WO2022094899A1 - Communication method and device - Google Patents

Abstract

Provided by embodiments of the present application are a communication method and device. When first access and second access are registered, a terminal device can reduce the probability of communication failure. The method comprises: a first device sends a first non-access stratum (NAS) message to a second device by means of first access, if the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, the first device sends a second NAS message associated with the first NAS message to the second device by means of second access, the second NAS message comprising first indication information, the first indication information being used to indicate that the second NAS message is processed according to a method corresponding to the first access, the first access being third generation partner plan (3GPP) access, and the second access being non 3GPP access; or, the first access being non-3GPP access, and the second access being 3GPP access.

Description

Communication method and device technical field

The present application relates to the field of communication technologies, and in particular, to a communication method and apparatus.

Background technique

With the development of mobile communication technology, after the first generation (the first generation, 1G) mobile communication system, the second generation (the second generation, 2G) mobile communication system, the third generation (the third generation, 3G) mobile communication system After the communication system and the evolved packet system (EPS), the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) proposed a new generation of mobile communication system in the 15th version (release 15, Rel-15) stage The fifth generation system (5th generation system, 5GS).

In 5GS, some functions are realized by exchanging some information between the core network equipment and the terminal. Such information may be, for example, slice-related information, public land mobile network (Public Land Mobile Network, PLMN) selection-related information, and terminal policy-related information.

However, in some scenarios, due to some reasons, the information exchange between the core network device and the terminal may fail. For example, when the signal quality of the cellular link of the terminal is not good, the cellular link may be released abnormally. Therefore, the information transmitted through the cellular link cannot be delivered to the receiver, and the communication fails.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present application provides a communication method and device, which can reduce the probability of communication failure.

To achieve the above object, the application adopts the following technical solutions:

In a first aspect, a communication method is provided, and the method can be performed by a first device or a component supporting a function of the first device (such as a system-on-a-chip of the first device). The method includes: the first device sends a first non-access stratum NAS message to the second device through the first access, and if the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, the first device sends the second device through the second access. The second device sends a second NAS message associated with the first NAS message, where the second NAS message includes first indication information, and the first indication information is used to instruct the second NAS message to be processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access. The entry is a 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access and the second access is a 3GPP access.

Based on the communication method, the first device can still exchange messages associated with the first NAS message with the second device through the second access, so that the second device learns the first NAS message through the message associated with the first NAS message. In this way, the probability of communication failure is reduced.

In addition, the second NAS message includes the first indication information, so that the second device can be instructed to process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access, so that the second device can learn the first NAS message associated with the second NAS message .

In a possible design, the second NAS message includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate that the second NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access includes:

The second NAS message includes a first information element, and the first information element includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct to process the first information element according to a mode corresponding to the first access.

In a possible design, before the first device sends the first non-access stratum NAS message to the second device through the first access, the method further includes:

The first device sends capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the first device can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

In a possible design, the first device sends capability information to the second device, including:

The first device sends a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes capability information.

In a possible design, the method further includes:

The first device receives a first response message from the second device through the second access, where the first response message includes second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate the first The response message corresponds to the first access.

In a possible design, the method further includes:

The first device receives a first response message from the second device through the first access.

In a second aspect, the present application provides a communication method, which can be performed by a first device or a component supporting a function of the first device (eg, a chip system of the first device). The method includes: the first device selects the second access according to the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access; the first device sends a message with the first access to the second device through the second access The corresponding third NAS message, the third NAS message includes third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the third NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access, the first access is a 3GPP access, and the second The access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access and the second access is a 3GPP access.

Based on the communication method, the first device also considers the respective connection management states of the multiple available accesses when selecting the access for sending the NAS message. The probability of selecting idle state access can be reduced, thereby reducing service delay. In addition, the third NAS message includes third indication information, which can instruct the second device to process the third NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access, so that the second device can correctly process the third NAS message.

In a possible design, the connection management state of the first access is an idle state, and the connection management state of the second access is a connected state.

In a possible design, the third NAS message includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate that the third NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access includes:

The third NAS message includes a second information element, and the second information element includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to instruct to process the second information element according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

In a possible design, before the first device sends the third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access, the method further includes:

The first device sends capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the first device can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

In a possible design, the first device sends capability information to the second device, including:

The first device sends a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes capability information.

In a possible design, the method further includes:

The first device receives a second response message from the second device through the second access, where the second response message includes fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate the second The response message corresponds to the first access.

In a possible design, the method further includes:

The first device receives a second response message from the second device through the first access.

In a possible design of the first aspect and the second aspect, the first device is an access and mobility management network element, and the second device is a terminal device.

In a possible design of the first aspect and the second aspect, the first device is a terminal device, and the second device is an access and mobility management network element.

In a third aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, where the apparatus may be a first device or a component supporting the function of the first device (such as a chip system of the first device). The device includes:

The transceiver module is configured to send the first non-access stratum NAS message to the second device through the first access; if the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, send the second device through the second access with the The second NAS message associated with the first NAS message, the second NAS message includes first indication information, and the first indication information is used to instruct the second NAS message to be processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access, and the first access is the third generation The partnership plans 3GPP access and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access and the second access is a 3GPP access.

In a possible design, the second NAS message includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate that the second NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access includes:

The second NAS message includes a first information element, and the first information element includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct to process the first information element according to a mode corresponding to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to send capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the communication apparatus can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module, configured to send capability information to the second device, includes:

It is used for sending a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes capability information.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a first response message from the second device through the second access, where the first response message includes second indication information, and the The second indication information is used to indicate that the first response message corresponds to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a first response message from the second device through the first access.

In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a communication apparatus, where the apparatus may be a first device or a component supporting a function of the first device (such as a chip system of the first device). include:

a processing module, configured to select the second access according to the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access;

a transceiver module, configured to send a third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access, where the third NAS message includes third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the corresponding The third NAS message is processed in the way that the first access is a 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access, and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access, and the second access is a 3GPP access.

In a possible design, the connection management state of the first access is an idle state, and the connection management state of the second access is a connected state.

In a possible design, the third NAS message includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate that the third NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access includes:

The third NAS message includes a second information element, and the second information element includes third indication information, and the third indication information is used to instruct to process the second information element according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to send capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the communication apparatus can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module, configured to send capability information to the second device, includes:

It is used for sending a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes capability information.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a second response message from the second device through the second access, where the second response message includes fourth indication information, and the The fourth indication information is used to indicate that the second response message corresponds to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a second response message from the second device through the first access.

In a possible design of the third aspect and the fourth aspect, the communication device is an access and mobility management network element, and the second device is a terminal device.

In a possible design of the third aspect and the fourth aspect, the communication device is a terminal device, and the second device is an access and mobility management network element.

In a possible design of any one of the above aspects, the terminal device has been registered in both the first access and the second access.

In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, and the device has the function of implementing the method of any one of the above aspects. This function can be implemented by hardware or by executing corresponding software by hardware. The hardware or software includes one or more modules corresponding to the above functions.

In a sixth aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory is used to store computer-executed instructions, and when the communication device operates, the processor executes the computer-executed instructions stored in the memory, so as to enable the communication The apparatus performs the communication method as in any of the above aspects.

In a seventh aspect, a communication device is provided, comprising: a processor; the processor is configured to be coupled to a memory, and after reading an instruction in the memory, execute the communication method according to any one of the above aspects according to the instruction.

