CN114172951B

CN114172951B - MEC sharing method, communication device and storage medium

Info

Publication number: CN114172951B
Application number: CN202111488472.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 陈杲; 黄蓉; 黄倩; 高功应; 王志会
Original assignee: China United Network Communications Group Co Ltd
Current assignee: China United Network Communications Group Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-12-07
Filing date: 2021-12-07
Publication date: 2023-06-06
Anticipated expiration: 2041-12-07
Also published as: CN114172951A

Abstract

The application provides an MEC sharing method, a communication device and a storage medium, relates to the technical field of communication, and can solve the problem that service sharing among MEC systems of different operators cannot be realized in the prior art. The method comprises the following steps: receiving a first request message; the first request message is used for requesting to deploy MEC applications in the first MEC system to the second MEC system; determining configuration information required by the second MEC system to deploy MEC applications; instantiating the MEC application in the first network device of the first MEC system according to the configuration information; and sending the instantiation information of the MEC application to the second network equipment of the second MEC system. The embodiment of the application can realize service sharing among MECs.

Description

MEC sharing method, communication device and storage medium

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a MEC sharing method, a communication device, and a storage medium.

Background

Mobile edge computing (mobile edge computing, MEC) can effectively reduce the traffic delay of a terminal by providing computing power to the terminal by locating computing devices at edge nodes of a communication network. Co-building sharing of MEC means that multiple operators jointly build and share MEC equipment resources, so that operation and maintenance costs of MEC construction are reduced, and working efficiency of MEC is improved.

The current MEC co-building and sharing technical scheme realizes network communication connection between MEC and core networks of multiple operators by setting user configuration network element (User Profile Function, UPF) proxy and Data Network (DN) controller in MEC system.

The scheme achieves the effect that the MEC is in network communication connection with the core networks of a plurality of operators, however, the method only can realize that the terminal sends service requests to the MEC of the operator subscribed by the terminal through the core networks of other operators so as to acquire MEC services. That is, in the related art, only network sharing between the MEC and the operator core network is implemented, but service sharing between MECs of different operators is not implemented, and terminals of other operators cannot acquire MEC service resources of operators other than the terminals.

Thus, the prior art is still actually network sharing between communication networks of different operators, and service sharing between MEC systems of different operators cannot be achieved.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides an MEC sharing method, a communication device and a storage medium, which can realize service sharing among MECs.

In order to achieve the above purpose, the present application adopts the following technical scheme:

In a first aspect, the present application provides a MEC sharing method, the method comprising: receiving a first request message; the first request message is used for requesting to deploy MEC applications in the first MEC system to the second MEC system; determining configuration information required by the second MEC system to deploy MEC applications; instantiating the MEC application in the first network device of the first MEC system according to the configuration information; and sending the instantiation information of the MEC application to the second network equipment of the second MEC system.

The scheme at least brings the following beneficial effects: the communication means determines configuration information required for the second MEC system to deploy the MEC application after receiving the first request message requesting to deploy the MEC application in the second MEC system, and instantiates the MEC application in the first network device of the first MEC system according to the configuration information. After that, the communication means transmits instantiation information of the MEC application to the second network device of the second MEC system. In this way, the second MEC system to be deployed with the MEC application can call the MEC application instance instantiated by the first MEC system according to the configuration information of the second system through the instantiation information, so that the technical effect that the first MEC system shares the service resources of the first MEC system is achieved, and service sharing of the MEC is achieved.

With reference to the first aspect, in one possible implementation manner, the method further includes: according to the first request message, a first synchronous message is sent to the second network equipment; the first synchronization message is used for requesting configuration information; receiving a first synchronous response message sent by second network equipment; the first synchronization response message includes configuration information; and determining configuration information according to the first synchronous response message.

With reference to the first aspect, in one possible implementation manner, the method further includes: receiving a second synchronous response message sent by second network equipment; the second synchronization response message is used for refusing to deploy the MEC application; and stopping the MEC application deployment according to the second synchronous response message.

With reference to the first aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the first request message includes a first identifier; the first identity is used to characterize the MEC application; the method further comprises the steps of: determining a second identifier according to the first identifier; the second identifier is an identifier of the MEC application in the second MEC system; sending a first synchronization message to a second network device; the first synchronization message includes a second identification.

With reference to the first aspect, in one possible implementation manner, the method further includes: sending a first indication message to a first network device; the first indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to instantiate MEC application according to the configuration information; receiving a first indication response message sent by first network equipment; the first indication response message includes instantiation information of the MEC application.

In a second aspect, the present application provides a communication device comprising: a communication unit and a processing unit; a communication unit configured to receive a first request message; the first request message is used for requesting to deploy MEC applications in the first MEC system to the second MEC system; the processing unit is used for determining configuration information required by the second MEC system for deploying the MEC application; the processing unit is further used for instantiating the MEC application in the first network equipment of the first MEC system according to the configuration information; and the communication unit is also used for sending the instantiation information of the MEC application to the second network equipment of the second MEC system.

