CN116489631A

CN116489631A - Communication method, LMF and sending unit

Info

Publication number: CN116489631A
Application number: CN202210042532.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 侯云静; 陈东; 梁冰苑; 王胡成; 艾明; 徐晖
Original assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Current assignee: Datang Mobile Communications Equipment Co Ltd
Priority date: 2022-01-14
Filing date: 2022-01-14
Publication date: 2023-07-25
Also published as: WO2023134504A1

Abstract

The application provides a communication method, an LMF and a sending unit, and relates to the technical field of wireless communication. After receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identifier of the target base station, the LMF can determine a target AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the identifier of the target base station and send the auxiliary data to the target AMF; or after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identifier of the target base station, the LMF may send the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station to each AMF corresponding to the LMF, by which, after receiving the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station, the LMF may determine a target AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the identifier of the target base station, so as to send the auxiliary data to the target AMF, so that the target AMF sends the auxiliary data to the target base station after receiving the auxiliary data.

Description

Communication method, LMF and sending unit

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to the field of wireless communications technologies, and in particular, to a communication method, an LMF, and a sending unit.

Background

Mobile communication networks have entered the 5G technology era, and compared with the 4G long term evolution (Long Term Evolution, LTE) positioning network architecture, the 5G positioning network architecture has positioning requirements of higher accuracy and lower latency.

Currently, the gNB (NR NodeB,5G base station) is stationary, its connection with the AMF (AccessControl And Mobility Management Function, mobility management function) is basically unchanged, and when the LMF (Location Management Function ) sends assistance data to the gNB, the LMF may determine the AMF connected to the gNB according to the configuration information, and then send the assistance data to the gNB through the AMF.

However, when the gNB is deployed on a mobile object or is mobile, the gNB moves along with the movement of the mobile object or the movement of the mobile object, and the AMF connected to the gNB and the LMF serving the gNB also change, so that the assistance data cannot be accurately transmitted to the gNB.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a communication method, an LMF and a sending unit, when a base station is deployed on a mobile object, the correct LMF and AMF can be confirmed, so that auxiliary data is sent to a gNB.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method applied to a location management function entity LMF, where the method includes:

receiving auxiliary data and an identifier of a target base station sent by a sending unit;

determining a target mobility management function entity (AMF) corresponding to the target base station according to the identification of the target base station, and sending the auxiliary data to the target AMF; or,

And respectively sending the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to each AMF corresponding to the LMF.

According to the communication method, the LMF and the sending unit provided by the embodiment of the application, after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identification of the target base station, the LMF can determine the target AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the identification of the target base station and send the auxiliary data to the target AMF; or after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identifier of the target base station, the LMF may send the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station to each AMF corresponding to the LMF, by which, after receiving the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station, the LMF may determine a target AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the identifier of the target base station, so as to send the auxiliary data to the target AMF, so that the target AMF sends the auxiliary data to the target base station after receiving the auxiliary data.

In an alternative embodiment, the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location services LCS client or a navigation center.

In an optional embodiment, the determining, according to the identifier of the target base station, a target mobility management function entity AMF corresponding to the target base station includes:

Transmitting a first request to a network registration function entity NRF; the first request carries the identification of the target base station;

and receiving a first reply sent by the NRF, wherein the first reply carries the information of the target AMF.

respectively sending a routing request to each AMF corresponding to the LMF, wherein the routing request carries the identification of the target base station;

respectively receiving route replies returned by the AMFs;

and determining the AMF corresponding to the target base station as the target AMF according to the route replies returned by the AMFs.

In an alternative embodiment, the mapping relation between the base station and the AMF is stored in the LMF; the determining, according to the identifier of the target base station, a target mobility management function entity AMF corresponding to the target base station includes:

and searching a target AMF corresponding to the target base station in the mapping relation between the base station and the AMF according to the identification of the target base station.

