CN112752352A

CN112752352A - Method and equipment for determining intermediate session management function I-SMF

Info

Publication number: CN112752352A
Application number: CN201911044845.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 陶源; 侯云静; 王胡成
Original assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Current assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Priority date: 2019-10-30
Filing date: 2019-10-30
Publication date: 2021-05-04
Anticipated expiration: 2039-10-30
Also published as: CN112752352B; WO2021083033A1

Abstract

The invention discloses a method and equipment for determining an intermediate session management function (I-SMF), which are used for solving the problem that a session between User Equipment (UE) and an MEC is influenced because a session management function cannot control a user plane function module. The method is applied to an application function AF side and comprises the following steps: creating request information, wherein the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information, and the request information is used for indicating that an access and mobility management (AMF) or a Session Management Function (SMF) selects an I-SMF (inter-mobile management function) based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected; and sending the request information to a network open function NEF or a policy control function PCF. According to the method for determining the intermediate session management function I-SMF, the creation request information indicates the AMF or the SMF to select the I-SMF based on the MEC application information, so that the selection of the proper I-SMF for the MEC is realized, and the continuity of the session between the UE and the MEC is ensured.

Description

Method and equipment for determining intermediate session management function I-SMF

Technical Field

The present invention relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method and an apparatus for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF.

Background

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

When a User Equipment (UE) uses an MEC service, if a Session Management Function (SMF) cannot meet a transmission requirement, a suitable Intermediate Session Management Function (I-SMF) needs to be selected to support data transmission between the MEC and the UE.

In the I-SMF selection mechanism defined in 5G, in the solution of the prior art, an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) determines whether to insert, change or delete an I-SMF based on the UE location and the service area information of the SMF and the I-SMF, but due to the UE movement, the SMF cannot control a User plane Function module (UPF), which causes the session between the UE and the MEC to be affected, and cannot realize selection of a proper I-SMF for the MEC.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a method and equipment for determining an intermediate session management function (I-SMF), which are used for solving the problem that a session between User Equipment (UE) and an MEC is influenced because the Session Management Function (SMF) cannot control a User Plane Function (UPF), and realizing selection of a proper I-SMF for the MEC.

In a first aspect, a method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an application function AF side, and the method includes:

creating request information, wherein the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information, and the request information is used for indicating that an access and mobility management (AMF) or a Session Management Function (SMF) selects an I-SMF (inter-mobile management function) based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

and sending the request information to a network open function NEF or a policy control function PCF.

In the method, the mobile edge computing MEC application information is created by the AF and indicates the AMF or SMF to select the I-SMF based on the MEC application information, so that the AMF or SMF selects the appropriate I-SMF according to the MEC application information when selecting the appropriate I-SMF, and the conversation between the UE and the MEC and the continuity of the service are ensured.

In one possible implementation, the MEC application information includes one or more of the following: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

the MEC application attribute information comprises MEC application, the distribution of MEC application instances, service capability, service type, load and life cycle.

In a second aspect, a method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a policy control function PCF side, and the method includes:

acquiring request information sent by an Application Function (AF), wherein the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information and is used for indicating that an access and mobility management (AMF) or a Session Management Function (SMF) selects an I-SMF (inter-mobile management function) based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

generating a Policy Control and Charging (PCC) rule containing MEC application information according to the request information;

and sending the PCC rule to a Session Management Function (SMF).

In the method, the PCF generates the PCC rule containing the MEC application information according to the acquired request information sent by the AF, so that the SMF can acquire the MEC application information from the PCC rule, and when the AMF or the SMF selects the proper I-SMF, the selection can be carried out according to the MEC application information, thereby ensuring the conversation between the UE and the MEC and the continuity of the service.

In a third aspect, a method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a session management function SMF side, and includes:

receiving a PCC rule sent by a policy control function PCF, wherein the PCC rule comprises mobile edge computing MEC application information;

when MEC application information contained in a PCC rule is determined to be first-class MEC application information, generating I-SMF selection indication information based on the first-class MEC application information, and sending the I-SMF selection indication information to an access and mobility management function AMF, wherein the I-SMF selection indication information is used for indicating the AMF to determine I-SMF based on the first-class MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

when the MEC application information contained in the PCC rule is determined to be the second type MEC application information, determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the second type MEC application information contained in the PCC rule, or extracting the second type MEC application information from the PCC rule containing the second type MEC application information, and forwarding the second type MEC application information to an access and mobility management function AMF.

According to the method, when the SMF determines MEC application information in the received PCC rule, and the MEC application information is first-class MEC application information, I-SMF selection indication information is generated, so that the AMF selects the indication information based on the I-SMF, when the I-SMF is selected, the selection can be performed according to the first-class MEC application information, the continuity of the session and the service between the UE and the MEC is ensured, when the MEC application information is second-class MEC application information, the SMF can determine the I-SMF according to the second-class MEC application information when the SMF selects the I-SMF, and the continuity of the session and the service between the UE and the MEC is ensured.

In a possible implementation manner, the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

In one possible implementation, the second type of MEC application information includes one or more of the following: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

In a fourth aspect, a method for determining an inter-session management function I-SMF according to an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an access and mobility management function AMF side, and includes:

receiving I-SMF selection indication information sent by a Session Management Function (SMF), wherein the I-SMF selection indication information comprises first class MEC application information;

and determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the first type of MEC application information.

