by multiple units.

[0437] It should be noted that the implementation of each unit can also correspond to the description of the corresponding method embodiment of any one of the above-mentioned FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0438] In the communication apparatus 130 described in FIG. 13, in the embodiments of the present application, the management network element TMF receives a service request, and sends a first message based on the service request, the first message being sent by the TMF, which can improve the reliability of decision compared with the mode of sending the message aggregation instruction by the AF. In addition, after the read-write device performs message aggregation on the plurality of response messages, the aggregated message is sent to the TMF at one time, which reduces the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device, reduces the signaling overhead, and improves the transmission efficiency.

[0439] Please refer to FIG. 14, which is a structural schematic diagram of a communication apparatus provided in an embodiment of the present application.

[0440] It should be noted that the communication apparatus 140 shown in FIG. 14 is merely an example, and the communication apparatus of the embodiments of the present application can further include other components, or include components similar in function to the components in FIG. 14, or not include all the components in FIG. 14.

[0441] The communication apparatus 140 includes a communication interface 1401 and at least one processor 1402.

[0442] The communication apparatus 140 can correspond to any of the management network element, the read-write device, the access network element, or the device. The communication interface 1401 is configured to transceive signals, and the at least one processor 1402 executes program instructions to enable the communication apparatus 140 to implement the corresponding procedures of the method performed by the corresponding device in the above method embodiments.

[0443] In a possible design, the communication apparatus 140 can correspond to the management network element in the method embodiments shown in any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10, and FIG. 12, and the communication apparatus 140 can be the management network element or a chip in the management network element. The communication apparatus 140 can include components configured to perform the operations performed by the management network element in the above method embodiments, and the components in the communication apparatus 140 are respectively configured to implement the operations performed by the management network element in the above method embodiments. Specifically, the communication apparatus 140 can include the following components:

[0444] receiving a service request, the service request being used to request performing a first operation on one or more first terminal devices;

[0445] sending a first message based on the service request, the first message indicating that the read-write device performs the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices, and indicating that a plurality of response messages are message aggregated, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0446] In another possible design, the communication apparatus 140 can correspond to the read-write device in the method embodiments shown in any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10, and FIG. 12, and the communication apparatus 140 can be the read-write device or a chip in the read-write device. The communication apparatus 140 can include components configured to perform the operations performed by the read-write device in the above method embodiments, and the components in the communication apparatus 140 are respectively configured to implement the operations performed by the read-write device in the above method embodiments. Specifically, the communication apparatus 140 can include the following components:

[0447] receiving a first message from a management network element, the first message being obtained by the management network element based on a service request, the service request being used to request performing a first operation on one or more first terminal devices;

[0448] performing the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices to obtain a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

[0449] In another possible design, the communication apparatus 140 can correspond to the access network element in the method embodiments described above with reference to any of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12. The communication apparatus 140 can be the access network element, or a chip in the access network element. The communication apparatus 140 can include means for performing the operations performed by the access network element in the method embodiments described above, and each of the means in the communication apparatus 140 is configured to implement the operations performed by the access network element in the method embodiments described above. Specifically, the communication apparatus 140 can include the following means:

[0450] receiving a second message from the read-write device, the second message including the plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation of the read-write device, the read-write device being located in the second terminal device;

[0451] performing message aggregation on the plurality of response messages.

[0452] In the communication apparatus 140 described in FIG. 14, the management network element TMF receives a service request, and sends a first message based on the service request. The first message is sent by the TMF, which can improve the reliability of decision-making, as compared with the way of sending a message aggregation instruction by the AF. In addition, the read-write device performs message aggregation on the plurality of response messages, and then sends the aggregated message to the TMF at one time, which reduces the number of messages between the TMF and the read-write device, reduces signaling overhead, and improves transmission efficiency.

[0453] For the case that the communication apparatus is a chip or a chip system, refer to the structural schematic diagram of the chip shown in FIG. 15.

[0454] As shown in FIG. 15, the chip 150 includes a processor 1501 and an interface 1502. The number of the processor 1501 can be one or more, and the number of the interface 1502 can be multiple. It should be noted that the functions of the processor 1501 and the interface 1502 can be implemented by hardware design, software design, or a combination of hardware and software, which is not limited here.

[0455] Optionally, the chip 150 can further include a memory 1503, which is used to store necessary program instructions and data.

[0456] In the present application, the processor 1501 can be used to call the implementation program of the communication method provided by one or more embodiments of the present application in the management network element, the read-write device, one or more devices or network elements in the access network element, and execute the instructions contained in the program. The interface 1502 can be used to output the execution result of the processor 1501. In the present application, the interface 1502 can be specifically used to output various messages or information of the processor 1501.

