CN111107664B

CN111107664B - Resource management method, session management function entity and equipment

Info

Publication number: CN111107664B
Application number: CN201811260956.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 唐廷芳
Original assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Current assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-10-26
Filing date: 2018-10-26
Publication date: 2022-04-01
Anticipated expiration: 2038-10-26
Also published as: CN111107664A

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of wireless communication, in particular to a resource management method, a session management functional entity and equipment, which are used for solving the problem of resource allocation optimization during user plane resource management in the prior art. The session management functional entity receives an activation reason corresponding to a PDU session to be activated, which is sent by an access and mobility management functional entity; and the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason. The session management functional entity can reasonably allocate resources for the session according to the activation reason, thereby avoiding the influence on user experience caused by data loss during the user plane resource management, ensuring the resource allocation optimization and further improving the system performance.

Description

Resource management method, session management function entity and equipment

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of wireless communications technologies, and in particular, to a resource management method, a session management function entity, and a device.

Background

A Packet Data Unit (PDU) session is a session between a terminal and a Data Network (DN) to provide a PDU connectivity service. The PDU connectivity service refers to a service that provides PDU exchange between a terminal and a DN determined by a Data Network Name (DNN).

In current 5G systems, a selective activation/deactivation feature of PDU sessions is supported, i.e. when multiple PDU sessions are established for a User Equipment (UE), partial PDU sessions can be selected for activation/deactivation. For supporting low-latency high-reliability services, such as MPS (multimedia priority service), MCS (mission critical service), emergency services, and the like, in order to reduce the latency of the recovery of the delay-sensitive service, a PDU session serving the delay-sensitive service needs to allocate user plane resources whenever there is uplink data to be transmitted or not, when the UE is switched from an idle state to a connected state. However, for the PDU session of the service delay sensitive service of the UE, the management of the relevant user plane resources at the network side is controlled by the session management functional entity, and when the UE requests to activate the PDU session, the session management functional entity cannot know whether the PDU to be activated has uplink data to be transmitted or the PDU session of the service delay sensitive service, and cannot reasonably allocate the user plane resources for the PDU session requested to be activated.

In summary, the user plane resources required by each session cannot be optimally allocated when the user plane resources are managed.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a resource management method, a session management functional entity and equipment, which are used for solving the problem that user plane resources required by each session cannot be optimally distributed when user plane resources are managed in the prior art.

Based on the foregoing problem, in a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a resource management method, where the method includes:

a session management functional entity receives an activation reason corresponding to a PDU session to be activated, which is sent by an access and mobility management functional entity;

and the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason.

Optionally, the activation reason includes one or more of the following reasons: the PDU conversation to be activated has data to be transmitted, and the conversation attribute of the PDU conversation to be activated;

and the session attribute of the PDU session to be activated is to identify that the PDU session to be activated is a specific PDU session.

Optionally, the specific PDU session includes one or more of the following:

sessions for transmitting delay sensitive data, sessions requiring high priority allocation of resources;

wherein the always-on session is one of sessions for transmitting delay sensitive data.

Optionally, the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason, including:

and the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to at least one of a local policy and a session attribute of the current network and the activation reason.

Optionally, the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports the specific PDU session; or

The session attribute of the current network is that the current network does not support the specific PDU session.

Optionally, the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to one or more of the following manners:

if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network does not support the specific PDU session, the session management functional entity does not activate the PDU session without data transmission;

and if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports the specific PDU session, the SMF entity does not activate the specific PDU session without data transmission, or preferentially activates the PDU session with data transmission when resources are insufficient.

Optionally, after the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason, the local policy, and/or the session attribute of the current network, the method further includes:

and if the PDU session to be activated fails to be activated because the current network does not support the target session, the session management functional entity sends the reason of failure activation to the access and mobility management functional entity.

Optionally, the receiving, by the session management functional entity, an activation reason corresponding to a PDU session to be activated, where the activation reason is sent by an AMF, includes:

in the service request process, the session management functional entity receives an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, which is sent by the access and mobility management functional entity through a service request message; or

And in the process of updating the registration, the session management functional entity receives an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, which is sent by the access and mobility management functional entity through a registration request message.

Optionally, the method further includes:

after determining that the session attribute of the current network changes, the session management functional entity executes a PDU session modification process;

and the session management functional entity sends the updated specific PDU session indication information to the access and mobility management functional entity through the PDU session modification process.

Optionally, the determining, by the SMF entity, that the session attribute of the current network changes includes:

after receiving a PDU session modification request sent by UE, the session management functional entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes; or

After receiving the execution session management strategy modification process notified by the strategy management function entity, the session management function entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes; or

After the session management functional entity determines that the unified data management entity updates session management subscription data, the session attribute of the current network is determined to be changed; or

And the session management functional entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes according to the local policy or the notification of the RAN.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a session management function entity, including:

a processor, a memory, and a transceiver;

wherein the processor is configured to read a program in the memory and execute:

receiving an activation reason corresponding to a PDU session to be activated, which is sent by an access and mobility management functional entity;

and managing the user plane resources according to the activation reason.