With reference to the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the communication unit is further configured to send a first synchronization message to the second network device according to the first request message; the first synchronization message is used for requesting configuration information; the communication unit is further used for receiving a first synchronous response message sent by the second network equipment; the first synchronization response message includes configuration information; the processing unit is further configured to determine configuration information according to the first synchronization response message.

With reference to the second aspect, in one possible implementation manner, the communication unit is further configured to receive a second synchronization response message sent by the second network device; the second synchronization response message is used for refusing to deploy the MEC application; and the processing unit is also used for stopping deploying the MEC application according to the second synchronous response message.

With reference to the second aspect, in one possible implementation manner, the first request message includes a first identifier; the first identity is used to characterize the MEC application; the processing unit is also used for determining a second identifier according to the first identifier; the second identifier is an identifier of the MEC application in the second MEC system; the communication unit is further used for sending a first synchronization message to the second network equipment; the first synchronization message includes a second identification.

With reference to the second aspect, in a possible implementation manner, the communication unit is further configured to send a first indication message to the first network device; the first indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to instantiate MEC application according to the configuration information; the communication unit is further used for receiving a first indication response message sent by the first network equipment; the first indication response message includes instantiation information of the MEC application.

In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication device comprising: a processor and a communication interface; the communication interface is coupled to a processor for running a computer program or instructions to implement the MEC sharing method as described in any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect and the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein which, when run on a terminal, cause the terminal to perform the MEC sharing method as described in any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect and the first aspect.

In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a communication device, cause the communication device to perform the MEC sharing method as described in any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect and the first aspect.

In a sixth aspect, the present application provides a chip comprising a processor and a communication interface, the communication interface and the processor being coupled, the processor being for running a computer program or instructions to implement the MEC sharing method as described in any one of the possible implementations of the first aspect and the first aspect.

In particular, the chip provided in the present application further includes a memory for storing a computer program or instructions.

It should be noted that the above-mentioned computer instructions may be stored in whole or in part on the first computer readable storage medium. The first computer readable storage medium may be packaged together with the processor of the apparatus or may be packaged separately from the processor of the apparatus, which is not limited in this application.

The description of the second to sixth aspects of the present invention may refer to the detailed description of the first aspect; also, the advantageous effects described in the second aspect to the sixth aspect may refer to the advantageous effect analysis of the first aspect, and are not described herein.

In the present application, the names of the above-mentioned communication apparatuses do not constitute limitations on the devices or function modules themselves, and in actual implementations, these devices or function modules may appear under other names. Insofar as the function of each device or function module is similar to that of the present invention, it falls within the scope of the claims of the present invention and the equivalents thereof.

These and other aspects of the invention will be more readily apparent from the following description.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a 5G network co-building sharing provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an MEC according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of an MEC sharing system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication system according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a flowchart of an MEC sharing method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is a flowchart of another MEC sharing method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a flowchart of another MEC sharing method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a flowchart of another MEC sharing method provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a flowchart of an MEC application instantiation method provided in 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 structural diagram of another communication device according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of a chip according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The following description of the embodiments of the present application will be made clearly and fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which it is evident that the embodiments described are only some, but not all, of the embodiments of the present application. All other embodiments, which can be made by one of ordinary skill in the art without undue burden from the present disclosure, are within the scope of the present disclosure.

The term "and/or" is herein merely an association relationship describing an associated object, meaning that there may be three relationships, e.g., a and/or B, may represent: a exists alone, A and B exist together, and B exists alone.

The terms "first" and "second" and the like in the description and in the drawings are used for distinguishing between different objects or for distinguishing between different processes of the same object and not for describing a particular sequential order of objects.

Furthermore, references to the terms "comprising" and "having" and any variations thereof in the description of the present application are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion. For example, a process, method, system, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of steps or elements is not limited to only those listed but may optionally include other steps or elements not listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

It should be noted that, in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplary" or "such as" are used to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any embodiment or design described herein as "exemplary" or "for example" should not be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "such as" is intended to present related concepts in a concrete fashion.

In the description of the present application, unless otherwise indicated, the meaning of "a plurality" means two or more.

The following explains the terms related to the embodiments of the present application, so as to facilitate the understanding of the reader.

(1) Co-building sharing

Co-building sharing refers to the network services of multiple operators building network facilities together and sharing the network facilities. The co-building sharing scheme can greatly reduce the operation and maintenance cost of network construction and improve the working efficiency of network facilities. Currently, the co-established sharing is mainly applied to the co-established sharing of communication networks, for example, the co-established sharing of fifth generation mobile communication (5 th-generation mobile communication technology, 5G) networks comprises two modes of heterogeneous network roaming and access network sharing.

