CN112543511A

CN112543511A - Method, device, apparatus and medium for providing and discovering moving edge calculation

Info

Publication number: CN112543511A
Application number: CN201910891997.7A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 侯云静; 姜永; 陶源
Original assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Current assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-09-20
Filing date: 2019-09-20
Publication date: 2021-03-23

Abstract

The invention discloses a method, a device and a medium for providing and discovering mobile edge calculation, which comprises the following steps: after the access and mobility management function determines the mobile edge calculated address of the user equipment, the access and mobility management function provides the mobile edge calculated address to the user equipment. When the user equipment receives the address of the mobile edge calculation provided by the access and mobility management function, the mobile edge calculation is discovered according to the address of the mobile edge calculation provided by the access and mobility management function. By adopting the method and the device, the mobile edge computing application server is not discovered depending on the application layer any more, and the appropriate mobile edge computing application server can be found even if the application layer does not support service/equipment discovery or the application layer function cannot be executed.

Description

Method, device, apparatus and medium for providing and discovering moving edge calculation

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of wireless communications technologies, and in particular, to a method, device, and medium for providing and discovering a mobile edge calculation.

Background

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an edge computing network architecture, and as shown in the figure, the main network functions involved in the diagram are briefly introduced as follows:

AMF (Access and Mobility Management Function): the mobile terminal is mainly responsible for access and mobility management functions, registration, connection management and the like.

UPF (User plane Function): the Protocol Data Unit (PDU) session node is mainly responsible for external PDU session node interconnected with the Data network, routing and forwarding of the packet.

SMF (Session Management Function): the method is mainly responsible for session establishment and deletion, User plane selection and control, UE IP (User Equipment IP, UE: User Equipment, User Equipment; IP: Internet Protocol, Internet Protocol Address) Address allocation and the like.

NRF (Network storage Function): primarily responsible for supporting service discovery functions.

UDM (Unified Data Management): the method is mainly responsible for storing the information of the UE, such as subscription information and PDU session established information.

MEC (moving Edge Computing, Mobile Edge Computing):

the mobile edge computing technology migrates the computing storage capacity and the business service capacity to the network edge, so that data does not need to be transmitted back to the cloud as far as possible, and the waiting time of the data to and from the cloud and the network cost are reduced. Based on a 5G distributed cloud infrastructure, a 5G user plane and 5G MEC nodes are constructed in an edge cloud mode, and the 5G MEC nodes provide MEC application platforms to achieve deployment and management capacity of third-party applications. A user may obtain services through the MEC application.

The defects of the prior art are as follows: the MEC application server can only be discovered through the application layer.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a method, equipment and a medium for providing and discovering mobile edge calculation, which are used for solving the problem that an application layer is required to be relied on to discover an MEC application server.

The embodiment of the invention provides a method for providing MEC, which comprises the following steps:

the AMF determines the address of the MEC of the UE;

the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC.

In an implementation, the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC in a registration procedure of the UE or a configuration update procedure of the UE.

In an implementation, the AMF determines the MEC of the UE, including:

the AMF acquires MEC information signed by the UE from the UDM;

AMF interacts with NRF or NEF, and provides UE position and MEC information signed by UE for NRF or NEF;

the AMF determines the address of the MEC of the UE according to the address of the MEC returned to the AMF by the NRF or the NEF.

In the implementation, when the MEC information subscribed to by the UE changes, the method further includes:

the AMF receives the changed MEC information signed by the UE and sent by the UDM;

the AMF interacts with the NRF or the NEF and provides the position of the UE and the changed MEC information signed by the UE for the NRF or the NEF;

the AMF determines the address of the MEC of the UE after the change of the signed MEC information according to the address of the MEC returned to the AMF by the NRF or the NEF;

the AMF provides the address of the MEC of the UE after the change of the signed MEC information to the UE;

and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

when the location of the UE changes, further comprising:

the AMF interacts with the NRF or the NEF, and provides the changed position of the UE and MEC information signed by the UE for the NRF or the NEF;

the AMF determines the address of the MEC of the UE with the changed position according to the address of the MEC returned to the AMF by the NRF or NEF;

the AMF provides the UE with an address of the MEC of the UE after the location change. .