Optionally, the specific PDU session includes one or more of the following:

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to:

and performing user plane resource management according to at least one of a local policy and the session attribute of the current network and the activation reason.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to:

the user plane resource management is carried out according to one or more of the following modes:

if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network does not support the specific PDU session, the PDU session without data transmission is not activated;

if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports the specific PDU session, the specific PDU session without data transmission is not activated, or the PDU session with data transmission is preferentially activated when resources are insufficient.

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

after the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason, the local policy and/or the session attribute of the current network, if the PDU session to be activated fails to be activated because the current network does not support the target session, the activation failure reason is sent to the access and mobility management functional entity.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to:

receiving an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, which is sent by the access and mobility management functional entity through a service request message in the service request process; or

And receiving an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, which is sent by the access and mobility management functional entity through a registration request message in the registration updating process.

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

executing a PDU session modification process after determining that the session attribute of the current network changes;

and sending the updated specific PDU session indication information to an access and mobility management functional entity through the PDU session modification process.

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to:

after receiving a PDU session modification request sent by UE, determining that the session attribute of the current network changes; or

After receiving a modification process of an execution session management policy notified by a policy management functional entity, determining that a session attribute of a current network changes; or

After determining that the unified data management entity updates session management subscription data, determining that the session attribute of the current network changes; or

And determining that the session attribute of the current network changes according to the local policy or the notification of the RAN.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a resource management device, including:

the receiving module is used for receiving an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, which is sent by the access and mobility management functional entity;

and the processing module is used for carrying out user plane resource management according to the activation reason.

Optionally, the specific PDU session includes one or more of the following:

Optionally, the processing module is specifically configured to:

Optionally, the processing module is further configured to:

Optionally, the receiving module is specifically configured to:

Optionally, the processing module is further configured to:

Optionally, the processing module is specifically configured to:

In a fourth aspect, embodiments of the present invention provide a computer-readable medium on which a computer program is stored, which when executed by a processor implements the steps of the method according to the first aspect.

According to the embodiment of the invention, when the PDU session of the terminal needs to be activated, the session management functional entity receives the activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated sent by the access and mobility management functional entity, the session management functional entity can know whether the PDU session requested to be activated is data to be transmitted or a specific PDU session (such as always-on session) according to the activation reason, the session management functional entity can reasonably allocate resources for the session according to the activation reason, a local policy and/or the session attribute of the current network, the influence of data loss on user experience during user plane resource management is avoided, the resource allocation optimization can be ensured, and the system performance is further improved.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a system architecture diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a resource management system according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a first method for activating a PDU session according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a second exemplary method for activating a PDU session according to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of session processing in a session modification flow according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of a session management function entity according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of a resource management device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a resource management method according to an embodiment of the invention.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, some terms in the embodiments of the present application are explained to facilitate understanding by those skilled in the art.

(1) In the embodiments of the present application, the terms "network" and "system" are often used interchangeably, but those skilled in the art can understand the meaning.

(2) In the embodiments of the present application, the term "plurality" means two or more, and other terms are similar thereto.

(3) "and/or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, meaning that there may be three relationships, e.g., a and/or B, which may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. The character "/" generally indicates that the former and latter associated objects are in an "or" relationship.

The network architecture and the service scenario described in the embodiment of the present invention are for more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, and do not form a limitation on the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present invention, and it can be known by those skilled in the art that the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present invention is also applicable to similar technical problems along with the evolution of the network architecture and the appearance of a new service scenario.

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention clearer, the present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and it is apparent that the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, 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 present invention will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a system architecture suitable for an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in fig. 1, in a future 5G system architecture, a terminal 101 may communicate with a core network via an access network entity 102, and the terminal may refer to a UE, an access terminal, a subscriber unit, a subscriber station, a mobile station, a remote terminal, a mobile device, a user terminal, a wireless communication device, a user agent or a user equipment. An access terminal may be a cellular telephone, a cordless telephone, a Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) phone, a Wireless Local Loop (WLL) station, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a handheld device with Wireless communication capabilities, a computing device or other processing device connected to a Wireless modem, a vehicle mounted device, a wearable device, a terminal in a future 5G network, etc. For convenience of description, fig. 1 only illustrates 1 terminal, and in an actual network, multiple terminals may coexist, which is not described herein again.