In an alternative embodiment, the method further comprises:

Receiving event notification sent by NRF; the event notification is used for identifying the AMF corresponding to any base station to update;

and updating the mapping relation of the base station and the corresponding AMF according to the event notification.

In an alternative embodiment, the method further comprises:

for any AMF, receiving an event notification sent by the AMF; the event notification is used for identifying the base station corresponding to the AMF to update;

and updating the mapping relation between the AMF and the corresponding base station according to the event notification.

In an alternative embodiment, the target base station is a base station deployed on a moving object.

In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which is applied to a sending unit, where the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location service LCS client, or a navigation center; the method comprises the following steps:

determining a target location management function entity (LMF) corresponding to a target base station, and sending auxiliary data and an identifier of the target base station to the target LMF; or,

and sending auxiliary data and the identification of a target base station to a preconfigured first LMF so that the first LMF determines a target LMF and sends the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF.

According to the communication method, the LMF and the sending unit provided by the embodiment of the application, after the target LMF corresponding to the target base station is determined, the sending unit can send auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF; the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station may also be sent to a preconfigured first LMF, so that the first LMF determines the target LMF and sends the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF. By the method, the sending unit can send the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF corresponding to the target base station, so that the target LMF can send the auxiliary data to the target base station through the target AMF when determining the target AMF corresponding to the target base station.

In an optional embodiment, the determining the target location management function entity LMF corresponding to the target base station includes:

determining a target LMF corresponding to the target base station according to a service range of each LMF and the current position of the target mobile object which are preset; the target mobile object is a mobile object deploying the target base station.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a location management function entity LMF, including:

the receiving module is used for receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identification of the target base station;

The processing module is used for determining a target mobility management function entity (AMF) corresponding to the target base station according to the identification of the target base station and sending the auxiliary data to the target AMF; or respectively sending the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to each AMF corresponding to the LMF.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a sending unit, where the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location service LCS client, or a navigation center; the transmitting unit includes:

the data transmission module is used for determining a target location management function entity (LMF) corresponding to a target base station and transmitting auxiliary data and an identifier of the target base station to the target LMF; or sending auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to a preconfigured first LMF, so that the first LMF determines the target LMF and sends the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF.

In a fifth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a location management function entity LMF, including a memory, a transceiver, and a processor;

the memory is used for storing computer instructions;

the transceiver is used for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor;

The processor is configured to read the computer instructions in the memory and perform the following steps:

In an alternative embodiment, the processor is specifically configured to:

respectively receiving route replies returned by the AMFs;

In an alternative embodiment, the mapping relation between the base station and the AMF is stored in the LMF; the processor may be further configured to:

In an alternative embodiment, the processor may be further configured to:

In a sixth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a transmitting unit, including a memory, a transceiver, and a processor;

The memory is used for storing computer instructions;

In an alternative embodiment, the processor is specifically configured to:

In a seventh aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a communication system, including a transmitting unit, at least one location management function entity LMF, at least one mobility management function entity AMF, and at least one base station; the transmitting unit employs the transmitting unit according to any one of the sixth aspect, and the LMF employs the LMF according to any one of the fifth aspect.

In an eighth aspect, embodiments of the present application provide a computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions that, when executed by a processor, implement the method of any one of the first or second aspects.

The technical effects caused by any implementation manner of the third aspect to the eighth aspect may be referred to technical effects caused by corresponding implementation manners of the first aspect or the second aspect, and are not described herein.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings that are required in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly described, it being obvious that the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention, and that other drawings may be obtained according to these drawings without inventive effort for a person skilled in the art.

