CN115334611A - Access or switching method, device, AMF and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

The application discloses an access or switching method, an access or switching device, an AMF and a storage medium, wherein the method comprises the following steps: when a terminal is switched from source AMF access to target AMF access, the source AMF sends first network function information; the source AMF receives first response information of the target AMF; wherein the first response information characterizes whether the target AMF can be served by or communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information.

Description

Access or switching method, device, AMF and storage medium

technical field

The present application relates to the field of wireless technologies, and in particular to a handover method and device, an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF, Access and Mobility Management Function) and a storage medium.

Background technique

By deploying the network slice admission control function (NSACF, Network Address Admission Control Function) on the network slice, the corresponding service level agreement (SLA, Service Level Agreement) guarantee can be realized, including controlling the maximum number of users and the maximum number of session connections of the network slice, etc. . In related technologies, for the case where there are more than two NSACFs deployed corresponding to Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (S-NSSAI, Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information), a reasonable selection of NSACFs cannot be realized.

Contents of the invention

In order to solve related technical problems, embodiments of the present application provide an access or handover method, device, AMF, and storage medium.

The technical scheme of the embodiment of the application is realized in this way:

An embodiment of the present application provides an access or handover method. When a terminal switches from source access and mobility management function (AMF, Access and Mobility Management Function) access to target AMF access, the method includes:

The source AMF sends the first network function information;

The source AMF receives the first response information of the target AMF; wherein,

The first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

Wherein, in the above solution, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In the above solution, the first network function information includes:

An identifier of the first network function, and/or an address of the first network function.

In the above scheme, the method also includes:

If the first response information indicates that the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function, the source AMF initiates an update process to the first network function.

In the above solution, the update process includes:

The source AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the first network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

In the above solution, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices corresponding to the S-NSSAI accessed by the terminal; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminal on the corresponding network slice using the S-NSSAI.

In the above solution, the first network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of access terminals or access sessions in the network slice.

The embodiment of the present application also provides an access or handover method. When the terminal switches from source AMF access to target AMF access, the method includes:

The target AMF receives the first network function information;

The target AMF sends the first response information; where,

The first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

Wherein, in the above solution, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In the above scheme, the method also includes:

In case the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function, the target AMF selects the second network function;

The target AMF initiates an update process to the second network function.

In the above solution, the update process includes:

The target AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the second network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

In the above solution, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices corresponding to the S-NSSAI accessed by the terminal; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminal on the corresponding network slice using the S-NSSAI.

In the above solution, the second network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of access terminals or access sessions of the network slice.

The embodiment of the present application also provides an access or switching device, including:

The first sending unit is configured to send the first network function information when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access;

The first receiving unit is configured to receive the first response information of the target AMF; wherein,

The first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

The embodiment of the present application also provides an access or switching device, including:

The second receiving unit is configured to receive the first network function information when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access;

The second sending unit is configured to send the first response information; wherein,

The first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

The embodiment of the present application also provides an AMF, including: a first processor and a first communication interface; wherein,

The first communication interface is used to send the first network function information when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access; and receive the first response information of the target AMF; wherein,

The first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

The embodiment of the present application also provides an AMF, including: a second processor and a second communication interface; wherein,

The second communication interface is used to receive the first network function information when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access; and send the first response information; wherein,

The first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

The embodiment of the present application also provides an AMF, including: a processor and a first memory for storing a computer program that can run on the processor,

Wherein, when the processor is configured to run the computer program, it executes the steps of any one of the methods described above.

The embodiment of the present application also provides a storage medium on which a computer program is stored, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of any one of the methods described above are implemented.

The access or handover method, device, AMF, and storage medium provided by the embodiments of the present application, when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access, the method includes: the source AMF sends the first network function information; The AMF receives the first response information of the target AMF; wherein the first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or can communicate with the first network function . Through the above solution, when the S-NSSAI is correspondingly deployed with more than two network function services, a reasonable selection of network function services can be realized when the terminal performs AMF switching, and SLA control on network slices can be optimized.

Description of drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic flow diagram of an access or handover method according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of another access or handover method according to the embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic flow diagram of an access or handover method in an application embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of an access or switching device according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of another access or switching device according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of an AMF according to an embodiment of the present application;

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of another AMF structure according to the embodiment of the present application.

