CN104349386A

CN104349386A - Method and device for realizing IP (internet protocol) flow mobility in multi-access system

Info

Publication number: CN104349386A
Application number: CN201310339782.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 周燕飞
Original assignee: China Academy of Telecommunications Technology CATT
Current assignee: China Academy of Telecommunications Technology CATT
Priority date: 2013-08-06
Filing date: 2013-08-06
Publication date: 2015-02-11
Also published as: WO2015018324A1

Abstract

The invention discloses a method and a device for realizing IP (internet protocol) flow mobility in a multi-access system. The limited resource of each accessing network can be effectively scheduled and used. The method comprises the following steps that on the basis of acquired resource information of the accessing network currently accessed by a terminal, a PCRF (policy charging and rules function) entity performs IP flow mobility decision on the terminal; the PCRF entity informs a PCEF (policy and charging enforcement function) entity of the result of the IP flow mobility decision. In the embodiment of the invention, due to the fact that the PCRF entity combines the resource information of the accessing network currently accessed by the terminal with a QoS (Quality of Service) request of IP flow, and the distribution of the IP flow of the terminal in each accessing network currently accessed by the terminal is adjusted, so the limited resource of each accessing network can be effectively scheduled and used.

Description

Method and device for realizing IP flow mobility in multi-access system

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method and an apparatus for implementing Internet Protocol (IP) flow mobility in a multiple access system.

Background

1) Multiple access and IP flow mobility

The multi-access technology enables the terminal to access an Evolved Packet Core (EPC) through different access systems at the same time, and the flow mobility technology enables the terminal to dynamically switch one or more IP flows currently carried and transmitted by the terminal between different access systems in the scenarios of mobility, network congestion, and the like. The IP Flow Mobility (IFOM) technology aims to research Packet Data Network (PDN) connection, IP Flow switching, IP Flow migration and seamless IP Flow distribution technology in a multi-access scene.

For example, referring to FIG. 1, the terminal is shown in the third Generation partnership project (3)^rdUnder the common coverage of general packet radio service (3 GPP) and Non-3GPP (Non-3 GPP), Voice over IP (VoIP) and video streaming in a session are put to a 3GPP access (3 GPP access) route, and Web browsing, File Transfer Protocol (FTP) downloading and Non-session video streaming are put to a Non-3GPP access (Non-3 GPP access) route, according to operator policy, user preference, service characteristics, and the like. Subsequently, the IP flows (i.e. Web browsing and non-session video flows) are moved to the 3GPP access route, as shown in fig. 2, because the quality of service requirements cannot be maintained for the Web browsing and non-session video flows due to non-3GPP access congestion.

2) IP flow mobility scheme

Currently, a 3GPP Network guides an Access technology and an Access Network selection of a User Equipment (UE) through an Access Network Discovery and Selection (ANDSF) policy. For the UE supporting IFOM, the ANDSF policy includes a prioritized access technology and an access network (optional) corresponding to an IP flow, where the IP flow is defined by a five-tuple (i.e., a source IP address, a destination IP address, a source IP port number, a destination IP port number, and a protocol identifier above an IP layer). Such as: for an IP flow with a destination port number of 80, the preferred access technology is: WLAN > E-UTRAN, wherein a Wireless Local Access Network (WLAN) needs to satisfy a Service Set Identification (SSID) = myOperator; assuming that all IP streams currently transmitted by the UE are transmitted through Long Term Evolution (LTE), when the UE can access a WLAN with SSID = myOperator, the IP streams should be moved to the WLAN transmission.

As a UE moves IP flows connected to a Packet Data Network (PDN) between multiple access technologies, it still needs to remain anchored to the same Packet Data Network Gateway (PGW) to maintain continuity. In order to implement the above anchoring, the UE and the PGW need to interact with target access system information of an IP flow of the UE, and currently, there are two ways of UE triggering and network triggering:

a) and triggering by the UE. The method realizes interaction by extending direct or indirect signaling between the UE and the PGW to carry IP flow mobility rules (including rule identification, routing filter (for describing IP flow), priority, routing address (corresponding access system information)). When a network-based mobility management protocol Proxy Mobile IP (PMIP) is used between the UE and the network and the WLAN access network is trusted, a scenario of the IP flow mobility procedure is as follows, as shown in fig. 3, and includes the following steps:

step 31, the UE is connected to the core network through 3GPP access and non-3GPP access at the same time, part of IP flow of the UE passes through 3GPP access route, the other IP flow passes through non-3GPP access network route;

step 32, the UE sends an IP flow mobility trigger signaling to the non-3GPP access, where the signaling includes an IP flow mobility routing rule, and the routing rule requires that a specific IP flow is routed through the non-3GPP access. How this rule is implemented in particular is determined by the protocol between the UE and the non-3GPP access.

Step 33, the non-3GPP access sends a Proxy Binding Update (PBU) message to the PGW, where the message includes an IP flow mobility routing rule provided by the UE, and specifically, the rule may be carried by a Protocol Configuration Option (PCO), and may also be implemented by extending PMIPv6 signaling.

Step 34, the PGW sends an IP-Connectivity Access Network (IP-CAN) session modification message to a Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF) entity, where the message carries changes of an IP flow of the UE and a mapping relationship of an Access system corresponding to the IP flow;

step 35, the PCRF entity saves the updated IP flow and the mapping relationship of the access system thereof, and sends a gateway control session (GW control session) and Quality of service (QoS) rule provision (QoS rules provision) message to the non-3GPP access;

step 36, the PGW returns a Proxy Binding Acknowledgement (PBA) message to the non-3GPP access, indicating that the IP flow mobility request is accepted;

step 37, the non-3GPP access returns an IP flow mobility response (IP flow mobility ack) message to the UE indicating that the IP flow mobility request is accepted.

b) And network triggering. In this way, IP flow mobility is triggered by the PCRF entity, specifically: the PCRF entity and Policy and Charging Enforcement Function (PCEF) need to maintain and maintain access system information per IP flow (per IP flow) granularity. The PCRF entity decides over which access system each IP flow should be routed and sends this information to the PCEF via Policy and Charging Control (PCC) rules. The implementation process of IP flow mobility based on the above scheme is shown in fig. 4, and includes the following steps:

step 41, the UE is connected to the core network through the 3GPP access and the non-3GPP access at the same time;

step 42, the PCRF entity receives the information of the new service, makes a policy decision and decides to route the relevant IP flow through the non-3GPP access;

step 43, the PCRF entity initiates a gateway control and QoS rule provision procedure to the non-3GPP access, and issues a QoS rule to the non-3GPP access, where the QoS rule includes an IP flow mobility routing rule;

step 44, the non-3GPP access executes QoS rules, such as reserved resources;

step 45, after the non-3GPP access executes the QoS rule, a response is returned to the PCRF entity;

step 46, the PCRF entity initiates a PCC rule providing procedure to the PGW and indicates to the PGW that the relevant IP flows should be routed through the non-3GPP access.

