Application Function Repository for Reliable NF Service Discovery
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing communication systems face challenges in reliably discovering and utilizing application functions (AFs) due to the lack of efficient methods for network function (NF) to identify and access available AFs, leading to suboptimal performance.
Innovation Solution
An Application Repository Function (APRF) maintains a data table of available AFs, allowing NFs to request and retrieve description information of AFs based on type identifiers, and updates NFs about AF registrations and deregistrations, ensuring reliable discovery and utilization of AFs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If no AF data table is maintained, then the system structure remains simple, but AF discovery and access become unreliable
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an Application Repository Function (APRF) as an intermediary component that maintains an AF data table. This mediator stores and manages AF service information, enabling NFs to reliably discover and access AFs through structured queries. The APRF acts as the intermediary between NFs and AFs, resolving the contradiction by adding a dedicated repository function that improves reliability while containing complexity in a specific module rather than throughout the entire system.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements preliminary action by pre-establishing the AF data table in the APRF before NFs need to discover AFs. The AF service information is registered and stored in advance, allowing NFs to perform efficient lookups when needed. This preliminary organization of AF data ensures that when discovery is required, the process is reliable and efficient, rather than requiring complex real-time discovery mechanisms.
2Productivity
If AF information is not centrally stored, then storage complexity is low, but AF service access becomes inefficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges scattered AF service information into a single centralized AF data table within the APRF. Instead of each NF maintaining its own AF information or discovering AFs through multiple distributed queries, all AF service data is consolidated in one location. This merging enables efficient access through unified query mechanisms while managing information complexity centrally rather than distributed across multiple nodes.
Solution Approach 2:
The APRF with the AF data table serves as a universal repository that can be accessed by any NF in the system. The data table structure is designed to accommodate various AF types and service information in a standardized format, making it universally applicable for different NF requirements. This universal access mechanism improves productivity by providing a single efficient access point for all NFs rather than requiring NF-specific discovery processes.
Data Source
AI summary
An application method for an application function includes: receiving, by an application repository function (APRF), an application function (AF) calling request sent by a first network function (NF), in which, the calling request includes a first type identifier of an AF to be used; traversing, by the APRF, a preset AF data table based on the first type identifier, wherein the AF data table stores description information of available AFs; and sending, by the APRF, description information of a first AF to the first NF in response to the description information of the first AF in the AF data table comprising the first type identifier.