In an implementation, the method further comprises the following steps:

if the AMF determines to delete the data connection between the UE and the MEC, then:

the AMF instructs the SMF to release the data connection of the UE and the MEC, and the SMF releases the data connection of the UE and the MEC.

In implementation, when the AMF determines that the change of the subscribed MEC information and/or the change of the UE location affects the data connection between the UE and the MEC, the AMF determines to delete the data connection between the UE and the MEC.

In an implementation, the AMF determines that the MEC that has established a connection with the UE is obtained from the SMF, and the SMF notifies the AMF after the MEC establishes a connection with the UE.

In an implementation, when the address of the MEC is changed, the method further includes:

the AMF returns the address of the MEC of the UE to the AMF after the address of the MEC is changed according to the NRF or the NEF;

the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC of the UE after the address of the MEC is changed.

In an implementation, the address of the MEC is an address of an MEC application, or an address of an MEC platform, or an address of an MEC application server.

The embodiment of the invention provides a method for discovering MEC, which comprises the following steps:

receiving, at the UE, an address of the MEC provided by the AMF;

and discovering the MEC according to the address of the MEC provided by the AMF.

In an implementation, the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC during a registration procedure of the UE or a configuration update procedure of the UE.

In an implementation, the method further comprises the following steps:

and stopping sending data on the data connection between the affected UE and the MEC according to the AMF indication.

the method comprises the steps that the UDM receives a request for acquiring the MEC information signed by the UE, wherein the request is sent by the AMF;

the UDM inquires MEC information signed by the UE;

and providing the MEC information subscribed by the UE to the AMF.

and sending the MEC information of the changed UE subscription to the AMF.

An embodiment of the present invention provides an AMF, including:

a processor for reading the program in the memory, performing the following processes:

determining an address of an MEC of the UE;

providing the UE with an address of the MEC;

a transceiver for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor.

In an implementation, the AMF determines the MEC of the UE, including:

the AMF acquires MEC information signed by the UE from the UDM;

and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

when the location of the UE changes, further comprising:

the AMF provides the UE with an address of the MEC of the UE after the location change.

In an implementation, the method further comprises the following steps:

An embodiment of the present invention provides a user equipment, including:

receiving, at the UE, an address of the MEC provided by the AMF;

discovering the MEC according to the address of the MEC provided by the AMF;

In an implementation, the method further comprises the following steps:

An embodiment of the present invention provides a UDM, including:

after receiving a request for acquiring MEC information signed by UE (user equipment) sent by AMF (advanced metering framework), inquiring the MEC information signed by the UE;

providing MEC information signed by the UE to the AMF;

and sending the MEC information of the changed UE subscription to the AMF.

The embodiment of the invention provides a device for providing MEC, which comprises:

an AMF determining module, configured to determine, on the AMF, an address of an MEC of the UE;

an AMF providing module for providing the address of the MEC to the UE on the AMF.

The embodiment of the invention provides a device for discovering MEC, which comprises:

a receiving module, configured to receive, at the UE, an address of the MEC provided by the AMF;

and the discovery module is used for discovering the MEC according to the address of the MEC provided by the AMF.

a UDM receiving module, configured to receive, at the UDM, a request for acquiring MEC information signed by the UE, where the request is sent by the AMF;

a UDM inquiry module used for inquiring the MEC information signed by the UE;

and the UDM providing module is used for providing the MEC information subscribed by the UE to the AMF.

The embodiment of the invention provides a computer readable storage medium, which stores a computer program for executing the method.

