CN112653716A

CN112653716A - Service binding method and device

Info

Publication number: CN112653716A
Application number: CN201910963216.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 杨文进
Original assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Technologies Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-10-11
Filing date: 2019-10-11
Publication date: 2021-04-13
Anticipated expiration: 2039-10-11
Also published as: WO2021068937A1; CN112653716B

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides a method and a device for service binding, relates to the technical field of communication, and can simplify the communication process between two network functions for establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode and improve the performance of information forwarding. The method comprises the following steps: the first network function sends a request for a first service to a first service communication proxy, SCP, the request for the first service being for requesting the first service; the first network function receives a response from the first SCP for the first service, the response for the first service including first routing information including an address of an SCP traversed by from the first network function to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, the first service instance of the second network function for providing service to the first network function.

Description

Service binding method and device

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method and an apparatus for service binding.

Background

Fifth generation mobile communication technology (5) in 3rd generation partnership project (3 GPP) Release 15^thgeneration, 5G) core network system architecture is a Service Based Architecture (SBA), and the SBA mainly aims to split each Network Function (NF) into one or more network function services (NF service), and each network function service may be intercommunicated with other network function services through a standard interface, where an NF with a service consumer (service provider) function is called an NF service consumer, an NF with a service producer (service provider) function is called an NF service producer, and the NF service producer and the NF service consumer may include one or more service instances.

In 3GPP Release 16, a serving architecture of Release 15 is further improved and optimized, and an indirect communication mode is proposed, that is, a part of common functions in the serving architecture, for example, indirect communication (indirect communication) and delegated discovery (delayed discovery), are extracted and provided by a Service Communication Proxy (SCP) network element in a unified manner. In the indirect communication mode, the NF service consumer does not communicate directly with the NF service producer, but rather communicates with the NF service producer through an SCP that routes messages between the NF service consumer and the NF service producer, and service discovery and selection can be performed on behalf of the NF service consumer. Taking the example that the NF service consumer communicates with the NF service generator through two SCPs, the NF service consumer sends a service request to the SCP1, the service request comprises discovery and selection parameters, the SCP1 performs routing rule matching according to the discovery and the selection parameters after receiving the service request, and routes the request to the SCP2, the SCP2 performs routing rule matching according to the discovery and the selection parameters after receiving the service request, and selects the NF service generator to provide services for the NF service consumer.

Binding mechanisms are also defined in 3GPP Release 16. The binding mechanism means that the NF service producer can bind the service request of the service instance 1 of the NF service consumer to a certain resource to the service instance 1 of the NF service producer, and subsequently, when the service instance of the NF service consumer makes the service request to the resource, the service instance 1 of the NF service producer processes the service request until the binding relation is released. After the unbinding relationship is completed, the service instances of other NF service producers can also process the service request of the resource.

In the prior art, after a binding relationship is established between a service instance 1 of an NF service producer and a service instance 1 of an NF service consumer in an indirect communication mode, an SCP still needs to perform rule matching and routing according to an address of the service instance 1 of the NF service producer, and ensures that service requests of the service instance 1 are all routed to the service instance 1, which is complex in process.

Disclosure of Invention

The method and the device for service binding can simplify the communication process between two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode and improve the performance of information forwarding.

In order to achieve the above purpose, the embodiment of the present application adopts the following technical solutions:

in a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for service binding, where the method includes: the first network function sends a request for a first service to a first service communication proxy, SCP, wherein the request for the first service is for requesting the first service; the first network function receives a response to the first service from the first SCP, wherein the response to the first service includes first routing information including an address of an SCP traversed by from the first network function to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, the first service instance of the second network function to provide service to the first network function.

The method provided in the first aspect, the first network function may send a request for a first service to the first SCP, and receive a response for the first service from the first SCP, where the response for the first service includes first routing information, and then, if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service, the first network function may generate a first field according to the first routing information, and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, where the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to a first service instance of the second network function, and after receiving the request for the second service and the first field, the first SCP may determine the second SCP directly according to the first field without performing routing rule matching, so as to simplify a communication process between two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the first network function generating a first field according to the first routing information, wherein the first field is used for indicating a communication path from the first network function to a first service instance of the second network function; the first network function sends a request of a second service and the first field to the first SCP, wherein the request of the second service is used for requesting the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function. Based on the above method, the first network function may send a request for the first service to the first SCP, and receive a response for the first service from the first SCP, wherein the response to the first service includes the first routing information, and if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service, the first network function may generate a first field based on the first routing information and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to a first service instance of the second network function, and, subsequently, after the first SCP receives the request of the second service and the first field, the first SCP can directly determine the second SCP according to the first field without carrying out routing rule matching, therefore, the communication process between the two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer. Based on the above method, the first network function may have a function of serving a consumer, and therefore, the first network function may send a request for a first service to the first SCP, and receive a response for the first service from the first SCP, wherein the response for the first service includes first routing information, and subsequently, if the first network function determines to send a request for a second service, the first network function may further generate a first field according to the first routing information, and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field being used for indicating a communication path from the first network function to a first service instance of the second network function, and after receiving the request for the second service and the first field, the first SCP may determine the second SCP directly according to the first field without performing routing rule matching, thereby simplifying a communication process between two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and the request for the first service further includes first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that a first service instance of the first network function is bound. Based on the above method, the first network function further has a function of a service generator, and therefore, the first service request may carry first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that a first service instance of the first network function is bound, so that after receiving the first binding information, the second network function generates a sixth field according to the fifth field, and sends a request of a third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, and after receiving the request of the third service and the sixth field, the second SCP may determine the first SCP directly according to the sixth field without performing routing rule matching, so that a communication process between two network functions that establish a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and performance of information forwarding is improved.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the first network function receives a request for a third service from the first SCP, where the request for the third service requests the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function. Based on the above method, the first network function may receive a request for a third service from the first SCP, such that the first service instance of the first network function provides the third service for the service instance of the second network function.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for service binding, where the method includes: a first service communication agent SCP receives a request for a first service from a first network function, wherein the request for the first service is for requesting the first service; the first SCP sending a request for the first service and a second field to a second SCP according to the request for the first service, wherein the second field comprises an address of a first service instance of the first network function; the first SCP receiving a response from the second SCP for the first service, wherein the response for the first service includes first routing information including addresses of SCPs traversed by from the first network function to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, the first service instance of the second network function for providing service to the first network function; the first SCP sends a response to the first network function for the first service.

The method provided in the second aspect above, wherein the first SCP is operable to receive a request for a first service from the first network function, and to send the request for the first service and a second field to the second SCP based on the request for the first service, and to receive a response for the first service from the second SCP, and to forward the response for the first service to the first network function, the response for the first service comprising first routing information including an address of an SCP traversed by the first network function to the second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, such that subsequently, if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service to the first SCP, the first SCP may determine the second SCP based on the first field received from the first network function without performing a routing rule match, wherein the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function, therefore, the communication process between the two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the first SCP receiving a request for a second service from the first network function and a first field, wherein the request for the second service is used to request a first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function, and the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function; the first SCP sends the request for the second service and a third field to the second SCP based on the first field, wherein the third field includes an address of an SCP, of the passing SCPs, after the second SCP, from the first network function to the second network function, and an address of the first service instance of the second network function. Based on the method, the first SCP can receive the request of the second service from the first network function and the first field, and send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP according to the first field without carrying out routing rule matching, thereby simplifying the communication process between the two network functions establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode and improving the information forwarding performance.

A possible implementation manner in which the first SCP sends the request of the second service and a third field to the second SCP according to the first field includes: the first SCP determines the second SCP according to the first field; the first SCP sends the request for the second service and the third field to the second SCP. Based on the method, the first SCP can receive the request of the second service from the first network function and the first field, determine the second SCP according to the first field, and send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP without routing rule matching, thereby simplifying the communication process between the two network functions establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode and improving the information forwarding performance.

In one possible implementation, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer. Based on the method, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer, or the first network function has functions of serving a consumer and a service producer, so that the first SCP can receive a request of the second service from the first network function and the first field, and send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP according to the first field without performing routing rule matching, thereby simplifying a communication process between the two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode, and improving the performance of information forwarding.

In one possible implementation, the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and the request for the first service further includes first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate a first service instance to which the first network function is bound. Based on the above method, the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and thus, the request of the first service may further include first binding information, the first binding information is used to indicate a first service instance binding the first network function, and subsequently, if the second network function receives the first binding information, a sixth field is generated according to the fifth field, and the request of the third service and the sixth field are sent to the second SCP, after the second SCP receives the request of the third service and the sixth field, the routing rule matching may not be performed, the first SCP is determined directly according to the sixth field, and the request of the third service and the fourth field are sent to the first SCP, after the first SCP receives the request of the third service and the fourth field, the routing matching may not be performed, the first network function is determined directly according to the fourth field, so that the communication process between the two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the first SCP receiving a request of a third service from the second SCP and a fourth field, wherein the request of the third service is used for requesting the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function, and the fourth field includes an address of an SCP subsequent to the first SCP in the SCPs passed through from the second network function to the first network function and an address of the first service instance of the first network function; the first SCP sends a request for the third service to the first network function. Based on the method, the first SCP can receive the request of the third service and the fourth field from the second SCP, and can directly determine the first network function according to the fourth field without route matching, thereby simplifying the communication process between the two network functions establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode and improving the information forwarding performance.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for service binding, where the method includes: the second network function receiving a request for a first service from a second service communication proxy, SCP, wherein the request for the first service is for requesting the first service and a fifth field comprising an address of a first service instance of the first network function and addresses of the first n-1 SCPs, n being the number of SCPs traversed from the first network function to the second network function; if the second network function determines to bind the first service instance of the second network function, the second network function generates first routing information according to the fifth field, wherein the first routing information includes an address of an SCP passed by the second network function from the first network function to the second network function and an address of the first service instance of the second network function, and the first service instance of the second network function is used for providing a service for the first network function; the second network function sends a response for the first service to the second SCP, where the response for the first service includes the first routing information.

