WO2024032235A1

WO2024032235A1 - Communication method and communication apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2024032235A1
Application number: PCT/CN2023/104364
Authority: WO
Inventors: 李光磊; 宗在峰; 张成晨
Original assignee: 华为技术有限公司
Priority date: 2022-08-09
Filing date: 2023-06-30
Publication date: 2024-02-15
Also published as: CN117641241A

Abstract

Provided in the embodiments of the present application are a communication method and a communication apparatus. The method comprises: an access and mobility management network element receiving first information from an access network device, wherein the first information comprises identifiers of a plurality of areas, which are covered by the access network device; and when it is determined that some of the plurality of areas, which are covered by the access network device, belong to a mobility limited area in subscription data of a terminal device, the access and mobility management network element calling a positioning service to acquire position information of the terminal device, and determining, on the basis of the position information of the terminal device, whether to limit the mobility of the terminal device. A positioning service can be called by means of an access and mobility management network element to acquire position information of a terminal device, and whether to limit the mobility of the terminal device is determined according to the position information of the terminal device, such that the terminal device can be prevented from bypassing a mobility limitation.

Description

Communication method and communication device

This application claims priority to the Chinese patent application filed with the China Patent Office on August 9, 2022, with application number 202210951039.6 and application title "Communication Method and Communication Device", the entire content of which is incorporated into this application by reference.

Technical field

The embodiments of the present application relate to the field of communication, and more specifically, to a communication method and a communication device.

Background technique

In scenarios where satellite communications are integrated with the 5th generation (5G) mobile communications system (5GS) (for example, RAN radio frequency modules are deployed on satellites), due to the middle earth orbit, Non-geosynchronous satellites such as MEO) and low earth orbit (LEO) move relative to the ground. The 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) stipulates that as the satellite moves, the satellite needs to broadcast the current beam covering the ground area The corresponding tracking area code (TAC).

As the satellite moves, there may be a situation where the satellite's beam covers multiple tracking areas (TA) at the same time. In order to avoid switching the broadcast TAC due to the movement of the satellite, causing the terminal stationary in TA1 to initiate a mobile registration update due to receiving TAC2, 3GPP stipulates that if the satellite covers different TA areas during movement, it must broadcast the covered areas at the same time. TAC corresponding to multiple TAs.

When satellite beams cover multiple TAs at the same time, there is a problem in existing mobility restriction solutions for terminals that terminals may bypass mobility restrictions.

Contents of the invention

This application provides a communication method and communication device to implement mobility restrictions on terminal equipment within the coverage of the access network equipment when the access network equipment covers multiple areas at the same time.

The first aspect provides a communication method, which can be executed by the access and mobility management network element, or can also be executed by the component (such as a chip or circuit) of the access and mobility management network element. Limitation, for the convenience of description, the following description takes the execution by the access and mobility management network element as an example.

The method includes: an access and mobility management network element receiving first information from an access network device, where the first information includes identifiers of multiple areas covered by the access network device; When some of the multiple areas belong to the first area, the access and mobility management network element calls the positioning service to obtain the location information of the terminal device, where the terminal device is located within the coverage of the access network device. The first area includes the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device; the access and mobility management network element determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device.

Based on the above solution, the access and mobility management network element can obtain the information by calling the positioning service when it is determined that some of the multiple areas covered by the access network device belong to the mobility restricted area in the subscription data of the terminal device. Location information of the terminal device, and determining whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device, thereby preventing the terminal device from bypassing mobility restrictions.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the access and mobility management network element sends a positioning request to the location management network element, the positioning request carries indication information indicating a positioning method, and the positioning method includes a network-based At least one of a positioning method and a positioning method based on a terminal device; the access and mobility management network element receives the location information of the terminal device from the location management network element, and the location information of the terminal device is based on the positioning method definite.

Based on the above solution, by sending the instruction information indicating the positioning method to the location management network element through the access and mobility management network element, the reliability of determining the location information of the terminal device can be improved. For example, in some cases, the location management network element may The obtained location information determined by the terminal device itself will be used as the location information of the terminal device, and the terminal device may be malicious.

