WO2021017669A1 - Communication method and device - Google Patents

Abstract

A communication method and device. In the communication method, a first device determines, according to a received network registration request, that a 4G/5G fusion user requests to register with a 5G network for the first time, first information is sent to a BOSS that is in communication with 4G network devices and 5G network devices, so that the BOSS can control the first device according to the first information, and the first device obtains and stores user data of the 4G/5G fusion user in the 4G network on the basis of the control of the BOSS, wherein the 4G/5G fusion user is a 4G user that uses a terminal supporting 5G communication capability. According to the method, a method for online migration of user data of the 4G/5G fusion user can be realized, and manual operations can be avoided, thereby improving the migration efficiency.

Description

Communication method and equipment

Cross references to related applications

This application claims the priority of a Chinese patent application filed with the Chinese Patent Office, the application number is 201910693902.0, and the application name is "a communication method and equipment" on July 30, 2019, the entire content of which is incorporated into this application by reference.

Technical field

This application relates to the field of communication technology, and in particular to a communication method and device.

Background technique

With the introduction of the 5th generation (5G) network and services, operators will face the coexistence of multiple networks such as the 4th generation (4G) network and 5G network. Currently, different users need to access different networks based on different user attributes and service attributes. For example, 4G users access 4G networks, 5G users access 5G networks, and 4G/5G converged users access 4G/5G converged networks.

When a 4G user accesses the network, a mobility management (MME) entity performs authentication, authorization, and contract checking on the 4G user to ensure that the 4G user is a legitimate user. When the MME authenticates the 4G user, it obtains the user data of the 4G user from the Home Subscriber Server (HSS) to which the 4G user belongs, so as to authenticate the 4G user. When a 5G user accesses the network, the access and mobility management function (AMF) network element authenticates and authorizes the 5G user. Among them, when the AMF authenticates the 5G user, the 5G user The affiliated unified data management (UDM) network element obtains user data of 5G users.

When 4G users purchase 5G-capable terminals, they can become 4G/5G converged users. That is, 5G terminals may be used for 4G services or 5G services. At present, after purchasing a 5G terminal, a user usually needs to register for a 5G network at the operator’s business hall to become a 4G/5G converged user. When the operator’s staff registers the user on the 5G network, they need to manually register the user on the 4G network. User data in the network is migrated from HSS to UDM network elements in the 5G network. As a result, 4G/5G converged users have complicated procedures and low efficiency when registering for 5G networks.

Summary of the invention

This application provides a communication method and equipment for providing a method for online migration of user data of 4G/5G converged users, avoiding manual operations, thereby improving migration efficiency.

In a first aspect, a communication method is provided. In this method, a first device determines that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register on a 5G network for the first time according to a received network registration request, and can communicate with a device capable of communicating with a 4G network and a 5G network. The BOSS sends the first information, so that the BOSS can control the first device according to the first information. The first device acquires and stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS, where 4G/5G Converged users are 4G users who use terminals that support 5G communication capabilities. The user data may include, but is not limited to, subscription data and/or policy data of a 4G/5G converged user in a 4G network.

In this application, the first device is a network element of the 5G network. When the first device determines that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time, it can notify the BOSS to migrate the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network to the 5G network. Therefore, BOSS controls the first device to obtain and store the user data of 4G/5G converged users from the 4G network, and realize the automatic migration of user data from 4G network to 5G network. This process does not require the manual participation of the operator’s business hall, which can simplify The migration operation of user data from 4G network to 5G network can further improve the efficiency of data migration.

In a possible design, the first device obtains and stores the user data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS, and can receive the 4G/5G converged users from the BOSS in the 4G network through the first device The user data is achieved by the BOSS after receiving the first information and accessing the second device used to store user data in the 4G network; or through the first device to receive the access authority feedback from the BOSS, and based on the access authority The user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network is obtained from the second device, where the access authority is the authority to access the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.

This application provides two ways to migrate user data of 4G/5G converged users from 4G network to 5G network. One way is that the first device directly obtains it from the second device based on BOSS control; the other way The BOSS obtains it from the second device, and the BOSS sends the obtained user data to the first device. Both of the above two methods can realize the migration of user data of 4G/5G converged users from 4G network to 5G network, so that BOSS can flexibly choose the migration method according to actual conditions.

In a possible design, the first device may include a user data repository UDR entity, and of course may also include other entities, which is not limited in this application.

Considering that the user data of 4G/5G converged users will be migrated from 4G network to 5G network, and possibly to UDM in 5G network. Since UDM and BOSS have no communication interface, this application can use UDR as the communication interface between UDM and BOSS. Of course, the first device including the UDR is only an example, and this application does not limit the first device, as long as it can be used as a communication interface between the network element in the 5G network and the BOSS.

In a possible design, the first device determines that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register on a 5G network for the first time, which may include the first device receiving indication information from a third device in the 5G network, and the indication information is used to indicate 4G/5G convergence User data of users does not exist in 5G networks, and 4G/5G converged users are legitimate users.

The first device can be directly or indirectly informed whether the 4G/5G converged user is requesting registration on the 5G network for the first time. For example, the third device can inform the first device whether the 4G/5G converged user is requesting registration on the 5G network for the first time. In this application No restrictions.

In a second aspect, a communication method is provided. In this method, the BOSS receives first information from a first device, where the first device is used to save user data in a 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the BOSS to transfer 4G The user data of /5G converged users in the 4G network is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network; 4G/5G converged users are 4G users who use terminals that support 5G communication capabilities; therefore, BOSS can control the first device to obtain information based on the first information And store the user data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network.

In this application, when the first device determines that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time, it can notify the BOSS to migrate the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network to the 5G network, so that the BOSS can control the first device from 4G The network acquires and stores user data of 4G/5G converged users, and realizes the migration of user data from 4G network to 5G network. This process does not require manual participation of the operator’s business hall, thus simplifying the migration of user data from 4G network to 5G network Operation, thereby improving the efficiency of data migration.

In a possible design, the BOSS controls the first device to obtain and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information. After receiving the first information, the BOSS can access the 4G network. For the second device that stores user data, obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; BOSS sends the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the first device to achieve; or through the BOSS to the first The device sends the access permission to instruct the first device to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access permission. The access permission is the permission to access the second device. Belongs to 4G network, used to store user data.

This application provides two ways for BOSS to migrate user data of 4G/5G converged users from 4G network to 5G network. One way is that BOSS controls the first device to directly obtain user data from the second device; the other The method is that the BOSS obtains the user data from the second device, and then sends the obtained user data to the first device, so that the BOSS can flexibly select the user data migration method according to the actual situation.

In one possible design, the first device may include a user data repository UDR entity.

In a possible design, the BOSS may also send instruction information to the second device, where the instruction information is used to instruct the second device to delete user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network. In this application, after the user data of the 4G/5G converged user is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network, the BOSS can instruct the second device to delete the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to save storage resources.

In a third aspect, a communication device is provided, and the communication device has a function of implementing the behavior of the first device in the method of the first aspect. The function can be realized by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-mentioned functions.

In a possible design, the communication device may be the first device in the 5G network, and the first device includes a processor, a memory, and a communication interface, and the processor is respectively coupled with the memory and the communication interface; The communication interface is used for the first device to communicate with other devices; the processor is used for receiving a network registration request through the communication interface, and determining according to the network registration request that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register for the 5G network for the first time, so The first device is used to save user data in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal that supports 5G communication capabilities; the communication interface is also used to determine 4G/ After a 5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time, it sends first information to the business operation support system BOSS. The BOSS can communicate with devices on the 4G network and 5G network. The first information is used to notify the BOSS to The user data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network; the processor is also used to obtain the 4G/5G through the communication interface based on the control of the BOSS The user data of the user in the 4G network is integrated and stored in the memory.