In the method of the third aspect, the second network function may receive a request for the first service and a fifth field from the second SCP, and if the second network function determines to bind the first service instance of the second network function, the second network function may generate first routing information according to the fifth field, and send the first routing information to the first network function via the second SCP and the first SCP, so that if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service, the first network function may generate a first field according to the first routing information, and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function, and the first SCP may determine the second SCP directly according to the first field without performing routing rule matching after receiving the request for the second service and the first field, therefore, the communication process between the two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes: the second network function receives a request for a second service from the second SCP, where the request for the second service requests the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function. Based on the method, the second network function may receive a request of a second service from the second SCP, where the request of the second service is sent by the first network function to the second network function via the first SCP and the second SCP, where the first SCP and the second SCP may not perform routing rule matching, the first SCP is the second SCP determined according to the first field, and the second SCP is the second network function determined according to the third field, so that a communication process between the two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and performance of information forwarding may be improved.

In one possible implementation, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer; the second network function has the function of a service producer. Based on the above method, the first network function has a function of a service consumer, the second network function has a function of a service producer, such that the second network function may receive a request for a first service and a fifth field from a second SCP, and if the second network function determines to bind a first service instance of the second network function, the second network function generates first routing information according to the fifth field, and sends the first routing information to the first network function via the second SCP and the first SCP, such that if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service, the first network function may generate a first field according to the first routing information, and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field indicating a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function, the first SCP receiving the request for the second service and the first field, the second SCP can be determined directly according to the first field without routing rule matching, so that the communication process between two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in an indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In a possible implementation manner, the first network function further has a function of a service generator, and the request of the first service further includes first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that a first service instance of the first network function is bound. Based on the above method, the first network function further has a function of a service generator, and the request for the first service may further include first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that the first service instance of the first network function is bound, so that the second network function sends a request for a third service to the first network function via the second SCP and the first SCP, where the second SCP and the first SCP may not perform routing rule matching, the second SCP is the first SCP determined according to the sixth field, and the first SCP is the first network function determined according to the fourth field, so that a communication process between two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and performance of information forwarding is improved.

A possible implementation, the second network function further having a function of serving a consumer, the method further comprising: the second network function generating a sixth field from the fifth field, wherein the sixth field is used to indicate a communication path from the second network function to the first service instance of the first network function; the second network function sends a request for a third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, where the request for the third service is used to request the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function. Based on the method, the second network function can generate a sixth field according to the fifth field and send the request of the third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, and subsequently, after the second SCP receives the request of the third service and the sixth field, the second SCP does not need to perform routing rule matching and can directly determine the first SCP according to the sixth field, thereby simplifying the communication process between the two network functions establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode and improving the performance of information forwarding.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: a transmitting module and a receiving module; the sending module is used for sending a request of a first service to a first service communication proxy SCP, wherein the request of the first service is used for requesting the first service; the receiving module is configured to receive a response of the first service from the first SCP, where the response of the first service includes first routing information, the first routing information includes an address of an SCP traversed by from the communication device to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, the first service instance of the second network function is used to provide a service for the communication device.

The above fourth aspect provides the arrangement wherein the communications means may send a request for the first service to the first SCP, and receive a response for the first service from the first SCP, wherein the response to the first service includes the first routing information, and subsequently, if the communication device determines to send the request for the second service, the communication device may generate a first field based on the first routing information and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field is for indicating a communication path from the communication device to a first service instance of the second network function, after the first SCP receives the request of the second service and the first field, the first SCP can directly determine the second SCP according to the first field without carrying out routing rule matching, therefore, the communication process between the two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the communication apparatus further includes: a processing module; the processing module is configured to generate a first field according to the first routing information, wherein the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the communication device to a first service instance of the second network function; the sending module is further configured to send a request for a second service and the first field to the first SCP, where the request for the second service is used to request the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the communication device. Based on the above solution, the communication device may send a request of a first service to the first SCP, and receive a response of the first service from the first SCP, where the response of the first service includes the first routing information, if the communication device determines to send the request of the second service, the communication device may generate a first field according to the first routing information, and send the request of the second service and the first field to the first SCP, where the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the communication device to the first service instance of the second network function, and subsequently, after receiving the request of the second service and the first field, the first SCP may determine the second SCP directly according to the first field without performing routing rule matching, thereby simplifying a communication process between two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode, and improving performance of information forwarding.

In one possible implementation, the communication device has the functionality of serving a consumer. Based on the above solution, the communication device may have a function of serving a consumer, and therefore, the communication device may send a request for the first service to the first SCP, and receive a response for the first service from the first SCP, wherein the response for the first service includes the first routing information, and subsequently, if the communication device determines to send the request for the second service, the communication device may further generate a first field according to the first routing information, and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field being used for indicating a communication path from the communication device to the first service instance of the second network function, and after the first SCP receives the request for the second service and the first field, the first SCP may determine the second SCP directly according to the first field without performing routing rule matching, so that a communication process between the two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the communication device further has a function of a service producer, and the request for the first service further includes first binding information, wherein the first binding information is used to indicate that a first service instance of the communication device is bound. Based on the above scheme, the communication device further has a function of a service generator, and therefore, the first service request may carry first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that a first service instance of the communication device is bound, so that after receiving the first binding information, the second network function generates a sixth field according to the fifth field, and sends a request of a third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, and after receiving the request of the third service and the sixth field, the second SCP may determine the first SCP directly according to the sixth field without performing routing rule matching, so that a communication process between two network functions that establish a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and performance of information forwarding is improved.

In one possible implementation, the receiving module is configured to receive a request of a third service from the first SCP, where the request of the third service is used to request the first service instance of the communication device to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function. Based on the above, the communication device may receive a request for a third service from the first SCP for the first service instance of the communication device to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: the device comprises a receiving module and a sending module; the receiving module is configured to receive a request for a first service from a first network function, where the request for the first service is used to request the first service; the sending module is configured to send, to a second SCP, the request for the first service and a second field according to the request for the first service, where the second field includes an address of a first service instance of the first network function; the receiving module is further configured to receive a response of the first service from the second SCP, where the response of the first service includes first routing information, the first routing information includes an address of an SCP traversed by from the first network function to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, and the first service instance of the second network function is used to provide a service for the first network function; the sending module is further configured to send a response of the first service to the first network function.

The fifth aspect provides the solution as defined in the above, wherein the communication device is operable to receive a request for a first service from a first network function, and to send the request for the first service and a second field to a second SCP based on the request for the first service, and to receive a response for the first service from the second SCP, and to forward the response for the first service to the first network function, the response for the first service comprising first routing information including an address of an SCP traversed by the first network function to the second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, such that subsequently, if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service to the communication device, the communication device is operable to determine the second SCP from the first field received from the first network function without a routing rule match, wherein the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function, therefore, the communication process between the two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In a possible implementation manner, the receiving module is further configured to receive a request of a second service from the first network function and a first field, where the request of the second service is used to request the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function, and the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function; the sending module is further configured to send a request for the second service and a third field to the second SCP based on the first field, where the third field includes an address of an SCP, among the passed-through SCPs from the first network function to the second network function, that is subsequent to the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second network function. Based on the above scheme, the communication device may receive the request of the second service from the first network function and the first field, and send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP according to the first field without performing routing rule matching, so that the communication process between the two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and the performance of information forwarding is improved.

In a possible implementation manner, the sending module is specifically configured to determine the second SCP according to the first field; the sending module is further specifically configured to send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP. Based on the method, the communication device can receive the request of the second service from the first network function and the first field, determine the second SCP according to the first field, and send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP without performing routing rule matching, so that the communication process between the two network functions establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance can be improved.

In one possible implementation, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer. Based on the above solution, the first network function has a function of a service consumer, or the first network function has functions of a service consumer and a service producer, so that the communication device may receive a request of a second service from the first network function and the first field, and send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP according to the first field, without performing routing rule matching, thereby simplifying a communication process between the two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode, and improving performance of information forwarding.

In one possible implementation, the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and the request for the first service further includes first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate a first service instance to which the first network function is bound. Based on the above solution, the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and thus, the request of the first service may further include first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate a first service instance binding the first network function, and then, if the second network function receives the first binding information, a sixth field is generated according to the fifth field, and the request of the third service and the sixth field are sent to the second SCP, and after the second SCP receives the request of the third service and the sixth field, the second SCP may determine the communication device directly according to the sixth field without performing routing rule matching, and send the request of the third service and the fourth field to the communication device, and after receiving the request of the third service and the fourth field, the communication device may determine the first network function directly according to the fourth field without performing routing matching, so that the communication process between two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In one possible implementation, the receiving module is further configured to receive a request of a third service from the second SCP and a fourth field, where the request of the third service is used to request the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function, and the fourth field includes an address of an SCP subsequent to the communication device in the SCPs passed through from the second network function to the first network function, and an address of the first service instance of the first network function; the sending module is further configured to send the request of the third service to the first network function. Based on the above scheme, the communication device may receive the request of the third service from the second SCP and the fourth field, and may determine the first network function directly according to the fourth field without performing route matching, thereby simplifying the communication process between the two network functions establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode, and improving the performance of information forwarding.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: the device comprises a receiving module, a processing module and a sending module; the receiving module is configured to receive a request for a first service from a second service communication proxy SCP and a fifth field, where the request for the first service is for requesting the first service, the fifth field includes an address of a first service instance of the first network function and addresses of first n-1 SCPs, and n is the number of SCPs passed from the first network function to the communication device; the processing module is configured to generate first routing information according to the fifth field if the communication device determines to bind a first service instance of the communication device, where the first routing information includes an address of an SCP traversed by the communication device from the first network function to the communication device and an address of a first service instance of the communication device, and the first service instance of the communication device is used to provide the first service for the first network function; the sending module is configured to send a response of the first service to the second SCP, where the response of the first service includes the first routing information.

