WO2022022691A1

WO2022022691A1 - Method and apparatus for managing time synchronization service in tsn

Info

Publication number: WO2022022691A1
Application number: PCT/CN2021/109655
Authority: WO
Inventors: 陶源; 王胡成
Original assignee: 大唐移动通信设备有限公司
Priority date: 2020-07-31
Filing date: 2021-07-30
Publication date: 2022-02-03
Also published as: CN114071493A; CN114071493B

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a method and apparatus for managing a time synchronization service in TSN. The method comprises: determining a time synchronization service policy; and configuring time synchronization service information for a terminal and/or a user plane function, the time synchronization service information comprising the time synchronization service policy.

Description

Method and device for TSN time synchronization service management

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202010757957.6 filed in China on Jul. 31, 2020, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

technical field

The present disclosure relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a method and apparatus for managing a time synchronization service of a Time Sensitive Network (TSN).

Background technique

For the scenario of requesting Time Sensitive Network (TSN) time synchronization service based on Application Function (AF), a centralized management of time synchronization service information (port status, port capability) is proposed.

At present, the time synchronization service can be opened for any AF (not limited to the only TSN AF). For scenarios where multiple AFs exist, the TSN AF cannot act as the only central management node to correspond to all Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sessions. Therefore, there will be conflicts in the port status configuration of different ports. For example, when the port state of one port is changed, other ports may be affected, and the port state of the port related to the PDU session needs to be modified accordingly. As a result, the current solution cannot accurately configure the port status when activating the time synchronization service based on the AF request.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the embodiments of the present disclosure is to provide a method and apparatus for managing a TSN time synchronization service, so as to solve the problem that the port state cannot be accurately configured when the time synchronization service is activated based on an AF request.

A first aspect provides a TSN time synchronization service management method, applied to a first network element, including:

Determine the time synchronization service strategy;

Time synchronization service information is configured to the terminal and/or user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the time synchronization service policy.

Optionally, the method further includes:

Receive updated time synchronization service information;

The time synchronization service policy is adjusted according to the updated time synchronization service information.

Optionally, the method further includes:

Configure time synchronization service information of the terminal and/or user plane function according to the adjusted time synchronization service policy.

Optionally, the function of configuring the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane includes:

before the PDU session is established, storing the time synchronization service information in the second network element;

During the PDU session establishment process, the time synchronization service information obtained from the second network element is configured to the terminal and/or the user plane function.

Optionally, the first network element is NEF, and the second network element includes: UDR or PCF;

or,

The first network element is a PCF, and the second network element includes: NEF or UDR;

or,

The first network element is SMF, and the second network element includes: NEF, UDR, or NEF;

or,

The first network element is a TSN AF, and the second network element includes: NEF, UDR, or NEF.

Optionally, the first network element includes: NEF;

The determining of the time synchronization service policy includes:

Determine a time synchronization service policy according to the first information, where the first information includes one or more of the following combinations: information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, request information of AF, and local storage of each port current port status;

The configuring the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF includes:

Store the time synchronization service information in the UDR, and the UDR sends the time synchronization service information to the PCF, or directly sends the time synchronization service information to the PCF, and the PCF sends the time synchronization service information Sent to the SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

Optionally, the first network element includes: PCF;

The determining of the time synchronization service policy includes:

Receive time synchronization service information from UDR or NEF;

determining a time synchronization service policy according to the time synchronization service information;

The time synchronization service information is sent to the SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

Optionally, the first network element includes: SMF;

The determining of the time synchronization service policy includes:

Receive time synchronization service information from PCF;

According to the time synchronization service information, a time synchronization service policy is determined.

Optionally, the first network element includes: TSN AF;

The determining of the time synchronization service policy includes:

Determine a time synchronization service policy according to the second information, where the second information includes one or more of the following combinations: information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, and a request from a non-time-sensitive network application function Non-TSN AF information, the current port status of each port stored locally;

The time synchronization service information is configured to the UE and /UPF, including:

The time synchronization service information is sent to the NEF, and the NEF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

A second aspect provides an apparatus for managing TSN time synchronization services, which is applied to the first network element, including:

A determination module, used to determine the time synchronization service policy;

A configuration module, configured to configure time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the time synchronization service policy.

In a third aspect, a first network element is provided, including: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor:

the memory for storing programs;

the transceiver, configured to send and receive data under the control of the processor;

The processor is configured to read the program in the memory and perform the following operations: determine a time synchronization service policy; configure time synchronization service information to a terminal and/or a user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the Time synchronization service policy.

In a fourth aspect, a readable storage medium is provided, and a program or an instruction is stored on the readable storage medium, and when the program or instruction is executed by a processor, the method for managing a TSN time synchronization service according to the first aspect is implemented. step.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, by centrally managing ports, the problem of conflicting port state configurations of different ports is avoided, and the accuracy of port state configuration is improved.

