WO2021204277A1

WO2021204277A1 - Communication method, apparatus and system

Info

Publication number: WO2021204277A1
Application number: PCT/CN2021/086298
Authority: WO
Inventors: 许胜锋; 李濛; 应江威
Original assignee: 华为技术有限公司
Priority date: 2020-04-10
Filing date: 2021-04-09
Publication date: 2021-10-14
Also published as: CN113518475A; CN113518475B

Abstract

Provided are a communication method, apparatus and system, which relate to the technical field of communications, and can solve the technical problem in the prior art of a network side being unable to find a terminal such that network authentication, billing or other control operations cannot be performed on the terminal. The method comprises: a user plane function receiving a data packet comprising data of a first terminal by means of a protocol data unit (PDU) session of a second terminal, wherein the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal; the user plane function determining whether a destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches an IP address of a first N3IWF; and if so, sending the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session.

Description

Communication method, device and system

This application claims the priority of a Chinese patent application filed with the State Intellectual Property Office on April 10, 2020, with the application number of 202010281118.1, the application name is "communication method, device and system", the entire content of which is incorporated into this application by reference .

Technical field

The present invention relates to the field of communication technology, in particular to a communication method, device and system.

Background technique

With the rapid development of mobile communications, the widespread use of services such as video chat, virtual reality (VR), and augmented reality (AR) has increased the demand for bandwidth by users. In order to meet the user's demand for bandwidth, device-to-device (D2D) communication is proposed. Among them, D2D communication may allow communication between the terminal and the terminal through a proximity-based services communication 5 (PC5) interface. Based on D2D communication, when the terminal is outside the network coverage or the communication signal with the network element of the access network is not good, other terminals can be selected as relay nodes and access the network through the relay nodes.

In the prior art, the terminal can send data to the network through a protocol data unit (PDU) session established by a relay node. For example, as shown in FIG. 1a, the terminal may send data to a user plane function (UPF) corresponding to the relay node through a PDU session established by the relay node, and the UPF forwards the data of the terminal to the server.

The terminal can use an Internet protocol security (IPsec) tunnel to send data or signaling to the network-side access device corresponding to the terminal through the PDU session of the relay node. The network side access device corresponding to the terminal then sends the received data or signaling to the core network device. Using the IPsec tunnel can prevent the relay node from parsing out the data or signaling of the terminal. However, in this process, the network side may not be able to discover the terminal, and thus the network authentication, charging or other control operations of the terminal cannot be realized.

Summary of the invention

In view of this, the purpose of the embodiments of the present application is to provide a communication method, device, and system, which can solve the security problem of data transmission.

In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, the method includes: a user plane network element receives a data packet including data of a first terminal through a PDU session of a second terminal, and the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal; and a user The plane network element judges whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; if they match, the user plane network element sends the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session.

Based on the method described in the first aspect, in this embodiment of the application, the user plane network element can detect the data packet received through the PDU session of the second terminal, and the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF When the data is forwarded, the data of the first terminal can be forwarded to the first user plane network element corresponding to the PDU session established by the first terminal through the first N3IWF, and then forwarded to the server in the data network, so that the network side can pass the first N3IWF An N3IWF discovers the terminal, and then implements network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect, the user plane network element receives from the session management network element for instructing the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF First indication information; according to the first indication information, it is determined whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect, the user plane network element receives the second indication information from the session management network element for indicating that the PDU session is used for relay services; according to the second indication information, it is determined that the PDU session bears Whether the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Based on the above two possible designs, the user plane network element can determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the explicit first indication information sent by the session management network element. It is also possible to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the implicit second indication information sent by the session management network element. It provides a feasible solution for the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, the user plane network element receives the third indication information from the session management network element; where the third indication information is used to indicate when the user plane network element is When it is judged that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, the data packet is sent to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session; The first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet sends the data packet.

Based on this possible design, the user plane network element can send a data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session according to the third instruction information sent by the session management network element, for the user plane network element to send the data packet to the first N3IWF. N3IWF provides a feasible solution for sending data packets.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, if the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the user plane network element sends to the session management network element The fourth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal; the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Based on this possible design, when the destination address of the data packet does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the user plane network element can send fourth indication information to the session management network element, so that the session management network element can follow the fourth indication information Release the context of the first terminal to prevent the first terminal from bypassing the first N3IWF and sending data to the server.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, the user plane network element receives the fifth indication information from the session management network element; wherein the fifth indication information is used to indicate when the user plane network element is When it is determined that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the fourth instruction information is sent to the session management network element; according to the fifth instruction information, the fourth instruction information is sent to the session management network element.

Based on this possible design, the user plane network element can send fourth instruction information to the session management network element according to the fifth instruction information sent by the session management network element, so that the user plane network element can send the fourth instruction information to the session management network element. A feasible plan.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, the user plane network element receives the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal from the session management network element; the user plane network element reports to the session management The network element sends the sixth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal; the sixth indication information is used to indicate whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Based on this possible design, after receiving the IP address of the second N3IWF, the user plane network element can detect the IP address of the second N3IWF to determine whether it matches the IP address of the first N3IWF. If it matches, the IP address of the second N3IWF can be determined as the IP address of the first N3IWF. In the subsequent data transmission process, it can be determined whether the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the second N3IWF. The data packet is sent to the corresponding first N3IWF, reducing the matching complexity. If they do not match, the session management network element and the second terminal may be instructed to release the context of the first terminal, so as to prevent the first terminal from bypassing the first N3IWF and sending the data to the server.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, the user plane network element receives from the session management network element for instructing the user plane network element to determine the IP address of the second N3IWF and the IP address of the first N3IWF The seventh indication information of whether the IP address matches; according to the seventh indication information, the sixth indication information is sent to the session management network element.

Based on this possible design, the user plane network element can send the sixth instruction information according to the seventh instruction information sent by the session management network element, which provides a feasible solution for the user plane network element to send the sixth instruction information to the session management network element.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, the user plane network element is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or the user plane network element receives the first N3IWF from the session management network element IP address; or the user plane network element receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the session management network element, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

Based on this possible design, a feasible solution is provided for the user plane network element to obtain the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, the user plane network element receives the identification information of the first terminal from the session management network element.

In a possible design, in combination with the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, the identification information of the first terminal includes at least one of the following: an IP address allocated by the second terminal to the first terminal, identification information of a PDU session, Identity information of the first terminal.

Based on this possible design, the identification information of the first terminal may be the IP address allocated by the second terminal to the first terminal, or the identification information of the PDU session, or the identity information of the first terminal, or other information used to indicate the first terminal. The information of the terminal is not restricted.

In a second aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device can implement the functions performed by the user plane network element in the first aspect or the possible design of the first aspect, and the functions can be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-mentioned functions. For example, the communication device includes: a receiving module, a processing module, and a sending module.

The receiving module is configured to receive a data packet including data of the first terminal through a PDU session of the second terminal, and the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal.

The processing module is used to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

The sending module is configured to send the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session if it matches.

The specific implementation of the communication device may refer to the behavior function of the user plane network element in the communication method provided in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect. Based on the communication device described in the second aspect, the user plane The network element can detect the data packet received through the PDU session of the second terminal, and when the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, forward the data, so that the data of the first terminal can pass through the first N3IWF It is forwarded to the first user plane network element corresponding to the PDU session established by the first terminal, and then forwarded to the server in the data network, so that the network side can discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, and then realize the network authentication and charging of the first terminal Or other control operations.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive from the session management network element for instructing the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session is the same as the IP address of the first N3IWF Matching first indication information; the processing module is further configured to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the first indication information.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect, the receiving module is further configured to receive second indication information from the session management network element for indicating that the PDU session is used for the relay service; the processing module is further configured to Indication information to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive the third indication information from the session management network element; wherein the third indication information is used to indicate the user plane When the network element judges that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, it sends the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session; Indication information, sending a data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the sending module is also used to send a message to the session management network if the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF The meta sends fourth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal; the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive the fifth indication information from the session management network element; wherein the fifth indication information is used to indicate the user plane When the network element judges that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, it sends fourth indication information to the session management network element; the sending module is also used to send fourth indication information to the session management network according to the fifth indication information The element sends the fourth instruction information.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the receiving module is also used for the user plane network element to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the session management network element; and to send; The module is also used to send sixth indication information including identification information of the first terminal to the session management network element; the sixth indication information is used to indicate whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive from the session management network element for instructing the user plane network element to determine the IP address of the second N3IWF and the first Seventh indication information indicating whether the IP address of the N3IWF matches or not; the sending module is further configured to send sixth indication information to the session management network element according to the seventh indication information.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the user plane network element is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or the user plane network element receives the first N3IWF from the session management network element IP address; or the user plane network element receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the session management network element, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the receiving module is further configured to receive the identification information of the first terminal from the session management network element.

In a possible design, in combination with the second aspect or the possible design of the second aspect, the identification information of the first terminal includes at least one of the following: the IP address allocated by the second terminal to the first terminal, the identification information of the PDU session, Identity information of the first terminal.

In a third aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be a user plane network element or a chip or a system on a chip in a user plane network element. The communication device can realize the functions performed by the user plane network elements in the above-mentioned aspects or various possible designs, and the functions can be realized by hardware. In a possible design, the communication device may include a transceiver and a processor. The transceiver and the processor may be used to support the communication device to implement the foregoing first aspect or the functions involved in any possible design of the first aspect. For example: the transceiver can be used to receive a data packet including data of the first terminal through the PDU session of the second terminal, and the second terminal is the relay node of the first terminal; the processor can be used to determine the status of the data packet carried by the PDU session Whether the destination address matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; if they match, the transceiver can also be used to send a data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session. In another possible design, the communication device may further include a memory, and the memory is used to store necessary computer-executable instructions and data of the communication device. When the communication device is running, the transceiver and the processor execute the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the communication method described in the first aspect or any one of the possible designs of the first aspect. .

The specific implementation of the communication device may refer to the first aspect or the behavior function of the user plane network element in the communication method provided by any possible design of the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes one or more processors and one or more memories; the one or more memories are coupled with the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used for storing Computer program code or computer instructions; when one or more processors execute the computer instructions, it causes the communication device to execute the communication method as described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

In a fifth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided. The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer instructions or programs are run on a computer, the computer executes the steps described in the first aspect or the first aspect. Any possible design of the communication method described.

In a sixth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which when running on a computer, causes the computer to execute the communication method as described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

In a seventh aspect, a chip system is provided. The chip system includes one or more processors and one or more memories; the one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories store There are computer program codes or computer instructions; when the one or more processors execute the computer program codes or computer instructions, the chip system is caused to execute the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect The communication method mentioned.

Among them, the technical effects brought about by any one of the design methods of the third aspect to the seventh aspect can be referred to the technical effects brought about by any possible design of the above-mentioned first aspect to the second aspect, and will not be repeated here.

In an eighth aspect, a communication method is provided, the method comprising: a session management network element determining that a PDU session of a second terminal is used for a relay service; wherein the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal; and the session management network element Send to the user plane network element first indication information for instructing the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; the data packet includes the data of the first terminal.

