WO2021063224A1

WO2021063224A1 - Data offload method and apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2021063224A1
Application number: PCT/CN2020/117071
Authority: WO
Inventors: 孔伟; 王丹; 李永竞
Original assignee: 中国移动通信有限公司研究院; 中国移动通信集团有限公司
Priority date: 2019-09-30
Filing date: 2020-09-23
Publication date: 2021-04-08
Also published as: CN112584437A; CN112584437B

Abstract

A data offload method and apparatus. When the method is applied to a session management function (SMF), the method comprises: receiving a protocol data unit (PDU) session policy sent by a policy control function (PCF), wherein the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow the local offload of a target PDU session; and determining, according to the session policy, whether to perform local offload on the target PDU session, and executing the selection of a user plane function (UPF).

Description

Data shunt method and device

Cross-references to related applications

This application claims the priority of Chinese Patent Application No. 201910938987.4 filed in China on September 30, 2019, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by reference.

Technical field

The present disclosure relates to the field of mobile communication technology, and in particular to a data distribution method and device.

Background technique

In the 5G New Air Interface (NR) system, the user plane function (UPF, User Plane Function) supports the uplink classifier (UL CL, Uplink Classifier) or branch point (BP, Branching Point) function, which is used to logically transfer some local traffic To match the traffic filter provided by the session management function (SMF, Session Management Function), so as to realize the local break out (LBO, Local Break Out).

Figure 1 shows a process for 5G system to select UPF, which mainly includes:

Step 101: The application function (AF, Application Function) creates a new AF request (AF request), which can be created by calling Nnef_TrafficInfluence_Create. The AF request can contain the following information: 1) AF Transaction Id; 2) Used to describe the target The combination of the general public user identifier (GPSI) or data network name (DNN), single network slice selection assistance information (S-NSSAI) and data network access identifier (DNAI) of the UE ID; 3) used to describe the target PDU The AF-Service-Identifier of the session or the combination of DNN and S-NSSAI. 4) DNAI used to describe where the application may be deployed.

Step 102: AF sends the AF request to the Network Exposure Function (NEF); NEF ensures necessary authorization control, including restricting AF requests, and maps the information provided by the AF request to the 5G core network (5GC) required information.

Step 103: NEF calls the Npcf_PolicyAuthorization_Create service, and sends the AF request after the above information mapping is performed to the policy control function (PCF, Policy Control Function).

Step 104: The PCF decides whether the PDU session is affected by the AF request. In addition, the PCF issues a policy to the SMF to update information for the PDU session affected by the AF request through Npcf_SMPolicyControl_UpdateNotify.

Step 105: The SMF selects the appropriate user plane according to the policy issued by the PCF. For example, it can insert or delete a UPF in an existing session; it can also assign a new prefix to the UE (the UE supports IPv6 Multi-Homing Circumstances); It can also update the UPF in the target DNAI according to the new traffic guidance rule.

In related technologies, the insertion of ULCL or BP is determined by SMF and is controlled by SMF at the same time. The insertion process can be performed during the establishment of the PDU session or after the establishment of the PDU session. For example, after a terminal (UE) establishes a Protocol Data Unit (PDU, Protocol Data Unit) session, the SMF will change according to the position of the UE it senses (for example, when the UE moves to a specific area, it triggers the SMF to sense that the UE is in the local application Within the coverage area of BP), or UPF performs local offloading based on the detected trigger information such as the appearance of a new service stream, that is, BP or ULCL insertion.

Summary of the invention

At least one embodiment of the present disclosure provides a data offloading method and device, which can provide a decision basis for local offloading decision-making, and improve the implementation process of local offloading.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a data offloading method applied to the session management function SMF, including:

Receiving a protocol data unit PDU session policy sent by a policy control function PCF, where the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session;

According to the session policy, it is determined whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of the user plane function UPF.

Optionally, in the above method, determining whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and execute the selection of the user plane function UPF according to the session policy includes:

When the local offload indication information indicates that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed, according to a preset operator policy, the characteristic information of the target PDU session, the location information of the target terminal, and the target terminal At least one of the offload capability information, determining whether to perform local offloading, and when determining to perform the local offloading, determine the offloading method used for the local offloading, the offloading method including the uplink classifier UL CL method and the branch point BP method;

Select the target UPF for the local distribution according to the distribution method adopted by the local distribution.