Description of drawings

Various other advantages and benefits will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon reading the following detailed description of alternative embodiments. The drawings are for the purpose of illustrating alternative embodiments only and are not to be considered limiting of the present disclosure. Also, the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the drawings. In the attached image:

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a 5G system bridge;

Fig. 2a and Fig. 2b are schematic diagrams of 5G system realizing time synchronization;

Figure 3a and Figure 3b are schematic diagrams of time synchronization opening;

4 is a flowchart of a method for managing a TSN time synchronization service according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

5 is a flowchart of Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure;

6 is a flowchart of Embodiment 2 of the present disclosure;

7 is a flowchart of Embodiment 3 of the present disclosure;

8 is a flowchart of Embodiment 4 of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is one of schematic diagrams of a first network element according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is the second schematic diagram of the first network element according to the embodiment of the disclosure.

detailed description

In order to facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the TSN technology is first introduced.

Currently, IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) 802.1 time-varying networks is becoming the standard Ethernet technology for Industry 4.0 converged networks. The 5th generation (5G) and TSN can co-exist in factory deployments and meet key requirements such as the flexibility of 5G and the extremely low latency of TSN. But it is foreseeable that 5G TSN technology will be widely used in industrial control, machine manufacturing, high-definition audio and video transmission and other fields.

5G TSN technology requires transformation of terminals, base stations, transmission, and core networks. Terminals and user plane functions (User Plan Function, UPF) need to support the time-sensitive network translator (TSN Translator, TT) function. The 5G system (5G System, 5GS) can be regarded as a Bridge (bridge), which consists of a port on the side of a UPF (Protocol Data Unit Session Anchor (PDU session anchor, PSA)), a user plane tunnel between the UE and the UPF, And the device side TSN Translator (Device-Side TSN Translator, DS-TT) side of the port composition.

Referring to Figure 1, the system architecture of 5GS is presented as Bridge. The main network functions are introduced as follows:

CNC: Centralized Network Configuration, a centralized network configuration that can be applied to network devices (bridges).

CUC: Centralized User Configuration, centralized user configuration, which can be applied to user devices.

AMF: Access and Mobility Management Function, access and mobility management functions, registration, connection management, etc.

UPF: User Plan Function, user plane function. External PDU session node interconnected with data network, message routing and forwarding.

SMF: Session Management Function, session management function. Session establishment, deletion, user plane selection and control, UE IP allocation, etc.

AF: Application Function, application function. Interact with the 3GPP core network to provide services. Based on the deployment of operators, trusted AFs can directly interact with relevant NFs, while non-trusted AFs cannot directly interact with NFs, but should use an external disclosure framework to do so through NEFs. The TSN AF is the AF that represents the interaction between the TSN domain (including CUC/CNC) and the 5G system control plane.

PCF: Policy Control Function, policy control function. Supports a unified policy framework to manage network behavior, providing policy rules for control plane NF enforcement.

UDM: Unified Data Management, unified data management. Store UE information, such as subscription information and established PDU session information.

NEF: Network Exposure Function, network open function. Provides functions related to securely exposing services and capabilities provided by 3GPP networks to external networks.

UDR: Unified Data Repository, unified database. Storage of contract data, and retrieval of contract data by UDM FE. Storage of policy information, and retrieval of policy information by PCF.

5G defines the Application Function, which sends an AF request (Request) to the non-trusted domain (NEF) or to the trusted domain (PCF), which includes the target data network name (Data Network Name, DNN), application identification (Identity, ID), A series of parameters such as N6 routing requirements and application locations. According to these information parameters provided by AF, PCF combines its own policy control to generate Policy Control and Charging (PCC) rules for the target PDU Session (PDU Session) service flow, and select a suitable UPF for it through SMF . The TSN AF can interact with the 5G system control plane on behalf of the TSN domain (including CUC/CNC).

Based on the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standard, the 5G system acts as a transparent transmission bridge of the TSN network, and the entire 5G system is regarded as a time-aware system. It is required that UE/DS-TT and UPF/Network-Side TNS Translator (NW-TT) can implement TSN Translator and meet all functions defined by IEEE802.1AS, for example, support Precision Time Protocol (Precision Time Protocol, PTP), timestamp, Best Master Clock Algorithm (BMCA), etc. Realize the synchronization of UE, base station (gNB), and UPF to the internal clock (5G GM) of the 5G system to maintain the synchronization of network entities, and to synchronize with the TSN domain, which has achieved end-to-end downlink and uplink time synchronization.

Figures 2a and 2b are schematic diagrams of time synchronization between TSN End Stations at both ends through the 5G system. As a network element of the TSN system, the 5G system needs to receive the synchronization message ((g)PTP) sent from the time source (End Station) of the TSN, and according to the time delay consumed by the processing and transmission of the data packets in the 5G system. Update time information. Moreover, all the update processing of time information is currently performed at the edge of the 5G system, that is, by DS-TT or NW-TT.

