Information processing device, communication system, edge server, and control program

Abstract

According to the present invention, if an edge server serving as a connection destination of a mobility device is switched, a delay in acquiring information from the mobility device is reduced. An information processing device (60) is provided with: a pre-movement detection unit (62) that, before an edge server (100a, 100b) serving as a connection destination of a mobility device (10) switches from a first edge server (100a) to a second edge server (100b) as the mobility device (10) moves, detects that the second edge server (100b) will be the switching destination for the connection by referring to switching information acquired from a core network (30); and a pre-movement notification unit (63) that notifies, by transmitting switching information, one or both of the first edge server (100a) and the second edge server (100b) that the second edge server (100b) will be the switching destination for the connection.

Description

Information processing apparatus, communication system, edge server, and control program

[0001] One aspect of the present invention relates to an information processing apparatus, a communication system, an edge server, and a control program.

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a technology in which an application running on an edge server such as MEC (Multi-access Edge Computing) acquires information indicating the position and the like of a mobility device included in a vehicle via a core network and another edge server as appropriate. There are also known technologies including: a technology in which a server device that centrally manages IP addresses of mobility devices is introduced to enable access to a mobility device with a single IP address even when access goes through another edge server; and ICN (Information Centric Networking) routing that enables access to a mobility device using a content name (device name). Patent Literature 1 discloses a technology for updating routing in an information-centric network (ICN).

[0003] Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2021-6988

[0004] However, in the conventional technologies as described above, when the edge server to which the mobility device is connected is switched along with movement of the mobility device, a delay may occur when an application acquires information from the mobility device. The technology of Patent Literature 1 is a technology for optimizing routing after switching, and does not resolve the aforementioned delay.

[0005] One aspect of the present invention has been made in view of the above problem, and an object thereof is to reduce a delay occurring when information is acquired from a mobility device in a case where the edge server to which the mobility device is connected is switched.

[0006] To solve the aforementioned problems, an information processing device according to one aspect of the present invention includes: a pre-movement detection unit that detects, by referring to switching information obtained from the core network, that the second edge server will become the connection destination in advance of the switch from the first edge server to the second edge server in conjunction with the movement of the mobility device via the core network; and a pre-movement notification unit that notifies one or both of the first edge server and the second edge server that the second edge server will become the connection destination in advance of the switch from the first edge server to the second edge server in conjunction with the movement of the mobility device by transmitting the switching information.

[0007] To solve the aforementioned problems, an edge server according to one aspect of the present invention is an edge server that serves as a connection destination for a mobility device via a core network, and has an ICN router and a gateway device that relays between the core network and the ICN router, wherein when the edge server that serves as the connection destination for the mobility device is the ICN router itself, the ICN router obtains device information of the mobility device from the mobility device via the core network and the gateway device, and the edge server that serves as the connection destination for the mobility device switches from the edge server that is the edge server itself to another edge server as the mobility device moves Prior to the switch, the system receives switching information from an external device connected to the core network indicating that the other edge server will be the destination for the connection switch. In response to receiving the switching information, the system updates routing information indicating the connection path to the mobility device. After receiving the switching information, and following (1) failure to obtain the device information via the gateway device, or (2) at a time when it can be considered that the destination of the mobility device has switched to the other edge server, the system obtains the device information from the mobility device via the core network and the gateway device and ICN router of the other edge server.

[0008] Each aspect of the present invention may be implemented by a computer, in which case a control program for the information processing device that enables the computer to implement the information processing device by operating the computer as each part (software element) of the information processing device, and a computer-readable recording medium on which the program is recorded, also fall within the scope of the present invention.

[0009] Furthermore, the control program may use various machine learning techniques in the process of operating the computer as a part of the control block or in other processes. In this case, the program using machine learning techniques may run on the information processing device or on other devices (for example, an edge computer or a cloud server).

[0010] According to one aspect of the present invention, when the edge server to which the mobility device is connected switches, the delay in acquiring information from the mobility device can be reduced.