3) Accessing system resources and a PCC architecture;

the PCC architecture aims at providing a strategy and charging control method irrelevant to the access technology, which is suitable for 3GPP access such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Terrestrial Radio access network (UTRAN; Universal Mobile Telecommunications System, UMTS), evolution Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Terrestrial Radio access network (E-UTRAN), and non-3GPP access, including Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX), WLAN, etc. The PCC architecture comprises nodes such as PCRF, PCEF, Application Function (AF) and the like, wherein the AF sends a QoS requirement of a service, a PCRF entity makes a decision and forms a PCC rule to be issued to the PCEF, and the PCEF executes the rule and maps the data flow level QoS to the bearing level QoS. The core network control node issues the QoS requirement to the base station, and the base station carries out resource scheduling according to a set scheduling algorithm. For a scenario that a non-3GPP access technology accesses a core network, a non-3GPP access node needs to have a mechanism for guaranteeing according to a QoS requirement issued by a PCRF entity. The basic principle of implementing QoS policy and charging control by a PCC architecture in the presence of AF is shown in fig. 5.

As previously mentioned, wireless communication networks have evolved into a heterogeneous communication system that includes multiple access technologies and access networks. A key factor of a communication system is the allocation and utilization of resources. In the conventional technology, resource scheduling of various wireless access networks is performed separately, for example, resource coordination cannot be performed between an eNB and a WLAN Access Point (AP). However, for heterogeneous communication systems, resource scheduling for each access network individually is not conducive to optimal configuration of resources between networks. Therefore, it is important for the heterogeneous communication system to centrally perform resource scheduling and control. At present, the optimized resource scheduling methods mainly include the following methods:

a) based on the UE. The core idea of this kind of method is that the UE scans the surrounding networks (including cellular network and WLAN network, etc.), obtains its relevant information such as data rate, QoS capability, signal quality, etc., and combines the policy information to select the access network.

b) Based on the network. The core idea of the method is that the core network acquires the resource information of the access network, and then adjusts the selection strategy of the access network or performs admission control on the service request of the UE.

However, in existing solutions for implementing IP flow mobility, an access technology and an access network are selected based on a semi-static ANDSF policy, and since the real-time resource usage of the access network is not considered, the access network is easily congested, which is not beneficial to uniform and effective scheduling and use of limited resources of the access network.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the invention provides a method and a device for realizing IP flow mobility in a multi-access system, which can more effectively schedule and use limited resources of an access network.

The embodiment of the invention provides a method for realizing IP flow mobility in a multi-access system, which comprises the following steps:

the PCRF entity carries out IP flow mobility decision on the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

and the PCRF entity informs the PCEF entity of the result of the IP flow mobility decision.

In implementation, the PCRF entity obtains resource information of an access network according to the following manner:

the PCRF entity acquires resource information of an access network from an access network resource management entity ANRME;

the ANRME stores resource information of a third generation partnership project (3 GPP) access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, and the resource information of each access network stored in the ANRME takes the identifier of the access network as a unique key word.

As a preferred obtaining manner, the obtaining, by the PCRF entity, resource information of an access network from the ANRME specifically includes:

the PCRF entity receives resource information of an access network actively sent by the ANRME; or,

and the PCRF entity actively sends an acquisition request to the ANRME, wherein the acquisition request is used for requesting to acquire resource information of all access networks stored in the ANRME.

Based on the first preferred acquiring manner, the receiving, by the PCRF entity, the resource information of the access network actively sent by the ANRME specifically includes:

the PCRF entity receives resource information of all access networks stored by the ANRME, which is sent by the ANRME according to a set period; and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

and the PCRF entity receives the updated resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, wherein the ANRME sends the updated resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity after updating the resource information of the access network stored by the ANRME.

Based on the first preferred acquiring method, as a preferred processing method, the performing, by the PCRF entity, an IP flow mobility decision for the terminal according to the acquired resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed specifically includes:

after receiving the resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, the PCRF entity determines the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal served by the PCRF entity;

and the PCRF entity judges whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or the transmission is terminated according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

Based on the first preferred acquiring method, as another preferred processing method, the performing, by the PCRF entity, an IP flow mobility decision for the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network specifically includes:

the PCRF entity determines that the parameter information of the existing IP flow of the terminal served by the PCRF entity changes, or receives a trigger message sent by an Application Function (AF) entity or the PCEF entity;

the PCRF entity determines the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed from the acquired resource information of the access network;

the PCRF entity judges whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, or the PCRF entity determines the access technology and/or the access network for transmitting the newly added IP flow of the terminal according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

wherein, the trigger message carries information for identifying the existing IP flow of the terminal and the updated parameter information of the existing IP flow; or, the trigger message carries information for identifying a newly added IP flow of the terminal and parameter information of the newly added IP flow.

As another preferred acquiring manner, the acquiring, by the PCRF entity, resource information of an access network from the ANRME specifically includes:

the PCRF entity obtains resource information of an access network to which the terminal is currently connected from the ANRME after determining that parameter information of an existing IP flow of the terminal served by the PCRF entity changes or receiving a trigger message sent by an AF entity or the PCEF entity;

Specifically, the acquiring, by the PCRF entity, resource information of an access network to which the terminal is currently connected from the ANRME includes:

the PCRF entity determines the identifier of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed according to context information of the terminal stored by the PCRF entity or information carried in a trigger message sent by the AF entity or the PCEF entity;

and the PCRF entity sends request information carrying the identifier of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed to the ANRME so as to acquire the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

Based on the second preferred acquiring method, the PCRF entity performs an IP flow mobility decision for the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network, and specifically includes:

and the PCRF entity judges whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, or the PCRF entity determines the access technology and/or the access network for transmitting the newly added IP flow of the terminal according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the PCRF entity and the ANRME may be deployed independently or jointly, where:

if the PCRF entity and the ANRME are deployed independently, the PCRF entity and the ANRME are communicated through a defined standardized interface;

and if the PCRF entity and the ANRME are jointly deployed, the PCRF entity and the ANRME are communicated through an internal interface.