In the method, the AMF selects the I-SMF according to the first type of MEC application information in the received I-SMF selection indication information when selecting the I-SMF, so that the continuity of the session and the service between the UE and the MEC is ensured.

In one possible implementation, the method further includes:

receiving second-class MEC application information sent by the SMF;

and determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the second type of MEC application information.

In the method, the AMF selects the I-SMF according to the second type of MEC application information when selecting the I-SMF based on the second type of MEC application information in the received PCC rule, so that the continuity of the session and the service between the UE and the MEC is ensured.

In a fifth aspect, an apparatus for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an application function AF side, and the apparatus includes: a processor and a memory;

the processor is used for reading the program in the memory and executing the following processes:

In one possible embodiment, the MEC application information includes one or more of the following: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

In a sixth aspect, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a policy control function PCF side, and the device includes: a processor and a memory;

and sending the PCC rule to a Session Management Function (SMF).

In a seventh aspect, an apparatus for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a session management function SMF side, and the apparatus includes: a processor and a memory;

In one possible implementation, the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

In one possible embodiment, the second type of MEC application information includes one or more of the following: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

In an eighth aspect, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an access and mobility management function AMF side, and includes: a processor and a memory;

In one possible embodiment, the processor is further configured to:

receiving second-class MEC application information sent by the SMF;

In a ninth aspect, an apparatus for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an application function AF side, and the apparatus includes a processing module and a sending module, wherein,

the processing module is used for creating request information, the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information, and the request information is used for indicating that the access and mobility management (AMF) or Session Management Function (SMF) selects the I-SMF based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

and the sending module is used for sending the request information to a network open function NEF or a policy control function PCF.

In a tenth aspect, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a policy control function PCF side, and the device includes an obtaining module, a processing module, and a sending module, where,

the device comprises an acquisition module, a processing module and a processing module, wherein the acquisition module is used for acquiring request information sent by an Application Function (AF), the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information, and the request information is used for indicating that an access and mobility management (AMF) or a Session Management Function (SMF) selects an I-SMF (inter-mobile management function) based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

the processing module is used for generating a Policy Control and Charging (PCC) rule containing MEC application information according to the request information;

and the sending module is used for sending the PCC rule to a Session Management Function (SMF).

In an eleventh aspect, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining apparatus provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a session management function SMF side, and the apparatus includes a receiving module, a first processing module and a second processing module, where,

a receiving module, configured to receive a PCC rule sent by a policy control function PCF, where the PCC rule includes mobile edge computing MEC application information;

the first processing module is used for generating I-SMF selection indication information based on the first type of MEC application information when the MEC application information contained in the PCC rule is determined to be the first type of MEC application information, and sending the I-SMF selection indication information to an access and mobility management function AMF, wherein the I-SMF selection indication information is used for indicating the AMF to determine the I-SMF based on the first type of MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

and the second processing module is used for determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the second type of MEC application information contained in the PCC rule when the MEC application information contained in the PCC rule is determined to be the second type of MEC application information, or extracting the second type of MEC application information from the PCC rule containing the second type of MEC application information and forwarding the second type of MEC application information to the access and mobility management function AMF.

In a twelfth aspect, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an access and mobility management function AMF side, and the device includes a first receiving module and a first determining module, where,

the system comprises a first receiving module, a second receiving module and a session management function SMF sending module, wherein the first receiving module is used for receiving I-SMF selection indication information sent by the SMF, and the I-SMF selection indication information comprises first class MEC application information;

and the first determining module is used for determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the first type of MEC application information.

In a possible embodiment, the device further comprises:

the second receiving module is used for receiving the second type MEC application information sent by the SMF;

and the second determining module is used for determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the second type of MEC application information.

In a thirteenth aspect, the present application further provides a computer storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, which when executed by a processing unit, performs the steps of the method of the first, second, third or fourth aspect.

In addition, for technical effects brought by any one implementation manner of the fifth aspect to the twelfth aspect, reference may be made to technical effects brought by different implementation manners of the first aspect, and details are not described here.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings needed to be used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly introduced below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings based on these drawings without inventive exercise.

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

fig. 2 is a schematic flowchart of a method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 3 is a schematic flowchart of another method for determining an I-SMF according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a schematic flowchart of a further method for determining an inter-session management function I-SMF according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 5 is a schematic flowchart of a method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF applied to an AF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a schematic flowchart of a method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF applied to a PCF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic flowchart of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining method applied to an SMF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 8 is a schematic flowchart of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining method applied to an AMF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device on an AF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device on the PCF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device on the SMF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device on the AMF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 13 is a schematic structural diagram of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device on an AF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of an I-SMF determining device of an intermediate session management function on a PCF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device on the SMF side according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 16 is a schematic structural diagram of an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device on the AMF side according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention clearer, the present invention will be described in further detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, and it is apparent that the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments given herein without making any creative effort, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

The application scenario described in the embodiment of the present invention is for more clearly illustrating the technical solution of the embodiment of the present invention, and does not form a limitation on the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present invention, and it can be known by a person skilled in the art that with the occurrence of a new application scenario, the technical solution provided in the embodiment of the present invention is also applicable to similar technical problems. In the description of the present invention, the term "plurality" means two or more unless otherwise specified.