The invention has the following beneficial effects:

in the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the invention, the AMF provides the address of the MEC for the UE, and since the app server IP/MEC server IP is sent to the UE from the control plane through the network element of the core network, the MEC application server is not found by depending on an application layer; therefore, even in the case where the application layer does not support service/device discovery or the application layer function cannot be executed, it is possible to find a suitable MEC application server.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description serve to explain the invention and not to limit the invention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an edge computing network architecture in the background of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a schematic flow chart of an embodiment of a method for providing MEC at AMF side according to the present invention;

fig. 3 is a schematic flowchart of an embodiment of a method for discovering MEC at a UE side according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a method for providing MECs on UDMs according to the present invention;

fig. 5 is a schematic flow chart of implementing MEC providing in the first embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a schematic flow chart of implementing MEC providing in the second embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic flow chart of implementing MEC providing in the third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of an AMF structure according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a UE according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a UDM structure according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The inventor notices in the process of invention that:

there are currently two main approaches to discovering MEC application servers:

1. the UE sends application discovery request information to an MEC enabling server to acquire a list of FQDN (full Domain Name) and IP addresses of the MEC application, and the UE finds the application server according to the list.

2. The method comprises the steps that UE obtains an address of an HTTPDNS (HyperText Transfer Protocol Domain Name Service) server by sending DNS request information to a local DNS (Domain Name Service), query information is sent to the HTTPDNS server, UPF replaces an original address in the query information with an MEC local address and then sends the address to the HTTPDNS, and the HTTPDNS server returns a nearby MEC network internal application server for the UE to provide Service according to the MEC local address queried by the HTTPDNS.

The UE needs to find a suitable MEC application server (for example, near an access location of the UE) to provide a service, but the prior art has a disadvantage that, because the current solution can only find the MEC application server through an application layer, the suitable MEC application server cannot be found in a case that the application layer does not support service/device discovery or the application layer function cannot be executed.

The following describes embodiments of the present invention with reference to the drawings.

In the description, the implementation of each functional entity on the UE and the network side will be described, for example: SMF, NRF, NEF, UDM, UPF, etc., which will then also give examples of their implementation in conjunction with each other to better understand the implementation of the schemes given in the examples of the invention. Such descriptions do not mean that they must be implemented together or separately, and actually, when the UE is implemented separately from each functional entity on the network side, it also solves the problem on its own side, and when they are used in combination, it will obtain better technical effect.

Fig. 2 is a schematic flow chart of an implementation of a method for providing MEC on the AMF side, which may include:

step 201, AMF determines the address of MEC of UE;

step 202, the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC.

Fig. 3 is a schematic flowchart of an implementation of a method for discovering MEC at a UE side, as shown in the figure, the method may include:

step 301, receiving an address of the MEC provided by the AMF at the UE;

step 302, discovering the MEC according to the address of the MEC provided by the AMF.

Fig. 4 is a schematic flow chart of an implementation of a method for providing MEC on the UDM side, as shown in the figure, the method may include:

step 401, the UDM receives a request for acquiring MEC information signed by the UE sent by the AMF;

step 402, the UDM queries MEC information signed by the UE;

step 403, providing MEC information subscribed by the UE to the AMF.

That is, the AMF returns the app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE through a registration procedure or a UE configuration update procedure.

In an implementation, the AMF determines the MEC of the UE, including:

the AMF acquires MEC information signed by the UE from the UDM;

Specifically, the AMF obtains information of the MEC app subscribed by the UE from the UDM, interacts with an NRF (Network open Function) or an NEF (Network expose Function), provides the information of the UE location and the MEC app to the NRF or the NEF, and returns MEC app server IP/MEC server IP to the AMF.

Further, the following is a view of the provisioning of the MEC both when App server IP updates and the impact of App server IP address changes on the established data connection.

Firstly, updating the IP of the App server.

