Session Management Handover via Forwarding Tunnel
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current communication systems lack a technical solution for handover between session management network elements, preventing the re-establishment of sessions for terminal devices as they move between service areas, which disrupts service continuity.
Innovation Solution
A method where a target intermediate session management network element obtains information about the source session management network element and sends a message to establish a forwarding tunnel from the source intermediate user plane network element to the target intermediate user plane network element, enabling seamless handover and maintaining session continuity for terminal devices.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a terminal device moves from service area 1 to service area 3, then service continuity should be maintained, but session re-establishment fails because handover between session management network elements is not supported
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a forwarding tunnel as an intermediary mechanism between the source and target session management network elements. This tunnel enables data forwarding during the handover process, allowing the terminal device to maintain service continuity while transitioning between different service areas managed by different session management network elements.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes the forwarding tunnel in advance before the handover is completed. By setting up the data forwarding path preliminarily, the system ensures that when the terminal device moves to a new service area, the session can be re-established without interruption, as the forwarding infrastructure is already in place.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple session management network elements are introduced to manage different user plane network elements, then session management flexibility is improved, but system complexity increases making handover implementation difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the session management function into intermediate session management network elements and anchor session management network elements. Each type handles specific aspects of session management, allowing independent operation and simplifying the handover process by clearly defining responsibilities and interfaces between different session management network elements.
Data Source
AI summary
A communications method, apparatus, and system to implement handover between session management network elements, where a target session management network element sends a first message to a source session management network element based on the information about the source session management network element received. After receiving the first message from the target intermediate session management network element, the source session management network element indicates, based on the first message, a source intermediate user plane network element to establish a forwarding tunnel. As such, the forwarding tunnel between the source intermediate user plane network element and a target intermediate user plane network element is established, and the source intermediate user plane network element can forward data to the target intermediate user plane network element through the forwarding tunnel.