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

5G defines an Application Function (AF) that sends an AF request (AF request) to a non-trusted domain (e.g., a Network opener Function) or to a trusted domain (e.g., a policy control Function), which contains a series of parameters such as a destination Digital Data Network (DNN), an Application Identity (ID), N6 routing requirements, and an Application location. The Policy Control Function (PCF) generates Policy Control and Charging (PCC) rules for the service flow of the Protocol Data Unit Session (PDU Session) according to the information parameters provided by the AF in combination with its own Policy Control, and selects an appropriate UPF for it through the SMF. The MEC provides functions of application infrastructure resource orchestration, application instantiation, application rule configuration, and the like. Thus, when an MEC is deployed in a 5G system, the MEC may also act as an AF role, interacting with the 5G system control plane on behalf of applications deployed on the MEC.

The current edge computing network architecture, as shown in fig. 1, has the following main network functions:

access and mobility management function AMF 101: has the functions of registration, connection management and the like.

User plane function module UPF 102: the system has external PDU session nodes interconnected with a data network, message routing and forwarding functions.

Session management function SMF 103: the method has the functions of session establishment and deletion, user plane selection and control, UE IP allocation and the like.

The application function AF 104: having the capability to interact with the 3GPP core network to provide service. Based on the operator deployment situation, the trusted AF may directly interact with a related Network Function (NF), while the non-trusted AF may not directly interact with the NF, and should use an external public framework to perform through a Network open Function (NEF).

NEF: has the function of safely exposing the service and capability provided by the 3GPP network to the external network.

Policy control function PCF 105: there is a policy framework that supports unification to manage network behavior, providing policy rules for control plane NF enforcement.

Network storage Function (NRF) NRF: has the function of supporting service discovery.

Unified Data Management (UDM) UDM 106: information of the UE, such as subscription information, information that the PDU session has been established, is stored.

The 5G system architecture allows the UDM, PCF, and NEF to store Data in a Unified Data Repository (UDR), where the UDR has the functions of subscription Data storage and UDM Front End (FE) retrieval of subscription Data, policy information storage, and PCF retrieval of policy information.

An I-SMF is an SMF that is inserted, modified or deleted to a PDU session as needed to control a UPF that the original SMF cannot control (since the UPF belongs to a different SMF service area). The position of the SMF in the 5G framework is shown in fig. 1, and the SMF is a session management function and is mainly used for session establishment and deletion, user plane selection and control, UE IP allocation, and the like. I-SMF has the same function as SMF.

It is up to the AMF to check when an I-SMF is added or deleted for a PDU session. When a mobility event occurs (e.g., a handover AMF change), if the service area of the SMF does not contain the new location of the UE, the AMF selects and inserts an I-SMF that can serve the UE and satisfy the Network Slice identity (S-NSSAI).

Conversely, if the AMF detects an I-SMF that is no longer needed, the AMF will remove the SMF interface between the I-SMF and the AMF directly connected to the PDU session. If the AMF detects that the SMF cannot serve the location of the UE (e.g., due to UE mobility), the AMF selects a new I-SMF to serve the UE. If the existing I-SMF cannot serve the location of the UE, the AMF will initiate a replacement of the I-SMF.

In summary, in the current I-SMF selection mechanism defined by 5G, the AMF determines whether to insert, change or delete the I-SMF based on the UE location, the service areas of the SMF and the I-SMF, and the like.

Therefore, the embodiment of the present invention provides an I-SMF selection method, which is used to select an appropriate I-SMF according to a service (for example, for a UE that needs to use an MEC service), so as to ensure session and service continuity between the UE and the MEC.

With respect to the above scenario, the following describes an embodiment of the present invention in further detail with reference to the drawings of the specification.

As shown in fig. 2, in combination with interaction between the AF side, the PCF side, the SMF side, and the AMF side, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determination method provided in an embodiment of the present invention includes that the AF sends a request message AF request including DNAI corresponding to the MEC, the PCF generates a new PCC rule to update to the SMF based on the AF request, the SMF obtains the DNAI in the PCC rule and sends the DNAI to the AMF, and the AMF selects the I-SMF based on the DNAI, which specifically includes the following steps:

in step 201, the AF creates request information, where the request information includes MEC application information as DNAI, and is used to instruct to select the I-SMF based on the DNAI.

In specific implementation, the AF creates a request message by calling an nff _ trafficlnflux _ Create service operation, where the request message includes a Data Network Access Identifier (DNAI) corresponding to the MEC, and a DNAI corresponding to a DN of the deployed MEC, and is used to indicate that I-SMF is selected based on the DNAI, and the request message may further include one or a group of UE IDs (e.g., generic public user identity GPSI).

In step 202, NEF receives the request information and stores it in UDR.

In specific implementation, the AF sends request information to the NEF, which stores the AF request in the UDR.

In step 203, the UDR sends notification information to the PCF.

In specific implementation, as the PCF subscribes to the UDR for the change of the AF request and the AF request information changes, the UDR notifies the PCF by sending notification information, and the PCF can obtain the request information of the AF request from the notification information.

And step 204, the PCF generates a new PCC rule according to the request information.

In a possible implementation manner, the PCF may directly receive the request information sent by the AF, and generate a new PCC rule according to the request information, that is, without executing steps 203 and 204, the AF directly sends the request information to the PCF after generating the request information.

In step 205, PCF sends a new PCC rule to SMF, where the PCC rule includes MEC application information.