Based on the eighth aspect, when the session management network element determines that the PDU session of the second terminal is used for the relay service, it can send the first indication information to the user plane network element so that the user plane network element can determine the data packet carried by the PDU session according to If the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, if the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, data is forwarded so that the data of the first terminal can be forwarded to the first terminal through the first N3IWF. The first user plane network element corresponding to the PDU session is then forwarded to the server in the data network, so that the network side can discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, thereby implementing network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the eighth aspect, the session management network element receives the fourth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the user plane network element; the fourth indication information is used to indicate the data packets carried by the PDU session The destination address does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the eighth aspect or the possible design of the eighth aspect, the session management network element releases the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information.

Based on the above two possible designs, the session management network element can determine according to the fourth indication information sent by the user plane network element that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, thereby releasing the first terminal's IP address. Context, to prevent the first terminal from bypassing the first N3IWF and sending data to the server.

In a possible design, in combination with the eighth aspect or the possible design of the eighth aspect, the session management network element receives the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the mobility management network element; the session management network element determines the second Whether the IP address of the N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; if they do not match, the session management network element deletes the context of the first terminal.

Based on this possible design, the session management network element can determine whether the received IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, and if it does not match, the context of the first terminal can be deleted to prevent the first terminal from bypassing The first N3IWF sends the data to the server.

In a possible design, in combination with the eighth aspect or the possible design of the eighth aspect, the session management network element receives the sixth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the user plane network element; the sixth indication information is used to indicate Whether the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; when the sixth indication information is used to indicate that the IP address of the second N3IWF does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the session management network element Delete the context of the first terminal.

Based on this possible design, the session management network element can also determine whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the sixth indication information sent by the user plane network element, and the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the second N3IWF. When the IP address of the first N3IWF does not match, the context of the first terminal is deleted to prevent the first terminal from bypassing the first N3IWF and sending data to the server.

In a possible design, in combination with the eighth aspect or the possible design of the eighth aspect, the session management network element receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the mobility management network element; the session management network element is based on the identification information of the PLMN, Send the identification information of the PLMN and/or the IP address of the first N3IWF corresponding to the PLMN to the user plane network element.

Based on this possible design, the session management network element can directly send the identification information of the PLMN to the user plane network element, so that the user plane network element can determine the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN, and the session management network element can also The identification information of the PLMN determines the IP address of the first N3IWF, and directly sends the IP address of the first N3IWF to the user plane network element.

In a possible design, in combination with the eighth aspect or the possible design of the eighth aspect, the session management network element receives the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the mobility management network element; the session management network element sets the second The IP address of the N3IWF is sent to the user plane network element.

Based on this possible design, the session management network element sends the IP address of the second N3IWF to the user plane network element, so that the user plane network element can judge whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a ninth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device can implement the functions performed by the session management network element in the eighth aspect or the possible design of the eighth aspect, and the functions can be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-mentioned functions. For example, the communication device includes: a processing module and a sending module.

The processing module is configured to determine that the PDU session of the second terminal is used for the relay service; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal.

The sending module is used to send to the user plane network element first indication information for instructing the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; the data packet includes the first terminal's data.

The specific implementation of the communication device can refer to the behavior function of the session management network element in the communication method provided in the eighth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the eighth aspect. Based on the communication device described in the ninth aspect, when the session When the management network element determines that the PDU session of the second terminal is used for the relay service, it may send the first indication information to the user plane network element so that the user plane network element can determine the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session and the first N3IWF If the IP address of the data packet matches, if the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, perform data forwarding, so that the data of the first terminal can be forwarded to the first user corresponding to the PDU session established by the first terminal through the first N3IWF The plane network element is then forwarded to the server in the data network, so that the network side can discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, and then implement network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal.

In a possible design, with reference to the ninth aspect, the session management network element further includes a receiving module, and the receiving module is configured to receive fourth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the user plane network element; the fourth indication information is used for It indicates that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, in combination with the ninth aspect or the possible designs of the ninth aspect, the processing module is further configured to release the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information.

In a possible design, in combination with the ninth aspect or the possible design of the ninth aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the mobility management network element; the processing module is also used To determine whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; if it does not match, delete the context of the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the ninth aspect or the possible design of the ninth aspect, the receiving module is further configured to receive the sixth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the user plane network element; the sixth indication information is used for To indicate whether the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; the processing module is also used for when the sixth indication information is used to indicate the IP address of the second N3IWF and the IP address of the first N3IWF When there is no match, delete the context of the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the ninth aspect or the possible design of the ninth aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the mobility management network element; the receiving module is also used to The identification information of the PLMN and/or the IP address of the first N3IWF corresponding to the PLMN is sent to the user plane network element.

In a possible design, in combination with the ninth aspect or the possible design of the ninth aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the mobility management network element; the sending module also uses Yu sends the IP address of the second N3IWF to the user plane network element.

In a tenth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be a session management network element or a chip or a system on a chip in a session management network element. The communication device can realize the functions performed by the session management network element in the above-mentioned aspects or various possible designs, and the functions can be realized by hardware. In a possible design, the communication device may include a processor and a transceiver. The processor and the transceiver may be used to support the communication device to implement the eighth aspect or the functions involved in any possible design of the eighth aspect. For example, the processor may be used to determine that the PDU session of the second terminal is used for the relay service; where the second terminal is the relay node of the first terminal; the transceiver may be used to send instructions to the user plane network element to indicate the user plane. The network element judges the first indication information whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; the data packet includes the data of the first terminal. In another possible design, the communication device may further include a memory, and the memory is used to store necessary computer-executable instructions and data of the communication device. When the communication device is running, the processor and the transceiver execute the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the communication method described in the eighth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the eighth aspect. .

For the specific implementation of the communication device, reference may be made to the eighth aspect or the behavior function of the session management network element in the communication method provided by any possible design of the eighth aspect.

In an eleventh aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes one or more processors and one or more memories; the one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used for Computer program codes or computer instructions are stored; when one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the communication device is caused to execute the communication method as described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

In a twelfth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided. The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer instructions or programs are run on a computer, the computer can execute the first aspect or the first aspect. Any possible design of the communication method described.

In a thirteenth aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which when running on a computer, causes the computer to execute the communication method as described in the first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect.

In a fourteenth aspect, a chip system is provided. The chip system includes one or more processors and one or more memories; the one or more memories are coupled to the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are Stored with computer program codes or computer instructions; when the one or more processors execute the computer program codes or computer instructions, the chip system is caused to execute the above-mentioned first aspect or any possible design of the first aspect The communication method described.

Among them, the technical effects brought about by any of the design methods of the tenth aspect to the fourteenth aspect can be referred to the technical effects brought about by any of the possible designs of the eighth aspect to the ninth aspect, and will not be repeated here.

In a fifteenth aspect, a communication method is provided. The method includes: a second terminal sends data of the first terminal through a PDU session of the second terminal; and the second terminal receives an identity of the first terminal from a mobility management network element The eighth indication information of the information; the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal according to the eighth indication information; wherein, the second terminal is the relay node of the first terminal, and the eighth indication information is used to instruct to release the context of the first terminal Or the second terminal receives the fourth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the mobility management network element; the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information; wherein, the second terminal is the first terminal The relay node of the terminal, the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the protocol data unit PDU session does not match the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF, the data packet Including the data of the first terminal.

Based on the fifteenth aspect, the second terminal can release the context of the first terminal according to the explicit eighth indication information. It is also possible to release the context of the first terminal according to the implicit fourth indication information, without limitation.

In a possible design, with reference to the fifteenth aspect, the second terminal receives the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal; the second terminal sends the IP address of the second N3IWF to the mobility management network element.

In a possible design, in combination with the fifteenth aspect or the fifteenth aspect, the second terminal receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the first terminal; the second terminal sends the PLMN identification information to the mobile Sexual management network elements.

Based on the above two possible designs, the second terminal can send the IP address of the second N3IWF or the identification information of the PLMN to the mobility management network element, so that the mobility management network element can send the IP address of the second N3IWF or the identification information of the PLMN to the mobility management network element. The information is sent to the session management network element.

In a sixteenth aspect, a communication method is provided, the method includes: a second terminal receives data from a first terminal; wherein the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the data of the first terminal passes through the second terminal The protocol data unit PDU session is forwarded; the second terminal determines whether the destination address of the first terminal’s data matches the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF; if they match, the second terminal The data packet including the data of the first terminal is sent to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address through the PDU session of the second terminal.

Based on the sixteenth aspect, the second terminal can forward the data of the first terminal to the first N3IWF through the PDU session when the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, and then the PDU session established by the first terminal The corresponding first user plane network element is forwarded to the server in the data network, so that the network side can discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, thereby implementing network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the sixteenth aspect, if the destination address of the data of the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the sixteenth aspect or the sixteenth possible design, the second terminal receives the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal; the second terminal determines that the IP address of the second N3IWF is the same as the first Whether the IP address of the N3IWF matches; if it does not match, the second terminal deletes the context of the first terminal.

Based on the above two possible designs, the second terminal can release the context of the first terminal when the destination address of the data of the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF. It is also possible to release the context of the first terminal when the IP address of the second N3IWF does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF. This prevents the first terminal from bypassing the first N3IWF and forwarding the data to the server.

In a possible design, in combination with the sixteenth aspect or the possible design of the sixteenth aspect, the second terminal is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or the second terminal receives the first N3IWF from the mobility management network element IP address; or the second terminal receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the first terminal, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

Based on this possible design, a feasible solution is provided for the second terminal to obtain the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a seventeenth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device can implement the functions performed by the second terminal in the fifteenth aspect or the possible design of the fifteenth aspect, and can also implement the sixteenth aspect or the sixteenth aspect. In terms of the functions performed by the second terminal in a possible design, the functions can be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above-mentioned functions. For example, the communication device includes: a receiving module, a processing module, and a sending module.

When the communication device is used to implement the functions performed by the second terminal in the fifteenth aspect or the possible design of the fifteenth aspect:

A sending module, configured to send data of the first terminal through the PDU session of the second terminal;

The receiving module is configured to receive the eighth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the mobility management network element.

The processing module is configured to release the context of the first terminal according to the eighth instruction information; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the eighth instruction information is used to instruct to release the context of the first terminal.

Or the receiving module is configured to receive the fourth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the mobility management network element.

The processing module is configured to release the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the purpose of the data packet carried by the protocol data unit PDU session The address does not match the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF, and the data packet includes the data of the first terminal.

Wherein, the specific implementation of the communication device may refer to the behavior function of the second terminal in the communication method provided by the fifteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the fifteenth aspect, based on the communication device described in the seventeenth aspect, The second terminal may release the context of the first terminal according to the explicit eighth indication information. It is also possible to release the context of the first terminal according to the implicit fourth indication information, without limitation.

In a possible design, combined with the seventeenth aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal; the sending module is used to send the IP address of the second N3IWF to the mobility management network Yuan.

In a possible design, in combination with the seventeenth aspect or the seventeenth aspect, the receiving module is also used to receive the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the first terminal; the sending module is also used to transfer the PLMN The identification information of is sent to the mobility management network element.

When the communication device is used to implement the functions performed by the second terminal in the aforementioned sixteenth aspect or the possible design of the sixteenth aspect:

The receiving module is configured to receive data from the first terminal; where the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the data of the first terminal is forwarded through the protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal.

The processing module is used to determine whether the destination address of the data of the first terminal matches the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF.

The sending module is configured to send a data packet including data of the first terminal to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address through the PDU session of the second terminal if there is a match.