In addition, the communication device provided in the third aspect can be used to execute the method corresponding to the first device in the first aspect. For implementations not described in detail in the communication device provided in the third aspect, please refer to the foregoing embodiment, and will not be repeated here. .

When the first device is implemented based on a software architecture, it may include: a determining unit configured to determine, according to the received network registration request, that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register for the 5G network for the first time, and the first device is used to store users in the 5G network Data, 4G/5G converged users are 4G users who use terminals that support 5G communication capabilities; the sending unit is used to send the first information to the business operation support system BOSS, and BOSS can communicate with 4G network and 5G network equipment, first Information is used to notify BOSS to migrate user data of 4G/5G converged users in 4G network from 4G network to 5G network; acquisition unit is used for BOSS-based control to obtain and store users of 4G/5G converged users in 4G network data. In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication device that has the function of implementing the BOSS behavior in the method of the second aspect described above. The function can be realized by hardware, or by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-mentioned functions.

In a possible design, the communication device is a BOSS device. The BOSS may be able to communicate with devices on a 4G network and a 5G network, and includes: a processor and a communication interface, the processor is coupled with the communication interface; The communication interface is used for the BOSS to communicate with other devices; specifically, the communication interface is used for receiving first information from a first device, where the first device is used to save user data in a 5G network, and the The first information is used to notify the communication device to migrate the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G using a terminal that supports 5G communication capabilities User; the processor is configured to control the first device to obtain and store user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information.

In addition, the communication device provided in the fourth aspect can be used to execute the method corresponding to the first device in the second aspect. For implementations not described in detail in the communication device provided in the fourth aspect, please refer to the foregoing embodiments, and will not be repeated here. .

When the BOSS is implemented based on a software architecture, it may include: a receiving unit for receiving first information from a first device, where the first device is used to save user data in the 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the communication device Migrate the user data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network from 4G network to 5G network; 4G/5G converged users are 4G users who use terminals that support 5G communication capabilities; the control unit is used to control the One device acquires and stores user data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network.

In a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication system, which includes the communication device described in the first aspect and/or the communication device described in the second aspect.

In the sixth aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a computer storage medium for storing any design of the first aspect and the first aspect, and the second aspect and the design of the second aspect. The computer software instructions used for the function include a program designed to execute any one of the above-mentioned first aspect and the first aspect of the design, and the above-mentioned second aspect and any one of the design methods of the second aspect.

In a seventh aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a computer program product, the computer program product contains instructions, when the instructions run on a computer, the computer executes any one of the first aspect and the first aspect. Design, the above second aspect, any one of the design methods of the second aspect.

In an eighth aspect, the embodiments of the present application also provide a chip system. The chip system may include a processor for supporting a communication device to implement the method described in any of the foregoing aspects, for example, generating or processing the method involved in the foregoing method. Data and/or information. In a possible design, the chip system may also include a memory, which is used to store necessary program instructions and data for the communication device. The chip system can be composed of chips, or include chips and other discrete devices.

Description of the drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of a 4G/5G converged network provided by an embodiment of this application;

2 is a schematic diagram of another architecture of a 4G/5G converged network provided by an embodiment of the application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an architecture of independent networking and non-independent networking provided by an embodiment of the application;

4 is a schematic flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an implementation manner of a communication method provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of another network architecture provided by an embodiment of the application;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of another implementation manner of the communication method provided by an embodiment of the application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of another network architecture provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of another implementation manner of the communication method provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of yet another network architecture provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 12 is a flowchart of still another implementation manner of the communication method provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 13 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 14 is a structural diagram of another communication device provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 15 is a structural diagram of another communication device provided by an embodiment of this application.

Detailed ways

In order to make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the embodiments of the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The specific method in the method embodiment can also be applied to the device embodiment or the system embodiment. Wherein, in the description of the present application, unless otherwise specified, "multiple" means two or more.

Before introducing this application, firstly, some terms in the embodiments of this application and the compatible architecture of the 5G network and the 4G network will be briefly explained to facilitate the understanding of those skilled in the art.

1) Please refer to Fig. 1, which is a compatible architecture of 5G network and 4G network, which may be a specific application scenario of the embodiment of the present application. The network architecture shown in FIG. 1 may include three parts, namely a terminal equipment part, a data network (DN) part, and an operator network part.

Among them, the operator network can include policy control function (PCF) network elements, unified data management (UDM) network elements, application function (AF) network elements, access and mobility management Function (access and mobility management function, AMF) network element, session management function (session management function, SMF) network element, (radio) access network ((radio) access network, (R) AN), and user plane function (user plane function (UPF) network element, authentication server function (authentication server function, AUSF) network element, network slice selection function (network slice selection function, NSSF) network element, etc. In the above-mentioned operator network, parts other than the (wireless) access network part may be referred to as the core network part. For the convenience of description, the following takes (R)AN called RAN as an example for description.

The above-mentioned network architecture can also include a business and operation support system (BOSS), which provides an end-to-end operation process for the operator’s operation support platform to support the operator’s processing such as customer service, batch pricing, billing, Daily affairs such as settlement and expediting.

The terminal equipment of the present application (also referred to as user equipment (UE)) is a device with wireless transceiver function, which can be deployed on land, including indoor or outdoor, handheld or vehicle-mounted; or on the water (Such as ships, etc.); it can also be deployed in the air (such as airplanes, balloons, and satellites, etc.). The terminal device may be a mobile phone (mobile phone), a tablet computer (pad), a computer with wireless transceiver function, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, an industrial control (industrial control) Wireless terminals in ), wireless terminals in self-driving (self-driving), wireless terminals in remote medical, wireless terminals in smart grid, wireless terminals in transportation safety (transportation safety) , Wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, etc.

The above-mentioned terminal equipment can establish a connection with the operator's network through an interface (such as N1, etc.) provided by the operator's network, and use services such as data and/or voice provided by the operator's network. The terminal device can also access the DN through the operator's network, and use the operator's service deployed on the DN and/or the service provided by a third party. Among them, the aforementioned third party may be a service party other than the operator's network and terminal equipment, and may provide other services such as data and/or voice for the terminal equipment. Among them, the specific form of expression of the aforementioned third party can be determined according to actual application scenarios, and is not limited here.

RAN corresponds to different access networks, such as 4G networks, 5G networks, wired access, wireless base station access, and other methods. The corresponding access network device is a device that provides wireless communication functions for the terminal. The access network equipment includes, but is not limited to: next-generation base stations (gnodeB, gNB) in 5G, evolved node B (evolved node B, eNB), radio network controller (RNC), node B ( node B, NB), base station controller (BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home base station (for example, home evolved nodeB, or home node B, HNB), baseband unit (baseBand unit) , BBU), transmission point (transmitting and receiving point, TRP), transmission point (transmitting point, TP), mobile switching center, etc. In this application, the RAN may be a network composed of multiple RAN nodes to implement wireless physical layer functions, resource scheduling and wireless resource management, wireless access control, and mobility management functions. For example, 5G RAN is connected to UPF network elements through user plane interface N3 to transmit UE data; RAN uses control plane interface N2 to connect to the core network and establish control plane signaling connections to AMF network elements to achieve wireless access Bearer control and other functions.