[0457] The communication method provided by one or more embodiments of the present application can refer to any of the foregoing FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12 for various embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0458] The processor in the embodiments of the present application can be a central processing unit (CPU), and can also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (DSP), application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), field programmable gate arrays (FPGA) or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, etc. The general-purpose processor can be a microprocessor or any conventional processor.

[0459] The memory in the embodiments of the present application is used to provide storage space, and the storage space can store data such as operating systems and computer programs. The memory 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).

[0460] According to the method provided by the embodiments of the present application, the embodiments of the present application also provide a computer readable storage medium, and the computer readable storage medium stores a computer program. When the computer program runs on one or more processors, the method shown in any of the foregoing FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12 can be implemented.

[0461] According to the method provided in the embodiments of the present application, the embodiments of the present application further provide a computer program product, the computer program product comprises a computer program, and when the computer program runs on a processor, the method shown in any one of FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12 can be implemented.

[0462] The embodiments of the present application further provide a system, the system comprises at least one communication device 130 or communication device 140 or chip 150 as described above, and is used for executing the steps performed by the corresponding device in any one of the embodiments shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0463] The embodiments of the present application further provide a system, the system comprises a management network element, a read-write device and an access network element, the management network element is used for executing the steps performed by the management network element in any one of the embodiments shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, the read-write device is used for executing the steps performed by the read-write device in any one of the embodiments shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12, and the access network element is used for executing the steps performed by the access network element in any one of the embodiments shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 5, FIG. 7, FIG. 8, FIG. 10 and FIG. 12.

[0464] The embodiments of the present application further provide a processing device, comprising a processor and an interface; the processor is used for executing the method in any one of the method embodiments.

[0465] It should be understood that the processing device described above can be a chip. For example, the processing device can be a field programmable gate array (FPGA), can be a general processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic device, a discrete hardware component, can also be a system chip (SoC), can also be a central processing unit (CPU), can also be a network processor (NP), can also be a digital signal processing circuit (DSP), can also be a micro controller unit (MCU), can also be a programmable logic device (PLD) or other integrated chip. The methods, steps and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application can be implemented or executed. The general processor can be a microprocessor or the processor can also be any conventional processor. The steps of the method disclosed in combination with the embodiments of the present application can be directly embodied as hardware code processor execution, or executed by hardware and software module combination in code processor. The software module can be located in random access memory, flash memory, read only memory, programmable read only memory or electrically erasable programmable memory, register and other mature storage medium in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory, and the processor reads the information in the memory, and combines the hardware to complete the steps of the above method.

[0466] It is to be appreciated that the memory in the embodiments of the application can be volatile, nonvolatile, or a combination of both. The non-volatile memory can be, for example, read only memory (ROM), programmable ROM (PROM), erasable PROM (EPROM), electrically EPROM (EEPROM), or flash memory. The volatile memory can be, for example, random access memory (RAM), which acts as external cache. By way of example and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as static RAM (SRAM), dynamic RAM (DRAM), synchronous DRAM (SDRAM), double data rate SDRAM (DDR SDRAM), enhanced SDRAM (ESDRAM), Synchlink DRAM (SLDRAM), and direct rambus RAM (DR RAM). It is to be appreciated that the system and method described herein can employ any one of such a memory or both. Note that the system and method described herein are not limited to just these memory types.

[0467] In the embodiments described above, all or some of the steps can be implemented by hardware, software, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented by software, all or some of the steps can be implemented in the form of one or more computer programs or program elements. The computer programs or program elements can be stored in a computer readable medium, such as a computer storage medium or a computer memory device. The computer programs or program elements can be downloaded to the computer from an external computer via a network or wireline connection. The computer readable medium can be a computer program product.

[0468] The units in the various device embodiments and the electronic devices in the method embodiments fully correspond, and the corresponding steps are performed by the corresponding modules or units, for example, the communication unit (transceiver) performs the steps of receiving or sending in the method embodiments, and other steps except sending and receiving can be performed by the processing unit (processor). The functions of the specific units can refer to the corresponding method embodiments. The processor can be one or more.

[0469] It can be understood that the electronic device in the embodiments of the present application can perform some or all of the steps in the embodiments of the present application, and these steps or operations are only examples, and the embodiments of the present application can also perform other operations or variations of various operations. In addition, each step can be executed in a different order from the order presented in the embodiments of the present application, and it is possible that not all operations in the embodiments of the present application are executed.

[0470] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in combination with the embodiments disclosed herein can be realized by electronic hardware or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether the functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the present application.

