NAT IP Mapping for Accurate Terminal Data Collection

The patent introduces a communication device (such as a gateway or network address translator) as an intermediary between the AF and the terminal. This intermediary maintains the mapping relationship between private IP addresses and public IP addresses, allowing the AF to obtain public IP address information through the intermediary without directly exposing terminal identification details. The intermediary resolves the contradiction by providing the necessary public IP address information to enable accurate terminal identification while maintaining the privacy and security benefits of using private IP addresses internally.

The patent applies preliminary action by establishing and maintaining the mapping relationship between private IP addresses and public IP addresses in advance through the communication device. The NAT process is performed beforehand, creating a pre-configured mapping table that stores the correspondence between terminal identifiers, private IP addresses, and public IP addresses. When the AF needs to identify a terminal, it can directly query this pre-established mapping information without performing complex real-time conversion, thereby reducing the operational complexity while ensuring public IP address information is available.