Wherein, the specific implementation of the communication device can refer to the behavior function of the second terminal in the communication method provided by the sixteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the sixteenth aspect, based on the communication device described in the seventeenth aspect, The second terminal can forward the data of the first terminal to the first N3IWF through the PDU session when the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, and then the first user plane corresponding to the PDU session established by the first terminal The network element is forwarded to the server in the data network, so that the network side can discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, so as to implement network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the seventeenth aspect, the processing module is also used to release the context of the first terminal if the destination address of the data of the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, combining the seventeenth aspect or the seventeenth aspect possible design, the receiving module is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal; the processing module is also used to determine the second N3IWF Whether the IP address of the first N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; if it does not match, delete the context of the first terminal.

In a possible design, in combination with the seventeenth aspect or the seventeenth aspect, the second terminal is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or the second terminal receives the first N3IWF from the mobility management network element. IP address; or the second terminal receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the first terminal, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

In an eighteenth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device may be a second terminal or a chip or a system on a chip in the second terminal. The communication device can implement the functions performed by the second terminal in the foregoing aspects or various possible designs, and the functions can be implemented by hardware. In a possible design, the communication device may include a transceiver and a processor. The transceiver and the processor may be used to support the communication device to implement the functions involved in the fifteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the fifteenth aspect. It can also be used to support the communication device to realize the functions involved in the aforementioned sixteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the sixteenth aspect. For example: when the transceiver and the processor are used to support the communication device to implement the functions involved in the fifteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the fifteenth aspect, the transceiver can be used to send through the PDU session of the second terminal The data of the first terminal; the transceiver may also be used to receive the eighth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the mobility management network element; the processor may be used to release the context of the first terminal according to the eighth indication information ; Wherein, the second terminal is the relay node of the first terminal, and the eighth indication information is used to indicate the release of the context of the first terminal; or the transceiver may be used to receive the identification information of the first terminal from the mobility management network element The processor may be used to release the context of the first terminal according to the fourth instruction information; wherein, the second terminal is the relay node of the first terminal, and the fourth instruction information is used to indicate the data carried by the PDU session The destination address of the packet does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, and the data packet includes data of the first terminal. When the transceiver and the processor are used to support the communication device to implement the functions involved in the aforementioned sixteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the sixteenth aspect, the transceiver can be used to receive data from the first terminal; wherein, The second terminal is the relay node of the first terminal, and the data of the first terminal is forwarded through the protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal; the processor can be used to determine the destination address of the data of the first terminal and the IP of the first N3IWF Whether the addresses match; if they match, the transceiver can be used to send a data packet including the data of the first terminal to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address through the PDU session of the second terminal. In another possible design, the communication device may further include a memory, and the memory is used to store necessary computer-executable instructions and data of the communication device. When the communication device is running, the transceiver and the processor execute the computer-executable instructions stored in the memory, so that the communication device executes the above-mentioned fifteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the fifteenth aspect. Communication method, or implement the communication method as described in the aforementioned sixteenth aspect or any one of the possible designs of the sixteenth aspect.

Among them, the specific implementation of the communication device may refer to the fifteenth aspect or the behavior function of the second terminal in the communication method provided by any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, or refer to the sixteenth aspect or the sixteenth aspect Any one of the possible designs provides the behavior function of the second terminal in the communication method.

In a nineteenth aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes one or more processors and one or more memories; the one or more memories are coupled with the one or more processors, and the one or more memories are used for Store computer program codes or computer instructions; when one or more processors execute the computer instructions, the communication device is caused to execute the communication method as described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, or execute the communication method as described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect. The communication method described in the sixteenth aspect or any possible design of the sixteenth aspect.

In a twentieth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided. The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions or programs. When the computer instructions or programs are run on a computer, the computer can execute the The communication method according to any possible design of the five aspects, or the communication method according to any possible design of the sixteenth aspect or the sixteenth aspect is implemented.

In a twenty-first aspect, a computer program product containing instructions is provided, which when run on a computer, causes the computer to execute the communication method as described in the fifteenth aspect or any possible design of the fifteenth aspect, Or execute the communication method as described in the sixteenth aspect or any possible design of the sixteenth aspect.

In a twenty-second aspect, a chip system is provided. The chip system includes one or more processors and one or more memories; one or more memories are coupled to one or more processors, and one or more memories Stored in the computer program code or computer instructions; when the one or more processors execute the computer program code or computer instructions, the chip system is caused to perform any of the possibilities of the fifteenth aspect or the fifteenth aspect Or implement the communication method described in the sixteenth aspect or any possible design of the sixteenth aspect.

Among them, the technical effect brought by any design method of the eighteenth aspect to the twenty-second aspect can be referred to the technical effect brought by any possible design of the fifteenth aspect or the fifteenth aspect. Or refer to the above-mentioned sixteenth aspect or the technical effect brought by any possible design of the sixteenth aspect, which will not be repeated here.

In a twenty-third aspect, a communication system is provided. The communication system includes the communication device according to the second aspect or any possible design of the second aspect, and any one of the ninth aspect or the ninth aspect. Design the communication device and the communication device according to the seventeenth aspect or any possible design of the seventeenth aspect.

Description of the drawings

FIG. 1a is a schematic diagram of an existing communication system provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 1b is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 1c is a schematic diagram of a 5G communication system provided by an embodiment of this application;

2 is a structural diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 3a is a flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 3b is a flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of this application;

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

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method for establishing a PDU session provided by an embodiment of the application;

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device provided by an embodiment of this application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the application.

Detailed ways

The implementation manners of the embodiments of the present application will be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the specification.

The communication method provided in the embodiments of this application can be used in any communication system, and the communication system may be a third generation partnership project (3GPP) communication system, for example, a long term evolution (LTE) system, It can also be a fifth generation (5G) mobile communication system, a new radio (NR) system, an NR V2X system, and other next-generation communication systems, or it can be a non-3GPP communication system, without limitation.

The communication method provided by the embodiments of this application can be applied to various communication scenarios, for example, can be applied to one or more of the following communication scenarios: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable low-latency communication (ultra reliable low latency communication (URLLC), machine type communication (MTC), massive machine type communications (mMTC), device to device (device to device, D2D), vehicle outreach (vehicle to everything, V2X), vehicle to vehicle (V2V), and Internet of things (IoT), etc. The following uses FIG. 1b as an example to describe the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application.

Fig. 1b is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the application. As shown in Fig. 1b, the communication system may include at least one first terminal, at least one second terminal, an access network element corresponding to the second terminal, The user plane network element corresponding to the second terminal, the mobility management network element corresponding to the second terminal, the session management network element corresponding to the second terminal, the policy control network element corresponding to the second terminal, the first N3IWF corresponding to the first terminal, A first user plane network element corresponding to the first terminal, a mobility management network element corresponding to the first terminal, a session management network element corresponding to the first terminal, and a data network (DN).

It should be noted that in the embodiments of the present application, the first terminal may also be referred to as a remote terminal (remote UE), and the second terminal may also be referred to as a relay terminal (relay UE), which is not limited.

Wherein, the first terminal can establish a PC5 communication connection with the second terminal, and send the data of the first terminal to the second terminal through the PC5 interface.

The second terminal may be located in the coverage area of the cell of the access network element, where the second terminal may communicate with the access network element through the uplink (uplink, UL) through air interface communication, and the second terminal is connected to the access network element on the UL. The network element sends data, and the access network element forwards the received data to the core network element. The core network element processes the data, and sends the processed data to the third through the access network element. Two terminal. For example, the second terminal sends uplink data to the access network element through the physical layer shared channel (PUSCH) on the UL, and the access network element forwards the received uplink data to the core network. The core network element processes the uplink data, and sends the processed uplink data to the second terminal through the access network element; wherein, the access network that forwards the uplink data of the second terminal to the core network element The network element and the access network network element that forwards the downlink data from the core network network element to the second terminal may be the same access network network element, or may be different access network network elements.

The second terminal may also communicate with the core network element through a specific interface. For example, the second terminal may communicate with a mobility management network element in the core network element through an N1 interface.

After accessing the network, the second terminal may establish a protocol data unit (PDU) session, communicate with the first N3IWF through the PDU session, and send the data of the first terminal to the first N3IWF through the PDU session.

The first N3IWF is an untrusted non-3GPP access gateway deployed by an operator, and its network topology position is equivalent to an access network element when the first terminal accesses the network through the 3GPP access technology. In order to ensure the security of data transmission, the first N3IWF supports the establishment of an IPsec tunnel with the first terminal. The first N3IWF also supports the N2 interface and the N3 interface with the core network, and can transfer the first terminal to the first mobility management network. NAS signaling between elements.

Among them, the terminal (terminal) in FIG. 1b may be referred to as user equipment (UE), mobile station (mobile station, MS) or mobile terminal (mobile terminal, MT), etc. Specifically, the terminal in FIG. 1b may be a mobile phone, a tablet computer, or a computer with a wireless transceiver function. The terminal can also be a virtual reality (VR) terminal, an augmented reality (AR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in unmanned driving, a wireless terminal in telemedicine, and a smart grid. Wireless terminals, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, in-vehicle terminals, vehicles with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication capabilities, and smart connected vehicles , There are no restrictions on drones with UAV to UAV (U2U) communication capabilities. It should be noted that the foregoing terminal may be the first terminal or the second terminal.

The access network element in Figure 1b can be any device with wireless transceiver functions, which is mainly used to implement wireless physical control functions, resource scheduling and wireless resource management, wireless access control, and mobility management. Specifically, the network element of the access network may be a device that supports wired access or a device that supports wireless access. Exemplarily, the access network network element may be an access network (access network, AN)/radio access network (RAN) device, which is composed of multiple 5G-AN/NG-RAN nodes. 5G-AN/NG-RAN nodes can be: access point (AP), base station (nodeB, NB), enhanced base station (enhance nodeB, eNB), next-generation base station (NR nodeB, gNB), transmission and reception Point (transmission reception point, TRP), transmission point (transmission point, TP), or some other access node, etc.

The mobility management network element in Figure 1b is mainly responsible for terminal access authentication, mobility management, and signaling interaction between various functional network elements, such as: user registration status, user connection status, user registration and network access , Tracking area update, cell handover user authentication and key security management. It should be noted that the first mobility management network element in FIG. 1b is for distinguishing the mobility management network element corresponding to the second terminal, and the first mobility management network element in FIG. 1b corresponds to the first terminal. It has the characteristics of the above-mentioned mobility management network element. In practical applications, the mobility management network element in FIG. 1b and the first mobility management network element may be the same mobility management network element.

The session management network element in FIG. 1b can be called a session management function or a multicast/broadcast-service management function (MB-SMF) or a multicast session management network element, etc., without limitation. The session management network element is mainly used to implement the user plane transmission logic channel, such as: session management functions such as the establishment, release, and modification of a packet data unit (PDU) session. It should be noted that the first session management network element in FIG. 1b is to distinguish the session management network element corresponding to the second terminal. The first session management network element in FIG. 1b corresponds to the first terminal and also has the above-mentioned session management network element. Manage the characteristics of the network element. In practical applications, the session management network element in FIG. 1b and the first session management network element may be the same session management network element.

The policy control network element in Figure 1b can be used to formulate corresponding policy and charging control rules (policy and charging control rules, PCC rules) for the PDU session, and send the PCC rules to the session management network element.