[0471] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and brevity of the description, the specific working processes of the above-described system, device and unit can refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0472] In several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, device and method can be implemented in other ways. For example, the above-described device embodiments are only schematic, for example, the division of the units is only a logical function division, and actual implementation can have another division manner, for example, a plurality of units or components can be combined or integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not executed. In addition, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection between the units shown or discussed can be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interface, device or unit, and can be electrical, mechanical or other forms.

[0473] The units described as separate components can or can not be physically separated, and the components shown as units can or can not be physical units, that is, they can be located in one place, or can be distributed on a plurality of network units. Part or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the embodiment.

[0474] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated into a processing unit, or each unit can exist physically independently, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

[0475] If the functions are implemented in the form of software function units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the present application essentially or the parts that make contributions or parts of the technical solutions can be embodied in the form of a software product. The computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes a plurality of instructions for causing a computer device (which can be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage medium includes: a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory ROM, a random access memory RAM, a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and various media that can store program codes.

[0476] The above is only a specific implementation of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of changes or replacements within the technical scope disclosed in the present application, which should be covered within the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method applied to a management network element or a chip in the management network element, comprises: receiving a service request, the service request being used for requesting to perform a first operation on one or more first terminal devices; sending a first message based on the service request, the first message indicating that a read-write device performs the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices, and indicating that a plurality of response messages are message aggregated, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, The type of the first operation comprises a single interaction operation or a multiple interaction operation; and the sending of the first message based on the service request comprises: in a case where the type of the first operation is the single interaction operation, sending the first message.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The sending of the first message based on the service request comprises: in a case where a report sending policy indicates that a service report sending manner of the management network element does not have real-time performance, sending the first message based on the service request.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein, The service request further comprises the report sending policy. Or, the report sending policy is configured in the management network element. Or, the service request further comprises a first report sending policy, a second report sending policy is configured in the management network element, and the report sending policy is obtained based on the first report sending policy and the second report sending policy.

5. The method according to any one of claims 2-4, characterized in that, Before the sending of the first message based on the service request, the method further comprises: obtaining an aggregation capability indication of the read-write device. The sending of the first message based on the service request comprises: in a case where the aggregation capability indication indicates that the read-write device supports message aggregation, sending the first message based on the service request.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that, The read-write device is located in an access network or a second terminal device.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, The first message further comprises one or more of a sending period of an aggregated message, a maximum number of aggregated messages, and a maximum length of an aggregated message.

8. The method of claim 3 or 4, wherein, The report sending policy further comprises a deduplication manner, and the method further comprises: deduplicating processed aggregated messages according to the deduplication manner, the processed aggregated messages being obtained by the management network element by processing the plurality of response messages.

9. A communication method characterized by comprising: The method applied to a read-write device or a chip in the read-write device, comprises: receiving a first message from a management network element, the first message being obtained by the management network element based on a service request, the service request being used for requesting to perform a first operation on one or more first terminal devices; performing the first operation on the one or more first terminal devices to obtain a plurality of response messages, the plurality of response messages being obtained by the one or more first terminal devices in response to the first operation.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein, The first message further comprises one or more of a sending period of an aggregated message, a maximum number of aggregatable messages, and a maximum length of an aggregated message; and the message aggregation of the plurality of response messages comprises: message aggregating the plurality of response messages based on the first message.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein, The read-write device is located in a second terminal device, and after the obtaining of the plurality of response messages, the method further comprises: sending a second message to an access network element, the second message comprising the plurality of response messages.

12. A communication method characterized by comprising: A method applied to or in a chip in an access network element, the method comprising: receiving a second message from a read-write device, the second message comprising a plurality of response messages; the plurality of response messages being obtained by one or more first terminal devices in response to a first operation of the read-write device, the read-write device being located in a second terminal device; performing message aggregation on the plurality of response messages.

13. A communications device, characterized by A unit for performing the method of any one of claims 1 to 8, claims 9 to 11, or claim 12.

14. A communications device, characterized by A processor for performing the method of any one of claims 1 to 8, claims 9 to 11, or claim 12.

15. A communications device, characterized by A logic circuit and an interface coupled to the logic circuit; The interface is configured to input and / or output information, and the logic circuit is configured to perform the method of any one of claims 1 to 8, claims 9 to 11, or claim 12.

16. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, A computer program product comprising a computer program that, when executed by a computer, causes the method of any one of claims 1 to 8, claims 9 to 11, or claim 12 to be performed or implemented.

17. A computer program product, characterised in that, A computer program product comprising a computer program that, when executed by a computer, causes the method of any one of claims 1 to 8, claims 9 to 11, or claim 12 to be performed or implemented.

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