Figure 3a and Figure 3b are schematic diagrams of time synchronization opening. The 5G system opens the time synchronization capability to multiple AFs through NEF, and each AF can request time synchronization for one or a group of UEs to a time TSN time domain/5GS time.

Based on the AF request in the existing standard, 5GS can activate the TSN time synchronization service. AF can request synchronization to a certain TSN time domain or 5GS clock (clock), time synchronization accuracy, (g) PTP version, highest (grandmaster) priority, etc.

BMCA is defined based on IEEE to calculate and determine the state of the port (slave, master, passive) according to the information such as the accuracy and distance of the clock that can be obtained from the DS-TT and NW-TT ports. For example, DS-TT port 1 is slave, NW-TT port is master, DS-TT port 2 is passive. During the BMCA process, DS-TT/NW-TT receives the Announce frame and can report the Announce information to the AF, and the TSN AF determines the BMCA port role of each port in the 5GS bridge (eg: Slave port) , Master port, Passive port).

In the related art, TSN AF is the only AF that can interact with CNC in a 5GS bridge. Therefore, it can act as a central management node to manage the ports corresponding to all PDU sessions, and TSN AF determines the port state. In a scenario where there are multiple AFs, the AF cannot be used as the only central management node. In this case, other NFs need to be considered as management nodes. The central management node also needs to manage the status of each port, the capability of each DS-TT/NW-TT port and other information to form a corresponding time synchronization service policy. For example, the central management node needs to configure the port of each DS-TT/NW-TT according to the new DS-TT capabilities (eg, it can be used as the (g) PTP optimal clock (Grandmaster Clock, GM), supported version) state; if a port receives an Announce frame containing better best master information, the port notifies the central management node, which needs to modify the port state of the port related to the PDU session accordingly. In addition, the current solution only considers that the TSN AF manages the port synchronization information corresponding to the existing PDU sessions, and lacks a solution for the newly established PDU sessions. Therefore, there is an urgent need to support multi-AF coexistence scenarios, how to manage the port time synchronization information for a new PDU session and an existing PDU through a central management node.

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, but not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure.

The term "comprising" and any variations thereof in the specification and claims of the present disclosure are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, eg, a process, method, system, product, or device comprising a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to the explicit Those steps or units are explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not expressly listed or inherent to the process, method, product or apparatus. In addition, the use of "and/or" in the specification and claims indicates at least one of the connected objects, such as A and/or B, and indicates that there are three cases including A alone, B alone, and both A and B.

In the embodiments of the present disclosure, words such as "exemplary" or "such as" are used to mean serving as an example, illustration, or illustration. Any embodiments or designs described in the embodiments of the present disclosure as "exemplary" or "such as" should not be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "such as" is intended to present the related concepts in a specific manner.

The techniques described herein are not limited to Long Time Evolution (LTE)/LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) systems, and may also be used in various wireless communication systems such as Code Division Multiple Access (Code Division Multiple Access) Multiple Access (CDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), single carrier frequency Division Multiple Access (Single-carrier Frequency-Division Multiple Access, SC-FDMA) and other systems.

The terms "system" and "network" are often used interchangeably. A CDMA system may implement radio technologies such as CDMA2000, Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA). UTRA includes Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) and other CDMA variants. A TDMA system may implement a radio technology such as the Global System for Mobile Communication (GSM). OFDMA system can realize such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Evolved UTRA (Evolution-UTRA, E-UTRA), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, etc. radio technology. UTRA and E-UTRA are part of the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). LTE and higher LTE (eg LTE-A) are new UMTS releases that use E-UTRA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE, LTE-A, and GSM are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project" (3GPP). CDMA2000 and UMB are described in documents from an organization named "3rd Generation Partnership Project 2" (3GPP2). The techniques described herein may be used for both the systems and radio technologies mentioned above, as well as for other systems and radio technologies.

Referring to FIG. 4 , an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a method for managing a TSN time synchronization service. The execution body of the method may be a first network element, such as NEF, PCF, SMF, or TSN AF, and the specific steps include: step 401 and step 402 .

Step 401: Determine a time synchronization service policy;

For example, the time synchronization service policy can be used to determine the port state of the port and/or the time domain to which it is synchronized, etc. The port state can include: slave, master, passive, disable. That is, the time synchronization service policy is used to configure the port state of the port and/or the time domain to which it is synchronized, etc.

Step 402: Configure time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the time synchronization service policy.

The above time synchronization service information can be understood as: information related to requesting the 5G system to realize the time synchronization service through the AF, and the time synchronization service information may include the information requested by the AF, for example, the UE identifier (such as GPSI), DNN, S-NSSAI, TSN time synchronization activation indication, TSN domain number/5GS, clock accuracy and other information, furthermore, it can also include time synchronization policy, information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, current port status information, updated port status information, etc. .