Under the condition of heterogeneous network roaming, the basic network facility is the same as the normal construction scheme, and the terminal accesses the 5G network through access network equipment and core network equipment of other operators. This approach is not described in excessive detail herein.

In the case of access network sharing, as shown in fig. 1, a schematic structure diagram of 5G network co-building sharing is provided in the present application. The access network equipment is built by the underwriting operators and can access core networks of a plurality of operators. The terminal accesses the core network of the operator signed by itself through the access network equipment of the carrier. Terminal 101 is subscribed to operator a and terminal 102 is subscribed to operator B. The terminal 101 may access the core network of the operator a through the access network device a under the control of the operator a to perform network communication, or may access the core network of the operator a through the access network device B under the control of the operator B to perform network communication. The terminal 102 may access the core network of the operator B through the access network device B under the operator B to perform network communication, or may access the core network of the operator B through the access network device a under the operator a to perform network communication.

(2) Mobile edge computation (mobile edge computing, MEC)

Mobile edge computing, also known as multi-access edge computing (MEC), refers to a scheme that reduces traffic latency by locating devices with computing capabilities at nodes of a communication network, so that terminals can obtain required traffic resources through MEC devices located at network nodes.

As shown in fig. 2, a schematic structural diagram of an MEC provided in the present application is provided. The MECs include MEC system level (MEC system level), MEC host level (MEC host level), and MEC network level (MEC networks level), among others.

The MEC system level includes an operations support system (operator support system, OSS) and a MEC orchestrator (MEO). OSS is a management entity in the MEC that supports the system operation. A user terminal application (UE app) or customer-oriented service portal (CFS portal) sends service requests to OSS in the MEC through Mx2 and Mx1 interfaces, respectively. The OSS checks configuration information such as authorization, integrity and the like of the corresponding MEC application according to the service request, and instructs the MEO to perform the MEC application instantiation or terminate operation.

MEO is responsible for invoking the business resources of each MEC host (mechost). The MEO may trigger an instantiation or termination operation of the MEC application according to the indication of the OSS and send instantiation information or termination information to the OSS.

The MEC host is a device for specifically executing MEC service processing, and is responsible for creating an MEC application instance and providing resources such as computation, storage, network communication and the like for the MEC application instance.

Currently, the existing technical solution of MEC co-building sharing realizes network communication connection between the MEC and core networks of multiple operators by setting user configuration network element (User Profile Function, UPF) proxy and Data Network (DN) controller in the MEC system.

Thus, the prior art is still actually network sharing between communication networks of different operators, and service sharing between MECs of different operators cannot be achieved.

In order to solve the problem that in the prior art, MEC service sharing cannot be implemented, as shown in fig. 3, a schematic structural diagram of a MEC sharing system 30 provided in the present application is provided, where the MEC sharing system 30 includes: a communication device 301, and OSS302 of a plurality of MEC systems.

Wherein the communication device 301 is connected to each of the OSS302 of the plurality of MEC systems by a communication link. The communication means 301 is configured to receive a request message sent by any one of the OSSs 302 of the plurality of MEC systems. The request message is for requesting deployment of the MEC application.

The communication means 301 is also used to determine configuration information required for deploying the MEC application.

The communication device 301 is further configured to instantiate the MEC application according to the configuration information and send the instantiation information of the MEC application to the corresponding OSS.

It should be noted that the plurality of MEC systems includes a MEC system of a carrier and a MEC system of a shared carrier. The contractor refers to an operator responsible for constructing the network facility, i.e., an owner of the network facility, and the shared operator refers to other operators capable of using the network facility. Wherein OSS in the MEC system of the carrier is connected to the MEO, and the communication device 301 is also connected to the MEO. The MEO is to instruct the MEC host to create an application instance of the MEC application.

In one possible implementation, the communication device 301 directly instructs the MEO to instantiate the MEC application.

In another possible implementation, the communication device 301 instructs the MEO to instantiate the MEC application through an OSS in the MEC system of the carrier.

Secondly, the MEC system to which the OSS sending the request message belongs may be the MEC system to which the MEC application is to be deployed, or may be another MEC system.

Illustratively, the MEC sharing system includes 3 OSSs, OSS-1, OSS-2, and OSS-3, respectively. The request message sent by the OSS-1 to the communication device may be a request to deploy an MEC application in the MEC system of the OSS-1, a request to deploy an MEC application in the MEC system of the OSS-2, or a request to deploy an MEC application in the MEC system of the OSS-3.

In addition, the same operator can deploy a plurality of MEC systems, and the technical scheme provided by the application can also solve the problem that the plurality of MEC systems in the same operator cannot realize service sharing.

