KR101783319B1 - Dynamic pcc provisioning control system, apparatus and method - Google Patents

Abstract

In the present invention, in dynamic PCC provisioning control that minimizes dynamic PCC provisioning in an EPC network, a dynamic PCC policy is applied only to calls requiring dynamic processing of PCC by receiving session information requiring dynamic PCC control as CC information, And performs a limit inquiry to OCS only for the CC in which the OCS query condition is defined, thereby reducing unnecessary PCC or OCS inquiry, thereby reducing the burden on the communication network.

Description

[0001] DYNAMIC PCC PROVISIONING CONTROL SYSTEM, APPARATUS AND METHOD [0002]

The present invention relates to a policy and charging control (PCC) provisioning method in an EPC (Evolved Packet Core) network, and more particularly, to a dynamic PCC provisioning control that minimizes dynamic PCC provisioning in an EPC network, (Policy & charging rule function) query by applying dynamic PCC policy only for calls requiring dynamic PCC control by receiving session information required for CC information, and the online charging system (OCS) query condition And more particularly to a dynamic PCC provisioning control system, apparatus and method for reducing unnecessary PCC or OCS inquiry by reducing the load on a communication network by performing a limit inquiry to OCS only for a defined charging characteristic (CC).

A 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) mobile communication system based on WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access) radio access technology is widely deployed all over the world. HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Access), which can be defined as the first evolutionary phase of WCDMA, provides 3GPP mobile communication system with highly competitive wireless access technology in the mid-term future.

However, as the requirements and expectations of users and operators continue to increase and competition for developing wireless access technologies continues, there is a need to evolve new technologies in 3GPP mobile communication systems in order to gain competitiveness in the future. Reduced cost per bit, increased service availability, the use of flexible frequency bands, simple structure and open interfaces, and proper power consumption of terminals are becoming a requirement. In addition, prevention of unnecessary latency at the network node and efficient use of network resources can also promote the technology evolution in 3GPP.

In 3GPP Release 8, a Network Architecture called Evolved Packet Core (EPC) is described as one of mobile communication systems for meeting the above-mentioned requirements. EPC is a set of network nodes for 3GPP LTE (Long Term Evolution) system. The EPC evolves the core network of the existing 3GPP system architecture to support Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), which is an evolved RAN, And has an efficient network structure that simplifies the network node. A wireless communication system including an EPC and an E-UTRAN is called an evolved packet system (EPS).

The EPC network is composed of three logical entities such as a packet data network gateway (PDN-GW), a serving gateway (S-GW), and a mobility management entity (MME) Separated.

First, in the user plane, the PDN-GW is a gateway to an external network and a global mobility anchor for mobility between 3GPP access technology and non-3GPP access technology (CDMA2000, WiMAX or WIFI) And maintains S-GW and external network and routing information for packet service as a user plane, and performs tunneling and IP (Routing) control on the external network and non-3GPP network, Routing function.

Next, as another user plane entity, the S-GW is a mobile anchor for mobility between 3GPP accesses (E-UTRAN, UTRAN, GERAN). The S-GW interworks with an access node (eNodeB) and an S1-U interface as a session control and user plane node that processes payload traffic according to a set session, and performs Inter LTE / 3GPP handover ).

Next, the MME is a control plane entity that is responsible for mobility management of UEs moving between eNodeBs of different EUTRANs and is also responsible for session management.

Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2010-0107075 discloses a technology for maintaining a home address for a mobile node so that an IP session can be established in a home agent in a wireless communication system having multiple access nodes. . Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2010-0038563 discloses a method for localizing traffic in a wireless communication system, wherein a first terminal and a second terminal to communicate with each other are connected to a same PDN A technique of setting a data transmission tunnel up to -GW is disclosed.

In the EPC network, in order to perform PCC provisioning according to a call connection of a subscriber subscribing to various types of tariffs, in the 3GPP standard, all IP can sessions (SIP sessions) according to a call connection of a terminal device for PCC provisioning in an EPC network, To perform a PCRF query.

However, if the session from the terminal equipment in the EPC network requires a dynamic PCC control such as PCRF or OCS query, performing PCRF or OCS query for all calls for PCC provisioning is an unnecessary load weighting factor for the communication network .