AN Access Network (AN) entity 102, which may also be referred to as a Radio Access Network (R) entity, hereinafter referred to as AN Access Network entity (R) AN entity, is mainly responsible for providing a wireless connection for the terminal 101, and ensuring reliable transmission of uplink and downlink data of the terminal 101. The Access network entity 102 may be a next generation Base Station (gNB) in a 5G System, which may be a Base Transceiver Station (BTS) in a Global System for Mobile communications (GSM) System or a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) System, a Base Station (NodeB, NB) in a Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) System, an evolved Node B (eNB or eNodeB) in a Long Term Evolution (LTE) System, or the like.

A Session Management Function (SMF) Entity 103, which may be configured to perform a part of functions of a Mobility Management Entity (MME) in the LTE system, and is mainly responsible for establishing a Session, managing the Session, and the like for the terminal 101. A suitable User Plane Function (UPF) entity may be selected for the terminal 101 according to the location information of the terminal 101.

The user plane functional entity 104 is a functional network element of the user plane of the terminal 101, and has main functions including packet routing and forwarding, Quality of Service (QoS) processing of user plane data, and the like.

An Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) entity 105 mainly includes a termination point of a radio Access network control plane, a termination point of a non-Access signaling, Mobility Management, lawful interception, Access authorization or authentication, and the like.

A Policy Control Function (PCF) entity 106 is mainly responsible for the functions of establishing, releasing, and changing the transmission path of the user plane.

An Authentication Server Function (AUSF) entity 107, whose main functions include user Authentication and the like.

A User Data Management (UDM) entity 108 is mainly responsible for managing the subscription Data of the User, and the like.

The Data Network (DN) 109 may refer to a Network providing services for the terminal 101, for example, some DNs may provide an internet function for the terminal 101, and some DNs may provide a multimedia message function for the terminal 101.

It should be noted that the above system architecture is only an example of the system architecture applicable to the embodiment of the present invention, and the system architecture applicable to the embodiment of the present invention may also add other entities or reduce part of the entities compared to the system architecture shown in fig. 1.

A PDU session is a connection between a terminal and a DN, providing a PDU connectivity service. The terminal may establish multiple PDU sessions to connect to the same DN or different DNs. The terminal may also establish PDU sessions served by different UPFs to connect to the same DN.

The state of the PDU session at least comprises an active state (active) and an Inactive state (Inactive or de-activated); the active state refers to a state that the user plane resources of the PDU session are already established, an end-to-end connection is established between the terminal and the DN, and data can be transferred through the PDU session.

When the UE is in an idle state, the state of the PDU session established for the UE is in an inactive state; and when the UE has uplink or downlink data transmission, activating the PDU session of the UE. However, for the delay-sensitive service, if the PDU session serving the service is activated each time the delay-sensitive service data needs to be transmitted, the delay is increased, so the session of this type of service is set to a specific session (always-on session), and the PDU session is activated when the UE changes from the idle state to the connected state regardless of whether there is data to be transmitted; however, resources of the active user plane of the session may not be transmitted with data, which results in resource waste, and especially, the session may still be activated when the always-on session attribute of the UE changes and moves due to the UE moving between PLMNs, and resource occupation caused by session activation without data transmission may also cause that a session actually having data transmission cannot acquire required resources, which results in data loss, which affects user experience.

Therefore, the embodiment of the present invention provides a resource management method, when a PDU session of a terminal needs to be activated, a session management functional entity receives an access and mobility management functional entity and sends an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, and the session management functional entity can know whether the PDU session requested to be activated is to-be-transmitted data or a specific PDU session (e.g., always-on session) according to the activation reason, so that the session management functional entity can reasonably allocate resources to the session according to the activation reason, a local policy and/or a session attribute of a current network; for example, when the resources are insufficient, the user plane resources are preferentially allocated to the PDU session with data transmission, so that the problem that the user experience is affected by data loss due to the fact that the session with data transmission cannot acquire the required resources is avoided.

The specific PDU session in the embodiments of the present invention includes but is not limited to:

PDU session for transmitting delay sensitive data, session requiring high priority allocation for resources;

wherein always-on session is one of PDU sessions for transmitting delay sensitive data.

As shown in fig. 2, a resource management system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: a session management function entity 20, an access and mobility management function entity 21 and a terminal 22.

A session management functional entity 20, configured to receive an activation reason corresponding to a to-be-activated PDU session sent by an access and mobility management functional entity; and managing the user plane resources according to the activation reason.

And the access and mobility management functional entity 21 is configured to send the activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated to the session management functional entity.

When a terminal selectively requests to activate the PDU session, the terminal sends the PDU session list requested to be activated to an access and mobility management functional entity, and the access and mobility management functional entity informs the session management functional entity to activate the session after receiving the request of the terminal and allocates user plane resources for the activated PDU session.

A PDU session list which is sent to an access and mobility management functional entity by a terminal and requires activation comprises a PDU session and a specific PDU session of data to be transmitted;

and the access and mobility management functional entity sends the activation reason of the PDU session to be activated to the session management functional entity when informing the session management functional entity to carry out session activation.