In this application, the mobility management network element is the control plane network element provided by the operator network, and is responsible for the access control and mobility management of terminal equipment accessing the operator’s network, including, for example, mobility status management and allocating user temporary identities. Functions such as authentication and authorization of users. In 5G, mobility management network elements can be AMF network elements. In future communications such as the 6th generation (6G), mobility management network elements can still be AMF network elements, or have other names. The application is not limited. AMF network element is mainly responsible for UE authentication, UE mobility management, network slicing selection, session management function (Session Management Function, SMF) network element selection and other functions; it serves as the anchor point for the N1 and N2 signaling connection and serves as the SMF network The element provides routing of N1 and N2 Session Management (SM) messages; maintains and manages UE status information.

In this application, the session management function network element SMF may be a control plane network element provided by an operator network, and is responsible for managing the protocol data unit (PDU) session of the terminal device. The PDU session is a channel used to transmit PDUs, and terminal devices need to transmit PDUs to each other through the PDU session and the DN. The PDU session is established, maintained, and deleted by the SMF network element. SMF network elements include session management (such as session establishment, modification, and release, including tunnel maintenance between UPF and RAN), UPF network element selection and control, service and session continuity (Service and Session Continuity, SSC) mode selection, Session-related functions such as roaming. SMF network elements and AMF network elements are connected through the N11 interface, and are mainly responsible for all control plane functions of UE session management, including UPF network element selection, Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation, and session Quality of Service (QoS) ) Attribute management, obtaining policy control and charging (Policy Control and Charging, PCC) rules from PCF network elements. In 5G, the session management network element may be an SMF network element. In future communications such as 6G, the session management network element may still be an SMF network element or have other names, which is not limited in this application.

In this application, the user plane network element is a gateway provided by an operator, and a gateway for communication between the operator's network and the DN. UPF network elements include user plane-related functions such as data packet routing and transmission, packet inspection, service usage reporting, quality of service (QoS) processing, lawful monitoring, upstream packet inspection, and downstream packet storage. In 5G, the user plane network element can be a UPF network element, which is connected to the SMF network element through the N4 interface. The UPF network element serves as the anchor point of the PDU session connection and is responsible for the UE's data packet filtering, data transmission or forwarding, and rate control , Generate billing information, etc. In future communications such as 6G, the user plane network element may still be a UPF network element or have other names, which is not limited by this application.

DN, which can also be called packet data network (PDN), is a network located outside the operator’s network. The operator’s network can be connected to multiple DNs, and multiple services can be deployed on the DN. It communicates with UPF through the N6 interface. Network element connection can provide data and/or voice services for terminal equipment. For example, DN is the private network of a smart factory. The sensors installed in the workshop of the smart factory can be terminal devices. The control server of the sensor is deployed in the DN, and the control server can provide services for the sensors. The sensor can communicate with the control server, obtain instructions from the control server, and transmit the collected sensor data to the control server according to the instructions. For another example, DN is the internal office network of a company. The mobile phones or computers of employees of the company can be terminal devices, and the mobile phones or computers of employees can access information and data resources on the company's internal office network.

In this application, the data management network element is the control plane network element provided by the operator, and is responsible for storing the subscriber permanent identifier (SUPI), credential, and security context of the subscribers in the operator’s network. context), contract data and other information. The information stored in UDM network elements can be used for authentication and authorization of terminal equipment accessing the operator's network. Among them, the contracted users of the above-mentioned operator's network may specifically be users who use the services provided by the operator's network, such as users who use China Telecom's mobile phone core card, or users who use China Mobile's mobile phone core card. The permanent subscription identifier (Subscription Permanent Identifier, SUPI) of the aforementioned subscriber may be the number of the mobile phone core card, etc. The credential and security context of the aforementioned subscriber may be a small file stored such as the encryption key of the mobile phone core card or information related to the encryption of the mobile phone core card for authentication and/or authorization. The aforementioned security context may be data (cookie) or token (token) stored on the user's local terminal (for example, mobile phone). The contract data of the aforementioned subscriber may be the supporting service of the mobile phone core card, such as the data package of the mobile phone core card or the use of the network. It should be noted that permanent identifiers, credentials, security contexts, authentication data (cookies), and tokens are equivalent to information related to authentication and authorization. In this application, no distinction or restriction is made for the convenience of description. If no special instructions are given, the embodiments of the present application will be described using a security context as an example, but the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to authentication and/or authorization information in other expression modes. In 5G, the data management network element can be a UDM network element, which is connected to the AMF network element through the N8 interface, and is connected to the SMF network element through the N10 interface. It is used to store user-related subscription information, and is used for these through the N8 and N10 interfaces. The corresponding network element provides parameter information related to the contract. In future communications such as 6G, the data management network element may still be a UDM network element or have other names, which is not limited by this application.

In this application, the policy control network element is a control plane function provided by the operator for providing a PDU session policy to the SMF network element. Policies can include charging-related policies, QoS-related policies, and authorization-related policies. In 5G, the policy control network element can be a PCF network element, which is connected to the SMF network element through the N7 interface, and is connected to the AMF network element through the N15 interface, which is used to generate and store the PCC rules related to session management and provide them to the SMF network element. It is also used to generate strategy information related to mobility management and provide it to AMF network elements. In this architecture, the PCF connected to the AMF and SMF corresponds to the access and mobility control policy control function (PCF for access and mobility control, AM PCF) and the session management policy control function (PCF for session management, SM PCF), respectively. The actual deployment scenario may not be the same PCF entity. In future communications such as 6G, the policy control network element may still be a PCF network element or have other names, which is not limited by this application.

In this application, the network open network element is the control plane network element provided by the operator, for example, the AF network element: connects to the PCF network element through the N5 interface, and mainly transmits the requirements of the application side to the network side, for example, QoS requirements. The AF network element may be a third-party functional entity, or an application service deployed by an operator, such as an IP multimedia subsystem (IP multimedia subsystem, IMS) voice call service.

In this application, the authentication service network element is the control plane network element provided by the operator, for example, the AUSF network element: connects to the UDM network element through the N13 interface, and connects to the AMF network element through the N12 interface, mainly 3GPP and non-3GPP access Provide authentication function.

In this application, the network division network element is a control plane network element provided by an operator, for example, an NSSF network element: it is connected to an AMF network element through an interface N22 to provide a network slice selection function for access users.

In Figure 1, N1, N2, N3, N4, N5, N6, N7, N8, N10, N11, N12, N13, and N22 are interface serial numbers. The meaning of these interface serial numbers can refer to the meaning defined in the 3GPP standard protocol, which is not limited here.

In the architecture shown in Figure 1, UDM network elements suitable for 5G and AUSF network elements suitable for 4G are co-located (as shown by the dashed box in Figure 1). BOSS can perform data interaction with UDM network elements and PCF network elements, so as to realize the control of 4G network and 5G network.

In addition, in order to achieve a smooth transition from 4G networks to 5G networks, the standard also proposes an architecture for the integrated deployment of 4G core networks and 5G core networks. Please refer to Figure 2, which is 5G network and evolved packet core (EPC). /Evolved universal terrestrial radio access network (evolved universal terrestrial radio access network, E-UTRAN) integration architecture is a specific application scenario of the embodiment of the present application. Similarly, the network architecture shown in Figure 2 may also include three parts, which are the terminal equipment part, the DN part, and the operator network part. The difference from Figure 1 is that the operator network part of Figure 2 includes both the 4G operator network part and the 5G operator part. The following is for the different network elements in Figure 2 and Figure 1, which are different from those shown in Figure 1. The functions of repeated network elements will not be repeated here:

Among them, serving gateway (SGW): connects to UPF network elements through S5-U interface, and connects to SMF network elements through S5-U interface, used for mobility management (mobility management entity, MME) network element control The routing and forwarding of data packets are carried out under.