[0011] This is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a communication system. This is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the communication system shown in Figure 1 from a different perspective. This is an example of a flowchart showing the processing flow in an existing communication system. This is an example of a flowchart showing the processing flow in the communication system of the present invention.

[0012] One embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below.

[0013] <Example of Communication System Configuration> Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the communication system 1 according to this embodiment. The communication system 1 is a system that collects device information (IoT data) indicating the location of a mobility device 10 equipped on a moving object such as a vehicle, and has a configuration that can shorten the switching delay time when the edge server to which the mobility device 10 is connected handover, that is, when it switches over. Note that the device information may include information other than the location of the mobility device 10, or may contain information other than the location of the mobility device 10. Figure 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of the communication system 1 shown in Figure 1 from a different side. Therefore, one or more components included in Figure 1 and one or more components included in Figure 2 correspond to each other.

[0014] The core network 30 is a 5G communication system network that includes various nodes not shown in the diagram, such as UPF (User Plane Function), AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function), SMF (Session Management Function), PCF (Policy Control Function), AF (Application Function), AUSF (Authentication Server Function), and UDM (User Data Management). Each of these nodes is also referred to as an NF (Network Function). The architecture of the core network 30 was formulated by the 3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project).

[0015] Typically, a large number of (R)ANs ((Radio) Access Network, gNB, base station equipment) are connected to the core network 30, and one or more mobility devices 10 corresponding to UE (User Equipment) are wirelessly connected to each RAN. In this disclosure, (R)ANs not shown in Figure 1, etc., may be considered to be included in the core network 30.

[0016] Furthermore, the core network 30 collects individual information of the mobility devices 10, information about the GW (Gateway) to which each mobility device 10 is connected, and information about the handover of the mobility devices 10.

[0017] Application 50 is an application that receives device information transmitted from the mobility device 10 and provides predetermined services. Users of Application 50 include, for example, businesses related to autonomous driving and businesses that provide information on traffic congestion.

[0018] ICN (Information Centric Networking) 40 is an information-oriented network architecture composed of multiple ICN routers, such as ICN router 40a. Each ICN router holds routing information indicating the connection path to the mobility device 10, and enables access to the mobility device 10 using a device name (content name) that uniquely identifies the mobility device 10. In addition, each ICN router automatically updates the routing information when the edge server to which the mobility device 10 is connected switches. Since NDN (Named Data Networking) and Zenoh are specific examples of ICN 40, the description of this embodiment may be applied by substituting ICN 40 with NDN or Zenoh.

[0019] Each GW, namely GW20a and 20b, is a device that acts as a gateway when the mobility device 10 connects to the ICN40 via the core network 30, and is a device that relays communication between the core network 30 and the ICN40. Each GW can be implemented as part of the functions of the IoT-PF (Internet of Things Platform), which serves as an IoT data termination point.

[0020] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 2, each ICN router and each GW are components of a MEC (Multi-access Edge Computing), which is a type of edge server. Specifically, MEC 100a includes an ICN router 40a and a GW 20a that relays between the core network 30 and the ICN router 40a, and MEC 100b includes an ICN router 40b and a GW 20b that relays between the core network 30 and the ICN router 40b. ICN routers 40a and 40b belong to the same ICN 40, and other ICN routers (not shown) may be interposed between ICN router 40a and ICN router 40b. Furthermore, MEC 100a, ICN router 40a, and GW 20a are examples of the first MEC, first ICN router, and first gateway device in this disclosure, respectively, and MEC 100b, ICN router 40b, and GW 20b are examples of the second MEC, second ICN router, and second gateway device in this disclosure, respectively. In other words, each GW is a device that acts as a gateway when the mobility device 10 connects to each MEC. Also, in the example in Figure 2, the communication system 1 includes a management server device 60, MEC 100a, and MEC 100b, but the core network 30 and mobile devices may also be considered components of the communication system 1, and the number of each component of the communication system 1 is not limited.