Optionally, in the above method, after selecting the target UPF for local offloading, the method further includes:

The ULCL or BP function is implemented in the target UPF, and the target PDU session is locally offloaded.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a data offloading method applied to the application function AF, including:

Creating an application function request message, the application function request message including indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

Send the application function request message.

Optionally, in the foregoing method, the application function creation request message includes:

According to the subscription information of the target terminal, the creation includes indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a data distribution method applied to a policy control function PCF, including:

Receive an application function AF request message, where the AF request message carries local offload indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

Generating a PDU session policy for the target PDU session according to the local offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, where the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session;

Send the PDU session policy to the SMF.

Optionally, in the above method, before generating the PDU session policy for the target PDU session, the method further includes:

Receiving a policy request message for the target PDU session sent by the SMF.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a session management function SMF, including:

The receiving module is configured to receive the protocol data unit PDU session strategy sent by the policy control function PCF, where the PDU session strategy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session;

The UPF selection module is configured to determine whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of the user plane function UPF according to the session strategy.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a session management function SMF, including a transceiver and a processor, wherein,

The transceiver is configured to receive a protocol data unit PDU session policy sent by a policy control function PCF, and the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of a target PDU session;

The processor is configured to determine whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and execute the selection of the user plane function UPF according to the session policy.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides an application function AF, including:

The request creation module is configured to create an application function request message, where the application function request message includes indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The sending module is used to send the application function request message.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides an application function AF, including a transceiver and a processor, wherein,

The processor is configured to create an application function request message, where the application function request message includes indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The transceiver is used to send the application function request message.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a policy control function PCF, including:

The receiving module is configured to receive an application function AF request message, where the AF request message carries local offload indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The strategy generation module is configured to generate a PDU session strategy for the target PDU session according to the local offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, and the PDU session strategy carries a message for indicating whether to allow the target PDU session The second indication information of the local offload;

The sending module is used to send the PDU session strategy to the SMF.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a policy control function PCF, including a transceiver and a processor, wherein,

The transceiver is configured to receive an application function AF request message, where the AF request message carries local offload indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The processor is configured to generate a PDU session strategy for the target PDU session according to the local offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, and the PDU session strategy carries a method for indicating whether to allow the target PDU session Second indication information for local diversion;

The transceiver is also used to send the PDU session policy to the SMF.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, at least one embodiment provides a computer-readable storage medium with a program stored on the computer-readable storage medium, and when the program is executed by a processor, it implements the method described above. step.

Compared with related technologies, the data offloading method and device provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can perform for SMF by carrying offloading indication information for indicating whether to perform local offloading in the AF request, and providing the above-mentioned offloading instruction information to the SMF. The decision of local diversion provides a basis for decision-making and improves the implementation process of local diversion.

Description of the drawings

By reading the detailed description of the optional embodiments below, various other advantages and benefits will become clear to those of ordinary skill in the art. The drawings are only used for the purpose of showing alternative embodiments, and are not considered as a limitation to the present disclosure. Also, throughout the drawings, the same reference symbols are used to denote the same components. In the attached picture:

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a UPF selection process in related technologies;

2 is a schematic diagram of interaction of a data distribution method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart when the data shunt method provided by an embodiment of the disclosure is applied to the AF side;

4 is a flowchart when the data distribution method provided by an embodiment of the disclosure is applied to the PCF side;

FIG. 5 is a flowchart when the data distribution method provided by an embodiment of the disclosure is applied to the SMF side;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of a structure of an AF provided by an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of another structure of AF provided by an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a PCF provided by an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of another structure of a PCF provided by an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a structure of an SMF provided by an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram of another structure of an SMF provided by an embodiment of the disclosure.

Detailed ways

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although the drawings show exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited by the embodiments set forth herein. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided to enable a more thorough understanding of the present disclosure and to fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

The terms "first" and "second" in the specification and claims of this application are used to distinguish similar objects, and not necessarily used to describe a specific sequence or sequence. It should be understood that the data used in this way can be interchanged under appropriate circumstances, so that the embodiments of the present application described herein can be implemented in a sequence other than those illustrated or described herein, for example. In addition, the terms "including" and "having" and any variations of them are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusions. For example, a process, method, system, product, or device that includes a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those clearly listed. Those steps or units may include other steps or units that are not clearly listed or are inherent to these processes, methods, products, or equipment. In the specification and claims, "and/or" means at least one of the connected objects.