In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, and instructions are stored in the computer-readable storage medium, when the computer-readable storage medium runs on a computer, the computer can execute the communication method of any one of the above-mentioned aspects.

In a ninth aspect, there is provided a computer program product comprising instructions which, when run on a computer, enable the computer to perform the communication method of any one of the preceding aspects.

In a tenth aspect, a chip system is provided, the chip system includes a processor for supporting a communication device to implement the functions involved in any one of the above aspects. In a possible design, the chip system further includes a memory for storing necessary program instructions and data of the communication device. The chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices.

In an eleventh aspect, a communication system is provided, and the communication system includes the first device of the above-mentioned aspect and the second device of the above-mentioned aspect.

These and other aspects of the present application will be more clearly understood in the description of the following embodiments.

Description of drawings

1-5 are schematic diagrams of the architecture of a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram 1 of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic flow chart 1 of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram 1 of a flowchart for processing a NAS message provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a second schematic flowchart of processing a NAS message according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 10 is a second schematic flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 11 is a third schematic flowchart of a communication method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12 is a second schematic structural diagram of a communication device provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 13 is a third schematic structural diagram of a communication apparatus provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed ways

First, the network architecture involved in the embodiment of the present application is given as follows:

As shown in FIG. 1 , the network architecture involved in the embodiment of the present application includes the existing 5GS. The 5GS includes access and mobility management function (AMF) network elements, session management function (SMF) network elements, user plane function (UPF) network elements, unified data management ( unified data management (UDM) network element, policy control function (PCF) network element, authentication server function (AUSF) network element, network exposure function (NEF) network element and some Unshown network elements, such as network function repository function (network function repository function, NRF) network elements, etc., are not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

Among them, as shown in FIG. 1 , in the embodiment of the present application, the terminal accesses the 5GS through the access device, the terminal communicates with the AMF network element through the next generation network (Next generation, N) 1 interface (N1 for short), and the access device through the The N2 interface (N2 for short) communicates with the AMF network element, the access device communicates with the UPF network element through the N3 interface (N3 for short), the AMF network element communicates with the SMF network element through the N11 interface (N11 for short), and the AMF network element uses the N8 interface. (N8 for short) communicates with the UDM network element, the AMF network element communicates with the AUSF network element through the N12 interface (referred to as N12), the AMF network element communicates with the PCF network element through the N15 interface (referred to as N15), and the SMF network element communicates with the PCF network element through the N7 interface (referred to as N15 for short). N7) communicates with the PCF network element, the SMF network element communicates with the UPF network element through the N4 interface (referred to as N4), the NEF network element communicates with the SMF network element through the N29 interface (referred to as N29), and the UPF network element through the N6 interface (referred to as N6) Access the data network.

Optionally, the terminal device (terminal) involved in the embodiments of the present application may include various handheld devices with wireless communication functions, vehicle-mounted devices, wearable devices, computing devices, or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem; and Can include subscriber units, cellular phones, smart phones, wireless data cards, personal digital assistant (PDA) computers, tablet computers, wireless modems, handheld Equipment (handheld), laptop computer (laptop computer), cordless phone (cordless phone) or wireless local loop (wireless local loop, WLL) station, machine type communication (machine type communication, MTC) terminal equipment, user equipment ( user equipment, UE), mobile station (mobile station, MS), terminal device (terminal device) or relay user equipment, etc. The relay user equipment may be, for example, a 5G home gateway (residential gateway, RG). For convenience of description, in this application, the devices mentioned above are collectively referred to as terminal devices.

Optionally, the access device involved in the embodiment of this application refers to a medium through which a terminal accesses the core network. The access device may be, for example, a 3rd generation partnership project (3rd generation partnership project, 3GPP) access device, such as an NG-RAN device, a base station, and the like. The terminal accesses the core network through a 3GPP access device, which may be called a 3GPP access mode. In this way, the terminal can communicate with the core network device.

The access device may also be a non-3GPP access device, such as a non-3GPP interworking function (non-3gpp interworking function, N3IWF) entity and the like. The base station may include various forms of base stations, such as: a macro base station, a micro base station (also called a small station), a relay station, and the like. Accessing the core network by a terminal through a non-3GPP device may be referred to as a non-3GPP access mode.

Referring to FIG. 2 , a non-3GPP access architecture is provided in an embodiment of the present application. The terminal is connected to the non-3GPP access device through the non-3GPP access network. Non-3GPP networks include, but are not limited to, wireless local area networks (WLANs), such as Wi-Fi. A non-3GPP network may include a non-3GPP access point (AP). Access points include but are not limited to routers, optical modems, etc. A non-3GPP access device can be, but is not limited to, an N3IWF entity.

Referring to FIG. 3 , a 3GPP access architecture is provided in an embodiment of the present application. The terminal is connected to the 3GPP access device through the 3GPP access network. 3GPP networks may include, but are not limited to, cellular networks. The 3GPP access device may be, for example, a base station. The specific example of the 3GPP has been given above, and will not be repeated here.

For example, in other scenarios, FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 may be merged. Specifically, referring to FIG. 4 , the terminal may also access the core network through 3GPP access and non-3GPP access at the same time.

It should be noted that FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 are only schematic diagrams of the communication system architecture of the embodiment of the present application. Of course, the system architecture may also be other, such as the future 6G network architecture, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment.

It should be noted that each network element in FIG. 1 or FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 or FIG. 4 and the name of the interface between each network element are just an example, and the name of each network element and the interface between each network element in the specific implementation may be For others, such as the name of the network element in the 6G network and the name of the interface between the network elements in the 6G network, this is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Wherein, in the description of this application, unless otherwise stated, "/" means or means, for example, A/B can mean A or B; "and/or" in this document is only an association to describe the associated object Relation, it means that there can be three kinds of relations, for example, A and/or B can mean that A exists alone, A and B exist at the same time, and B exists alone. Also, in the description of the present application, unless stated otherwise, "plurality" means two or more than two. In addition, in order to clearly describe the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "first" and "second" are used to distinguish the same or similar items with basically the same function and effect. Those skilled in the art can understand that words such as "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity and execution order, and the words "first" and "second" are not necessarily different.

In addition, the network architecture and service scenarios described in the embodiments of the present application are for the purpose of illustrating the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application more clearly, and do not constitute limitations on the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application. With the evolution of the network architecture and the emergence of new service scenarios, the technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application are also applicable to similar technical problems.

As shown in FIG. 5 , a communication system 30 is provided in an embodiment of the present application. The communication system 30 includes a first device 301 and a second device 302 .

The first device 301 is configured to send a first non-access stratum (NAS) message to the second device through the first access; if the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, then Send a second NAS message associated with the first NAS message to the second device through the second access, where the second NAS message includes first indication information, and the first indication information is used to instruct to process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access. NAS message, the first access is a 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access and the second access is a 3GPP access.

The second device 302 is configured to receive the first NAS message from the first device 301 through the second access.

In other embodiments, the first device 301 is configured to select the second access according to the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access; and send the message to the second device through the second access A third NAS message corresponding to the first access. The third NAS message includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to instruct to process the third NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

The second device 302 is configured to receive the third NAS message from the first device 301 through the second access.

Optionally, in the embodiment of the present application, the first device 301 and the second device 302 may communicate directly or communicate through forwarding by other devices, which is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present application.