Detailed ways

By deploying NSACF on the network slice, corresponding SLA guarantees can be realized, including controlling the maximum number of users and the maximum number of session connections of the network slice. In related technologies, from the perspective of the entire Public Land Mobile Network (PLMN, Public LandMobile Network), only one NSACF is deployed for one network slice, so that all AMFs and/or session management functions (SMF, Session Management Function) receive relevant When a network slice is requested, the same NSACF will be requested to add and subtract statistical data. For example, for a mobile communication network with a large number of users, if application A reserves a network slice with 100,000 users, then all AMFs in the entire PLMN will , will request the corresponding NSACF to add and subtract statistical data, which will cause the corresponding NSACF to be overloaded and business processing efficiency will be affected. In view of the above situation, relevant operators usually deploy a pair of NSACF for S-NSSAI. In related technologies, there is no effective solution to realize the reasonable selection of NSACF for the situation where more than two NSACFs are deployed for S-NSSAI.

Based on this, in the embodiment of the present application, when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access, the method includes: the source AMF sends the first network function information; the source AMF receives the first response information of the target AMF; Wherein, the first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function. Through the above solution, when the S-NSSAI is correspondingly deployed with more than two network function services, a reasonable selection of network function services can be realized when the terminal performs AMF switching, and SLA control on network slices can be optimized.

The application will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

The embodiment of this application provides an access or switching method, which is applied to the source AMF when the terminal accesses from the source AMF to the target AMF. As shown in Figure 1, when the terminal switches from the source AMF to the target AMF When the target AMF accesses, the method includes:

Step 101: The source AMF sends first network function information.

In actual application, the source AMF may send the first network function information to the target AMF, or the source AMF may send the first network function information to other network elements, and the other network elements transmit the first network function information to the target AMF. The first network function information indicates that there is a first network function. In actual application, the first network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other networks capable of counting the number of network slice access terminals or the number of access sessions function or instance. Understandably, here, the source AMF supports interworking with the first network function, in other words, the source AMF can be served by the first network function or can communicate with the first network function.

In an embodiment, the first network function information includes:

An identifier of the first network function, and/or an address of the first network function.

Taking the first network function as an NSACF as an example, the corresponding first network function information may indicate an identifier of the NSACF or address information of the NSACF.

Step 102: The source AMF receives the first response information of the target AMF.

Wherein, the first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

In an embodiment, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In actual application, when AMF does not support communication with NSACF, or when AMF cannot obtain NSACF services, or AMF is not within the service scope of NSACF, for terminals accessing the network slice corresponding to S-NSSAI or terminals using S-NSSAI When a session is established in the corresponding network slice, AMF cannot request to update the statistical data. Therefore, through the first response information fed back by the target AMF, the source AMF can determine whether the target AMF can be served by the NSACF or whether it can communicate with the NSACF, and select the corresponding NSACF based on the first response information.

In one embodiment, the method also includes:

If the first response information indicates that the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function, the source AMF initiates an update process to the first network function.

Here, when the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function, although the terminal switches to access from the target AMF, at this time, the source AMF initiates an update process to the first network function, In this way, the statistics of the number of access terminals or the number of access sessions of the network slice can be realized.

Here, the update process includes:

The source AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the first network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

Wherein, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices corresponding to the S-NSSAI accessed by the terminals; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminals in the corresponding network slices using the S-NSSAI.

The embodiment of the present application also provides an access or handover method, which is applied to the target AMF when the terminal accesses from the source AMF to the target AMF. As shown in Figure 2, when the terminal switches from the source AMF to the When accessing from a target AMF, the method includes:

Step 201: The target AMF receives first network function information.

In practical applications, the target AMF may receive the first network function information sent by the source AMF, or the source AMF may send the first network function information to other network elements, and the other network elements transmit the first network function information to the target AMF . The first network function information indicates that there is a first network function. In actual application, the first network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other networks capable of counting the number of network slice access terminals or the number of access sessions function or instance. Understandably, here, the source AMF supports interworking with the first network function, in other words, the source AMF can be served by the first network function or can communicate with the first network function.