The following description provides examples and does not limit the scope, applicability, or configuration set forth in the claims. Changes can be made to the function and arrangement of the discussed elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Various examples may omit, substitute, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For example, the described method may be performed in an order different from that described, and various steps may be added, omitted, or combined. In addition, features described with reference to certain examples may be combined in other examples.

Related technologies insert UL CL or BP functions into UPF to implement local offloading of 5G systems. In the scenario shown in Figure 1, the information carried in the application function (AF, Application Function) request may affect the service selection UPF. However, the related technology does not specify what method is used to route the service to the designated UPF, that is, the SMF's instructions for determining whether to perform local offloading are not clear enough. For example, in the information carried in the process shown in Figure 1 when creating an AF request, it does not send a clear local offload instruction to the PCF to formulate the corresponding PDU session strategy, so that SMF cannot determine whether this third-party application needs it. Data is forwarded locally by means of local offloading. It can be seen that the mechanism of how the SMF of the related technology decides whether the local offloading is not perfect.

In order to solve at least one of the above problems, the embodiments of the present disclosure provide a data shunt method, which provides a decision basis for local shunt decision-making, and improves the implementation process of local shunt. Referring to FIG. 2, a data distribution method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure includes:

Step 201: The AF creates a new AF request message (assuming it is the first AF request message). Specifically, the AF can be created by calling Nnef_TrafficInfluence_Create. The first AF request message can contain the following information: 0) Used to indicate the target The first offload indication information for local offloading of the PDU session; 1) AF Transaction Id; 2) GPSI or a combination of DNN, S-NSSAI and DNAI used to describe the target UE ID; 3) AF service used to describe the target PDU session Identity (AF-Service-Identifier) or a combination of DNN and S-NSSAI. 4) DNAI used to describe where the application may be deployed.

It can be seen that, compared with FIG. 1, when the AF in the embodiment of the present disclosure creates an AF request, the AF request includes a piece of newly added information, that is, the first offload indication information for whether to require local offloading of the target PDU session. . Specifically, the AF may create, according to the subscription information of the target terminal, when the target terminal has a local offload capability authorization, create first offload indication information that includes a requirement for local offloading of the target PDU session.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first offload indication information may be represented by adding a field (field) to the AF request, such as the LBO Indication Identifier field, the length of the field is at least one bit, for example, the field is In the case of 1 bit, the value of 1 and the value of 0 can be used to respectively indicate that the target PDU session is required to be locally offloaded and not to be locally offloaded. The embodiments of the present disclosure can also extend the existing fields in the AF request (such as reserved bits in the existing fields, etc.) to carry the above-mentioned first offload indication information, for example, using the DNN used to describe the ID of the target UE One or some bits in DNAI in the combination of S-NSSAI and DNAI carry the above-mentioned first shunt indication information. This carrying method can be regarded as an implicit indication.

In step 202, the AF sends the above-mentioned first AF request message to the PCF, which can be forwarded to the PCF through the NEF. At this time, the AF sends the above-mentioned first AF request message to the NEF; the NEF ensures the necessary authorization control, including restricting the AF request, and The information provided by the first AF request message is mapped to the information required by the 5G core network (5GC).

Here, the information mapping may include: converting the information in the AF request into information that can be understood by the 5G core network (for example, through format conversion processing, etc.), and the specific conversion method may refer to related technologies, which will not be repeated in this disclosure.

Step 203: NEF calls the Npcf_PolicyAuthorization_Create service, and sends the second AF request message obtained by performing the above information mapping to the policy control function (PCF, Policy Control Function), and the second AF request message includes the first offload indication information . Here, the first offload indication information may have undergone information mapping processing, so as to be converted into instruction information understandable by the network, so that subsequent network functions can understand the meaning of the offload instruction.

Step 204: The PCF receives a second AF request message sent by the NEF. The second AF request message carries the first offload indication information whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required, and the first offload indication information is the first offload indication information sent from the AF. Obtained from an AF request message. Then, the PCF generates a PDU session policy for the target PDU session according to the first offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, and the PDU session policy carries a message for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session The second shunt indication information. Then, the PCF sends the PDU session policy to the SMF, and the PDU session policy carries second offload indication information indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session.

In other words, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the PCF can autonomously decide whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session based on various factors. For example, where the first offload indication information indicates that the target PDU session is locally offloaded, the second offload instruction information may indicate that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed or not allowed.