In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the location information of the terminal device is a location estimate of the terminal device, The access and mobility management network element maps the location information of the terminal device to the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located.

Based on the above solution, by mapping the location information of the terminal device to the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located, the access and management network element can perform mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the identifier of the area of the terminal device.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the access and mobility management network element sends a positioning request to the location management network element, the positioning request carries indication information indicating a positioning method, and the positioning method includes a network-based At least one of a positioning method and a positioning method based on a terminal device; the access and mobility management network element receives an identification of the area where the terminal device is located from the location management network element.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the location management network element determines the location estimate of the terminal device based on the positioning request; the location management network element maps the location estimate of the terminal device to the area where the terminal device is located logo.

Based on the above solution, the location management network element can map the location estimate of the terminal device to the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located, and the access and mobility management network element can receive the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located from the location management network element. , so that the access and mobility management network element can perform mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the identification of the area of the terminal device.

With reference to the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the access and mobility management network element determines whether to apply for the mobile phone based on the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located and the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device. End devices implement mobility restrictions.

For example, if the area where the terminal device is located belongs to the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device, the access and mobility management network element implements mobility restriction on the terminal device.

Based on the above solution, the access and mobility management network element can implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the identification of the area where the terminal device is located and the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device, thereby preventing the terminal device from bypassing Mobility restrictions.

In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the area is a tracking area TA.

Based on the above solution, the access and mobility management network element can implement mobility restrictions on terminal devices at the tracking area TA granularity.

In conjunction with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the area is an area smaller than or equal to the range of the tracking area TA.

Based on the above solution, the access and mobility management network element can implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device at a granularity smaller than the tracking area TA range.

In a second aspect, a communication device is provided. The communication device includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit. The transceiver unit is configured to receive first information from an access network device, where the first information includes multiple locations covered by the access network device. identification of an area; when it is determined that some of the multiple areas covered by the access network device belong to the first area, the processing unit is used to call the positioning service to obtain the location information of the terminal device, where the terminal The device is located within the coverage of the access network device, and the first area includes a mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device; the processing unit is also configured to determine whether to target the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device. Enforce mobility restrictions.

In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the transceiver unit is specifically configured to send a positioning request to the location management network element, where the positioning request carries indication information indicating a positioning method, where the positioning method includes network-based positioning. At least one of a method and a positioning method based on a terminal device; receiving location information of the terminal device from the location management network element, where the location information of the terminal device is determined based on the positioning method.

In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the location information of the terminal device is a location estimate of the terminal device, and the processing unit is further configured to map the location information of the terminal device to the location where the terminal device is located. Identification of the area.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the transceiver unit is specifically configured to send a positioning request to the location management network element, where the positioning request carries indication information indicating a positioning method, and the positioning method includes network-based positioning. At least one of a method and a positioning method based on a terminal device; receiving an identification of the area where the terminal device is located from the location management network element.

With reference to the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the processing unit is specifically configured to determine whether to target the terminal device based on the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located and the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device. Enforce mobility restrictions.

Combined with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the area is the tracking area TA.

In conjunction with the second aspect, in some implementations of the second aspect, the area is an area whose range is smaller than or equal to the range of the tracking area TA.

A third aspect provides a communication device, which has the function of implementing the method in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect. The functions described can be implemented by hardware, or can be implemented by hardware executing corresponding software. The hardware or software includes one or more units corresponding to the above functions.

In a fourth aspect, a communication device is provided, including a processor and a memory. Optionally, a transceiver may also be included. Wherein, the memory is used to store computer programs, and the processor is used to call and run the computer programs stored in the memory, and control the transceiver to send and receive signals, so that the communication device performs as in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect. method.

In a fifth aspect, a communication device is provided, including a processor and a communication interface. The communication interface is used to receive data and/or information and transmit the received data and/or information to the processor. The processing The processor processes the data and/or information, and the communication interface is also used to output the data and/or information processed by the processor, so that the method in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect is implement.