Therefore, in the dynamic PCC provisioning control that minimizes the dynamic PCC provisioning in the EPC network, the dynamic PCC policy is applied only to the call requiring the dynamic PCC control by providing the session information requiring the dynamic PCC control as the CC information, And performing a limit inquiry to the OCS only for the CC in which the OCS query condition is defined, thereby reducing unnecessary PCC or OCS inquiry, thereby reducing the load on the communication network.

The present invention relates to a dynamic PCC provisioning control system, comprising: an HSS or HLR for providing registered CC information for each subscriber of a terminal device connected to a communication network; And a PDN-GW for analyzing the characteristics of the call and performing PCC control on the call according to PCC setting information corresponding to the characteristics of the call.

In addition, the PDN-GW stores a CC table defining PCC setting information corresponding to CC information of the terminal apparatus in advance and performs PCC control on the call according to matching PCC setting information in the CC table .

In addition, the present invention provides a dynamic PCC provisioning control device, comprising: a CC table storing PCC setting information corresponding to registered CC information of a subscriber of a terminal device connected to a communication network; and a PCC storing a PCC local policy according to the PCC setting information A local policy table and CC information of the terminal apparatus from the HSS or HLR on the communication network when a call is generated from the terminal apparatus and performs PCC control on the call according to matching PCC setting information in the CC table And a network connection processing unit.

When the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set not to perform the PCC control, the network connection processing unit performs a query for the dynamic PCC control on the communication network with the PCRF or OCS on the call of the terminal apparatus .

When the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set to the dynamic PCC, the network connection processing unit performs dynamic PCC control on the communication network by setting a session with the PCRF or OCS on the communication network. do.

The network connection processing unit may perform PCC control on the call according to a corresponding PCC local policy stored in the local policy table when the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set as a local policy .

The PCC local policy is characterized by being bit rate information for the uplink and downlink to the call.

The present invention also provides a dynamic PCC provisioning control method comprising the steps of: storing PCC setting information corresponding to registered CC information of each terminal of a terminal connected to a communication network; Receiving CC information registered in the terminal device from the CC information, retrieving PCC setting information corresponding to the received CC information, and performing PCC control on the call according to the retrieved PCC setting information.

If the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set not to perform the PCC control, the step of performing the PCC control may include a step of performing a dynamic PCC control on the communication network with PCRF or OCS And does not perform the query.

When the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set to the dynamic PCC in the step of performing the PCC control, dynamic PCC control is performed by setting a session with the PCRF or OCS for the call of the terminal device do.

The present invention relates to a dynamic PCC provisioning control for minimizing dynamic PCC provisioning in an EPC network, wherein a dynamic PCC policy is applied only to calls requiring dynamic processing of PCC by receiving session information as a CC information requiring dynamic PCC control, And performs a limit inquiry to OCS only for the CC in which the OCS query condition is defined, thereby reducing unnecessary PCC or OCS inquiry, thereby reducing the burden on the communication network.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an overall network configuration diagram of an EPC network according to an embodiment of the present invention;
FIG. 2 is a detailed block diagram of a PDN-GW according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a diagram illustrating a CC table for PCC control in the PDN-GW according to an embodiment of the present invention,
4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a PCC policy table for PCC control in the PDN-GW according to an embodiment of the present invention;
5 is a flowchart of operation control for PCC control in the PDN-GW according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, the operation principle of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the present invention, detailed description of known functions and configurations incorporated herein will be omitted when it may make the subject matter of the present invention rather unclear. The following terms are defined in consideration of the functions of the present invention, and these may be changed according to the intention of the user, the operator, or the like. Therefore, the definition should be based on the contents throughout this specification.

1 illustrates a network configuration of an EPC network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

A user equipment (UE) 100 is connected to network nodes or other terminal devices constituting a core network through a radio access network (RAN) such as Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) For example. Such a terminal device includes, but is not limited to, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a cellular telephone, a digital assistant (PDA), a computer, or any other type of user device capable of operating in a wireless environment.

