CN107786597B

CN107786597B - Service processing method and related equipment

Info

Publication number: CN107786597B
Application number: CN201610739941.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 张伟; 张锦芳
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2016-08-26
Filing date: 2016-08-26
Publication date: 2020-04-03
Anticipated expiration: 2036-08-26
Also published as: WO2018036341A1; CN107786597A

Abstract

The embodiment of the application discloses a service processing method and related equipment, wherein the method comprises the following steps: the access network equipment receives a service request for creating a second service sent by the terminal equipment; the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the service request; the access network device sends the indication information to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service and a second service using a second network slice, the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used to support the first service and the second service. The embodiment of the application aims to solve the problem that the working efficiency of the terminal equipment is reduced due to the fact that the complexity of the terminal equipment for processing different services is increased.

Description

Service processing method and related equipment

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of mobile communications technologies, and in particular, to a service processing method and a related device.

Background

The third Generation Partnership Project (3rd Generation Partnership Project, 3GPP) started a study of the fifth Generation mobile communication technology (5-Generation, 5G) networks in 2015. An important feature of 5G networks is that new applications will emerge in large numbers, and the demands of these applications on the network will vary greatly, and the network needs to be able to support a variety of different types of applications with different demands. For example: a service with a high-speed mobile characteristic has a high requirement on network performance indexes such as service continuity and switching delay, whereas a meter reading service in a Machine Type Communication (MTC) service has a high requirement on service connection number support capability, but does not have a requirement on mobility.

In a future 5G system, to adapt to various services of a future network, the network architecture and the network capability are different, and the future network needs to have the capability of being formulated as required, that is, flexible network slicing needs to be realized. Network slicing is to cut a physical network into a plurality of virtual end-to-end networks, and each virtual network, including devices, access networks, transport networks and core networks in the network, is logically independent, and any virtual network fails without affecting other virtual networks. For the aforementioned situation, 3GPP defines a network slice scenario in the document of feaasibility Study on New Services and marketss technologies Enablers (22.891), and different network slices are used to support different application scenarios. Aiming at three scenes of task key Internet of things type service, massive Internet of things type service and mobile broadband type service, an operator establishes three network slices respectively, namely the task key Internet of things slice, the massive Internet of things slice and the mobile broadband slice, and each network slice provides support for the corresponding service.

Although the network slicing technology meets the network requirements of different services, the complexity of processing different services by the terminal device and the access network device is also increased, which results in the reduction of the working efficiency of the terminal device and the access network device.

Accordingly, the prior art is yet to be improved and developed.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a service processing method and related equipment, and aims to solve the problem that the working efficiency of terminal equipment is reduced due to the fact that the complexity of the terminal equipment for processing different services is increased.

A first aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a service processing method, including: the access network equipment receives a service request for creating a second service sent by the terminal equipment; generating corresponding indication information according to the service request; and sending indication information to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device uses a second network slice to support a first service and a second service, the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used to support the first service and the second service.

In the embodiment of the application, different service characteristics are considered comprehensively from the perspective of the terminal device in selecting the network slice, and a common network slice is selected for the existing service and the newly-built service on the terminal device, so that the complexity of processing different services by the terminal device is reduced, and the working efficiency of the terminal device is improved.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to support the first service using the second network slice, and includes: the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to adjust the first service transmitted by using the first network slice to be transmitted by using the second network slice, wherein the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

According to the method and the device, the access network equipment supports the first service and the second service on the terminal equipment by using the same network slice, so that the complexity of the terminal equipment for processing the first service and the second service is reduced.

Optionally, the generating, by the access network device, the corresponding indication information according to the service request includes: the access network equipment acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal equipment according to the service request; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

In the embodiment of the present application, the access device may perform a comprehensive decision according to the various information, and the following method may be adopted in a process of performing a decision by the slice controller according to the first service information, the second service information, the first configuration information, and the second configuration information:

the method comprises the steps that a terminal device initiates a service request aiming at a first service, wherein the first service is assumed to be the current first service of the terminal device, an access network device obtains first service information corresponding to the first service carried in the service request, the terminal device reports or carries first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device in the service request when accessing the network, and the access network device selects a network slice which optimally supports the first service according to the first configuration information of the terminal device, the first service information corresponding to the first service and second configuration information of the access network device.

When a terminal device initiates a service request aiming at a second service, an access network device acquires second service information corresponding to the second service carried in the service request, and the access network device selects a list of network slices which can be used by the second service according to the second service information, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device and the second configuration information of the access network device; further, the access network device obtains information of the used service and the corresponding network slice of the terminal device, where the information corresponds to the first service and the first network slice.

The access network device considers the mutual influence between each network slice in the network slice list and the first network slice, such as whether the network slices can coexist on the same terminal device or not and whether the network slices are compatible or not, if the network slices do not influence, the network slice which is the optimal network slice for the second service in the network slice list is selected to support the second service; if the priority of the first service is higher than that of the second service, and the first network slice has an influence on partial slices in the network slice list, selecting the optimal network slice which is not influenced by the first network slice in the network slice list as the network slice used by the second service; and if the priority of the first service is lower than that of the second service, selecting an optimal network slice in the network slice list as a second network slice used by the second service, and the access network equipment selects a list of network slices which can be used by the first service according to the first service information, the first configuration information of the terminal equipment and the second configuration information of the access network equipment, and selects the optimal slice which is not influenced by the network slice of the second service as the network slice used by the first service.

Optionally, the first service information includes: a service type and a network slice type corresponding to the first service; the second service information includes: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the second service; the first configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the terminal equipment; the second configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the access network device.

For the above various information, the slice controller may obtain the information from the access network device, or the access network device may carry the information when sending the service request for creating the second service to the slice controller, which is not limited herein.

Optionally, the access network device is an access network device; or, the access network device includes: an access network device and a slice controller.

In this embodiment, the slice controller may be an independent entity device in the system architecture, and interact with the access network device. Of course, the slice controller may also be a processing unit inside the access network device, and then the interaction with the access network device may be an internal processing procedure, which is not limited herein.

A second aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a service processing method, including: the slice controller receives a service request sent by the access network equipment, wherein the service request is a service request for newly establishing a second service sent by the terminal equipment to the access network equipment; the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the service request; the slice controller sends the indication information to the access network device, the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to use a second network slice to support a first service and a second service, the first service is the existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the generating, by the slice controller, corresponding indication information according to the service request includes: the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to a first service, second service information corresponding to a second service, first configuration information corresponding to terminal equipment and second configuration information corresponding to access network equipment according to the service request; and the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

A third aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a service processing method, including: the terminal equipment sends a service request for establishing a second service to the access network equipment; the terminal equipment receives indication information sent by the access network equipment, wherein the indication information is generated by the access network equipment according to the service request; and the terminal equipment uses the second network slice to support a first service and a second service according to the indication information, wherein the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, and the second network slice is a virtual network which is configured on the access network equipment and is used for supporting the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the step of supporting, by the terminal device, the first service using the second network slice according to the indication information includes: the terminal equipment adjusts the first service transmitted by using the first network slice into the second service transmitted by using the second network slice, wherein the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

A fourth aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including: the access network equipment receives a service request for creating a second service sent by the terminal equipment; the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the service request; the access network equipment sends the indication information to the terminal equipment, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use a first network slice to support a first service and use a second network slice to support a second service, the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the second service.

In the embodiment of the application, different service characteristics are considered comprehensively from the perspective of the terminal device in selecting the network slice, and the corresponding network slice is selected for the existing service and the newly-built service on the terminal device, so that the terminal device works in the most effective state. Except that the first traffic and the second traffic use different network slices.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to support the first service using the first network slice, and includes:

the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to adjust the first service transmitted by using the third network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the adjusted first service, and the third network slice is a network slice corresponding to the adjusted first service.

Before the second service is not newly built, the first service and the third service on the terminal equipment may all use the third network slice, after the second service is newly built, the slice controller reselects the network slices used by the first service, the second service and the third service on the terminal equipment, and the final decision result is that the first service uses the first network slice, the second service uses the second network slice, and the third service continues to use the third network slice or the first network slice or the second network slice.

It should be understood that the embodiments of the present application are intended to emphasize which network slice is used by the first service and the second service, and is not limited herein specifically as to which network slice is used by the third service.

Optionally, the generating, by the access network device, the corresponding indication information according to the service request includes: the access network equipment acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal equipment according to the service request; and the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

A fifth aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including: the slice controller receives a service request sent by the access network equipment, wherein the service request is a service request for newly establishing a second service sent by the terminal equipment to the access network equipment; the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the service request; the slice controller sends the indication information to the access network device, the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to use a first network slice to support a first service and use a second network slice to support a second service, the first service is the existing service on the terminal device, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to support the first service using the first network slice, and includes: the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to adjust the first service transmitted by using the third network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the adjusted first service, and the third network slice is a network slice corresponding to the adjusted first service.

Optionally, the generating, by the slice controller, corresponding indication information according to the service request includes: the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to a first service, second service information corresponding to a second service, first configuration information corresponding to terminal equipment and second configuration information corresponding to access network equipment according to the service request; and the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the first service information, the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

A sixth aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including: the terminal equipment sends a service request for establishing a second service to the access network equipment; the terminal equipment receives indication information sent by the access network equipment, wherein the indication information is generated by the access network equipment according to the service request; and the terminal equipment uses the first network slice to support a first service and uses the second network slice to support a second service according to the indication information, the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the step of supporting, by the terminal device, the first service using the first network slice according to the indication information includes: the terminal equipment adjusts the first service transmitted by using the third network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the first network slice is the corresponding network slice after the first service is adjusted, and the third network slice is the corresponding network slice before the first service is adjusted.