Optionally, the communication system provided in this embodiment of the present application may be applied to the network architecture shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 , and may also be applied to the network architecture in which the terminal equipment is registered for both non-3GPP access and 3GPP access, This embodiment of the present application does not specifically limit this.

Exemplarily, if the communication system provided by the embodiment of the present application is applied to the network architecture shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 , the network element or entity corresponding to the above-mentioned first device may be the above-mentioned AMF, and the second device may be the above-mentioned AMF. is the terminal device. Or, the network element or entity corresponding to the above-mentioned second device may be the above-mentioned AMF network element, and the first device is a terminal device.

Optionally, the first device or the second device in this embodiment of the present application may be implemented by one device (for example, integrated in one device, or be different functional modules in one device), or may be jointly implemented by multiple devices respectively. , which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present application. It can be understood that the above functions may be network elements in hardware devices, software functions running on dedicated hardware, or virtualized functions instantiated on a platform (eg, a cloud platform).

For example, the first device or the second device in this embodiment of the present application may be implemented by the communication apparatus in FIG. 6 . FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a hardware structure of a communication apparatus according to an embodiment of the present application. The communication device 400 includes at least one processor 401 , a communication line 402 , a memory 403 and at least one communication interface 404 .

The processor 401 may be a general-purpose central processing unit (central processing unit, CPU), a microprocessor, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more processors for controlling the execution of the programs of the present application. integrated circuit.

Communication line 402 may include a path to communicate information between the aforementioned components.

Communication interface 404, using any transceiver-like device, for communicating with other devices or communication networks, such as Ethernet, radio access network (RAN), wireless local area networks (WLAN), etc. .

Memory 403 may be read-only memory (ROM) or other types of static storage devices that can store static information and instructions, random access memory (RAM), or other types of storage devices that can store information and instructions It can also be an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM) or other optical disk storage, CD-ROM storage (including compact discs, laser discs, optical discs, digital versatile discs, Blu-ray discs, etc.), magnetic disk storage media or other magnetic storage devices, or capable of carrying or storing desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and capable of being executed by a computer Access any other medium without limitation. The memory may be separate and connected to the processor via communication line 402. The memory can also be integrated with the processor.

The memory 403 is used for storing computer-executed instructions for executing the solution of the present application, and the execution is controlled by the processor 401 . The processor 401 is configured to execute the computer-executed instructions stored in the memory 403, thereby implementing the communication methods provided by the following embodiments of the present application.

Optionally, the computer-executed instructions in the embodiment of the present application may also be referred to as application code, which is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present application.

In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the processor 401 may include one or more CPUs, such as CPU0 and CPU1 in FIG. 6 .

In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the communication apparatus 400 may include multiple processors, such as the processor 401 and the processor 408 in FIG. 6 . Each of these processors can be a single-core (single-CPU) processor or a multi-core (multi-CPU) processor. A processor herein may refer to one or more devices, circuits, and/or processing cores for processing data (eg, computer program instructions).

In a specific implementation, as an embodiment, the communication apparatus 400 may further include an output device 405 and an input device 406 . The output device 405 is in communication with the processor 401 and can display information in a variety of ways. For example, the output device 405 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD), a light emitting diode (LED) display device, a cathode ray tube (CRT) display device, or a projector (projector) Wait. Input device 406 is in communication with processor 401 and can receive user input in a variety of ways. For example, the input device 406 may be a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen device, a sensor device, or the like.

The above-mentioned communication apparatus 400 may be a general-purpose device or a dedicated device. In a specific implementation, the communication device 400 may be a desktop computer, a portable computer, a network server, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wireless terminal device, an embedded device, or a similar structure in FIG. 6 . device of. This embodiment of the present application does not limit the type of the communication apparatus 400 .

The communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to FIG. 1 to FIG. 6 .

It should be noted that the names of messages between network elements or the names of parameters in the messages in the following embodiments of the present application are just an example, and other names may also be used in specific implementations, which are not specified in the embodiments of the present application. limited.

In this embodiment of the present application, when an underlying link failure is detected only in 3GPP access or non-3GPP access, but not in a case where underlying link failure occurs in both 3GPP access and non-3GPP access, the first device can re-pass the available Access sends NAS messages. An available access is an access where no underlying link failure is detected. In this way, the probability that the NAS message is successfully sent can be improved, and the communication failure can be avoided.

Wherein, taking an example where the underlying link failure is detected only on 3GPP access, and no underlying link failure is detected on non-3GPP access, it means that the non-3GPP access may be able to communicate normally or is in normal communication.

First, taking the communication system shown in FIG. 5 applied to the network architecture shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 4 as an example, as shown in FIG. 7 , the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application includes the following steps:

S101. A first device sends a first NAS message to a second device through a first access.

As a possible implementation manner, the first device sends the first NAS message through the first accessed protocol entity (or called an instance). The first device may include multiple protocol entities (or instances), and each protocol entity corresponds to an access type.

Wherein, the first access is 3GPP access or non-3GPP access.

When the first access is a 3GPP access, the first device may interact with the second device through a 3GPP access device (such as a base station). When the first access is a non-3GPP access, the first device may interact with the second device through a non-3GPP access device (such as N3IWF).

The first NAS message may include an information element (IE) related to the access type, and/or include an IE that is not related to the access type. The access type is 3GPP access or non-3GPP access. That is, the first NAS message may include an IE related to the access type, or an IE that is not related to the access type, and may also include both an IE related to the access type and an IE that is not related to the access type.

Whether it is related to the access type is mainly distinguished according to the processing method of the receiver of the IE. The IE that is not related to the access type generally does not need to be processed by the receiver in a manner corresponding to a specific access type, and specifically, it may be processed by a protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to any access type. For the receiver, when receiving the IE irrelevant to the access type, it can process the IE through the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the access type (such as 3GPP access) in which the NAS message is received. For example, the receiver (such as a terminal device) receives IEs that are not related to access types through 3GPP access, and processes the IEs that are not related to access types through 3GPP access to the corresponding protocol entity or instance; When the 3GPP access receives the IE that is not related to the access type, the protocol entity or instance corresponding to the non-3GPP access processes the IE that is not related to the access type. Exemplarily, the access type-independent IE includes, but is not limited to, roaming operation (steering of roaming, SOR), terminal parameter update (UE parameter update), and terminal policy container (UE policy container).

The IE related to the access type usually refers to the protocol entity (or instance) that needs the target access type to process. After the receiver receives the IE related to the access type, the protocol entity receiving the access type of the IE may not be able to process the IE, so the receiver usually needs to pass the IE to the protocol entity (or instance) of the target access type. ) to process. For example, the receiver receives an IE related to the access type through 3GPP access, and the IE carries indication information used to indicate the target access type (such as non-3GPP access), then the receiver needs to access the corresponding IE through non-3GPP access. The protocol entity or instance handles the IE. IE related to the access type, such as but not limited to Allowed/Rejected NSSAI, tracking area identity list (tracking area identity list, TAI list), terminal radio capability identifier (UE Radio Capability ID).

Exemplarily, the network slice-specific authentication and authorization (NSSAA) includes one or more IEs related to the access type, and the configuration update command (CUC) includes one or more IEs related to the access type. IE related to the access type, for example, TAI list.