For example, before the PDU session is established, the time synchronization service information is stored in the second network element; during the PDU session establishment process, the time synchronization service information obtained from the second network element is configured to the terminal and/or or user plane functions. Optionally, the first network element is NEF, and the second network element includes: UDR or PCF; or, the first network element is PCF, and the second network element includes: NEF or UDR; Or, the first network element is SMF, and the second network element includes: NEF, UDR, or NEF; or, the first network element is TSN AF, and the second network element includes: NEF, UDR, or NEF.

In the following, the first network elements are respectively NEF, PCF, SMF and TSN AF for introduction.

For example, the NEF determines the time synchronization service policy, and the NEF can configure the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function through the PCF.

Specifically, the NEF determines a time synchronization service policy according to the first information, where the first information includes a combination of one or more of the following: a device-side TSN converter (DS-TT) and a network-side TSN converter (NW- TT) reported information, application function (AF) request information, and the current port status of each port stored locally; NEF stores the time synchronization service information in the UDR, and the UDR sends the time synchronization service information to the PCF, or directly send the time synchronization service information to the PCF, the PCF sends the time synchronization service information to the session management function SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and the SMF. / or UPF.

For another example, the PCF determines the time synchronization service policy, and the PCF directly configures the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function. For example, PCF sends SMF by calling Npcf_SMPolicyControl_UpdateNotify operation, SMF is configured to UPF through N4 session level modification message (Port Management Information Container (PMIC)), and configured to UE through PMIC or NAS.

Specifically, the PCF receives the time synchronization service information from the UDR or the NEF; determines the time synchronization service policy according to the time synchronization service information; the PCF sends the time synchronization service information to the SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to UE and/or UPF.

For another example, the SMF determines the time synchronization service policy, and the SMF can directly configure the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function. For example, the SMF configures the UPF through the N4 session level modification message (Port Management Information Container (PMIC)) , configured to the UE through PMIC or NAS.

Specifically, the SMF receives the time synchronization service information from the PCF; according to the time synchronization service information, a time synchronization service policy is determined; and the SMF directly configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

For another example, the AF determines the time synchronization service policy, and the AF can configure the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function through the NEF.

Specifically, the AF determines the time synchronization service policy according to the second information, wherein the second information includes one or more of the following combinations: information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, request information of Non-TSN AF, The current port status of each port stored locally; the AF sends the time synchronization service information to the NEF, and the NEF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

The above NEF, PCF, SMF or AF is based on one of the announcement information (Announce information), DS-TT capability, grandmaster clock quality (grandmaster clock quality) and clock identity (clock identity) reported by DS-TT and NW-TT ports. Item or a combination of multiple items to determine the time synchronization service policy.

In this embodiment of the present disclosure, on the basis of the process shown in FIG. 4 , the method further includes:

Receive updated time synchronization service information; and adjust the time synchronization service policy according to the updated time synchronization service information.

For example, the NEF receives updated time synchronization service information from the DS-TT/NW-TT, and the NEF adjusts the time synchronization service policy according to the updated time synchronization service information.

For another example, the PCF receives updated time synchronization service information from the UDR or NEF, and the PCF adjusts the time synchronization service policy according to the updated time synchronization service information.

Configure the time synchronization service information of the terminal and/or user plane function according to the adjusted time synchronization service policy, so that each protocol data unit (Protocol Data Unit, PDU) session corresponding to the session can be reconfigured according to the adjusted time synchronization service policy. port status of a port.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, by centralizing the management of ports, the problem of conflicting port state configurations of different ports is avoided, and the optimal time synchronization clock is ensured at the same time.

Example 1

Referring to FIG. 5 , this embodiment introduces the NEF as an information management node to determine policy information.

Step 0: During the PDU session establishment or modification process, the UE/DS-TT and the UPF/NW-TT report capability information to the NEF.

Optionally, the capability information includes a combination of one or more of the following: DS-TT can be used as (g) PTP GM, supported version, and 5GS clock (clock) information of NW-TT.

During the BMCA process, UE/DS-TT and UPF/NW-TT report announcement information (Announce information) to NEF.

Step 1: AF calls Nnef_TrafficInfluence_Create service operation to create request information;

Optionally, the request information includes one or more combinations of the following: one or a group of UE identifiers, such as a Generic Public Subscription Identifier (GPSI)); DNN; single network slice selection assistance information (Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information, S-NSSAI); TSN time synchronization activation indication; time-sensitive network domain number (TSN domain number)/5GS; clock accuracy and other information.

Step 2: NEF determines the time based on the capability information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, the request information of AF, the port state (port state) of each port stored locally, and the time determined by BMCA. synchronization service policy;

The time synchronization service policy is used to configure: the port state of the port corresponding to the PDU session, such as: slave, master, passive, disable (disable).