A seventh aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including:

the access network equipment receives a service request for releasing the second service, which is sent by the terminal equipment;

the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the service request;

the access network equipment sends the indication information to the terminal equipment, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use a first network slice to support a first service, the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service.

In the embodiment of the application, after the first service and the second service both use the second network slice, when the second service is released, the slice controller needs to reselect the network slice used by the first service running on the terminal device, so that the terminal device operates in the most effective state. That is, when one service on the terminal device is finished, the slice controller needs to reselect the network slice used by the other service on the terminal device.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to support the first service using the first network slice, and includes: the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to adjust the first service transmitted by using the second network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service and the first service before the second service is released, and the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service after the second service is released.

Optionally, the generating, by the access network device, the corresponding indication information according to the service request includes: the access network equipment acquires first service information corresponding to the first service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal equipment according to the service request; and the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information and the first configuration information of the access network equipment.

Optionally, the first service information includes: a service type and a network slice type corresponding to the first service; the first configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the terminal equipment; the second configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the access network device.

An eighth aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including: the slice controller receives a service request sent by the access network equipment, wherein the service request is a service request for releasing a second service, which is sent to the access network equipment by the terminal equipment; the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the service request; the slice controller sends the indication information to the access network device, the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to use a first network slice to support a first service, the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service.

Optionally, the generating, by the slice controller, corresponding indication information according to the service request includes: the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to a first service and first configuration information corresponding to terminal equipment according to the service request; and the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information and the first configuration information.

A ninth aspect of the present application provides a service processing method, including: the terminal equipment sends a service request for releasing the second service to the access network equipment; the terminal equipment receives indication information sent by the access network equipment, wherein the indication information is generated by the access network equipment according to the service request; and the terminal equipment uses the first network slice to support the first service according to the indication information, the first service is the service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network which is configured on the access network equipment and is used for supporting the first service.

Optionally, the step of supporting, by the terminal device, the first service using the first network slice according to the indication information includes: the terminal equipment adjusts the first service transmitted by using the second network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service and the first service before the second service is released, and the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service after the second service is released.

A tenth aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including: the method comprises the following steps that a first access network device receives a service switching request sent by a second access network device, the service switching request is used for requesting that a service running on a terminal device is switched to the first access network device from the second access network device, and the running service comprises: a first service and a second service; the first access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the service switching request; the first access network equipment sends the indication information to the second access network equipment; and the indication information is forwarded to the terminal equipment by the second access network equipment, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use the first network slice to support the first service and use the second network slice to support the second service, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network equipment and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network equipment and used for supporting the second service.

According to the embodiment of the application, different support modes of different access network devices for services are different, so that the used network slice information changes in the moving process of a user, and particularly, the control plane may have differences. The terminal device may dynamically adjust the control plane link according to different configurations of the access network device. That is, the control plane of the terminal device may be split and merged according to different access network devices.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service, and use the second network slice to support the second service, and includes: if the control plane supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a common control plane, and the control plane supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is two dedicated control planes, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the common control plane to the two dedicated control planes.

Optionally, the indication information is a radio resource control protocol RRC reconfiguration message, and the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information; and if the contents of the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are different, the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are used for indicating the terminal equipment to initiate two random access processes so as to establish two special control plane connections.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service, and use the second network slice to support the second service, and includes: if the control planes supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice are two dedicated control planes, and the control planes supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice are one shared control plane, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the two dedicated control planes to the one shared control plane.

Optionally, the indication information is an RRC reconfiguration message, and the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information; if the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information have the same content, the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are used for indicating the terminal equipment to initiate a random access process so as to establish a common control plane connection.

An eleventh aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including: the slice controller receives a service switching request sent by a first access network device, the service switching request is sent to the first access network device by a second access network device, the service switching request is used for requesting to switch a service running on a terminal device from the second access network device to the first access network device, and the running service comprises: a first service and a second service; the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the service request;

the slice controller sends the indication information to the first access network device, the indication information is forwarded to the second access network device by the first access network device and forwarded to the terminal device by the second access network device, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service and use the second network slice to support the first service, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service, and use the second network slice to support the second service, and includes: if the control plane supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a common control plane, and the control plane supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is two dedicated control planes, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the common control plane to the two dedicated control planes;

or the like, or, alternatively,

if the control planes supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice are two dedicated control planes, and the control planes supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice are one shared control plane, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the two dedicated control planes to the one shared control plane.

Optionally, the indication information is an RRC reconfiguration message, and the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information;

if the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are different in content, the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are used for indicating the terminal equipment to initiate two random access processes so as to establish connection of two special control planes;

or the like, or, alternatively,

if the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information have the same content, the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are used for indicating the terminal equipment to initiate a random access process so as to establish a common control plane connection.

A twelfth aspect of the present embodiment provides a service processing method, including: the terminal device receives indication information sent by the second access network device, the indication information is generated by the first access network device according to a service switching request sent by the second access network device, the service switching request is used for requesting that a service running on the terminal device is switched to the first access network device from the second access network device, and the running service comprises: a first service and a second service; and the terminal equipment uses the first network slice to support the first service and uses the second network slice to support the second service according to the indication information, wherein the first network slice is a virtual network which is configured on the first access network equipment and is used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network which is configured on the first access network equipment and is used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the step of the terminal device supporting the first service by using the first network slice according to the indication information, and supporting the second service by using the second network slice includes: if the control surface supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a shared control surface, and the control surface supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is two dedicated control surfaces, the terminal device connects the first network slice and the second network slice from the shared control surface to the two dedicated control surfaces according to the indication information;

or the like, or, alternatively,

if the control surfaces supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice are two dedicated control surfaces, and the control surface supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a common control surface, the terminal device connects the first network slice and the second network slice from the two dedicated control surfaces to the common control surface according to the indication information.

Optionally, the terminal device connecting the first network slice and the second network slice from one common control plane to two dedicated control planes according to the indication information comprises:

if the indication information is an RRC reconfiguration message, the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information, and the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information have different contents, the terminal device initiates two random access processes according to the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information to establish a connection between two dedicated control planes.

Optionally, the terminal device connecting the first network slice and the second network slice from the two dedicated control planes to one common control plane according to the indication information comprises:

if the indication information is an RRC reconfiguration message, the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information, and the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information have the same content, the terminal device initiates a random access process according to the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information to establish a common control plane connection.

A thirteenth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an access network device, including:

the receiver is used for receiving a service request for newly establishing a second service, which is sent by the terminal equipment;

the processor is used for generating corresponding indication information according to the service request received by the receiver;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting the indication information generated by the processor to the terminal equipment, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use a second network slice to support a first service and a second service, the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to support the first service using the second network slice, and includes:

the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to adjust the first service transmitted by using the first network slice to be transmitted by using the second network slice, wherein the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to obtain, according to the service request received by the receiver, first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service, and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

Optionally, the first service information includes: a service type and a network slice type corresponding to the first service;

the second service information includes: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the second service;

the first configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the terminal equipment;

the second configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the access network device.

A fourteenth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a slice controller, including:

the receiver is used for receiving a service request sent by the access network equipment, wherein the service request is a service request for newly establishing a second service sent to the access network equipment by the terminal equipment;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting the indication information generated by the processor to the access network equipment, wherein the indication information is forwarded to the terminal equipment by the access network equipment, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use a second network slice to support a first service and a second service, the first service is the service existing on the terminal equipment, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to obtain, according to the service request received by the receiver, first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device, and second configuration information corresponding to the access network device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

A fifteenth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal device, including:

the transmitter is used for sending a service request for establishing a second service to the access network equipment;

the receiver is used for receiving the indication information sent by the access network equipment, wherein the indication information is generated by the access network equipment according to the service request;

and the processor is used for supporting a first service and a second service by using a second network slice according to the indication information received by the receiver, wherein the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to adjust a first service transmitted using a first network slice to be transmitted using a second network slice, where the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

A sixteenth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an access network device, including:

the processor is used for generating corresponding indication information according to the service request;

and the transmitter is used for sending the indication information to the terminal equipment, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use the first network slice to support the first service and use the second network slice to support the second service, the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the specifically configured to generate, according to the service request, corresponding indication information includes: the access network equipment acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal equipment according to the service request; and the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

A seventeenth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a slice controller, including:

the processor is used for generating corresponding indication information by the slice controller according to the service request;

and the transmitter is used for sending the indication information to the access network equipment, the indication information is forwarded to the terminal equipment by the access network equipment, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use the first network slice to support the first service and use the second network slice to support the second service, the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the specifically configured to generate, according to the service request, corresponding indication information includes: the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to a first service, second service information corresponding to a second service, first configuration information corresponding to terminal equipment and second configuration information corresponding to access network equipment according to the service request; and the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the first service information, the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

An eighteenth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal device, including:

the receiver is used for receiving the indication information sent by the access network equipment, and the indication information is generated by the access network equipment according to the service request;

and the processor is used for supporting a first service by using the first network slice according to the indication information and supporting a second service by using the second network slice, wherein the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to support the first service using the first network slice according to the indication information, and includes: the terminal equipment adjusts the first service transmitted by using the third network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the first network slice is the corresponding network slice after the first service is adjusted, and the third network slice is the corresponding network slice before the first service is adjusted.