It should be noted that, for the same type of IE, when it is included in different messages, the processing methods may be different. For example, for a certain type of IE1 corresponding to 3GPP access, when IE1 is included in NAS message 1, in other usage scenarios, IE1 is included in NAS message 2. The first device sends message 1 to the second device, and the second device may hand over IE1 in the NAS message 1 to a protocol entity corresponding to 3GPP access for processing. In other usage scenarios, the first device sends the NAS message 2 to the second device, and the second device may also hand over the IE1 in the NAS message 2 to the 3GPP access protocol entity corresponding to the IE1 for processing. The protocol entity corresponding to 3GPP access may process IE1 in NAS message 1 and IE1 in NAS message 2 in the same or different manner, and the specific processing manner is related to the type of NAS message 1 and the type of NAS message 2 .

S102. If the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, the first device sends the second NAS message to the second device through the second access. Wherein, the second NAS message is associated with the first NAS message.

Correspondingly, the second device receives the second NAS message from the first device through the second access.

The second NAS message includes first indication information, and the first indication information may be specifically included in the IE of the second NAS message, or an IE may be added based on the first NAS message, and the newly added IE includes the first indication information.

Taking the second NAS message including the first IE and the first IE including the first indication information as an example, the first indication information is used to indicate the target access type of the first IE, and the target access type includes 3GPP access or non-3GPP access . Table 1 below shows a possible structure of the first IE in the second NAS message.

Table 1 The first IE of the second NAS message

As shown in Table 1 above, Access type IEI is the identifier (information-element identifier, IEI) of the above-mentioned first IE, 0spare is the reserved field (or idle field, etc.), and Access type is the first indication information.

The identifier of the first IE is used to uniquely identify the first IE. Exemplarily, the identifier of the first IE occupies 4 bits.

The first indication information is used to indicate the target access type of the first IE. In this way, when the receiver receives the second NAS message and parses out the second indication information, it can process the first IE according to the processing method for the IE received from the target access type. In other words, after the receiver receives the first IE, when processing the first IE, it is deemed that the first IE is received from the target access type indicated by the first indication information (the UE shall handle the IE as if the IE was received from the access type same as the "Destination access type" indicated). That is to say, the receiver processes the first IE through the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the target access type. For example, if the receiver receives a second NAS message, the second NAS message includes the first IE, and the first indication information of the first IE indicates that the target access type is 3GPP access, then the receiver accesses the corresponding protocol entity through 3GPP (or instance) process the first IE.

It should be noted that the number of bits occupied by the identifier of the first IE, the reserved field, and the target access type in the first IE may be as shown in Table 1, or may be set separately. The application embodiments do not limit this.

Taking the first indication information occupying 2 bits as an example, Table 2-1 below shows an example of the first indication information.

Table 2-1 The first indication information

01	Indicates 3GPP access
10	Indicates non-3GPP access

Of course, what value is specifically used to represent 3GPP access, and what value is used to represent non-3GPP access can be flexibly set, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present application. For example, Table 2-2 is another possible first indication information. For another example, 000 may also represent non-3GPP access, and 001 may represent 3GPP access. Or, use other numerical values to represent non-3GPP access and non-3GPP access.

Table 2-2 The first indication information

000	Indicates 3GPP access
001	Indicates non-3GPP access

It should be noted that the second NAS message may include one or more IEs. The target access types corresponding to different IEs may be different or the same. Table 3 below shows the case where the second NAS message includes multiple IEs.

Table 3 Second NAS message

IEI	Information Element	first instruction information
31	Configured NSSAI (configured network slice selection auxiliary information)	default
11	Rejected NSSAI (Disallowed Network Slice Selection Auxiliary Information)	01
67	UE radio capability ID (radio capability identification)	default
44	5GS registration result (registration result)	default

Among them, the Rejected NSSAI in Table 3 is an IE including the first indication information (such as the first IE shown in Table 1 above).

Wherein, different IEs in Table 3 may correspond to different or the same target access type. In this way, the receiver of the second NAS message can handle different IEs in different ways. Specifically, for an IE whose target access type is 3GPP access, the receiver processes this type of IE through a corresponding protocol entity (or instance) of 3GPP access. For an IE whose target access type is non-3GPP access, the receiver processes this type of IE through a protocol entity corresponding to the non-3GPP access.

For another example, if the NAS message is a TRANSPROT message, the first indication information can be carried in the IE of the payload container of the message, and the indication payload container type can be added.

It is described above that the first indication information may be included in the IE of the second NAS message. In other embodiments, an IE may also be added on the basis of the first NAS message, and the newly added IE includes the first indication information to Get the second NAS message. In this case, the first indication information is used to indicate the target access type of the second NAS message. In this way, after receiving the second NAS message, the second device processes the second NAS message according to the processing method of the NAS message received from the target access type. When the receiver receives the second NAS message including the first indication information, the second NAS message is processed by a protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the target access type (such as 3GPP access) indicated by the first indication information.

Table 4 Second NAS message

IEI	Information Element
31	Configured NSSAI (configured network slice selection auxiliary information)
11	Rejected NSSAI (Disallowed Network Slice Selection Auxiliary Information)
67	UE radio capability ID (radio capability identification)
44	5GS registration result (registration result)
X	first instruction information

Exemplarily, the first indication information in Table 4 above is used to indicate the target access type of the entire second NAS message.

The first indication information in the foregoing embodiment may be understood as being used to indirectly instruct the second device to process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access. That is, the first indication information is used to indicate the type of the first access (for example, the first indication information shown in Table 4). In this way, after receiving the first indication information, the second device can know the type of the first access, and process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

In other embodiments, the first indication information is used to indicate that the second NAS message is not processed according to the mode corresponding to the current access. After receiving the second NAS message (including the first indication information) through the second access, the second device does not process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the current access (ie, the second access), but uses another access (ie, the first access) to process the second NAS message in a corresponding manner. Wherein, the current access refers to the access in which the second device receives the second NAS message.

For example, the second access is 3GPP, and the first indication information is used to instruct the second device not to process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the 3GPP access. Therefore, after receiving the first indication information through the second access, the second device does not process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the 3GPP access, but processes the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the non-3GPP access.

In other embodiments, the first indication information is used to indicate the type of the second access. After receiving the first indication information through the second access, the second device does not process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the second access indicated by the first indication information, but processes the second NAS message in the mode corresponding to the first access .

In other embodiments, the first indication information is used to directly instruct to process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access, that is, after receiving the first indication information through the second access, the second device learns that the second NAS message is processed according to the first access method. The second NAS message is processed in a corresponding manner.

In other embodiments, the first indication information may specifically be a NAS connection identifier (NAS connection identifier). The identifier is used to identify whether the NAS connection is a 3GPP connection or a non-3GPP connection. Or, the NAS connection identifier is included in the first indication information.

As a possible implementation manner, the first device sends the second NAS message to the second device through a protocol entity (or called an instance) corresponding to the second access. The second device receives the second NAS message from the first device through a protocol entity (or called an instance) corresponding to the second access.

It can be understood that, in some scenarios, the first NAS message may fail to be sent on the first access. For example, taking the first access as 3GPP access as an example, in some cases, a 3GPP network (such as a cellular network) may be abnormal. In the case of network abnormality, the link between the AMF and the terminal device may be released, so that the first NAS message cannot be transmitted between the AMF and the terminal device through 3GPP access.