In the above-mentioned sixth aspect, the communication device may receive a request for the first service and a fifth field from the second SCP, and if the communication device determines to bind the first service instance of the communication device, the communication device may generate first routing information according to the fifth field, and send the first routing information to the first network function via the second SCP and the first SCP, so that if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service, the first network function may generate a first field according to the first routing information, and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field being used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the communication device, and the first SCP may determine the second SCP directly according to the first field without performing routing rule matching after receiving the request for the second service and the first field, therefore, the communication process between the two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In a possible implementation, the receiving module is further configured to receive a request for a second service from the second SCP, where the request for the second service is used to request the first service instance of the communication device to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function. Based on the above scheme, the communication device may receive a request of a second service from the second SCP, where the request of the second service is sent by the first network function to the communication device via the first SCP and the second SCP, where the first SCP and the second SCP may not perform routing rule matching, the first SCP is the second SCP determined according to the first field, and the second SCP is the communication device determined according to the third field, so that a communication process between two network functions that establish a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and performance of information forwarding may be improved.

In one possible implementation, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer; the communication device has the function of a service producer. Based on the above solution, the first network function has a function of a service consumer, the communication device has a function of a service producer, such that the communication device may receive a request for the first service and a fifth field from the second SCP, and if the communication device determines to bind the first service instance of the communication device, the communication device may generate the first routing information according to the fifth field and send the first routing information to the first network function via the second SCP and the first SCP, such that if the first network function determines to send the request for the second service, the first network function may generate the first field according to the first routing information and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, the first field indicating a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the communication device, the first SCP receiving the request for the second service and the first field, the second SCP can be determined directly according to the first field without routing rule matching, so that the communication process between two network functions for establishing the binding relationship in an indirect communication mode can be simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

In a possible implementation manner, the first network function further has a function of a service generator, and the request of the first service further includes first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that a first service instance of the first network function is bound. Based on the above solution, the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and the request of the first service may further include first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that the first service instance of the first network function is bound, so that the communication device sends a request of a third service to the first network function via a second SCP and the first SCP, where the second SCP and the first SCP may not perform routing rule matching, the second SCP is the first SCP determined according to the sixth field, and the first SCP is the first network function determined according to the fourth field, so that a communication process between two network functions establishing a binding relationship in an indirect communication mode may be simplified, and performance of information forwarding may be improved.

In one possible implementation, the communication device further has a function of a service consumer, and the processing module is further configured to generate a sixth field according to the fifth field, wherein the sixth field is used for indicating a communication path from the communication device to the first service instance of the first network function; the sending module is further configured to send a request of a third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, where the request of the third service is used to request the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the communication device. Based on the above scheme, the communication device may generate a sixth field according to the fifth field, and send the request of the third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, and subsequently, after the second SCP receives the request of the third service and the sixth field, the second SCP may determine the first SCP directly according to the sixth field without performing routing rule matching, so that the communication process between the two network functions that establish the binding relationship in the indirect communication mode may be simplified, and the performance of information forwarding is improved.

In a seventh aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: at least one processor, at least one memory, and a communication interface, the at least one memory, and the at least one processor being coupled; the communication apparatus communicates with other devices through the communication interface, and the at least one memory is used for storing a computer program such that the computer program, when executed by the at least one processor, implements the method of service binding as described in the first aspect and its various possible implementations.

In an eighth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: at least one processor, at least one memory, and a communication interface, the at least one memory, and the at least one processor being coupled; the communication apparatus communicates with other devices through the communication interface, and the at least one memory stores a computer program such that the computer program, when executed by the at least one processor, implements the method of service binding as described in the second aspect and its various possible implementations.

In a ninth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication apparatus, including: at least one processor, at least one memory, and a communication interface, the at least one memory, and the at least one processor being coupled; the communication apparatus communicates with other devices through the communication interface, and the at least one memory stores a computer program such that, when executed by the at least one processor, the computer program implements the method of service binding as described in the third aspect and its various possible implementations.

In a tenth aspect, the present application provides a system-on-chip, which can be applied in a communication device, the system-on-chip comprising: at least one processor in which the program instructions involved are executed to implement the functionality of the first network function in the method according to the first aspect and any design thereof. Optionally, the system-on-chip may further include at least one memory storing the related program instructions.

In an eleventh aspect, the present application provides a system-on-chip, which can be applied in a communication device, and the system-on-chip includes: at least one processor in which the program instructions involved are executed to implement the functions of the first SCP in the method according to the second aspect and any of its designs. Optionally, the system-on-chip may further include at least one memory storing the related program instructions.

In a twelfth aspect, the present application provides a system-on-chip, which can be applied in a communication device, and the system-on-chip includes: at least one processor in which the program instructions involved are executed to implement the functionality of the second network function in the method according to the third aspect and any design thereof. Optionally, the system-on-chip may further include at least one memory storing the related program instructions.

In a thirteenth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer-readable storage medium, such as a computer non-transitory readable storage medium. Having stored thereon a computer program for causing a computer to perform any of the possible methods of the first aspect described above, when the computer program runs on a computer. For example, the computer may be at least one storage node.

In a fourteenth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer-readable storage medium, such as a computer non-transitory readable storage medium. Having stored thereon a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform any of the possible methods of the second aspect described above. For example, the computer may be at least one storage node.

In a fifteenth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer-readable storage medium, such as a computer non-transitory readable storage medium. Having stored thereon a computer program for causing a computer to perform any of the possible methods of the third aspect described above, when the computer program runs on a computer. For example, the computer may be at least one storage node.

In a sixteenth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer program product, which when run on a computer, causes any of the methods provided in the first aspect to be performed. For example, the computer may be at least one storage node.

In a seventeenth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product, which when run on a computer, causes any of the methods provided by the second aspect to be performed. For example, the computer may be at least one storage node.

In an eighteenth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer program product, which when run on a computer, causes any of the methods provided in the third aspect to be performed. For example, the computer may be at least one storage node.

In a nineteenth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication system, which may include any one or more of the following: a communication apparatus as in the fourth aspect, or a communication apparatus as in the fifth aspect, or a communication apparatus as in the sixth aspect, or a communication apparatus as in the seventh aspect, or a communication apparatus as in the eighth aspect, or a communication apparatus as in the ninth aspect, or a system chip as in the tenth aspect, or a system chip as in the eleventh aspect, or a system chip as in the twelfth aspect, or a computer storage medium as in the thirteenth aspect, or a computer storage medium as in the fourteenth aspect, or a computer storage medium as in the fifteenth aspect, or a computer program product as in the sixteenth aspect, or a computer program product as in the seventeenth aspect, or a computer program product as in the eighteenth aspect.

It is understood that any one of the communication devices, system chips, computer storage media, computer program products, or communication systems provided above is used to execute the corresponding method provided above, and therefore, the beneficial effects achieved by the method can refer to the beneficial effects in the corresponding method, and are not described herein again.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a service framework provided by an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is a schematic hardware structure diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 3 is a first flowchart illustrating a method for service binding according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4 is a second flowchart illustrating a method for service binding according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a third flowchart illustrating a method for service binding according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a fourth flowchart illustrating a method for service binding according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a first schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a second schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a third schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The method for service binding provided by the embodiment of the application can be applied to the service architecture shown in fig. 1. Fig. 1 shows an interaction relationship between NF and an entity and a corresponding interface by taking a network service architecture of 5G as an example. The network functions and entities included by the 3GPP based on SBA of the 5G system mainly include: a Terminal Equipment (TE), AN Access Network (AN) or a Radio Access Network (RAN), a User Plane Function (UPF), a Data Network (DN), AN Access Management Function (AMF), a Session Management Function (SMF), AN authentication service function (AUSF), a Policy Control Function (PCF), AN Application Function (AF), a Network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), a Unified Data Management (UDM), a network open function (NEF), and a network storage function (NRF).

The TE, (R) AN, UPF and DN are generally referred to as user plane network functions and entities (or user plane network elements), and the other parts are generally referred to as control plane network functions and entities (or control plane network elements). The control plane network element is defined by 3GPP as a processing function in a network, the control plane network element has 3GPP defined functional behavior and 3GPP defined interfaces, and the NF can be implemented as a network element running on proprietary hardware, or as a software instance running on proprietary hardware, or as a virtual function instantiated on a suitable platform, such as a cloud infrastructure.

The main functions of each network element will be described in detail below.

(R) AN: the (R) AN may be AN AN or a RAN. Specifically, the (R) AN may be various forms of base stations, such as: macro base stations, micro base stations, distributed unit-control units (DU-CUs), and the like. In addition, the base station may also be a wireless controller in a Cloud Radio Access Network (CRAN) scenario, or a network device in a relay station, an access point, a vehicle-mounted device, a wearable device, or a Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN) network for future evolution, or the like. The (R) AN is mainly responsible for radio resource management, quality of service management, data compression and encryption, etc. on the air interface side.