A nineteenth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an access network device, including:

the receiver is used for receiving a service request for releasing the second service, which is sent by the terminal equipment;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting the indication information to the terminal equipment, wherein the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use a first network slice to support a first service, the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service.

the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to adjust the first service transmitted by using the second network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service and the first service before the second service is released, and the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service after the second service is released.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to obtain, according to the service request received by the receiver, first service information corresponding to the first service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information and the first configuration information.

A twentieth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a slicing controller, including:

the receiver is used for receiving a service request sent by the access network equipment, wherein the service request is a service request for releasing a second service, which is sent to the access network equipment by the terminal equipment;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting the indication information to the access network equipment, wherein the indication information is forwarded to the terminal equipment by the access network equipment, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use a first network slice to support a first service, the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service.

A twenty-first aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a terminal device, including:

a transmitter, configured to send a service request for releasing the second service to the access network device;

and the processor is used for supporting a first service by using the first network slice according to the indication information received by the receiver, wherein the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to adjust a first service transmitted using a second network slice to be transmitted using the first network slice, where the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service and the first service before the second service is released, and the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service after the second service is released.

A twenty-second aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an access network device, including:

a receiver, configured to receive a service switching request sent by a second access network device, where the service switching request is used to request that a service running on a terminal device is switched from the second access network device to a first access network device, and the running service includes: a first service and a second service;

the processor is used for generating corresponding indication information according to the service switching request received by the receiver;

the transmitter is used for transmitting the indication information to the second access network equipment; the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the second access network device, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service and use the second network slice to support the second service, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the indicating information is used to instruct the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service, and use the second network slice to support the second service, and includes:

if the control plane supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a common control plane, and the control plane supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is two dedicated control planes, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the common control plane to the two dedicated control planes.

Optionally, the indication information is a radio resource control protocol RRC reconfiguration message, and the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information;

and if the contents of the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are different, the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information are used for indicating the terminal equipment to initiate two random access processes so as to establish two special control plane connections.

A twenty-third aspect of embodiments of the present application provides a slice controller, comprising:

a receiver, configured to receive a service switching request sent by a first access network device, where the service switching request is sent to the first access network device by a second access network device, the service switching request is used to request that a service running on a terminal device is switched to the first access network device by the second access network device, and the running service includes: a first service and a second service;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting the indication information to the first access network device, wherein the indication information is forwarded to the second access network device by the first access network device and forwarded to the terminal device by the second access network device, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service and use the second network slice to support the first service, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the second service.

if the control plane supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a common control plane, and the control plane supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is two dedicated control planes, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the common control plane to the two dedicated control planes;

or the like, or, alternatively,

A twenty-fourth aspect of the embodiments of the present application provides a terminal device, including:

a receiver, configured to receive indication information sent by a second access network device, where the indication information is generated by a first access network device according to a service switching request sent by the second access network device, the service switching request is used to request that a service running on a terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device, and the running service includes: a first service and a second service;

and the processor is configured to use the first network slice to support a first service and use the second network slice to support a second service according to the indication information received by the receiver, where the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, if the control plane supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a common control plane, and the control plane supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is two dedicated control planes, the processor is specifically configured to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the common control plane to the two dedicated control planes according to the indication information;

or the like, or, alternatively,

if the control planes supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice are two dedicated control planes, and the control plane supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a shared control plane, the processor is specifically configured to connect the first network slice and the second network slice from the two dedicated control planes to the shared control plane according to the indication information.

Optionally, if the indication information is an RRC reconfiguration message, the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information, and the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information have different contents, the processor is specifically configured to initiate two random access procedures according to the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information, so as to establish a connection between two dedicated control planes.

Optionally, if the indication information is an RRC reconfiguration message, the RRC reconfiguration message carries the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information, and the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information have the same content, the processor is specifically configured to initiate a primary random access process according to the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information, so as to establish a common control plane connection.

A twenty-fifth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an access network device, including: a processor, a memory, and a bus;

the processor is connected to the memory through the bus, the memory is used for storing program codes, and the processor is used for calling the program codes to execute the method according to any one of the first aspect, the fourth aspect, the seventh aspect and the tenth aspect.

A twenty-sixth aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides a slice controller, including: a processor, a memory, and a bus;

the processor is connected to the memory via the bus, the memory is used for storing program codes, and the processor is used for calling the program codes to execute the method according to any one of the second aspect, the fifth aspect, the eighth aspect and the eleventh aspect.

A twenty-seventh aspect of embodiments of the present application provides a terminal device, including: a processor, a memory, and a bus;

the processor is connected to the memory through the bus, the memory is used for storing program codes, and the processor is used for calling the program codes to execute the method according to any one of the third aspect, the sixth aspect, the ninth aspect and the twelfth aspect.

In the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the application, after the access network device receives the service request sent by the terminal device, the access network device generates corresponding indication information according to the service request, and the terminal device uses the corresponding network slice to support the service on the terminal device according to the indication information.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a system architecture diagram of one embodiment of a communication system in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is a system architecture diagram of another embodiment of a communication system in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 3 is a diagram illustrating network slices deployed by different cells in the prior art;

fig. 4 is a system architecture diagram of an embodiment of a service processing method in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a flowchart of an embodiment of a service processing method in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a flowchart of another embodiment of a service processing method in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a flowchart of another embodiment of a service processing method in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a diagram of several application scenarios of network slices for service support in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a flowchart of another embodiment of a service processing method in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a flowchart of another embodiment of a service processing method in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a block diagram of an embodiment of an access network device in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of one embodiment of a slice controller in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 13 is a block diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 14 is a block diagram of another embodiment of a terminal device in the embodiment of the present application;

fig. 15 is a hardware block diagram of an embodiment of an access network device in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 16 is a hardware block diagram of one embodiment of a slice controller in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 17 is a hardware block diagram of an embodiment of a terminal device in the embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments given herein without making any creative effort, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

The terms "first," "second," "third," and "fourth," if any, in the description and claims of the invention and the above-described figures are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It will be appreciated that the data so used may be interchanged under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated or described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprises," "comprising," and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, system, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of steps or elements is not necessarily limited to those steps or elements expressly listed, but may include other steps or elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

Conventional cellular network systems, such as: a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) network and a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network of the universal mobile communication technology are network architectures based on 'one-switch', have special support and IT systems, and are very suitable for a single-service user network. However, such a single network architecture is difficult for operators to expand, and it is also difficult to adjust to changing user requirements and to meet new user requirements.

Therefore, in a future 5G system, in order to adapt to various services of a future network, the network architecture and the network capability are different, and the future network needs to have the capability formulated as required, that is, flexible network slices need to be realized, and different network slices are used to support different application scenarios.

Please refer to fig. 1, which is a system architecture diagram of an embodiment of a communication system in the embodiment of the present application, the communication system includes: the terminal device and the access network device 102 are connected wirelessly. Multiple network slices may be deployed on the access network device 102.

The terminal device may include terminal device 101a using very low latency traffic, which may use very low latency slices. The terminal device may further include a terminal device 101b using a mass internet of things service, which may use a mass internet of things slice. The terminal devices may also include terminal device 101c using mobile broadband class services, which may use mobile broadband slices.

It should be noted that one network slice may be formed by instantiating an independent network function or function group, and based on user/user group and different application scenarios and requirements, different network slices are flexibly and dynamically established, so as to reduce application innovation cost and promote rapid development of various application innovations. Such connectivity services are defined by a number of customized software-implemented functions including geographic coverage area, duration, capacity, speed, latency, reliability, security, availability, etc.

For example: power companies need to provide connections for their smart meters, which can be translated into a network slice connecting a series of Machine to Machine (M2M) devices. This type of service may have some delay and data rate sufficient to complete the status update download within a specified time, but requires a higher level of security, high availability and high reliability. The utility may also need to provide connectivity for its fault sensors, the network slice providing this type of service may receive status indicators from all M2M devices of the system around the clock, pure data coverage requiring high availability and high durability, with intermediate level security and medium latency, while the network slice providing this connectivity service based on this use case may be configured with various network functions, e.g., to achieve a higher level of security or near zero latency.

Please refer to fig. 2, which is a system architecture diagram of another embodiment of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application, compared to the system architecture shown in fig. 1, the communication system includes: the terminal device and the access network device 202 may further include: a slice controller 203, the slice controller 203 being connected with the access network device 202 by a wired cable or a wireless electromagnetic wave. For selecting the most appropriate network slice for different services on the terminal device.

The terminal device may include terminal device 201a using very low latency traffic, which may use very low latency slices. The terminal device may further include a terminal device 201b using a mass internet of things service, which may use a mass internet of things slice. The terminal device may also include a terminal device 201c using mobile broadband class services, which may use mobile broadband slices.

It should be noted that the slice controller may be a separate entity device in the system architecture, and interact with the access network device. Of course, the slice controller may also be a processing unit inside the access network device, and then the interaction with the access network device may be an internal processing procedure, which is not limited herein.