In addition, the terminal device 100 includes a transceiver for transmitting and receiving a radio signal to and from a radio access network (RAN) and a processor as a signal generating and processing means. Although not shown in the figure, the terminal device 100 includes a memory for storing user data and programs, a display for displaying various information or data of the terminal, a keypad, a touch screen, screen, and the like.

Meanwhile, a core network includes a plurality of network nodes constituting a core of a mobile communication system. The core network may be a network node of a PS communication system such as, for example, a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) system, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), or an Evolved PacketCore (EPC) But is not limited thereto.

FIG. 1 illustrates only a minimum number of components of a core network necessary for explaining an embodiment of the present invention, and the configuration of the core network is not limited to the components disclosed in FIG. In the following, the case where the core network is composed of the network nodes of the EPC is described, but this is merely for convenience of explanation, and the embodiment of the present invention should not be construed as being limited thereto.

Hereinafter, each component in the core network will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

First, the access node (eNodeB) 102 is a device that supports next generation technologies and services such as LTE, and is used for radio frequency (RF) signal transmission and transmission signal strength and quality measurement, baseband signal processing, Resource management, and the like.

A Serving-Gateway (S-GW) 108 is a session control and user plane node for processing payload traffic according to a set session. The Serving-Gateway 108 and the eNodeB 102 And supports an inter-LTE / 3GPP handover by interworking with an S1-U interface and configures and tunnels an EPS bearer with a Packet Data Network Gateway (PDN-GW) To transmit a PDU (Packet Data Unit).

A Mobility Management Entity (MME) 106 is a node for managing subscriber information and mobility of the terminal device 100 and is responsible for session management, idle subscriber management, paging, do. That is, the MME 106 processes the control signal when there is a combination request from the terminal device 100 or another network node, for example, the PDN-GW 110 or the S-GW 108, or a radio bearer setup request And performs functions such as setting up of an evolved packet system bearer (EPS) bearer or an IP tunnel and mobility management.

A home subscriber server (HSS) 104 is a network node that includes a data base including subscriber information for a wireless communication system. The HSS 104 includes profile information, Position related data is stored. The Policy & Charging Rule Function (PCRF) 112 provides a dynamic QoS and a charging rule according to a service data flow to perform a communication policy and a charging process in the communication network.

The PDN-GW 110 allocates the IP of the terminal 100 and performs session control for interworking with an external Internet network and a non-3GPP network and for packet service as a user plane S-GW 108 and the external network and routing information, and has tunneling and IP routing functions. In addition, PDU (packet data unit) is transmitted to the S-GW 108 and the external network.

The OCS (Online Charging Server) 116 receives the charging information of the subscriber requiring the real-time charging information and provides a credit management function such as a limit service. The EPC-GW receives the charging information And generates billing information of a flow (packet flow). The OFFlineCharging System (OFCS) 114 collects the billing information generated by the EPC-GW and processes it into billing data requested by the billing system 120 and transmits the billing data. In addition, the OFCS 114 receives a variety of charging protocols such as Radius, Diameter, and GTPP, and provides a unified BS interface.

On the other hand, in the above-mentioned EPC network, PCRF queries are performed for all IP can sessions (CAN sessions) according to call connection of a terminal device in performing PCC provisioning according to call connection of subscribers subscribed to various charging plans, When a session requiring dynamic PCC control such as PCRF or OCS query is a part, the load of the communication network is increased through unnecessary PCRF or OCS query as described above.

Therefore, in the present invention, the PDN-GW 110 does not perform dynamic PCC control such as PCRF or OCS query on a call generated from a terminal device, but instead transmits the call through the HSS 104, the MME 106, By analyzing the characteristics of the call using the provided CC information and selectively performing dynamic PCC control according to the characteristics of the call using the information on the PCC control policy storing the preset PCC / OCS query performance according to the characteristics of the call, So that the load of the battery can be prevented from being generated.

2 is a detailed block diagram of a PDN-GW 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The PDN-GW 110 includes a UE context management unit 200, a packet filtering unit 202, A packet tunnel management unit 204, a network connection processing unit 206, and the like.