In the embodiment of the invention, the resource information of each access network comprises at least one of the resource use condition of the access network, the QoS (quality of service) provided by the access network and the backhaul link rate of the access network;

the resources of the access network include air interface resources and backhaul resources.

In the method provided by the embodiment of the invention, the PCRF entity makes an IP flow mobility decision based on the acquired resource information of the access network, and the PCRF entity combines the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed and the QoS (quality of service) requirements of the IP flow to adjust the distribution of the IP flow of the terminal in each access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, so that the limited resources of each access network can be more effectively scheduled and used, the phenomenon of congestion of the access network can be further avoided, and the service experience of a user is improved.

An embodiment of the present invention provides a PCRF entity, including:

the decision module is used for carrying out IP flow mobility decision on the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal;

and the notifying module is used for notifying the PCEF entity of the IP flow mobility decision result.

Further, the PCRF entity further includes:

the acquisition module is used for acquiring resource information of the access network from the ANRME; the ANRME stores resource information of a third generation partnership project (3 GPP) access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, and the resource information of each access network stored in the ANRME takes the identifier of the access network as a unique key word.

As a preferred obtaining manner, the obtaining module is specifically configured to:

receiving resource information of an access network actively sent by the ANRME; or,

and actively sending an acquisition request to the ANRME, wherein the acquisition request is used for requesting to acquire the resource information of all the access networks stored by the ANRME.

Based on the first preferred obtaining manner, the obtaining module is specifically configured to:

receiving resource information of all access networks, which is sent by the ANRME according to a set period and stored by the ANRME; and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

and receiving the updated resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, wherein the ANRME sends the updated resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity after updating the resource information of the access network stored by the ANRME.

Based on the first preferred acquiring manner, as a preferred processing manner, the decision module is specifically configured to:

after the acquisition module receives the resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal served by the terminal is determined; and judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or the transmission is stopped according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

Based on the first preferred acquiring manner, as another preferred processing manner, the decision module is specifically configured to:

determining that the parameter information of the existing IP flow of the terminal served by the terminal changes, or receiving a trigger message sent by an Application Function (AF) entity or the PCEF entity; determining resource information of an access network currently accessed by the terminal from the resource information of the access network acquired by the acquisition module; judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, or determining the access technology and/or the access network for transmitting the newly added IP flow of the terminal according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

As another preferred acquisition mode, the acquisition module is specifically configured to:

after determining that parameter information of an existing IP flow of a terminal served by the terminal changes or receiving a trigger message sent by an AF entity or the PCEF entity, acquiring resource information of an access network currently connected with the terminal from the ANRME;

Specifically, the obtaining module is specifically configured to:

determining an identifier of an access network currently accessed by the terminal according to context information of the terminal stored by the terminal or information carried in a trigger message sent by the AF entity or the PCEF entity; and sending request information carrying the identifier of the access network currently accessed by the terminal to the ANRME so as to acquire the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal.

Based on the second preferred obtaining manner, the decision module is specifically configured to:

and judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or the transmission is stopped according to the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal, which is acquired by the acquisition module, or determining the access technology and/or the access network for transmitting the newly added IP flow of the terminal according to the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal, which is acquired by the acquisition module.

if the PCRF entity and the ANRME are deployed independently, the obtaining module and the ANRME are communicated through a defined standardized interface;

if the PCRF entity is jointly deployed with the ANRME, the obtaining module communicates with the ANRME through an internal interface.

An embodiment of the present invention provides another PCRF entity, including:

a transceiver, at least one processor coupled to the transceiver, and a memory coupled to the transceiver and the at least one processor, respectively, wherein:

the processor is configured to perform an IP flow mobility decision on the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed; and informs the PCEF entity of the result of the IP flow mobility decision through the transceiver.

In an implementation, the transceiver is further configured to obtain resource information of the access network from the ANRME; the ANRME stores resource information of a 3GPP access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, and the resource information of each access network stored in the ANRME takes the identification of the access network as a unique key word.

Accordingly, the memory is configured to store resource information for the transceiver to obtain access to the network from the ANRME.

As a preferred acquisition mode, the transceiver is configured specifically to: receiving resource information of an access network actively sent by ANRME; or, actively sending an acquisition request to the ANRME, where the acquisition request is used to request to acquire resource information of all access networks stored by the ANRME.

In the preferred acquisition mode, the transceiver is configured to:

receiving resource information of all access networks, which is stored by ANRME and sent by ANRME according to a set period; and/or receiving updated resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, wherein the ANRME sends the updated resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity after updating the resource information of the access network stored by the ANRME.

As a preferred processing manner, the processor is configured to specifically:

after the transceiver receives the resource information of the access network sent by ANRME, the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal served by the transceiver is determined; and judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or the transmission is stopped according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

As another preferred processing manner, the processor is configured to:

determining that the parameter information of the existing IP flow of the terminal served by the transceiver changes, or receiving a trigger message sent by an Application Function (AF) entity or a PCEF entity by the transceiver; determining the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal from the resource information of the access network stored in the memory; judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, or determining the access technology and/or the access network of the newly added IP flow of the transmission terminal according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

As another preferred acquisition, the processor is configured specifically to: after determining that the parameter information of the existing IP flow of the terminal served by the transceiver changes or the transceiver receives a trigger message sent by an AF entity or a PCEF entity, triggering the transceiver to acquire the resource information of the access network currently connected with the terminal from the ANRME;

In the preferred acquisition mode, the processor is configured to: determining the identifier of the access network currently accessed by the terminal according to the context information of the terminal stored by the terminal or the information carried in the trigger message sent by the AF entity or the PCEF entity; and triggering the transceiver to send request information carrying the identifier of the access network currently accessed by the terminal to the ANRME so as to acquire the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal.

In the preferred acquisition mode, the processor is configured to: and judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission or not according to the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal stored in the memory, or determining the access technology and/or the access network of the newly added IP flow of the transmission terminal according to the acquired resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal.

Preferably, in the embodiment of the present invention, the PCRF entity may be deployed independently from the ANRME; alternatively, the PCRF entity may be co-deployed with the ANRME.

Further, if the PCRF entity and the ANRME are deployed independently, the transceiver of the PCRF entity communicates with the ANRME through a defined standardized interface; and if the PCRF entity and the ANRME are jointly deployed, the transceiver of the PCRF entity communicates with the ANRME through an internal interface.