UPF: the method is mainly responsible for forwarding and receiving user data. The UPF may receive downstream data from the DN and then transmit the downstream data to the TE through the (R) AN. The UPF may also receive upstream data from the TE through the (R) AN and then forward the upstream data to the DN.

DN: for example: the DN may be an operator service network, an internet access or third party service network, etc. The DN may exchange information with the TE through a PDU session. The PDU session can be divided into multiple types, such as internet protocol version 4 (IPv 4), IPv6, and so on.

AMF: is mainly responsible for the processing of control plane messages, such as: access control, mobility management, attach and detach, and gateway selection, among others.

SMF: the method is mainly used for session management, session establishment, IP address allocation and management of TE and the like.

AUSF: the method is mainly responsible for network security, is used for generating keys, realizes bidirectional authentication on TE and the like.

PCF: the method is mainly used for managing the policy rules, the subscription information of the user and the like.

UDM: the method is mainly used for authentication credit processing, user identification processing, access authorization, registration/mobility management, subscription management, short message management and the like.

NEF: the method is mainly used for monitoring, charging and the like.

NRF: mainly for providing internal/external addressing functions etc.

AF: the method is mainly used for interacting with a 3GPP core network to provide services.

The functions of the NSSF and other network elements in fig. 1 may refer to related descriptions in the conventional technology, and are not described herein again.

The TE and the (R) AN shown in fig. 1 may communicate with each other by using AN air interface technology. As shown in fig. 1, N1 is the reference point between TE and AMF, N2 is the reference point between (R) AN and AMF, N3 is the reference point between (R) AN and UPF, N4 is the reference point between SMF and UPF, and N6 is the reference point between UPF and DN. Shown in fig. 1, Namf is a service-based interface provided by AMF, Nsmf is a service-based interface provided by SMF, Nausf is a service-based interface provided by AUSF, NSSF is a service-based interface provided by NSSF, Nnef is a service-based interface provided by NEF, Nnrf is a service-based interface provided by NRF, Npcf is a service-based interface provided by PCF, numm is a service-based interface provided by UDM, and Naf is a service-based interface provided by AF.

In fig. 1, the NF with the service producer function may be referred to as an NF service producer, and the NF with the service consumer may be referred to as an NF service consumer. In the indirect communication mode, communication between the NF service producer and the NF service consumer may be through one or more SCPs (not shown in fig. 1).

It should be noted that fig. 1 is only an example of a network service architecture. The method for service binding provided by the embodiment of the application can also be applied to other network architectures. For example, other mobile communication systems developed after the fifth generation, which are not limited in the embodiments of the present application.

Optionally, each network element in fig. 1 in the embodiment of the present application may be a functional module in one device. It is to be understood that the functional module can be a network element in a hardware device, a software function running on dedicated hardware, or a virtualized function instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform).

For example, each network element in fig. 1 or an SCP (not shown in fig. 1) connected to one or more network elements may be implemented by the communication apparatus 200 in fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of a communication device applicable to the embodiment of the present application. The communication device 200 may include at least one processor 201, communication lines 202, memory 203, and at least one communication interface 204.

The processor 201 may be a general processing unit (CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more ics for controlling the execution of programs in accordance with the present invention.

Communication link 202 may include a path for communicating information between the aforementioned components, such as a bus.

The communication interface 204 may be any device, such as a transceiver, for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as an ethernet interface, a Radio Access Network (RAN), a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), etc.

The memory 203 may be a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a Random Access Memory (RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disk storage, optical disk storage (including compact disc, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc, blu-ray disc, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer, but is not limited to these. The memory may be separate and coupled to the processor via communication line 202. The memory may also be integral to the processor. The memory provided by the embodiment of the application can be generally nonvolatile. The memory 203 is used for storing computer-executable instructions for executing the present invention, and is controlled by the processor 201 to execute the instructions. The processor 201 is configured to execute computer-executable instructions stored in the memory 203, thereby implementing the methods provided by the embodiments of the present application.

Optionally, the computer-executable instructions in the embodiments of the present application may also be referred to as application program codes, which are not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present application.

In particular implementations, processor 201 may include one or more CPUs such as CPU0 and CPU1 in fig. 2, for example, as one embodiment.

In particular implementations, communication apparatus 200 may include multiple processors, such as processor 201 and processor 207 in fig. 2, for example, as an example. Each of these processors may be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. A processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (e.g., computer program instructions).

The method for service binding provided by the embodiment of the present application will be specifically described below with reference to fig. 1 and fig. 2. The network element or SCP in the following embodiments may have the components shown in fig. 2.

It should be noted that, in the following embodiments of the present application, names of messages between network elements or names of parameters in messages are only an example, and other names may also be used in a specific implementation, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

It is understood that, in the embodiments of the present application, the first NF, and/or the first SCP, and/or the second NF may perform some or all of the steps in the embodiments of the present application, and these steps are merely examples, and the embodiments of the present application may also perform other steps or various modifications of the steps. Moreover, the various steps may be performed in a different order presented in the embodiments of the application, and not all of the steps in the embodiments of the application may be performed.

It should be noted that, in the method for service binding provided in this embodiment of the present application, for example, the first NF and the second NF communicate with each other through two SCPs, and a process of communicating between the first NF and the second NF through one or more than two SCPs may refer to a process of communicating between the first NF and the second NF through two SCPs, which is not described in detail.

As shown in fig. 3, a method for service binding provided by an embodiment of the present application includes steps 301 to 308.

Step 301: the first NF sends a request for a first service to the first SCP.

Wherein the first NF may be any network element in the service architecture shown in fig. 1. The first NF may have a function of a service consumer, or the first NF may have a function of a service consumer and a service producer.

Optionally, the first NF comprises one or more service instances.

Optionally, the request for the first service is for requesting the first service.

Optionally, the sending, by the first NF, the request for the first service to the first SCP, includes: a first service instance of the first NF sends a request for a first service to the first SCP. The first service instance of the first NF is any one of the service instances in the first NF.

Optionally, the request for the first service includes a first parameter.

Optionally, the first parameter includes a target-NF-type of the second NF and an Application Programming Interface (API) identifier (service-names) provided externally by the second NF.

Further optionally, the first parameter may further include one or more of the following parameters: a NF type (request-NF-type) of the first NF, an identification of the first service instance of the first NF, a geographic location of the first service instance of the first NF, or a network slice identification of the first service instance of the first NF.

It should be noted that the first parameter may also have other names, such as, but not limited to, discovery and selection parameters (discovery and selection parameters).

Step 302: the first SCP receives a request for a first service from the first NF and sends the request for the first service and the second field to the second SCP according to the request for the first service.

Optionally, the first SCP stores a first routing rule, where the first routing rule is used to indicate a sending rule of a message received by the first SCP.

Optionally, the second field is included in a request header of a hypertext transfer protocol (HTTP). For example, the second field is included in an X-Forwarded-for (XFF) header.

XFF is an HTTP request header field for identifying the most primitive IP address of a client connected to a web server by means of HTTP proxy or load balancing.

Optionally, the second field includes an address of the first service instance of the first NF. For example, the second field includes an IP address of the first service instance of the first NF.

It should be noted that the address of the first service instance of the first NF may also be a domain name of the first service instance of the first NF, or a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) address of the first service instance of the first NF, or the like.

Optionally, the sending, by the first SCP, the request of the first service and the second field to the second SCP according to the request of the first service, includes: the first SCP determines a second SCP according to the first parameter and a first routing rule of the first SCP; the first SCP sends the request for the first service and the second field to the second SCP.

Further optionally, the sending, by the first SCP, the request of the first service and the second field to the second SCP includes: the first SCP adds the second field into the first XFF request head; the first SCP sends a request for a first service and a first XFF request header to a second SCP.

It should be noted that the first XFF request header is empty before the first SCP adds the second field to the first XFF request header.

Step 303: the second SCP receives the request of the first service and the second field from the first SCP, and transmits the request of the first service and the fifth field to the second NF according to the request of the first service.

Optionally, the receiving, by the second SCP, the request of the first service and the second field from the first SCP, includes: the second SCP receives a request for the first service from the first SCP and a first XFF request header.

Optionally, the second NF is any network element in the service architecture shown in fig. 1. The second NF has a function of a service consumer, or the first NF has a function of a service consumer and a service producer.

Optionally, the second NF may include one or more service instances.

Further optionally, the request of the first service further includes an address of the second SCP.

Illustratively, the address of the second SCP may be an IP address of the second SCP, a domain name of the second SCP, or a URL address of the second SCP, etc.

The fifth field may include an address of the first service instance of the first NF, and addresses of the first n-1 SCPs, n being the number of SCPs passed from the first NF to the second NF.

In the embodiment of the present application, communication between the first NF and the second NF is performed through two SCPs, so that n is 2, and the fifth field includes an address of the first service instance of the first NF and an address of the first SCP.

The address of the first SCP may be an IP address of the first SCP, a domain name of the first SCP, or a URL address of the first SCP.

Optionally, the second SCP stores a second routing rule, where the second routing rule is used to indicate a sending rule of a message received by the second SCP.

The second routing rule and the first routing rule may be the same or different.

Optionally, the sending, by the second SCP, the request of the first service and the fifth field to the second NF according to the request of the first service includes: and the second SCP sends the request of the first service and a fifth field to a first service instance of a second NF according to the request of the first service, wherein the first service instance of the second NF is any service instance in the second NF.

Further optionally, the sending, by the second SCP, the request of the first service and the fifth field to the first service instance of the second NF according to the request of the first service includes: the second SCP determines a first service instance of a second NF according to the first parameter and a second routing rule of the second SCP; the second SCP sends the request for the first service and the fifth field to the first service instance of the second NF.