Optionally, the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason, the local policy and/or the session attribute of the current network;

wherein the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports the specific PDU session; or

In implementation, the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to one or more of the following modes:

mode 1, if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network does not support the specific PDU session, the session management functional entity does not activate the PDU session without data transmission.

Specifically, when the session attribute of the current network is that a specific PDU session is not supported, the session management functional entity only activates the PDU session to be transmitted with data, and does not activate the specific PDU session.

And 2, if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports the specific PDU session, the session management functional entity does not activate the specific PDU session without data transmission.

Specifically, an optional resource management manner is that, even if the session attribute of the current network is to support a specific PDU session, the session management function selects not to activate the specific PDU session without data transmission; that is, the session management function activates only the PDU session for which data is to be transmitted.

And 3, if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports the specific PDU session, preferentially activating the PDU session with data transmission when the resources are insufficient.

Specifically, under the condition that the session attribute of the current network is that a specific PDU session is supported, if the resource is insufficient, the PDU session with data transmission is preferentially activated, and the PDU session with data transmission that is preferentially activated may be the specific PDU session with data transmission or an unspecific PDU session with data transmission;

it should be noted that all PDU sessions requested to be activated may be activated when the resources are sufficient.

Optionally, after the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason, the local policy, and/or the session attribute of the current network, if the PDU session to be activated fails to be activated because the current network does not support the specific session, the session management functional entity sends the activation failure reason to the access and mobility management functional entity.

For example, when there are a plurality of to-be-activated PDU sessions, it is assumed that the to-be-activated PDU session a, the to-be-activated PDU session B, and the to-be-activated PDU session C are included; the activation reason of the PDU session A to be activated is data to be transmitted, the activation reason of the PDU session B to be activated is a specific PDU session due to the session attribute, and the activation reason of the PDU session C to be activated is data to be transmitted. If the current network does not support the specific session, the session management functional entity fails to activate PDU session B to be activated after carrying out user plane resource management, and then the session management functional entity sends the reason of the failure to the access and mobility management functional entity; the reason for the activation failure may be information indicating that the current network does not support a specific session.

The session management functional entity of the embodiment of the invention can receive the activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated sent by the AMF in the following process:

1. in the service request process, the session management functional entity receives an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, which is sent by the access and mobility management functional entity through a service request message;

2. and in the process of updating the registration, the session management functional entity receives an activation reason corresponding to the PDU session to be activated, which is sent by the access and mobility management functional entity through a registration request message.

The two processes are described in detail below.

Firstly, a service request process.

The manner in which the PDU session is activated during the service request is described in detail below.

The session management function entity is an SMF entity, the access and mobility management function entity is an AMF entity, and the specific PDU session is an always-on PDU session.

The UE in CM-IDLE state requests to establish a secure connection with the AMF entity through a service request procedure. This procedure is also used to activate the user plane connection for the established PDU session when the UE is in CM-IDLE and CM-CONNECTED states. The UE can selectively activate the designated PDU session through this procedure, and carry the PDU session list to be activated and the session list of always-on PDU session in the service request.

After receiving the service request of the UE, the AMF entity informs the SMF entity of session activation and informs the SMF entity of the reason for session activation.

This is explained below with reference to fig. 3.

The method for activating the PDU session as shown in fig. 3 includes:

step 301, UE sends a service request message to RAN;

the service request message can be sent through AN (AN) message, and the AN message carries AN AN parameter and a service request message;

the service request message includes, but is not limited to, the following information:

a list of PDU sessions that need to be activated, a list of allowed PDU sessions, security parameters, a PDU session status.

If the Service Request message is triggered by user data, the UE includes a PDU session list needing to be activated in the NAS Service Request message to indicate the PDU session needing to be activated by the UE. Under the condition that the UE has the always-on session, no matter whether the UE needs to transmit data to be transmitted or not, as long as the user plane resource of the current always-on session is not established, the UE needs to carry an always-on session list, and whether the corresponding PDU session list needs to be activated is to have the data to be transmitted or the always-on session can be distinguished.

Step 302, the RAN sends an N2message to the AMF entity;

the N2message carries N2 parameters and service request message; if the AMF entity is unable to process the service request, the AMF entity will reject the N2 message.

Step 303, if the service request message is not integrity protected or fails integrity protection verification, the AMF entity will initiate NAS authentication/security procedure.

Step 304, the AMF entity sends a first request message to the SMF entity;

the first request message may be an Nsmf _ pdusesion _ update smcontext request, and carries one or more of the following information:

PDU session identification, operation type, UE position information, access type and activation reason.