Fig. 1 is an application scenario diagram of a communication method applicable to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is an interactive flow chart diagram of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 3 is an interactive flowchart illustration of determining a target LMF according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is an interactive flow chart diagram of determining a target AMF according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is an interactive flowchart illustration of an NRF update mapping relationship provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 6 is an interactive flowchart illustration of another NRF update mapping relationship provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is an interactive flowchart illustration of determining a target AMF according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 8 is a flow chart of a communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a flow chart of another communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a flow chart of another communication method according to an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a block diagram of an LMF entity according to an embodiment of the present application;

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

fig. 13 is a schematic structural diagram of a sending unit according to an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The following detailed description of specific embodiments of the present application refers to the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that the detailed description is presented herein for purposes of illustration and explanation only and is not intended to limit the present application.

It should be noted that, in the embodiments of the present application, "first" and "second" are used to distinguish similar objects, and are not used to describe a specific order or precedence. In the embodiment of the application, "and/or" describing the association relationship of the association object, three relationships may exist, for example, a and/or B may represent: a exists alone, A and B exist together, and B exists alone. The character "/" generally indicates that the context-dependent object is an "or" relationship.

The network architecture and the service scenario described in the embodiments of the present application are for more clearly describing the technical solution of the embodiments of the present application, and do not constitute a limitation on the technical solution provided in the embodiments of the present application, and those skilled in the art can know that, with the evolution of the network architecture and the appearance of the new service scenario, the technical solution provided in the embodiments of the present application is also applicable to similar technical problems.

Mobile communication networks have entered the 5G technology era, and compared with the 4G long term evolution positioning network architecture, the 5G positioning network architecture has positioning requirements of higher accuracy and lower time delay. Currently, the gNB is stationary, the connection between the same and the AMF is basically unchanged, and when the LMF sends the assistance data to the gNB, the LMF may determine the AMF connected to the gNB according to the configuration information, and then send the assistance data to the gNB through the AMF. However, when the gNB is deployed on the mobile object, the gNB moves along with the movement of the mobile object, and the AMF connected to the gNB and the LMF serving the gNB also change, so that the assistance data cannot be accurately transmitted to the gNB.

Based on this, the embodiment of the application provides a communication method, an LMF and a sending unit, where after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identifier of the target base station, the LMF may determine, according to the identifier of the target base station, a target AMF corresponding to the target base station, and send the auxiliary data to the target AMF; or after receiving the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station sent by the sending unit, the LMF may send the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station to each AMF corresponding to the LMF, by which, when receiving the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station, the LMF may determine a target AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the identifier of the target base station, so as to send the auxiliary data to the target AMF, so that the target AMF sends the auxiliary data to the target base station after receiving the auxiliary data.

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication system applicable to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 1, the GMLC (Gateway Mobile Location Center ) may be configured to receive a location request of an LCS (Location services, location service) client, trigger a location procedure, and return a location of a UE (User Equipment) to the LCS client; the UDM may be used to store information of the UE, such as subscription information, information of an established PDU (Packet Data Unit) session, etc.; the AMF may track the location of the UE. The LMF may obtain the location of the UE; the RAN (Radio Access Network ) is a network corresponding to a target base station.

In the communication system provided in the embodiment of the present application, the issuing of the auxiliary data and the encryption key mainly involves LMF, UDM and AMF. Wherein the LMF may formulate an encryption key and auxiliary data; the UDM may store auxiliary data types for the UE subscription. Specifically, the AMF may receive the assistance data and the encryption key issued by the LMF, where the assistance data may be broadcast by the RAN, and the AMF may send the key to the UE through a registration procedure. After the UE receives the key, the received broadcasted assistance data may be decrypted using the key.

Fig. 2 shows an interaction flow chart of a communication method provided in an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 2, the method comprises the steps of:

step S201, a sending unit sends auxiliary data and the identification of a target base station to a target LMF;

in an alternative embodiment, before sending the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station to the target LMF, the sending unit may determine the target LMF corresponding to the target base station according to the service range of each LMF and the current location of the target mobile object that are configured in advance. The target mobile object is a mobile object of a deployment target base station; the sending unit is an AF, an LCS client or a navigation center, and the target LMF corresponding to the target base station means that the target base station is in the service range of the target LMF or the target base station is in the service range of an AMF connected with the target LMF.