Further optionally, the second SCP sends the request of the first service and the fifth field to the first service instance of the second NF, including: the second SCP adds the address of the first SCP into the first XFF request head; the second SCP sends a request for the first service and a second XFF request header to a first service instance of the second NF.

Wherein the second XFF request header includes an address of the first service instance of the first NF and an address of the first SCP, i.e., the second XFF request header includes a fifth field.

It should be noted that, in the prior art, it is a relatively complex process that the first SCP determines the second SCP according to the first parameter and the first routing rule of the first SCP, and the second SCP determines the second NF according to the first parameter and the routing rule of the second SCP, the first SCP needs to perform multiple condition selections to determine the second SCP, and the second SCP also needs to perform multiple condition selections to determine the second NF.

Step 304: and the second NF receives the request of the first service and the fifth field from the second SCP, and if the second NF determines to bind the first service instance of the second NF, the second NF generates first routing information according to the fifth field.

Optionally, the second NF comprises one or more service instances.

Optionally, the receiving, by the second NF, the request of the first service and the fifth field from the second SCP, includes: the second NF receives a request for the first service from the second SCP and a second XFF request header.

Optionally, the first routing information includes an address of an SCP passed by the first NF to the second NF, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

In this embodiment, the SCPs passed through from the first NF to the second NF include a first SCP and a second SCP, and therefore, the first routing information may include: an address of the first SCP, an address of the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

Wherein the first service instance of the second NF may be for providing services to the first service instance of the first NF.

The address of the first service instance of the second NF may be an IP address of the first service instance of the second NF, a domain name of the first service instance of the second NF, or a URL address of the first service instance of the second NF.

Optionally, the first routing information further includes: an address of a first service instance of the first NF.

Optionally, the second NF generates the first routing information according to the fifth field, including: the second NF adds the address of SCP passed from the first NF to the second NF and the address of the first service instance of the second NF into the first routing information in sequence; or, the second NF generates the first routing information according to the fifth field, including: and the second NF adds the address of the first service instance of the first NF, the address of the SCP passed by the first NF to the second NF and the address of the first service instance of the second NF into the first routing information in sequence.

Optionally, if the second NF determines that the first service instance of the second NF is not bound, the second NF sends a service response to the first NF through the second SCP and the first SCP, where the service response is used to indicate that the first service instance of the second NF provides the first service for the first service instance of the first NF.

Optionally, the service response includes an address of the first service instance of the second NF and/or an identification of the first service instance of the second NF.

Step 305: the second NF sends a response for the first service to the second SCP.

Wherein the response of the first service includes the first routing information.

Optionally, the response of the first service further includes second binding information.

Wherein the second binding information may be used to indicate that the first service instance of the second NF is bound. That is, after the first NF receives the response of the first service (or when the first NF receives the first service response), the service request of the first resource sent by the first NF is processed by the first service instance of the second NF. That is, after the first NF receives the response of the first service (or when the first NF receives the first service response), and before the first NF receives the binding release information, the service request of the first resource sent by the first NF is routed to the first service instance of the second NF.

Wherein the first resource is a resource created by the second NF for the request of the first service.

Optionally, the request for the first service is a service request for a first resource.

Optionally, the second binding information includes an address of the first resource.

The address of the first resource may be an IP address of the first resource, a domain name of the first resource, or a URL address of the first resource.

Step 306: the second SCP receives the response of the first service from the second NF and forwards the response of the first service to the first SCP.

Step 307: the first SCP receives a response to the first service from the second SCP, and forwards the response to the first service to the first NF.

Step 308: the first NF receives a response of the first service from the first SCP.

Optionally, after the first NF receives the response of the first service (or when the first NF receives the first service response), the first routing information is stored locally; or after the first NF receives the response of the first service (or when the first NF receives the first service response), the first routing information and the second binding information are stored locally.

Based on the method shown in fig. 3, the first NF may send a request for a first service to the first SCP, after receiving the request for the first service, the first SCP may determine a second SCP according to the request for the first service and a first routing rule stored in the first SCP, and send the request for the first service and a second field to the second SCP, after receiving the request for the first service and the second field, the second SCP may determine a second NF according to the request for the first service and a second routing rule, and send the request for the first service and a fifth field to the second NF, after receiving the request for the first service and the fifth field, if it is determined to bind a first service instance of the second NF, the first routing information may be generated according to the fifth field, and the first routing information is included in a response of the first service, and sent to the first NF through the second SCP, and subsequently, if the first NF sends the request for the service of the first resource again, the SCP between the first NF and the second NF does not need to carry out rule matching and routing, but sends the service request to the second NF through the first SCP and the second SCP according to the first routing information, thereby improving the message forwarding performance.

Further optionally, in a first implementation scenario of the method shown in fig. 3, the first NF may send the request of the second service and the first field to the second NF, and the SCP between the first NF and the second NF may send the request of the second service to the second NF through the first SCP and the second SCP according to the first routing information without performing rule matching and routing.

As shown in fig. 4, the method of fig. 3 further includes steps 309-313.

Step 309: the first NF generates a first field according to the first routing information.

Wherein a first field may be included in a request header of the newly added HTTP, the first field indicating a communication path of the first service instance from the first NF to the second NF.

Optionally, the request header of the newly added HTTP may be named X-3 gpp-Disc-Forwarded.

It should be noted that X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded is only an example of the name of the request header of the new HTTP, and the request header of the new HTTP may also be another name, which is not limited.

Optionally, the first NF determines to send a request of the second service corresponding to the first resource, and generates the first field according to the first routing information.

It should be noted that the request of the second service may be sent by the first service instance of the first NF, or may be sent by other service instances of the first NF. The following description will be given taking as an example that the request of the second service is transmitted by the first service instance of the first NF.

Optionally, the first field includes an address of the first service instance of the first NF, an address of the first SCP, an address of the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF; or the first field comprises an address of the first SCP, an address of the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF; alternatively, the first field includes an address of the second SCP and an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

Optionally, the generating, by the first NF, the first field according to the first routing information includes: the first NF determines all addresses in the first routing information as a first field; or, the first NF determines, as a first field, an address of the first routing information except for an address of the first service instance of the first NF; or, the first NF determines, as the first field, an address in the first routing information, excluding the address of the first service instance of the first NF and the address of the 1 st SCP from the first NF to the second NF.

Step 310: the first NF sends a request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP.

The request of the second service is used for requesting the first service instance of the second NF to provide the second service for the service instance of the first NF.

Optionally, the second service may be the same as or different from the first service.

Optionally, the request for the second service includes a second parameter.

The description of the second parameter may refer to the description of the first parameter. The second parameter may be the same as or different from the first parameter.

Optionally, the sending, by the first NF, the request of the second service and the first field to the first SCP, includes: the first NF sends a request for a second service and a first X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header to the first SCP.

Wherein the first X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header may include an address of the first service instance of the first NF, an address of the first SCP, an address of the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF; or the first field comprises an address of the first SCP, an address of the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF; alternatively, the first field includes an address of the second SCP and an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

It should be noted that the first field may also be included in the request of the second service.

Step 311: the first SCP receives the request for the second service and the first field from the first NF, and sends the request for the second service and the third field to the second SCP.

Optionally, the receiving, by the first SCP, the request of the second service from the first NF and the first field includes: the first SCP receives a request for a second service from the first NF and a first X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header.

Optionally, the third field includes, from the first NF to the second NF, an address of an SCP subsequent to the second SCP, among the passed SCPs, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

In the embodiment of the present application, the first NF and the second NF pass through the first SCP and the second SCP from the first NF, and therefore, the third field includes an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

It should be noted that the third field may also be the same as the first field, that is, the third field may also include an address of the first service instance of the first NF, an address of the first SCP, an address of the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF; alternatively, the third field may include an address of the first SCP, an address of the second SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the second NF; alternatively, the third field may include an address of the second SCP and an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

Optionally, the sending, by the first SCP, the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP includes: the first SCP determines a second SCP according to the first field; the first SCP sends a request for the second service and the third field to the second SCP.

Further optionally, the sending, by the first SCP, the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP includes: the first SCP removes the addresses of the second SCP and nodes before the second SCP in the first field from the first field to obtain a third field; the first SCP sends a request for the second service and the third field to the second SCP.

Optionally, a third field is included in the second X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header.

It should be noted that, if the third field is the same as the first field, the first SCP does not need to remove the addresses of the second SCP and the nodes before the second SCP in the first field from the first field to obtain the third field, but sends the request for the second service and the first field to the second SCP after determining the second SCP according to the first field.

Further optionally, the first SCP sending the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP, further including: the first SCP adds the address of the first service instance of the first NF into a third XFF request header, and the first SCP sends the request of the second service, a third field and the third XFF request header to the second SCP.

Wherein the third XFF request header is null before the first SCP adds the address of the first service instance of the first NF to the third XFF request header.

Step 312: the second SCP receives the request for the second service and the third field from the first SCP, and sends the request for the second service to the second NF.

Optionally, the sending, by the second SCP, the request of the second service to the second NF includes: the second SCP determines a second NF according to the third field; the second SCP sends a request for a second service to the second NF.

Further optionally, the sending, by the second SCP, the request of the second service to the second NF further includes: the second SCP adds the address of the first SCP into the third XFF request head to obtain a fourth XFF request head, and the second SCP sends the request of the second service and the fourth XFF request head to the second NF.

Step 313: the second NF receives a request for a second service from the second SCP.