The AMF entity requests the SMF entity to activate the session to establish the user plane resource, and carries the activation reason of the corresponding session, for example, whether data is to be transmitted or always-on session user plane resource establishment or both. Optionally, the activation reason may be carried in a reason value manner, and in addition, the reason value may also be used in a flow of a non-always-on session, that is, to carry other activation reasons.

305, the SMF entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason, the local policy and/or the session attribute of the current network;

specifically, the SMF entity performs user plane resource management according to one or more of the following ways:

if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network does not support always-on session, the SMF entity does not activate PDU session without data transmission;

if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports always-on session, the SMF entity does not activate always-on session without data transmission, or preferentially activates PDU session with data transmission when resources are insufficient.

Step 306, PDU session ID is associated with the LADN and SMF entity determines that UE is outside the available area of the LADN based on UE location report from AMF entity, then SMF entity selects UPF according to policy.

Step 307, the SMF entity sends a session establishment request to the new UPF entity.

Step 308, the new UPF entity returns a session establishment response to the SMF entity.

Step 309, the SMF entity sends a session modification request to the session anchor point upf (psa) entity.

Step 310, the session anchor point upf (psa) entity returns a session modification response to the SMF entity.

Wherein, steps 307-310 are updating the user plane path.

And 311, the SMF entity and the old UPF entity interactively modify the original user plane tunnel information.

Step 312, migrating data between the old UPF entity and the new UPF entity;

specifically, forwarding of the buffered downlink data may be performed.

Step 313, migrating data between old UPF entity and session anchor point UPF (psa) entity;

specifically, forwarding of the buffered downlink data may be performed.

Step 314, the SMF entity sends a first response message to the AMF entity;

wherein, the first response message is an Nsmf _ PDUSESIS _ UpdateSMContext message, which comprises N2SM information and/or a reason for failure of activation;

the N2SM information includes one or more of the following:

PDU conversation identification, QFI, QoS configuration, CN N3 tunnel information, S-NSSAI and user plane safety implementation information;

and if the session activation fails because the current network does not support the always-on session, carrying the activation failure reason (reason value) in a response message returned to the AMF entity.

Step 315, the AMF entity sends an N2 request to the RAN;

the N2 request includes one or more of the following information:

n2SM information, security context, AMF signaling connection ID, handover restriction list, subscribed UE-AMBR, MM NAS service accept message, recommended cell/TA/NG-RAN node identifier list received from SMF;

if the session activation fails because the current network does not support always-on session, the activation failure reason (cause value) is carried in the NAS message returned to the UE.

Step 316, the RAN and the UE perform RRC connection reconfiguration;

specifically, the RAN performs RRC connection reconfiguration with the UE according to QoS information and data radio bearers for all QoS flows of the PDU session in which the UP connection is activated. If the UE is in CM-IDLE state and the UE does not trigger the service request procedure for signaling connection, the user plane security is established in this step; if the session activation fails because the current network does not support always-on session, the activation failure reason (cause value) is carried in the NAS message returned to the UE. The UE may update always-on session attributes of the corresponding session according to the relevant cause values.

Step 317, the RAN sends an N2 request acknowledgement to the AMF entity;

wherein, the NA request acknowledgement comprises N2SM information and/or PDU session identification;

the N2SM information includes one or more of the following:

AN tunnel information, AN accept QoS flow list of the PDU session whose UP connection is activated, and a reject QoS flow list of the PDU session whose UP connection is activated.

Step 318, recovering the user interface connection from the RAN to the UPF for the PDU session of the air interface bearer.

It should be noted that, in the mechanism for activating the PDU session in the service request process shown in fig. 3, an always-on session is used for example, and the same mechanism may also be used for the processing mode when the specific session is another session for transmitting delay-sensitive data or a session requiring high-priority allocation for resources, which is not described in detail herein.

And II, registering and updating.

The manner in which the PDU session is activated during the registration update procedure is described in detail below.

In the REGISTRATION update process of the UE, if data to be sent by the UE needs to be transmitted, a PDU session list that needs to be activated is included in a REGISTRATION REQUEST (REGISTRATION REQUEST) message to indicate that the UE needs to activate a PDU session. For the condition that the UE has always-on session, no matter whether the UE needs to transmit data to be sent or not, the always-on session list is carried as long as the user plane resource of the current always-on session is not established.

The AMF entity informs the SMF entity of session activation after receiving the request of the UE and informs the SMF entity of the reason for activating the session.

This is explained below with reference to fig. 4.

The method for activating the PDU session as shown in fig. 4 includes:

step 401, UE sends registration request message to RAN;

the registration request message can be sent through AN (AN) message, and the AN message carries AN AN parameter, AN RM-NAS (network management access system) registration request, a security parameter, a requested NSSAI (network configuration information), and a PSI (program specific information) list;

if the data to be transmitted by the UE needs to be transmitted, a PDU session list needing to be activated is included in the registration request message to indicate that the UE needs to activate the PDU session. For the condition that the UE has always-on session, no matter whether the UE needs to transmit data to be sent or not, the always-on session list is carried as long as the user plane resource of the current always-on session is not established.