In this embodiment of the present application, when the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, it is considered that the first device sends the second NAS message associated with the first NAS message to the second device on the second access. Wherein, the access type of the second access is different from that of the first access. Specifically, when the first access is a 3GPP access, the second access is a non-3GPP access. Or, when the first access is a non-3GPP access, the second access is a 3GPP access. This means that the first device and the second device can transmit on the second access a second NAS message corresponding to the first access (which is of a different access type from the second access).

As a possible design, the first NAS message may be a NAS message in the prior art, and the second NAS message is a NAS message obtained by encapsulating the first indication information on the basis of the first NAS message. Specifically, the second NAS message includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct to process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access. For example, the following Tables 5 and 6 show a possible example of the first NAS message and the second NAS message.

Table 5 First NAS message

IEI	Information Element
31	Configured NSSAI (configured network slice selection auxiliary information)
11	Rejected NSSAI (Disallowed Network Slice Selection Auxiliary Information)
67	UE radio capability ID (radio capability identification)
44	5GS registration result (registration result)

Table 6 Second NAS message

It can be seen that the first NAS message shown in Table 5 does not include the first indication information, and the second NAS message shown in Table 6 is encapsulated into the first indication information on the basis of the first NAS message, and the first indication information can be encapsulated In the information element (such as the information element Configured NSSAI) of the first NAS message. That is, the first indication information 000 is encapsulated in the information element Configured NSSAI of the first NAS message shown in Table 5, that is, the second NAS message shown in Table 6 is obtained.

For the default IE of the first indication information received through the second access, such as the information unit 5GS registration result shown in Table 6, the second device processes the information unit according to the process of the prior art, that is, according to the access The information unit is processed in a manner corresponding to the incoming (that is, the second access).

In other embodiments, an IE may also be added on the basis of the first NAS message, and the first indication information may be encapsulated in the newly added IE to obtain the second NAS message. For example, an IEX is added on the basis of the first NAS message shown in Table 5, and the first indication information is encapsulated in the newly added IEX to obtain the second NAS message shown in Table 7.

Table 7 Second NAS message

[Correction 11.11.2020 under Rule 91]
As another possible implementation manner, the first NAS message may include fifth indication information. The fifth indication information is used to indicate that the first NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access. For a specific manner in which the first NAS message carries the fifth indication information, reference may be made to the foregoing manner in which the second NAS message carries the first indication information. In this case, the second NAS message may be the same NAS message as the first NAS message, that is, the first device may directly send the first NAS message to the second device through the second access, that is, because the first NAS message has been Carrying the indication information for indicating the target access type, it is not necessary to re-encapsulate the indication information for indicating the target access type on the basis of the first NAS message.

S103. The second device processes the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

As a possible implementation manner, after receiving the second NAS message including the first indication information through the protocol entity (or instance) of the second access, the second device forwards the second NAS message to the corresponding first access The protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the first access process the second NAS message.

For example, after the second device receives the second NAS message shown in Table 6 through the protocol entity of the second access, the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the second access transfers the information element Configured NSSAI to the corresponding device of the first access. Protocol entity (or instance), the information unit Configured NSSAI is processed by the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the first access.

For another example, after receiving the second NAS message shown in Table 7 through the instance corresponding to the second access, the second device forwards the second NAS message to the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the first access, and the first access into the corresponding protocol entity (or instance) to process the second NAS message.

Illustratively, referring to FIG. 8, a specific interaction example between the AMF and the terminal device is given. This Figure 8 describes the internal implementation of the AMF and the terminal equipment. Taking the AMF sending a NAS message to a terminal device as an example, when the AMF detects a lower layer failure corresponding to the 3GPP access mode, it sends a NAS message to the terminal device through non-3GPP access. The NAS message includes IE1 and IE2, both of which are related to the access type. Among them, IE1 needs to be processed in a way corresponding to 3GPP access, and IE2 needs to be processed in a way corresponding to non-3GPP access. AMF is encapsulated into the first indication information 000 in IE1, which is used to instruct the terminal device to process IE1 according to the mode corresponding to 3GPP access, and the first indication information 001 is encapsulated in IE2, which is used to instruct the terminal device to process IE1 according to the corresponding mode of non-3GPP access. way to handle IE2. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the NAS message through a non-3GPP access corresponding protocol entity (or instance). Optionally, the terminal device may parse the NAS message through a protocol entity corresponding to non-3GPP access, and read the first indication information 000 of IE1 and the first indication information 001 of IE2. In this way, the protocol entity corresponding to the non-3GPP access learns that IE2 needs to be processed by this protocol entity, and transfers IE1 to the protocol entity corresponding to the 3GPP access for processing.

For another example, referring to FIG. 9 , if the AMF fails to send the NAS message (the NAS message includes IE1) on the 3GPP access, the AMF sends the NAS message to the terminal device through the non-3GPP access. An IE is added on the basis of the NAS message, and first indication information 001 is encapsulated in the newly added IE, which is used to instruct the terminal device to process the NAS message according to a mode corresponding to 3GPP access. Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the NAS message through the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the non-3GPP access, and transmits the NAS message to the protocol entity corresponding to the 3GPP access for processing according to the first indication information.

It can be understood that, in some scenarios, the first indication information may be mishandled. For example, the first device may misplace the value of the first indication information or omit to fill in the value of the first indication information. In this case, it is necessary to design a processing solution for the wrong operation. For example, in the case where 000 represents 3GPP access and 001 represents non-3GPP access, the first device may incorrectly fill the first indication information of the second NAS message with 011. In this case, in this embodiment of the present application, the second device handles the process in a manner corresponding to the current access. The current access is the access to receive the second NAS message. For example, the second device receives the second NAS message including the first indication information (the value is 011) through the second access, and processes the second NAS message through a manner corresponding to the second access.

It should be noted that the first indication information is incorrectly filled or omitted, including two cases. In one case, the first NAS message includes the first indication information, and the first device generates incorrect filling or omission when filling the first indication information of the first NAS message. In another case, the first NAS message does not include the first indication information, and when the first device encapsulates the first indication information on the basis of the first NAS message to obtain the second NAS message, the first indication information is incorrectly filled or omitted. .

In other embodiments, when the IEs included in the first NAS message are all IEs irrelevant to the access type, the second NAS message may also not carry the first indication information.

S104. The second device sends a first response message to the first device.

Correspondingly, the first device receives the first response message from the second device.

The first response message is used to indicate that the second NAS message has been received.

As a possible implementation manner, the second device sends the first response message to the first device through the second access. That is, after the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the first access of the second device processes the second NAS message, it transmits the processing result to the protocol entity corresponding to the second access, and the protocol entity corresponding to the second access is based on the The processing result sends a first response message to the first device. The first response message includes second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate that the first response message corresponds to the first access. In this way, after receiving the first response message through the second access protocol entity, the first device transfers the first response message to the first access protocol entity for processing.

Or, the second device sends the first response message to the first device through the first accessed protocol entity.

Step S104 is an optional step.

Compared with the situation in the prior art that when the first access is abnormal, the first NAS message on the first access fails to be sent, resulting in a communication failure. If the sending on the access fails, the first device may send the second NAS message associated with the first NAS message through the second access. That is, the first device can still exchange messages associated with the first NAS message with the second device through the second access, so that the second device learns the first NAS message through the message associated with the first NAS message. In this way, the probability of communication failure is reduced. In addition, the second NAS message includes the first indication information, so that the second device can be instructed to process the second NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access, so that the second device can learn the first NAS message associated with the second NAS message .