In a sixth aspect, a communication system is provided. The communication system includes an access and mobility management network element and a location management network element. The access and mobility management network element is used to perform any possible method of the first aspect or the first aspect. In the implementation method, the location management network element is configured to determine the location estimate of the terminal device based on the positioning request, and map the location estimate of the terminal device to an identifier of the area where the terminal device is located.

In a seventh aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided. Computer instructions are stored in the computer-readable storage medium. When the computer instructions are run on a computer, the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect is achieved. The method in is executed.

In an eighth aspect, a computer program product is provided. The computer program product includes computer program code. When the computer program code is run on a computer, the computer program code performs the following tasks as in the first aspect or any possible implementation of the first aspect. The method is executed.

Description of drawings

Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a network architecture suitable for an embodiment of the present application.

Figure 2 is another schematic diagram of a network architecture suitable for embodiments of the present application.

Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario applicable to the embodiment of the present application.

Figure 4 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 400 provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Figure 5 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 500 provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Figure 6 is a schematic flow chart of a communication method 600 provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Figure 7 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 700 provided by an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 800 provided by an embodiment of the present application.

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram of a chip system 900 provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed ways

The technical solutions in this application will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application can be applied to various communication systems, such as: long term evolution (long term evolution, LTE) system, LTE frequency division duplex (FDD) system, LTE time division duplex (time division duplex) , TDD), universal mobile telecommunication system (UMTS), fifth generation (5th generation, 5G) system or new radio (new radio, NR) or other evolved communication systems, etc.

The technical solution provided by this application can also be applied to future communication systems, such as the sixth generation mobile communication system, etc. This application does not limit this.

The technical solution provided by this application can also be applied to machine type communication (MTC), long term evolution-machine (LTE-M), and device-to-device (D2D). Network, machine to machine (M2M) network, Internet of things (IoT) network or other networks. Among them, the IoT network may include, for example, the Internet of Vehicles. Among them, the communication methods in the Internet of Vehicles system are collectively called vehicle to other devices (vehicle to X, V2X, X can represent anything). For example, the V2X can include: vehicle to vehicle (vehicle to vehicle, V2V) communication. Infrastructure (vehicle to infrastructure, V2I) communication, communication between vehicles and pedestrians (vehicle to pedestrian, V2P) or vehicle and network (vehicle to network, V2N) communication, etc.

As an example, FIG. 1 shows a schematic diagram of a network architecture suitable for embodiments of the present application. As shown in Figure 1, the network architecture takes the 5G system (the 5th generation system, 5GS) as an example. The network architecture may include but is not limited to: user equipment (UE), (radio) access network ((R)AN) equipment, access management network elements, location management network elements, data Management (data management) network element, location mobile gateway center, user plane positioning center, user plane positioning center, external client, user plane network element, and some equipment not shown in Figure 1, such as Network function repository function (NRF) equipment, etc. The above-mentioned equipment in 5GS can also be called 5G core network equipment.

Among them, DN can be the Internet; NSSF, AUSF, UDM, NEF, NRF, PCF, AF, AMF, SMF, and UPF are network elements in the core network. Since Figure 1 takes the 5G system as an example, the core network can be called 5G core network (5GC or 5GCN).

The following is a brief introduction to each network element shown in Figure 1.

1. User equipment (UE): It can be called terminal equipment, access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station, mobile station, remote station, remote terminal, mobile device, user terminal, terminal, wireless communication equipment, User agent or user device.