In addition, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the PCF may also send the PDU session policy to the SMF after receiving the policy request message for the target PDU session sent by the SMF.

Specifically, the PCF may use Npcf_SMPolicyControl_UpdateNotify to update information for the PDU session affected by the AF request to the SMF, and deliver the PDU session policy to the SMF.

Step 205: The SMF receives the PDU session policy sent by the PCF. The PDU session policy carries second offload indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session. Then, according to the session policy, it is determined whether to The target PDU session performs local offloading and performs the selection of the user plane function UPF. For example, it can be to insert or delete a UPF in an existing session; it can also be to assign a new prefix to the UE (when the UE supports IPv6 Multi-Homing); it can also be to update the target DNAI according to new traffic guidance rules UPF in.

In addition, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, in step 205, the SMF may send a policy request message for the target PDU session to the PCF during the process of establishing the target PDU session of the target traffic of the target terminal; then, receive The PCF responds to the PDU session policy returned by the policy request message.

In addition, when determining whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of the user plane function UPF, the SMF may, when the second offload indication information indicates that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed, according to At least one of the preset operator policy, the characteristic information of the target PDU session (such as target traffic), the location information of the target terminal, and the offload capability information of the target terminal, determine whether to perform local offloading, and When performing local offloading, the offloading method used for local offloading is further determined. The offloading methods include uplink classifier UL CL method and branch point BP method; then, according to the offloading method used for local offloading, select the one used for local offloading. Target UPF, and insert UL CL or BP into the target UPF, implement the ULCL or BP function in the target UPF, and perform local offloading of the target PDU session.

Specifically, the specific implementation of inserting UL CL or BP can refer to related descriptions of related technologies. In order to save space, it will not be repeated here.

In addition, it should be noted that the UPF, SMF, PCF, NEF, and AF shown in Figure 2 may be entities or functional modules that implement related functions, and specifically may be UPF entities, SMF entities, PCF entities, NEF entities, and AF Entities are either UPF function modules, SMF function modules, PCF function modules, NEF function modules, and AF function modules, or UPF units, SMF units, PCF units, NEF units, and AF units.

Through the above steps, the embodiment of the present disclosure carries the offload indication information used to indicate whether to perform local offloading in the AF request, and provides the above offload instruction information to the SMF, which can provide a decision basis for the SMF's decision to perform local offloading. The implementation process of local diversion.

The following further describes the data distribution method of the embodiments of the present disclosure from each entity in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Referring to FIG. 3, the data shunting method provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure, when applied to the AF side, includes:

Step 301: Create a first application function request message, where the first application function request message includes first offload indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required.

Here, the AF may create, according to the subscription information of the target terminal, when the target terminal has local offloading capability authorization, create the first offload indication information including the request for local offloading of the target PDU session.

Step 302: Send the first application function request message.

Here, the AF may send the first application function request message to the PCF through the NEF. Specifically, after the NEF receives the first application function request message, it may perform authorization control and information mapping processing, and send the first application function request message to the PCF. Perform the conversion, and send the converted first application function request message to the PCF. For ease of description, the converted first application function request message may be referred to as a second application function request message.

Referring to FIG. 4, the data distribution method provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure, when applied to the PCF side, includes:

Step 401: Receive a second application function AF request message sent by NEF, where the second AF request message carries first offload indication information for indicating whether to require local offloading of the target PDU session, and the first offload indication information is from AF Obtained from the first AF request message sent.

Step 402: Generate a PDU session policy for the target PDU session according to the first offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, where the PDU session policy carries a method for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session The second shunt indication information.

Here, generating the PDU session policy for the target traffic of the target terminal may also be triggered based on the policy request message sent by the SMF to generate the PDU session policy. In this case, before generating the PDU session policy The PCF may also receive a policy request message for the target PDU session sent by the SMF.

Generally, when the first offload indication information requires local offloading of the target PDU session, the second offload indication information in the PDU session policy may indicate that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed or not allowed.

Step 403: Send the PDU session policy to the SMF.

Referring to FIG. 5, the data distribution method provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure, when applied to the SMF side, includes:

Step 501: Receive a PDU session policy sent by the PCF, where the PDU session policy carries second offload indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session.