The PCRF entity provided by the embodiment of the invention carries out IP flow mobility decision based on the acquired resource information of the access network, and because the PCRF entity combines the resource information of the access network and the QoS requirement of the IP flow to adjust the distribution of the IP flow of the terminal in each access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, the limited resources of each access network can be more effectively scheduled and used.

The ANRME provided by the embodiment of the invention comprises the following components:

the storage module is used for storing and maintaining resource information of a 3GPP access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, wherein the resource information of each access network stored by the storage module takes the identifier of the access network as a unique key word;

and the communication module is used for providing the resource information of the access network for the PCRF entity.

In implementation, the communication module is specifically configured to:

actively sending the resource information of the access network stored by the storage module to the PCRF entity; or,

after receiving an acquisition request sent by the PCRF entity, sending resource information of all access networks stored by the storage module to the PCRF entity; or,

and after receiving the request information sent by the PCRF entity, sending resource information of the access network corresponding to the identifier carried by the request information to the PCRF entity.

Further, the step of actively sending resource information of an access network to the PCRF entity by the communication module specifically includes:

sending the resource information of all the access networks stored by the storage module to the PCRF entity according to a set period; and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

and after the storage module updates the stored resource information of the access network, sending the updated resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the PCRF entity may be deployed independently from the ANRME, or jointly with the ANRME, where:

if the ANRME is independently deployed with the PCRF entity, the communication module communicates with the PCRF through a defined standardized interface;

and if the ANRME and the PCRF entity are jointly deployed, the communication module communicates with the PCRF entity through an internal interface.

The embodiment of the present invention further provides another ANRME entity, including:

the memory is configured to store resource information of a 3GPP access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, wherein the resource information of each access network stored in the memory takes the identification of the access network as a unique key word;

the processor is configured to maintain resource information for each access network stored in the memory;

the transceiver is configured to provide resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity.

In an implementation, the transceiver is configured to:

actively sending the resource information of the access network stored by the memory to the PCRF entity; or,

after receiving an acquisition request sent by a PCRF entity, sending resource information of all access networks stored in a memory to the PCRF entity; or,

after receiving the request information sent by the PCRF entity, sending resource information of the access network corresponding to the identifier carried by the request information to the PCRF entity.

Further, the transceiver actively sends the resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity, which specifically includes:

sending the resource information of all the access networks stored in the memory to a PCRF entity according to a set period; and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

after the storage module 141 updates the stored resource information of the access network, the updated resource information of the access network is sent to the PCRF entity.

Further, if the ANRME is deployed independently of the PCRF entity, the transceiver is configured to communicate with the PCRF over a defined standardized interface;

if the ANRME is co-deployed with the PCRF entity, the transceiver is configured to communicate with the PCRF entity over the internal interface.

The ANRME provided by the embodiment of the invention can provide the required resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity, so that the PCRF entity can consider the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal when making the IP flow mobility decision, and therefore, the limited resources of each access network can be more effectively scheduled and used.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of routing IP flows in different access systems based on operator policy in the background art;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating IP flow mobility triggered by network congestion in the background art;

fig. 3 is a schematic diagram of a UE-triggered IP flow mobility procedure provided in the background art;

fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a network-triggered IP flow mobility procedure provided in the background art;

fig. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a principle of implementing QoS policy and charging control by a PCC architecture provided in the background art;

fig. 6 is a schematic diagram illustrating a method for implementing IP flow mobility in a multi-access system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture combining an ANRME entity and a PCRF entity according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 provides a schematic diagram of a preferred process according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 provides a schematic diagram of another preferred process according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of an implementation process of a first embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of an implementation process of the second embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12 is a schematic diagram of an implementation process of a third embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 13 is a schematic diagram of a PCRF entity provided in the embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 14 is a schematic diagram of ANRME according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The PCRF entity of the embodiment of the invention carries out IP flow mobility decision on the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, thereby more effectively scheduling and using the limited resources of each access network.

The embodiments of the present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the drawings attached hereto.

Referring to fig. 6, a method for implementing IP flow mobility in a multi-access system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes the following steps:

and 61, the PCRF entity performs IP flow mobility decision on the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

Specifically, when performing an IP flow mobility decision for a terminal, the PCRF entity performs the IP flow mobility decision for the terminal by combining resource information of an access network to which the terminal is currently accessed and QoS requirements of an IP flow of the terminal.

In the embodiment of the invention, the IP flow mobility decision for the terminal comprises the IP flow mobility decision for the existing IP flow of the terminal (namely the IP flow currently transmitted by the terminal) and the IP flow mobility decision for the newly added IP flow of the terminal.

Specifically, making an IP flow mobility decision for the existing IP flow of the terminal includes determining whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or terminate transmission; the IP flow mobility decision for the newly added IP flow of the terminal may include selecting an appropriate access technology and/or access network for the newly added IP flow of the terminal.

Step 62, the PCRF entity notifies the PCEF entity of the result of the IP flow mobility decision.

Specifically, after completing the IP flow mobility decision, the PCRF entity notifies the PCEF entity of the result of the IP flow mobility decision, where the PCEF is generally deployed in the PGW.

In the embodiment of the invention, the PCRF entity carries out IP flow mobility decision based on the acquired resource information of the access network, and the PCRF entity combines the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed and the QoS requirement of the IP flow to adjust the distribution of the IP flow of the terminal in each access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, so that the limited resources of each access network can be more effectively scheduled and used, the phenomenon of congestion of the access network can be further avoided, and the service experience of a user is improved.

In implementation, the PCRF entity obtains resource information of the access network according to the following manner:

a PCRF Entity acquires resource information of an Access Network from an Access Network Resource Management Entity (ANRME);

the ANRME is used for maintaining resource information of each access network, the ANRME stores resource information of a 3GPP access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, and the resource information of each access network stored by the ANRME takes an identifier of the access network as a unique key word.

In a heterogeneous communication system, a newly added ANRME is used for storing and maintaining resource information of each access network, the ANRME stores resource information of 3GPP access networks (such as eNB, NodeB, home base station, etc.) and resource information of non-3GPP access networks (such as WLAN, WiMAX, etc.), and the resource information of each access network is stored in the ANRME with an identifier of the access network as a unique key; further, the identifier of the access network is different according to the type of the access network, and for the cellular network base station, the identifier of the access network may be a cell global identifier; for WLAN access, the identifier of the access network may be a Basic Service Set Identifier (BSSID), a generic Extended Service Set identifier (HESSID), an Extended Service Set identifier (ESS), or the like.