Through the above scheme, the plurality of MEC systems in the MEC sharing system 30 can instantiate the MEC application in the MEC system of the carrier through the communication device 301, so as to realize service sharing among the MECs.

Illustratively, the MEC sharing system may be applied in a communication system 40 as shown in fig. 4.

As shown in fig. 4, a schematic structural diagram of a communication system 40 is provided herein. The communication system 40 includes a network system 401 of a licensed operator, a network system 402 of a shared operator, and an MEC system 403. The network system 401 of the underwriter, the network system 402 of the shared carrier, and the MEC system 403 all include UPFs, and a plurality of UPFs are communicatively connected through an N9 interface. The MEC system 403 is communicatively connected to the network system 401 of the carrier and the network system 402 of the shared carrier via UPF.

The MEC system 403 may send local data flow filtering rules to the UPF that it includes, so that the UPF may filter and forward data flows of different operators.

The communication between the MEC system and the plurality of operator core networks is realized by sending the local data flow filtering rule to the UPF, so that the technical scheme provided by the application can be applied to a scheme of coupling deployment of the MEC and the UPF, and can also be applied to a scheme of separating deployment of the MEC and the UPF, and has better universality.

It should be noted that, for convenience of description, the above example takes the MEC co-building shared scenario of two operators as an example, and the technical solution provided in the present application is also applicable to application scenarios of more than two operators.

It should be noted that, the embodiments of the present application may refer to or refer to each other, for example, the same or similar steps, and the method embodiment, the system embodiment and the device embodiment may refer to each other, which is not limited.

As shown in fig. 5, a flowchart of an MEC sharing method provided in an embodiment of the present application includes the following steps:

s501, the communication device receives the first request message.

The first request message is used for requesting to deploy the MEC application in the first MEC system to the second MEC system.

In one possible implementation, the first request message includes a first identification. The first identification is used to characterize the MEC application. The first request message may further include an identification characterizing the second MEC system.

It should be noted that the first MEC system is an MEC system of a carrier. The second MEC system is the MEC system where the MEC application is to be deployed. The second MEC system may be either a MEC system of the carrier or a MEC system of another carrier.

It should be noted that at present, compatible interworking between a plurality of MEC systems provided by different MEC system suppliers cannot be achieved, so that the technical scheme of the application is also suitable for a scenario in which a plurality of sets of MEC systems provided by different MEC system suppliers are deployed by the same operator. Similarly, the technical scheme of the method and the device are also suitable for multiple operators and mixed scenes of deploying multiple sets of different MEC systems by the same operator. In the embodiment of the present application, two operators (one carrier and one shared operator) are mainly taken as an example, and the technical solution provided in the present application is described in detail.

In addition, the sender of the first request message is not limited in this application. The first request message may be sent by any MEC system of any one of a plurality of operators.

It should be noted that the sender of the first request message may be the MEC system where the MEC application is to be deployed (i.e. the second MEC system), but may also be other MEC systems. Reference may be made specifically to the above embodiments, and details are not repeated here.

In one example, the communication device described in the present application is an OSS alliance (OSS-association) network element.

S502, the communication device determines configuration information required for the second MEC system to deploy the MEC application.

It should be noted that, as known from step S501, the sender of the first request message may be the MEC system (i.e., the second MEC system) where the MEC application is to be deployed, or may be other MEC systems. Thus, after sending a first request message to the communication device, which requests the deployment of the MEC application in the second MEC system, towards the customer service portal (CFS portal) or the end application (UE app), the communication device also needs to determine the configuration information required for the second MEC system to deploy the MEC application.

The configuration information may include coverage area, quality of service (quality of service, qoS) parameters, and billing information, for example. For specific details, reference is made to the prior art, which is not limited by the present application.

S503, the communication device instantiates MEC application in the first network equipment of the first MEC system according to the configuration information.

Wherein the first network device comprises any one of an OSS of the first MEC system and an MEO of the first MEC system.

Illustratively, the communication device interfaces with an OSS of the first MEC system via MmO, and the OSS of the first MEC system interfaces with an MEO of the first MEC system via Mm 1. The communication device may instantiate the MEC application in the OSS of the first MEC system through the MmO interface. The OSS of the first MEC system instructs the MEO to perform the MEC application instantiation.

The communication device is connected with the MEO of the first MEC system through an Mm1 interface, and the communication device can instantiate the MEC application in the MEO of the first MEC system through the Mm1 interface.

S504, the communication device sends instantiation information of the MEC application to the second network device of the second MEC system.

Wherein the second network device comprises an OSS of the second MEC system.

After the MEC application is instantiated, the communication device sends the instantiation information of the MEC application to the second network device of the second MEC system, so that the second MEC system completes the deployment of the MEC application. The associated terminal may invoke the MEC application according to the instantiation information to obtain the required service resources.