It should be noted that the premise of the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application is that the terminal device has been registered in both the first access and the second access. And the terminal device needs to register the first access and the second access on the same AMF. In the registration process provided in this embodiment of the present application, the first device sends a registration message to the second device. The registration message may carry capability information of the first device, and the capability information is used to indicate that the first device can transmit the first access through the second access. Enter the corresponding NAS message. When the first device is a terminal device, the registration message is a registration request message (registration request). If the first device is an AMF, the registration message is a registration response message. The registration response message includes a registration accept message (registration accept) or a registration rejection message (registration reject). The registration process is described in detail below.

Referring to FIG. 10 , the registration process provided by the embodiment of the present application is shown. The registration process includes:

S201. The terminal device sends a registration request message to the AMF. The registration request message carries capability information of the terminal device.

Correspondingly, the AMF receives the registration request message from the terminal device.

The capability information of the terminal device is used to indicate that the terminal device can transmit the NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

As a possible design, the registration request message is used for the terminal device to request to register on the first access. Moreover, the capability information carried in the registration request message can inform the AMF that the terminal device can transmit the NAS message corresponding to the first access on the second access.

As another possible design, the registration request message is used for the terminal device to request to register on the second access. Moreover, the capability information carried in the registration request message can inform the AMF that the terminal device can transmit the NAS message corresponding to the first access on the second access.

S202. The AMF sends a registration response message to the terminal device, where the registration response message includes capability information.

Correspondingly, the terminal device receives the registration response message from the AMF.

It can be understood that if the AMF determines to accept the registration of the terminal device, it sends a registration acceptance message to the terminal. If the AMF determines that it does not accept the registration of the terminal device, it sends a registration rejection message to the terminal.

S203, the terminal device sends a registration confirmation message to the AMF.

Correspondingly, the AMF receives the registration confirmation message from the terminal device.

The registration confirmation message is used to indicate completion of registration.

It should be noted that, if the registration process is a registration process of the terminal device on the 3GPP access, the terminal device and the AMF interact through the 3GPP access mode. If the registration process is a registration process of the terminal device on the non-3GPP access, the terminal device and the AMF interact through the non-3GPP access mode.

Step S203 is an optional step.

The embodiment of the present application also provides a communication method, see FIG. 11 , the method includes:

S301. The first device selects the second access according to the connection management state (connection management state, CM state) of the first access and the connection management state of the second access.

Wherein, the first access is a 3GPP access, and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access, and the second access is a 3GPP access.

As a possible implementation manner, the first device maintains the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access. Specifically, after the first device enters the connected state or the idle state through the 3GPP access, it can maintain the connection management state of the 3GPP access, that is, maintain the connected state (or idle state) of the 3GPP access. After the first device enters the connected state (or idle state) through the non-3GPP access, it can maintain the connected state (or idle state) of the 3GPP access.

Subsequently, the first device may query the maintained connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access, and select the access for sending the third NAS message according to the two connection management states.

As a possible implementation manner, the first device selects the access whose connection management state is the connection state to send the third NAS message. Taking the connection management state of the first access as the idle state and the connection management state of the second access as the connected state as an example, that is, the first device selects the second access for sending the third NAS message.

S302. The first device sends a third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access, where the third NAS message includes third indication information.

The third indication information is used to indicate that the third NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

In the prior art, when the first access is in an idle state, in order to send a NAS message on the first access (such as a 3GPP access), the link between the terminal device and the AMF needs to be re-established, and the message is sent for a certain period of time. extension.

In this embodiment of the present application, when the first access of the first device is in an idle state and the first access cannot be directly used to send the third NAS message, the first device can use the second access in the connected state to send the third NAS message to the first device. The second device sends the third NAS message to shorten the message sending delay.

In addition, the embodiment corresponding to FIG. 7 is based on the same principle, and the third NAS message sent by the first device includes third indication information, so as to instruct the second device to process the third NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access, that is, the second After receiving the third NAS message through the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the second access, the device may transfer the third NAS message to the protocol entity corresponding to the first access for processing.

As a possible implementation manner, the third NAS message includes a second information element, and the second information element includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to instruct to process the second information element according to a manner corresponding to the first access. That is, the third indication information is included in the IE of the third NAS message.

For the specific implementation of the third NAS message, reference may be made to the above-mentioned second NAS message.

S303. The second device processes the third NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

Optionally, if the third indication information is included in the second IE of the third NAS message, the second device processes the second IE according to the mode corresponding to the first access. That is, the protocol entity of the second access of the second device forwards the second IE to the protocol entity of the first access for processing.

Or, if the third indication information is included outside the second IE of the third NAS message, the protocol entity of the second access of the second device forwards the third NAS message to the protocol entity of the first access for processing.

The second IE refers to the prior art IE included in the third NAS message. The third indication information is included in addition to the second IE of the third NAS message, which means that an IE is added on the basis of the existing third NAS message, and the newly added IE includes the third indication information, which is used for Indicates which access type the entire third NAS message corresponds to.

S304. The second device sends a second response message to the first device.

Correspondingly, the first device receives the second response message from the second device.

The second response message is used to indicate that the third NAS message has been received.

As a possible implementation manner, the second device sends a second response message to the first device through the second access. That is, after the protocol entity (or instance) corresponding to the first access of the second device has processed the third NAS message, it transmits the processing result to the protocol entity corresponding to the second access, and the protocol entity corresponding to the second access is based on the The processing result sends a second response message to the first device. The second response message includes fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate that the second response message corresponds to the first access.

Or, the second device sends the second response message to the first device through the first accessed protocol entity.

Step S304 is an optional step.

In some embodiments, before the first device sends the third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access, the method further includes:

The first device sends capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the first device can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

In some embodiments, the first device sends capability information to the second device, including:

The first device sends a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes capability information.

For the content related to the capability information, reference may be made to the corresponding embodiment in FIG. 10 , which will not be repeated here.

It should be noted that the premise of the embodiment corresponding to FIG. 10 is that the terminal device has been registered on both the first access and the second access, and the first access and the second access are registered on the same AMF.

Compared with the prior art, when a message is sent on an access whose connection management state is in an idle state, a relevant communication link needs to be established first. In the communication method provided by the embodiment, the second access is selected according to the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access, and a third NAS message is sent on the second access. That is, the respective connection management states of the multiple available accesses are also considered when selecting the access for sending the NAS message. The probability of selecting idle state access can be reduced, thereby reducing service delay. In addition, the third NAS message includes third indication information, which can instruct the second device to process the third NAS message according to the mode corresponding to the first access, so that the second device can correctly process the third NAS message.

The foregoing mainly introduces the solutions provided by the embodiments of the present application from the perspective of interaction between various devices. It can be understood that, in order to realize the above-mentioned functions, the above-mentioned terminal equipment, AMF or other equipment includes corresponding hardware structures and/or software modules for executing each function. Those skilled in the art should easily realize that the present application can be implemented in hardware or a combination of hardware and computer software with the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein. Whether a function is performed by hardware or computer software driving hardware depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality using different methods for each particular application, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

In this embodiment of the present application, the first device, the second device, or other devices may be divided into functional modules according to the foregoing method examples. For example, each functional module may be divided corresponding to each function, or two or more functions may be integrated in in a processing module. The above-mentioned integrated modules can be implemented in the form of hardware, and can also be implemented in the form of software function modules. It should be noted that, the division of modules in the embodiments of the present application is schematic, and is only a logical function division, and there may be other division manners in actual implementation.