In specific implementation, the PCF may send the new PCC rule to the SMF by calling Npcf _ SMPolicyControl _ UpdateNotify.

In step 206, the SMF extracts MEC application information from the PCC rule and generates I-SMF selection indication information.

In specific implementation, after receiving a new PCC rule, the SMF extracts DNAI information from the PCC rule and generates I-SMF selection indication information, wherein the I-SMF selection indication information comprises the DNAI information.

In step 207, the SMF sends the I-SMF selection indication information with the MEC application information to the AMF.

In step 208, the AMF selects the I-SMF according to the I-SMF selection indication information.

In a specific implementation, the AMF receives the I-SMF selection indication information which comprises DNAI information, the AMF selects the I-SMF according to the DNAI information, for example, the AMF selects the I-SMF according to whether the I-SMF supports the DNAI, and the information about whether the I-SMF supports the DNAI can be obtained from the NRF.

As shown in fig. 3, in combination with interaction between an AF side, a PCF side, an SMF side, and an AMF side, an I-SMF determination method for an intermediate session management function provided in an embodiment of the present invention includes that the AF sends an AF request including an MEC server address/an MEC application server address, the PCF generates a new PCC rule based on the AF request and updates the new PCC rule to the SMF, the SMF selects an I-SMF based on the PCC rule, or the SMF obtains the MEC server address/the MEC application server address from the PCC rule and sends the MEC server address/the MEC application server address to the AMF, and the AMF selects an I-SMF based on the MEC server address/the MEC application server address, which specifically includes the following steps:

step 301, the AF creates request information, where the request information includes an MEC server address/MEC application server address, and is used to instruct to select the I-SMF based on the MEC server address/MEC application server address.

In specific implementation, the AF creates a request message by calling an nfransfficinfluence _ Create service operation, where the request message includes an MEC server address/MEC application server address, and is used to indicate that the I-SMF is selected based on the MEC server address/MEC application server address, and the request message includes one or a group of UE IDs (e.g., GPSI).

The NEF receives the request information and stores it in the UDR, step 302.

In step 303, the UDR sends notification information to the PCF.

Step 304, the PCF generates a new PCC rule according to the request information, where the PCC rule includes an MEC server address/an MEC application server address.

In a possible implementation, the PCF may directly receive the request information sent by the AF, and generate a new PCC rule according to the request information, that is, without performing steps 303 and 304, the AF directly sends the request information to the PCF after generating the request information.

Step 305, PCF sends new PCC rule to SMF, where PCC rule includes MEC server address/MEC application server address.

In specific implementation, the PCF sends the PCC rule to the SMF by calling Npcf _ SMPolicyControl _ UpdateNotify.

Step 306, the SMF obtains the MEC server address/MEC application server address in the new PCC rule and sends it to the AMF.

Step 307, the AMF selects an I-SMF based on the MEC server address/MEC application server address.

In specific implementation, the AMF selects an appropriate I-SMF according to the address of the MEC server/the address of the MEC application server sent by the received SMF, for example, the service area of the I-SMF can cover the access MEC, and the I-SMF can access the MEC through the corresponding UPF.

In one possible implementation, after step 305 is performed, I-SMF is selected by SMF according to PCC rules.

As shown in fig. 4, in combination with interaction between the AF side, the PCF side, the SMF side, and the AMF side, in the method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF according to an embodiment of the present invention, the AF sends an AF request including MEC application attribute information, where the MEC application attribute information includes distribution of applications and application instances, service capability, load, and life cycle, and corresponding MEC server address/MEC application server address. And the PCF generates a new PCC rule update to the SMF based on the AF request. The method comprises the following steps that SMF selects I-SMF based on PCC rule, or SMF obtains MEC application attribute information from PCC rule and sends the MEC application attribute information to AMF, and AMF selects I-SMF based on MEC application attribute information, and specifically comprises the following steps:

step 401, the AF creates request information, where the request information includes MEC application information as MEC application attribute information, and is used to indicate that the I-SMF is selected based on the MEC application attribute information.

In specific implementation, the AF creates a request message by calling an nff _ trafficlnfluency _ Create service operation, where the request message includes MEC application attribute information (including distribution of applications and application instances, service capabilities, service types, loads, and life cycles, used to provide information for I-SMF selection, traffic routing, traffic steering, and the like) for indicating that an I-SMF is selected based on the MEC application attribute information, and the request message includes one or a group of UE IDs (e.g., GPSI).

At step 402, the NEF receives the request information and stores it in the UDR.

In step 403, the UDR sends notification information to the PCF.

In step 404, the PCF generates a new PCC rule based on the request message.

In a possible implementation, the PCF may directly receive the request information sent by the AF, and generate a new PCC rule according to the request information, that is, without performing steps 403 and 404, the AF directly sends the request information to the PCF after generating the request information.

In a possible implementation manner, the PCF may directly receive the request information sent by the AF, and generate a new PCC rule according to the request information, that is, without executing steps 502 and 503, the AF directly sends the request information to the PCF after generating the request information.

Step 405, PCF sends new PCC rule to SMF, where PCC rule includes MEC application attribute information.

In step 406, the SMF obtains the MEC application attribute information in the new PCC rule and sends it to the AMF.

In step 407, the AMF selects I-SMF according to the MEC application attribute information.

In specific implementation, the AMF selects a proper I-SMF according to the MEC application attribute information sent by the received SMF, for example, the I-SMF is selected according to the service type and the position of the MEC application, the service area of the I-SMF, whether the MEC can be accessed and the like.