Illustratively, the instantiation information of the MEC application includes the URL address of the application instance. The second MEC system may obtain an application instance of the MEC application from the URL address.

Hereinafter, a method for determining configuration information required for deploying the MEC application by the communication apparatus will be specifically described in conjunction with the above step S502.

As a possible embodiment of the present application, in conjunction with fig. 5, as shown in fig. 6, the above step S502 may be specifically implemented by the following steps S601-S603:

s601, the communication device sends a first synchronization message to the second network device according to the first request message. Correspondingly, the second network device receives the first synchronization message sent by the communication device.

Wherein the first synchronization message is used for requesting configuration information.

In a possible implementation, the first request message includes an identification for characterizing the second MEC system. The communication means determines a second network device of the second MEC system based on the identification.

Illustratively, the identity used to characterize the second MEC system may be a public land mobile network (public land mobile network, PLMN) identity. The identifier may also be other identifiers for characterizing the second MEC system, which is not limited in this application.

In another possible implementation manner, a corresponding relationship list of the MEC application requirements and the MEC system is pre-stored in the communication device, and the communication device determines a second MEC system corresponding to the MEC application according to the list and determines a second network device in the second MEC system.

S602, the second network device sends a first synchronization response message to the communication device. Correspondingly, the communication device receives the first synchronous response message sent by the second network equipment.

Wherein the first synchronization response message includes configuration information.

Specifically, the second network device may determine configuration information required for deploying the MEC application according to the first synchronization message, and send a first synchronization response message including the configuration information to the communication apparatus. Correspondingly, the communication device receives the first synchronous response message sent by the second network equipment.

S603, the communication device determines configuration information according to the first synchronous response message.

Through the technical scheme, the communication device can send the first synchronization message to the second network equipment, and the configuration information required by the second MEC system for deploying the MEC application is determined according to the received first synchronization response message, so that the communication device can deploy the MEC application in the second MEC system according to the configuration information.

Optionally, after the step S601, the following steps S604 to S606 may be specifically further included:

s604, the second network equipment judges whether MEC application deployment is needed.

In one possible implementation, the second network device may determine, according to a preset application protocol, whether the MEC application needs to be deployed.

If the second network device determines that the MEC application needs to be deployed, step S602 is executed.

If the second network device determines that the MEC application does not need to be deployed, step S605 is executed.

S605, the second network device sends a second synchronization response message to the communication device. Correspondingly, the communication device receives a second synchronization response message sent by the second network device.

Wherein the second synchronization response message is for refusing to deploy the MEC application.

And S606, the communication device stops deploying the MEC application according to the second synchronous response message.

According to the technical scheme, the communication device stops deploying MEC application according to the received second synchronous response message so as to reduce the occupation of extra MEC resources.

It should be noted that, in the present application, the second network device may first determine whether to deploy the MEC application, and select to send the first synchronization response message or the second synchronization response message to the communication device according to the determination result. The scheme may reduce signaling overhead between the communication apparatus and the second network device.

The second network device in the application may further determine, according to the first synchronization message, configuration information required for deploying the MEC application, and send a first synchronization response message including the configuration information to the communication device, and then determine whether the MEC application needs to be deployed.

That is, step S604 may be performed in parallel with step S602 or after step S602. The application can be set according to actual conditions.

Hereinafter, a method for determining configuration information required for deploying the MEC application by the communication apparatus will be specifically described in conjunction with the above step S601.

As a possible embodiment of the present application, in conjunction with fig. 5-6, as shown in fig. 7, the above step S601 may be specifically implemented by the following steps S6011-S6012:

and S6011, the communication device determines a second identifier according to the first identifier.

Wherein the second identity is an identity of the MEC application in the second MEC system.

As can be seen from the above embodiments, the sender of the first request message in the present application may be sent by any MEC system, and therefore, the first identifier in the first request message may be the same as the identifier applied by the MEC in the second MEC system, or may be different from the identifier in the second MEC system.

In one possible implementation, multiple MEC systems may pre-set the same application identification for the MEC application. In this way, the second identifier determined by the communication device is the same identifier as the first identifier.

In another possible implementation, the communication device may determine a mapping relationship of the identities of each MEC application in the plurality of MEC systems, so that, through the mapping relationship, the communication device may determine the second identity according to the first identity.

S6012, the communication apparatus transmits the first synchronization message to the second network device. Correspondingly, the second network device receives the first synchronization message sent by the communication device.

Wherein the first synchronization message includes a second identification.

Through the technical scheme, the communication device determines the second identifier according to the first identifier, and sends the first synchronization message comprising the second identifier to the second network equipment, so that the second network equipment can determine the MEC application to be deployed according to the first synchronization message.