In the embodiments of the present application, the moving object includes, but is not limited to, a satellite, and in the following embodiments, the moving object is described by taking the satellite as an example.

Specifically, in the sending unit, that is, in the AF, LCS client or the navigation center, the service range of the LMF and the deployment situation of the base station on the satellite are configured, when the AF, LCS client or the navigation center sends the auxiliary data generated by the target satellite to the target LMF, the target base station may be determined according to the deployment situation of the base station on the satellite, and then the current position of the target satellite, that is, the current position of the target base station, is determined according to the ephemeris of the satellite, where the ephemeris refers to an accurate position or a track table that changes with time in the celestial body running process. According to the current position of the target base station and the service range of each LMF which is preconfigured, the target LMF corresponding to the target base station can be determined, and the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station are sent to the target LMF.

In an alternative embodiment, the sending unit may send the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the first LMF configured in advance, before sending the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF, so that the first LMF determines the target LMF and sends the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 3, in the sending unit, that is, in the AF, LCS client or the navigation center, the information of the first LMF and the deployment situation of the base station on the satellite are configured, when the AF, LCS client or the navigation center sends the assistance data generated by the target satellite to the target LMF, the target base station may be determined according to the deployment situation of the base station on the satellite, and then a first assistance data sending request is sent to the first LMF, where the first assistance data sending request may carry the assistance data and the ID of the target base station, and the ID of the target base station is an optional identifier of the target base station. After receiving the first auxiliary data sending request sent by the sending unit, the first LMF may send a first network function discovery request to the NRF, where the first network function discovery request carries an ID of the target base station, and after receiving the ID of the target base station, the NRF may find an ID of a target AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the ID of the target base station carried in the first network function discovery request, and send a first network function discovery reply to the first LMF, where the first network function discovery reply carries the ID of the target AMF corresponding to the target base station.

After receiving the network function discovery reply sent by the NRF, the first LMF may determine whether there is a connection relationship with the target AMF according to the ID of the target AMF carried in the network function discovery reply, if there is no connection relationship, send a second network function discovery request to the NRF, where the second network function discovery request carries the ID of the target AMF, and after receiving the second network function discovery request, the NRF may find out the ID of the target LMF having a connection relationship with the target AMF according to the ID of the target AMF carried in the second network function discovery request, and send a second network function discovery reply to the first LMF, where the second network function discovery reply carries the ID of the target LMF having a connection relationship with the target AMF.

After receiving the second network function discovery reply sent by the NRF, the first LMF may send a second auxiliary data sending request to the target LMF according to the ID of the target LMF carried in the second network function discovery reply, where the second auxiliary data sending request carries auxiliary data and the ID of the target base station, and after receiving the second auxiliary data sending request sent by the first LMF, the target LMF may return an auxiliary data sending reply to the first LMF, and after receiving the auxiliary data sending reply, the first LMF may send the auxiliary data sending reply to the AF, LCS client or the navigation center.

In step S202, the target LMF transmits the assistance data to the target AMF.

In an optional implementation manner, after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identifier of the target base station, the target LMF may determine, according to the identifier of the target base station, a target AMF corresponding to the target base station, and send the auxiliary data to the target AMF, where the target AMF corresponding to the target base station is a target AMF having a connection relationship or directly connected to the target base station.

Specifically, in one embodiment, as shown in fig. 4, the target LMF may send a network function discovery request to the NRF, where the network function discovery request is an optional first request; the network function discovery request carries the ID of the target base station; the NRF may store a mapping relationship between the base station and the AMF; the NRF may find the ID of the target AMF according to the ID of the target base station, and send a network function discovery reply to the target LMF, where the network function discovery reply carries information of the target AMF.