For example, in the case of dividing each functional module in an integrated manner, FIG. 12 shows a schematic structural diagram of an apparatus 90 . The apparatus 90 may be the first device in the foregoing embodiment, or may be a chip or circuit in the first device in the foregoing embodiment, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application. Wherein, the device 90 includes: a transceiver module 901 .

A transceiver module 901, configured to send a first non-access stratum NAS message to a second device through a first access; if the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, send it to a second device through the second access A second NAS message associated with the first NAS message, where the second NAS message includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate that the second NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access, and the first access is the third Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access and the second access is a 3GPP access.

In a possible design, the second NAS message includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to indicate that the second NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access includes:

The second NAS message includes a first information element, and the first information element includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct to process the first information element according to a mode corresponding to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module 901 is further configured to send capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the communication apparatus can transmit the NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module 901, configured to send capability information to the second device, includes:

It is used for sending a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes capability information.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a first response message from the second device through the second access, where the first response message includes second indication information, and the The second indication information is used to indicate that the first response message corresponds to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a first response message from the second device through the first access.

In a possible design, the communication device is an access and mobility management network element (or a component such as a chip system), and the second device is a terminal device (or a component such as a chip system).

In a possible design, the communication device is a terminal device (or a component such as a chip system), and the second device is an access and mobility management network element (or a component such as a chip system).

In a possible design, the terminal device is registered at both the first access and the second access.

Optionally, the apparatus 90 further includes a processing module 902 for controlling the actions of the apparatus 90 . For example, the control device 90 transmits and receives information.

Optionally, the apparatus 90 further includes a storage module 903 . Used to store data or programs, etc. For example, store connection management state, register management state.

For another example, in the case of dividing each functional module in an integrated manner, FIG. 13 shows a schematic structural diagram of another apparatus 100 . The apparatus 100 may be the first device in the foregoing embodiment, or may be a chip or circuit in the first device in the foregoing embodiment, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application. The apparatus 100 includes: a processing module 1002 and a transceiver module 1001 .

A processing module 1002, configured to select the second access according to the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access;

The transceiver module 1001 is configured to send a third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access, where the third NAS message includes third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate that according to the first access The third NAS message is processed in a corresponding manner, the first access is a 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access, and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access, and the second access is It is 3GPP access.

In a possible design, the connection management state of the first access is an idle state, and the connection management state of the second access is a connected state.

In a possible design, the third NAS message includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to indicate that the third NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access includes:

The third NAS message includes a second information element, and the second information element includes third indication information, where the third indication information is used to instruct to process the second information element according to the mode corresponding to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module 1001 is further configured to send capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the communication apparatus can transmit the NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module 1001, configured to send capability information to the second device, includes:

It is used for sending a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes capability information.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a second response message from the second device through the second access, where the second response message includes fourth indication information, and the The fourth indication information is used to indicate that the second response message corresponds to the first access.

In a possible design, the transceiver module is further configured to receive a second response message from the second device through the first access.

In a possible design, the communication device is an access and mobility management network element, and the second device is a terminal device.

In a possible design, the communication device is a terminal device, and the second device is an access and mobility management network element.

In a possible design, the terminal device is registered at both the first access and the second access.

Optionally, the apparatus 100 further includes a storage module 1003 . Used to store data or programs, etc. For example, store connection management state, register management state.

Wherein, all relevant contents of the steps involved in the above method embodiments can be cited in the functional descriptions of the corresponding functional modules, which will not be repeated here.

In this embodiment, the apparatus 90 and the apparatus 100 are presented in the form of dividing each functional module in an integrated manner. "Module" herein may refer to a specific ASIC, circuit, processor and memory executing one or more software or firmware programs, integrated logic circuit, and/or other device that may provide the functions described above.

In a simple embodiment, those skilled in the art can contemplate that the device 90 or the device 100 may take the form shown in FIG. 6 .

For example, the processor 401 in FIG. 6 may invoke the computer-executed instructions stored in the memory 403 to cause the apparatus 90 to execute the communication method in the foregoing method embodiment.

Specifically, the functions/implementation process of the transceiver module 901 , the processing module 902 and the storage module 903 in FIG. 12 can be implemented by the processor 401 and/or the processor 408 in FIG. 6 calling the computer execution instructions stored in the memory 403 .

Alternatively, the functions/implementation process of the transceiver module 901 and the processing module 902 in FIG. 12 may be implemented by the processor 401 and/or the processor 408 in FIG. 6 calling the computer-executed instructions stored in the memory 403 . The function/implementation process of the transceiver module 903 in FIG. 12 can be implemented through the communication interface 404 in FIG. 6 . The function/implementation process of the storage module 903 in FIG. 12 can be implemented by the memory 403 in FIG. 6 .

The functions/implementation processes of the transceiver module 1001 , the processing module 1002 and the storage module 1003 in FIG. 13 can be implemented by the processor 401 and/or the processor 408 in FIG. 6 calling the computer-executed instructions stored in the memory 403 .

Alternatively, the function/implementation process of the transceiver module 1001 and the processing module 1002 in FIG. 13 may be implemented by the processor 401 and/or the processor 408 in FIG. 6 calling the computer-executed instructions stored in the memory 403 . The function/implementation process of the transceiver module 903 in FIG. 13 can be implemented through the communication interface 404 in FIG. 6 . The function/implementation process of the storage module 1003 in FIG. 13 can be implemented by the memory 403 in FIG. 6 .

Optionally, when the device 90 or the device 100 is a chip or a circuit, the memory 403 may be a storage unit in the chip or the circuit, such as a register, a cache, and the like. Certainly, when the apparatus 90 or the apparatus 100 is a device, the memory 403 may be a storage unit located outside the chip in the device, which is not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

Since the apparatus provided in the embodiment of the present application can be used to execute the above communication method, reference can be made to the above method embodiment for the technical effect obtained by the apparatus, which will not be repeated here.

Optionally, an embodiment of the present application further provides a chip system, where the chip system includes a processor for supporting the first device to implement the above communication method. In one possible design, the system-on-a-chip also includes memory. The memory is used for saving necessary program instructions and data of the first device. Of course, the memory may not be in the system-on-chip. The chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices, which are not specifically limited in this embodiment of the present application.

In the above-mentioned embodiments, it may be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. When implemented using a software program, it can be implemented in whole or in part in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on the computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated. The computer may be a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions may be stored in or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, for example, the computer instructions may be downloaded from a website site, computer, server, or data center Transmission to another website site, computer, server, or data center by wire (eg, coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line, DSL) or wireless (eg, infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.). The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by a computer or data storage devices including one or more servers, data centers, etc. that can be integrated with the medium. The usable media may be magnetic media (eg, floppy disks, hard disks, magnetic tapes), optical media (eg, DVDs), or semiconductor media (eg, solid state disks (SSDs)), and the like.

Although the application is described herein in conjunction with the various embodiments, those skilled in the art will understand and understand from a review of the drawings, the disclosure, and the appended claims in practicing the claimed application. Other variations of the disclosed embodiments are implemented. In the claims, the word "comprising" does not exclude other components or steps, and "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that these measures cannot be combined to advantage.