Step 3a: NEF stores the time synchronization service information in the UDR, the time synchronization service information includes the time synchronization service policy determined in step 2, and each PCF that has subscribed to the UDR for the time synchronization service information will receive a notification message.

The time synchronization service policy can be stored in the UDR as application data (Application Data), for example, data set (Data Set)=Application Data; data subset (Data Subset)=service specific information (Service specific information), data value ( Data Key)=AF Transaction Internal ID, S-NSSAI and DNN and/or internal group identifier (Internal Group Identifier) or user permanent identifier (SUbscription Permanent Identifier, SUPI).

Step 3b: If the request information of the AF is for a target UE, the NEF can directly send the time synchronization service policy and the request information of the AF to the PCF.

Step 4: After receiving the time synchronization service information, the PCF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and the UPF (not shown in the figure).

For example, PCF sends time synchronization service information to SMF by calling Npcf_SMPolicyControl_UpdateNotify operation, SMF configures time synchronization service information to UPF through N4 session level modification message (Port Management Information Container (PMIC)), and configures time synchronization service information to UPF through PMIC or non- The access stratum (Non-Access-Stratum, NAS) configures the time synchronization service information to the UE.

If the PDU session has not been established, the UE and the UPF can obtain the time synchronization service information from the UDR or the PCF or the NEF during the process of establishing the PDU session initiated by the UE.

Step 5: If the port state (port state) of a port (such as DS-TT or NW-TT port) needs to be modified, report Announce information to NEF, and NEF will modify the time synchronization service policy.

For example, if the DS-TT/NW-TT port receives an Announce frame (Announce frame) containing better best master information, the DS-TT/NW-TT will report the Announce information to the NEF. NEF modifies the time synchronization service policy and reconfigures the port state.

Embodiment 2

Referring to FIG. 6, this embodiment introduces UDR or NEF or PCF as an information management node, and the PCF determines a time synchronization service policy.

Step 0: During the PDU session establishment/modification process, UE/DS-TT and UPF/NW-TT report capability information to UDR/NEF, and the capability information may include one or more of the following combinations: DS-TT can be used as ( g) PTP GM, supported version, 5GS clock information of NW-TT.

During the BMCA process, UE/DS-TT and UPF/NW-TT report Announce information to UDR/NEF.

Optionally, the request information includes one or more combinations of the following: one or a group of UE identifiers (eg: GPSI), DNN, S-NSSAI, TSN time synchronization activation indication, TSN domain number/5GS, clock accuracy and other information .

Step 2a: NEF stores the received request information in UDR.

For example, the time synchronization service information including the request information of AF is stored in the UDR as Application Data, for example, Data Set=Application Data; Data Subset=Service specific information, Data Key=AF Transaction Internal ID, S-NSSAI and DNN and/ or Internal Group Identifier or SUPI.

Step 2b: If the request information of the AF is for a target UE, the NEF can also directly send the request information and capability information of the AF to the PCF.

Step 3: Before the PDU session is established, the PCF subscribes to the UDR the time synchronization service information corresponding to the target UE or the specific DNN and one or more PDU sessions corresponding to the S-NSSAI. When the time synchronization service information subscribed by the PCF changes, the UDR will send a notification message to the PCF. PCF determines the time synchronization service policy based on the time synchronization service information, such as the port state of each port corresponding to the PDU session. Assuming that only one PCF is deployed, the SMF always chooses the same PCF (eg, based on operator policy) when a PDU session is established.

If multiple PCFs are deployed, each PCF needs to return the port state to the UDR in the response message (not shown in the figure). The UDR will store the latest time synchronization service information (eg, the latest port state).

Step 4: When the time synchronization service information is stored by the PCF, the time synchronization service policy is determined according to the locally stored time synchronization service information and the request information received from the AF of the NEF/UDR. The PCF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and the UPF.

For example, PCF sends time synchronization service information to SMF by calling Npcf_SMPolicyControl_UpdateNotify operation, SMF configures time synchronization service information to UPF through N4 session level modification message (Port Management Information Container (PMIC)), and sends time synchronization service information through PMIC or NAS configured to the UE.

If the PDU session has not been established, the UE and the UPF can obtain the time synchronization service policy from the PCF during the process of establishing the PDU session initiated by the UE.

Step 5: If the port state of a port (such as DS-TT or NW-TT port) needs to be modified, report Announce information to NEF. After PCF receives the corresponding notification message, it modifies the time synchronization service policy.

If multiple PCFs are deployed, each PCF replies with the latest configuration information to the UDR.

Embodiment 3

Referring to FIG. 7 , this embodiment introduces the SMF as an information management node and determines a time synchronization service policy.

Step 0: During the PDU session establishment/modification process, UE/DS-TT and UPF/NW-TT report capability information to SMF;

The capability information can include one or more of the following combinations: DS-TT can be used as (g) PTP GM, supported version, and 5GS clock information of NW-TT.