Packet data gateway (packet data network-gateway, PGW), including control plane packet data gateway (packet data network gateway-control, PGW-C) and user plane packet data gateway (packet data network gateway-user, PGW-U). The PGW-C in the 4G network is co-located with the SMF in the 5G network, connected to the AMF network element through the N11 interface, and is mainly responsible for all control plane functions of UE session management. PGW-U is co-located with UPF in the 5G network, connected to the RAN through the N3 interface, and is mainly responsible for all user plane functions of UE session management. The UDM in the 5G network is co-located with the HSS in the 4G network to manage user user data, etc.

MME network element: connect to UDM network element through S6a interface, connect to SGW through S11 interface, and connect to E-UTRAN through S1-MME interface. Mainly responsible for mobility management, bearer management, user authentication, SGW and PGW selection and other functions. Among them, under the single registration of the 5G network to the 4G network, the switching of the N26 interface is supported between the MME network element and the AMF network element. Of course, the switching of other interfaces can also be supported between the MME network element and the AMF network element, which is not limited here.

E-UTRAN: Connect with SGW through S1-U interface, and connect with MME through S1-MME interface. Among them, the S1-MME interface is the reference point of the control plane protocol between E-UTRAN and the MME; the S1-U interface is the reference point of the user plane tunnel for each bearer between the E-UTRAN and the SGW.

It should be understood that each network element shown in FIG. 2 may be independent, or two or more network elements may be integrated together, which is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present application.

In addition, for the evolution and deployment of 5G networks, the current 3GPP standard also defines a non-stand alone (NSA) architecture. Please refer to FIG. 3. (a) in FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a standalone (SA) architecture, and (b) in FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an NSA. Compared with the SA defined by the SA, the UE is directly connected to the 5G core network through the S1-U interface between the 5G base station and the 5G core network. In the NSA networking mode, the UE mainly accesses the EPC network through E-UTRAN and is deployed in the 5G base station In the area, E-UTRAN can decide whether to insert a 5G NR branch to enjoy the large bandwidth and low latency services supported by 5G base stations. In the architecture shown in (b) of Figure 3, the core network part is still the EPC network, but at the same moment there may be two user plane paths for the UE, corresponding to one signaling path. The technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application may be applicable to SA and NSA as well.

For the convenience of description, in this application, the AMF network element is abbreviated as AMF, the UDM network element is abbreviated as UDM, the RAN device is abbreviated as RAN, and the terminal device is called UE.

It is understandable that the network elements or functions in Figures 1 and 2 above can be network elements in hardware devices, software functions running on dedicated hardware, or instantiation on platforms (for example, cloud platforms) Virtualization capabilities. Optionally, the foregoing network element or function may be implemented by one device, or jointly implemented by multiple devices, or may be a functional module in one device, which is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present application.

Some English abbreviations in this article are the descriptions of the embodiments of the present application taking 4G networks and current 5G networks as examples, which may change with the evolution of the network, and the specific evolution can refer to the description in the corresponding standard.

When 4G users purchase 5G-capable terminals, they can become 4G/5G converged users, that is, 5G terminals can be used for 4G services or 5G services. At present, after purchasing a 5G terminal, a user usually needs to register for a 5G network at the operator’s business hall to become a 4G/5G converged user. When the operator’s staff registers the user on the 5G network, they need to manually register the user on the 4G network. After the user data in the network is migrated from the HSS to the UDM network element in the 5G network, the 4G/5G converged users can normally use the services provided by the 5G network. As a result, 4G/5G converged users have complicated procedures and low efficiency when registering for 5G networks.

To solve the above technical problems, based on the architecture shown in FIG. 2, as shown in FIG. 4, the present application provides a communication method. The method is applied to communication systems of two different standards, for example, in an architecture including a 5G network and a 4G network. In this method, when a 4G/5G converged user conducts 5G services, the user data of the 4G/5G converged user can be triggered by BOSS to migrate to a unified data repository (UDR) network element, and the UDR network element is mainly responsible for user data For example, it is responsible for the access function of contract data, policy data, application data, etc., while UDM network elements (PCF network elements) can directly obtain user data from UDR network elements, which supports online migration of 4G/5G converged users User data, which does not require the manual participation of the operator’s business hall, can simplify the migration of user data from the 4G network to the 5G network.

In addition, when 4G/5G converged users perform 5G services, the migration of user data of 4G/5G converged users is triggered, so there is no need to migrate all user data using 5G terminals from HSS to UDM network elements in advance. UDM needs to be deployed There are fewer network elements, thereby reducing the cost of building 5G.

Of course, the two different communication systems to which this method is applied can also be 5G networks and other communication systems, such as wireless fidelity (wifi), worldwide interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), global mobile Communication (global system of mobile communication, GSM) system, code division multiple access (CDMA) system, wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) system, general packet radio service (general packet radio) service, GPRS), long term evolution (LTE) system, advanced long term evolution (LTE-A) system, universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), and third-generation cooperation Cellular systems related to the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP), etc. In the following, the application of this method to a communication system including 4G networks and 5G networks is taken as an example.

In addition, the solution of this application can also be applied to future-oriented communication technologies. The system described in the embodiments of this application is to illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application more clearly, and does not constitute a comparison of the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of this application. By definition, those of ordinary skill in the art know that with the evolution of the network architecture, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application are equally applicable to similar technical problems.

Specifically, please refer to FIG. 4, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, which includes the following steps:

Step S401: The first device determines that the 4G/5G converged user first requests to register with the 5G network.

Among them, 4G/5G converged users are 4G users who use UEs that support 5G communication capabilities. The first device is a device used to store user data in a 5G network, for example, UDM or PCF shown in Figure 2, where UDM is used to store subscription data in user data, and PCF is used to store policies in user data Data, such as charging policy data.

When a 4G user purchases a 5G capable UE, 5G services can be activated, that is, a 4G user performs 5G services through the UE, and the UE needs to access the 5G network. The process of whether the UE accesses the 4G network or the 5G network can follow the access process of the prior art, which will not be described here.

When the UE accesses the 5G network in the coverage area of the 5G network, the UE can go online to the 5G network element, such as UDM or PCF, through AMF. If the UDM or PCF determines that there is no user data of the 4G/5G converged user using the UE, such as subscription data or policy data, and the 4G/5G converged user is a legitimate user, for example, a user registered in the 4G network , Then UDM or PCF can determine that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time, that is, the network element in the 5G network does not save the user data of the 4G/5G converged user. Since the user data of the 4G/5G converged user has been registered in the 4G network before, the 4G network stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user. Therefore, in this application, UDM or PCF can obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network, and save the obtained user data of the 4G/5G converged user, thereby migrating the 4G/5G converged user’s data online. User data, avoid manual participation and improve migration efficiency.

Step S402: The first device sends first information to the BOSS, so that the BOSS receives the first information.

If the first device determines that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time, the first device may send the first information to the BOSS, where the BOSS can communicate with devices on the 4G network and the 5G network. The first information can be used to notify the BOSS to migrate the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network.