Although the application has been described in conjunction with specific features and embodiments thereof, it will be apparent that various modifications and combinations can be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. Accordingly, this specification and drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the application as defined by the appended claims, and are deemed to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations or equivalents within the scope of this application. Obviously, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications to the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Thus, if these modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims of the present application and their equivalents, the present application is also intended to include these modifications and variations.

Claims (41)

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

   The first device sends the first non-access stratum NAS message to the second device through the first access;

   If the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, the first device sends a second NAS message associated with the first NAS message to the second device through the second access, The second NAS message includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct the second NAS message to be processed according to a mode corresponding to a first access, where the first access is the 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access, and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access, and the second access is a 3GPP access.
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the second NAS message includes first indication information, and the first indication information is used to instruct that the second NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access including: :

   The second NAS message includes a first information element, where the first information element includes the first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct the first information element to be processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access .
3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein before the first device sends the first non-access stratum NAS message to the second device through the first access, the method further comprises:

   The first device sends capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the first device can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.
4. The method according to claim 3, wherein the sending, by the first device, capability information to the second device comprises:

   The first device sends a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes the capability information.
5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the method further comprises:

   The first device receives a first response message from the second device through the second access, where the first response message includes second indication information, where the second indication information is used to indicate the first The response message corresponds to the first access.
6. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the method further comprises:

   The first device receives a first response message from the second device through the first access.
7. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the first device is an access and mobility management network element, and the second device is a terminal device.
8. The method according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein the first device is a terminal device, and the second device is an access and mobility management network element.
9. The method according to claim 7 or 8, wherein the terminal device has been registered in both the first access and the second access.
10. A communication method, comprising:

    The first device selects the second access according to the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access;

    The first device sends a third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access, where the third NAS message includes third indication information, and the third indication information uses instructing to process the third NAS message in a manner corresponding to the first access, the first access being a 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access, and the second access being a non-3GPP access; or , the first access is a non-3GPP access, and the second access is a 3GPP access.
11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the connection management state of the first access is an idle state, and the connection management state of the second access is a connected state.
12. The method according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the third NAS message includes third indication information, and the third indication information is used to instruct to process the first access according to a mode corresponding to the first access. The three NAS messages include:

    The third NAS message includes a second information element, and the second information element includes the third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the second information is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access. information unit.
13. The method according to any one of claims 10-12, wherein the first device sends a third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access Before, also included:

    The first device sends capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the first device can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.
14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the sending, by the first device, capability information to the second device comprises:

    The first device sends a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes the capability information.
15. The method according to any one of claims 10-14, wherein the method further comprises:

    The first device receives a second response message from the second device through the second access, where the second response message includes fourth indication information, where the fourth indication information is used to indicate the second The response message corresponds to the first access.
16. The method according to any one of claims 10-14, wherein the method further comprises:

    The first device receives a second response message from the second device through the first access.
17. The method according to any one of claims 10-16, wherein the first device is an access and mobility management network element, and the second device is a terminal device.
18. The method according to any one of claims 10-16, wherein the first device is a terminal device, and the second device is an access and mobility management network element.
19. The method according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the terminal device has been registered in both the first access and the second access.
20. A communication device, comprising:

    a transceiver module, configured to send the first non-access stratum NAS message to the second device through the first access; if the first NAS message fails to be sent on the first access, send the first NAS message to the second device through the second access The second device sends a second NAS message associated with the first NAS message, where the second NAS message includes first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct to process the the second NAS message, the first access is a 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access, and the second access is a non-3GPP access; or, the first access is a non-3GPP access, and all The second access is 3GPP access.
21. The apparatus according to claim 20, wherein the second NAS message includes first indication information, and the first indication information is used to instruct that the second NAS message is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access including: :

    The second NAS message includes a first information element, where the first information element includes the first indication information, where the first indication information is used to instruct the first information element to be processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access .
22. The device according to claim 20 or 21, characterized in that,

    The transceiver module is further configured to send capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the communication apparatus can transmit the NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.
23. The apparatus according to claim 22, wherein the transceiver module is configured to send capability information to the second device, comprising:

    for sending a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes the capability information.
24. The device according to any one of claims 20-23, characterized in that,

    The transceiver module is further configured to receive a first response message from the second device through the second access, where the first response message includes second indication information, and the second indication information is used to indicate the The first response message corresponds to the first access.
25. The device according to any one of claims 20-23, characterized in that,

    The transceiver module is further configured to receive a first response message from the second device through the first access.
26. The apparatus according to any one of claims 20-25, wherein the communication apparatus is an access and mobility management network element, and the second device is a terminal device.
27. The apparatus according to any one of claims 20-25, wherein the communication apparatus is a terminal device, and the second device is an access and mobility management network element.
28. The apparatus according to claim 26 or 27, wherein the terminal device has been registered in both the first access and the second access.
29. A communication device, comprising:

    a processing module, configured to select the second access according to the connection management state of the first access and the connection management state of the second access;

    a transceiver module, configured to send a third NAS message corresponding to the first access to the second device through the second access, where the third NAS message includes third indication information, and the third indication information uses instructing to process the third NAS message in a manner corresponding to the first access, the first access being a 3rd Generation Partnership Project 3GPP access, and the second access being a non-3GPP access; or , the first access is a non-3GPP access, and the second access is a 3GPP access.
30. The apparatus according to claim 29, wherein the connection management state of the first access is an idle state, and the connection management state of the second access is a connected state.
31. The apparatus according to claim 29 or 30, wherein the third NAS message includes third indication information, and the third indication information is used to instruct to process the first access according to a mode corresponding to the first access. The three NAS messages include:

    The third NAS message includes a second information element, and the second information element includes the third indication information, and the third indication information is used to indicate that the second information is processed according to the mode corresponding to the first access. information unit.
32. The device according to any one of claims 29-31, characterized in that,

    The transceiver module is further configured to send capability information to the second device; the capability information is used to indicate that the communication apparatus can transmit a NAS message corresponding to the first access through the second access.
33. The apparatus according to claim 32, wherein the transceiver module, configured to send capability information to the second device, comprises:

    for sending a registration message to the second device, where the registration message includes the capability information.
34. The device according to any one of claims 29-33, characterized in that,

    The transceiver module is further configured to receive a second response message from the second device through the second access, where the second response message includes fourth indication information, and the fourth indication information is used to indicate the The second response message corresponds to the first access.
35. The device according to any one of claims 29-33, characterized in that,

    The transceiver module is further configured to receive a second response message from the second device through the first access.
36. The apparatus according to any one of claims 29-35, wherein the communication apparatus is an access and mobility management network element, and the second device is a terminal device.
37. The apparatus according to any one of claims 29-35, wherein the communication apparatus is a terminal device, and the second device is an access and mobility management network element.
38. The apparatus according to claim 36 or 37, wherein the terminal device has been registered in both the first access and the second access.
39. A communication device, characterized in that the device is configured to execute the communication method according to any one of claims 1-9, or to execute the communication method according to any one of claims 10-19.
40. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that the computer-readable storage medium stores a program or an instruction, and when the program or the instruction is executed, the communication method according to any one of claims 1-9 is is implemented, or a communication method as claimed in any one of claims 10-19 is implemented.
41. A computer program product, characterized in that it includes a program or an instruction, and when the program or instruction is executed, the communication method according to any one of claims 1-9 is realized, or the communication method according to claim 10-19 is realized. The communication method of any one is implemented.

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