The user plane network element in FIG. 1b may be called a PDU session anchor (PSA), a user plane function, or a multicast/broadcast user plane function (multicast/broadcast user plane fuction, MB-UPF). The user plane network element can be used as the anchor point on the user plane transmission logical channel, mainly used to complete the user plane data routing and forwarding functions, such as: establishing a channel with the terminal (that is, the user plane transmission logical channel), on the channel It forwards data packets between the terminal and the DN, and is responsible for the terminal's data message filtering, data forwarding, rate control, and charging information generation. It should be noted that the first user plane network element in FIG. 1b is to distinguish the user plane network element corresponding to the second terminal PDU session, and the first user plane network element in FIG. 1b corresponds to the first terminal PDU session. It also has the characteristics of the above-mentioned user plane network element. In practical applications, the user plane network element in FIG. 1b and the first user plane network element may be the same user plane network element.

The data network DN in Figure 1b may be an operator network that provides data transmission services to users, such as an operator network that provides IP multi-media services (IP multi-media service, IMS) to users. A server can be deployed in the DN, and the server can provide users with data transmission services.

It should be noted that the first terminal, the second terminal, the access network network element, and the core network network element in the embodiments of the present application may all be one or more chips, or may be a system on chip (SOC), etc. . Figure 1b is only an exemplary drawing, and the number of devices included is not limited. In addition, in addition to the device shown in FIG. 1b, the communication system may also include other devices. The name of each device and the naming of each link in FIG. 1b are not limited. In addition to the names shown in FIG. 1b, each device and each link can also be named with other names.

Taking the communication system shown in Fig. 1b as a 5G communication system as an example, as shown in Fig. 1c, the network element or entity corresponding to the above-mentioned access network element may be a radio access network (RAN ), the network element or entity corresponding to the mobility management network element can be the access and mobility management function (AMF) in the 5G communication system, and the network element or entity corresponding to the session management network element can be The session management function (SMF) and policy control network element in the 5G communication system can be the policy control function (PCF) in the 5G communication system, and the network element or entity corresponding to the user plane network element can be It is the user plane function (UPF) etc. in the 5G communication system.

Among them, as shown in Figure 1c, the terminal communicates with the AMF through the next generation N 1 interface (N1 for short), the RAN device communicates with the AMF through the N2 interface (N2 for short), and the RAN device communicates with the AMF through the N3 interface (N3 for short). To communicate with UPF, UPF communicates with SMF through the N4 interface, and UPF communicates with the server in the DN through the N6 interface. Core network elements can communicate with each other through service interfaces. For example, AMF can communicate with other core network elements through Namf interface, SMF can communicate with other core network elements through Nsmf interface, and PCF can communicate with other core network elements through Npcf interface. For network element communication, UDM can communicate with other core network elements through the Nudr interface.

Based on the above system, a terminal (may be called a remote terminal, or the first terminal in an embodiment of the present application) can establish a PDU through a relay node (may be called a relay terminal, or a second terminal in the embodiment of the present application) The session sends the data packet to the UPF corresponding to the relay node, and the UPF forwards the data packet of the terminal to the server. However, if the terminal does not encrypt the data packet at the application layer, the relay node can parse out the data of the terminal, resulting in lower data transmission security. The terminal can use an Internet protocol security (IPsec) tunnel to send data or signaling to the network-side access device corresponding to the terminal through the PDU session of the relay node. The network side access device corresponding to the terminal then sends the received data or signaling to the core network device. Using the IPsec tunnel can prevent the relay node from parsing out the data or signaling of the terminal. However, in this process, the network side may not be able to discover the terminal, and thus the network authentication, charging or other control operations of the terminal cannot be realized.

To solve this problem, an embodiment of the present application provides a communication method, including: a user plane network element receives a data packet including data of the first terminal from a PDU session established by a second terminal as a relay node of the first terminal; And determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the Internet Protocol (IP) address of the first non-3rd generation partnership project interworking function (N3IWF); If it matches, send the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet. This allows the network side to discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, and then implement network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal.

In specific implementation, as shown in FIG. 1b, for example, each terminal, access network element, and core network element may adopt the composition structure shown in FIG. 2, or include the components shown in FIG. 2. 2 is a schematic diagram of the composition of a communication device 200 provided by an embodiment of the application. The communication device 200 may be a terminal or a chip or a system on a chip in the terminal; it may also be an access network network element or an access network network element. Chip or system-on-chip; it can also be a core network element or a chip or system-on-chip in a core network element. As shown in FIG. 2, the communication device 200 includes a processor 201, a transceiver 202 and a communication line 203.

Further, the communication device 200 may further include a memory 204. Wherein, the processor 201, the memory 204, and the transceiver 202 may be connected through a communication line 203.

Among them, the processor 201 is a central processing unit (CPU), a general-purpose processor network processor (network processor, NP), a digital signal processor (digital signal processing, DSP), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, Programmable logic device (PLD) or any combination of them. The processor 201 may also be other devices with processing functions, such as circuits, devices, or software modules, without limitation.

The transceiver 202 is used to communicate with other devices or other communication networks. The other communication network may be Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area networks (WLAN), etc. The transceiver 202 may be a module, a circuit, a transceiver, or any device capable of implementing communication.

The communication line 203 is used to transmit information between the components included in the communication device 200.

The memory 204 is used to store instructions. Among them, the instruction may be a computer program.

The memory 204 may be a read-only memory (read-only memory, ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and/or instructions, and may also be a random access memory (RAM) or a random access memory (RAM). Other types of dynamic storage devices that store information and/or instructions can also be electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), compact disc read-only memory, CD- ROM) or other optical disc storage, optical disc storage (including compact discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, etc., are not restricted.

It should be pointed out that the memory 204 may exist independently of the processor 201, or may be integrated with the processor 201. The memory 204 may be used to store instructions or program codes or some data. The memory 204 may be located in the communication device 200 or outside the communication device 200 without limitation. The processor 201 is configured to execute instructions stored in the memory 204 to implement the communication method provided in the following embodiments of the present application.

In an example, the processor 201 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in FIG. 2.

As an optional implementation manner, the communication device 200 includes multiple processors, for example, in addition to the processor 201 in FIG. 2, it may also include a processor 207.

As an optional implementation manner, the communication apparatus 200 further includes an output device 205 and an input device 206. Exemplarily, the input device 206 is a device such as a keyboard, a mouse, a microphone, or a joystick, and the output device 205 is a device such as a display screen and a speaker.

It should be pointed out that the communication device 200 may be a desktop computer, a portable computer, a network server, a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wireless terminal, an embedded device, a chip system, or a device with a similar structure in FIG. 2. In addition, the composition structure shown in FIG. 2 does not constitute a limitation on the communication device. In addition to the components shown in FIG. 2, the communication device may include more or less components than those shown in the figure, or combine certain components. , Or different component arrangements.

In the embodiments of the present application, the chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices.

In addition, the actions, terms, etc. involved in the various embodiments of the present application can be referred to each other, and are not limited. The names of messages or parameter names in the messages that are exchanged between devices in the embodiments of the present application are just an example, and other names may also be used in specific implementations, which are not limited.

The communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described below in conjunction with the communication system shown in FIG. 1b. The second terminal in the following embodiment is any one of the communication system shown in FIG. Terminal, the user plane network element is the user plane network element corresponding to the PDU session established by the second terminal in the communication system shown in FIG. 1b, and the first N3IWF is the N3IWF corresponding to the PDU session established with the first terminal in the communication system shown in FIG. 1b , The first user plane network element is the user plane network element corresponding to the PDU session established by the first terminal in the communication system shown in FIG. 1b, and the server is any server in the data network in the communication system shown in FIG. 1b. The first terminal, the second terminal, the access network network element, the user plane network element, the first N3IWF, the first user plane network element, and the server described in the following embodiments may all have the components shown in FIG. 2.

Fig. 3a is a flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the application. As shown in Fig. 3a, the method may include:

Step 301: The first terminal sends the data of the first terminal to the second terminal; correspondingly, the second terminal receives the data of the first terminal.

Among them, the source address of the data of the first terminal can be the IP address of the first terminal, and the destination address can be the IP address of the first N3IWF; the data of the first terminal can be understood as data that needs to be relayed by the second terminal. Including data whose destination address is the second terminal sent by the first terminal.

The destination address of the data of the first terminal may be the IP address of the first N3IWF pre-configured in the first terminal. For the case where multiple IP addresses of the first N3IWF are pre-configured, the first terminal selects one of the IP addresses of the N3IWF as the destination address of the data of the first terminal. Specifically, the first N3IWF has a corresponding relationship with a tracking area, and the first terminal may select the first N3IWF according to the current tracking area. Alternatively, the first N3IWF has a corresponding relationship with a public land mobile network (public land mobile network, PLMN), and the first terminal selects the first N3IWF according to the current PLMN.

Specifically, the first terminal may establish a PC5 communication connection with the second terminal for communication, and send the data of the first terminal to the second terminal through the PC5 interface.

In addition to sending the data of the first terminal, the first terminal may also send data including the destination address of the second terminal to the second terminal, and these data do not need to be relayed and forwarded. Wherein, the destination address of the second terminal may be the IP address of the second terminal, and the IP address of the second terminal refers to the IP address assigned by the first terminal to the second terminal for PC5 communication or the second terminal when the PC5 communication connection is established. The IP address assigned by yourself for PC5 communication.

For example, during PC5 communication, the first terminal can set the source address of the first terminal's data to the IP address assigned by the second terminal to the first terminal, and set the destination address of the first terminal's data to the first N3IWF IP address, encapsulate the data of the first terminal, the source address of the data of the first terminal, and the destination address of the data of the first terminal in the same data packet, and send it to the second terminal through the PC5 interface so that the second terminal can receive After arriving at the data packet, it is determined according to the source address included in the data packet that the data in the data packet is data of the first terminal.

In order to improve the reliability of data transmission, optionally, as shown in FIG. 1b, an IPsec tunnel may be established between the first terminal and the first N3IWF, and the public and private keys corresponding to the IPsec tunnel may be determined. When using the IPsec tunnel for data transmission, the first terminal can use the public key to encrypt the data of the first terminal, and encapsulate the encrypted data of the first terminal, the IP address of the first terminal, and the IP address of the first N3IWF in The data packet is sent to the second terminal, so that after receiving the data packet, the second terminal modifies the IP address of the first terminal in the data packet to the IP address of the second terminal, and the encrypted data of the first terminal The IP address of the second terminal and the IP address of the first N3IWF are encapsulated in a data packet and sent to the user plane network element through a pre-established PDU session, so that the user plane network element is based on the destination address of the data packet, that is, the first N3IWF's The IP address forwards the data packet to the corresponding first N3IWF, so that the first N3IWF uses the private key to decrypt the encrypted data of the first terminal in the data packet to obtain the data of the first terminal. Wherein, the above-mentioned PDU session is a PDU session of the second terminal, which is used to provide a relay service for the first terminal. The IP address of the second terminal is the IP address corresponding to the PDU session of the second terminal.

Specifically, the IPsec tunnel is used to securely protect data transmission at the IP layer, especially to protect the transmission of sensitive data in an insecure network environment. The communication parties can ensure the confidentiality, data consistency, data source authentication, and anti-replay of data packets during network transmission by performing operations such as encryption and data source authentication at the IP layer.