In one embodiment, in the NRF, the stored mapping relationship between the base station and the AMF may be updated in the following two ways:

mode one: as the satellite where the base station is located moves, the base station enters the coverage area of the new AMF, the base station disconnects from the old AMF, establishes a connection with the new AMF, and after establishing a connection, the new AMF may send a network function update request to the NRF, where the network function update request carries the ID of the base station, as shown in fig. 5. After the NRF receives the network function updating request, the mapping relation between the new AMF and the base station can be stored, and the mapping relation between the old AMF and the base station can be deleted; alternatively, after receiving the network function update request, the NRF may delete the ID of the base station from the mapping relationship corresponding to the old AMF, and add the ID of the base station to the mapping relationship corresponding to the new AMF. After updating the mapping relation, the NRF may return a network function update confirmation to the new AMF.

Mode two: as the base station moves along with the satellite where the base station is located, the base station enters the coverage area of a new AMF, the base station disconnects from the old AMF, establishes a connection with the new AMF, and after establishing a connection, as shown in fig. 6, the base station may send a network function update request to the NRF, where the network function update request carries the ID of the new AMF, where in the base station, a service interface may be supported or an address of the NRF may be configured, so that the base station and the NRF may directly communicate. After the NRF receives the network function updating request, the mapping relation between the base station and the new AMF can be stored, and the mapping relation between the old AMF and the base station is deleted; alternatively, after receiving the network function update request, the NRF may delete the ID of the old AMF from the mapping relationship and add the ID of the new AMF to the mapping relationship. After updating the mapping relation, the NRF may return a network function update confirmation to the new AMF.

In another embodiment, as shown in fig. 7, the target LMF may send a routing request to each AMF corresponding to the target LMF, where the routing request may carry an ID of the target base station, and after receiving the routing request, each AMF may determine whether the target LMF has a connection relationship with the target base station according to the ID of the target base station; after the completion of the determination, each AMF may return a route reply to the target LMF, where the route reply may be used to indicate whether the corresponding AMF has a connection relationship with the target base station; the target LMF may determine, as the target AMF, an AMF having a connection relationship with the target base station according to the route replies returned by the respective AMFs.

In another embodiment, if the target LMF determines that there are multiple AMFs having a connection relationship with the target base station according to the route replies returned by the AMFs, any one AMF having a connection relationship with the target base station may be determined as the target AMF.

By the method, after the target AMF is determined, the target LMF can send auxiliary data to the target AMF.

In another optional implementation manner, after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identifier of the target base station, the target LMF may send the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station to each AMF corresponding to the target LMF, where the identifier of the target base station may be the ID of the target base station, and each AMF corresponding to the target LMF is each AMF having a connection relationship or being directly connected to the target LMF.

Specifically, in one embodiment, after each AMF receives the auxiliary data sent by the target LMF and the ID of the target base station, whether the AMF has a connection relationship with the target base station may be determined based on the ID of the target base station, and if the AMF does not have a connection relationship, the information is ignored; and if the connection relation exists, sending the auxiliary data to the target base station.

In another embodiment, after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the target LMF and the ID of the target base station, each AMF may determine whether there is a connection relationship with the target base station based on the ID of the target base station, and if there is no connection relationship, ignore the information; if the connection relation exists, the auxiliary data is sent to the target base station, and meanwhile, the receiving success information can be sent to the target LMF, and the receiving success information is used for indicating that the target AMF receives the auxiliary data.

In another embodiment, after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the target LMF and the ID of the target base station, each AMF may determine whether there is a connection relationship with the target base station based on the ID of the target base station, and if there is no connection relationship, may send reception failure information to the target LMF; if the connection relation exists, the auxiliary data is sent to the target base station, and meanwhile, the successful receiving information is sent to the target LMF.