During the BMCA process, UE/DS-TT and UPF/NW-TT report Announce information to SMF.

Optionally, the request information may include one or more combinations of the following: one or a group of UE identifiers (eg: GPSI), DNN, S-NSSAI, TSN time synchronization activation indication, TSN domain number/5GS, clock accuracy and other information .

Step 2a: The NEF stores the received request information in the UDR.

For example, the time synchronization service information containing the request information is stored in the UDR as Application Data (for example, Data Set=Application Data; Data Subset=Service specific information, Data Key=AF Transaction Internal ID, S-NSSAI and DNN and/or Internal ID) Group Identifier or SUPI).

Step 2b: If the request information of the AF is directed to a target UE, the NEF may also directly send the request information of the A and the capability information to the PCF.

Step 3: When the time synchronization service information subscribed by the PCF changes, the UDR will send a notification message to the PCF.

For example, PCF sends time synchronization service information to SMF by calling Npcf_SMPolicyControl_UpdateNotify operation.

Step 4: The SMF determines the time synchronization service policy based on the time synchronization service information, such as the port state of each port corresponding to the PDU session. When the time synchronization service information is stored by the SMF, the SMF determines the time synchronization service policy according to the locally stored time synchronization service information and the request information received from the AF of the PCF.

Step 5: The SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and the UPF.

For example, SMF configures time synchronization service information to UPF through N4 session level modification message (Port Management Information Container (PMIC)), and configures time synchronization service information to UE through PMIC or NAS.

If the PDU session has not been established, the UE and the UPF can obtain the time synchronization service policy from the SMF during the process of establishing the PDU session initiated by the UE.

Step 6: If the port state of a port needs to be modified, the port will report Announce information to SMF.

After receiving the corresponding notification message, the SMF modifies the time synchronization service policy and reconfigures the port status.

Embodiment 4

Referring to FIG. 8, this embodiment introduces TSN AF as an information management node, and determines a time synchronization service policy.

Step 0: During the PDU session establishment/modification process, UE/DS-TT and UPF/NW-TT report capability information to TSN AF;

Optionally, the capability information may include one or more of the following combinations: (1) DS-TT can be used as (g) PTP GM, supported version, (2) 5GS clock information of NW-TT.

During the BMCA process, UE/DS-TT and UPF/NW-TT report Announce information to TSN AF.

Step 1: Non-TSN AF sends request information to TSN AF.

Step 2: TSN AF determines the time synchronization service policy based on the information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, the request information of AF, the port state information of each port stored locally, and through BMCA, For example, the port state of the port corresponding to the PDU session (eg: slave, master, passive, disable).

Step 3: The TSN AF sends the time synchronization information to the NEF, and configures the time synchronization service information to the UE/DS-TT and the UPF/NW-TT through the existing mechanism.

Referring to FIG. 9 , an embodiment of the present disclosure provides an apparatus for managing TSN time synchronization services, which is applied to a first network element, for example, NEF, PCF, SMF, or TSN AF, and the apparatus 900 includes:

A determination module 901, configured to determine a time synchronization service policy;

The configuration module 902 is configured to configure time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the time synchronization service policy.

In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the apparatus 900 further includes:

a receiving module for receiving updated time synchronization service information;

An adjustment module, configured to adjust the time synchronization service policy according to the updated time synchronization service information.

A reconfiguration module, configured to configure time synchronization service information of the terminal and/or user plane function according to the adjusted time synchronization service policy.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the configuration module 902 is further configured to: before the establishment of the PDU session, store the time synchronization service information in the second network element; during the establishment of the PDU session, from the second network element The time synchronization service information obtained in is configured to the terminal and/or user plane function.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first network element is NEF, and the second network element includes: UDR or PCF; or, the first network element is PCF, and the second network element includes: NEF, Or UDR; or, the first network element is SMF, and the second network element includes: NEF, UDR, or NEF; or, the first network element is TSN AF, and the second network element includes: NEF , UDR, or NEF.

In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the first network element includes: NEF;

The determining module 901 is further configured to: determine a time synchronization service policy according to the first information, wherein the first information includes a combination of one or more of the following: information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, application function AF request information, the current port status of each port stored locally;

The configuration module 902 is further configured to: store the time synchronization service information in the UDR, and the UDR sends the time synchronization service information to the policy control function PCF, or directly sends the time synchronization service information to the PCF, and the UDR sends the time synchronization service information to the PCF. The PCF sends the time synchronization service information to the session management function SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

In this embodiment of the present disclosure, the first network element includes: a PCF;

The determining module 901 is further configured to: receive time synchronization service information from the UDR or NEF; determine a time synchronization service policy according to the time synchronization service information;

The configuration module 902 is further configured to: send the time synchronization service information to the SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first network element includes: SMF;

The determining module 901 is further configured to: receive time synchronization service information from the PCF; and determine a time synchronization service policy according to the time synchronization service information.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first network element includes: TSN AF;

The determining module 901 is further configured to: determine a time synchronization service policy according to second information, wherein the second information includes a combination of one or more of the following: information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, non-time-sensitive The request information of the network application function Non-TSN AF, the current port status of each port stored locally;

The configuration module 902 is further configured to: send the time synchronization service information to the NEF, and the NEF configures the time synchronization service information to the UE and/or the UPF.