Referring to fig. 3, which is a schematic diagram illustrating network slices deployed by different cells in the prior art, a first cell 301, a second cell 302, and a third cell 303 in fig. 3 deploy a first network slice 3041, a second network slice 3042, and a third network slice 3043, respectively, as can be seen from fig. 3, the prior art has not considered the difference in network slice deployment among different cells. Since this is not taken into account, the form of all cell deployment network slices under the same operator is the same. In fact, from the perspective of resource utilization efficiency, the deployment of each network slice needs to be implemented in combination with the specific situation of the current cell, and the way each cell supports it may be different for the same service type.

For example: in a residential area where the residential area is dense, applications of smart electricity meters are numerous, and then a large number of slices of the internet of things need to be deployed in the current residential area to support the applications. If the area covered by the current cell is suburban, the applications are few if any, the operator can choose to use standard mobile broadband slice or other similar slices to support the applications, the access network equipment or the mobile broadband slice is not affected, and the operator does not need to separately deploy one network slice for the applications.

Secondly, although the network slicing technique meets the network requirements of different services, the complexity of the terminal device for processing different services is also increased. Especially, the prior art does not consider the correlation of the terminal device on the network slice selection for different services, so that the terminal device uses respective corresponding network slices for different services. For example: when the terminal device uses the MBB service and the low-power MTC service simultaneously, the low-power consumption feature of the low-power MTC service is not obvious due to the large power consumption of the MBB service. If the low-power-consumption MTC slice is continuously used to support the low-power-consumption MTC service, the low-power-consumption effect cannot be obtained, the processing complexity of the terminal equipment is increased, and the working efficiency of the terminal equipment is reduced.

Based on this, the embodiment of the application mainly aims at the problem of how to select the network slice after the terminal device is deployed based on the network personalization.

Although the following description is given by taking the future 5G Communication System as an example, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the future 5G Communication System, but may also be applied to other wireless Communication systems, such as Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM), Mobile Communication System (UMTS), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) System, Long Term Evolution (LTE) System of the universal Mobile Telecommunications technology, and network System that is continuously evolving in the future, and the like, and the specific examples are not limited herein.

The embodiment of the present application is mainly applied to a future 5G communication system, and the future 5G communication system applied in the embodiment of the present application includes: terminal equipment and access network equipment.

A terminal device, also called a User Equipment (UE), is a device that provides voice and/or data connectivity to a User, for example, a handheld device with a wireless connection function, a vehicle-mounted device, and the like. Common terminal devices include, for example: the mobile terminal includes a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a notebook computer, a palm computer, a Mobile Internet Device (MID), and a wearable device, such as a smart watch, a smart bracelet, and a pedometer.

A Radio Access Network (RAN) device is a device for accessing a terminal device to a wireless Network, which is also called a base station, and includes but is not limited to: evolved Node B (eNB), Radio Network Controller (RNC), Node B (NB), Base Station Controller (BSC), Base Transceiver Station (BTS), Home Base Station (e.g., Homeevolved Node B, or Home Node B, HNB), and baseband Unit (BBU).

Please refer to fig. 4, which is a system architecture diagram of an embodiment of a service processing method in the embodiment of the present application, the system includes: a terminal device 401 and an access network device 402. Wherein the access network device 402 includes: a core network controller 4021, a gateway 4022, a baseband processing unit 4023, a slice controller 4024, a macro base station 4025, a micro base station 4026, a radio frequency unit 4027, and the like.

The terminal device 401 establishes communication connection with access network devices such as a macro base station 4025, a micro base station 4026, and a radio frequency unit 4027 through wireless air interface resources, and the gateway 4022, the baseband processing unit 4023, and the macro base station 4025 are connected to the core network controller 4021.

It should be understood that the macro base station 4025, the micro base station 4026 and the radio frequency unit 4027 may exist at the same time, or may be deployed separately, and are not limited herein.

It should be noted that, for convenience of describing the usage of the slice controller 4024, the embodiment of the present application is deployed in the system architecture as a stand-alone entity device. Of course, the slice controller 4024 may also be deployed in the macro base station 4025, the core network controller 4021, or other control entities, which is not limited herein.

Please refer to fig. 5, which is a flowchart illustrating an embodiment of a service processing method according to an embodiment of the present application, the method including:

501. the terminal equipment establishes a first service and uses a first network slice for transmission.

After the terminal device establishes the first service, the access network device provides a service for the first service by using the first network slice, where the first network slice may be a network slice corresponding to the first service.

For example: the terminal equipment initiates the low-power-consumption MTC service, and after the access network equipment is identified, the network slice corresponding to the low-power-consumption MTC is used for serving the access network equipment.

It should be understood that a network slice is a virtual network configured on an access network device to support different services.

502. The terminal equipment sends a service request for building a second service to the access network equipment, and the access network equipment receives the service request for building the second service sent by the terminal equipment.

In the process of using the first service, the terminal equipment initiates a service request for establishing a second service. For example: the terminal equipment initiates the MTC service, for example: and (6) meter reading service. The network slice corresponding to the MTC service is a low-power-consumption MTC network slice, and the access network equipment uses the MTC network slice to support the MTC service, so that the terminal equipment can achieve the effect of low power consumption. And then, the terminal equipment initiates an MBB service for webpage browsing, and the network slice corresponding to the MBB service is an MBB network slice.

It should be noted that the newly created service may affect the selection of the network slice of the existing service.

503. The access network equipment sends a service request for building a second service to the slice controller, and the slice controller receives the service request for building the second service sent by the access network equipment.

After receiving the service request for creating the second service sent by the terminal device, the access network device may parse the service request, thereby determining the service type and the network slice type of the second service corresponding to the service request. In addition, the access network device needs to send the service request to the slice controller, and the slice controller decides which network slice or slices are used for transmission by the second service and the first service on the terminal device.

504. And the slice controller sends the indication information to the access network equipment, and the access network equipment receives the indication information sent by the slice controller.

After receiving the service request, the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device, and second configuration information corresponding to the access network device. Wherein the second service information includes: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the second service. The first service information includes: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the first service. The first configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the terminal equipment; the second configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the access network device.

Further, the slice controller makes a decision according to the first service information, the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

Specifically, the slice controller first determines whether a network slice corresponding to the second service is included in a network slice configured by the access network device; if so, the slice controller performs a comprehensive decision on a first network slice corresponding to the first service and a second network slice corresponding to the second service, so as to select a proper network slice for the first service and the second service.

For example: the first service is an MTC service, the corresponding network slice is a low-power-consumption MTC network slice, the second service is an MBB service, and the corresponding network slice is an MBB network slice. When the terminal device creates the MBB service, since the MBB service uses the MBB network slice with higher power consumption, the MTC service running on the terminal device continues to use the MTC network slice with low power consumption, which cannot make the terminal device achieve the effect of low power consumption, but increases the complexity of terminal device operation, that is, the terminal device needs to operate corresponding to different network slices for different services. Since the newly created MBB service on the terminal device has not enabled the terminal device to achieve the effect of low power consumption, the MTC service can use the MBB network slice, so that both the MTC service and the MBB service on the terminal device use the MBB network slice, thereby reducing the complexity of terminal device operation, i.e. only the terminal device needs to operate corresponding to the same network slice for different services.

Optionally, the following method may be adopted for the slicing controller to make a decision according to the first service information, the second service information, the first configuration information, and the second configuration information:

Further, the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the decision result.

Specifically, if the decision result is that the access network device supports the second service using the second network slice, and adjusts the first service transmitted using the first network slice to be transmitted using the second network slice, the slice controller may generate corresponding indication information.

For example: the first service is an MTC service, the corresponding network slice is a low-power-consumption MTC network slice, the second service is an MBB service, and the corresponding network slice is an MBB network slice, the indication information indicates that the access network equipment uses the MBB network slice to support the MBB service, and the MTC service transmitted by using the MTC network slice is adjusted to be transmitted by the MBB network slice.

Of course, if the first service is an MBB service, the corresponding network slice is an MBB network slice, the second service is an MTC service, and the corresponding network slice is an MTC network slice, the indication information only indicates the access network device to use the MBB network slice to support the MTC service, and transmission of the MBB network slice used by the existing MBB service is not changed.

And after the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the decision result, the slice controller sends the indication information to the access network equipment, and the access network equipment forwards the indication information to the terminal equipment.

505. And the access network equipment sends a new second service response to the terminal equipment, and the terminal equipment receives the new second service response sent by the access network equipment.

After receiving the indication information of the slice controller, the access network device responds to the service request for creating the second service sent by the terminal device according to the indication information, and establishes a transmission channel based on the second network slice for the second service.

For example: the first service is an MTC service, the corresponding network slice is an MTC network slice, the second service is an MBB service, and the corresponding network slice is an MBB network slice. In this case, the access network device may select an MBB network slice for the newly created MBB service.

Of course, if the first service is the MBB service, the corresponding network slice is the MBB network slice, the second service is the MTC service, and the corresponding network slice is the MTC network slice. In this case, the access network device may select an MBB network slice for the newly-established MTC service.

After the access network device sends a new second service response to the terminal device, correspondingly, the terminal device receives the new second service response, and obtains the indication information sent by the slice controller according to the new second service response, so as to access the corresponding second network slice for the second service.

506. The access network equipment sends a first service updating instruction to the terminal equipment, and the terminal equipment receives the first service updating instruction sent by the access network equipment.