According to different mechanisms for triggering the change of the app server IP/MEC server IP, the specific scheme is different:

1. the app subscribed to by the UE changes: when the app subscribed by the UE changes, the UDM sends the updated app information to the AMF. The AMF interacts with the NRF or the NEF, provides the NRF or the NEF with the UE position and the information of the app, and the NRF or the NEF returns the app server IP/MEC server IP to the AMF.

2. UE location change: when the AMF finds that the UE moves out of the specific area, the AMF interacts with the NRF or the NEF, the NRF or the NEF is provided with the information of the UE position and the app, and the NRF or the NEF returns the app server IP/MEC server IP to the AMF.

3. app server triggering; the app server sends the updated IP address to the NEF, the NEF sends the app server IP to the NRF, and notifies the AMF that the IP address of the app server/MEC server changes. The NEF may send the app server IP/MEC server IP to the AMF, or the AMF may obtain the app server IP through the NRF.

And the AMF sends the updated app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE.

And secondly, the influence of the change of the IP address of the App server on the established data connection.

After the UE acquires the app server IP/MEC server IP, the UE establishes communication with the app server. When the AMF finds that the app server IP/MEC server IP changes, the AMF acts differently according to different events triggering the change of the app server IP/MEC server IP:

1. the app subscribed to by the UE changes: the AMF judges whether the change affects the established data connection, if so, the AMF sends the updated app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE, the UE stops sending the data related to the app, the AMF indicates to the SMF that the data of the app is not transmitted, and the SMF sends a rule to the UPF to indicate to the UPF to discard the data related to the app server IP. And if not, the AMF sends the updated app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE.

2. UE location change: and the AMF sends the new app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE. The UE sends data to the app server using the new IP.

3. app server trigger: and the AMF sends the new app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE. And the UE sends data to the app server/MEC server by using the new IP.

Namely:

1. in the implementation, on the AMF side, when the MEC information subscribed by the UE changes, the method may further include:

and the AMF provides the address of the MEC of the UE after the change of the subscribed MEC information to the UE.

Correspondingly, on the UDM side, when the MEC information subscribed by the UE changes, the method may further include:

sending the MEC information signed by the changed UE to the AMF;

in a specific implementation, on the AMF side, when the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC of the UE after the change of the subscribed MEC information, the method further includes:

if the AMF determines that the change of the signed MEC information affects the data connection between the UE and the MEC, then:

the AMF instructs the UE to stop sending data on the data connection between the affected UE and the MEC;

the AMF instructs the SMF to stop transmitting data for the MEC that has been affected, and a rule is sent by the SMF to the UPF instructing the UPF to discard data related to the MEC that has been affected.

In a specific implementation, the AMF determines that the MEC that has established a connection with the UE is obtained from the SMF, and the SMF notifies the AMF after the MEC establishes a connection with the UE.

Correspondingly, on the UE side, the method may further include:

2. In the implementation, when the location of the UE changes, the method may further include:

In a specific implementation, on the AMF side, when the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC of the UE whose location has changed, the method further includes:

if the AMF determines that the UE position changes and affects the data connection between the UE and the MEC, then:

3. In the implementation, when the address of the MEC is changed, the method may further include:

The points 1 and 2 may be:

the method can further comprise the following steps:

And if the AMF determines to delete the data connection between the UE and the MEC, when the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC of the UE after the change of the subscribed MEC information and/or the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC of the UE after the change of the location, the AMF determines whether the change of the subscribed MEC information and/or the change of the location of the UE affects the data connection between the UE and the MEC, so the AMF determines to delete the data connection between the UE and the MEC.

The following description is made with reference to examples.

Example one

In this embodiment, an implementation process in which the AMF sends the app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE is described.

Fig. 5 is a schematic flow chart of implementing MEC providing in the first embodiment, as shown in the figure, the implementation flow chart may include:

step 501, the UE sends a registration request message to the AMF.

Step 502, the AMF performs a numm _ SDM _ Get operation to obtain information of the app subscribed by the UE, such as app id, from the UDM. The UDM may return multiple app identifications.