[0021] Furthermore, although not necessarily so, application 50 can be executed on any MEC. In the example in Figure 2, application 50 is executed on MEC 100a. Therefore, it can be said that this configuration allows application 50 or each MEC to access mobility devices 10 via ICN router 40a using the device name. Also, ICN router 40a corresponds to the ICN router to which application 50 is connected. In a broad sense, the ICN router to which application 50 is connected means the ICN router closest to application 50 on the direct or indirect connection path between application 50 and ICN. Moreover, the above configuration has an effect not found in existing configurations that use the IP address assigned to mobility devices 10 to access mobility devices 10, and even when accessing mobility devices 10 via other MECs, the routing information is automatically updated, eliminating the need for centralized management of IP addresses, which is a unique effect.

[0022] Mobility device 10 is a device installed in a moving body such as a vehicle, which transmits device information indicating its own position, etc., to the MEC via a base station, etc. In this disclosure, for the sake of simplicity, a moving body equipped with mobility device 10 may also be simply referred to as mobility device 10. Furthermore, when multiple mobility devices 10 are connected to each MEC, the processing by the communication system 1 described later is executed in parallel for each mobility device 10.

[0023] The MEC to which the mobility device 10 is connected switches as the mobility device 10 moves. This is because, if each MEC is associated with any of the base station devices, the base station to which the mobility device 10 is connected switches.

[0024] The management server device (information processing device, external device) 60 is a device that notifies any ICN router that the MEC to which the mobility device 10 is connected is switching. The management server device 60 includes a control unit 61, a storage unit 68, and a communication unit 69.

[0025] The control unit 61 is a control device that oversees the entire management server device 60, and also operates as a pre-movement detection unit 62 and a pre-movement notification unit 63.

[0026] The pre-movement detection unit 62 detects, by referring to switching information obtained from the core network 30, that the MEC to which the mobility device 10 will connect will switch from the first MEC to the second MEC in the event of the mobility device 10's movement. In other words, the switching information indicates the MEC to which the connection will switch. Furthermore, the function of the pre-movement detection unit 62 is realized using the Nnef_TrafficInfluence function in the core network 30 of the 5G communication system.

[0027] The pre-movement notification unit 63 notifies the ICN router of the first MEC and / or the ICN router of the second MEC that the second MEC will become the connection destination, prior to the MEC switching from the first MEC to the second MEC due to the movement of the mobility device 10, by transmitting switching information. In addition, in the ICN 40, in response to any ICN router receiving the switching information, the ICN router transmits the switching information or equivalent information to the other ICN routers, and the routing information is automatically updated. In one embodiment, the pre-movement notification unit 63 transmits switching information to the ICN router of the second MEC, and the ICN router of the second MEC transmits switching information to the ICN router of the first MEC.

[0028] The storage unit 68 is a storage device such as a memory that stores various types of information, at least temporarily. For example, the storage unit 68 stores information that identifies the mobility device 10 that is the target of processing to shorten the switching delay time.

[0029] The communication unit 69 is an interface that transmits and receives information between various nodes of the core network 30 and ICN routers, etc., based on control by the control unit 61. The aforementioned pre-movement detection unit 62 and pre-movement notification unit 63 transmit and receive information with external devices via the communication unit 69.

[0030] The above describes an example of the configuration of the communication system 1. This disclosure also includes the case where the management server device 60 is considered to belong to the ICN 40 or the core network 30. Furthermore, each part included in the communication system 1 has the function of executing the processes described below.

[0031] <Supplementary Information> Next, in order to clarify the improved configuration and effects of the communication system 1 of this application, the processing in an existing communication system that does not include the management server device 60 will be described as a point of comparison. Note that the components of the communication system excluding the management server device 60 are the same as those in Figures 1 and 2, so redundant explanations of these components will be omitted. Figure 3 is an example of a flowchart showing the processing flow in an existing communication system.

[0032] In step S101, the application running on the first MEC obtains device information from the mobility device via the core network and the first GW and first ICN router, which are components of the first MEC.