The access network equipment sends a new second service response to the terminal equipment according to the indication information, and also sends a first service updating indication to the terminal equipment according to the indication information. After receiving the updated first service instruction, the terminal device adjusts the first service transmitted by using the first network slice to be transmitted by using the second network slice according to the updated first service instruction.

Of course, if the slice controller determines that the newly-created second service uses the first network slice corresponding to the existing first service, the existing first service is transmitted using the second network slice without adjustment. In this case, the access network device does not need to send the updated first traffic indication to the terminal device.

It should be noted that, when step 505 and step 506 are executed, there is no requirement for a sequence. The access network device may also send the first service update instruction to the terminal device, and then send a new second service response to the terminal device, which is not limited herein.

When the terminal equipment uses the MBB service and the low-power-consumption MTC service simultaneously, the low-power-consumption MTC service has unobvious characteristics due to the existence of the MBB service, and the low-power-consumption effect cannot be obtained by continuously using the processing mode of the low-power-consumption MTC network slice, but the complexity of the operation of the terminal equipment is increased. Therefore, in the embodiment of the application, different service features are comprehensively considered from the perspective of the terminal device in selecting the network slice, and the corresponding network slice is selected for the existing service and the newly-built service on the terminal device, so that the terminal device works in the most effective state.

The above describes an application scenario in which the access network device supports the first service and the second service using the second network slice when the terminal device newly creates the second service, and the following describes an application scenario in which the access network device supports the first service using the first network slice and supports the second service using the second network slice when the terminal device newly creates the second service.

Please refer to fig. 6, which is a flowchart illustrating another embodiment of a service processing method according to an embodiment of the present application, the method including:

601. and the terminal equipment establishes the first service and transmits the first service by using the third network slice.

After the terminal device establishes the first service, the access network device provides a service for the first service by using a third network slice, where the third network slice may be a network slice corresponding to the first service, or a network slice corresponding to a certain service in which the terminal device is operating, and the specific details are not limited herein.

Different from the above embodiment, in this case, when the second service is newly created, the slice controller supports the first service and the second service separately for using different network slices according to the indication information generated by the decision result. Such as: second traffic is supported using the second network slice, and first traffic transmitted using the third network slice is adapted to be transmitted using the first network slice. The first network slice may be a network slice corresponding to the first service, or may also be a network slice corresponding to another service that is being run by the terminal device, and is not limited herein.

For example: before the second service is not newly built, the first service and the third service on the terminal equipment may all use the third network slice, after the second service is newly built, the slice controller reselects the network slices used by the first service, the second service and the third service on the terminal equipment, and the final decision result is that the first service uses the first network slice, the second service uses the second network slice, and the third service continues to use the third network slice or the first network slice or the second network slice.

602-606: similar to 502-506, the details are as described above and are not repeated here.

As with the embodiment in fig. 5, in the embodiment of the present application, in selecting a network slice, different service features are considered comprehensively from the perspective of a terminal device, and a corresponding network slice is selected for an existing service and a newly-built service on the terminal device, so that the terminal device operates in the most efficient state. Except that the first traffic and the second traffic use different network slices.

When the terminal device creates the second service, the access network device uses the first network slice to support the first service, and uses the second network slice to support the application scenario of the second service, and when the terminal device releases the second service, the access network device uses the first network slice to support the application scenario of the first service.

Please refer to fig. 7, which is a flowchart illustrating another embodiment of a service processing method according to an embodiment of the present application, where the method includes:

701. and the terminal equipment establishes the first service and the second service and uses the second network slice for transmission.

After the terminal equipment initiates the first service and the second service, the access network equipment selects the second network slice for the service for both the first service and the second service according to the service condition.

For example: in order to reduce the complexity of terminal device operation, the access network device may use the MBB network slice to support the MTC service and the MBB service.

702. And the access network equipment receives the service request for releasing the second service, which is sent by the terminal equipment.

After the second service of the terminal device is finished, the terminal device may initiate a service request for releasing the second service to the access network device, and accordingly, the access network device may receive the service request through an air interface.

703. And the access network equipment sends a service request for releasing the second service to the slice controller, and the slice controller receives the service request for releasing the second service sent by the access network equipment.

After receiving the service request for releasing the second service sent by the terminal device, the access network device may also parse the service request. In addition, the access network device needs to send the service request to the slice controller, and the slice controller decides which network slice transmission is reused by the first service on the terminal device.

704. And the slice controller sends the indication information to the access network equipment, and the access network equipment receives the indication information sent by the slice controller.

After receiving the service request, the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to a first service running on the terminal device, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device, and second configuration information corresponding to the access network device. Wherein, the first service information comprises: a service type and a network slice type corresponding to the first service; of course, it may also include: a network slice type being used by the first service; the first configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the terminal equipment; the second configuration information includes: network slice types supported by the access network device.

Further, the slice controller makes a decision according to the first service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information. If the decision result is that the access network equipment adjusts the second network slice used by the first service to the first network slice, the slice controller generates corresponding indication information.

For example: the first service is an MTC service, the second service is an MBB service, and the MTC service and the MBB service both use MBB network slices. When the MBB service on the terminal device is released, if the MTC service continues to use the MBB network slice, the effect of low power consumption of the terminal device cannot be achieved, and the network slice used by the MTC service must be updated. The indication information indicates the access network device to release the MBB service, and the MBB network slice used by the MTC service is updated to be the low-power-consumption MTC network slice.

Of course, if the first service is the MBB service, the corresponding network slice is the MBB network slice, the second service is the MTC service, and the corresponding network slice is the MTC network slice, the indication information indicates that the access network device causes the access network device to release the MTC service, and the MBB network slice used by the MBB service is not changed.

For the slice controller decision process, reference may be made to the decision method in step 504, which is not described herein again.

705. And the access network equipment sends a response for releasing the second service to the terminal equipment, and the terminal equipment receives the response for releasing the second service sent by the access network equipment.

After receiving the indication information of the slice controller, the access network device responds to the service request for releasing the second service, which is sent by the terminal device, according to the indication information. Therefore, after the access network device sends a response for releasing the second service to the terminal device, the terminal device receives the response for releasing the second service, and acquires the indication information sent by the slice controller according to the response for releasing the second service, so as to release the second service, and reselect the network slice transmission for the running first service.

706. The access network equipment sends a first service updating instruction to the terminal equipment, and the terminal equipment receives the first service updating instruction sent by the access network equipment.

The access network equipment sends a response for releasing the second service to the terminal equipment according to the indication information, and also sends an indication for updating the first service to the terminal equipment according to the indication information. And after receiving the second service release instruction, the terminal equipment adjusts the first service transmitted by using the second network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice according to the updated first service instruction.

For example: the first service is an MTC service, the second service is an MBB service, and the MTC service and the MBB service both use MBB network slices. Under the condition of MBB service release, the access network equipment reselects network slice transmission for the running MTC service.

Of course, if the first service is the MBB service and the second service is the MTC service, both the MTC service and the MBB service use the MBB network slice. Under the condition of MTC service release, the access network equipment does not change the MBB network slice used by the running MBB service.

It should be noted that, when the steps 705 and 706 are executed, there is no requirement for a sequence. The access network device may also send the first service update instruction to the terminal device first, and then send the second service release response to the terminal device, which is not limited herein.

The embodiment of the present application is a reverse process of the embodiment in fig. 5, that is, after the first service and the second service both use the second network slice, when the second service is released, the slice controller needs to reselect the network slice used by the first service running on the terminal device, so that the terminal device operates in the most efficient state. That is, when one service on the terminal device is finished, the slice controller needs to reselect the network slice used by the other service on the terminal device.

The above describes an application scenario in which the access network device supports the first service using the first network slice when the terminal device releases the second service, and the following describes how the first access network device supports the service on the terminal device using the network slice and the control plane corresponding to the network slice when the terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device.

Please refer to fig. 8, which is a diagram of several application scenarios supported by a network slice for a service in the embodiment of the present application, where the diagram is a diagram of several different scenarios supported by a network for a service in a case where a single user uses two services. The dashed lines represent the control plane and the solid lines represent the data plane. In a scene a, the access network equipment adopts a common control plane and supports two services on different data plane slices; in the scenario b, the access network device adopts a common control plane, and supports two services with small differences on the same data plane slice; in scenario c, the access network device supports two services by using a control plane and a data plane dedicated to each access network device. That is, the distinction between network slices may be embodied not only in the data plane, but also in the control plane. For example, in order to support massive machine type communication services, the 3GPP standard defines a cellular-based narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IOT) standard, and discusses a simplified control plane protocol process and a processing manner of carrying data through a control plane. The data plane processing and the control plane processing of the terminal equipment are different between the cell supporting the NB-IOT mode and the cell not supporting the NB-IOT mode. Or for the delay-sensitive service, an operator may deploy a network slice with a short Transmission Time Interval (TTI) for support, where the network slice with the short TTI includes a control plane and a data plane.

For the prior art, these application scenarios have not been considered yet, so that the user cannot change the support mode of the service itself along with the actual deployment situation of the cell during the moving process. On one hand, this causes the service experience of the user to be reduced, for example, the user using the delay sensitive service moves from an idle cell supporting the delay sensitive service in the traditional way to a busy cell supporting the service in the short TTI way; on the other hand, the system resources are wasted, for example, a large number of internet of things Massive IOT users move from a cell supported by a traditional mode to a cell supporting NB-IOT.

Further, when a single user terminal uses a plurality of different services, if there is a difference in control plane, it is also impossible in the prior art.