Step 503, the AMF sends an Nnef _ pfd management _ Fetch message to the NEF, where the message includes the app ID and the UE location.

Step 504, NEF returns Nnef _ PFDManagement _ Fetch Response message to AMF, the message includes app ID and app server IP/MEC server IP.

And step 505, the AMF returns a registration acceptance message to the UE, wherein the message comprises the app ID and the app server IP/MEC server IP.

In addition to the above information, the AMF may also send a Local Area Data Network (Local Area Data Network) DNN (Data Network Name) to the UE together.

In the implementation, NEF in fig. 5 may also be NRF, in this case, the message in step 503 is nrrf _ NFDiscovery _ Request, the message in step 504 is nrrf _ NFDiscovery _ Response, and the rest of the process is the same as that in fig. 5.

Example two

In this embodiment, an implementation process of updating app server IP/MEC server IP is described.

Fig. 6 is a schematic flow chart of implementing MEC in the second embodiment, as shown in the figure, the implementation flow chart may include:

the AMF decides to update the UE app server IP/MEC server IP under the trigger of one or the combination of the following conditions:

step 601a, the app ID subscribed by the UE changes, and the UDM sends the updated app ID to the AMF.

Step 601b, NEF sends Nnef _ EventExposure _ Notify (app ID, app server IP/MEC server IP) to AMF.

Step 601c, NRF sends nrrf _ NFManagement _ nfstatustnotify (app ID, app server IP/MEC server IP) to AMF.

Step 601d, the AMF determines to update the app IP according to the location of the UE.

For the above trigger condition steps 601a and 601d, the AMF may refer to

steps

503 and 504 in execution embodiment one to obtain app server IP/MEC server IP.

Step 602, the AMF sends a UE configuration update command to the UE, where the message includes app ID and app server IP/MEC server IP.

EXAMPLE III

In this embodiment, an implementation process of updating the app server IP is described.

Fig. 7 is a schematic flow chart of implementing MEC according to the third embodiment, and as shown in the figure, the implementation flow chart may include:

in step 701, NEF sends Nnef _ eventeExposure _ Notify (app ID, app server IP/MEC server IP) to SMF.

In step 702, SMF sends Namf _ EventExposure _ Notify (app ID, app server IP/MEC server IP) to AMF.

Step 703, the AMF sends a UE configuration update command to the UE, where the message includes app ID and app server IP/MEC server IP.

Example four

In this embodiment, an implementation in which the network side acquires information of an app for establishing communication with the UE is described.

And the UE initiates a communication process to the app server according to the app ID returned by the network and the app server IP/MEC server IP. After the App server establishes communication with the UE, the App server sends the information of the communication to the SMF through the NEF. The SMF transmits the UE ID, PDU (Protocol Data Unit) session ID, SMF ID, and app ID to the AMF. The AMF stores the UE ID, PDU session ID, SMF ID, and app ID.

EXAMPLE five

In this embodiment, the effect of app server IP/MEC server IP change on established communications is explained.

The app subscribed by the UE changes, and after the AMF acquires the information, it determines whether the UE establishes communication to the app.

If not, the AMF sends a configuration update message to the UE (if the app is a newly added app, the AMF needs to execute step 503 and step 504 of the first embodiment to obtain a server IP/MEC server IP of the newly added app), and the message includes the app ID and the app server IP/MEC server IP. And the UE stores the updated app ID and the app server IP/MEC server IP.

If so, the AMF sends a message (parameters including PDU session ID and app server IP/MEC server IP unavailable indication) to the SMF, and the SMF issues a rule to the UPF to indicate the UPF to discard the data packets related to the UE IP and the app server IP/MEC server IP.

And the UE receives the updated app ID and the app server IP/MEC server IP, and if the app ID which is communicated is not contained in the updated app ID, the UE stops sending data related to the app.

EXAMPLE six

In this embodiment, a manner in which the NEF acquires the app server IP/MEC server IP is described.