Hereinafter, the operation of each component of the PDN-GW 110 of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

The UE context management unit 200 allocates the context management and the IP of the terminal 100. The packet filtering unit 202 extracts only packets destined for the terminal device 100 in the eNodeB 102 managed by the PDN-GW 110 from the user data received from the external Internet network. The user packet tunnel management unit 204 transmits the user packet to the eNodeB 102 through a logical path called a tunnel.

The storage unit 208 stores a CC table 210 storing PCC setting information for dynamic PCC control according to an embodiment of the present invention and a local policy 210 defining a PCC local rule for a call not requiring a dynamic PCC Table 212 and is referred to by the network connection processing unit 206. [

FIG. 3 illustrates a CC table 210 for dynamic PCC control in the PDN-GW 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 3, the CC table 210 may include CC information, a service description information of a subscriber subscribed to a communication company, PCC setting information according to CC information, and OCS setting information according to CC information. In this case, as shown in FIG. 3, the PCC setting information includes a case where dynamic PCC control is required (Dynamic) according to characteristics of a call using CC information including information on a rate plan or service (Dynamic), a case where dynamic PCC control is not required No PCC), a case where a local rule is applied (Local Rule # 1, Local Rule # 3), or the like.

FIG. 4 illustrates a local policy table 212 defining a PCC local policy for a call that does not require a dynamic PCC in the PDN-GW 110 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 4, the local policy table 212 may include information on local policies and information on performance. The local policy is information that distinguishes an internal call processing policy for a call that does not require dynamic PCC control, and may be defined as local policy # 1, local policy # 3, for example. In this case, the local policy # 1 may be set to limit the maximum bit rate of the uplink / downlink QoS to 64 kbps for web browsing calls, for example, and may be set to mVoIP Lt; RTI ID = 0.0 > uplink / downlink < / RTI > In addition, local policy # 3 may be set up to guarantee the lowest bit rate of uplink / downlink QoS for a streaming service up to 5 kbps, for example.

The network connection processing unit 206 identifies the interface to the access network connected to the PDN-GW 110, reads the RAT-TYPE parameter information of the access network, and then transmits the RAT-TYPE parameter information to the PCRF 112, the OFCS (114) and the OCS (116) so that QoS or charging according to the access network can be applied.

When a call is generated from the terminal device 100 connected to the communication network according to the embodiment of the present invention, the CC information about the call is received through the HSS 104, the MME 106, ) And the local policy table 212 to determine whether a call generated from the terminal device 100 is a call requiring dynamic PCC control and then perform a PCRF or OCS query only for calls requiring dynamic PCC control.

That is, the network connection processing unit 206 determines whether dynamic PCC control is to be performed on the call received from the terminal device 100. First, the network connection processing unit 206 transmits CC information provided from the HSS 104 to the MME 106 Lt; / RTI > Then, it is determined whether dynamic PCC control such as PCRF / OCS query is applied to the call using the received CC information and the CC table 210 as shown in FIG.

For example, if the CC information is H'80, this is an emergency call, which does not require dynamic PCC control. Therefore, the network connection processing unit 206, as set in the CC table 210, The PCRF 112 and the OCS 116 can reduce the load on the communication network due to the session establishment to the unnecessary PCRF 112 and the OCS 116. [

5 is a flowchart illustrating a PCC control operation in a PDN-GW 110 for minimizing dynamic PCC provisioning in an EPC network according to an embodiment of the present invention. Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5. FIG.

First, when a call is generated from the terminal device 100 connected to the EPC node (eNodeB) 102, the PDN-GW 110 receives the call originating from the terminal device 100 via the S-GW 108 do.

Unlike the conventional method in which the PDN-GW 110 performs a PCRF or OCS query by establishing a session with the PCRF 112 or the OCS 116 for PCC provisioning for the call, the PDN- And receives CC information about the call through the HSS 104, the MME 106, and the like for PCC processing according to call characteristics.

Then, the PDN-GW 110 transmits the received CC information and the PCC setting information for the dynamic PCC control as shown in FIG. 3 to the call generated from the terminal device 100 using the CC table 210 And retrieves the corresponding PCC setting information.

In this case, if the CC information is H'80, it is an emergency call, which does not require dynamic PCC control. Therefore, the PDN-GW 110 sets the CC table 210 as shown in FIG. It is possible to reduce the load on the communication network due to the session setup to the PCRF 112 and the OCS 116, which are unnecessary, by processing the PCRF query and the OCS query without performing the query.