In this embodiment of the present invention, the resource information of each access network stored in the ANRME includes at least one of resource usage (e.g., percentage of resource usage) of the access network, QoS that can be provided by the access network, and backhaul link rate of the access network; the resources of each access network include air interface resources and backhaul (backhaul) resources.

In the embodiment of the invention, the ANRME and the PCRF entity can directly interact. When the ANRME and the PCRF entity are deployed, the following two modes are adopted:

in the first mode, the ANRME may be deployed as an independent functional entity in the network, that is, the PCRF entity and the ANRME are deployed independently, and at this time, the PCRF entity and the ANRME communicate with each other through a defined standardized interface;

in the second mode, the ANRME and the PCRF entity are jointly configured in one enhanced resource and policy management function block, that is, the PCRF entity and the ANRME are jointly deployed, at this time, the PCRF entity and the ANRME communicate with each other through an internal interface, the deployment mode is shown in fig. 7, in which the ANRME and the PCRF entity are jointly configured in one enhanced resource and policy management function block and communicate through the internal interface.

In implementation, the PCRF entity obtains resource information of the access network from the ANRME, specifically including the following two ways:

the method A, PCRF entity obtains the resource information of the access network from the ANRME in advance and stores the resource information, so as to perform the IP flow mobility decision based on the stored resource information of the access network when the IP flow mobility decision needs to be performed.

In an embodiment, the method a further includes the following two methods:

the method A1 includes that a PCRF entity receives resource information of an access network actively sent by ANRME;

further, the mode a1 includes:

the PCRF entity receives resource information of all access networks stored by ANRME, which is sent by the ANRME according to a set period; and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

In the method a2, the PCRF entity actively sends an acquisition request to the ANRME, where the acquisition request is used to request to acquire resource information of all access networks stored in the ANRME.

Based on the method a1 and the method a2, after receiving the resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, the PCRF entity stores the acquired resource information of each access network.

Based on the method a1 and the method a2, in step 61, the PCRF entity performs an IP flow mobility decision for the terminal according to the acquired resource information of the access network to which the terminal currently accesses, specifically including the following two processing methods:

the method comprises the steps that after receiving resource information of an access network sent by ANRME, a PCRF entity directly makes an IP flow mobility decision on a service terminal; the method specifically comprises the following steps:

after receiving the resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, the PCRF entity determines the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal of the service of the PCRF entity; and

Further, if at least one IP flow currently transmitted by the terminal needs to be moved, in step 62, the PCRF entity notifies the PCEF entity of information (such as a packet filter corresponding to the IP flow) for identifying the IP flow that needs to be moved and a target access network corresponding to the IP flow that needs to be moved;

if at least one IP flow currently transmitted by the terminal needs to terminate transmission, in step 62, the PCRF entity notifies the PCEF entity of information for identifying the IP flow that needs to terminate transmission.

In implementation, the PCRF entity determines resource information of an access network to which a terminal serving itself is currently accessed according to the following steps:

the PCRF entity acquires the identifications of all access networks currently accessed by the terminal according to the stored context information of each terminal; and

and the PCRF entity determines the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal from the acquired resource information of all the access networks according to the identifiers of all the access networks currently accessed by the terminal.

It should be noted that the identifiers of all access networks currently accessed by each terminal are transferred to the PCRF entity through the PCEF entity (PGW) when the terminal establishes an IP connection through each access network.

Taking the example that the ANRME reports the resource information of each access network stored in the ANRME to the PCRF entity at a certain frequency, a process of processing by the PCRF entity using the first method is described below, as shown in fig. 8, including:

step 81, after receiving the access network resource information sent by the ANRME, the PCRF entity may obtain the resource information of the access network to which the UE is currently accessed according to the access network identifier to which the UE is currently accessed.

Step 82, the PCRF entity comprehensively judges whether an access network currently accessed by the UE meets the IP flow requirement transmitted by the UE according to a set algorithm;

if the judgment result is that one or more IP flows need to be moved or terminated, go to step 83;

otherwise, go to step 84;

step 83, the PCRF entity sends an indication message to a pcef (pgw) anchored by an IP flow that needs to be moved and/or terminated;

the indication information includes an IP flow mobility trigger message and/or an IP flow termination message, where the IP flow mobility trigger message carries information of an IP flow that needs to be moved and corresponding target access information (a target access technology and/or a target access network), and the IP flow termination message carries information of an IP flow that needs to be terminated.

And step 84, ending.

It should be noted that, in the first method, the PCRF entity may perform the IP flow mobility decision on each terminal served by the PCRF entity, may perform the IP flow mobility decision only on some terminals served by the PCRF entity, and may perform the IP flow mobility decision only on a certain specific terminal.

The second method is that the PCRF entity carries out IP flow mobility decision on the IP flow of a certain terminal when receiving internal trigger or external trigger, wherein the external trigger is a trigger message sent by an AF entity or a PCEF entity; the method specifically comprises the following steps:

the PCRF entity determines that parameter information of an existing IP flow of a terminal served by the PCRF entity changes (i.e., internal triggering, such as a change in QoS requirements or a change in subscription information, etc.), or receives a trigger message sent by an AF entity or a PCEF entity, where the trigger message is used to trigger an IP flow mobility decision of the existing IP flow or a newly added IP flow of the terminal, specifically refer to a 3GPP TS23.203 protocol;

the PCRF entity determines the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed from the acquired resource information of the access network; and

and the PCRF entity judges whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, or the PCRF entity determines the access technology and/or the access network of the newly added IP flow of the transmission terminal according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

In the embodiment of the present invention, if an IP flow mobility decision of an existing IP flow or a newly added IP flow of a terminal is triggered, a trigger message sent by an AF entity or a PCEF entity to a PCRF entity carries:

information for identifying an existing IP flow of the terminal (e.g., a packet filter of the existing IP flow) and updated parameter information of the existing IP flow (e.g., an updated QoS requirement);

if the IP flow mobility decision of the newly added IP flow of the terminal is triggered, the trigger message sent by the AF entity or the PCEF entity to the PCRF entity carries:

information for identifying the newly added IP flow of the terminal (e.g., a packet filter of the existing IP flow) and parameter information of the newly added IP flow.