It should be noted that the division of units in the embodiments of the present disclosure is schematic, and is only a logical function division, and other division methods may be used in actual implementation. In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present disclosure may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist physically alone, or two or more units may be integrated into one unit. The above-mentioned integrated units may be implemented in the form of hardware, or may be implemented in the form of software functional units.

The integrated unit, if implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as a stand-alone product, may be stored in a processor-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the present disclosure can be embodied in the form of software products in essence, or the parts that contribute to related technologies, or all or part of the technical solutions, and the computer software products are stored in a storage medium, Several instructions are included to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) or a processor to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of the present disclosure. The aforementioned storage medium includes: U disk, mobile hard disk, read-only memory (Read-Only Memory, ROM), random access memory (Random Access Memory, RAM), magnetic disk or optical disk and other media that can store program codes .

The apparatus for managing a TSN time synchronization service provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure may execute the method embodiment shown in FIG. 4 above, and the implementation principle and technical effect thereof are similar, and details are not described herein again in this embodiment.

Referring to FIG. 10 , an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a first network element, where the first network element includes: a memory 1020, a transceiver 1010, and a processor 1000:

a memory 1020 for storing programs;

The transceiver 1010 is used for receiving and transmitting data under the control of the processor 1000 .

The processor 1000 is configured to read the program in the memory 1020 and perform the following operations: determine a time synchronization service policy; configure time synchronization service information to a terminal and/or a user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the Time synchronization service policy.

10, the bus architecture may include any number of interconnected buses and bridges, specifically, one or more processors represented by the processor 1000 and various circuits of the memory represented by the memory 1020 are linked together. The bus architecture may also link together various other circuits, such as peripherals, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are well known in the art and, therefore, will not be described further herein. The bus interface provides the interface. Transceiver 1010 may be a number of elements, including a transmitter and a receiver, that provide means for communicating with various other devices over transmission media including wireless channels, wired channels, fiber optic cables, and the like. The processor 1000 is responsible for managing the bus architecture and general processing, and the memory 1020 may store data used by the processor 1000 when performing operations.

The processor 1000 may be a central processor (CPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or a complex programmable logic device (Complex Programmable Logic Device). , CPLD), the processor can also use a multi-core architecture.

An embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a readable storage medium, where a program or an instruction is stored on the readable storage medium, and when the program or instruction is executed by a processor, each process of the method embodiment shown in FIG. To achieve the same technical effect, in order to avoid repetition, details are not repeated here.

The readable storage medium can be any available medium or data storage device that can be accessed by a processor, including, but not limited to, magnetic storage (eg, floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, magneto-optical disk (MO), etc.), optical storage (eg, CD, DVD, BD, HVD, etc.), and semiconductor memory (eg, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, non-volatile memory (NAND FLASH), solid-state disk (SSD)), etc.

The steps of the method or algorithm described in conjunction with the disclosure of the present disclosure may be implemented in a hardware manner, or may be implemented in a manner of a processor executing software instructions. The software instructions may be composed of corresponding software modules, and the software modules may be stored in RAM, flash memory, ROM, EPROM, EEPROM, registers, hard disk, removable hard disk, CD-ROM, or any other form of storage medium known in the art. An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor, such that the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium can also be an integral part of the processor. The processor and storage medium may reside in an ASIC. Alternatively, the ASIC may be located in the core network interface device. Of course, the processor and the storage medium may also exist in the core network interface device as discrete components.

Those skilled in the art should appreciate that, in one or more of the above examples, the functions described in this disclosure may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, the functions may be stored on or transmitted over as one or more instructions or code on a computer-readable medium. Computer-readable media includes both computer storage media and communication media including any medium that facilitates transfer of a computer program from one place to another. A storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.

The specific embodiments described above further describe the purpose, technical solutions and beneficial effects of the present disclosure in detail. It should be understood that the above descriptions are only specific embodiments of the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. In the protection scope, any modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements, etc. made on the basis of the technical solutions of the present disclosure shall be included within the protection scope of the present disclosure.