In the embodiment of the present application, by establishing an IPsec tunnel between the first terminal and the first N3IWF, it can be ensured that the data of the first terminal is not tampered with during transmission, and the encryption and protection of the data of the first terminal can be realized.

It should be noted that the specific process of establishing an IPsec tunnel between the first terminal and the first N3IWF can refer to the description of the IPsec tunnel in the prior art, and will not be repeated.

Specifically, the process of establishing a PDU session by the second terminal may refer to the method shown in FIG. 5 below.

Step 302: The second terminal sends the data of the first terminal to the network element of the access network through the PDU session of the second terminal; correspondingly, the network element of the access network receives the data of the first terminal from the second terminal through the PDU session of the second terminal. One terminal's data.

Specifically, the second terminal may also receive the source address and the destination address of the data of the first terminal.

Specifically, the second terminal modifies the source address of the received data of the first terminal to the IP address of the second terminal, and changes the data of the first terminal, the IP address of the second terminal, and the destination address of the data of the first terminal. Encapsulated in a data packet and sent to the access network element.

Specifically, S302 can be understood as that the second terminal sends the data of the first terminal to the network element of the access network through the data radio bear (DRB) corresponding to the PDU session of the second terminal; correspondingly, the access network The network element receives the data of the first terminal from the second terminal through the data radio bearer corresponding to the PDU session of the second terminal.

Step 303: The access network element sends the data of the first terminal to the user plane network element through the PDU session of the second terminal; correspondingly, the user plane network element receives the data of the first terminal through the PDU session of the second terminal.

Among them, the data of the first terminal is in the form of a data packet. The data packet may be the data packet described in step 302.

Specifically, the access network element may forward the data packet to the user plane network element through the N3 interface corresponding to the PDU session.

Step 304: The user plane network element judges whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Specifically, after receiving the data packet, the user plane network element may compare the destination address of the data packet with the IP address of the first N3IWF to determine whether it matches. For example: if the destination address of the data packet is the same as the IP address of the first N3IWF, it is determined that the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, otherwise, it is determined that it does not match.

Exemplarily, the user plane network element may obtain the IP address of the first N3IWF in any of the following manners 1 to 3:

Manner 1: The user plane network element is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Optionally, the network management network element may configure the IP addresses of multiple first N3IWFs corresponding to the PLMN where the user plane network element is located on the user plane network element.

For example, the IP address of the first N3IWF corresponding to the PLMN where the user plane network element is located includes IP1, IP2, and IP3. As an example, the network management network element may configure all IP1, IP2, and IP3 on the user plane network element.

Manner 2: The user plane network element receives the IP address of the first N3IWF sent by the session management network element.

Manner 3: The user plane network element receives the identification information of the PLMN sent by the session management network element, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

Wherein, the identification information of the PLMN may be the identity information of the PLMN or other information that can be used to identify the PLMN. The user plane network element can request the network storage network element (NF repository function, NRF) corresponding to the PLMN to obtain the information of the network element storing the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN, and then determine according to the obtained information of the network element Network element, and obtain the IP address of the first N3IWF from the network element. Among them, the network element storing the IP address of the first N3IWF may be UDM or UDR, etc., which is not limited.

It should be noted that the IP address of the first N3IWF corresponding to each PLMN is pre-configured, and the corresponding relationship between the PLMN and the first N3IWF can be referred to the description of the PLMN in the prior art, and will not be repeated.

In a possible design, the user plane network element receives the first indication information sent by the session management network element, and according to the first indication information, determines whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF. The first indication information is used to instruct the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In another possible design, the user plane network element receives the second indication information sent by the session management network element, and determines whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the second indication information. Wherein, the second indication information is used to indicate that the PDU session is used for the relay service. Exemplarily, the user plane network element can be pre-configured to: when the corresponding PDU session is used for the relay service, the destination address of the data packet received through the PDU session needs to be matched with the IP address of the first N3IWF .

Optionally, the second indication information further includes identification information of the first terminal. The identification information of the first terminal includes at least one of the following: the IP address of the first terminal, the identification information of the PDU session (for example, the N4 interface corresponding to the PDU session), and the identification information of the first terminal (for example, the ID of the first terminal) .

Optionally, the session management network element may carry the first indication information or the second indication information in the N4 session establishment request message during the PDU session establishment process and send it to the user plane network element; or, the session management network element After the establishment of the PDU session is completed, the first indication information or the second indication information may be carried in an N4 session modification (N4 session modification) message and sent to the user plane network element. Correspondingly, the UPF stores the first indication information or the second indication information in the N4 session context (N4 session context).

Among them, the N4 session establishment request message or the N4 session modification message may also include some existing information, such as the processing strategy corresponding to the service, the packet detection rule (PDR), and the forwarding action rule (FAR) associated with the PDR. ), quality of service flow (QoS flow) mapping rules and other information are not limited, and the related description of these information can refer to the prior art, and will not be repeated.

Step 305: If the user plane network element determines that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, the user plane network element sends the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session. Correspondingly, the first N3IWF receives the data packet sent by the user plane network element.

There may be multiple first N3IWFs. When the IP address of a certain first N3IWF matches the destination address of the data packet, the user plane network element may send the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to its destination address.

Optionally, the user plane network element receives the third indication information sent by the session management network element, and according to the third indication information, sends the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to its destination address. The third indication information is used to indicate that when the user plane network element determines that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, it sends the data packet to the first N3IWF.

Specifically, the user plane network element may pre-establish a forwarding tunnel with the first N3IWF, and save the correspondence between the first N3IWF and the forwarding tunnel.

For example, taking the first N3IWF including the first N3IWF1, the first N3IWF2, and the first N3IWF3 as an example, the pre-established forwarding tunnel may include the forwarding tunnel corresponding to the first N3IWF1, the forwarding tunnel corresponding to the first N3IWF2, and the first N3IWF3. The corresponding forwarding tunnel 3. When the destination address of the data packet is the IP address of the first N3IWF1, the user plane network element can forward the data packet to the first N3IWF1 through the forwarding tunnel 1.

Alternatively, the user plane network element may also dynamically establish a forwarding tunnel with the first N3IWF. Taking the destination address of the data packet as the IP address of the first N3IWF1 as an example, the user plane network element can establish a forwarding tunnel with the first N3IWF1 in real time, and forward the data packet to the first N3IWF1 through the forwarding tunnel established in real time.

Step 306: The first N3IWF sends the data of the first terminal to the first user plane network element through the PDU session of the first terminal. Correspondingly, the first user plane network element receives the data of the first terminal sent by the first N3IWF.

The PDU session of the first terminal refers to a PDU session established between the first terminal and the first user plane network element through the first N3IWF.

Step 307: The first user plane network element forwards the data of the first terminal to the server in the data network. Correspondingly, the server receives the data of the first terminal sent by the first user plane network element.

Specifically, the first user plane network element sends the received data packet to the server, so that the server processes the data of the first terminal, and returns the processed result to the first terminal.

In the method shown in Figure 3a, when the user plane network element corresponding to the PDU session of the second terminal receives a data packet that includes the data of the first terminal, it can determine whether the destination address of the data packet is the same as the IP address of the first N3IWF. Match, if it matches, forward the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to its destination address. When the first terminal sets the destination address of the data of the first terminal as the server, the user plane network element in the embodiment of the present application can determine that the destination address of the data packet including the data of the first terminal is the same as the IP of the first N3IWF. The addresses do not match, so that the data packet is not transmitted in the next step, and the user plane network element is prevented from directly forwarding the data packet to the server. The network side can discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, and then realize the network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal. Moreover, in the embodiment of the present application, the first terminal establishes an IPsec tunnel with the first N3IWF, which can prevent the second terminal from parsing out the data of the first terminal, and can also improve the security of data transmission.

The method shown in FIG. 3a described above describes the actions performed by the user plane network element after judging that the destination address of the data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF. Furthermore, the method shown in FIG. 3b further includes the following steps 308 to 311. The following steps 308 to 311 describe when the user plane network element determines that the destination address of the data packet does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, Actions performed by user plane network elements. Step 308 to step 311 can be used to replace the above step 305 to step 307.

Step 308: If the user plane network element determines that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the user plane network element sends fourth indication information to the session management network element; correspondingly, the session management network element Receive the fourth instruction information.

The fourth indication information includes the identification information of the first terminal, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF. The fourth indication information may be carried in a data notification (data notification) message.

Optionally, the user plane network element receives the identification information of the first terminal sent by the session management network element, where the identification information of the first terminal includes at least one of the following: the IP address of the first terminal, the identification information of the PDU session (for example, , The N4 interface corresponding to the PDU session), and the identity information of the first terminal (for example, the ID of the first terminal).

Optionally, the user plane network element receives the fifth instruction information sent by the session management network element, and sends fourth instruction information to the session management network element according to the fifth instruction information. The fifth indication information is used to indicate that when the user plane network element determines that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the fourth indication information is sent to the session management network element. The fifth indication information may be carried in the N4 session establishment or N4 session modification message. Accordingly, the user plane network element stores the fifth indication information in the N4 session context.

Step 309: The session management network element releases the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information.

Specifically, after the session management network element receives the fourth indication information, according to the identification of the first terminal included in the fourth indication information, it can be determined that the destination address of the data packet corresponding to the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF. Release the context of the first terminal.

Wherein, the context of the first terminal may include related information of the PDU session for the relay service established by the second terminal for the first terminal and stored in the session management network element. Specifically, the context of the first terminal may be the identification information of the first terminal and the address information allocated by the second terminal to the first terminal.

Optionally, when the identification information of the first terminal is the IP address of the first terminal, the session management network element determines the related information of the PDU session corresponding to the first terminal according to the IP address of the first terminal. Or, when the identification information of the first terminal is the identity information of the first terminal, the session management network element is based on the correspondence between the identity information of the first terminal and the IP address of the first terminal stored when establishing a PDU session for the second terminal, The IP address of the first terminal is determined, and the related information of the PDU session corresponding to the first terminal is determined according to the IP address of the first terminal. Or, when the identification information of the first terminal is the identification information of the PDU session, the session management network element determines the related information of the PDU session according to the identification information of the PDU session.

It should be noted that, for the context of the first terminal, reference may be made to the description of the context of the first terminal in the prior art, which will not be repeated.

Step 310: The session management network element sends instruction information to the second terminal through the mobility management network element; correspondingly, the second terminal receives the instruction information.

Wherein, the indication information is used to instruct the second terminal to release the context of the first terminal.

Optionally, after receiving the fourth indication information, the session management network element may forward the fourth indication information as the indication information to the second terminal through the mobility management network element.

Optionally, the session management network element sends the eighth indication information as the indication information to the second terminal through the mobility management network element. The eighth indication information includes the identification information of the first terminal, and the eighth indication information is used to instruct to release the context of the first terminal.

It should be noted that, when the identification information of the first terminal sent by the session management network element to the second terminal through the mobility management network element is the identification information of the PDU session, the identification information of the PDU session may also be the ID of the PDU session.

Step 311: The second terminal releases the context of the first terminal according to the instruction information.

Optionally, the second terminal receives the fourth indication information, determines according to the fourth indication information that the destination address of the data packet corresponding to the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, and releases the context of the first terminal.