[0033] In S102, as the mobility device moves, the connection destination of the mobility device switches to the second GW, which is a component of the second MEC. As a result, the first ICN router can no longer obtain the device information of the mobility device from the first GW. In other words, the application is temporarily unable to obtain device information from the mobility device.

[0034] In S103, the first ICN router queries each MEC included in the communication system to inquire whether its own GW is connected to a mobility device. In other words, the first ICN router searches for a GW that can obtain device information from a mobility device, but it cannot obtain device information at this point.

[0035] In S104, the second ICN router notifies the first ICN router that the second GW, which is a component of the second MEC (which is itself), is able to obtain device information from the mobility device.

[0036] In S105, each ICN router updates the routing information indicating the connection path to the mobility device.

[0037] In S106, the first ICN router starts acquiring device information from the mobility device via the core network, the second GW, and the second ICN router. This restarts the process by which the application acquires device information from the mobility device.

[0038] Thus, in existing communication systems, when the edge server to which a mobility device is connected switches, the acquisition of device information from the mobility device is temporarily interrupted, which can cause a considerable delay.

[0039] <Example of Communication System Processing> The following describes the processing of the communication system 1 of the present invention to solve the aforementioned problems. Figure 4 is an example of a flowchart showing the processing flow in the communication system 1 of the present invention. Furthermore, at the start of the flowchart in Figure 4, it is assumed that the mobility device 10, which is the target of the processing to reduce the aforementioned delay, has been registered in advance with the core network 30 by the management server device 60, as shown in "(1) Subscription registration for device movement" in Figure 2.

[0040] In S201, the application 50 running on MEC100a acquires device information from the mobility device 10 via the core network 30, and GW20a and ICN router 40a which are components of MEC100a.

[0041] In S202, the advance movement detection unit 62 of the management server device 60 acquires switching information indicating the MEC to which the connection is to be switched, before the MEC to which the connection destination is connected is switched in accordance with the movement of the mobility device 10 also shown in "(2) Device Movement" in FIG. 2. In this example, the MEC to be the switching destination is MEC100b.

[0042] It should be noted that, as also shown in "(3) Edge Relocation Request" in FIG. 2, the processing after S202 may be configured to be executed in response to a request from the mobility device 10 to the core network 30.

[0043] Furthermore, "(4) Notify device movement" in FIG. 2 indicates a process in which the management server device 60 is notified that MEC100b is the connection switching destination by using the Nnef_TrafficInfluence function in the core network 30.

[0044] In S203, the advance movement notification unit 63 transmits the switching information acquired by the advance movement detection unit 62 to the ICN router 40a to which the application 50 connects.

[0045] In S204, each ICN router updates routing information indicating a connection route to the mobility device 10.

[0046] In S205, along with the movement of the mobility device 10, the connection destination of the mobility device 10 is switched to GW20b which is a component of MEC100b.

[0047] In step S206, after the ICN router 40a fails to acquire the device information of the mobility device 10 via the GW 20a, or at a timing that can be regarded as when the connection destination of the mobility device 10 has been switched to the GW 20b, the ICN router 40a starts acquiring the device information from the mobility device 10 via the core network, the GW 20b, and the ICN router 40b. That is, after the connection destination of the mobility device 10 is switched to the MEC 100b, the MEC 100a acquires the device information from the mobility device 10 via the core network 30 and the MEC 100b for the application 50 to reference the device information of the mobility device 10. Further, the timing that can be regarded as when the connection destination of the mobility device 10 is switched to the GW 20b is, for example, the timing at which a certain period of time of zero or more has elapsed after the ICN router 40a receives the switching information.

[0048] As described above, the processing performed by the communication system 1 of the present application includes a pre-movement detection step executed by the management server device 60, and a pre-movement notification step. In the pre-movement detection step, before the MEC to which the mobility device 10 connects is switched from the MEC 100a to the MEC 100b along with the movement of the mobility device 10 via the core network 30, it is detected with reference to the switching information acquired from the core network 30 that the MEC 100b will be the connection switching destination. In the pre-movement notification step, before the MEC to which the mobility device 10 connects is switched from the MEC 100a to the MEC 100b along with the movement of the mobility device 10, the MEC 100a is notified that the MEC 100b will be the connection switching destination by transmitting the switching information to the MEC 100a.