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

It will be appreciated that the embodiments described in this disclosure may be implemented in hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, or a combination thereof. For hardware implementation, modules, units, sub-modules, sub-units, etc. can be implemented in one or more Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), Digital Signal Processing (DSP), digital signal processing equipment ( DSP Device, DSPD), Programmable Logic Device (Programmable Logic Device, PLD), Field-Programmable Gate Array (Field-Programmable Gate Array, FPGA), general-purpose processor, controller, microcontroller, microprocessor, for in other electronic units or combinations thereof that perform the functions described in this disclosure.

Embodiments of the present disclosure are described with reference to flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be understood that each process and/or block in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of processes and/or blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions may be provided to the processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, embedded processor or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine such that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device produce Means for implementing the functions specified in a flow or flow of a flowchart and/or a block or blocks of a block diagram.

These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory result in an article of manufacture comprising instruction means, the instructions The apparatus implements the functions specified in the flow or flow of the flowcharts and/or the block or blocks of the block diagrams.

These computer program instructions can also be loaded on a computer or other programmable data processing device to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process such that The instructions provide steps for implementing the functions specified in the flow or blocks of the flowcharts and/or the block or blocks of the block diagrams.

Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to the embodiments of the present disclosure without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. As such, provided that these modifications and variations of the embodiments of the present disclosure fall within the scope of the claims of the present disclosure and their equivalents, the present disclosure is also intended to cover such modifications and variations.

Claims

A method for managing a time-sensitive network TSN time synchronization service, applied to a first network element, includes:

Determine the time synchronization service strategy;

Time synchronization service information is configured to the terminal and/or user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the time synchronization service policy.
The method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

Receive updated time synchronization service information;

The time synchronization service policy is adjusted according to the updated time synchronization service information.
The method of claim 2, wherein the method further comprises:

Configure time synchronization service information of the terminal and/or user plane function according to the adjusted time synchronization service policy.
The method according to claim 1, wherein the configuring the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function comprises:

before the protocol data unit PDU session is established, storing the time synchronization service information in the second network element;

During the PDU session establishment process, the time synchronization service information obtained from the second network element is configured to the terminal and/or the user plane function.
The method of claim 4, wherein,

The first network element is a network open function NEF, and the second network element includes: a unified database UDR or a policy control function PCF;

or,

The first network element is a PCF, and the second network element includes: NEF or UDR;

or,

The first network element is a session management function SMF, and the second network element includes: NEF, UDR, or NEF;

or,

The first network element is a time-sensitive network application function TSN AF, and the second network element includes: NEF, UDR, or NEF.
The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first network element comprises: NEF;

The determining the time synchronization service policy includes:

Determine the time synchronization service policy according to the first information, where the first information includes one or more of the following combinations: information reported by the device-side TSN converter DS-TT and the network-side TSN converter NW-TT, application functions AF request information, the current port status of each port stored locally;

The configuring the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function includes:

Store the time synchronization service information in the UDR, and the UDR sends the time synchronization service information to the PCF, or directly sends the time synchronization service information to the PCF, and the PCF sends the time synchronization service information Sent to the SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function.
The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first network element comprises: a PCF;

The determining the time synchronization service policy includes:

Receive time synchronization service information from UDR or NEF;

determining a time synchronization service policy according to the time synchronization service information;

The configuring the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function includes:

The time synchronization service information is sent to the SMF, and the SMF configures the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function.
The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first network element comprises: SMF;

The determining the time synchronization service policy includes:

Receive time synchronization service information from PCF;

According to the time synchronization service information, a time synchronization service policy is determined.
The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the first network element comprises: a time-sensitive network application function TSN AF;

The determining the time synchronization service policy includes:

Determine a time synchronization service policy according to the second information, where the second information includes one or more of the following combinations: information reported by DS-TT and NW-TT, and a request from a non-time-sensitive network application function Non-TSN AF information, the current port status of each port stored locally;

The time synchronization service information is configured to the UE and /UPF, including:

The time synchronization service information is sent to the NEF, and the NEF configures the time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or the user plane function.
A TSN time synchronization service management device, applied to a first network element, includes:

A determination module, used to determine the time synchronization service policy;

A configuration module, configured to configure time synchronization service information to the terminal and/or user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the time synchronization service policy.
A first network element, comprising: a memory, a transceiver, and a processor:

the memory for storing programs;

the transceiver, configured to send and receive data under the control of the processor;

The processor is configured to read the program in the memory and perform the following operations: determine a time synchronization service policy; configure time synchronization service information to a terminal and/or a user plane function, where the time synchronization service information includes the Time synchronization service policy.
A readable storage medium on which programs or instructions are stored, and when the programs or instructions are executed by a processor, the method for managing a TSN time synchronization service according to any one of claims 1 to 9 is implemented A step of.
A computer program product, the program product being stored in a non-volatile storage medium, the program product being executed by at least one processor to implement the TSN time synchronization service according to any one of claims 1-9 method of management.
A first network element configured to perform the method for managing a TSN time synchronization service according to any one of claims 1-9.