Optionally, after the second NF receives the request of the second service from the second SCP, the method further includes: the second NF sends a response of the second service to the first NF via the second SCP and the first SCP.

Wherein the response of the second service may be used to indicate that the first service instance of the second NF provides the second service for the first service instance of the first NF.

Based on the method shown in fig. 4, after the second NF establishes a binding relationship with the first NF, when the first NF determines to send the request for the second service, the first NF may obtain the first field according to the first routing information, and send the request for the second service and the first field to the first SCP, after receiving the request for the second service and the first field, the first SCP does not need to perform route matching, and may determine the second SCP according to the first field and send the request for the second service and the third field to the second SCP, and the second SCP also does not need to perform route matching, and may determine the second NF according to the third field and send the request for the second service to the second NF.

Further optionally, in a second implementation scenario of the method shown in fig. 3, the first NF has both the function of a service consumer and the function of a service producer, and the second NF has both the function of a service consumer and the function of a service producer, so that the request of the first service may further include first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate a first service instance to which the first NF is bound.

Optionally, the first binding information includes an address of the second resource. The second resource is a resource created by the first NF.

The address of the second resource may be an IP address of the second resource, a domain name of the second resource, or a URL address of the second resource, etc.

As shown in fig. 5, the method shown in fig. 4 may further include steps 314-318.

Step 314: the second NF generates a sixth field from the fifth field.

In a possible implementation manner, the second NF may store the address and the fifth field of the second SCP in the request of the first service locally after receiving the request of the first service and the fifth field from the second SCP, and subsequently, after receiving the first binding information, and when the second NF sends the service request of the second resource to the first NF, the second NF may generate the sixth field according to the fifth field and the address of the second SCP.

Wherein the sixth field may be used to indicate a communication path from the second NF to the first service instance of the first NF.

It should be noted that, after the second NF receives the first binding information, any service instance of the second NF may send a service request of the second resource to the first NF, and the following description takes an example in which the first service instance of the second NF sends the service request of the second resource to the first NF.

Optionally, the sixth field includes an address of the first service instance of the second NF, an address of the second SCP, an address of the first SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the first NF; or the sixth field includes an address of the second SCP, an address of the first SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the first NF; alternatively, the sixth field includes an address of the first SCP and an address of the first service instance of the first NF.

Optionally, the second NF generates a sixth field according to the fifth field and the address of the second SCP, including: the second NF adds the address of the first service instance of the second NF, the address of the second SCP, the address of the first SCP and the address of the first service instance of the first NF into the sixth field in sequence; or the second NF adds the address of the second SCP, the address of the first SCP and the address of the first service instance of the first NF into the sixth field in sequence; alternatively, the second NF adds the address of the first SCP and the address of the first service instance of the first NF in the sixth field in order.

In another possible implementation manner, the second NF may obtain, after receiving the request of the first service from the second SCP and the fifth field, second routing information according to an address of the second SCP in the request of the first service and the fifth field, and store the second routing information locally, and subsequently, after receiving the first binding information, when the second NF sends the service request of the second resource to the first NF, the second NF may generate the sixth field according to the second routing information.

The second routing information may include an address of an SCP passed by the first NF from the second NF, and an address of the first service instance of the first NF.

In this embodiment, the second NF passes through the second SCP and the first SCP to the first NF, and therefore, the second routing information may include: an address of the second SCP, an address of the first SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the first NF.

Optionally, the second routing information may further include an address of the first service instance of the second NF.

Optionally, the obtaining, by the second NF, second routing information according to the address of the second SCP in the request of the first service and the fifth field includes: the second NF adds the address of the second SCP, the address of the first SCP and the address of the first service instance of the first NF into the second routing information in sequence; or the second NF adds the address of the first service instance of the second NF, the address of the second SCP, the address of the first SCP and the address of the first service instance of the first NF into the second routing information in sequence.

Optionally, the second NF generates the sixth field according to the second routing information, including: the second NF determines all addresses in the second routing information as a sixth field; or, the second NF determines, as a sixth field, an address of the second routing information except for the address of the first service instance of the second NF; or, the second NF determines, as the sixth field, an address of the second routing information, excluding the address of the first service instance of the second NF and the address of the 1 st SCP from the second NF to the first NF.

Step 315: the second NF sends a request for a third service and a sixth field to the second SCP.

Wherein the request for the third service is for requesting the first service instance of the first NF to provide the third service for the service instance of the second NF.

The request for the third service may include a third parameter.

Optionally, the third parameter includes an NF type of the first NF and an API identifier provided externally by the first NF.

Further optionally, the third parameter may further include one or more of the following parameters: an identification of the first service instance of the second NF, a geographic location of the first service instance of the second NF, or a network slice identification of the first service instance of the second NF.

It should be noted that the three parameters may also be named by other names, such as, but not limited to, discovery and selection parameters (discovery and selection parameters).

Optionally, the sending, by the second NF, the request of the third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, includes: the second NF sends a request for a third service and a third X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header to the second SCP.

Wherein the third X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header may include a sixth field.

It should be noted that the sixth field may also be included in the request of the third service.

Step 316: the second SCP receives the request for the third service and the sixth field from the second NF, and sends the request for the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP.

Optionally, the receiving, by the second SCP, the request of the third service from the second NF and the sixth field include: the second SCP receives a request for a third service from the second NF and a third X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header.

Optionally, the fourth field includes, among the SCPs passed through from the second NF to the first NF, an address of an SCP subsequent to the first SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the first NF.

In the embodiment of the present application, the second SCP and the first SCP are passed from the second NF to the first NF, and therefore, the fourth field includes the address of the first service instance of the first NF.

It should be noted that the fourth field may also be the same as the sixth field, that is, the fourth field may also include an address of the first service instance of the second NF, an address of the second SCP, an address of the first SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the first NF; alternatively, the fourth field may also be an address of the second SCP, an address of the first SCP, and an address of the first service instance of the first NF; alternatively, the fourth field may also include an address of the first SCP and an address of the first service instance of the first NF.

Optionally, the sending, by the second SCP, the request of the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP, includes: the second SCP determines the first SCP according to the sixth field; the second SCP sends a request for the third service and a fourth field to the first SCP.

Further optionally, the second SCP sending the request of the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP, including: the first SCP removes the addresses of the second SCP and the node before the second SCP in the sixth field from the sixth field to obtain a fourth field; the second SCP sends a request for the third service and a fourth field to the first SCP.

Optionally, a fourth field is included in the fourth X-3gpp-Disc-Forwarded request header.

It should be noted that, if the fourth field is the same as the sixth field, the second SCP does not need to remove the addresses of the first SCP and the node before the first SCP in the sixth field from the sixth field to obtain the fourth field, but sends the request for the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP after determining the first SCP according to the sixth field.

Further optionally, the second SCP sending the request of the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP, further including: the second SCP adds the address of the first service instance of the second NF to a fifth XFF request header, the second SCP sending the request for the third service, the fourth field, and the fifth XFF request header to the first SCP.

Wherein the fifth XFF request header is null before the second SCP adds the address of the first service instance of the second NF to the fifth XFF request header.

Step 317: the first SCP receives the request for the third service and the fourth field from the second SCP, and sends the request for the third service to the first NF.

Optionally, the sending, by the first SCP, the request of the third service to the first NF includes: the first SCP determines a first NF according to the fourth field; the first SCP sends a request for a third service to the first NF.

Further optionally, the sending, by the first SCP, the request of the third service to the first NF further includes: the first SCP adds the address of the second SCP into the fifth XFF request head to obtain a sixth XFF request head; the first SCP sends the request for the third service and the sixth XFF request header to the first NF.

Step 318: the first NF receives a request for a third service from the first SCP.

Optionally, after the first NF receives the request of the third service from the first SCP, the method further includes: the first NF sends a response of the third service to the second NF through the first SCP and the second SCP.

Wherein the response of the third service may be to indicate that the first service instance of the first NF provides the third service for the first service instance of the second NF.

Based on the method shown in fig. 5, the first NF has functions of both a service consumer and a service generator, the second NF also has functions of both a service consumer and a service generator, the request for the first service sent by the first NF and the request for the first service sent by the second SCP further include the first binding information, the second NF, after receiving the first binding information, may generate a sixth field according to the fifth field and send the request for the third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, after receiving the request for the third service and the sixth field, may determine the first SCP according to the sixth field and send the request for the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP, after receiving the request for the third service and the fourth field, may determine the first NF according to the fourth field and send the request for the third service to the first NF, in this process, the second SCP and the first SCP do not need to perform route matching, the communication process between the two NF for establishing the binding relation in the indirect communication mode is simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

The method shown in fig. 3, the method shown in fig. 4, and the method shown in fig. 5 are all methods for introducing a service binding, taking as an example that a first NF has a function of a service consumer, or a function of a service producer as well as the first NF, and a function of a service producer as well as the second NF has a function of a service consumer as well as the service producer, and taking as an example that a first NF has a function of a service consumer as well as the service producer as well as the second NF has a function of a service consumer as well as the service producer as well as the first NF.

As shown in fig. 6, a method for service binding provided in an embodiment of the present application includes steps 601 to 609.

Step 601: the first NF sends a request for a first service to the first SCP.

The specific process of step 601 may refer to the description in step 301, and is not described in detail.

It should be noted that the request for the first service may further include, in addition to the first parameter, first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that the first service instance of the first NF is bound.

Step 602: the first SCP receives a request for a first service from the first NF and sends the request for the first service and the second field to the second SCP according to the request for the first service.

The detailed process of step 602 may refer to the description in step 302, and is not described in detail.