Optionally, the second terminal receives the eighth indication information, and releases the context of the first terminal according to the eighth indication information.

It should be noted that, in this embodiment of the present application, that the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal means that the second terminal deletes relevant information used for the relay service between the second terminal and the first terminal. Specifically, the context of the first terminal may be the identification information of the first terminal and the address information allocated by the second terminal to the first terminal. Based on this, releasing the context of the first terminal by the second terminal can also be described as deleting the context of the first terminal by the second terminal.

Based on the above description, it can be understood that after the second terminal deletes the context of the first terminal, the first terminal can also send data with the destination address of the second terminal to the second terminal, and the second terminal can also send the destination to the first terminal. The address is the data of the first terminal.

The methods shown in FIGS. 3a and 3b described above describe that during the data transmission process, the user plane network element performs the action of judging whether the destination address of the received data packet matches the IP address of the first N3IWF. In the method shown in FIG. 4, the second terminal determines whether the destination address of the data of the first terminal matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Fig. 4 is a communication method provided by an embodiment of the application. As shown in Fig. 4, the method includes:

Step 401: The first terminal sends the data of the first terminal to the second terminal; correspondingly, the second terminal receives the data of the first terminal from the first terminal.

Specifically, the description of step 401 can refer to the above step 301, which will not be repeated.

Step 402: The second terminal judges whether the destination address of the data of the first terminal matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Exemplarily, the second terminal may obtain the IP address of the first N3IWF in the following manner:

Manner 1: The second terminal is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Manner 2: The second terminal receives the IP address of the first N3IWF sent by the session management network element through the mobility management network element.

Manner 3: The second terminal receives the identification information of the PLMN sent by the first terminal, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

The process for the second terminal to determine the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN can refer to the process of determining the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN in step 304 by the user plane network element, which will not be repeated.

Step 403: If the second terminal determines that the destination address of the data of the first terminal matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, the second terminal sends to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data of the first terminal through the PDU session of the second terminal The data of the first terminal. Correspondingly, the first N3IWF receives the data of the first terminal.

Specifically, the second terminal may modify the source address of the data of the first terminal to the IP address of the second terminal, and encapsulate the data of the first terminal, the IP address of the second terminal, and the destination address of the data of the first terminal in In the packet. The second terminal sends the data packet to the access network network element, the access network network element forwards the data packet to the user plane network element, and the user plane network element forwards the data packet to the first corresponding destination address according to the destination address of the data packet. An N3IWF. The first N3IWF sends the data of the first terminal to the first user plane network element according to the PDU session established by the first terminal, and the first user plane network element sends the data of the first terminal to the server.

Step 404: If the second terminal determines that the destination address of the data of the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal.

Specifically, for step 404, reference may be made to the description of the second terminal releasing the context of the first terminal in step 311, which will not be repeated.

Further, the second terminal may also send instruction information for instructing the session management network element to release the context of the first terminal to the session management network element through the mobility management network element, so that the session management network element releases the context of the first terminal.

In the method shown in Figure 4, when the second terminal receives data from the first terminal, it can determine whether the destination address of the data matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, and if they match, the data is forwarded to the corresponding destination address. The first N3IWF. When the first terminal sets the destination address of the data of the first terminal as the server, the second terminal in the embodiment of the present application can determine that the destination address of the data including the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, thus The data of the first terminal is not transmitted in the next step, and the user plane network element is prevented from directly forwarding the data packet to the server. This allows the network side to discover the terminal through the first N3IWF, and then implement network authentication, charging or other control operations for the first terminal.

Based on the foregoing embodiment and referring to FIG. 5, an embodiment of the present application provides a process for a second terminal to establish a PDU session. In this process, the IP address of the N3IWF sent by the first terminal can be judged. As shown in Figure 5, the method includes:

Step 501: A PC5 communication connection is established between the first terminal and the second terminal.

Specifically, the first terminal can discover a second terminal that can provide a relay service for the first terminal through the discovery process in the prior art, and establish a PC5 communication connection with the second terminal.

Optionally, the second terminal may allocate an IP address for the PC5 communication connection to the first terminal, that is, the IP address of the first terminal.

Optionally, when the first terminal establishes a PC5 communication connection with the second terminal, the first terminal may send the IP address of the second N3IWF of the first terminal to the second terminal.

Wherein, the IP address of the second N3IWF may be pre-configured in the first terminal. The method for the first terminal to select the second N3IWF is the same as the method for the first terminal to select the IP address of one N3IWF from the IP addresses of the first N3IWF in step 301.

Further, step 501 may also include step 501a.

Step 501a: The second terminal judges whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Wherein, the second terminal may obtain the IP address of the first N3IWF by using the second method or the third method in step 402 above.

If the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, the following steps 502 to 512 can be continued to establish a PDU session that provides a relay service for the first terminal.

If the IP address of the second N3IWF does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the second terminal can delete the context of the first terminal without establishing a PDU session that provides relay services for the first terminal.

Step 502: The second terminal sends a session establishment request to the mobility management network element through the access network element; correspondingly, the mobility management network element receives the session establishment request.

Wherein, the session establishment request includes the identification information of the first terminal, and the session establishment request is used to request the establishment of a PDU session for the second terminal for providing a relay service for the first terminal.

Specifically, for the identification information of the first terminal, reference may be made to the description of the identification information of the first terminal in FIG. 3a, FIG. 3b or FIG. 4, which is not repeated here.

Optionally, the terminal further sends identification information of the session to the mobility management network element through the access network element, where the identification information of the session is used to identify the session.

Optionally, the session establishment request and the session identifier are carried in a non-access stratum message (NAS message) and sent to the mobility management network element.

Optionally, the second terminal sends the IP address of the second N3IWF to the mobility management network element, so that the mobility management network element sends the IP address of the second N3IWF to the session management network element, and the session management network element executes the foregoing The action performed by the second terminal in step 501 to determine whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Step 503: The mobility management network element sends a session context creation request message to the session management network element; correspondingly, the session management network element receives the session context creation request message.

Wherein, the session context creation request message may include the identification information of the first terminal, the identification information of the second terminal, the identification information of the session, and the session establishment request.

Optionally, the session context creation request message further includes the IP address of the second N3IWF.

Step 504: The session management network element sends a policy creation request to the policy control network element; correspondingly, the policy control network element receives the policy creation request.

Optionally, the session context creation request message includes the IP address of the second N3IWF.

Further, similar to the second terminal determining whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF in step 501, step 504 may include the following step 504a.

Step 504a: The session management network element judges whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

If they match, perform the following steps 505 to 512 to establish a PDU session for the second terminal to provide a relay service for the first terminal; if they do not match, no PDU session is established for the second terminal.

Optionally, if there is no match, the session management network element deletes the context of the first terminal.

Optionally, if there is no match, the session management network element also sends to the second terminal the indication information for instructing the second terminal to release the context of the first terminal through the mobility management network element, or sends the second N3IWF information to the second terminal. The indication information that the IP address does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, so that the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal according to the indication information.

Specifically, the session management network element may obtain the IP address of the first N3IWF in the following manner:

Manner 1: The session management network element is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Manner 2: The session management network element receives the identification information of the PLMN sent by the first terminal through the mobility management network element and the second terminal, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

The process of the session management network element determining the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN is similar to the process of determining the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN in step 304 by the user plane network element, and will not be repeated here. .

Wherein, the policy creation request may include the identification information of the first terminal, the identification information of the second terminal, and the identification information of the session.

Optionally, the policy creation request may be a session management policy establishment request (SM policy establishment request). For example, the terminal may send a PDU session establishment request to the session management network element through the mobility management network element to request the establishment of a PDU session for the terminal. After receiving the PDU session establishment request, the session management network element sends SM policy establishment to the policy control network element request.

Step 505: The policy control network element sends a policy creation request response to the session management network element; correspondingly, the session management network element receives the policy creation request response.

Among them, the policy creation request response may include some existing information, such as policy and charging control rules (policy and charging control rules, PCC rules), etc., which will not be repeated.

Optionally, when the request message is SM policy establishment request, the policy creation request response may be a session management policy establishment response (SM policy establishment response).

Step 506: The session management network element sends an N4 session establishment request to the user plane network element; correspondingly, the user plane network element receives the N4 session establishment request.

Optionally, the N4 session establishment request includes first indication information.

Optionally, the N4 session establishment request includes second indication information.

Optionally, the N4 session establishment request includes the information of the first identifier.

It should be noted that the first indication information, the second indication information, and the identification information of the first terminal may refer to the description of the first indication information, the second indication information, and the identification information of the first terminal in FIG. 3a, which will not be repeated here. .

Optionally, the N4 session establishment request further includes the IP address of the second N3IWF.

Step 507: The user plane network element sends an N4 session establishment request response to the session management network element. Correspondingly, the session management network element receives the N4 session establishment request response sent by the user plane network element.

Further, step 507 may also include step 507a.

Step 507a: The user plane network element judges whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

Among them, when the user plane network element receives the IP address of the second N3IWF, it can match the IP address of the second N3IWF with the IP address of the first N3IWF, and carry the matching result in the form of the sixth indication information in the N4 session establishment The request response is sent to the session management network element; where the sixth indication information includes the identification information of the first terminal, and the sixth indication information is used to indicate whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

If the sixth indication information is used to indicate that the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, the following steps 508 to 512 may be performed to establish a PDU session for providing a relay service for the first terminal.

Optionally, the N4 session establishment request response also includes tunnel information of the user plane network element.

Optionally, the user plane network element further receives the seventh indication information sent by the session management network element, and sends sixth indication information to the session management network element according to the seventh indication information.

The seventh indication information is used to instruct the user plane network element to determine whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

If the user plane network element judges that the IP address of the second N3IWF does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, it can send the sixth indication information indicating that the IP address of the second N3IWF does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF to the session. The management network element, so that the session management network element can delete the context of the first terminal according to the sixth indication information.

Optionally, the session management network element also sends to the second terminal indication information for instructing the second terminal to release the context of the first terminal, or sends to the second terminal indication information for indicating the IP address of the second N3IWF and the IP address of the first N3IWF. The sixth indication information that the IP address does not match, so that the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal according to the sixth indication information.

Step 508: The session management network element sends an N1N2 information transfer message to the mobility management network element. Correspondingly, the mobility management network element receives the N1N2 information transfer message sent by the session management network element.

Wherein, the N1N2 information transfer message includes session identification information, tunnel information of the user plane network element, and session establishment acceptance information; the session establishment acceptance information is used to indicate acceptance of the session establishment request sent by the second terminal.

Step 509: The mobility management network element sends an N2 session request to the access network network element. Correspondingly, the access network network element receives the N2 session request sent by the mobility management network element.

Among them, the N2 session request includes the identification information of the session, the tunnel information of the user plane network element, and the session establishment acceptance information.

Step 510: The access network element sends a wireless connection establishment request to the terminal. Correspondingly, the terminal receives the N2 session request sent by the network element of the access network.

Wherein, the wireless connection establishment request may include session establishment acceptance information.

Step 511: The access network element sends the access network element tunnel information to the session management network element through the mobility management network element. Correspondingly, the session management network element receives the access network element tunnel information.

Step 512: The session management network element sends an N4 session modification request to the user plane network element. Correspondingly, the user plane network element receives the N4 session modification request.