Hereinafter, a method for instantiating the MEC application by the communication device will be specifically described in connection with the above step S503.

As a possible embodiment of the present application, in conjunction with fig. 5-7, as shown in fig. 8, the above step S503 may be specifically implemented by the following steps S5031-S5032:

s5031, the communication apparatus transmits a first instruction message to the first network device.

The first indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to instantiate the MEC application according to the configuration information.

In connection with the content of S503, the first network device includes any one of an OSS of the first MEC system and an MEO of the first MEC system.

Because of the two-by-two communication connection among the communication device, the OSS of the first MEC system and the MEO of the first MEC system in the application. Therefore, the communication device in the application can directly instruct the MEO of the first system to instantiate the MEC application, or instruct the OSS of the first system to request the MEO to instantiate the MEC application.

The method for instantiating the MEC application may refer to the prior art, and the following will briefly describe the instantiation of the MEC application by taking the OSS of the first network device as the first MEC system as an example.

As shown in fig. 9, a flowchart of an MEC application instantiation method is provided herein. The method comprises the following steps:

and a step a, the OSS sends an MEC application instantiation request to the MEO according to the first indication information. Correspondingly, the MEO receives the MEC application instantiation request sent by the OSS.

Step b, the MEO sends the MEC application instantiation request to the MEC platform manager (MEC platform manager, MEPM) according to the MEC application instantiation request. Accordingly, the MEPM receives the MEC application instantiation request sent by the MEO.

Step c, the MEPM sends a resource allocation request to the virtualized infrastructure manager (virtualisation infrastructure manager, VIM) according to the MEC application instantiation request. Correspondingly, the VIM receives the resource allocation request sent by the MEPM.

And d, the VIM determines required calculation, storage and network resources according to the resource allocation request and sends a resource allocation response to the MEPM. Correspondingly, the MEPM receives the resource allocation response sent by the VIM.

And e, the MEPM sends an MEC application deployment request to an MEC platform (MEP) according to the allocated resources. Correspondingly, the MEP receives an MEC application deployment request sent by the MEPM.

And f, the MEP creates an MEC application instance according to the MEC application deployment request.

And g, the MEP sends an MEC application deployment request response to the MEPM. Accordingly, the MEPM receives the MEC application deployment request response sent by the MEP.

And h, the MEPM sends MEC application instantiation request response to the MEO according to the MEC application deployment request response. Accordingly, the MEO receives MEC application instantiation request responses sent by the MEPM.

And step i, the MEO forwards an MEC application instantiation request response to the OSS, and correspondingly, the OSS receives the MEC application instantiation request response sent by the MEO.

Similar to the above scheme, the scenario where the first network device is an MEO is not repeated in this application.

The MEC application instantiation in this application may also be implemented in other ways, which is not limited in this application.

S5032, the communication apparatus receives the first indication response message sent by the first network device.

Wherein the first indication response message includes instantiation information of the MEC application.

Through the technical scheme, the communication device can send the first indication message to the first network equipment, so that the first network equipment is instructed to instantiate the MEC application according to the configuration information. When the first network device is an OSS of the first MEC system, the OSS may execute an MEC application instantiation procedure according to the prior art. When the first network device is an MEO of the first MEC system, the communication apparatus may directly instruct the MEO to perform MEC application instantiation, thereby reducing signaling overhead during instantiation. Through the scheme, the communication device can instantiate the MEC application according to the configuration information required by the deployment of the MEC application by the second MEC system, so that the service sharing of the first MEC system is facilitated.

The embodiment of the present application may divide the functional modules or functional units of the communication device according to the above method example, for example, each functional module or functional unit may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The integrated modules may be implemented in hardware, or in software functional modules or functional units. The division of the modules or units in the embodiments of the present application is merely a logic function division, and other division manners may be implemented in practice.

Fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application, where the device includes:

a communication unit 1002, configured to receive a first request message.

A processing unit 1001 is configured to determine configuration information required for deploying the MEC application by the second MEC system.

The processing unit 1001 is further configured to instantiate an MEC application in the first network device of the first MEC system according to the configuration information.

The communication unit 1002 is further configured to send instantiation information of the MEC application to a second network device of the second MEC system.

In a possible implementation manner, the communication unit 1002 is further configured to send, according to the first request message, a first synchronization message to the second network device; the first synchronization message is used for requesting configuration information; a communication unit 1002, configured to receive a first synchronization response message sent by the second network device; the first synchronization response message includes configuration information; the processing unit 1001 is further configured to determine configuration information according to the first synchronization response message.

In a possible implementation manner, the communication unit 1002 is further configured to receive a second synchronization response message sent by the second network device; the second synchronization response message is used for refusing to deploy the MEC application; the processing unit 1001 is further configured to stop deploying the MEC application according to the second synchronization response message.