Also, for example, if the CC information is H'AE, as set in the CC table 210, this is a call subscribed to the streaming VIP plan and does not require dynamic PCC control, but PCC setup information is defined in local policy # 3 Therefore, the PDN-GW 110 searches for a performance defined in the local policy # 3 in the PCC policy table 212 for the call, and determines the minimum bit rate of the uplink / downlink QoS for the streaming service bit rate) up to 5 kbps.

As described above, in the present invention, in the dynamic PCC provisioning control that minimizes the dynamic PCC provisioning in the EPC network, the dynamic PCC policy is provided only for the call requiring dynamic processing of the PCC by receiving the session information requiring dynamic PCC control as CC information And perform limit query with OCS only for the CC in which the OCS query condition is defined, thereby reducing unnecessary PCC or OCS inquiry, thereby reducing the burden on the communication network.

While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain preferred embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the scope of the invention should not be limited by the described embodiments but should be defined by the appended claims.

According to the present invention, the session information requiring dynamic PCC control in the EPC network is received as CC information, and the PCRF query is applied by applying the dynamic PCC policy only to the call requiring the dynamic processing of the PCC, and only the OCS , It is possible to reduce the unnecessary PCC or OCS inquiry by reducing the burden on the communication network and can be applied to the EPC network.

100: terminal device 102: eNodeB
104: HSS 106: MME
108: S-GW 110: PDN-GW
112: PCRF 114: OFCS
116: OCS

Claims (10)

An HSS or HLR for providing registered CC information for each subscriber of the terminal apparatus connected to the communication network,
Analyzing characteristics of a call originating from the terminal using the CC information provided from the HSS or the HLR, and analyzing a call of the terminal device based on PCC setting information corresponding to the call characteristics, A PDN-GW that determines whether to perform a query for PCC control
Dynamic PCC Provisioning Control System. The method according to claim 1,
The PDN-
Wherein the CCC table defining the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information of the terminal device is stored in advance and the PCC control for the call is performed according to the PCC setting information matched in the CC table. A CC table storing PCC setting information corresponding to registered CC information for each subscriber of the terminal apparatus connected to the communication network,
A local policy table storing a PCC local policy according to the PCC setting information,
Receiving CC information of the terminal apparatus from the HSS or HLR on the communication network when a call is generated from the terminal apparatus and transmitting the communication network PCRF or OCS to the call of the terminal apparatus based on PCC setting information matched in the CC table, And a network connection processing unit for determining whether to perform a query for dynamic PCC control
Dynamic PCC provisioning control device. The method of claim 3,
The network connection processing unit,
Wherein when the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set not to perform PCC control, the mobile station does not perform a query for dynamic PCC control on the communication network with the PCRF or OCS on the communication network. Provisioning control device. The method of claim 3,
The network connection processing unit,
And performs dynamic PCC control through session establishment with the PCRF or OCS on the communication network when the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set to the dynamic PCC. The method of claim 3,
The network connection processing unit,
And performs PCC control on the call according to a corresponding PCC local policy stored in the local policy table when the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set as a local policy. delete Storing PCC setting information corresponding to registered CC information for each subscriber of a terminal apparatus connected to a communication network;
Receiving CC information registered in the terminal device from the HSS or HLR on the communication network when a call is generated from the terminal device;
Searching for PCC configuration information corresponding to the received CC information and determining whether to perform a query for dynamic PCC control with the PCRF or OCS on the communication network for the call of the terminal device based on the retrieved PCC configuration information Containing
Dynamic PCC Provisioning Control Method. 9. The method of claim 8,
In performing the PCC control,
And does not perform a query for the dynamic PCC control with the PCRF or OCS on the communication network for the call of the terminal device when the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set not to perform PCC control. How to control PCC provisioning. 9. The method of claim 8,
In performing the PCC control,
If the PCC setting information corresponding to the CC information is set to the dynamic PCC, performs dynamic PCC control through setting a session with the PCRF or OCS on the communication network for the call of the terminal device.

Images