In another optional implementation manner, the mapping relationship between the base station and the AMF may be stored in the LMF, and after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the sending unit and the identifier of the target base station, the target LMF may search, according to the identifier of the target base station, for the target AMF corresponding to the target base station in the locally stored mapping relationship; if the mapping relation stored by the target LMF has the target AMF corresponding to the target base station, the target LMF sends auxiliary data to the target AMF; if the mapping relation stored by the target LMF does not contain the target AMF corresponding to the target base station, the target LMF can determine the target AMF corresponding to the target base station through the method and send auxiliary data to the target AMF.

By the method, after receiving the auxiliary data sent by the target LMF, the target AMF can send the auxiliary data to the corresponding target base station, so that the target base station can send the auxiliary data to the UE.

In an alternative implementation manner, the mapping relation between the base station and the AMF can be stored in the LMF, and the LMF can determine the ID of the AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the locally stored mapping relation so as to reduce the transmission delay of the auxiliary data; when the mapping relation between the base station stored by the NRF and the AMF is updated, the NRF can send an event notification to the LMF corresponding to the AMF, wherein the event notification is used for identifying that the AMF corresponding to any base station is updated; the event notification carries the updated base station identifier corresponding to the AMF; after receiving the event notification sent by the NRF, the LMF may update the mapping relationship between the base station and the corresponding AMF according to the event notification, where the AMF corresponding to the base station is an AMF having a connection relationship or a direct connection with the base station.

In another alternative embodiment, the LMF may have a mapping relationship between the base station and the AMF stored therein; for any AMF, after the mapping relation between the AMF and the base station is updated, the AMF can send an event notification to the LMF corresponding to the AMF, wherein the event notification is used for identifying that the base station corresponding to the AMF is updated; the event notification carries the updated base station identifier corresponding to the AMF; after receiving the event notification sent by the NRF, the LMF may update the mapping relationship between the base station and the corresponding AMF according to the event notification.

Based on the same inventive concept, in the embodiments provided in the present application, a flowchart of a communication method is provided. The method is performed by a location management function entity LMF, as shown in fig. 8, the method comprising the steps of:

step S801 receives auxiliary data transmitted by the transmitting unit and an identification of the target base station.

Step S802, according to the identification of the target base station, determining a target mobility management function entity AMF corresponding to the target base station, and sending auxiliary data to the target AMF.

Based on the same inventive concept, in the embodiments provided herein, a flowchart of another communication method is provided. The method is performed by a location management function entity LMF, as shown in fig. 9, the method comprising the steps of:

step S901, receiving auxiliary data and an identifier of a target base station transmitted by a transmitting unit.

Step S902, the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station are sent to the AMFs corresponding to the LMFs, respectively.

Based on the same inventive concept, in the embodiments provided in the present application, a flowchart of a communication method is provided. The method is executed by a sending unit, wherein the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location service LCS client or a navigation center; as shown in fig. 10, the method includes the steps of:

Step S1001, determining a target location management function entity LMF corresponding to the target base station.

Step S1002, sending the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF.

Based on the same inventive concept, in the embodiments provided in the present application, a flowchart of a communication method is provided. The method is performed by a transmitting unit, the method comprising: and sending the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to a preconfigured first LMF so that the first LMF determines the target LMF and sends the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF.

Based on the same inventive concept, in the embodiment provided in the present application, there is provided a location management function entity LMF, as shown in fig. 11, including a receiving module 1101 and a processing module 1102; wherein:

the receiving module 1101 receives the auxiliary data and the identifier of the target base station sent by the sending unit.

A processing module 1102, configured to determine a target mobility management function entity AMF corresponding to the target base station according to the identifier of the target base station, and send the assistance data to the target AMF; or respectively sending the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to each AMF corresponding to the LMF.

In an alternative embodiment, the processing module 1102 may specifically be configured to:

respectively receiving route replies returned by the AMFs;

In an alternative embodiment, the mapping relation between the base station and the AMF is stored in the LMF; the processing module 1102 may be further configured to:

In an alternative embodiment, the device may further comprise an updating module, and the updating module is specifically configured to:

In an alternative embodiment, the update module may be further configured to:

Based on the same inventive concept, in the embodiments provided herein, there is provided a transmitting unit, which includes a data transmitting module, where the data transmitting module is specifically configured to:

determining a target location management function entity (LMF) corresponding to a target base station, and sending auxiliary data and an identifier of the target base station to the target LMF; or sending auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to a preconfigured first LMF, so that the first LMF determines the target LMF and sends the auxiliary data and the identification of the target base station to the target LMF.