Step 603: the second SCP receives the request of the first service and the second field from the first SCP, and transmits the request of the first service and the fifth field to the second NF according to the request of the first service.

The detailed process of step 603 may refer to the description in step 303, and is not described in detail.

It should be noted that the request of the first service may include the first binding information in addition to the address of the second SCP.

Step 604: the second NF receives the request for the first service and the fifth field from the second SCP.

Step 605: the second NF generates a sixth field from the fifth field.

Step 606: the second NF sends a request for a third service and a sixth field to the second SCP.

Step 607: the second SCP receives the request for the third service and the sixth field from the second NF, and sends the request for the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP.

Step 608: the first SCP receives the request for the third service and the fourth field from the second SCP, and sends the request for the third service to the first NF.

Step 609: the first NF receives a request for a third service from the first SCP.

The detailed process of steps 605 to 609 may refer to the description of steps 314 to 318, which is not repeated herein.

Based on the method shown in fig. 6, the first NF has both the function of a service consumer and the function of a service generator, and the second NF also has both the function of a service consumer and the function of a service generator, the first NF may include first binding information in the sent request for the first service, after receiving the first binding information, the second NF may establish a binding relationship with the first service instance of the first NF without sending a request to the first NF when acting as a service consumer, subsequently, the second NF may generate a sixth field according to the fifth field and send a request for a third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, after receiving the request for the third service and the sixth field, the second SCP may determine the first SCP according to the sixth field and send the request for the third service and the fourth field to the first SCP, after receiving the request for the third service and the fourth field by the first SCP, the first NF can be determined according to the fourth field and a request of a third service is sent to the first NF, and the second SCP and the first SCP do not need to carry out route matching in the process, so that the communication process between the two NFs for establishing the binding relationship in an indirect communication mode is simplified, and the information forwarding performance is improved.

The above-mentioned scheme provided by the embodiment of the present application is introduced mainly from the perspective of interaction between network elements. It is understood that the first NF, the first SCP, the second SCP or the second NF, etc. contain hardware structures and/or software modules for performing the respective functions in order to realize the functions. Those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the various illustrative elements and algorithm operations described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as hardware or combinations of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is performed as hardware or computer software drives hardware depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present application.

In the embodiment of the present application, the first NF, the first SCP, or the second NF may be divided into function modules according to the above method example, for example, each function module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The integrated module can be realized in a hardware mode, and can also be realized in a software functional module mode. It should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present application, the division of the module is schematic, and is only one logic function division, and there may be another division manner in actual implementation.

For example, in the case where the functional modules are divided in an integrated manner, fig. 7 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a communication device 70. The communication device 70 may be the first NF or a chip or system on a chip in the first NF, and the communication device 70 may be configured to perform the functions of the first NF as discussed in the above embodiments.

As a possible implementation, the communication device 70 shown in fig. 7 includes: a transmitting module 701 and a receiving module 702.

A sending module 701, configured to send a request of a first service to a first service communication proxy SCP, where the request of the first service is used to request the first service.

A receiving module 702, configured to receive a response of the first service from the first SCP, where the response of the first service includes first routing information, the first routing information includes an address of an SCP traversed by from the communication device 70 to a second network function, and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, the first service instance of the second network function being used to provide a service for the communication device 70.

Optionally, as shown in fig. 8, the communication device 70 further includes: a processing module 703; a processing module 703 configured to generate a first field according to the first routing information, wherein the first field is used for indicating a communication path from the communication apparatus 70 to the first service instance of the second network function; the sending module 701 is further configured to send a request of a second service and the first field to the first SCP, where the request of the second service is used to request the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the communication device 70.

Optionally, the communication device 70 has the functionality to serve the consumer.

Optionally, the communication device 70 further has a function of a service producer, and the request of the first service further includes first binding information, wherein the first binding information is used for indicating that the first service instance of the communication device 70 is bound.

Optionally, the receiving module 702 is configured to receive a request of a third service from the first SCP, where the request of the third service is used to request the first service instance of the communication device 70 to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function.

All relevant contents of the operations related to the method embodiment may be referred to the functional description of the corresponding functional module, and are not described herein again.

In the present embodiment, the communication device 70 is presented in the form of dividing each functional module in an integrated manner. A "module" herein may refer to a particular ASIC, a circuit, a processor and memory that execute one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and/or other device that provides the described functionality. In a simple embodiment, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the communication device 70 may take the form shown in FIG. 2.

For example, the processor 201 in fig. 2 may execute the instructions by calling a computer stored in the memory 203, so that the communication device 70 executes the transmission method of the csi reference signal in the above method embodiment.

Illustratively, the functions/implementation procedures of the sending module 701, the receiving module 702, and the processing module 703 in fig. 8 may be implemented by the processor 201 in fig. 2 calling a computer executing instructions stored in the memory 203. Alternatively, the function/implementation procedure of the processing module 703 in fig. 8 may be implemented by the processor 201 in fig. 2 calling a computer executing instruction stored in the memory 203, and the function/implementation procedures of the sending module 701 and the receiving module 702 in fig. 8 may be implemented by the communication interface 204 in fig. 2.

Since the communication device 70 provided in this embodiment can execute the above-mentioned service binding method, the technical effects obtained by the method can be obtained by referring to the above-mentioned method embodiment, which is not described herein again.

For example, in the case where the functional modules are divided in an integrated manner, fig. 9 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a communication apparatus 90. The communication device 90 may be the first SCP or a chip in the first SCP or a system on a chip, and the communication device 90 may be configured to perform the functions of the first SCP involved in the above embodiments.

As a possible implementation, the communication device 90 shown in fig. 9 includes: a receiving module 901 and a sending module 902.

A receiving module 901 is configured to receive a request of a first service from a first network function, where the request of the first service is used for requesting the first service.

A sending module 902, configured to send, to a second SCP, the request of the first service and a second field according to the request of the first service, where the second field includes an address of a first service instance of the first network function.

The receiving module 901 is further configured to receive a response of the first service from the second SCP, where the response of the first service includes first routing information, the first routing information includes an address of an SCP traversed by from the first network function to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, and the first service instance of the second network function is used to provide a service for the first network function.

The sending module 902 is further configured to send a response of the first service to the first network function.

Optionally, the receiving module 901 is further configured to receive a request of a second service from the first network function and a first field, where the request of the second service is used to request the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function, and the first field is used to indicate a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function; a sending module 902, further configured to send the request of the second service and a third field to the second SCP according to the first field, where the third field includes an address of an SCP subsequent to the second SCP, among the passed SCPs from the first network function to the second network function, and an address of the first service instance of the second network function.

Optionally, the sending module 902 is specifically configured to determine the second SCP according to the first field; the sending module 902 is further specifically configured to send the request of the second service and the third field to the second SCP.

Optionally, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer.

Optionally, the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and the request of the first service further includes first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate a first service instance binding the first network function.

Optionally, the receiving module 901 is further configured to receive a request of a third service from the second SCP and a fourth field, where the request of the third service is used to request the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function, and the fourth field includes an address of an SCP after the communication device 90 in the SCPs passed through from the second network function to the first network function, and an address of the first service instance of the first network function; the sending module 902 is further configured to send the request of the third service to the first network function.

In the present embodiment, the communication device 90 is presented in a form of dividing each functional module in an integrated manner. A "module" herein may refer to a particular ASIC, a circuit, a processor and memory that execute one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and/or other device that provides the described functionality. In a simple embodiment, one skilled in the art will recognize that the communication device 90 may take the form shown in FIG. 2.

For example, the processor 201 in fig. 2 may cause the communication device 90 to perform the method of service binding in the above-described method embodiments by calling a computer stored in the memory 203 to execute the instructions.

Illustratively, the functions/implementation procedures of the receiving module 901 and the sending module 902 in fig. 9 may be implemented by the processor 201 in fig. 2 calling a computer executing instruction stored in the memory 203. Alternatively, the functions/implementation procedures of the receiving module 901 and the sending module 902 in fig. 9 may be implemented by the communication interface 204 in fig. 2.

Since the communication device 90 provided in this embodiment can execute the above-mentioned service binding method, the technical effects obtained by the communication device can refer to the above-mentioned method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

For example, in the case where the respective functional modules are divided in an integrated manner, fig. 10 shows a schematic configuration diagram of a communication apparatus 100. The communication device 100 may be a second NF or a chip or system on a chip in a second NF, and the communication device 100 may be configured to perform the functions of the second NF as described in the above embodiments.

As a possible implementation, the communication apparatus 100 shown in fig. 10 includes: a receiving module 1001, a processing module 1002 and a sending module 1003.

A receiving module 1001 for receiving a request for a first service from a second service communication agent SCP for requesting the first service and a fifth field comprising an address of a first service instance of the first network function and addresses of the first n-1 SCPs, n being the number of SCPs passed from the first network function to the communication device 100.

A processing module 1002, configured to generate first routing information according to the fifth field if the communication device 100 determines to bind a first service instance of the communication device 100, where the first routing information includes an address of an SCP passed by the communication device 100 from the first network function to the communication device 100 and an address of the first service instance of the communication device 100, and the first service instance of the communication device 100 is used to provide a service for the first network function.

A sending module 1003, configured to send a response of the first service to the second SCP, where the response of the first service includes the first routing information.

Optionally, the receiving module 1001 is further configured to receive a request of a second service from the second SCP, where the request of the second service is used to request the first service instance of the communication device 100 to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function.

Optionally, the first network function has a function of serving a consumer; the communication apparatus 100 has a function of a service producer.

Optionally, the first network function further has a function of a service generator, and the request of the first service further includes first binding information, where the first binding information is used to indicate that the first service instance of the first network function is bound.