If the first device is UDM or PCF, and since there is no service interface between BOSS and UDM or PCF, in this application, the first device can use UDR as the service interface between UDM or PCF and BOSS, that is, UDM or The PCF sends the first information to the BOSS through a user data repository (UDR) that can communicate with the UDM. In this case, when the UDM or PCF determines that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time, it can inform the UDR that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time. At this time, the UDR sends the first information to the BOSS.

Of course, the above-mentioned first device can also be understood as a UDR. In this case, the UDM or PCF informs the UDR that the 4G/5G converged user first requests to register with the 5G network. For example, the UDM or PCF can send instruction information to the UDR. The instruction information can be used to indicate that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user is a legitimate user, so the UDR follows the instructions The information can confirm that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register for a 5G network for the first time.

Step S403: After receiving the first information, the BOSS can control the first device to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network, so that the first device obtains and stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user from the 4G network; Correspondingly, the first device acquires and stores the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS.

For ease of understanding, the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 will be described in detail below in conjunction with specific scenarios and examples.

Scenario 1: Take the user data of 4G/5G converged users including subscription data as an example.

As shown in FIG. 5, the architecture diagram of each network element involved in scenario 1 provided in this application. The network architecture shown in FIG. 5 includes network elements in a 5G network and network elements in a 4G network. For example, the network elements in the 5G network include AMF, SMF, and UDM, where UDM may further include UDR. The network elements in the 4G network include MME or mobile switching center (mobile switching center, MSC), routing agent node (diameter routing agent, DRA) or signaling transfer point (signalling transfer point, STP), and HSS, where HSS includes Front end (FE) and back end (BE). In scenario 1, a 5G capable UE used by a 4G user, that is, a 5G UE can access a 4G network within a 4G network coverage area, and can access a 5G network within a 5G network coverage area. Figure 5 uses 5G network access as example.

In scenario 1, as shown in FIG. 6, it is a specific implementation process of the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, which includes the following steps:

Step S601: The 5G UE sends an attach message to the AMF, so that the AMF receives the attach message.

Wherein, the attach message can be considered as a network access request message. As shown in Figure 5, in step ①, if the UE accesses in the area covered by the 5G network, it can go online to UDM through AMF, or it is a device jointly established by UDM and AUSF. Here and in the following, the equipment jointly installed by UDM and AUSF is collectively referred to as UDM.

Step S602: The AMF sends an authentication request to the UDM, so that the UDM receives the authentication request.

After the UDM receives the authentication request, it authenticates the UE. Specifically, UDM can determine whether the UE is accessed from the 5G network. If it is determined that the UE is accessed from a 5G network, UDM can determine whether the UE is a legal user, that is, whether it has been registered on a non-4G network. If the UE has been registered on a non-4G network, then the UE may be a legal user. After UDM determines that the UE is a legitimate user, it determines whether the registration information of the UE is in the UDM. If the UDM determines that the registration information of the UE is not on the UDM, the UDM judges that the UE is registered to the 5G network for the first time.

Step S603: The UDM sends the first information to the BOSS, so that the BOSS receives the first information.

The first information may be used to instruct the BOSS to migrate the 4G/5G converged user's subscription data in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. When the UDM determines that the UE is registering on the 5G network for the first time, it can send the first information to the BOSS to notify the BOSS to perform 5G user account opening and subscription data migration operations.

Specifically, UDM sends first information to BOSS mainly includes two steps, as shown in Figure 5, in step ②, first, UDM sends the first information to UDR, and then, as step ③, UDR forwards the first information To the boss. That is, the UDM can send the first information to the BOSS first information through the UDR.

Step S604: The BOSS sends a response message of the first information to UDM. This step is optional and not indispensable, so it is illustrated with a dotted line in FIG. 6.

Step S605: The BOSS sends a trigger message to the UDM, so that the UDM receives the trigger message.

UDR is a part of UDM. BOSS sends a trigger message to UDM, which can be considered as BOSS sends a trigger message to UDR. For example, in step ④ shown in Figure 5, the BOSS sends a trigger message to the UDR. The trigger message may instruct UDR to migrate the 4G/5G converged user's subscription data in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network.

Exemplarily, the trigger message may refer to the access authority. For example, the trigger message carries authority information of the network element located on the 4G network that the UDR can access. The network element located on the 4G network may, for example, store the user's subscription in the 4G network. The second device for data. For example, HSS.

Step S606: The UDM sends a request message to the HSS based on the above-mentioned access authority for requesting to obtain the user's subscription data in the 4G network from the HSS.

UDM sends a request message to the HSS according to the trigger message, so as to realize the purpose of migrating the subscription data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. Specifically, as shown in step ⑤ in Fig. 5, UDM may send a request message to the back end (BE) of the HSS to obtain subscription data.

Step S607: The HSS sends the subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the UDM.

When the UDR receives the trigger message from the BOSS, it can access the second device. For example, the UDR sends a request message to the second device to request to obtain the subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the BE. After that, as shown in Figure 5, in step ⑤, BE can send the 4G/5G converged user's 4G network subscription data to UDR, thus realizing the 4G/5G converged user's subscription data in the 4G network from 4G Network migration to 5G network.

Step S608: UDM sends a response message to BOSS.

In some embodiments, after the UDM receives the subscription data from the BE through the UDR, it may feed back a response message to the BOSS through the UDR, and the response message may be used to indicate whether the UDR has received the subscription data.

Step S609: After the response message indicates that the UDR has received the subscription data, the BOSS sends a notification message to the UE, so that the UE receives the notification message. Specifically, if the response message indicates that the UDR has received the subscription data, in step ⑥ shown in Figure 5, the BOSS may also send a notification message to the UE to inform the 4G/5G converged user that the 5G service has been automatically activated.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G converged user that the 5G service has been automatically activated, or before the BOSS triggers UDM, that is, step S609 can be performed before step S605 or step S607, that is, the BOSS first informs the UE, and then performs the subscription data Migration operation.

Scenario 2: Take the user data of 4G/5G converged users including subscription data as an example.

As shown in FIG. 7, the architecture diagram of each network element involved in scenario 2 provided by this application. The network elements included in the network architecture shown in FIG. 7 are the same as the network elements included in the network architecture shown in FIG. 5. The difference lies in the data exchange process between network elements.

In the second scenario, as shown in FIG. 8, another specific implementation process of the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 is shown, including steps S801-S807. Among them, step S801 is the same as step S601, step S802 is the same as step S602, and step S803 is the same as step S603, which will not be repeated here.

The difference from the process shown in FIG. 6 is that after receiving the first information, the BOSS can first obtain the contract data, and then send the obtained contract data to the UDM. Specifically, it includes the following steps S804 and S805.

Step S804: The BOSS sends a request message to the second device, and the request message requests to obtain subscription data in the second device.

In step ④ shown in Figure 7, the BOSS can send a request message to the BE in the HSS for requesting to obtain the subscription data of the 4G/5G converged user from the BE.

Step S805: The HSS sends the subscription data to the BOSS.

Step S806: The BOSS sends the acquired subscription data to UDM.

In step ⑤ shown in Figure 7, the BOSS sends the acquired subscription data to the UDR, and the UDM can obtain the subscription data from the UDR.

Step S807: UDM sends a response message of receiving subscription data to BOSS.

Step S808: The BOSS sends a notification message to the UE.

Step S807 is the same as step S608, and step S808 is the same as step S609, which will not be repeated here.

The foregoing network architecture shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 7 illustrates the migration process of the user's subscription data. The following takes the migration of the user's policy data as an example to introduce the communication method provided in the embodiment of the present application.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G converged user that the 5G service has been automatically activated, or before the BOSS obtains the subscription data, that is, step S808 can be performed before step S804 or S806, that is, the BOSS informs the UE first, and then performs the subscription data Migration operation.