If the AF entity triggers an IP flow mobility decision of a newly added IP flow of the terminal, the trigger message sent by the AF entity to the PCRF entity also carries the IP address of the terminal.

When an entity needs to make an IP flow mobility decision for a certain terminal, a mode B, PCRF obtains resource information of an access network to which the terminal is currently accessed from an ANRME; the method specifically comprises the following steps:

the method comprises the steps that a PCRF entity obtains resource information of an access network to which a terminal is currently connected from an ANRME after determining that parameter information of an existing IP flow of the terminal served by the PCRF entity changes (namely, internal triggering, such as change of QoS (quality of service) requirements or change of subscription information and the like), or after receiving a triggering message (namely, external triggering) sent by an AF entity or a PCEF entity;

the trigger message is used to trigger an IP flow mobility decision of an existing IP flow or a newly added IP flow of the terminal, specifically refer to a 3GPP TS23.203 protocol.

In implementation, if the internal trigger is internal trigger, the PCRF entity determines, according to context information of the terminal stored by the PCRF entity, an identifier of an access network to which the terminal is currently accessed; the PCRF entity sends request information carrying the identifier of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed to the ANRME so as to acquire resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

if the trigger is external trigger, the PCRF entity determines the identifier of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed according to the information carried in the trigger message sent by the AF entity or the PCEF entity, or the PCRF entity according to the context information of the terminal stored by the PCRF entity; and the PCRF entity sends request information carrying the identifier of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed to the ANRME so as to acquire the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

Based on the method B, in step 61, the PCRF entity performs an IP flow mobility decision for the terminal according to the obtained resource information of the access network to which the terminal currently accesses, specifically including:

Specifically, if the existing IP flow is triggered, that is, the PCRF entity determines that the parameter information of the existing IP flow of the terminal changes, or the AF entity or the PCEF entity triggers the IP flow mobility decision of the existing IP flow of the terminal through a trigger message, the PCRF entity determines whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or terminate transmission according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

further, if the determination result is that the existing IP flow needs to be moved, in step 62, the PCRF entity notifies the PCEF entity of information (such as a packet filter corresponding to the IP flow) for identifying the existing IP flow and a target access network corresponding to the existing IP flow; if the judgment result is that the existing IP flow needs to terminate transmission, in step 62, the PCRF entity notifies the PCEF entity of information for identifying the existing IP flow; otherwise, ending the IP flow mobility decision.

If the new IP flow is triggered, namely the AF entity or the PCEF entity triggers the IP flow mobility decision of the new IP flow of the terminal through a trigger message, the PCRF entity determines the access technology and/or the access network for transmitting the new IP flow of the terminal according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

further, in step 62, the PCRF entity notifies the determined access technology and/or access network for transmitting the new IP flow to the PCEF entity anchored by the new IP flow.

A process of processing by using the method two for the PCRF entity is described below with reference to a specific embodiment, and as shown in fig. 9, the process includes:

step 91, the PCRF entity receives an external trigger or an internal trigger, where the external trigger includes a trigger message from the AF or the PCEF, and the internal trigger is determined by the PCRF. See 3GPP TS23.203 protocol for specific triggering procedures.

Step 92, the PCRF entity obtains the identifier of the access network currently accessed by the UE from the stored UE context or trigger message, and requests the ANRME for resource information corresponding to the identifier of each access network currently accessed by the UE.

After obtaining the resource information, if step 91 is triggered by the existing IP flow of the UE, step 93a is executed;

if triggered by the newly added IP flow, 93b is executed.

Step 93a, the PCRF entity determines whether the current IP flow needs to be moved or terminated according to the obtained resource information of the access network;

if yes, go to step 94;

if not, go to step 95;

and step 93b, the PCRF entity selects an access technology and/or an access network for the requested newly added IP flow according to the acquired access network resource information.

Step 94, the PCRF entity sends the indication information to the PCEF entity anchored by the triggered IP flow;

specifically, if the existing IP flow is triggered and the decision result is that the existing IP flow needs to be moved, the indication information is an IP flow mobility trigger message, where the IP flow mobility trigger message carries information of the existing IP flow and corresponding target access information (a target access technology and/or a target access network);

if the current IP flow is triggered and the decision result is that the current IP flow needs to be terminated, the indication message is a termination message, and the IP flow termination message carries the information of the current IP flow;

if the new IP flow is triggered, the indication information carries the information of the new IP flow and the access technology and/or the access network selected for the new IP flow.

And step 95, ending.

The following three specific embodiments are combined to describe a procedure for implementing IP flow mobility in a multi-access system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the first embodiment, in this embodiment, the ANRME actively reports resource information of each access network stored in the ANRME, and the UE accesses the core network through the LTE eNB and the WLAN AP, assuming that the identifiers of the corresponding access networks are: CGI _1, AP _1, may uniquely identify both the LTE cell and the WLAN AP. IP flows 1, 2 are transmitted by the eNB and IP flow3 is transmitted by the WLAN AP. After the ANRME reports the resource information of the access network to the PCRF, the PCRF determines whether it needs to trigger the IP flow mobility, and the process is shown in fig. 10 and includes:

step 101, the UE accesses the EPC through the eNB and the WLAN AP respectively.

In the process, the UE reports the accessed cell identifier CGI _1 and the WLAN AP identifier AP _1 to the PGW, the PGW reports the cell identifier CGI _1 and the WLAN AP identifier AP _1 to the PCRF entity, and the PCRF entity stores the identifier of the access network and IP flow information transmitted by the access network.

Step 102, the ANRME reports resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity, where the resource information of the network identified by the CGI _1 and the AP _1 is included, and the details are as follows:

the QCI packet loss rate corresponding to IP flow2 by CGI _1 is from 10^-3Is raised to 10^-2And the others are unchanged;

the QCI packet loss rate corresponding to the IP flow2 by the AP _1 is 10^-3。

Step 103, the PCRF entity performs policy judgment (i.e., IP flow mobility decision); the method specifically comprises the following steps:

the PCRF entity can know the resource information of the current access network of the UE according to the resource information of the access network obtained in step 101 and the context information of the UE stored in the PCRF entity; in conjunction with the QoS requirements required for the IP flow, the PCRF entity may determine that the cell identified by CGI _1 is no longer suitable for transporting IP flow2, while the WLAN AP identified by AP _1 may transport IP flow 2.