[0049] According to the processing of the present example, when the application 50 acquires information from the mobility device 10, the gateway serving as the GW is seamlessly switched. Therefore, when the MEC to which the mobility device 10 connects is switched, the delay in acquiring information from the mobility device 10 can be reduced.

[0050] The same explanation also applies to the case where the connection destination of the mobility device 10 switches from MEC 100b to another MEC. Furthermore, this disclosure also includes a configuration in which the communication system 1 does not have an ICN, and for example, a management server device 60 centrally manages the IP addresses of each mobility device 10 and notifies the MEC of the switching information in advance of the switching of the connection destination of the mobility device 10.

[0051] [Example of implementation by software] The functions of the management server device 60 (hereinafter referred to as "device") can be implemented by a program that causes the device to function as a computer, and by a program that causes each control block of the device (especially each part included in the control unit 61) to function as a computer.

[0052] In this case, the device includes a computer having at least one control device (e.g., a processor) and at least one storage device (e.g., memory) as hardware for executing the program. By executing the program using this control device and storage device, each of the functions described in each of the embodiments is realized.

[0053] The program may be recorded on one or more computer-readable recording media, not temporary ones. These recording media may or may not be provided by the device. In the latter case, the program may be supplied to the device via any wired or wireless transmission medium.

[0054] Furthermore, some or all of the functions of each control block can also be implemented by logic circuits. For example, an integrated circuit in which logic circuits functioning as each of the control blocks are formed is also included in the scope of the present invention. In addition, it is also possible to implement the functions of each control block using, for example, a quantum computer.

[0055] Furthermore, each of the processes described in the above embodiments may be performed by AI (Artificial Intelligence). In this case, the AI ​​may operate on the control device, or it may operate on another device (for example, an edge computer or a cloud server).

[0056] The present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, and various modifications are possible within the scope of the claims. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining the technical means disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

[0057] [Summary] The information processing device (60) according to aspect 1 of the present invention comprises: a pre-movement detection unit (62) that detects, by referring to switching information obtained from the core network, that the second edge server will become the connection switching destination in advance of the edge servers (100a, 100b) to which the mobility device (10) is connected via the core network (30) switching from the first edge server (100a) to the second edge server (100b) in accordance with the movement of the mobility device; and a pre-movement notification unit (63) that notifies one or both of the first edge server and the second edge server that the second edge server will become the connection switching destination in advance of the edge servers to which the mobility device is connected switching from the first edge server to the second edge server in accordance with the movement of the mobility device by transmitting the switching information.

[0058] A communication system (1) according to aspect 2 of the present invention is a communication system in aspect 1 comprising the information processing device, a first edge server, and a second edge server, wherein an application (50) that references device information of the mobility device is executed on the first edge server, and the first edge server may be configured to obtain the device information from the mobility device via the core network and the second edge server after the connection destination of the mobility device is switched to the second edge server, so that the application can reference the device information.

[0059] A communication system according to embodiment 3 of the present invention, in embodiment 2 above, the first edge server comprises a first ICN (Information Centric Networking) router (40a) and a first gateway device (20a) that relays the core network and the first ICN router, and the second edge server comprises a second ICN router (40b) and a second gateway device (20b) that relays the core network and the second ICN router, and the first ICN router may be configured to acquire the device information from the mobility device via the core network, the second gateway device and the second ICN router after receiving the switching information and following (1) the inability to acquire the device information via the first gateway device, or (2) a timing at which it can be considered that the connection destination of the mobility device has switched to the second edge server.

[0060] In the communication system according to aspect 4 of the present invention, in aspect 3, the first ICN router and the second ICN router belong to the same ICN, and the first ICN router updates routing information indicating the connection path to the mobility device in response to receiving the switching information.