Step 202: The target AMF sends first response information.

Wherein, the first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

In an embodiment, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In actual application, when AMF does not support communication with NSACF, or when AMF cannot obtain NSACF services, or AMF is not within the service scope of NSACF, for terminals accessing the network slice corresponding to S-NSSAI or terminals using S-NSSAI When a session is established in the corresponding network slice, AMF cannot request to update the statistical data. Therefore, through the first response information fed back by the target AMF, the source AMF can determine whether the target AMF can be served by the NSACF or whether it can communicate with the NSACF, and select the corresponding NSACF based on the first response information.

In one embodiment, the method also includes:

In case the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function, the target AMF selects the second network function;

The target AMF initiates an update process to the second network function.

Here, when the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function, the target AMF selects the second network function and initiates an update process to the second network function, thereby realizing access to the network slice Statistics on the number of terminals or the number of access sessions. It can be understood that the target AMF initiates an update process to the second network function, which is applicable to the case where the S-NSSAI is correspondingly deployed with more than two network function services, and the source AMF supports intercommunication with the second network function. In other words, the source AMF Capable of being served by or capable of communicating with a second network function.

In actual application, when the target AMF cannot communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information, the target AMF needs to query the network storage function (NRF, NF Repository Function) to obtain a list of NSACFs that support intercommunication, And select the second network function therefrom.

In practical application, the second network function includes the NSACF, and/or an instance of the NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of access terminals or access sessions in the network slice.

In this way, when the terminal changes from the source AMF access to the target AMF access, NSACF reselection can be realized, and the target AMF can switch to the NSACF that supports intercommunication, so as to realize the reasonable selection of network function services and optimize the SLA of network slicing control.

Here, the update process includes:

The target AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the second network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

Wherein, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices corresponding to the S-NSSAI accessed by the terminals; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminals in the corresponding network slices using the S-NSSAI.

The present application will be further described in detail below in conjunction with application examples.

In this application embodiment, at least two NSACFs are deployed in the network slice corresponding to the S-NSSAI, wherein the maximum number of users connected to the network slice corresponding to the S-NSSAI is allocated among multiple NSACFs according to service estimation. For example, service A subscribes to network slice 1 with a maximum number of 100,000 users, and multiple NSACFs are deployed on network slice 1, then these multiple NSACFs will allocate the 100,000 maximum number of users according to the service density. Here, multiple NSACFs do not communicate with each other, and the adjustment of statistical data on the number of user accesses on each NSACF belongs to the business category, and is implemented by the network management system through offline adjustment.

Referring to Figure 3, the implementation process of this application embodiment is as follows:

1. The source radio access network (S-RAN, Source Radio Access network) sends a handover request message (Handover Required) to the source AMF (S-AMF).

In actual application, in a network slice, when the terminal moves beyond the coverage of the current AMF, AMF handover is triggered.

2. The source AMF selects the target AMF (T-AMF) (T-AMF selection).

3. The source AMF sends a terminal context creation request to the target AMF, and the terminal context creation request at least carries the context information (NSACF ID(s), Allowed NSSAI) of the terminal.

Here, Allowed NSSAI is Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (NSSAI, Network Slice Selection Assistance Information) provided by the serving PLMN during the registration process of the terminal, indicating the identification of the network slice that the terminal can use in the current registration domain, wherein each network slice Indicated by S-NSSAI; NSACF ID(s) represents the identity of the NSACF that the source AMF supports interworking.

4. According to the NSACF and NSSAI indicated in the context information of the terminal, the target AMF confirms the S-NSSAI supported by the target AMF and the S-NSSAI not supported by the target AMF, and confirms that the target AMF supports the interworking NSACF and the NSACF that does not support interworking.

5. The target AMF feeds back a handover request (Handover Request) to the target RAN (T-RAN), and the target RAN feeds back OK to the target AMF.

6. The target AMF feeds back the create terminal context response to the source AMF, indicating that the handover operation can be performed, and carries the S-NSSAI not supported by the target AMF in the create context response, and NSACF and target AMF used to indicate that the target AMF supports interworking Indication information of NSACF that does not support interworking.