In one possible implementation, after step 405 is executed, step 406 and step 407 may not be needed, and the SMF may select the I-SMF according to the PCC rule.

As shown in fig. 5, the method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied to an AF side, and includes the following steps:

step 501, creating request information, where the request information includes mobile edge computing MEC application information, and the request information is used to indicate that an access and mobility management AMF or a session management function SMF selects an I-SMF based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected.

During specific implementation, the AF may Create a request information AF request by calling an nff _ trafficlnfluency _ Create service operation, where the request information includes MEC application information, and the MEC application information may be one or more of a DNAI, an MEC server address, and MEC application attribute information corresponding to the MEC, where the MEC application attribute information includes a distribution, a service capability, a service type, a load, and a life cycle of the MEC application, and also includes related information of the MEC application information.

When the MEC application information in the request information is MEC application attribute information, the information can be provided for I-SMF selection, flow routing, flow guiding and the like.

And the request information generated by the AMF is used for indicating the AMF or the SMF to select the I-SMF based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected, so that the suitable I-SMF is selected for the MEC to ensure the continuity of the session and the service between the UE and the MEC, particularly when the UE moves.

It should be noted that the request message for AF creation may further include a UE ID or a group of UE IDs (e.g., GPSI).

Step 502, sending request information to the network open function NEF or the policy control function PCF.

In specific implementation, the AF sends the generated request information to the NEF, so that the NEF stores the request information in the UDR, and the PCF can obtain the request information from the notification information by subscribing to a change in the request information from the UDR.

Alternatively, the AF directly transmits the generated request information to the PCF.

As shown in fig. 6, the method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF provided in the embodiment of the present invention is applied to a PCF side, and includes the following steps:

step 601, obtaining request information sent by an Application Function (AF), wherein the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information, and the request information is used for indicating that an access and mobility management (AMF) or a Session Management Function (SMF) selects an I-SMF (inter-mobile management function) based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected.

During specific implementation, the PCF directly acquires the request information sent to the PCF by the AF, the PCF subscribes the request information sent to the NEF by the AF to the UDR, and when the request information changes, the PCF obtains the request information sent by the AF from the request information through the notification information.

The request information acquired by the PCF includes MEC application information, which may be one or more of DNAI, MEC server address, and MEC application attribute information, where the MEC application attribute information includes MEC application, distribution of MEC application instances, service capability, service type, load, and life cycle, that is, MEC service related information.

Step 602, according to the request information, generating policy control and charging PCC rules containing MEC application information.

In specific implementation, the PCF generates a new PCC rule according to the request information sent by the AF, where the new PCC rule includes MEC application information.

Step 603, sending the PCC rule to a session management function SMF.

In specific implementation, the PCF sends the generated PCC rule to the SMF by calling Npcf _ SMPolicyControl _ UpdateNotify, that is, updates the SMF with the new rule.

As shown in fig. 7, the method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF provided in the embodiment of the present invention is applied to an SMF side, and includes the following steps:

step 701, receiving a PCC rule sent by a policy control function PCF, where the PCC rule includes mobile edge computing MEC application information.

During specific implementation, the SMF receives the PCC rule sent by the PCF, updates the PCC rule in the SMF, where the received PCC rule includes MEC application information, the first type of MEC application information may be DNAI corresponding to MECs, and the second type of MEC application information may be one or more of MEC server addresses, MEC application server addresses, and MEC application attribute information, where the MEC application attribute information includes MEC applications, distribution of MEC application instances, service capabilities, service types, loads, and life cycles.

Step 702, when it is determined that the MEC application information included in the PCC rule is the first type of MEC application information, generating I-SMF selection indication information based on the first type of MEC application information, and sending the I-SMF selection indication information to an access and mobility management function AMF, where the I-SMF selection indication information is used for indicating the AMF to determine an I-SMF based on the first type of MEC application information when selecting the I-SMF.

In specific implementation, when the SMF determines that the MEC application information included in the received PCC rule is the first type of MEC application information, that is, DNAI corresponding to the MEC, the SMF may extract the DNAI information from the PCC rule, generate I-SMF selection indication information, and send the I-SMF selection indication information to the AMF, where the I-SMF is indicated by the AMF to select a proper I-SMF according to the first type of MEC application information, that is, the DNAI, when the I-SMF is determined again.

Step 703, when it is determined that the MEC application information included in the PCC rule is the second-class MEC application information, determining an I-SMF when selecting the I-SMF according to the second-class MEC application information included in the PCC rule, or extracting the second-class MEC application information from the PCC rule including the second-class MEC application information, and forwarding the second-class MEC application information to an access and mobility management function AMF.

In specific implementation, when determining that the MEC application information included in the received PCC rule is the second type of MEC application information, that is, one or more of an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information, the SMF determines that the MEC application attribute information includes the MEC application, the distribution of MEC application instances, the service capability, the service type, the load, and the life cycle.

When the second type of MEC application information in the PCC rule is determined, the SMF can directly determine the I-SMF based on the second type of MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected, or the second type of MEC application information is extracted from the PCC rule and sent to the AMF.

As shown in fig. 8, the method for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF according to the embodiment of the present invention is applied to an AMF side, and includes the following steps:

step 801, receiving I-SMF selection indication information sent by a session management function SMF, where the I-SMF selection indication information includes first-type MEC application information.