Scenario 3: Take the user data of 4G/5G converged users including policy data as an example.

As shown in FIG. 9, the architecture diagram of each network element involved in scenario 3 provided in this application. The network architecture shown in FIG. 9 includes network elements in a 5G network and network elements in a 4G network. For example, the network elements in the 5G network include AMF, SMF, or gateway-core (GW-C), PCF and UDR. The network elements in the 4G network include MME, PDN gateway (P-GW, DRA), policy and charging rules function (Policy and Charging Rules Function, PCRF) network elements, and subscription data warehouse (Subscription Profile Repository, SPR) ). Among them, SPR can store user policy subscription information.

In the network architecture shown in Figure 9, when a 5G UE accesses a 4G network, it will be routed to the 5G network and go online on the PCF through the N7 interface. In step ① shown in Figure 9, if the UE accesses the network in the 4G network coverage area, then the MME can support the network selection according to the terminal's capabilities, reroute the UE to SMF/PGW-C, and go online on the PCF . Of course, if the routing is performed according to the user's subscription information, the 5G network contract has been completed. Therefore, if the routing is based on the user's subscription information, the MME will not select the network, so the dotted line in Figure 9 indicates that the MME selects the network.

In the third scenario, as shown in FIG. 10, it is a specific implementation process of the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, which includes the following steps:

Step S1001: The PCF determines that the UE registers with the 5G network for the first time, and sends first information to the BOSS, so that the BOSS receives the first information.

Among them, before the PCF determines that the UE registers with the 5G network for the first time, the UE sends an attach message to the MME. Within the 4G coverage area, the MME can select the network that the UE accesses according to the UE’s capabilities. That is, if the UE is a 5G UE, then the MME will The UE is rerouted to SMF/PGW-C, and the SMF/PGW-C sends a connection access network session request to the PCF, that is, the UE goes online on the PCF. After that, the PCF can determine whether the UE is registering on the 5G network for the first time.

Among them, the first information may be used to instruct the BOSS to migrate the 4G/5G converged user's policy data in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. When the PCF determines that the UE is registering on the 5G network for the first time, it can send the first information to the BOSS to notify the BOSS to perform the 5G user account opening and data migration operations. Specifically, as shown in Figure 9, in step ②, the PCF sends the first information to the BOSS. After that, the BOSS can send a response message of the first information to the PCF. Since this step is not essential, it is indicated by a broken line in FIG. 10.

Step S1002, the BOSS sends a trigger message to the UDR, so that the UDR receives the trigger message.

Among them, the trigger message may instruct UDR to migrate the 4G/5G converged user's policy data in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network. After the BOSS receives the first information, as shown in Figure 9, in step ③, the BOSS can send a trigger message to the UDR. Exemplarily, the trigger message may refer to the access authority. For example, the trigger message carries the access authority of the network element located on the 4G network that the UDR can access. The network element located on the 4G network may, for example, store the user's subscription in the 4G network. The second device of the data, such as SPR.

Step S1003: The PCF sends a request message to the SPR for requesting to obtain the user's policy data in the 4G network.

The PCF can access the SPR according to the trigger message, such as the SPR shown in FIG. 9. In step ④ shown in Figure 9, the PCF accesses the SPR through the UDR. It can be that the PCF sends to the SPR through the UDR a message requesting to obtain the user’s policy data in the 4G network, so as to realize the integration of 4G/5G users in the 4G network. Strategic data is migrated from 4G network to 5G network.

Step S1004: The PCF receives the strategy data from the SPR through the UDR.

Step S1005: The PCF feeds back a response message to the BOSS through the UDR, and the response message may be used to indicate whether the PCF receives the policy data.

Step S1006: The BOSS sends a notification message to the UE when the response message indicates that the PCF has received the policy data.

Among them, the notification message can be used to inform the user that the 5G service has been automatically activated. For example, if the response message indicates that the PCF has received policy data, as shown in Figure 9, in step ⑤, the BOSS can send a notification message to the UE to inform the 4G/5G converged user that the 5G service has been automatically activated. Step S1006 is not indispensable, so it is illustrated by a broken line in FIG. 10.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G converged user that the 5G service has been automatically activated, or before the BOSS triggers the UDM to obtain the subscription data, that is, step S1006 can be performed before the step S1002 or S1004, that is, the BOSS first informs the UE before signing the contract Data migration operation.

Scenario 4: Take the user data of 4G/5G converged users including policy data as an example.

As shown in FIG. 11, the architecture diagram of each network element involved in scenario 4 provided in this application. The network elements included in the network architecture shown in FIG. 11 are the same as the network elements included in the network architecture shown in FIG. 9. The difference lies in the data exchange process between network elements.

In the fourth scenario, as shown in FIG. 12, another specific implementation process of the embodiment is shown in FIG. 4. The implementation process includes step S1201-step S1206. Among them, step S1201 is the same as the above step S1001, step S1205 is the same as step S1005, and step S1206 is the same as step S1006, which will not be repeated here.

The difference from the process shown in FIG. 10 is that after the BOSS receives the first information, it can first obtain the policy data, and then send the obtained policy data to the UDR. Specifically, it includes the following steps S1203 and S1204.

Step S1202, the BOSS sends a trigger message to the second device, so that the second device receives the trigger message.

The BOSS can obtain the policy data from the second device, and then forward the policy data to the PCF. For example, the second device is an SPR. In step ③ shown in FIG. 11, the BOSS may send a trigger message to the SPR, and the trigger message may request to obtain the 4G/5G converged user's policy data in the 4G network from the SPR.

Step S1203: The SPR sends policy data to the BOSS, so that the BOSS receives the policy data.

Step S1204: The BOSS sends the acquired policy data to the PCF through the UDR.

In step ④ as shown in Figure 11, after the BOSS obtains the policy data, it can send the policy data to the PCF through the UDR, so that the PCF can obtain the policy data from the SPR through the UDR to realize the integration of 4G/5G users in the 4G network Migration of strategic data from 4G network to 5G network.

It should be noted that the BOSS notifies the 4G/5G converged user that the 5G service has been automatically activated, or before the BOSS triggers UDM to obtain the subscription data, that is, step S1206 can be performed before step S1202 or S1204, that is, the BOSS first informs the UE before signing the contract Data migration operation.

Further, after UDM or PCF obtains the user data of 4G/5G converged users from the 4G network, BOSS can instruct the second device, such as BE or SPR, to delete the stored user data of 4G/5G converged users to save Storage resources. For example, the BOSS may send instruction information to the BE or SPR, and the instruction information is used to instruct the BE or SPR to delete the 4G/5G converged user's policy data.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, when the UE supports communication in two different network architectures, for example, in an architecture including 5G network and 4G network, when 4G/5G converged users perform 5G services, this application can use BOSS indirectly or Directly migrate the user data of 4G/5G converged users from 4G network to 5G network without manual involvement, which can simplify the migration operation.

The device used to implement the foregoing method in the embodiments of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the drawings. Therefore, the above content can all be used in the subsequent embodiments, and the repeated content will not be repeated.

FIG. 13 shows a schematic structural diagram of a communication device 1300. The communication device 1300 can implement the functions of the first device mentioned above. In an embodiment, the communication device 1300 may be the UDM or UDR described above, or may be a chip set in the UDM or UDR described above. In this way, the communication device 1300 may include a processor 1301 and a communication interface 1302. Further, the communication device 1300 may also include a memory 1303. The memory 1303 may exist independently, such as an off-chip memory, which is connected to the processor 1301 through the communication bus 1304. . The memory 1303 may also be integrated with the processor 1301.