In actual application, the create terminal context request sent by the source AMF to the target AMF may be Namf_Communication_CreateUEContext Request, and correspondingly, the create terminal context response may be Namf_Communication_CreateUEContext Response.

The above steps are the handover preparation phase of this application embodiment, and the handover execution phase of this application embodiment will be described below.

7. The source AMF sends a handover command to the source RAN. The source RAN initiates a handover command to the terminal.

8. The terminal initiates a handover confirmation to the target RAN. The target RAN initiates a handover notification to the target AMF.

9. The target AMF uses the Namf_Communication_N2infoNotify service and subscribes a timer (Timer) to the source AMF, and the source AMF uses the timer to supervise the release of source RAN resources.

10. For the S-NSSAI that the target AMF does not support and/or the NSACF that the target AMF does not support intercommunication, the source AMF applies to the S-NSACF for updating the corresponding network slice statistics, or the target AMF newly selects T-NSACF, and Apply to T-NSACF to update the corresponding network slice statistical data.

Here, the S-NSACF represents the NSACF supported by the source AMF in the Allowed NSSAI.

Update the statistical data corresponding to S-NSSAI in NSACF, including according to the general public user identification (GPSI, Generic Public Subscription Identifier) or user permanent identification (SUPI, SubscriptionPermanent Identifier) of the terminal, the situation where the terminal accesses the corresponding network slice or when the terminal establishes a session on the corresponding network slice, add 1 to the statistical data on the NSACF, and decrement the statistical data on the NSACF by 1 when the terminal disconnects from the session on the corresponding network slice.

Optionally, for the NSACF that the target AMF supports intercommunication, the source AMF notifies the corresponding NSACF of the address information or identifier of the target AMF, so as to realize the intercommunication between the target AMF and the corresponding NSACF.

11. The source AMF deletes the context information of the terminal on the source-RAN.

In the solution provided by the embodiment of the present application, when the terminal accesses from the source AMF to the target AMF, the source AMF sends the first network function information; the source AMF receives the first response information from the target AMF; wherein, the first The response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function. Through the above solution, when the S-NSSAI is correspondingly deployed with more than two network function services, a reasonable selection of network function services can be realized when the terminal performs AMF switching, and SLA control on network slices can be optimized.

In order to implement the method of the embodiment of the present application, the embodiment of the present application also provides an access or switching device, which is set on the source AMF when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access, as shown in Figure 4 , the device consists of:

A first sending unit 401, configured to send first network function information;

The first receiving unit 402 is configured to receive first response information of the target AMF.

Wherein, the first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

Wherein, in an embodiment, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In an embodiment, the first network function information includes:

An identifier of the first network function, and/or an address of the first network function.

In one embodiment, the device also includes:

The first update unit is configured to: when the first response information indicates that the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function, the source AMF initiates an action to the first network function Update process.

In one embodiment, the update process includes:

The source AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the first network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices that the terminals access to the S-NSSAI; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminals in the corresponding network slices using the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the first network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of access terminals or access sessions in the network slice.

In practical applications, the first sending unit 401 and the first receiving unit 402 can be realized by a communication interface in the access or switching device, and the first update unit can be realized by a communication interface in the access or switching device combined with a processor.

In order to implement the method of the embodiment of the present application, the embodiment of the present application also provides an access or switching device, which is set on the target AMF when the terminal switches from the source AMF access to the target AMF access, as shown in Figure 5 , the device consists of:

The second receiving unit 501 is configured to receive the first network function information;

The second sending unit 502 is configured to send the first response information.

Wherein, the first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

Wherein, in an embodiment, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In one embodiment, the device also includes:

a selection unit, configured to select a second network function when the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function;

The second update unit is configured to initiate an update process to the second network function.

In one embodiment, the update process includes:

The target AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the second network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices that the terminals access to the S-NSSAI; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminals in the corresponding network slices using the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the second network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of access terminals or access sessions in the network slice.

In actual application, the second receiving unit 501 and the second sending unit 502 can be realized by the communication interface in the access or switching device, and the selection unit and the second update unit can be realized by the communication interface in the access or switching device combined with a processor .

