PCRF Policy Decision for Shared User Counter Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing PCC mechanism in 3GPP networks faces performance issues due to the need for each user to have an associated counter in the charging system, leading to increased signaling interactions and complexity, especially in systems requiring real-time performance like the OCS.
Innovation Solution
A policy decision method and system that allows a user to utilize accumulated data from other users, enabling data sharing among users, reducing the processing pressure on the charging system and interactions between the PCRF and the charging system by maintaining only one copy of shared data and establishing fewer sessions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If each user has an associated counter in the charging system, then user-level policy control is achieved, but the number of sessions and signaling interactions increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the counter management of multiple users into a single shared counter. Instead of maintaining separate counters for each user in the charging system, the system uses one counter that tracks the accumulated data for all users in a group, thereby reducing the number of sessions and signaling interactions while still enabling user-level policy control through the PCRF.
Solution Approach 2:
The shared counter serves multiple users simultaneously, making it a universal data structure that can represent the accumulated data for any user in the group. This universal approach allows the charging system to maintain fewer sessions while still providing individualized policy control to each user through the PCRF.
2Reliability
If the charging system maintains counters for all users, then accurate charging control is achieved, but processing pressure and signaling interactions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple user counters into a single shared counter that tracks the total accumulated data for all users in a group. This merging reduces the processing pressure on the charging system by eliminating the need to maintain and update multiple separate counters, while still enabling accurate charging control through the PCRF's policy decisions based on the shared counter status.
3Reliability
If individual counter management is implemented, then precise charging control is achieved, but system performance is significantly affected
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges individual counter management into a single shared counter approach, which significantly improves system performance by reducing the number of signaling interactions and processing operations required in the charging system. The PCRF maintains the ability to make precise charging control decisions by monitoring the shared counter status and applying appropriate policies to each user based on their usage patterns and requirements.
Data Source
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AI summary
A policy decision method is provided, including: receiving, by a policy and charging rules function PCRF device, a policy request of a first user sent by a gateway device; determining, by the PCRF device according to the policy request, that the first user needs to use a counter of a second user; acquiring, by the PCRF device, a current status of the counter of the second user by using a session that is of the second user and established between the PCRF device and a charging system; and generating, by the PCRF device, a control policy of the first user according to the current status of the counter of the second user, and sending the control policy to the gateway device. The present invention can implement sharing of accumulated data among users, so that one PCRF device only needs to establish one session with a charging system and acquire, by using the session, a current status of a counter corresponding to the accumulated data for one time, which reduces processing pressure of the charging system, and further decreases a performance loss of the charging system.