Here, the PDU session policy may also be that the SMF actively requests the PCF during the establishment of the PDU session. At this time, in the above step 501, the SMF may send to the PCF information about the PDU session. Policy request message, and then receive the PDU session policy.

Step 502: Determine, according to the session policy, whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of the user plane function UPF.

Here, when the second offload indication information indicates that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed, the SMF may be based on a preset operator policy, characteristic information of the target PDU session, location information of the target terminal, and At least one of the offload capability information of the target terminal determines whether to perform local offloading, and when determining to perform local offloading, further determines the offloading method used for the local offloading, and the offloading method includes the uplink classifier UL CL method and The branch point BP method; then, according to the branch method adopted by the local branch, the target UPF for the local branch is selected.

After the above step 502, the ULCL or BP function may also be implemented in the target UPF, and the target PDU session may be locally offloaded, for example, UL CL or BP may be inserted into the target UPF.

Based on the above method, the embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a device for implementing the above method.

Referring to FIG. 6, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an AF 60, including:

The request creation module 61 is configured to create an application function request message, where the application function request message includes indication information indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The sending module 62 is configured to send the application function request message.

Optionally, the request creation module 61 is further configured to create, according to the subscription information of the target terminal, when the target terminal has local offloading capability authorization, the creation includes indication information that requires local offloading of the target PDU session .

Please refer to FIG. 7, another structure of the AF provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure. The AF 700 includes a processor 701, a transceiver 702, a memory 703, a user interface 704, and a bus interface, where:

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, AF 700 further includes: a program that is stored in the memory 703 and can be run on the processor 701. When the program is executed by the processor 701, the following steps are implemented:

Creating an application function request message, the application function request message including indication information indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

Send the application function request message. Understandably, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the computer program is executed by the processor 701, each process of the data distribution method embodiment shown in FIG. 3 can be realized, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, here No longer.

In Fig. 7, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges. Specifically, one or more processors represented by the processor 701 and various circuits of the memory represented by the memory 703 are linked together. The bus architecture can also link various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are all known in the art, and therefore, will not be further described herein. The bus interface provides the interface. The transceiver 702 may be a plurality of elements, including a transmitter and a receiver, and provide a unit for communicating with various other devices on a transmission medium.

The processor 701 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 703 can store data used by the processor 701 when performing operations.

Please refer to FIG. 8, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a schematic structural diagram of a PCF 80, and the PCF 80 includes:

The receiving module 81 is configured to receive an application function AF request message, where the AF request message carries first indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The strategy generation module 82 is configured to generate a PDU session strategy for the target PDU session according to the first indication information and a preset network control strategy, and the PDU session strategy carries a method for indicating whether to allow the target PDU session Second indication information for local diversion;

The sending module 83 is configured to send the PDU session policy to the SMF.

Optionally, the receiving module 81 is further configured to receive a policy request message for the target PDU session sent by the SMF.

Optionally, when the first offloading indication information indicates that local offloading of the target PDU session is required, the second offloading instruction information may indicate that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed or not allowed to be locally offloaded.

Please refer to FIG. 9, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides another schematic structural diagram of PCF 900, including: a processor 901, a transceiver 902, a memory 903, and a bus interface, where:

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the PCF 900 further includes: a program that is stored in the memory 903 and can run on the processor 901, and when the program is executed by the processor 901, the following steps are implemented:

Receiving an application function AF request message, where the AF request message carries first indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

According to the first indication information and the preset network control strategy, a PDU session policy for the target PDU session is generated, and the PDU session policy carries a second indication for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session information;

Send the PDU session policy to the SMF.

Understandably, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the computer program is executed by the processor 901, each process of the data distribution method embodiment shown in FIG. 4 can be realized, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, here No longer.

In FIG. 9, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges. Specifically, one or more processors represented by the processor 901 and various circuits of the memory represented by the memory 903 are linked together. The bus architecture can also link various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are all known in the art, and therefore, will not be further described herein. The bus interface provides the interface. The transceiver 902 may be a plurality of elements, including a transmitter and a receiver, and provide a unit for communicating with various other devices on the transmission medium.

The processor 901 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 903 can store data used by the processor 901 when performing operations.

Please refer to FIG. 10, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a schematic structural diagram of an SMF 100, and the SMF 100 includes:

The receiving module 101 is configured to receive a protocol data unit PDU session policy sent by the policy control function PCF, where the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session;

The UPF selection module 102 is configured to determine whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of the user plane function UPF according to the session policy.