[0061] The edge servers (100a, 100b) according to aspect 5 of the present invention are edge servers that serve as the connection destination for a mobility device (10) via a core network (30), and include an ICN router (40a, 40b) and gateway devices (20a, 20b) that relay between the core network (30) and the ICN router, wherein the ICN router, when the edge server to which the mobility device is connected is itself, obtains device information of the mobility device from the mobility device via the core network and the gateway device, and the edge server to which the mobility device is connected receives information from other edge servers as the mobility device moves. Prior to switching to the edge server, the system receives switching information from an external device (60) connected to the core network indicating that the other edge server will be the destination for the connection switch. In response to receiving the switching information, the system updates routing information indicating the connection path to the mobility device. After receiving the switching information, and following (1) failure to obtain the device information via the gateway device, or (2) at a timing when it can be considered that the destination of the mobility device has switched to the other edge server, the system obtains the device information from the mobility device via the core network and the gateway device and ICN router of the other edge server.

[0062] A control program according to embodiment 6 of the present invention is a control program for causing a computer to function as the information processing device in embodiment 1, and may be configured to cause the computer to function as the pre-movement detection unit and the pre-movement notification unit.

[0063] 1 Communication System 10 Mobility Devices 20a, 20b GW (Gateway Device) 30 Core Network 40 ICN 40a, 40b ICN Router 50 Application 60 Management Server Device (Information Processing Device, External Device) 61 Control Unit 62 Pre-Movement Detection Unit 63 Pre-Movement Notification Unit 68 Storage Unit 69 Communication Unit 100a, 100b MEC (Edge Server)

Claims

1. An information processing device comprising: a pre-movement detection unit that detects, by referring to switching information obtained from the core network, that the second edge server will become the connection destination in advance of the switch from the first edge server to the second edge server in accordance with the movement of the mobility device via the core network; and a pre-movement notification unit that notifies one or both of the first edge server and the second edge server that the second edge server will become the connection destination in advance of the switch from the first edge server to the second edge server in accordance with the movement of the mobility device by transmitting the switching information.

2. A communication system comprising an information processing device according to claim 1, a first edge server, and a second edge server, wherein an application that references device information of the mobility device is executed on the first edge server, and the first edge server, after the connection destination of the mobility device is switched to the second edge server, obtains the device information from the mobility device via the core network and the second edge server so that the application can reference the device information.

3. The communication system according to claim 2, wherein the first edge server comprises a first ICN (Information Centric Networking) router and a first gateway device that relays the core network and the first ICN router, the second edge server comprises a second ICN router and a second gateway device that relays the core network and the second ICN router, and the first ICN router acquires the device information from the mobility device via the core network, the second gateway device and the second ICN router after receiving the switching information and following (1) the inability to acquire the device information via the first gateway device, or (2) a timing at which it can be considered that the connection destination of the mobility device has switched to the second edge server.

4. The communication system according to claim 3, wherein the first ICN router and the second ICN router belong to the same ICN, and the first ICN router updates routing information indicating the connection path to the mobility device in response to receiving the switching information.

5. An edge server that serves as the connection destination for a mobility device via a core network, comprising an ICN router and a gateway device that relays between the core network and the ICN router, wherein the ICN router, when the edge server to which the mobility device is connected is the ICN router itself, obtains device information of the mobility device from the mobility device via the core network and the gateway device, receives switching information from an external device connected to the core network indicating that the other edge server will be the connection destination before the edge server to which the mobility device is connected switches from the ICN router itself to another edge server due to the movement of the mobility device, updates routing information indicating the connection path to the mobility device in response to receiving the switching information, and after receiving the switching information, and following (1) failure to obtain the device information via the gateway device, or (2) at a timing when it can be considered that the connection destination of the mobility device has switched to the other edge server, obtains the device information from the mobility device via the core network and the gateway device and ICN router of the other edge server. Edge server.

6. A control program for causing a computer to function as an information processing device according to claim 1, wherein the computer functions as the pre-movement detection unit and the pre-movement notification unit.

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