In specific implementation, the AMF receives the I-SMF selection indication information sent by the SMF, and is used for indicating the AMF to select a proper I-SMF according to the first type of MEC application information (for example, DNAI) contained in the indication information.

And step 802, determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the first type of MEC application information.

In particular, the AMF selects the appropriate I-SMF based on the DNAI when selecting the I-SMF, for example, the AMF selects the I-SMF based on whether the I-SMF supports the DNAI, and information about whether the I-SMF supports the DNAI is obtained from the NRF. The AMF may also perform I-SMF insertions or change the operational flow.

In a possible implementation manner, the AMF receives second-type MEC application information sent by the SMF;

In specific implementation, second-type MEC application information sent by the SMF is received, and the AMF selects a proper I-SMF according to the second-type MEC application information, for example, the I-SMF is determined according to whether the service area of the I-SMF can cover the access MEC and can access the MEC through a corresponding UPF.

When the second type of MEC application information included in the PCC rule is MEC application attribute information (e.g., MEC application related information), the MEC application attribute information includes: the AMF selects a proper I-SMF according to the second type of MEC application information in the PCC rules, for example, the I-SMF is determined based on the service type and the position of the MEC application, the service area of the I-SMF, whether the MEC can be accessed or not, and the like.

It should be noted that the MEC application attribute information may be used for I-SMF selection, and may also be used to provide information for links such as traffic routing and traffic steering. In addition, the determination of I-SMF may also be made in conjunction with a UE ID or a group of UE IDs (e.g., general public user identities GPSI).

Based on the same inventive concept, an embodiment of the present invention further provides an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device, and since the device is a device in the method in the embodiment of the present invention, and the principle of the device to solve the problem is similar to that of the method, the implementation of the device may refer to the implementation of the method, and repeated details are not repeated.

As shown in fig. 9, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an application function AF side, and includes: a processor 900, a memory 901, and a transceiver 902.

The processor 900 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 901 may store data used by the processor 900 in performing operations. The transceiver 902 is used for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor 900.

The bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with one or more processors, represented by processor 900, and various circuits, represented by memory 901, being linked together. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, and the like, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The processor 900 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 901 may store data used by the processor 900 in performing operations.

The processes disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention may be applied to the processor 900, or implemented by the processor 900. In implementation, the steps of the signal processing flow may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware or instructions in the form of software in the processor 900. The processor 900 may be a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or the like that may implement or perform the methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in embodiments of the present invention. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of a method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present invention may be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module may be located in ram, flash memory, rom, prom, or eprom, registers, etc. storage media as is well known in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 901, and the processor 900 reads the information in the memory 901 and completes the steps of the signal processing flow in combination with the hardware thereof.

The processor 900 is configured to read a program in the memory 901 and execute the following processes:

Optionally, the MEC application information includes one or more of the following: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

As shown in fig. 10, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a policy control function PCF side, and includes: a processor 1000, a memory 1001, and a transceiver 1002.

The processor 1000 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1001 may store data used by the processor 1000 in performing operations. The transceiver 1002 is used to receive and transmit data under the control of the processor 1000.

The bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with one or more processors represented by processor 1000 and various circuits of memory represented by memory 1001 being linked together. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, and the like, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The processor 1000 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1001 may store data used by the processor 1000 in performing operations.

The processes disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention may be applied to the processor 1000, or implemented by the processor 1000. In implementation, the steps of the signal processing flow may be implemented by integrated logic circuits of hardware or instructions in the form of software in the processor 1000. The processor 1000 may be a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or the like that implement or perform the methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in embodiments of the present invention. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of a method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present invention may be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module may be located in ram, flash memory, rom, prom, or eprom, registers, etc. storage media as is well known in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 1001, and the processor 1000 reads information in the memory 1001 and completes steps of the signal processing flow in combination with hardware thereof.

The processor 1000 is configured to read a program in the memory 1001 and execute the following processes:

and sending the PCC rule to a Session Management Function (SMF).

As shown in fig. 11, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a session management function SMF side, and includes: a processor 1100, a memory 1101, and a transceiver 1102.

The processor 1100 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1101 may store data used by the processor 1100 in performing operations. The transceiver 1102 is used to receive and transmit data under the control of the processor 1100.

The bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with various circuits specifically represented by one or more of processor 1100 and memory represented by memory 1101 linked together. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, and the like, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The processor 1100 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1101 may store data used by the processor 1100 in performing operations.

The processes disclosed in the embodiments of the present invention can be implemented in the processor 1100, or implemented by the processor 1100. In implementation, the steps of the signal processing flow may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware or instructions in the form of software in the processor 1100. The processor 1100 may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or the like that implement or perform the methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in embodiments of the present invention. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of a method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present invention may be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module may be located in ram, flash memory, rom, prom, or eprom, registers, etc. storage media as is well known in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 1101, and the processor 1100 reads information in the memory 1101, and completes the steps of the signal processing flow in combination with hardware thereof.

The processor 1100 is configured to read the program in the memory 1101 and execute the following processes:

Optionally, the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

Optionally, the second type of MEC application information includes one or more of the following: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

As shown in fig. 12, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a session management function AMF side, and includes: a processor 1200, a memory 1201, and a transceiver 1202.

The processor 1200 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1201 may store data used by the processor 1200 in performing operations. The transceiver 1202 is used for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor 1200.

The bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, with one or more processors represented by processor 1200 and various circuits of memory represented by memory 1201 being linked together. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, and the like, which are well known in the art, and therefore, will not be described any further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The processor 1200 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1201 may store data used by the processor 1200 in performing operations.

The process disclosed in the embodiment of the present invention may be applied to the processor 1200, or implemented by the processor 1200. In implementation, the steps of the signal processing flow may be implemented by integrated logic circuits of hardware or instructions in the form of software in the processor 1200. The processor 1200 may be a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or the like that implement or perform the methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in embodiments of the present invention. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of a method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present invention may be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module may be located in ram, flash memory, rom, prom, or eprom, registers, etc. storage media as is well known in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 1201, and the processor 1200 reads information in the memory 1201 and completes steps of the signal processing flow in combination with hardware thereof.

The processor 1200 is configured to read a program in the memory 1201 and execute the following processes:

Optionally, the processor is further configured to:

receiving second-class MEC application information sent by the SMF;

Based on the same inventive concept, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device is also provided in the embodiments of the present invention, and since the device is a device in the method in the embodiments of the present invention and the principle of the device to solve the problem is similar to the method, the implementation of the device may refer to the implementation of the method, and repeated details are not repeated.

As shown in fig. 13, an apparatus for determining an intermediate session management function I-SMF according to an embodiment of the present invention, applied to an application function AF side, includes a processing module 1301 and a sending module 1302, where,

a processing module 1301, configured to create request information, where the request information includes mobile edge computing MEC application information, and the request information is used to indicate that an access and mobility management AMF or a session management function SMF selects an I-SMF based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected.

A sending module 1302, configured to send the request information to a network open function NEF or a policy control function PCF.

As shown in fig. 14, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a policy control function PCF side, and includes an obtaining module 1401, a processing module 1402 and a sending module 1403, where,

an obtaining module 1401, configured to obtain request information sent by an application function AF, where the request information includes mobile edge computing MEC application information, and the request information is used to indicate that an access and mobility management AMF or a session management function SMF selects an I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected, and based on the MEC application information, select the I-SMF;

a processing module 1402, configured to generate a policy control and charging PCC rule including MEC application information according to the request information;

a sending module 1403, configured to send the PCC rule to the session management function SMF.

As shown in fig. 15, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining apparatus provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to a session management function SMF side, and the apparatus includes a receiving module 1501, a first processing module 1502, and a second processing module 1503, where,

a receiving module 1501, configured to receive a PCC rule sent by a policy control function PCF, where the PCC rule includes mobile edge computing MEC application information;

a first processing module 1502, configured to generate I-SMF selection indication information based on the first type of MEC application information when it is determined that the MEC application information included in the PCC rule is the first type of MEC application information, and send the I-SMF selection indication information to an access and mobility management function AMF, where the I-SMF selection indication information is used to indicate that the AMF determines an I-SMF based on the first type of MEC application information when selecting the I-SMF;

a second processing module 1503, configured to, when it is determined that the MEC application information included in the PCC rule is the second-type MEC application information, determine an I-SMF when selecting the I-SMF according to the second-type MEC application information included in the PCC rule, or extract the second-type MEC application information from the PCC rule including the second-type MEC application information, and forward the second-type MEC application information to an access and mobility management function AMF.

As shown in fig. 16, an intermediate session management function I-SMF determining apparatus provided in an embodiment of the present invention is applied to an access and mobility management function AMF side, and the apparatus includes a first receiving module 1601 and a first determining module 1602, where,

a first receiving module 1601, configured to receive I-SMF selection indication information sent by a session management function SMF, where the I-SMF selection indication information includes first-class MEC application information;

a first determining module 1602, configured to determine an I-SMF when selecting the I-SMF according to the first type MEC application information.

Optionally, the apparatus further comprises:

a second receiving module 1603, configured to receive the second type of MEC application information sent by the SMF;

and a second determining module 1604, configured to determine the I-SMF when selecting the I-SMF according to the second type MEC application information.

An embodiment of the present invention further provides a computer-readable non-volatile storage medium, which includes a program code, and when the program code runs on a computing terminal, the program code is configured to enable the computing terminal to execute the steps of the inter-session management function I-SMF determination method in the foregoing embodiments of the present invention.

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

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

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

Claims

1. A method for determining an intermediate session management function (I-SMF) is applied to an Application Function (AF) side, and is characterized by comprising the following steps:

creating request information, wherein the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information, and the request information is used for indicating an access and mobility management (AMF) or a Session Management Function (SMF) to select an I-SMF (inter-mobile management function) based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the MEC application information comprises one or more of: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

3. A method for determining an intermediate session management function (I-SMF) is applied to a Policy Control Function (PCF) side, and is characterized in that the method comprises the following steps:

acquiring request information sent by an Application Function (AF), wherein the request information comprises Mobile Edge Computing (MEC) application information, and the request information is used for indicating that an access and mobility management (AMF) or a Session Management Function (SMF) selects an I-SMF (inter-mobile management function) based on the MEC application information when the I-SMF is selected;

generating a Policy Control and Charging (PCC) rule containing the MEC application information according to the request information;

and sending the PCC rule to a Session Management Function (SMF).

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the MEC application information comprises one or more of: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

wherein the MEC application attribute information comprises MEC applications, distribution of MEC application instances, service capabilities, service types, loads, and life cycles.