Optionally, the SMF 100 also includes:

A sending module, configured to send a policy request message for the PDU session to the PCF during the process of establishing the target PDU session;

The receiving module is further configured to receive the PDU session policy returned by the PCF in response to the policy request message.

Optionally, the UPF selection module 102 is further configured to, when the local offload indication information indicates that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed, according to a preset operator policy and characteristic information of the target PDU session At least one of the location information of the target terminal and the offload capability information of the target terminal, determining whether to perform local offloading, and when performing the local offloading, further determining the offloading mode used for the local offloading, the offloading mode Including uplink classifier UL CL mode and branch point BP mode; according to the distribution mode adopted by the local distribution, select the target UPF for the local distribution.

Optionally, the SMF 100 also includes:

The offload processing unit is configured to implement the ULCL or BP function in the target UPF, and perform local offload on the target PDU session.

Please refer to FIG. 11, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides another structural diagram of SMF 1100, including: a processor 1101, a transceiver 1102, a memory 1103, and a bus interface, where:

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the SMF 1100 further includes: a program that is stored in the memory 1103 and can be run on the processor 1101. When the program is executed by the processor 1101, the following steps are implemented:

Understandably, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the computer program is executed by the processor 1101, each process of the data distribution method embodiment shown in FIG. 5 can be realized, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, here No longer.

In FIG. 11, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges. Specifically, one or more processors represented by the processor 1101 and various circuits of the memory represented by the memory 1103 are linked together. The bus architecture can also link various other circuits such as peripherals, voltage regulators, power management circuits, etc., which are all known in the art, and therefore, will not be further described herein. The bus interface provides the interface. The transceiver 1102 may be a plurality of elements, including a transmitter and a receiver, and provide a unit for communicating with various other devices on the transmission medium.

The processor 1101 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1103 can store data used by the processor 1101 when performing operations.

The embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a computer-readable storage medium on which a computer program is stored. When the computer program is executed by a processor, each process of the above-mentioned data distribution method embodiment is realized, and the same technical effect can be achieved. To avoid repetition, I won’t repeat them here.

Computer-readable media includes permanent and non-permanent, removable and non-removable media, and information storage can be realized by any method or technology. The information can be computer-readable instructions, data structures, program modules, or other data. Examples of computer storage media include, but are not limited to, phase change memory (PRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), other types of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disc (DVD) or other optical storage, Magnetic cassettes, magnetic tape magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices or any other non-transmission media can be used to store information that can be accessed by computing devices. According to the definition in this article, computer-readable media does not include transitory media, such as modulated data signals and carrier waves.

A person of ordinary skill in the art may realize that the units and algorithm steps of the examples described in combination with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented by electronic hardware or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed by hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraint conditions of the technical solution. Professionals and technicians can use different methods for each specific application to implement the described functions, but such implementation should not be considered beyond the scope of the present disclosure.

Those skilled in the art can clearly understand that, for the convenience and conciseness of description, the specific working process of the system, device and unit described above can refer to the corresponding process in the foregoing method embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

In the embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed device and method may be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are merely illustrative, for example, the division of the units is only a logical function division, and there may be other divisions in actual implementation, for example, multiple units or components may be combined or It can be integrated into another system, or some features can be ignored or not implemented. In addition, the displayed or discussed mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection may be indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, and may be in electrical, mechanical or other forms.

The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components displayed as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place, or they may be distributed on multiple network units. Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the objectives of the solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present disclosure may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit.

If the function is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solution of the present disclosure essentially or the part that contributes to the related technology or the part of the technical solution can be embodied in the form of a software product, and the computer software product is stored in a storage medium, including several The instructions are used to make a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a base station, etc.) execute all or part of the steps of the data distribution method described in the various embodiments of the present disclosure.

It can be understood that the embodiments described in the embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, or a combination thereof. For hardware implementation, the units, modules, sub-units and sub-modules can be implemented in one or more application specific integrated circuits (ASIC), digital signal processors (Digital Signal Processing, DSP), and digital signal processing equipment (DSP Device). , DSPD), Programmable Logic Device (PLD), Field-Programmable Gate Array (Field-Programmable Gate Array, FPGA), general-purpose processors, controllers, microcontrollers, microprocessors, and Disclosure of the described functions in other electronic units or combinations thereof.