Step 402, the RAN selects an AMF entity.

Step 403, the RAN sends a registration request message to the new AMF entity;

the registration request message can be sent through an N2message, and the N2message carries an N2 parameter and an RM-NAS registration request.

Step 404, when there is an AMF entity change, transmitting the context of the UE between the new AMF entity and the old AMF entity.

Step 405, if the SUPI is not provided, the new AMF entity performs identity interaction with the UE.

Step 406, the new AMF entity selects AUSF.

Step 407, the AMF entity initiates user authentication and completes the security authentication process.

Step 408, the new AMF entity notifies the old AMF entity that the UE is registered to the new AMF entity.

And step 409, interacting the new AMF entity with the UE by identification.

Step 410, the new AMF entity selects a UDM entity based on SUPI.

Step 411, the new AMF entity and the UDM entity complete corresponding interaction.

Step 412, the new AMF entity selects the PCF entity.

Step 413, the new AMF entity completes corresponding interaction with the PCF entity.

Step 414, the new AMF entity sends a second request message to the SMF entity;

the second request message may be an Nsmf _ pdusesion _ update smcontext request, and carries one or more of the following information:

Step 415, the SMF entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason, the local policy and/or the session attribute of the current network;

Step 416, the SMF entity sends a second response message to the new AMF entity;

wherein, the second response message is an Nsmf _ pdusesion _ UpdateSMContext message, which includes N2SM information and/or a reason for failure of activation;

the N2SM information includes one or more of the following:

Step 417, the new AMF entity sends a registration accept message to the UE;

wherein, the registration acceptance message includes one or more of the following information:

5G-GUTI, registration area, mobility restriction, PDU session state, allowed NSSAI, periodic registration update timer, LADN information, accepted MICO mode, IMS voice support PS session support indication, emergency service support prompt;

Step 418, the UE sends a registration complete message to the new AMF entity.

It should be noted that, in the mechanism for activating the PDU session in the service request process shown in fig. 4, an always-on session is used for example, and the same mechanism may also be used for the processing mode when the specific session is another session for transmitting delay-sensitive data or a session requiring high-priority allocation for resources, which is not described in detail herein.

After determining that the session attribute of the current network changes, the session management functional entity executes a PDU session modification process; and the session management functional entity sends the updated specific PDU session indication information to the access and mobility management functional entity through the PDU session modification process.

Optionally, the SMF entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes when any one of the following situations exists:

mode 1, after receiving a PDU session modification request sent by UE, the session management functional entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes;

specifically, the UE initiates a PDU session modification procedure by sending an NAS message;

the NAS message comprises an N1SM message packet and a PDU session identifier; the message packet of N1SM carries PDU conversation modification request;

wherein, the PDU conversation modification request contains one or more of the following information:

PDU session identification, packet filter, operation, requested QoS, Segregation;

the access and mobility management function entity calls the Nsmf _ PDUSessionUpdateSMContex to send a session context updating request to the SMF, wherein the session context updating request can also carry always-on PDU session attribute information.

Mode 2, after receiving the execution session management policy modification process notified by the policy management function entity, the session management function entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes;

the policy management function entity performs a session management policy modification procedure to inform the session management function entity about the modification of the policy. Such as triggered by policy decisions or AF (application function server) requirements, may also include that modifications to always-on session policies result in changes to attributes of always-on sessions for related sessions of the current network.

Mode 3, after the session management functional entity determines that the unified data management entity updates session management subscription data, determining that the always-on session attribute of the current network changes;

the unified data management entity updates the subscription data of the session management function entity through Nudm _ SDM _ Notification (SUPI); the session management function entity updates the subscription data and confirms to the unified data management entity by returning SUPI; wherein a subscription change may also trigger a change in the always-on session attribute of the relevant session of the current network.

Mode 4, the session management functional entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes according to a local policy;

the local policy triggers a change in the attributes of the always-on session of the relevant session of the current network.

Mode 5, the session management functional entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes according to the notification of the RAN;

when the AN resource of QoS Flow is released, the (R) AN should notify the session management function entity regardless of whether the (R) AN is configured with the notification control.

It should be noted that, in addition to the handover process from the 4G to the 5G network, the specific scenario for initiating and modifying the always-on session also includes scenarios such as when the UE moves between PLMNs with different always-on session attributes of the relevant session, modifying the session policy, and the like.

The above modes 2, 3 and 4 are used as session modification initiated by the session management functional entity.

This is explained below with reference to fig. 5.

Such as the session handling method in the session modification flow shown in fig. 5.

Step 501, the SMF entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes;

it should be noted that, in the presence of any of the above situations, the SMF entity determines that the session attribute of the current network changes.