5. A method for determining an intermediate session management function (I-SMF) is applied to a Session Management Function (SMF) side, and is characterized by comprising the following steps:

when MEC application information contained in the PCC rule is determined to be first-class MEC application information, generating I-SMF selection indication information based on the first-class MEC application information, and sending the I-SMF selection indication information to an access and mobility management function (AMF), wherein the I-SMF selection indication information is used for indicating the AMF to determine I-SMF based on the first-class MEC application information when I-SMF is selected;

when the MEC application information contained in the PCC rule is determined to be second-class MEC application information, determining I-SMF when I-SMF is selected according to the second-class MEC application information contained in the PCC rule, or extracting the second-class MEC application information from the PCC rule containing the second-class MEC application information, and forwarding the second-class MEC application information to an access and mobility management function AMF.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the first type of MEC application information is a Data Network Access Identifier (DNAI) corresponding to the MEC.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the second type of MEC application information comprises one or more of the following: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

8. An intermediate session management function (I-SMF) determining method is applied to an access and mobility management function (AMF) side, and is characterized by comprising the following steps:

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

receiving second-class MEC application information sent by the SMF;

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the second type of MEC application information comprises one or more of the following: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

12. An inter-session management function, I-SMF, determination device, for application function, AF, comprising: a processor and a memory;

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the MEC application information includes one or more of: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

14. An inter-session management function, I-SMF, determining apparatus, applied to a policy control function, PCF, the apparatus comprising: a processor and a memory;

and sending the PCC rule to a Session Management Function (SMF).

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the MEC application information comprises one or more of: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

16. An intermediate session management function (I-SMF) determining device applied to a Session Management Function (SMF), the device comprising: a processor and a memory;

17. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

18. The apparatus of claim 16, wherein the second type of MEC application information comprises one or more of: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

19. An inter-session management function, I-SMF, determination device, for application on an access and mobility management function, AMF, side, the device comprising: a processor and a memory;

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

21. The device of claim 19, wherein the processor is further configured to:

receiving second-class MEC application information sent by the SMF;

22. The apparatus of claim 21, wherein the second type of MEC application information comprises one or more of: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

23. An intermediate session management function, I-SMF, determination device, for application function, AF, characterized in that the device comprises a processing module and a sending module, wherein,

the processing module is used for creating request information, the request information comprises mobile edge computing MEC application information, and the request information is used for indicating that when an access and mobility management AMF or a session management function SMF selects an I-SMF, the I-SMF is selected based on the MEC application information;

the sending module is configured to send the request message to a network open function NEF or a policy control function PCF.

24. The apparatus of claim 23, wherein the MEC application information comprises one or more of: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

25. An intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device applied to a policy control function PCF side is characterized by comprising an acquisition module, a processing module and a sending module, wherein,

the obtaining module is configured to obtain request information sent by an application function AF, where the request information includes mobile edge computing MEC application information, and the request information is used to indicate that an access and mobility management AMF or a session management function SMF selects an I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected, based on the MEC application information;

the processing module is configured to generate a policy control and charging PCC rule including the MEC application information according to the request information;

the sending module is configured to send the PCC rule to a session management function SMF.

26. The apparatus of claim 25, wherein the MEC application information comprises one or more of: the method comprises the steps that a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to an MEC, an MEC server address, an MEC application server address and MEC application attribute information are obtained;

27. An intermediate session management function I-SMF determining device applied to a session management function SMF side, the device comprising a receiving module, a first processing module and a second processing module, wherein,

the receiving module is configured to receive a PCC rule sent by a policy control function PCF, where the PCC rule includes mobile edge computing MEC application information;

the first processing module is configured to, when it is determined that the MEC application information included in the PCC rule is a first-type MEC application information, generate I-SMF selection indication information based on the first-type MEC application information, and send the I-SMF selection indication information to an access and mobility management function (AMF), where the I-SMF selection indication information is used to indicate that the AMF determines an I-SMF based on the first-type MEC application information when selecting the I-SMF;

the second processing module is configured to, when it is determined that the MEC application information included in the PCC rule is second-class MEC application information, determine, when selecting the I-SMF, the I-SMF according to the second-class MEC application information included in the PCC rule, or extract the second-class MEC application information from the PCC rule including the second-class MEC application information, and forward the second-class MEC application information to an access and mobility management function AMF.

28. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

29. The apparatus of claim 27, wherein the second type of MEC application information comprises one or more of: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

30. An intermediate session management function, I-SMF, determination device, for application on the access and mobility management function, AMF, side, characterized in that the device comprises a first receiving module and a first determining module, wherein,

the first receiving module is used for receiving I-SMF selection indication information sent by a Session Management Function (SMF), wherein the I-SMF selection indication information comprises first class MEC application information;

the first determining module is used for determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the first type MEC application information.

31. The apparatus of claim 30, wherein the first type of MEC application information is a data network access identifier DNAI corresponding to the MEC.

32. The apparatus of claim 30, further comprising:

and the second determining module is used for determining the I-SMF when the I-SMF is selected according to the second type MEC application information.

33. The apparatus of claim 32, wherein the second type of MEC application information comprises one or more of: an MEC server address, an MEC application server address, and MEC application attribute information;

34. A computer storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, the program, when executed by a processor, implementing the steps of a method according to any one of claims 1 to 11.