For software implementation, the technology described in the embodiments of the present disclosure can be implemented through modules (for example, procedures, functions, etc.) that perform the functions described in the embodiments of the present disclosure. The software codes can be stored in the memory and executed by the processor. The memory can be implemented in the processor or external to the processor.

The above are only specific implementations of the present disclosure, but the protection scope of the present disclosure is not limited thereto. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present disclosure. It should be covered within the protection scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the protection scope of the present disclosure should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

A data distribution method, applied to the session management function SMF, includes:

Receiving a protocol data unit PDU session policy sent by a policy control function PCF, where the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session;

According to the session policy, it is determined whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of the user plane function UPF.
The method of claim 1, wherein, according to the session policy, determining whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of a user plane function UPF comprises:

When the local offload indication information indicates that local offloading of the target PDU session is allowed, according to a preset operator policy, the characteristic information of the target PDU session, the location information of the target terminal, and the target terminal At least one of the offloading capability information, determining whether to perform local offloading, and when determining to perform the local offloading, determine the offloading mode used for the local offloading, the offloading mode includes the uplink classifier UL CL mode and the branch point BP mode;

Select the target UPF for the local distribution according to the distribution method adopted by the local distribution.
The method according to claim 2, after selecting the target UPF for local offloading, further comprising:

The ULCL or BP function is implemented in the target UPF, and the target PDU session is locally offloaded.
A data distribution method applied to the application function AF, including:

Creating an application function request message, the application function request message including indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

Send the application function request message.
The method according to claim 4, wherein the request message for creating an application function comprises:

According to the subscription information of the target terminal, the creation includes indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required.
A data distribution method, applied to the policy control function PCF, includes:

Receive an application function AF request message, the AF request message carries local offload indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

Generating a PDU session policy for the target PDU session according to the local offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, where the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session;

Send the PDU session policy to the SMF.
The method according to claim 6, before generating the PDU session policy for the target PDU session, further comprising:

Receiving a policy request message for the target PDU session sent by the SMF.
A session management function SMF, including:

The receiving module is configured to receive the protocol data unit PDU session strategy sent by the policy control function PCF, where the PDU session strategy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of the target PDU session;

The UPF selection module is configured to determine whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and perform the selection of the user plane function UPF according to the session strategy.
A session management function SMF, including a transceiver and a processor, among which,

The transceiver is configured to receive a protocol data unit PDU session policy sent by a policy control function PCF, and the PDU session policy carries indication information for indicating whether to allow local offloading of a target PDU session;

The processor is configured to determine whether to perform local offloading of the target PDU session and execute the selection of the user plane function UPF according to the session policy.
An application function AF, including:

The request creation module is configured to create an application function request message, where the application function request message includes indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The sending module is used to send the application function request message.
An application function AF, including a transceiver and a processor, among which,

The processor is configured to create an application function request message, where the application function request message includes indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The transceiver is used to send the application function request message.
A policy control function PCF, including:

The receiving module is configured to receive an application function AF request message, where the AF request message carries local offload indication information for indicating whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The strategy generation module is configured to generate a PDU session strategy for the target PDU session according to the local offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, and the PDU session strategy carries a message for indicating whether to allow the target PDU session Indication information for local diversion;

The sending module is used to send the PDU session strategy to the SMF.
A policy control function PCF, including a transceiver and a processor, among which,

The transceiver is configured to receive an application function AF request message, where the AF request message carries local offload indication information used to indicate whether local offloading of the target PDU session is required;

The processor is configured to generate a PDU session strategy for the target PDU session according to the local offload indication information and a preset network control strategy, and the PDU session strategy carries a method for indicating whether to allow the target PDU session Instruction information for local diversion;

The transceiver is also used to send the PDU session policy to the SMF.
A session management function SMF, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and running on the processor; wherein the processor executes the computer program when the computer program is executed as claimed in claims 1 to Steps in the data shunt method described in any one of 3.
An application function AF, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and running on the processor; wherein the processor executes the computer program as claimed in claim 4 or 5. The steps in the data distribution method.
A policy control function PCF, including a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and running on the processor; wherein, the processor executes the computer program as claimed in claim 6 or Steps in the data split method described in 7.
A computer-readable storage medium, wherein a computer program is stored on the computer-readable storage medium, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the data distribution method according to any one of claims 1 to 7 are realized .