The NEF sends a request message to the AF (Application Function), the message carries the app ID, and the AF returns an app server IP/MEC server IP to the NEF.

Based on the same inventive concept, the embodiments of the present invention further provide an AMF, a UE, a UDM, a device for providing MEC on AMF, a device for discovering MEC on UE, a device for providing MEC on UDM, and a computer-readable storage medium, and because the principles of solving the problems of these devices are similar to the method for providing MEC on AMF, the method for discovering MEC on UE, and the method for providing MEC on UDM, the implementation of these devices may refer to the implementation of the methods, and the repeated parts are not described again.

When the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the invention is implemented, the implementation can be carried out as follows.

Fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of an SMF, as shown, the SMF includes:

the processor 800, which is used to read the program in the memory 820, executes the following processes:

determining an address of an MEC of the UE;

providing the UE with an address of the MEC;

a transceiver 810 for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor 800.

In an implementation, the AMF determines the MEC of the UE, including:

the AMF acquires MEC information signed by the UE from the UDM;

and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

when the location of the UE changes, further comprising:

In an implementation, the method further comprises the following steps:

In the implementation, when the location of the UE changes, the method further includes:

Where in fig. 8, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with various circuits being linked together, particularly one or more processors represented by processor 800 and memory represented by memory 820. 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 transceiver 810 may be a number of elements including a transmitter and a receiver that provide a means for communicating with various other apparatus over a transmission medium. The processor 800 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 820 may store data used by the processor 800 in performing operations.

Fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of a terminal, as shown in the figure, including:

a processor 900 for reading the program in the memory 920, executing the following processes:

receiving, at the UE, an address of the MEC provided by the AMF;

discovering the MEC according to the address of the MEC provided by the AMF;

a transceiver 910 for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor 900.

In an implementation, the method further comprises the following steps:

In fig. 9, among other things, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with one or more processors, represented by processor 900, and various circuits, represented by memory 920, 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 transceiver 910 may be a number of elements including a transmitter and a receiver that provide a means for communicating with various other apparatus over a transmission medium. The user interface 930 may also be an interface capable of interfacing with a desired device for different user devices, including but not limited to a keypad, display, speaker, microphone, joystick, etc.

The processor 900 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 920 may store data used by the processor 900 in performing operations.

Fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a UPF, as shown, the UPF includes:

the processor 1000, which is used to read the program in the memory 1020, executes the following processes:

providing MEC information signed by the UE to the AMF;

a transceiver 1010 for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor 1000.

and sending the MEC information of the changed UE subscription to the AMF.

Where in fig. 10, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with various circuits being linked together, particularly one or more processors represented by processor 1000 and memory represented by memory 1020. 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 transceiver 1010 may be a number of elements including a transmitter and a receiver that provide a means for communicating with various other apparatus over a transmission medium. The processor 1000 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1020 may store data used by the processor 1000 in performing operations.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a device for providing MEC, which comprises:

See in particular the implementation of the method for providing MECs on AMFs.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a device for discovering MEC, which comprises:

See in particular the implementation of the method of discovering MECs on a UE.

a UDM inquiry module used for inquiring the MEC information signed by the UE;

See in particular the implementation of the method for providing MECs on UDM.

The embodiment of the present invention provides a computer-readable storage medium, where the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program for executing the method for providing an MEC on an AMF, the method for discovering an MEC on a UE, or the method for providing an MEC on a UDM.

For convenience of description, each part of the above-described apparatus is separately described as being functionally divided into various modules or units. Of course, the functionality of the various modules or units may be implemented in the same one or more pieces of software or hardware in practicing the invention.

In summary, in the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present invention, the AMF obtains the app server IP/MEC server IP, and sends the app server IP/MEC server IP to the UE through a registration process or a UE configuration update process.

Specifically, AMF obtains app server IP/MEC server IP from SMF, NRF, or NEF.