For example: the second service is an MBB service, the first service is a low-delay service, and the source access network device does not optimize the low-delay service on a control plane corresponding to the network slice, so that a common control plane is used for both the MBB service and the low-delay service. And the target access network device performs special processing on the control plane corresponding to the network slice for the low-delay service, so that the MBB service and the low-delay service use different control plane processing modes in the target access network device, such as: short TTI signaling, etc.

In this embodiment, when a terminal device is switched from a second access network device to a first access network device, the terminal device runs a first service and a second service on the second access network device, where a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the first service and the second service by the second access network device is a shared control plane, a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the first access network device is a first dedicated control plane, and an application scenario where a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the second service is a second dedicated control plane is described as an example.

Please refer to fig. 9, which is a flowchart illustrating another embodiment of a service processing method according to an embodiment of the present application, the method including:

901. and the terminal equipment sends a cell measurement report to the second access network equipment, and the second access network equipment receives the cell measurement report sent by the terminal equipment.

The terminal device may send a cell measurement report to the second access network device, including the signal quality of the current serving cell and the signal quality of the neighboring cell, periodically or triggered by a measurement event.

902. And the second access network equipment sends a service switching request to the first access network equipment, and the first access network equipment receives the service switching request sent by the second access network equipment.

After receiving the cell measurement report sent by the terminal device, the second access network device obtains the signal quality of the current serving cell and the signal quality of the adjacent cell by analyzing the cell measurement report, and if the terminal device meets the handover condition, the second access network device triggers a handover process correspondingly and sends a handover request to the first access network device. The first access network device is a target base station of the terminal device, and the second access network device is a source base station of the terminal device.

903. The first access network equipment sends a service switching request to the slice controller, and the slice controller receives the service switching request sent by the first access network equipment.

After receiving the service switching request sent by the second access network device, the first access network device may parse the service switching request to obtain the context of the terminal device. In addition, the first access network device sends the service switching request to the slice controller, and the slice controller determines which network slice or slices the first service and the second service use on the first access network device and a control plane corresponding to the network slice.

904. And the slice controller sends indication information to the first access network equipment.

After receiving the switching request, the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device, and second configuration information corresponding to the first access network device. Wherein, the first service information comprises: the network slice type corresponding to the first service, the network slice type and the control plane type corresponding to the network slice, and the second service information includes: the network slice type corresponding to the second service, the network slice type, and the control plane type corresponding to the network slice, and the first configuration information includes: the network slice type supported by the terminal device and the control plane type corresponding to the network slice, and the second configuration information includes: the network slice type configured by the first access network device and the control plane type corresponding to the network slice.

In this embodiment, the control plane supported by the second access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is a common control plane, and the control plane supported by the first access network device for the first network slice and the second network slice is two dedicated control planes. Then the decision result may be that the first access network device uses the first network slice to support the first service, and uses the first dedicated control plane corresponding to the first network slice, uses the second network slice to support the second service, and uses the second dedicated control plane corresponding to the second network slice, and then the slice controller generates corresponding indication information.

And after the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the decision result, the slice controller sends the indication information to the first access network equipment, and the first access network equipment selects a corresponding network slice and a control plane corresponding to the network slice for the first service and the second service on the terminal equipment according to the indication information.

905. The first access network equipment sends a service switching response to the second access network equipment, and the second access network equipment receives the service switching response sent by the first access network equipment.

After receiving the indication information of the slice controller, the first access network device responds to the service switching request sent by the second access network device according to the indication information.

Since the first access network device uses different dedicated control planes for the second service and the first service, the first access network device needs to send a service switching response to the first dedicated control plane and the second dedicated control plane, in addition to sending the service switching response to the second access network device. When the first access network device sends a service switching response to the second access network device, the first access network device will carry two sets of mobility control information with different contents, including: the first mobility control information and the second mobility control information respectively correspond to a first dedicated control plane entity and a second dedicated control plane entity.

906. And the first access network equipment sends a service switching response to the first special control plane entity, and the first special control plane entity receives the service switching response sent by the first access network equipment.

The service switching response may carry a context of the terminal device, including a terminal device identifier, first service information of the terminal device, first configuration information of the terminal device, and the like, and the first dedicated control plane entity prepares for the terminal device to connect to the first dedicated control plane according to the information.

907. And the second dedicated control plane entity receives the service switching response sent by the first access network equipment.

Similarly, the service switching response may also carry a context of the terminal device, including a terminal device identifier, first service information of the terminal device, first configuration information of the terminal device, and the like, and the second dedicated control plane entity prepares for the terminal device to connect to the second dedicated control plane according to the information.

It should be noted that, there is no requirement for the sequence of steps 905 to 907 during the execution. The first access network device may also send the service switching response to the first dedicated control plane entity or the second dedicated control plane entity, and then send the service switching response to the second access network device, which is not limited herein.

908. And the second access network equipment sends the RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal equipment, and the terminal equipment receives the RRC reconfiguration message sent by the second access network equipment.

After the first access network device sends a service switching response to the second access network device, the second access network device correspondingly receives the service switching response, acquires the indication information sent by the slice controller according to the service switching response, and establishes a cell switching process for the terminal device. Therefore, the second access network device sends an RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device, and carries two sets of mobility control information, which are used to instruct the terminal device to initiate a random access procedure to the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity, respectively. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the RRC reconfiguration message and performs a corresponding cell handover procedure according to the RRC reconfiguration message and the mobility control information carried therein.

909. The terminal equipment initiates a random access process to the first dedicated control plane entity.

910. The terminal equipment initiates a random access process to the second dedicated control plane entity.

After receiving the RRC reconfiguration message sent by the second access network device, the terminal device initiates a random access procedure to the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity according to the two sets of mobility control information carried in the RRC reconfiguration message, so as to establish two sets of dedicated control plane links. The terminal equipment can meet the control surface characteristics of different services and the signaling transmission requirement through the link of the two sets of control surfaces.

It should be noted that, when the steps 909 and 910 are executed, there is no requirement for the order. The terminal device may also initiate a random access procedure to the second dedicated control plane entity first, and then initiate a random access procedure to the first dedicated control plane entity, which is not limited herein.

According to the embodiment of the application, different support modes of different access network devices for services are different, so that the used network slice information changes in the moving process of a user, and particularly, the control plane may have differences. The terminal device may dynamically adjust the control plane link according to different configurations of the access network device. That is, the control plane of the terminal device may be split according to different access network devices.

In the above, when the terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device, the terminal device runs the first service and the second service on the second access network device, where a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the first service and the second service by the second access network device is a shared control plane, a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the first service by the first access network device is a first dedicated control plane, and an application scenario where a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the second service is a second dedicated control plane is described.

The following description is given by taking an example of an application scenario in which a terminal device switches from a second access network device to a first access network device, and the terminal device runs a second service and a first service on the second access network device, where a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the second access network device for the second service is a first dedicated control plane, a control plane corresponding to a network slice supported by the first service is a second dedicated control plane, and a control plane corresponding to the second service and the network slice supported by the first service is a common control plane by the first access network device.

Please refer to fig. 10, which is a flowchart illustrating another embodiment of a service processing method according to an embodiment of the present application, the method including:

1001. the terminal equipment sends a cell measurement report to a first dedicated control plane entity, and the first dedicated control plane entity receives the cell measurement report sent by the terminal equipment.

Since the second access network device uses different dedicated control planes for the first service and the second service, for this reason, the terminal device needs to send cell measurement reports to different dedicated control plane entities of the second access network device, respectively.

1002. The first dedicated control plane entity sends a service switching request to the second access network equipment, and the second access network equipment receives the service switching request sent by the first dedicated control plane entity.

After receiving the cell measurement report sent by the terminal device, the first dedicated control plane entity obtains the signal quality of the current serving cell and the signal quality of the adjacent cell by analyzing the cell measurement report, and if the terminal device meets the handover condition, the first dedicated control plane entity triggers a handover process correspondingly and sends a service handover request to the second access network device.

1003. And the terminal equipment sends a cell measurement report to the second special control plane entity, and the second special control plane entity receives the cell measurement report sent by the terminal equipment.

1004. And the second access network equipment receives the service switching request sent by the second dedicated control plane entity.

It should be noted that steps 1001 to 1002 are similar to steps 1003 to 1004, and the difference is that since the second access network device uses different dedicated control planes for the first service and the second service, for this reason, the terminal device needs to send cell measurement reports to the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity, and send service switching requests to the second access network device by the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity, respectively.

Secondly, there is no requirement for the sequence of steps 1001 to 1002 and steps 1003 to 1004 when executing. The terminal device may also send the cell measurement report to the second control plane entity first, and then send the cell measurement report to the first control plane entity, which is not limited herein.

1005 to 1006: similar to 902-903, the details are as described above, and are not repeated here.

1007. The slice controller sends the indication information to the first access network device, and the first access network device receives the indication information sent by the slice controller.

The control plane corresponding to the network slice supported by the first service by the second access network device is a first dedicated control plane, the control plane corresponding to the network slice supported by the second service is a second dedicated control plane, and the control plane corresponding to the network slice supported by the first service and the second service by the first access network device is a shared control plane.

The decision result of the slice controller may be that the first access network device supports the first traffic and the second traffic using a common control plane, and accordingly the slice controller generates corresponding indication information. That is, the indication information sent by the slice controller to the first access network device in step 1007 is different from the indication information sent by the slice controller to the first access network device in step 904.