In an alternative embodiment, the data sending module may specifically be configured to:

Based on the same technical conception, the embodiment of the application also provides a location management function entity LMF. The LMF is capable of performing any of the communication methods implemented in the above embodiments.

Fig. 12 shows a schematic structural diagram of the LMF provided in an embodiment of the present application, that is, another schematic structural diagram of the LMF is shown. As shown in fig. 12, the LMF includes a processor 1201, a memory 1202, and a transceiver 1203.

The processor 1201 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1202 may store data used by the processor 1201 in performing operations. The transceiver 1203 is configured to receive and transmit data under control of the processor 1201.

A bus architecture may be comprised of any number of interconnected buses and bridges, and in particular one or more processors represented by the processor 1201 and various circuits of memory represented by the memory 1202. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are well known in the art and, therefore, will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The processor 1201 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1202 may store data used by the processor 1201 in performing operations.

The flow disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be applied to the processor 1201 or implemented by the processor 1201. In implementation, the steps of the signal processing flow may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware in the processor 1201 or by instructions in the form of software. The processor 1201 may be a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware components, and may implement or perform the methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in the embodiments of the present application. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of a method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present application may be embodied directly in a hardware processor for execution, or in a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor for execution. The software modules may be located in a random access memory, flash memory, read only memory, programmable read only memory, or electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, etc. as well known in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 1202, and the processor 1201 reads the information in the memory 1202 and completes the steps of the signal processing flow in combination with its hardware.

Specifically, the processor 1201 is configured to read computer instructions in the memory 1202, and when the processor 1201 executes the computer instructions, the computer instructions are implemented:

In an alternative embodiment, the processor 1201 is specifically configured to:

Respectively receiving route replies returned by the AMFs;

In an alternative embodiment, the mapping relation between the base station and the AMF is stored in the LMF; the processor 1201 is specifically configured to:

In an alternative embodiment, the processor 1201 may also be configured to:

Based on the same technical concept, the embodiment of the application also provides a sending unit. The transmitting unit is capable of executing any one of the communication methods implemented in the above embodiments.

Fig. 13 shows a schematic structural diagram of the transmitting unit provided in the embodiment of the present application, that is, another schematic structural diagram of the transmitting unit is shown. As shown in fig. 13, the transmission unit includes a processor 1301, a memory 1302, and a transceiver 1303.

The processor 1301 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1302 may store data used by the processor 1301 in performing operations. The transceiver 1303 is used to receive and transmit data under the control of the processor 1301.

A bus architecture may comprise any number of interconnecting buses and bridges, and in particular one or more processors represented by the processor 1301 and various circuits of memory represented by the memory 1302. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits such as peripheral devices, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are well known in the art and, therefore, will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides an interface. The processor 1301 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1302 may store data used by the processor 1301 in performing operations.

The flow disclosed in the embodiments of the present application may be applied to the processor 1301 or implemented by the processor 1301. In implementation, the steps of the signal processing flow may be performed by integrated logic circuits of hardware in the processor 1301 or instructions in the form of software. Processor 1301 may be a general purpose processor, digital signal processor, application specific integrated circuit, field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic device, discrete hardware components, which may implement or perform the methods, steps, and logic blocks disclosed in embodiments of the present application. The general purpose processor may be a microprocessor or any conventional processor or the like. The steps of a method disclosed in connection with the embodiments of the present application may be embodied directly in a hardware processor for execution, or in a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor for execution. The software modules may be located in a random access memory, flash memory, read only memory, programmable read only memory, or electrically erasable programmable memory, registers, etc. as well known in the art. The storage medium is located in the memory 1302, and the processor 1301 reads the information in the memory 1302, and completes the steps of the signal processing flow in combination with its hardware.