Optionally, the communication apparatus 100 further has a function of serving a consumer, and the processing module 1002 is further configured to generate a sixth field according to the fifth field, where the sixth field is used to indicate a communication path from the communication apparatus 100 to the first service instance of the first network function; the sending module 1003 is further configured to send a request of a third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, where the request of the third service is used to request the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the communication apparatus 100.

In the present embodiment, the communication apparatus 100 is presented in a form in which the respective functional modules are divided in an integrated manner. A "module" herein may refer to a particular ASIC, a circuit, a processor and memory that execute one or more software or firmware programs, an integrated logic circuit, and/or other device that provides the described functionality. In a simple embodiment, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the communication device 100 may take the form shown in FIG. 2.

For example, the processor 201 in fig. 2 may cause the communication apparatus 100 to execute the method of service binding in the above-described method embodiment by calling a computer stored in the memory 203 to execute the instructions.

Illustratively, the functions/implementation procedures of the receiving module 1001, the processing module 1002 and the sending module 1003 in fig. 10 may be implemented by the processor 201 in fig. 2 calling a computer executing instruction stored in the memory 203. Alternatively, the function/implementation procedure of the processing module 1002 in fig. 10 may be implemented by the processor 201 in fig. 2 calling a computer executing instruction stored in the memory 203, and the function/implementation procedures of the receiving module 1001 and the sending module 1003 in fig. 10 may be implemented by the communication interface 204 in fig. 2.

Since the communication device 100 provided in this embodiment can execute the above-mentioned service binding method, the technical effects obtained by the communication device can refer to the above-mentioned method embodiments, and are not described herein again.

Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of a communication system, and as shown in fig. 11, the communication system 110 may include: NF 1101, SCP 1102, SCP 1103, and NF 1104. It should be noted that fig. 11 is only an exemplary diagram, and the embodiment of the present application does not limit the network elements included in the communication system 110 shown in fig. 11 and the number of the network elements.

The NF 1101 has the functions of the communication device 70 shown in fig. 7 or fig. 8, and may be configured to send a request of the first service to the SCP 1102 and receive a response of the first service from the SCP 1102, for example.

The SCP 1102 has the functions of the communication system 90 shown in fig. 9 described above, and may be configured to receive a request for a first service from the NF 1101, send the request for the first service and the second field to the SCP 1103 according to the request for the first service, receive a response for the first service from the SCP 1103, and send the response for the first service to the NF 1101, for example.

The SCP 1103 may receive the request and the second field of the first service from the SCP 1102, send the request and the fifth field of the first service to the NF 1104, receive a response of the first service from the NF 1104, and send the response of the first service to the SCP 1102.

The NF 1104 has the functions of the communication apparatus 100 shown in fig. 10, and may be configured to receive a request for the first service from the SCP 1103 and a fifth field, for example, if the NF 1104 determines to bind the first service instance of the NF 1104, generate the first routing information according to the fifth field, and send a response of the first service to the SCP 1103.

It should be noted that all relevant contents of the steps related to the above method embodiments may be referred to the functional description of the network element corresponding to the communication system 110, and are not described herein again.

In the above embodiments, the implementation may be wholly or partially realized by software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using a software program, may be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. The procedures or functions described in accordance with the embodiments of the present application are all or partially generated upon loading and execution of computer program instructions on a computer. The computer may be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a network of computers, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored on a computer readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer readable storage medium to another, for example, from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wire (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or can comprise one or more data storage devices, such as a server, a data center, etc., that can be integrated with the medium. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., DVD), or a semiconductor medium (e.g., Solid State Disk (SSD)), among others.

While the present application has been described in connection with various embodiments, other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed application, from a review of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the word "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

Although the present application has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it will be evident that various modifications and combinations can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. Accordingly, the specification and figures are merely exemplary of the present application as defined in the appended claims and are intended to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations, or equivalents within the scope of the present application. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made in the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is intended to include such modifications and variations as well.

Claims

1. A method of service binding, the method comprising:

a first network function sending a request for a first service to a first service communication proxy, SCP, wherein the request for the first service is for requesting the first service;

the first network function receiving a response to the first service from the first SCP, wherein the response to the first service includes first routing information including an address of an SCP traversed by from the first network function to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function, the first service instance of the second network function serving the first network function.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

the first network function generating a first field according to the first routing information, wherein the first field is used for indicating a communication path of a first service instance from the first network function to the second network function;

the first network function sends a request of a second service and the first field to the first SCP, where the request of the second service is used to request the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function.

3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the first network function has a function of serving a consumer.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the first network function further has a function of a service producer, and wherein the request for the first service further comprises first binding information, wherein the first binding information is used to indicate that the first service instance of the first network function is bound.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

the first network function receives a request for a third service from the first SCP, where the request for the third service is used to request the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function.

6. A method of service binding, the method comprising:

a first service communication agent, SCP, receiving a request for a first service from a first network function, wherein the request for the first service is for requesting the first service;

the first SCP sending a request for the first service and a second field to a second SCP according to the request for the first service, wherein the second field comprises an address of a first service instance of the first network function;

the first SCP receiving a response from the second SCP for a first service, wherein the response for the first service includes first routing information including an address of an SCP traversed by from the first network function to a second network function and an address of a first service instance of the second network function to provide service for the first network function;

the first SCP sends a response to the first network function for the first service.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising:

the first SCP receiving a request of a second service from the first network function and a first field, wherein the request of the second service is used for requesting a first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function, and the first field is used for indicating a communication path from the first network function to the first service instance of the second network function;

the first SCP sends a request for the second service and a third field to the second SCP based on the first field, wherein the third field includes an address of an SCP, which is subsequent to the second SCP, of the passing SCPs from the first network function to the second network function, and an address of the first service instance of the second network function.

8. The method according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the first network function has a function of serving a consumer.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first network function further has a function of a service producer, wherein the request for the first service further comprises first binding information, and wherein the first binding information is used to indicate a first service instance to which the first network function is bound.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

the first SCP receiving a request of a third service from the second SCP and a fourth field, wherein the request of the third service is used for requesting the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function, and the fourth field comprises addresses of SCPs after the first SCP and the address of the first service instance of the first network function in SCPs passed by the first network function from the second network function to the first network function;

the first SCP sends a request for the third service to the first network function.

11. A method of service binding, the method comprising:

the second network function receiving a request for a first service from a second service communication proxy, SCP, wherein the request for the first service is for requesting the first service and a fifth field comprising an address of a first service instance of the first network function and addresses of the first n-1 SCPs, n being the number of SCPs traversed from the first network function to the second network function;

if the second network function determines to bind the first service instance of the second network function, the second network function generates first routing information according to the fifth field, wherein the first routing information comprises an address of an SCP passed by the first network function to the second network function and an address of the first service instance of the second network function, and the first service instance of the second network function is used for providing service for the first network function;

the second network function sends a response of the first service to the second SCP, where the response of the first service includes the first routing information.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

the second network function receives a request for a second service from the second SCP, where the request for the second service is used to request the first service instance of the second network function to provide the second service for the service instance of the first network function.

13. The method according to claim 11 or 12,

the first network function has a function of serving a consumer;

the second network function has the function of a service producer.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first network function further has a function of a service generator, wherein the request for the first service further comprises first binding information, and wherein the first binding information is used to indicate that the first service instance of the first network function is bound.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the second network function further has a function of serving a consumer, the method further comprising:

the second network function generating a sixth field according to the fifth field, wherein the sixth field is used for indicating a communication path from the second network function to the first service instance of the first network function;

the second network function sends a request of a third service and the sixth field to the second SCP, where the request of the third service is used to request the first service instance of the first network function to provide the third service for the service instance of the second network function.

16. A communication apparatus, characterized in that the communication apparatus comprises: at least one processor, a memory;

the memory stores program instructions that are executed in the at least one processor to implement the functions of the first network function in the method of any one of claims 1-5.

17. A communication apparatus, characterized in that the communication apparatus comprises: at least one processor, a memory;

the memory stores program instructions for execution in the at least one processor to perform the functions of the first SCP in the method of any of claims 6-10.

18. A communication apparatus, characterized in that the communication apparatus comprises: at least one processor, a memory;

the memory stores program instructions that are executed in the at least one processor to implement the functions of the second network function in the method of any of claims 11-15.

19. A system-on-chip for use in a first network function, the system-on-chip comprising:

at least one processor in which program instructions are executed to implement the functions of the first network function in the method of any one of claims 1-5.

20. A system chip, said system chip being applied at a first service communication agent, SCP, said system chip comprising:

at least one processor in which program instructions are executed to implement the functions of a first SCP in a method according to any of claims 6 to 10.

21. A system-on-chip for use in a second network function, the system-on-chip comprising:

at least one processor in which program instructions are executed to implement the functions of the second network function in the method of any of claims 11-15.

22. A computer storage medium having stored thereon program instructions which, when executed, implement the functionality of the first network function of the method of any one of claims 1-5.

23. A computer storage medium having stored thereon program instructions which, when executed, implement the functions of a first SCP in a method according to any one of claims 6-10.

24. A computer storage medium having stored thereon program instructions which, when executed, implement the functionality of the second network function of the method of any of claims 11-15.

25. A communication system, characterized in that the communication system comprises any one or any of the following:

the communication device of claim 16, or the communication device of claim 17, or the communication device of claim 18, or the system-on-chip of claim 19, or the system-on-chip of claim 20, or the system-on-chip of claim 21, or the computer storage medium of claim 22, or the computer storage medium of claim 23, or the computer storage medium of claim 24.