1008. The first access network equipment sends a service switching response to the second access network equipment, and the second access network equipment receives the service switching response sent by the first access network equipment.

Since the second access network device uses different dedicated control planes for the first service and the second service, for this reason, when the first access network device sends the service switching response to the second access network device in step 1008, the two sets of mobility control information will be carried, and the contents of the two sets of mobility control information are the same. After the first access network device sends a service switching response to the second access network device, correspondingly, the second access network device receives the service switching response, acquires the indication information sent by the slice controller according to the service switching response, sends the service switching response and the indication information carried in the response to the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity respectively, and establishes a cell switching process for the terminal device by the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity.

1009. And the second access network equipment sends a service switching response to the first special control plane entity, and the first special control plane entity receives the service switching response sent by the second access network equipment.

Since the second access network device uses different dedicated control planes for the second service and the first service, for this reason, the second access network device needs to send service switching responses to different dedicated control plane entities, respectively. After the second access network device sends a service switching response to the first dedicated control plane entity, correspondingly, the first dedicated control plane entity receives the service switching response, acquires the indication information sent by the slice controller according to the service switching response, and establishes a cell switching flow for the terminal device.

1010. And the terminal equipment receives the RRC reconfiguration message sent by the first dedicated control plane entity.

After receiving the service switching response sent by the second access network device, the first dedicated control plane entity sends an RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device, and carries a group of mobility control information. After the first dedicated control plane entity sends the RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device, the terminal device receives the RRC reconfiguration message accordingly, and performs a corresponding cell handover procedure according to the RRC reconfiguration message and the mobility control information carried therein.

1011. And the second access network equipment sends a switching response to the second special control plane entity, and the second special control plane entity receives the service switching response sent by the second access network equipment.

1012. And the second dedicated control plane entity sends the RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal equipment, and the terminal equipment receives the RRC reconfiguration message sent by the second dedicated control plane entity.

It should be noted that steps 1011 to 1012 are similar to steps 1009 to 1010, and the difference is that, since the second access network device uses different dedicated control planes for the first service and the second service, for this reason, the second access network device needs to send a service switching response to the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity, and send an RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device by the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity, respectively, where two sets of mobility control information contents carried by the first dedicated control plane entity and the second dedicated control plane entity are the same when sending the RRC reconfiguration message to the terminal device.

Secondly, there is no requirement for the sequence of steps 1011 to 1012 and steps 1009 to 1010. The second access network device may send the handover response to the second dedicated control plane entity first, and then send the handover response to the first dedicated control plane entity, which is not limited herein.

1013. The terminal equipment initiates a random access process to the first access network equipment.

After receiving the two RRC reconfiguration messages containing the same mobility control information, the terminal equipment judges to combine the two control plane links, only initiates a random access process once, and combines the control planes of the two services. Whether the user planes are combined or not is related to the specific situation of the service, and the embodiment of the application only concerns the situation of the control plane.

The embodiment of the present application is a reverse process of the embodiment in fig. 9, that is, after the terminal device is switched to the first access network device, the two control planes use the same control plane, where the two control planes correspond to the network slice of the second access network device. Therefore, the control plane corresponding to the network slice used by the service on the terminal device can be split or merged according to different access network devices.

The service processing method in the embodiment of the present application is described above, and the access network device, the slice controller, and the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application are described below.

Please refer to fig. 11, which is a block diagram of an embodiment of an access network device according to an embodiment of the present application.

In one embodiment, the access network device 1100 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 5, which includes:

a receiver 1101, configured to receive a service request for creating a second service sent by a terminal device;

a processor 1102, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request received by the receiver 1101;

a transmitter 1103, configured to send the indication information generated by the processor 1102 to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service and a second service using a second network slice, where the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used to support the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the processor 1102 is specifically configured to obtain, according to the service request received by the receiver 1101, first service information corresponding to a first service, second service information corresponding to a second service, and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

Please refer to fig. 12, which is a block diagram of an embodiment of a slice controller according to the present application.

In one embodiment, the slice controller 1200 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 5, which includes:

a receiver 1201, configured to receive a service request sent by an access network device, where the service request is a service request for creating a second service, sent by a terminal device to the access network device;

a processor 1202, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request received by the receiver 1201;

a transmitter 1203, configured to send the indication information generated by the processor 1202 to the access network device, where the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, and the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service and a second service using a second network slice, where the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used to support the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the processor 1202 is specifically configured to obtain, according to the service request received by the receiver 1201, first service information corresponding to a first service, second service information corresponding to a second service, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device, and second configuration information corresponding to the access network device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

Please refer to fig. 13, which is a block diagram of a terminal device according to an embodiment of the present application.

In one embodiment, the terminal device 1300 corresponds to the method embodiment in fig. 5, which includes:

a transmitter 1301, configured to send a service request for creating a second service to an access network device;

a receiver 1302, configured to receive indication information sent by an access network device, where the indication information is generated by the access network device according to a service request;

a processor 1303, configured to support a first service and a second service using a second network slice according to the indication information received by the receiver 1302, where the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service and the second service.

Optionally, the processor 1303 is specifically configured to adjust a first service transmitted using a first network slice to be transmitted using a second network slice, where the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

Referring again to fig. 11, in another embodiment, the access network device 1100 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 6, and includes:

a processor 1102, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request;

a transmitter 1103, configured to send indication information to a terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service using a first network slice and supports a second service using a second network slice, where the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on an access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the processor 1102 is specifically configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request, where the indication information includes: the access network equipment acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal equipment according to the service request; and the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

Referring again to fig. 12, in another embodiment, the slice controller 1200 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 6, which includes:

a processor 1202, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request by the slice controller;

a transmitter 1203, configured to send indication information to the access network device, where the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service using a first network slice and supports a second service using a second network slice, the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the processor 1202 is specifically configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request, where the indication information includes: the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to a first service, second service information corresponding to a second service, first configuration information corresponding to terminal equipment and second configuration information corresponding to access network equipment according to the service request; and the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the first service information, the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

Referring again to fig. 13, in another embodiment, the terminal device 1300 corresponds to the method embodiment in fig. 6, and includes:

and the processor 1303 is configured to use the first network slice to support a first service according to the indication information, and use the second network slice to support a second service, where the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Optionally, the processor 1303 is specifically configured to support the first service using the first network slice according to the indication information, and includes: the terminal equipment adjusts the first service transmitted by using the third network slice to be transmitted by using the first network slice, the first network slice is the corresponding network slice after the first service is adjusted, and the third network slice is the corresponding network slice before the first service is adjusted.

Referring again to fig. 11, in another embodiment, the access network device 1100 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 7, and includes:

a receiver 1101, configured to receive a service request for releasing a second service sent by a terminal device;

a processor 1102, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to a service request received by a receiver;

a transmitter 1103, configured to send indication information to a terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service using a first network slice, the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on an access network device and used for supporting the first service.

Optionally, the processor 1102 is specifically configured to obtain, according to the service request received by the receiver, first service information corresponding to the first service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information and the first configuration information.

Referring again to fig. 12, in another embodiment, the slice controller 1200 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 7, which includes:

a receiver 1201, configured to receive a service request sent by an access network device, where the service request is a service request for releasing a second service, which is sent to the access network device by a terminal device;

a processor 1202, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request;

a transmitter 1203, configured to send indication information to the access network device, where the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service using a first network slice, the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service.

Optionally, the processor 1202 is specifically configured to obtain, according to the service request received by the receiver 1201, first service information corresponding to the first service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second configuration information, the first service information and the first configuration information.

Referring again to fig. 13, in another embodiment, the terminal device 1300 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 7, and includes:

a transmitter 1301, configured to send a service request for releasing the second service to the access network device;

and the processor 1303 is configured to support a first service using a first network slice according to the indication information received by the receiver, where the first service is a service running on the terminal, and the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service.

Optionally, the processor 1303 is specifically configured to adjust a first service transmitted by using a second network slice to be transmitted by using a first network slice, where the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to a second service and a first service before the second service is released, and the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service after the second service is released.

Referring again to fig. 11, in another embodiment, the access network device 1100 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 9 and 10, and includes:

a receiver 1101, configured to receive a service switching request sent by a second access network device, where the service switching request is used to request that a service running on a terminal device is switched from the second access network device to a first access network device, and the running service includes: a first service and a second service;

a processor 1102, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to a service switching request received by a receiver;

a transmitter 1103, configured to send the indication information to the second access network device; the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the second access network device, the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to use the first network slice to support the first service and use the second network slice to support the second service, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the second service.