Among them, the N4 session modification request includes access network element tunnel information.

The session management network element sends the access network element tunnel information to the user plane network element, and sends the user plane network element tunnel information to the access network element, so that the access network element and the user plane network element can establish a connection. PDU session establishment process.

Based on the method shown in Figure 5, in this embodiment of the application, the second terminal, or the session management network element, or the user plane network element determines the IP address of the second N3IWF and the IP address of the first N3IWF during the PDU session establishment process Whether it matches. If it does not match, there is no need to establish a PDU session for the first terminal to provide a relay service, so as to prevent the data of the first terminal from bypassing the first N3IWF to reach the server, and at the same time, it can save network resources.

Further, when the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal may be determined as the IP address of the first N3IWF. When the data is transmitted, based on the figure In the method shown in 3a, the user plane network element can determine whether the destination address of the received data packet matches the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal. Or, based on the method shown in FIG. 4, the second terminal may determine whether the destination address of the received data of the first terminal matches the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal.

For example, taking the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal including IP1, IP2, and IP3 as an example, assuming that the IP address of the first N3IWF includes IP1, IP2, IP3, IP4, and IP5, the user plane network element can determine the first Second, the IP address of the N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF. During data transmission, the user plane network element can match the destination address of the received data packet with IP1, IP2, and IP3, and if it matches, forward the data packet Give the N3IWF corresponding to the destination address. In the same way, the action performed by the second terminal is similar to that of the user plane network element, and will not be repeated.

The method shown in Figure 5 above describes that in the process of establishing a PDU session for the relay service for the second terminal, the second terminal, or the session management network element, or the user plane network element can determine the IP of the second N3IWF Whether the address matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, if they match, a PDU session for providing relay services is established for the second terminal, and if they do not match, the context of the first terminal is released.

Alternatively, the second terminal, or session management network element, or user plane network element judging whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF may also occur after the PDU session is established for the second terminal. That is, the second terminal modifies the established PDU session.

Specifically, the second terminal may initiate a PDU session modification process, and add the IP address of the second N3IWF to the PDU session modification process. The second terminal, or the session management network element, or the user plane network element receives the second The IP address of the N3IWF, to determine whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

It should be noted that, for the second terminal to initiate the PDU session modification process, reference may be made to the description of the PDU session modification process in the prior art, which will not be repeated.

The foregoing mainly introduces the solution provided by the embodiment of the present application from the perspective of interaction between devices. It can be understood that, in order to implement the above-mentioned functions, each device includes a hardware structure and/or software module corresponding to each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that in combination with the algorithm steps of the examples described in the embodiments disclosed herein, the present application can be implemented in the form of hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software. Whether a certain function is executed by hardware or computer software-driven hardware 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 this application.

The embodiment of the present application may divide the function modules of each network element according to the foregoing method examples. For example, each function module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated into one processing module. The above-mentioned integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional modules. It should be noted that the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is illustrative, and is only a logical function division, and there may be other division methods in actual implementation.

In the case of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function, FIG. 6 shows a communication device, and the communication device 60 may be a user plane network element or a chip or a system on a chip in a user plane network element. The communication device 60 may be used to perform the functions of the user plane network element involved in the foregoing embodiment. The communication device 60 shown in FIG. 6 includes: a receiving module 601, a processing module 602, and a sending module 603.

The receiving module 601 is configured to receive a data packet including data of the first terminal through a PDU session of the second terminal, and the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal.

The processing module 602 is configured to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

The sending module 603 is configured to send a data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session if it matches.

For the specific implementation of the communication device 60, refer to the behavior function of the user plane network element in the communication method described in FIG. 3a-5.

In a possible design, the receiving module 601 is also configured to receive the first N3IWF IP address that is used to instruct the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF from the session management network element. Indication information; the processing module 602 is also used to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the first indication information.

In a possible design, the receiving module 601 is further configured to receive second indication information from the session management network element for indicating that the PDU session is used for the relay service; the processing module 602 is further configured to, according to the second indication information, Determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, the receiving module 601 is also used to receive the third indication information from the session management network element; where the third indication information is used to indicate when the user plane network element determines the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session When it matches the IP address of the first N3IWF, it sends the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session; the sending module 603 is further configured to send the data packet to the data packet carried by the PDU session according to the third indication information. The first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address sends the data packet.

In a possible design, the sending module 603 is also configured to send the fourth terminal including the identification information of the first terminal to the session management network element if the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF. Indication information; the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, the receiving module 601 is also used to receive fifth indication information from the session management network element; where the fifth indication information is used to indicate when the user plane network element determines the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session When the IP address of the first N3IWF does not match, send fourth instruction information to the session management network element; the sending module 603 is further configured to send fourth instruction information to the session management network element according to the fifth instruction information.

In a possible design, the receiving module 601 is also used for the user plane network element to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the session management network element; the sending module 603 is also used for sending to the session management network element The sixth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal; the sixth indication information is used to indicate whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, the receiving module 601 is further configured to receive seventh indication information from the session management network element for instructing the user plane network element to determine whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; The sending module 603 is further configured to send sixth indication information to the session management network element according to the seventh indication information.

In a possible design, the user plane network element is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or the user plane network element receives the IP address of the first N3IWF from the session management network element; or the user plane network element receives the IP address from the session management network Based on the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN of the meta, the IP address of the first N3IWF is determined according to the identification information of the PLMN.

In a possible design, the receiving module 601 is further configured to receive the identification information of the first terminal from the session management network element.

In a possible design, the identification information of the first terminal includes at least one of the following: an IP address allocated by the second terminal to the first terminal, identification information of a PDU session, and identity information of the first terminal.

As yet another achievable manner, the receiving module 601 and the sending module 603 in FIG. 6 can be replaced by a transceiver. The transceiver can integrate the functions of the receiving module 601 and the sending module 603. The processing module 602 can be replaced by a processor. The processor may integrate the functions of the processing module 602. Further, the communication device 60 shown in FIG. 6 may also include a memory. When the receiving module 601 and the sending module 603 are replaced by a transceiver, and the processing module 602 is replaced by a processor, the communication device 60 involved in the embodiment of the present application may be the communication device shown in FIG. 2.

In the case of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function, FIG. 7 shows a communication device, and the communication device 70 may be a session management network element or a chip or a system on a chip in a session management network element. The communication device 70 may be used to perform the functions of the session management network element involved in the foregoing embodiment. The communication device 70 shown in FIG. 7 includes a processing module 701 and a sending module 702.

The processing module 701 is configured to determine that the PDU session of the second terminal is used for a relay service; where the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal.

The sending module 702 is configured to send to the user plane network element first indication information for instructing the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; the data packet includes the first terminal The data.

For the specific implementation of the communication device 70, refer to the behavior function of the session management network element in the communication method described in FIG. 3a-5.

In a possible design, the session management network element further includes a receiving module 703 configured to receive fourth indication information including identification information of the first terminal from the user plane network element; the fourth indication information is used to indicate PDU The destination address of the data packet carried by the session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, the processing module 701 is further configured to release the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information.

In a possible design, the receiving module 703 is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the mobility management network element; the processing module 701 is also used to determine the IP address of the second N3IWF and the first terminal 1. Whether the IP address of the N3IWF matches; if it does not match, delete the context of the first terminal.

In a possible design, the receiving module 703 is further configured to receive the sixth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the user plane network element; the sixth indication information is used to indicate the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal Whether the IP address matches the IP address of the first N3IWF; the processing module 701 is further configured to delete the context of the first terminal when the sixth indication information is used to indicate that the IP address of the second N3IWF does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF .

In a possible design, the receiving module 703 is also used to receive the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the mobility management network element; the receiving module 703 is also used to send to the user plane network element according to the identification information of the PLMN The identification information of the PLMN and/or the IP address of the first N3IWF corresponding to the PLMN.

In a possible design, the receiving module 703 is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal of the mobility management network element; the sending module 702 is also used to send the IP address of the second N3IWF to User plane network element.

As yet another achievable manner, the sending module 702 and the receiving module 703 in FIG. 7 can be replaced by a transceiver. The transceiver can integrate the functions of the sending module 702 and the receiving module 703. The processing module 701 can be replaced by a processor. The processor may integrate the functions of the processing module 701. Further, the communication device 70 shown in FIG. 7 may also include a memory. When the sending module 702 and the receiving module 703 are replaced by a transceiver, and the processing module 701 is replaced by a processor, the communication device 70 involved in the embodiment of the present application may be the communication device shown in FIG. 2.

In the case of dividing each functional module corresponding to each function, FIG. 8 shows a communication device, and the communication device 80 may be a second terminal or a chip or a system on a chip in the second terminal. The communication device 80 may be used to perform the functions of the second terminal involved in the foregoing embodiments. The communication device 80 shown in FIG. 8 includes: a receiving module 802, a processing module 803, and a sending module 801.

The sending module 801 is configured to send data of the first terminal through the PDU session of the second terminal.

The receiving module 802 is configured to receive the eighth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the mobility management network element.

The processing module 803 is configured to release the context of the first terminal according to the eighth indication information; where the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the eighth indication information is used to indicate to release the context of the first terminal.

Alternatively, the receiving module 802 is configured to receive the fourth indication information including the identification information of the first terminal from the mobility management network element.

The processing module 803 is configured to release the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the status of the data packet carried by the protocol data unit PDU session The destination address does not match the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF, and the data packet includes the data of the first terminal.

Alternatively, the receiving module 802 is configured to receive data from the first terminal; where the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the data of the first terminal is forwarded through a protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal.

The processing module 803 is configured to determine whether the destination address of the data of the first terminal matches the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF.

The sending module 801 is configured to send a data packet including data of the first terminal to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address through the PDU session of the second terminal if it matches.

For the specific implementation of the communication device 80, refer to the behavior function of the second terminal in the communication method described in FIG. 3a-5.

In a possible design, the receiving module 802 is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal; the sending module 801 is used to send the IP address of the second N3IWF to the mobility management network element.

In a possible design, the receiving module 802 is also used to receive the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the first terminal; the sending module 801 is also used to send the identification information of the PLMN to the mobility management network element.

In a possible design, the processing module 803 is also configured to release the context of the first terminal if the destination address of the data of the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.

In a possible design, the receiving module 802 is also used to receive the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal; the processing module 803 is also used to determine whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF ; If it does not match, delete the context of the first terminal.

In a possible design, the second terminal is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or the second terminal receives the IP address of the first N3IWF from the mobility management network element; or the second terminal receives the public address from the first terminal The identification information of the land mobile network PLMN determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.

As yet another achievable manner, the sending module 801 and the receiving module 802 in FIG. 8 can be replaced by a transceiver, which can integrate the functions of the sending module 801 and the receiving module 802, and the processing module 803 can be replaced by a processor. The processor may integrate the functions of the processing module 803. Further, the communication device 80 shown in FIG. 8 may also include a memory. When the sending module 801 and the receiving module 802 are replaced by a transceiver, and the processing module 803 is replaced by a processor, the communication device 80 involved in the embodiment of the present application may be the communication device shown in FIG. 2.