Among them, the communication interface 1302 uses any device such as a transceiver to communicate with other devices or communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area networks, WLAN )Wait. The communication bus 1304 may include a path to transfer information between the aforementioned components. The processor 1301 may be used to execute the processing steps performed by the first device in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 6 or FIG. 8 or FIG. 10 or FIG. 12, and/or other processes used to support the technology described herein For example, all the other processes or part of the other processes executed by the first device described above except for the sending and receiving process can be executed. The communication interface 1302 may be used to perform the transceiving steps in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 6 or FIG. 8 or FIG. 10 or FIG. 12, and/or other processes used to support the technology described herein, for example, the previous All or part of the receiving and sending process performed by the first device described in the text.

For example, the processor 1301 is configured to receive a network request through the communication interface 1302, and determine according to the received network registration request that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register for the 5G network for the first time, and the first device is used to save user data in the 5G network, 4G/5G Converged users are 4G users who use terminals that support 5G communication capabilities; communication interface 1302 is used to send first information to BOSS. BOSS can communicate with devices on 4G and 5G networks, and the first information is used to notify BOSS to transfer 4G/ The user data of 5G converged users in the 4G network is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network; the processor 1301 is also used for BOSS-based control to obtain and store the user data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network.

In a possible design, the processor 1301 may be specifically configured to receive the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the BOSS through the communication interface 1302. The user data is that the BOSS accesses the 4G network after receiving the first information. Obtained by the second device used to store user data in the network; or the processor 1301 may receive the access authority fed back by the BOSS, and obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access authority, where , The access authority is the authority to access the second device, which belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.

In a possible design, the processor 1301 may be specifically configured to receive indication information from a third device in the 5G network through the communication interface 1302, and the indication information is used to indicate that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user is in the 5G network. Does not exist, and 4G/5G converged users are legal users.

Among them, all relevant content of each step involved in the above method embodiment can be cited in the function description of the corresponding function module, and will not be repeated here.

By designing and programming the processor 1301 and the communication interface 1302, the code corresponding to the aforementioned communication method is solidified into the chip, so that the chip can execute the aforementioned communication method when it is running, how to perform the processing on the processor 1301 and the communication interface 1302 Design programming is a technique well known to those skilled in the art, and will not be repeated here.

In another embodiment, the communication device 1300 may also be the BOSS described above, or may be a chip set in the BOSS described above. Then the processor 1301 may be used to execute the processing steps performed by the BOSS in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 6 or FIG. 8 or FIG. 10 or FIG. 12, and/or other processes used to support the technology described herein, For example, all other processes or part of other processes performed by the BOSS described above except for the sending and receiving process can be executed. The communication interface 1302 may be used to perform the transceiving steps performed by the BOSS in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 6 or FIG. 8 or FIG. 10 or FIG. 12, and/or other processes used to support the technology described herein, such as All or part of the receiving and sending process performed by the BOSS described above can be performed.

For example, the communication interface 1302 is used to receive first information from the first device, where the first device is used to save user data in the 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the communication device to integrate 4G/5G users in the 4G network Migrate user data from 4G network to 5G network; 4G/5G converged users are 4G users who use terminals that support 5G communication capabilities; processor 1301 is used to control the first device to acquire and store 4G/5G converged users based on the first information User data in 4G network.

In a possible design, the processor 1301 may be specifically used to access the second device for storing user data in the 4G network after receiving the first information, to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network ; And send the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the first device; or send the access permission to the first device to instruct the first device to obtain the 4G/5G converged user’s presence from the second device based on the access permission User data in a 4G network, where the access authority is the authority to access the second device, which belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.

In a possible design, the communication interface 1302 may also be used to send instruction information to the second device, where the instruction information is used to instruct the second device to delete user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.

Among them, all relevant content of each step involved in the above method embodiment can be cited in the function description of the corresponding function module, and will not be repeated here.

By designing and programming the processor 1301 and the communication interface 1302, the code corresponding to the aforementioned communication method is solidified into the chip, so that the chip can execute the aforementioned communication method when it is running, how to perform the processing on the processor 1301 and the communication interface 1302 Design programming is a technique well known to those skilled in the art, and will not be repeated here.

In addition, when the communication device 1300 provided in the embodiment shown in FIG. 13 implements the processing function of the first device in the foregoing method embodiment, it may also be implemented in other forms. For example, as shown in FIG. 14, the communication device includes a determining unit 1401, a sending unit 1402, and an acquiring unit 1403. For example, the determining unit 1401 and the acquiring unit 1403 may be implemented by the processor 1301, and the sending unit 1402 may be implemented by the communication interface 1302. Wherein, the determining unit 1401 may be used to execute S401 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and/or other processes used to support the technology described herein, for example, it may execute other processes performed by the first device described above. All other processes or part of other processes other than the sending and receiving process. The sending unit 1402 may be used to execute S402 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and/or to support other processes of the technology described herein, for example, it may execute all the sending and receiving performed by the first device described above. Process or part of the sending and receiving process. The acquiring unit 1403 may be used to perform S403 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and/or to support other processes of the technology described herein, for example, it may perform the process other than the receiving and sending process performed by the first device described above. All other processes or part of other processes.

For example, the determining unit 1401 is configured to determine, according to the received network registration request, that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register on a 5G network for the first time, and the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user who uses a terminal that supports 5G communication capabilities; the sending unit 1402 is used to provide service operations The support system BOSS sends the first information, BOSS can communicate with the equipment of 4G network and 5G network, the first information is used to notify BOSS to migrate the user data of 4G/5G converged users in 4G network from 4G network to 5G network; The unit 1403 is used to obtain and store user data of 4G/5G converged users in the 4G network based on BOSS control.

In a possible design, the acquiring unit 1403 is specifically configured to receive user data from the BOSS of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network. The user data is the BOSS accessing the 4G network for storage after receiving the first information. User data obtained by the second device; or receiving the access authority fed back by the BOSS, and obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access authority, where the access authority is the access authority of the second device Authority, the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.

In a possible design, the determining unit 1401 may specifically receive indication information from a third device in the 5G network, and the indication information is used to indicate that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G network Converged users are legitimate users.

Among them, all relevant content of each step involved in the above method embodiment can be cited in the function description of the corresponding function module, and will not be repeated here.

In addition, when the communication device 1300 provided in the embodiment shown in FIG. 13 implements the processing function of the BOSS device in the foregoing method embodiment, the communication device 1300 provided in the embodiment shown in FIG. 13 may also be implemented in other forms. For example, as shown in FIG. 15, the communication device includes a control unit 1501 and a receiving unit 1502. For example, the control unit 1501 may be implemented by the processor 1301, and the receiving unit 1502 may be implemented by the communication interface 1302. Wherein, the control unit 1501 may be used to execute S403 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and/or other processes used to support the technology described herein, for example, it may execute other processes performed by the first device as described above. All other processes or part of other processes other than the sending and receiving process. The receiving unit 1502 may be used to perform S402 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and/or to support other processes of the technology described herein, for example, it may perform all the transmission and reception performed by the first device described above. Process or part of the sending and receiving process.