Referring again to fig. 12, in another embodiment, the slice controller 1200 corresponds to the method embodiment of fig. 9 and 10, and includes:

a receiver 1201, configured to receive a service switching request sent by a first access network device, where the service switching request is sent to the first access network device by a second access network device, the service switching request is used to request that a service running on a terminal device is switched to the first access network device by the second access network device, and the running service includes: a first service and a second service;

a processor 1202, configured to generate corresponding indication information according to the service request received by the receiver;

a transmitter 1203, configured to send indication information to a first access network device, where the indication information is forwarded to a second access network device by the first access network device and is forwarded to a terminal device by the second access network device, the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service using a first network slice and supports the first service using a second network slice, the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the second service.

or the like, or, alternatively,

Please refer to fig. 14, which is a block diagram of another embodiment of a terminal device in the embodiment of the present application, where the terminal device 1400 corresponds to the method embodiments in fig. 9 and fig. 10, and includes:

a receiver 1401, configured to receive indication information sent by a second access network device, where the indication information is generated by a first access network device according to a service switching request sent by the second access network device, the service switching request is used to request that a service running on a terminal device is switched from the second access network device to the first access network device, and the running service includes: a first service and a second service;

a processor 1402, configured to support a first service using a first network slice according to the indication information received by the receiver, and support a second service using a second network slice, where the first network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the first service, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the first access network device and used for supporting the second service.

or the like, or, alternatively,

The access network device, the slice controller, and the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application are described above from the perspective of the modular functional entity, and the access network device, the slice controller, and the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application are described below from the perspective of hardware processing.

Referring to fig. 15, which is a hardware block diagram of an embodiment of an access network device according to an embodiment of the present application, the access network device 1500 may include one or more Central Processing Units (CPUs) 1522 (e.g., one or more processors) and a memory 1532, and one or more storage media 1530 (e.g., one or more mass storage devices) for storing applications 1542 or data 1544, which may have relatively large differences due to different configurations or performances. Memory 1532 and storage media 1530 may be, among other things, transient or persistent storage. The program stored on the storage medium 1530 may include one or more modules (not shown), each of which may include a series of instruction operations for the server. Still further, the central processor 1522 may be disposed in communication with the storage medium 1530 to execute a series of instruction operations within the storage medium 1530 on the access network device 1500.

The access network apparatus 1500 may also include one or more power supplies 1526, one or more wired or wireless network interfaces 1550, one or more input-output interfaces 1558, and/or one or more operating systems 1541, such as Windows Server (TM), Mac OS XTM, Unix (TM), Linux (TM), Free BSD (TM), and so forth.

The steps performed by the access network device in the above embodiments may be based on the access network device structure shown in fig. 15.

Referring to fig. 16, which is a hardware block diagram of an embodiment of a slice controller in an embodiment of the present application, the slice controller 1600 may have relatively large differences due to different configurations or performances, and may include one or more Central Processing Units (CPUs) 1622 (e.g., one or more processors) and a memory 1632, one or more storage media 1630 (e.g., one or more mass storage devices) storing applications 1642 or data 1644. Memory 1632 and storage media 1630 may be transient or persistent storage, among others. The program stored on the storage medium 1630 may include one or more modules (not shown), each of which may include a sequence of instructions operating on a server. Still further, central processor 1622 may be configured to communicate with storage medium 1630 to execute a series of instruction operations in storage medium 1630 on slice controller 1600.

Slice controller 1600 may also include one or more power supplies 1626, one or more wired or wireless network interfaces 1650, one or more input-output interfaces 1658, and/or one or more operating systems 1641, such as Windows Server (TM), Mac OS XTM, Unix (TM), Linux (TM), Free BSD (TM), etc.

The steps performed by the slice controller in the above embodiments may be based on the slice controller structure shown in fig. 16.

Please refer to fig. 17, which is a hardware block diagram of an embodiment of a terminal device in the embodiment of the present application, and for convenience of description, only a portion related to the embodiment of the present application is shown, and details of the specific technology are not disclosed. The terminal device may be any terminal device including a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a POS (Point of Sales), a vehicle-mounted computer, etc., taking the terminal as the mobile phone as an example:

fig. 17 is a block diagram illustrating a partial structure of a mobile phone related to a terminal device provided in an embodiment of the present application. Referring to fig. 17, the handset includes: radio Frequency (RF) circuitry 1710, memory 1720, input unit 1730, display unit 1740, sensor 1750, audio circuitry 1760, wireless fidelity (WiFi) module 1770, processor 1780, and power supply 1790. In the embodiment of the present application, the processor 1780 included in the terminal device further has the following functions: the program code stored in memory 1720 is called to perform the methods of the various embodiments described above.

Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the handset configuration shown in fig. 17 is not intended to be limiting and may include more or fewer components than those shown, or some components may be combined, or a different arrangement of components.

It is clear to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, the specific working processes of the above-described systems, apparatuses and units may refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus and method may be implemented in other manners. For example, the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely illustrative, and for example, the division of the units is only one logical division, and other divisions may be realized in practice, for example, a plurality of units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted, or not executed. In addition, the shown or discussed mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection may be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, and may be in an electrical, mechanical or other form.

The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of the embodiment.

In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the present invention may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be realized in a form of hardware, and can also be realized in a form of a software functional unit.

The integrated unit, if implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as a stand-alone product, may be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solution of the present invention may be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or an access network device) to execute all or part of the steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present invention. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: a U-disk, a removable hard disk, a Read-only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a magnetic disk or an optical disk, and other various media capable of storing program codes.

The above-mentioned embodiments are only used for illustrating the technical solutions of the present invention, and not for limiting the same; although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art that: the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments may still be modified, or some technical features may be equivalently replaced; and such modifications or substitutions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the corresponding technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for processing a service, comprising:

the access network equipment receives a service request for creating a second service sent by the terminal equipment;

the access network device sends the indication information to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service and a second service using a second network slice, the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used to support the first service and the second service;

the indicating information is used for indicating the terminal equipment to use the second network slice to support the first service, and comprises the following steps:

the indication information is used for indicating the terminal device to adjust the first service transmitted by using a first network slice to be transmitted by using a second network slice, wherein the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the generating, by the access network device, the corresponding indication information according to the service request comprises:

the access network equipment acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal equipment according to the service request;

and the access network equipment generates corresponding indication information according to second configuration information of the access network equipment, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the first service information comprises: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the first service;

4. A method for processing a service, comprising:

the method comprises the steps that a slice controller receives a service request sent by access network equipment, wherein the service request is a service request for newly building a second service sent to the access network equipment by terminal equipment;

the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the service request;

the slice controller sends the indication information to the access network device, the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, the indication information is used for indicating that the terminal device uses a second network slice to support a first service and a second service, the first service is the existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and used for supporting the first service and the second service;

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the slice controller generating corresponding indication information according to the service request comprises:

the slice controller acquires first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal equipment and second configuration information corresponding to the access network equipment according to the service request;

and the slice controller generates corresponding indication information according to the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first service information comprises: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the first service;

7. A method for processing a service, comprising:

the terminal equipment sends a service request for establishing a second service to the access network equipment;

the terminal equipment receives indication information sent by the access network equipment, wherein the indication information is generated by the access network equipment according to the service request;

the terminal equipment uses a second network slice to support a first service and a second service according to the indication information, wherein the first service is the existing service on the terminal equipment, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network equipment and used for supporting the first service and the second service;

the terminal equipment supports the first service by using the second network slice according to the indication information, and the method comprises the following steps:

and the terminal equipment adjusts the first service transmitted by using a first network slice into the second service transmitted by using a second network slice, wherein the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

8. An access network device, comprising:

a transmitter, configured to send indication information generated by the processor to the terminal device, where the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service and a second service using a second network slice, the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and configured to support the first service and the second service;

9. The access network device according to claim 8, wherein the processor is specifically configured to obtain, according to a service request received by the receiver, first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service, and first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device; and generating corresponding indication information according to second configuration information of the terminal, the first service information, the second service information and the first configuration information.

10. The access network device of claim 9, wherein the first traffic information comprises: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the first service;

11. A slice controller, comprising:

the receiver is used for receiving a service request sent by access network equipment, wherein the service request is a service request for newly establishing a second service, which is sent to the access network equipment by terminal equipment;

a transmitter, configured to send indication information generated by the processor to the access network device, where the indication information is forwarded to the terminal device by the access network device, and the indication information is used to indicate that the terminal device supports a first service and a second service using a second network slice, where the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and configured to support the first service and the second service;

12. The slice controller of claim 11, wherein the processor is specifically configured to obtain, according to a service request received by the receiver, first service information corresponding to the first service, second service information corresponding to the second service, first configuration information corresponding to the terminal device, and second configuration information corresponding to the access network device; and generating corresponding indication information according to the second service information, the first configuration information and the second configuration information.

13. The slice controller of claim 12, wherein the first traffic information comprises: the service type and the network slice type corresponding to the first service;

14. A terminal device, comprising:

a receiver, configured to receive indication information sent by the access network device, where the indication information is generated by the access network device according to the service request;

a processor, configured to support a first service and a second service using a second network slice according to the indication information received by the receiver, where the first service is an existing service on the terminal device, and the second network slice is a virtual network configured on the access network device and configured to support the first service and the second service;

the processor is specifically configured to adjust the first service transmitted using a first network slice to be transmitted using a second network slice, where the first network slice is a network slice corresponding to the first service, and the second network slice is a network slice corresponding to the second service.

15. An access network device, comprising: a processor, a memory, and a bus;

the processor is connected with the memory through the bus, the memory is used for storing program codes, and the processor is used for calling the program codes to execute the method according to any one of claims 1-3.

16. A slice controller, comprising: a processor, a memory, and a bus;

the processor is connected with the memory through the bus, the memory is used for storing program codes, and the processor is used for calling the program codes to execute the method according to any one of claims 4-6.

17. A terminal device, comprising: a processor, a memory, and a bus;

the processor is connected to the memory through the bus, the memory is used for storing program codes, and the processor is used for calling the program codes to execute the method according to claim 7.