Step 104, the PCRF entity sends an IP-CAN session modification message to the PGW anchored by the IP flow2, where the IP-CAN session modification message includes a packet filter (packet filter for IPflow 2) corresponding to the IP flow2 and a target access indication (target access), which indicates that the IP flow2 should use WLAN access transmission, where the target access is WLAN in this embodiment.

In a second embodiment, in the present embodiment, under the trigger of the AF entity, the PCRF entity requests the ANRME for resource information of the access network, where the preset condition in this embodiment is different from that in the first embodiment in that: and the PCRF entity requests the ANRME for accessing the resource information of the network under the trigger of the AF entity. Setting an AF entity to send new IP flow information to a PCRF entity, where the PCRF entity obtains resource information of an access network under the trigger of a trigger message sent by the AF entity, and determines an access technology to be selected by a new IP flow, where the process is shown in fig. 11 and includes:

and step 111, the UE accesses the EPC through the eNB and the WLAN AP respectively.

Step 112a, the AF entity sends application or service information to the PCRF entity, which includes the QoS requirement of IP flow 4 (i.e. the new IP flow), and the UE IP address.

And step 112b, the PCRF entity returns a response.

Step 113, PCRF obtains the resource information of the access network currently accessed by UE from ANRME; the method specifically comprises the following steps:

the PCRF entity can find the corresponding UE context information according to the UE IP address received in step 111, and further obtain the identifier of the access network to which the UE is currently accessed; the PCRF entity uses the identifier to acquire resource information of a corresponding access network from the ANRME, and the acquired resource information is as follows:

the delay that CGI _1 can provide for the QCI corresponding to IP flow 4 is 100 ms;

AP _1 may provide a delay of 200ms for the QCI corresponding to IP flow 4.

Step 114, the PCRF entity performs policy judgment (i.e., IP flow mobility decision); the method specifically comprises the following steps:

the PCRF entity determines that the IP flow should be transmitted by the eNB according to the subscription information and the QoS requirement of the IP flow 4 obtained in step 112 a.

Step 115, the PCRF entity sends an IP-CAN session modification message to the PGW anchored by the IP flow 4, where the message includes a packet filter and a target access indication (E-UTRAN) corresponding to the IP flow 4, and indicates that the IP flow 4 should use the E-UTRAN for access transmission.

In a third embodiment, in the present embodiment, under the trigger of the PCEF entity, the PCRF entity requests the ANRME for resource information of the access network, where the preset condition in this embodiment is different from that in the first embodiment: and the PCRF entity requests the ANRME for accessing the resource information of the network under the trigger of the PCEF entity. The PCEF entity sends the updated QoS requirement (GBR is increased from 2M to 5M) of the existing IP flow3 to the PCRF entity under the trigger of UE, the PCRF entity obtains the resource information of the access network under the trigger of the trigger message sent by the PCEF entity and judges whether the IP flow3 needs to be moved or not. The process is shown in fig. 12, and includes:

step 121, the UE accesses the EPC through the eNB and the WLAN AP, respectively.

Step 122, the UE sends a bearer resource request to a core network control node (not shown), wherein the bearer resource request contains the packet filter for IP flow3 and the updated QoS requirements (GBR =5 Mkbps). And the core network control node sends a bearer resource command to the PGW, wherein the bearer resource command comprises the information.

Step 123, the PCEF entity sends an IP-CAN session modification indication message to the PCRF entity under the trigger of step 122, where the IP-CAN session modification indication message includes the packet filter of the IP flow3 and the updated QoS requirement.

Step 124, the PCRF entity obtains resource information of the corresponding access network from the ANRME according to the identifier of the access network in the UE context information, specifically:

the load of CGI _1 has reached 85%;

the load of AP _1 has also reached 75%.

Step 125, the PCRF entity performs policy judgment (i.e., IP flow mobility decision); the method specifically comprises the following steps:

and the PCRF entity judges that the access network currently accessed by the UE cannot meet the QoS requirement of updating the IP flow3 and decides to terminate the transmission of the IP flow 3.

Step 126, the PCRF entity returns an IP-CAN session modification response to the PCEF entity anchored by IP flow3, where the IP-CAN session modification response includes an indication to terminate IP flow3 (Termination of IP flow 3).

The above method process flow may be implemented by a software program, which may be stored in a storage medium, and when the stored software program is called, the above method steps are performed.

Based on the same inventive concept, the embodiment of the present invention further provides a PCRF entity, and since the principle of solving the problem of the PCRF entity is similar to the method for implementing IP flow mobility in the multi-access system, the implementation of the PCRF entity may refer to the implementation of the method, and repeated details are not repeated.

Referring to fig. 13, a PCRF entity provided in the embodiment of the present invention includes:

the decision module 131 is configured to perform an IP flow mobility decision on the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network to which the terminal currently accesses;

a notifying module 132, configured to notify the PCEF entity of the result of the IP flow mobility decision.

In implementation, the PCRF entity further includes:

an obtaining module 133, configured to obtain resource information of an access network from an ANRME;

the ANRME stores resource information of a 3GPP access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, and the resource information of each access network stored in the ANRME takes the identification of the access network as a unique key word.

As a preferred obtaining manner, the obtaining module 133 is specifically configured to:

receiving resource information of an access network actively sent by ANRME; or, actively sending an acquisition request to the ANRME, where the acquisition request is used to request to acquire resource information of all access networks stored by the ANRME.

In this preferred acquisition mode, the acquisition module 133 is specifically configured to:

As an optimal processing manner, the decision module 131 is specifically configured to:

after the obtaining module 133 receives the resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, it determines the resource information of the access network to which the terminal serving itself is currently accessed; and judging whether the IP flow currently transmitted by the terminal needs to be moved or the transmission is stopped according to the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal.

As another preferred processing manner, the decision module 131 is specifically configured to:

determining that the parameter information of the existing IP flow of the terminal served by the terminal changes, or receiving a trigger message sent by an Application Function (AF) entity or a PCEF entity; determining the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal from the resource information of the access network acquired by the acquisition module; judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, or determining the access technology and/or the access network of the newly added IP flow of the transmission terminal according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

wherein, the triggering message carries the information for identifying the existing IP flow of the terminal and the updated parameter information of the existing IP flow; or, the trigger message carries information for identifying a newly added IP flow of the terminal and parameter information of the newly added IP flow.