The AMF acquires the app ID subscribed by the UE from the UDM and sends the app ID and the UE position to the NRF or the NEF. NRF or NEF returns app server IP/MEC server IP to AMF.

NEF sends app server IP/MEC server IP to SMF, SMF sends app server IP/MEC server IP to AMF.

Specifically, the NEF sends the SMF the app ID of the UE established communication.

The SMF sends the PDU session ID and app ID to the AMF.

If the UE no longer uses the app ID, the AMF notifies the SMF. The SMF informs the UPF to discard the data packets related to the UE IP and the app server IP/MEC server IP.

Therefore, the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the invention solves the problem of mobile edge computing application discovery by controlling the UE-oriented transmission of the app server IP/MEC server IP.

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, 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.

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 of providing a moving edge computation, MEC, comprising:

an access and mobility management function (AMF) determines the address of an MEC of User Equipment (UE);

the AMF provides the UE with the address of the MEC.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the AMF provides the address of the MEC to the UE in a registration procedure of the UE or a configuration update procedure of the UE.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the AMF determines the MEC of the UE, comprising:

the AMF acquires MEC information signed by the UE from the unified data management UDM;

the AMF interacts with a network storage function NRF or a network open function NEF, and provides the UE position and MEC information signed by the UE to the NRF or NEF;

4. The method of claim 3, wherein when the MEC information of the UE subscription changes, further comprising:

and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

when the location of the UE changes, further comprising:

5. The method of claim 3, further comprising:

the AMF instructs a Session Management Function (SMF) to release the data connection between the UE and the MEC, and the SMF releases the data connection between the UE and the MEC.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the AMF determines to delete the data connection of the UE with the MEC when the AMF determines that the change in the subscription MEC information and/or the change in the UE location has affected the data connection of the UE with the MEC.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the AMF determines that the MEC that has established the connection with the UE is obtained from an SMF that notifies the AMF after the MEC establishes the connection with the UE.

8. The method of claim 3, wherein when the address of the MEC changes, further comprising:

9. A method of providing an MEC, comprising:

the UDM inquires MEC information signed by the UE;

and providing the MEC information subscribed by the UE to the AMF.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein when MEC information for a UE subscription changes, further comprising:

and sending the MEC information of the changed UE subscription to the AMF.

11. An AMF, comprising:

determining an address of an MEC of the UE;

providing the UE with an address of the MEC;

12. The AMF of claim 11, wherein the AMF provides the address of the MEC to the UE is provided to the UE during a registration procedure of the UE or a configuration update procedure of the UE.

13. The AMF of claim 11, wherein the AMF determines the MEC for the UE, comprising:

the AMF acquires MEC information signed by the UE from the UDM;

14. The AMF of claim 13, wherein when the MEC information for the UE subscription changes, further comprising:

and/or the presence of a gas in the gas,

when the location of the UE changes, further comprising:

15. The AMF of claim 13, further comprising:

16. The AMF of claim 15, wherein the AMF determines to delete the data connection of the UE with the MEC when the AMF determines that the change in subscription MEC information and/or the change in UE location has affected the data connection of the UE with the MEC.

17. The AMF of claim 15, wherein the AMF determines that the MEC to which the UE has established a connection is obtained from an SMF, the SMF being notified of the AMF after the MEC establishes a connection with the UE.

18. The AMF of claim 13, wherein the change in the address of the MEC further comprises:

19. A UDM, comprising:

providing MEC information signed by the UE to the AMF;

20. The UDM according to claim 19, wherein when the MEC information for a UE subscription changes, further comprising:

and sending the MEC information of the changed UE subscription to the AMF.

21. An apparatus for providing an MEC, comprising:

22. An apparatus for discovering an MEC, comprising:

23. An apparatus for providing an MEC, comprising:

a UDM inquiry module used for inquiring the MEC information signed by the UE;

24. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program for executing the method of any one of claims 1 to 10.