502, modifying an interactive session management strategy between the SMF entity and the PCF entity;

the SMF entity needs to report some subscription events to the PCF by executing a session management policy modification process;

if the PDU session modification process is triggered by the above mode 2 or mode 4, this step can be skipped; if the dynamic PCC is not deployed, the SMF may decide whether to change the QoS profile through local policy; when PDU session modification only requires modification of the behavior of the UPF (e.g. gating), then steps 3 to 7 are not invoked.

Step 503a, for UE or AN initiated modification, the SMF entity responds to the AMF entity by Nsmf _ pdusesion _ UpdateSMContext (N2SM info (PDU session ID, QFI, QoS profile, session AMBR), N1SM container (PDU session modification command (PDU session ID, QoS rules operation, session AMBR))).

The N1SM content packet carries a PDU session modify command provided by the AMF entity to the UE, which includes QoS rules and corresponding actions to inform the UE that one or more QoS rules are added, deleted or modified.

Step 503b, for the modification requested by the SMF entity, SMF invokes Namf _ Communication _ N1N2MessageTransfer (N2SM information (PDU session ID, QFI, QoS profile, session AMBR), N1SM container (PDU session modification command (PDU session ID, QoS rules operation, session AMBR))).

If the UE is in the CM-IDLE state and ATC is activated, the AMF entity updates and stores the UE context based on Namf _ Communication _ N1N2MessageTransfer and skips steps 504, 505, 506 and 507. When the UE is reachable, e.g. when the UE enters CM-CONNECTED state, AM entity F forwards an N1 message to the UE to synchronize the context. For the always-on session, when the attribute supporting the always-on session changes, the session modification command initiated by the SMF entity carries the updated always-on PDU session indication information, and the flow can be the modification response initiated by the UE or the modification sent by the network.

Step 504, the AMF entity may send AN N2PDU session request (N2SM info, NAS message (PDU session ID, N1SM container (PDU session modify command))) message received from the SMF entity to (R) AN.

Step 505, (R) the AN issues UE interaction signaling related to information the UE receives from the SMF entity.

Step 506, (R) the AN may acknowledge the N2PDU session request by sending AN N2PDU session acknowledge (N2SM info (accepted/rejected qfi(s) list, AN tunnel info, PDU session ID), user location information) message to the AMF entity.

In step 507, the AMF entity forwards the N2SM information and the user location information received from the AN to the SMF entity through the Nsmf _ pdusesion _ update smcontext service operation.

Step 508, the UE sends a NAS message (PDU session ID, N1SM container (PDU session modification command acknowledge)) message to acknowledge the PDU session modification command.

Step 509, (R) the AN forwards the NAS message to the AMF entity.

Step 510, the AMF entity sends the N1SM container and the user location information received from the AN to the SMF entity.

In step 511, the SMF entity returns an Nsmf _ pdusesion _ UpdateSMContext reply.

In step 512, the SMF entity updates the N4 session of the UPF included in the PDU session, and the SMF entity sends an N4 session modification request (N4 session ID) to the UPF entity.

Step 513, the UPF entity returns an N4 session modification response to the SMF entity.

Step 514, the SMF entity informs the PCF entity whether to perform a PCC decision by performing a session management policy modification procedure.

It should be noted that, in the mechanism for activating the PDU session in the service request process shown in fig. 5, an always-on session is used for example, and the same mechanism may also be used for the processing mode when the specific session is another session for transmitting delay-sensitive data or a session requiring high-priority allocation for resources, which is not described in detail herein.

As shown in fig. 6, a session management function entity in an embodiment of the present invention includes: a processor 600, a memory 601, a transceiver 602, and a bus interface.

The processor 600 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 601 may store data used by the processor 1000 in performing operations. The transceiver 603 is used for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor 600.

The bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with one or more processors represented by processor 600 and various circuits of memory represented by memory 601 being linked together. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, and the like, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The processor 600 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 601 may store data used by the processor 600 in performing operations.

The processes disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention may be applied to the processor 600, or implemented by the processor 600. In implementation, the steps of the signal processing flow may be implemented by integrated logic circuits of hardware or instructions in the form of software in the processor 600. The processor 600 may be a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof that may implement or perform the methods, steps or logic blocks disclosed in embodiments of the present invention. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of a method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present invention may be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module may be located in ram, flash memory, rom, prom, or eprom, registers, etc. storage media as is well known in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 601, and the processor 600 reads the information in the memory 601 and completes the steps of the signal processing flow in combination with the hardware thereof.

Specifically, the processor 600 is configured to read the program in the memory 601 and execute:

receiving an activation reason corresponding to a PDU session to be activated, which is sent by an access and mobility management functional entity; and managing the user plane resources according to the activation reason.