For example, the receiving unit 1502 is used to receive first information from the first device, where the first device is used to save user data in the 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the communication device to integrate 4G/5G users in the 4G network. The user data of the 4G/5G network is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network; 4G/5G converged users are 4G users who use terminals that support 5G communication capabilities; the control unit is used to control the first device to obtain and store the User data in 4G network.

In a possible design, the control unit 1501 is specifically configured to access the second device for storing user data in the 4G network after receiving the first information, to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; The communication device sends the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the first device; or sends the access permission to the first device to instruct the first device to obtain the 4G/5G converged user’s presence from the second device based on the access permission. User data in a 4G network, where the access authority is the authority to access the second device, which belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.

In a possible design, a sending unit 1503 may be further included, configured to send instruction information to the second device, where the instruction information is used to instruct the second device to delete user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.

Among them, all relevant content of each step involved in the above method embodiment can be cited in the function description of the corresponding function module, and will not be repeated here.

Since the communication device 1300 provided in the embodiment of the present application can be used to execute the method provided in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the technical effects that can be obtained can refer to the foregoing method embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

The embodiments of this application are described with reference to the flowcharts and/or block diagrams of the methods, devices (systems), and computer program products according to the embodiments of this application. It should be understood that each process and/or block in the flowchart and/or block diagram, and the combination of processes and/or blocks in the flowchart and/or block diagram can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to the processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor, or other programmable data processing equipment to generate a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing equipment are generated It is a device that realizes the functions specified in one process or multiple processes in the flowchart and/or one block or multiple blocks in the block diagram.

In the above embodiments, it may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented by software, it can be implemented in the form of a computer program product in whole or in part. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on the computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated in whole or in part. The computer may be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable devices. The computer instructions may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another readable storage medium. For example, the computer instructions may be passed from a website, computer, server, or data center. Wired (such as coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means to transmit to another website, computer, server or data center. The computer-readable storage medium may be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or a data storage device such as a server or data center integrated with one or more available media. The usable medium may be a magnetic medium (for example, a floppy disk, a hard disk, a magnetic tape), an optical medium (for example, a digital versatile disc (DVD)), or a semiconductor medium (for example, a solid state disk (SSD)). ))Wait.

Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to the embodiments of the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. In this way, if these modifications and variations of the embodiments of this application fall within the scope of the claims of this application and their equivalent technologies, this application is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims (19)

1. A communication method, characterized in that it comprises:

   The first device determines that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register on a 5G network for the first time according to the received network registration request. The first device is used to store user data in the 5G network. The 4G/5G converged user is a user who supports 5G communication capabilities. 4G users of the terminal;

   The first device sends first information to the business operation support system BOSS, the BOSS can communicate with devices on the 4G network and 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the BOSS to integrate the 4G/5G users User data in the 4G network is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network;

   The first device obtains and stores user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS.
2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device obtains and stores user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network based on the control of the BOSS, comprising:

   The first device receives user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the BOSS, where the user data is that the BOSS accesses the 4G network after receiving the first information Obtained by a second device used to store user data; or

   The first device receives the access authority fed back by the BOSS, and obtains the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access authority, where the access authority is Access to the second device, the second device belongs to the 4G network, and is used to store user data.
3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first device comprises a user data repository UDR entity.
4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the first device determining that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time includes:

   The first device receives instruction information from a third device in the 5G network, where the instruction information is used to indicate that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user For legitimate users.
5. A communication method, characterized in that it comprises:

   The business operation support system BOSS receives first information from the first device, where the first device is used to save user data in the 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the BOSS to integrate 4G/5G users in User data in the 4G network is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal that supports 5G communication capabilities;

   The BOSS controls the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information.
6. The method of claim 5, wherein the BOSS controls the first device to acquire and store the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information, comprising:

   After receiving the first information, the BOSS accesses the second device for storing user data in the 4G network to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; The first device sends user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network; or

   The BOSS sends the access authority to the first device, which is used to instruct the first device to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access authority. The access authority is the authority to access the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.
7. The method according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the first device includes a user data repository UDR entity.
8. The method of claim 6 or 7, further comprising:

   The BOSS sends instruction information to the second device, where the instruction information is used to instruct the second device to delete user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.
9. A communication device, characterized by comprising a processor, a memory and a communication interface, the processor being coupled with the memory and the communication interface;

   The communication interface is used for the communication device to communicate with other devices;

   The processor is configured to receive a network registration request through the communication interface, and determine according to the network registration request that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register on a 5G network for the first time, and the communication device is configured to save user data in the 5G network , The 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user using a terminal that supports 5G communication capabilities;

   The communication interface is further configured to send first information to the business operation support system BOSS after the processor determines that the 4G/5G converged user requests to register on the 5G network for the first time, and the BOSS can communicate with the equipment of the 4G network and the 5G network Communicating, the first information is used to notify the BOSS to migrate the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the 4G network to the 5G network;

   The processor is further configured to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network through the communication interface based on the control of the BOSS, and store it in the memory.
10. The communication device according to claim 9, wherein the processor is specifically configured to obtain user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network through the communication interface based on the control of the BOSS :

    Receive user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the BOSS through the communication interface, where the user data is that the BOSS accesses the 4G network after receiving the first information Obtained by a second device used to store user data; or

    Receive the access authority fed back by the BOSS through the communication interface, and obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device through the communication interface based on the access authority, wherein: The access authority is an authority to access the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.
11. The communication device according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the communication device comprises a user data repository UDR entity.
12. The communication device according to any one of claims 9-11, wherein the processor receives a network registration request through the communication interface, and determines according to the network registration request that a 4G/5G converged user requests to register for the 5G network for the first time When, specifically used for:

    Receive indication information from a third device in the 5G network through the communication interface, where the indication information is used to indicate that the user data of the 4G/5G converged user does not exist in the 5G network, and the 4G/5G converged user For legitimate users.
13. A communication device, characterized by comprising a processor and a communication interface, the processor being coupled with the communication interface;

    The communication interface is used to receive first information from a first device, where the first device is used to save user data in a 5G network, and the first information is used to notify the communication device to use 4G/5G The user data of the converged user in the 4G network is migrated from the 4G network to the 5G network; the 4G/5G converged user is a 4G user who uses a terminal that supports 5G communication capabilities;

    The processor is configured to control the first device to acquire and store user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information.
14. The communication device according to claim 13, wherein the processor controls the first device to obtain and store user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network according to the first information, Specifically used for:

    After receiving the first information through the communication interface, access the second device for storing user data in the 4G network through the communication interface to obtain the user information of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network Data; send user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network to the first device through the communication interface; or

    Sending the access authority to the first device through the communication interface is used to instruct the first device to obtain the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network from the second device based on the access authority, where The access authority is the authority to access the second device, and the second device belongs to the 4G network and is used to store user data.
15. The communication device according to claim 13 or 14, wherein the processor is further configured to send instruction information to the second device through the communication interface, wherein the instruction information is used to indicate the The second device deletes the user data of the 4G/5G converged user in the 4G network.
16. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein the computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program, the computer program includes program instructions, and the program instructions, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to execute The method described in any one of 1-4 or 5-8.
17. A computer program product, wherein the computer program product stores a computer program, the computer program includes program instructions, and when executed by a computer, the program instructions cause the computer to execute The method described in any one of 5-8.
18. A processor, characterized by being used to indicate the method according to any one of claims 1-4 or 5-8.
19. A chip system, characterized in that it includes:

    Memory, used to store computer programs;

    The processor is configured to call and run the computer program from the memory, so that the device installed with the chip system executes the method according to any one of claims 1-4 or 5-8.

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