The embodiment of the present application also provides a computer-readable storage medium. All or part of the processes in the foregoing method embodiments may be completed by a computer program instructing relevant hardware. The program may be stored in the foregoing computer-readable storage medium. When the program is executed, it may include processes as in the foregoing method embodiments. . The computer-readable storage medium may be an internal storage unit of the terminal (including the data sending end and/or the data receiving end) of any of the foregoing embodiments, such as the hard disk or memory of the terminal. The computer-readable storage medium may also be an external storage device of the terminal, such as a plug-in hard disk, a smart media card (SMC), a secure digital (SD) card, and a flash memory card equipped on the terminal. (flash card) and so on. Further, the aforementioned computer-readable storage medium may also include both an internal storage unit of the aforementioned terminal and an external storage device. The aforementioned computer-readable storage medium is used to store the aforementioned computer program and other programs and data required by the aforementioned terminal. The aforementioned computer-readable storage medium can also be used to temporarily store data that has been output or will be output.

It should be noted that the terms "first" and "second" in the specification, claims, and drawings of the present application are used to distinguish different objects, rather than to describe a specific sequence. 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 limited to the listed steps or units, but optionally includes unlisted steps or units, or optionally also includes Other steps or units inherent to these processes, methods, products or equipment.

It should be understood that in this application, "at least one (item)" refers to one or more, "multiple" refers to two or more than two, and "at least two (item)" refers to two or three And three or more, "and/or" is used to describe the association relationship of the associated objects, indicating that there can be three kinds of relationships, for example, "A and/or B" can mean: there is only A, only B and A at the same time And B three cases, where A, B can be singular or plural. The character "/" generally indicates that the associated objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. "The following at least one item (a)" or similar expressions refers to any combination of these items, including any combination of a single item (a) or a plurality of items (a). For example, at least one of a, b, or c can mean: a, b, c, "a and b", "a and c", "b and c", or "a and b and c" ", where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

Through the description of the above embodiments, those skilled in the art can clearly understand that for the convenience and brevity of the description, only the division of the above-mentioned functional modules is used as an example for illustration. In practical applications, the above-mentioned functions can be allocated according to needs. It is completed by different functional modules, that is, the internal structure of the device is divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above.

In the several 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 modules or units is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, for example, multiple units or components may be divided. It can be combined or integrated into another device, or some features can be omitted 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 parts may or may not be physically separate. The parts displayed as units may be one physical unit or multiple physical units, that is, they may be located in one place, or they may be distributed to multiple different places. . Some or all of the units may be selected according to actual needs to achieve the objectives of the solutions of the embodiments.

In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of the present application 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. The above-mentioned integrated unit can be implemented in the form of hardware or software functional unit.

If the integrated unit is implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as an independent product, it can be stored in a readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application are essentially or the part that contributes to the prior art, or all or part of the technical solutions can be embodied in the form of a software product, and the software product is stored in a storage medium. It includes several instructions to make a device (which may be a single-chip microcomputer, a chip, etc.) or a processor (processor) execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present application. The aforementioned storage media include: U disk, mobile hard disk, ROM, RAM, magnetic disk or optical disk and other media that can store program codes.

The above are only specific implementations of this application, but the protection scope of this application is not limited to this. Any changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in this application shall be covered by the protection scope of this application. . Therefore, the protection scope of this application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

A communication method, characterized in that it comprises:

The user plane network element receives a data packet through a protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal; wherein the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the data packet includes data of the first terminal;

The user plane network element judges whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF;

If they match, the user plane network element sends the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session.
The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

The user plane network element receives the first indication information from the session management network element; wherein, the first indication information is used to instruct the user plane network element to determine that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session is different from the first indication information. Whether the IP address of N3IWF matches;

The user plane network element determining whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF includes:

The user plane network element determines whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the first indication information.
The method according to claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

The user plane network element receives the second indication information from the session management network element; wherein the second indication information is used to indicate that the PDU session is used for a relay service;

The user plane network element determining whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF includes:

The user plane network element determines whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the second indication information.
The method according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the method further comprises:

The user plane network element receives the third indication information from the session management network element; wherein, the third indication information is used to indicate when the user plane network element determines that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session is different from the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session. When the IP address of the first N3IWF matches, sending the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session;

The sending, by the user plane network element, of the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session includes:

The user plane network element sends the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session according to the third indication information.
The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the method further comprises:

If the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the user plane network element sends fourth indication information to the session management network element; wherein, the fourth indication information includes The identification information of the first terminal, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.
The method according to claim 5, wherein the method further comprises:

The user plane network element receives the fifth indication information from the session management network element; wherein the fifth indication information is used to indicate when the user plane network element determines that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session is different from the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session. When the IP address of the first N3IWF does not match, fourth indication information is sent to the session management network element; the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session is the same as that of the first N3IWF Does not match the IP address;

The sending, by the user plane network element, the fourth indication information to the session management network element includes:

The user plane network element sends the fourth instruction information to the session management network element according to the fifth instruction information.
The method according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the method further comprises:

Receiving, by the user plane network element, the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal from the session management network element;

The user plane network element sends sixth indication information to the session management network element; wherein, the sixth indication information includes identification information of the first terminal, and the sixth indication information is used to indicate the second Whether the IP address of the N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.
The method according to claim 7, wherein the method further comprises:

The user plane network element receives the seventh indication information from the session management network element; wherein, the seventh indication information is used to instruct the user plane network element to determine that the IP address of the second N3IWF and the first N3IWF 1. Whether the IP address of N3IWF matches;

The sending of the sixth indication information by the user plane network element to the session management network element includes:

The user plane network element sends the sixth indication information to the session management network element according to the seventh indication information.
The method according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein the method further comprises:

The user plane network element is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or

The user plane network element receives the IP address of the first N3IWF from the session management network element; or

The user plane network element receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the session management network element, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.
The method according to any one of claims 1-9, wherein the method further comprises:

The user plane network element receives the identification information of the first terminal from the session management network element.
The method according to any one of claims 5-10, wherein:

The identification information of the first terminal includes at least one of the following: an IP address allocated by the second terminal to the first terminal, identification information of the PDU session, and identity information of the first terminal.
A communication method, characterized in that it comprises:

The session management network element determines that the protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal is used for the relay service; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal;

The session management network element sends first indication information to the user plane network element; wherein, the first indication information is used to instruct the user plane network element to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session is different from the first non- Whether the Internet Protocol IP address of the third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF matches; the data packet includes the data of the first terminal.
The method according to claim 12, wherein the method further comprises:

The session management network element receives fourth indication information from the user plane network element; wherein, the fourth indication information includes identification information of the first terminal, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the PDU The destination address of the data packet carried by the session does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF.
The method according to claim 13, wherein the method further comprises:

The session management network element releases the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information.
The method according to any one of claims 12-14, characterized in that,

Receiving, by the session management network element, the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal from the mobility management network element;

The session management network element judges whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF;

If it does not match, the session management network element deletes the context of the first terminal.
The method according to any one of claims 12-15, wherein the method further comprises:

The session management network element receives sixth indication information from the user plane network element; wherein the sixth indication information includes identification information of the first terminal, and the sixth indication information is used to indicate the first terminal Whether the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by a terminal matches the IP address of the first N3IWF;

When the sixth indication information is used to indicate that the IP address of the second N3IWF does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the session management network element deletes the context of the first terminal.
The method according to any one of claims 12-16, wherein the method further comprises:

The session management network element receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the mobility management network element;

The session management network element sends the identification information of the PLMN and/or the IP address of the first N3IWF corresponding to the PLMN to the user plane network element according to the identification information of the PLMN.
The method according to any one of claims 12-17, wherein the method further comprises:

Receiving, by the session management network element, the IP address of the second N3IWF provided by the first terminal from the mobility management network element;

The session management network element sends the IP address of the second N3IWF to the user plane network element.
A communication method, characterized in that it comprises:

The second terminal sends the data of the first terminal through the PDU session of the second terminal; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal;

The second terminal receives the eighth indication information from the mobility management network element; the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal according to the eighth indication information; wherein, the eighth indication information includes the first terminal Identification information of a terminal, where the eighth indication information is used to instruct to release the context of the first terminal; or

The second terminal receives the fourth indication information from the mobility management network element; the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal according to the fourth indication information; wherein, the fourth indication information includes the first terminal The identification information of a terminal, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the destination address of the data packet carried by the protocol data unit PDU session does not match the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF, The data packet includes data of the first terminal.
The method according to claim 19, wherein the method further comprises:

Receiving, by the second terminal, the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal;

The second terminal sends the IP address of the second N3IWF to the mobility management network element.
The method according to claim 19 or 20, wherein the method further comprises:

Receiving, by the second terminal, the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the first terminal;

The second terminal sends the identification information of the PLMN to the mobility management network element.
A communication method, characterized in that it comprises:

The second terminal receives data from the first terminal; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the data of the first terminal is forwarded through the protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal ；

The second terminal judges whether the destination address of the data of the first terminal matches the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF;

If they match, the second terminal sends the data of the first terminal to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address through the PDU session of the second terminal.
The method according to claim 22, wherein the method further comprises:

If the destination address of the data of the first terminal does not match the IP address of the first N3IWF, the second terminal releases the context of the first terminal.
The method according to claim 22 or 23, wherein the method further comprises:

Receiving, by the second terminal, the IP address of the second N3IWF from the first terminal;

The second terminal judges whether the IP address of the second N3IWF matches the IP address of the first N3IWF;

If there is no match, the second terminal deletes the context of the first terminal.
The method according to any one of claims 22-24, wherein the method further comprises:

The second terminal is pre-configured with the IP address of the first N3IWF; or

The second terminal receives the IP address of the first N3IWF from the mobility management network element; or

The second terminal receives the identification information of the public land mobile network PLMN from the first terminal, and determines the IP address of the first N3IWF according to the identification information of the PLMN.
A communication device, characterized in that the communication device includes one or more processors and transceivers; the one or more processors and the transceiver support the communication device to execute any of claims 1-11 One of the communication methods, or executes the communication method according to any one of claims 12-18, or executes the method according to any one of claims 19-21, or executes any one of claims 22-25 The method described in one item.
A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions or programs, and when the computer instructions or programs are run on a computer, the computer can execute any one of claims 1-11. Communication method, or execute the communication method according to any one of claims 12-18, or execute the method according to any one of claims 19-21, or execute the method according to any one of claims 22-25 method.
A communication system, characterized in that the communication system includes a user plane network element and a session management network element;

The user plane network element is configured to receive data packets through a protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal, and the data packet includes the data packet of the first terminal Data; the user plane network element is also used to determine whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF; if they match, Sending, by the user plane network element, the data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session;

The session management network element is used to determine that the protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal is used for the relay service, and sends first indication information to the user plane network element; wherein, the first indication information is used to indicate all The user plane network element judges whether the destination address of the data packet carried by the PDU session matches the IP address of the first N3IWF.
A communication system, characterized in that the communication system includes: a first terminal and a second terminal;

The first terminal is configured to send data to the second terminal; wherein, the second terminal is a relay node of the first terminal;

The second terminal is used to receive data from the first terminal; wherein, the data of the first terminal is forwarded through the protocol data unit PDU session of the second terminal; the second terminal is also used to determine Whether the destination address of the data of the first terminal matches the Internet Protocol IP address of the first non-third-generation partner project interworking function network element N3IWF; if they match, the second terminal uses the PDU session of the second terminal Send a data packet to the first N3IWF corresponding to the destination address; wherein, the data packet includes data of the first terminal.