Optionally, the specific PDU session includes one or more of the following:

Optionally, the processor is specifically configured to:

Optionally, the processor 600 is specifically configured to:

Optionally, the processor 600 is further configured to:

Optionally, the processor 600 is specifically configured to:

Optionally, the processor 600 is further configured to:

Optionally, the processor 600 is specifically configured to:

As shown in fig. 7, the resource management device according to the embodiment of the present invention includes:

a receiving module 701, configured to receive an activation reason corresponding to a to-be-activated PDU session sent by an access and mobility management functional entity;

a processing module 702, configured to perform user plane resource management according to the activation reason.

and the session attribute of the PDU session to be activated is to identify that the PDU session to be activated is a special PDU session.

Optionally, the specific PDU session includes one or more of the following:

Optionally, the processing module 702 is specifically configured to:

Optionally, the processing module 702 is further configured to:

Optionally, the receiving module 701 is specifically configured to:

Optionally, the processing module 702 is further configured to:

Optionally, the processing module 702 is specifically configured to:

Embodiments of the present invention further provide a computer-readable medium, on which a computer program is stored, where the computer program, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the above-mentioned method for the session management function entity.

Based on the same inventive concept, the embodiment of the present invention further provides a resource management method, and since the method corresponds to the method on the side of the session management function entity in the resource management system in the embodiment of the present invention, and the principle of the method for solving the problem is similar to that of the system, the implementation of the method can refer to the implementation of the system, and repeated details are not repeated.

As shown in fig. 8, a resource management method according to an embodiment of the present invention includes:

step 801, a session management functional entity receives an activation reason corresponding to a PDU session to be activated, which is sent by an access and mobility management functional entity;

and step 802, the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to the activation reason.

Optionally, the specific PDU session includes one or more of the following:

Optionally, the method further includes:

The present application is described above with reference to block diagrams and/or flowchart illustrations of methods, apparatus (systems) and/or computer program products according to embodiments of the application. It will be understood that one block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustrations, and combinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustrations, 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, and/or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer and/or other programmable data processing apparatus, create means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the block diagrams and/or flowchart block or blocks.

Accordingly, the subject application may also be embodied in hardware and/or in software (including firmware, resident software, micro-code, etc.). Furthermore, the present application may take the form of a computer program product on a computer-usable or computer-readable storage medium having computer-usable or computer-readable program code embodied in the medium for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system. In the context of this application, a computer-usable or computer-readable medium may be any medium that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport the program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

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 resource management, the method comprising:

the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to at least one of a local policy and a session attribute of a current network and the activation reason;

the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports a specific PDU session; or

The session attribute of the current network is that the current network does not support the specific PDU session;

the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to one or more of the following modes:

if the session attribute of the current network is that the current network supports the specific PDU session, the session management functional entity does not activate the specific PDU session without data transmission, or preferentially activates the PDU session with data transmission when resources are insufficient;

and the session attribute of the PDU session to be activated is to identify that the PDU session to be activated is the specific PDU session.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the activation cause comprises one or more of: the PDU session to be activated has data to be transmitted, and the session attribute of the PDU session to be activated.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the particular PDU session comprises one or more of:

4. The method of claim 1, wherein after the session management function entity performs user plane resource management according to at least one of a local policy and a session attribute of a current network and the activation reason, the method further comprises:

and if the PDU session to be activated fails to be activated due to the fact that the current network does not support the specific session, the session management functional entity sends an activation failure reason to the access and mobility management functional entity.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the session management function entity receives an activation reason corresponding to a to-be-activated PDU session sent by an access and mobility management function entity, and the activation reason comprises:

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the session management function entity determining that a session attribute of a current network has changed comprises:

8. A session management function entity, comprising: a processor, a memory, and a transceiver;

performing user plane resource management according to at least one of a local policy and a session attribute of a current network and the activation reason;

9. The session management function entity of claim 8, wherein the activation reason comprises one or more of: the PDU session to be activated has data to be transmitted, and the session attribute of the PDU session to be activated.

10. The session management function entity of claim 9, wherein the specific PDU session comprises one or more of:

11. The session management function entity of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to:

after the session management functional entity performs user plane resource management according to at least one of a local policy and/or a session attribute of a current network and the activation reason, if the current network does not support the specific session and causes the PDU session to be activated to fail to be activated, the activation failure reason is sent to the access and mobility management functional entity.

12. The session management function entity of claim 8, wherein the processor is specifically configured to:

13. The session management function entity of claim 8, wherein the processor is further configured to:

14. The session management function entity of claim 13, wherein the processor is specifically configured to:

15. A resource management device, comprising:

the processing module is used for carrying out user plane resource management according to at least one of a local strategy and the session attribute of the current network and the activation reason;

16. A computer-readable medium, on which a computer program is stored, which, when being executed by a processor, carries out the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 7.