It should be noted that: when the access or switching device provided by the above-mentioned embodiments performs access or switching, the division of the above-mentioned program modules is used as an example for illustration. In practical applications, the above-mentioned processing can be assigned to different Completion of program modules means that the internal structure of the device is divided into different program modules to complete all or part of the processing described above. In addition, the access or switching device provided in the above embodiments is based on the same idea as the access or switching method embodiments, and its specific implementation process is detailed in the method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

Based on the hardware implementation of the above program modules, and in order to implement the method on the source AMF side of the embodiment of the present application, the embodiment of the present application also provides an AMF. As shown in FIG. 6, the AMF 600 includes:

The first communication interface 601 is capable of exchanging information with other network nodes;

The first processor 602 is connected to the first communication interface 601 to implement information exchange with other network nodes, and is used to execute the methods provided by one or more technical solutions on the source AMF side when running computer programs. Instead, the computer program is stored on the first memory 603 .

Specifically, the first communication interface 601 is configured to send first network function information; and receive first response information of the target AMF.

Wherein, the first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

Wherein, in an embodiment, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In an embodiment, the first network function information includes:

An identifier of the first network function, and/or an address of the first network function.

In an embodiment, the first communication interface 601 is also used for:

Initiate an update procedure to the first network function when the first response information indicates that the target AMF cannot be served by the first network function or cannot communicate with the first network function.

In one embodiment, the update process includes:

The source AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the first network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices that the terminals access to the S-NSSAI; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminals in the corresponding network slices using the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the first network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of access terminals or access sessions in the network slice.

It should be noted that: the specific processing procedures of the first processor 602 and the first communication interface 601 can be understood with reference to the above methods.

Of course, in actual application, various components in the AMF 600 are coupled together through the bus system 604 . It can be understood that the bus system 604 is used to realize connection and communication between these components. In addition to the data bus, the bus system 604 also includes a power bus, a control bus and a status signal bus. However, for clarity of illustration, the various buses are labeled as bus system 604 in FIG. 6 .

The first memory 603 in the embodiment of the present application is used to store various types of data to support the operation of the AMF 600 . Examples of such data include: any computer program for operating on AMF 600 .

The methods disclosed in the foregoing embodiments of the present application may be applied to the first processor 602 or implemented by the first processor 602 . The first processor 602 may be an integrated circuit chip, which has a signal processing capability. In the implementation process, each step of the above method may be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in the first processor 602 or an instruction in the form of software. The aforementioned first processor 602 may be a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP, Digital Signal Processor), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, and the like. The first processor 602 may implement or execute various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be directly implemented by a hardware decoding processor, or implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module may be located in a storage medium, and the storage medium is located in the first memory 603, and the first processor 602 reads the information in the first memory 603, and completes the steps of the aforementioned method in combination with its hardware.

In an exemplary embodiment, the AMF 600 may be implemented by one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC, Application Specific Integrated Circuit), DSP, Programmable Logic Device (PLD, ProgrammableLogic Device), Complex Programmable Logic Device (CPLD, Complex Programmable Logic Device), field-programmable gate array (FPGA, Field-Programmable Gate Array), general-purpose processor, controller, microcontroller (MCU, Micro Controller Unit), microprocessor (Microprocessor), or other electronic components to achieve , used to execute the aforementioned method.

Based on the hardware implementation of the above program modules, and in order to realize the method on the AMF side of the embodiment of the present application, the embodiment of the present application also provides an AMF, as shown in FIG. 7 , the AMF 700 includes:

The second communication interface 701 is capable of exchanging information with other network nodes;

The second processor 702 is connected to the second communication interface 701 to implement information exchange with other network nodes, and is used to execute the methods provided by one or more technical solutions on the target AMF side when running the computer program. Instead, the computer program is stored on the second memory 703 .

Specifically, the second communication interface 701 is configured to receive the first network function information when the terminal accesses from the source AMF to the target AMF; and sends the first response information; wherein,

The first response information indicates whether the target AMF can be served by the first network function indicated in the first network function information or whether it can communicate with the first network function.

Wherein, in an embodiment, the first response information indicates at least one of the following:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

Whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

Whether the target AMF is within the service range of the first network function.