Specifically, the processor 1301 is configured to read a computer program in the memory 1302, where the processor 1301 executes the computer program to implement:

In an alternative embodiment, the processor 1301 is specifically configured to:

Based on the same technical concept, the embodiment of the application also provides a communication system, which comprises a sending unit, at least one location management function entity (LMF), at least one mobility management function entity (AMF) and at least one base station; the sending unit, such as the LCS client shown in fig. 1, is an optional sending unit, configured to use the sending unit of any one of the foregoing, and the LMF uses the LMF of any one of the foregoing.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that embodiments of the present application may be provided as a method, system, or computer program product. Accordingly, the present application may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, the present application may take the form of a computer program product embodied on one or more computer-usable storage media (including, but not limited to, disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, and the like) having computer-usable program code embodied therein.

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

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flowchart flow or flows and/or block diagram block or blocks.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present application without departing from the spirit or scope of the application. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims and the equivalents thereof, the present application is intended to cover such modifications and variations.

Claims

1. A communication method applied to a location management function entity LMF, the method comprising:

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location services LCS client or a navigation center.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining, according to the identifier of the target base station, a target mobility management function AMF corresponding to the target base station includes:

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the determining, according to the identifier of the target base station, a target mobility management function AMF corresponding to the target base station includes:

respectively receiving route replies returned by the AMFs;

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the LMF has a mapping relationship between a base station and an AMF stored therein; the determining, according to the identifier of the target base station, a target mobility management function entity AMF corresponding to the target base station includes:

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving an event notification sent by an NRF, wherein the event notification is used for identifying the AMF corresponding to any base station to update;

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the method further comprises:

for any AMF, receiving an event notification sent by the AMF, wherein the event notification is used for identifying that a base station corresponding to the AMF is updated;

And updating the mapping relation of the AMF and the corresponding base station according to the event notification.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the target base station is a base station deployed on a moving object.

9. The communication method is characterized by being applied to a sending unit, wherein the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location service LCS client or a navigation center; the method comprises the following steps:

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the determining the target location management function LMF corresponding to the target base station includes:

11. A location management function entity LMF, comprising:

12. A sending unit, characterized in that the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location services LCS client or a navigation center; the transmitting unit includes:

13. A location management function entity (LMF), which is characterized by comprising a memory, a transceiver and a processor;

The memory is used for storing computer instructions;

14. LMF according to claim 13, characterized in that the sending unit is an application function entity AF, a location services LCS client or a navigation center.

15. LMF according to claim 13, characterized in that the processor is specifically configured to:

16. LMF according to claim 13, characterized in that the processor is specifically configured to:

respectively receiving route replies returned by the AMFs;

17. An LMF as recited in claim 13, wherein the LMF has a mapping relationship between base stations and AMFs stored therein; the processor may be further configured to:

18. An LMF as defined in claim 17, wherein the processor is further operable to:

19. An LMF as defined in claim 17, wherein the processor is further operable to:

20. An LMF according to any one of claims 13 to 19 wherein the target base station is a base station deployed on a moving object.

21. A transmitting unit, comprising a memory, a transceiver, and a processor;

the memory is used for storing computer instructions;

22. The transmitting unit according to claim 21, wherein the processor is specifically configured to:

23. A communication system comprising a sending unit, at least one location management function entity, LMF, at least one mobility management function entity, AMF, and at least one base station; the transmitting unit employing a transmitting unit according to any one of claims 21 to 22 and the LMF employing an LMF according to any one of claims 13 to 20.

24. A computer readable storage medium storing computer instructions which, when executed by a processor, implement the method of any one of claims 1 to 8 or the method of any one of claims 9 to 10.