In one possible implementation, the first request message includes a first identification; the first identity is used to characterize the MEC application; the processing unit 1001 is further configured to determine a second identifier according to the first identifier; the second identifier is an identifier of the MEC application in the second MEC system; a communication unit 1002, configured to send a first synchronization message to a second network device; the first synchronization message includes a second identification.

In a possible implementation manner, the communication unit 1002 is further configured to send a first indication message to the first network device; the first indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to instantiate MEC application according to the configuration information; the communication unit 1002 is further configured to receive a first indication response message sent by the first network device; the first indication response message includes instantiation information of the MEC application.

When implemented in hardware, the communication unit 1002 in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated on a communication interface, and the processing unit 1001 may be integrated on a processor. A specific implementation is shown in fig. 11.

Fig. 11 shows a further possible structural schematic of the communication device involved in the above-described embodiment. The communication device includes: a processor 1102 and a communication interface 1103. The processor 1102 is configured to control and manage the actions of the communication device, e.g., perform the steps performed by the processing unit 1001 described above, and/or perform other processes of the techniques described herein. The communication interface 1103 is used to support communication between the communication device and other network entities, for example, to perform the steps performed by the communication unit 1002. The communication device may also include a memory 1101 and a bus 1104, the memory 1101 for storing program codes and data for the communication device.

Wherein the memory 1101 may be a memory in a communication device or the like, which may include volatile memory, such as random access memory; the memory may also include non-volatile memory, such as read-only memory, flash memory, hard disk or solid state disk; the memory may also comprise a combination of the above types of memories.

The processor 1102 may be implemented or executed with various exemplary logic blocks, modules and circuits described in connection with the present disclosure. The processor may be a central processing unit, a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a transistor logic device, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. Which may implement or perform the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with this disclosure. The processor may also be a combination that performs the function of a computation, e.g., a combination comprising one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, etc.

Bus 1104 may be an extended industry standard architecture (Extended Industry Standard Architecture, EISA) bus or the like. The bus 1104 may be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, and the like. For ease of illustration, only one thick line is shown in FIG. 11, but not only one bus or one type of bus.

Fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of a chip 120 according to an embodiment of the present application. The chip 120 includes one or more (including two) processors 1210 and a communication interface 1230.

Optionally, the chip 120 further includes a memory 1240, the memory 1240 may include read only memory and random access memory, and provide operating instructions and data to the processor 1210. A portion of the memory 1240 may also include non-volatile random access memory (non-volatile random access memory, NVRAM).

In some implementations, the memory 1240 stores the elements, execution modules or data structures, or a subset thereof, or an extended set thereof.

In the embodiment of the present application, the corresponding operation is performed by calling the operation instruction stored in the memory 1240 (which may be stored in the operating system).

Wherein the processor 1210 may implement or perform the various exemplary logic blocks, units and circuits described in connection with the present disclosure. The processor may be a central processing unit, a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a transistor logic device, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. Which may implement or perform the various exemplary logic blocks, units and circuits described in connection with this disclosure. The processor may also be a combination that performs the function of a computation, e.g., a combination comprising one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, etc.

Memory 1240 may include volatile memory, such as random access memory; the memory may also include non-volatile memory, such as read-only memory, flash memory, hard disk or solid state disk; the memory may also comprise a combination of the above types of memories.

Bus 1220 may be an extended industry standard architecture (Extended Industry Standard Architecture, EISA) bus or the like. The bus 1220 may be classified into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, and the like. For ease of illustration, only one line is shown in fig. 12, but not only one bus or one type of bus.

From the foregoing description of the embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that, for convenience and brevity of description, only the above-described division of functional modules is illustrated, and in practical application, the above-described functional allocation may be implemented by different functional modules according to needs, i.e. the internal structure of the apparatus is divided into different functional modules to implement all or part of the functions described above. The specific working processes of the above-described systems, devices and units may refer to the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, which are not described herein.

The present application provides a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the MEC sharing method of the method embodiments described above.

The embodiment of the application also provides a computer readable storage medium, in which instructions are stored, which when executed on a computer, cause the computer to execute the MEC sharing method in the method flow shown in the method embodiment.

The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, or device, or a combination of any of the foregoing. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer-readable storage medium would include the following: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access Memory (Random Access Memory, RAM), a Read-Only Memory (ROM), an erasable programmable Read-Only Memory (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory, EPROM), a register, a hard disk, an optical fiber, a portable compact disc Read-Only Memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing, or any other form of computer readable storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. In the alternative, the storage medium may be integral to the processor. The processor and the storage medium may reside in an application specific integrated circuit (Application Specific Integrated Circuit, ASIC). In the context of the present application, a computer-readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that can contain, or store a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.

Embodiments of the present invention provide a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform the MEC sharing method as described in figures 5 to 8.