In one embodiment, the second processor 702 is used to:

selecting a second network function if the target AMF cannot be served by or communicate with the first network function;

The second communication interface 701 is configured to initiate an update process to the second network function.

In one embodiment, the update process includes:

The target AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the second network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the number of terminals includes the number of network slices that the terminals access to the S-NSSAI; the number of sessions includes the number of sessions established by the terminals in the corresponding network slices using the S-NSSAI.

In an embodiment, the second network function includes NSACF, and/or an instance of NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of access terminals or access sessions in the network slice.

It should be noted that the specific processing procedures of the second processor 702 and the second communication interface 701 can be understood with reference to the above method.

Certainly, in actual application, various components in the AMF 700 are coupled together through the bus system 704 . It can be understood that the bus system 704 is used to realize connection and communication between these components. In addition to the data bus, the bus system 704 also includes a power bus, a control bus and a status signal bus. However, for clarity of illustration, the various buses are labeled as bus system 704 in FIG. 7 .

The second memory 703 in the embodiment of the present application is used to store various types of data to support the operation of the AMF700. Examples of such data include: any computer program for operating on AMF 700 .

The methods disclosed in the foregoing embodiments of the present application may be applied to the second processor 702 or implemented by the second processor 702 . The second processor 702 may be an integrated circuit chip, which has a signal processing capability. In the implementation process, each step of the above method may be completed by an integrated logic circuit of hardware in the second processor 702 or instructions in the form of software. The aforementioned second processor 702 may be a general-purpose processor, DSP, or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, discrete hardware components, and the like. The second processor 702 may implement or execute various methods, steps, and logic block diagrams disclosed in the embodiments of the present application. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of the method disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be directly implemented by a hardware decoding processor, or implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the decoding processor. The software module may be located in a storage medium, and the storage medium is located in the second memory 703, and the second processor 702 reads the information in the second memory 703, and completes the steps of the foregoing method in combination with its hardware.

In an exemplary embodiment, the AMF 700 may be implemented by one or more ASICs, DSPs, PLDs, CPLDs, FPGAs, general purpose processors, controllers, MCUs, Microprocessors, or other electronic components for performing the aforementioned methods.

It can be understood that the memory (the first memory 603 and the second memory 703 ) in this embodiment of the present application may be a volatile memory or a nonvolatile memory, and may also include both volatile and nonvolatile memories. Wherein, the non-volatile memory can be a read-only memory (ROM, Read Only Memory), a programmable read-only memory (PROM, Programmable Read-Only Memory), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM, Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory) Memory), Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory (EEPROM, Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), Magnetic Random Access Memory (FRAM, ferromagnetic random access memory), Flash Memory (Flash Memory), magnetic surface memory, optical disc, Or CD-ROM (Compact Disc Read-Only Memory); magnetic surface storage can be disk storage or tape storage. The volatile memory may be random access memory (RAM, Random Access Memory), which is used as an external cache. By way of illustration and not limitation, many forms of RAM are available, such as Static Random Access Memory (SRAM, Static Random Access Memory), Synchronous Static Random Access Memory (SSRAM, Synchronous Static Random Access Memory), Dynamic Random Access Memory ( DRAM, Dynamic Random Access Memory), Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (SDRAM, Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory), Double Data Rate Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (DDRSDRAM, Double Data Rate Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory), Enhanced Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory (ESDRAM, Enhanced Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory), Synchronous Link Dynamic Random Access Memory (SLDRAM, SyncLink Dynamic Random Access Memory), Direct Memory Bus Random Access Memory (DRRAM, Direct Rambus Random Access Memory). The memories described in the embodiments of the present application are intended to include, but are not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memories.

In an exemplary embodiment, the embodiment of the present application also provides a storage medium, that is, a computer storage medium, specifically a computer-readable storage medium, for example, including a first memory 603 storing a computer program, and the above computer program can be used by the AMF 600 The first processor 602 is executed to complete the steps described in the method at the source AMF side. For another example, it includes a second memory 703 storing a computer program, and the above computer program can be executed by the second processor 702 of the AMF 700 to complete the steps described in the aforementioned method on the target AMF side. The computer-readable storage medium may be memory such as FRAM, ROM, PROM, EPROM, EEPROM, Flash Memory, magnetic surface memory, optical disk, or CD-ROM.