As another preferred acquiring manner, the acquiring module 133 is specifically configured to:

after determining that the parameter information of the existing IP flow of the terminal served by the terminal changes or receiving a trigger message sent by an AF entity or a PCEF entity, acquiring the resource information of an access network currently connected with the terminal from ANRME;

determining the identifier of the access network currently accessed by the terminal according to the context information of the terminal stored by the terminal or the information carried in the trigger message sent by the AF entity or the PCEF entity; and sending request information carrying the identifier of the access network currently accessed by the terminal to the ANRME so as to acquire the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal.

In the preferred acquisition mode, the decision module 131 is specifically configured to:

according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal currently accesses, which is obtained by the obtaining module 133, it is determined whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or the transmission is terminated, or according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal currently accesses, which is obtained by the obtaining module, an access technology and/or an access network for transmitting the newly added IP flow of the terminal is determined.

Further, if the PCRF entity and the ANRME are deployed independently, the obtaining module 133 of the PCRF entity communicates with the ANRME through a defined standardized interface; if the PCRF entity is deployed in conjunction with the ANRME, the obtaining module 133 of the PCRF entity communicates with the ANRME through an internal interface.

Based on the foregoing embodiments, referring to fig. 14, an embodiment of the present invention provides an access network resource management entity ANRME, including:

a storage module 141, configured to store and maintain resource information of a 3GPP access network and resource information of a non-3GPP access network, where the resource information of each access network stored by the storage module 141 takes an identifier of the access network as a unique key;

a communication module 142, configured to provide resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity.

In implementation, the communication module 142 is specifically configured to:

actively sending the resource information of the access network stored by the storage module 141 to the PCRF entity; or,

after receiving an acquisition request sent by the PCRF entity, sending resource information of all access networks stored by the storage module 141 to the PCRF entity; or,

Further, the communication module 142 actively sends resource information of the access network to the PCRF entity, specifically including:

according to a set period, sending the resource information of all the access networks stored in the storage module 141 to the PCRF entity; and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

Further, if the ANRME is deployed independently of the PCRF entity, the communication module 142 communicates with the PCRF through a defined standardized interface;

if the ANRME is deployed jointly with the PCRF entity, the communication module 142 communicates with the PCRF entity through the internal interface.

The following describes a structure and a processing manner of the PCRF entity provided in the embodiment of the present invention with reference to a specific hardware structure.

In the embodiment of fig. 13, the PCRF entity includes a transceiver, at least one processor connected with the transceiver, and a memory connected with the transceiver and the at least one processor, respectively, wherein:

In the first preferred acquisition mode, the transceiver is configured to:

Based on the first preferred acquiring means, as a preferred processing means, the processor is configured to specifically:

As another preferred approach, the processor is configured specifically to:

Based on the second preferred acquisition mode, the processor is configured to: and judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or stops transmission or not according to the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal stored in the memory, or determining the access technology and/or the access network of the newly added IP flow of the transmission terminal according to the acquired resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal.

The following describes a structure and a processing method of the ANRME provided in the embodiments of the present invention with reference to a specific hardware structure.

In the embodiment of fig. 14, the ANRME entity comprises a transceiver, at least one processor coupled to the transceiver, and memory coupled to the transceiver and the at least one processor, respectively, wherein:

In an implementation, the transceiver is configured to:

As will be appreciated by one skilled in the art, embodiments of the present invention may be provided as a method, system, or computer program product. Accordingly, the present invention may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, the present invention may take the form of a computer program product embodied on one or more computer-usable storage media (including, but not limited to, disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, and the like) having computer-usable program code embodied therein.

The present invention is described with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will be understood that each flow and/or block of the flow diagrams and/or block diagrams, and combinations of flows and/or blocks in the flow diagrams and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described, additional variations and modifications in those embodiments may occur to those skilled in the art once they learn of the basic inventive concepts. Therefore, it is intended that the appended claims be interpreted as including preferred embodiments and all such alterations and modifications as fall within the scope of the invention.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present invention fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention and their equivalents, the present invention is also intended to include such modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A method for implementing IP flow mobility in a multi-access system, the method comprising:

a Policy and Charging Rules Function (PCRF) entity performs an IP flow mobility decision on a terminal based on acquired resource information of an access network to which the terminal is currently accessed;

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the PCRF entity obtains resource information for an access network according to:

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the acquiring, by the PCRF entity, the resource information of the access network from the ANRME includes:

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the receiving, by the PCRF entity, the resource information of the access network actively sent by the ANRME specifically includes:

5. The method of claim 3, wherein the PCRF entity performs the IP flow mobility decision on the terminal according to the obtained resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed, specifically comprising:

6. The method of claim 3, wherein the PCRF entity performs the IP flow mobility decision on the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network, and specifically comprises:

7. The method of claim 2, wherein the acquiring, by the PCRF entity, the resource information of the access network from the ANRME includes:

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the acquiring, by the PCRF entity, the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently connected from the ANRME specifically includes:

9. The method of claim 7, wherein the PCRF entity performs the IP flow mobility decision for the terminal based on the acquired resource information of the access network, specifically comprising:

10. The method of claim 3, 4 or 7,

11. The method according to any of claims 1 to 9, wherein the resource information of each access network comprises at least one of resource usage of the access network, quality of service QoS providable by the access network, and backhaul link rate of the access network;

12. A policy and charging rules function, PCRF, entity, comprising:

13. The PCRF entity of claim 12, wherein the PCRF entity further comprises:

14. The PCRF entity of claim 13, wherein the acquisition module is specifically configured to:

15. The PCRF entity of claim 14, wherein the acquisition module is specifically configured to:

16. The PCRF entity of claim 14, wherein the decision module is specifically configured to:

after the obtaining module receives the resource information of the access network sent by the ANRME, the resource information of the access network currently accessed by the terminal served by the terminal is determined; and judging whether the existing IP flow of the terminal needs to be moved or the transmission is stopped according to the resource information of the access network to which the terminal is currently accessed.

17. The PCRF entity of claim 14, wherein the decision module is specifically configured to:

18. The PCRF entity of claim 13, wherein the acquisition module is specifically configured to:

19. The PCRF entity of claim 18, wherein the acquisition module is specifically configured to:

20. The PCRF entity of claim 18, wherein the decision module is specifically configured to:

21. The PCRF entity of any of claims 13-20,

22. An access network resource management entity, ANRME, comprising:

23. The ANRME of claim 22, wherein the communication module is specifically configured to:

24. The ANRME of claim 23, wherein the communication module is specifically configured to:

25. The ANRME according to any one of claims 22 to 24,