Since the communication apparatus, the computer readable storage medium, and the computer program product in the embodiments of the present invention can be applied to the above-mentioned method, the technical effects that can be obtained by the communication apparatus, the computer readable storage medium, and the computer program product can also refer to the above-mentioned method embodiments, and the embodiments of the present invention are not described herein again.

In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, devices, and methods may be implemented in other ways. For example, the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely illustrative, and for example, the division of the units is merely a logical function division, and there may be additional divisions when actually implemented, for example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted or not performed. Alternatively, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed with each other may be through some interface, indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or units, electrical, mechanical, or other form.

The units described as separate units may or may not be physically separate, and units shown as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of this embodiment.

In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated in one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units may be integrated in one unit.

The foregoing is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto, and any changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present disclosure should be covered in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A mobile edge computing MEC sharing method, comprising:

receiving a first request message; the first request message is used for requesting to deploy MEC applications in a first MEC system to a second MEC system;

Determining configuration information required by the second MEC system to deploy the MEC application;

instantiating the MEC application in a first network device of the first MEC system according to the configuration information;

transmitting the instantiation information of the MEC application to a second network device of the second MEC system, so that the second MEC system calls an MEC application instance instantiated in the first MEC system according to the configuration information of the second MEC system through the instantiation information; the instantiation information includes a URL address of the MEC application instance.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining configuration information required by the second MEC system to deploy the MEC application comprises:

according to the first request message, a first synchronization message is sent to the second network equipment; the first synchronization message is used for requesting the configuration information;

receiving a first synchronous response message sent by the second network equipment; the first synchronization response message includes the configuration information;

and determining the configuration information according to the first synchronous response message.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein after said sending a first synchronization message to said second network device in accordance with said first request message, said method further comprises:

Receiving a second synchronous response message sent by the second network equipment; the second synchronization response message is used for refusing to deploy the MEC application;

and stopping deploying the MEC application according to the second synchronous response message.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the first request message includes a first identification; the first identity is used to characterize the MEC application;

the sending, according to the first request message, a first synchronization message to the second network device includes:

determining a second identifier according to the first identifier; the second identifier is an identifier of the MEC application in the second MEC system;

sending a first synchronization message to the second network device; the first synchronization message includes the second identity.

5. The method of any one of claims 1-4, wherein instantiating the MEC application in a first network device of the first MEC system according to the configuration information comprises:

sending a first indication message to the first network device; the first indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to instantiate the MEC application according to the configuration information;

Receiving a first indication response message sent by the first network equipment; the first indication response message includes instantiation information of the MEC application.

6. A communication device, comprising a communication unit and a processing unit;

the communication unit is used for receiving a first request message; the first request message is used for requesting to deploy MEC applications in a first MEC system to a second MEC system;

the processing unit is used for determining configuration information required by the second MEC system for deploying the MEC application;

the processing unit is further configured to instantiate the MEC application in a first network device of the first MEC system according to the configuration information;

the communication unit is further configured to send instantiation information of the MEC application to a second network device of the second MEC system, so that the second MEC system invokes, through the instantiation information, an MEC application instance instantiated by the first MEC system according to configuration information of the second MEC system; the instantiation information includes a URL address of the MEC application instance.

7. The apparatus of claim 6, wherein the communication unit is further configured to send a first synchronization message to the second network device based on the first request message; the first synchronization message is used for requesting the configuration information;

The communication unit is further configured to receive a first synchronization response message sent by the second network device; the first synchronization response message includes the configuration information;

the processing unit is further configured to determine the configuration information according to the first synchronization response message.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the communication unit is further configured to receive a second synchronization response message sent by the second network device; the second synchronization response message is used for refusing to deploy the MEC application;

and the processing unit is further used for stopping deploying the MEC application according to the second synchronous response message.

9. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the first request message comprises a first identification; the first identity is used to characterize the MEC application;

the processing unit is further used for determining a second identifier according to the first identifier; the second identifier is an identifier of the MEC application in the second MEC system;

the communication unit is further configured to send a first synchronization message to the second network device; the first synchronization message includes the second identity.

10. The apparatus according to any of claims 6-9, wherein the communication unit is further configured to send a first indication message to the first network device; the first indication information is used for indicating the first network equipment to instantiate the MEC application according to the configuration information;

The communication unit is further configured to receive a first indication response message sent by the first network device; the first indication response message includes instantiation information of the MEC application.

11. A communication device, comprising: a processor and a communication interface; the communication interface is coupled to the processor for running a computer program or instructions to implement the MEC sharing method as claimed in any one of claims 1-5.

12. A computer readable storage medium having instructions stored therein which, when executed by a computer, perform the MEC sharing method of any of the preceding claims 1-5.