It should be noted that: "first", "second", etc. are used to distinguish similar objects, and not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence.

In addition, the technical solutions described in the embodiments of the present application may be combined arbitrarily if there is no conflict.

The above descriptions are only preferred embodiments of the present application, and are not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application.

Claims (19)

1. An access or handover method, when a terminal changes from a source access and mobility management function (AMF) access to a target AMF access, the method comprising:

the source AMF sends first network function information;

the source AMF receives first response information of the target AMF; wherein,

the first response information characterizes whether the target AMF can be served by or communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first response information indicates at least one of:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

whether the target AMF is within a service range of the first network function.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the first network function information comprises:

an identity of the first network function, and/or an address of the first network function.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

in case the first response information characterizes that the target AMF cannot be served by or communicate with the first network function, the source AMF initiates an update procedure to the first network function.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the update procedure comprises:

and the source AMF updates the terminal quantity and/or the session quantity to the first network function corresponding to the auxiliary information S-NSSAI of the single network slice.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the number of terminals includes a number of network slices corresponding to terminal access S-NSSAI; the session number includes the number of sessions established by the terminal in the corresponding network slice by using the S-NSSAI.

7. Method according to any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first network function comprises a network slice admission control function, NSACF, and/or an instance of a NSACF, and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of network slice access terminals or access sessions.

8. An access or handover method, when a terminal changes from a source AMF access to a target AMF access, the method comprising:

the target AMF receives the first network function information;

the target AMF sends first response information; wherein,

the first response information characterizes whether the target AMF can be served by or communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first response information indicates at least one of:

whether the target AMF can communicate with the first network function;

whether the target AMF can obtain the service of the first network function;

whether the target AMF is within a service range of the first network function.

10. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

in the case that the target AMF cannot be served by or communicate with the first network function, the target AMF selects a second network function;

and the target AMF initiates an updating process to the second network function.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the updating process comprises:

the target AMF updates the number of terminals and/or the number of sessions to the second network function corresponding to the S-NSSAI.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the number of terminals includes a number of network slices corresponding to terminal access S-NSSAI; the session number includes the number of sessions established by the terminal in the corresponding network slice by using the S-NSSAI.

13. Method according to any of claims 8 to 12, wherein the second network function comprises an NSACF and/or an instance of an NSACF and/or other network functions or instances capable of counting the number of network slice access terminals or access sessions.

14. An access or handover apparatus, comprising:

the terminal comprises a first sending unit, a second sending unit and a third sending unit, wherein the first sending unit is used for sending first network function information when the terminal is switched from source AMF access to target AMF access;

a first receiving unit, configured to receive first response information of the target AMF; wherein,

the first response information characterizes whether the target AMF can be served by or communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information.

15. An access or handover apparatus, comprising:

the second receiving unit is used for receiving the first network function information when the terminal is switched from the source AMF access to the target AMF access;

a second transmitting unit for transmitting the first response information; wherein,

the first response information characterizes whether the target AMF can be served by or communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information.

16. An AMF, comprising: a first processor and a first communication interface; wherein,

the first communication interface is used for sending first network function information when the terminal is switched from source AMF access to target AMF access; and receiving first response information of the target AMF; wherein,

the first response information characterizes whether the target AMF can be served by or communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information.

17. An AMF, comprising: a second processor and a second communication interface; wherein,

the second communication interface is used for receiving the first network function information when the terminal is switched from the source AMF access to the target AMF access; and sending the first response information; wherein,

the first response information characterizes whether the target AMF can be served by or communicate with the first network function indicated in the first network function information.

18. An AMF, comprising: a processor and a first memory for storing a computer program capable of running on the processor,

wherein the processor is adapted to perform the steps of the method of any one of claims 1 to 7, or to perform the steps of the method of any one of claims 8 to 13, when the computer program is run.

19. A storage medium having stored thereon a computer program for performing the steps of the method of any one of claims 1 to 7 or the steps of the method of any one of claims 8 to 13 when executed by a processor.

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