The terminal device may be a device that provides voice/data to users, for example, a handheld device with wireless connection function, a vehicle-mounted device, etc. Currently, some examples of terminals are: mobile phones, tablets, laptops, PDAs, mobile internet devices (MID), wearable devices, virtual reality (VR) devices, augmented reality (augmented reality, AR) equipment, wireless terminals in industrial control, wireless terminals in self-driving, wireless terminals in remote medical surgery, and smart grids Wireless terminals, wireless terminals in transportation safety, wireless terminals in smart cities, wireless terminals in smart homes, cellular phones, cordless phones, session initiation protocols , SIP) telephone, wireless local loop (WLL) station, personal digital assistant (personal digital assistant, PDA), handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, which can Wearable devices, terminal devices in the 5G network or terminal devices in the future evolved public land mobile communication network (public land mobile network, PLMN), etc., are not limited in the embodiments of this application.

As an example and not a limitation, in this embodiment of the present application, the terminal device may also be a wearable device. Wearable devices can also be called wearable smart devices. It is a general term for applying wearable technology to intelligently design daily wear and develop wearable devices, such as glasses, gloves, watches, clothing and shoes, etc. A wearable device is a portable device that is worn directly on the body or integrated into the user's clothing or accessories. Wearable devices are not just hardware devices, but also achieve powerful functions through software support, data interaction, and cloud interaction. Broadly defined wearable smart devices include full-featured, large-sized devices that can achieve complete or partial functions without relying on smartphones, such as smart watches or smart glasses, and those that only focus on a certain type of application function and need to cooperate with other devices such as smartphones. Use, such as various types of smart bracelets, smart jewelry, etc. for physical sign monitoring.

In addition, in the embodiment of this application, the terminal device may also be a terminal device in the IoT system. IoT is an important part of the future development of information technology. Its main technical feature is to connect objects to the network through communication technology, thereby realizing human-machine Interconnection, an intelligent network that interconnects things.

It should be pointed out that terminal equipment and access network equipment can communicate with each other using certain air interface technology (such as NR or LTE technology, etc.). Terminal devices can also communicate with each other using some air interface technology (such as NR or LTE technology, etc.).

In the embodiment of the present application, the device used to implement the functions of the terminal device may be a terminal device, or may be a device capable of supporting the terminal device to implement the function, such as a chip system or a chip, and the device may be installed in the terminal device. In the embodiments of this application, the chip system may be composed of chips, or may include chips and other discrete devices.

2. (Radio) access network (R)AN) equipment: It can provide authorized users in a specific area with the function of accessing the communication network. Specifically, it can include the 3rd generation partnership program (3rd generation partnership) Wireless network devices in project, 3GPP) networks may also include access points in non-3GPP (non-3GPP) networks. The following uses AN equipment representation for convenience of description.

AN equipment can use different wireless access technologies. There are currently two types of wireless access technologies: 3GPP access technologies (for example, wireless access technologies used in third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G) or 5G systems) and non- 3GPP (non-3GPP) access technology. 3GPP access technology refers to access technology that complies with 3GPP standard specifications. For example, the access network equipment in the 5G system is called the next generation Node Base station (gNB) or the next generation wireless access network (next generation). radio access network NG-RAN) equipment. Non-3GPP access technologies can include air interface technology represented by access point (AP) in wireless fidelity (WiFi), global interoperability for microwave access (WiMAX), code Code division multiple access (CDMA), etc. AN equipment can allow interconnection and interworking between terminal equipment and the 3GPP core network using non-3GPP technologies.

AN equipment can be responsible for functions such as wireless resource management, quality of service (QoS) management, data compression and encryption on the air interface side. AN equipment provides access services to terminal equipment, thereby completing the transmission of control signals and user data between the terminal equipment and the core network. forwarding between.

AN equipment may include, for example, but is not limited to: macro base station, micro base station (also known as small station), radio network controller (radio network controller, RNC), Node B (Node B, NB), base station controller (base station controller) , BSC), base transceiver station (BTS), home base station (for example, home evolved NodeB, or home Node B, HNB), baseband unit (baseband unit, BBU), AP in WiFi system, wireless relay Node, wireless backhaul node, transmission point (TP) or transmission and reception point (TRP), etc., can also be a gNB or transmission point (TRP or TP) in the 5G (such as NR) system , one or a group (including multiple antenna panels) antenna panels of a base station in a 5G system, or it can also be a network node that constitutes a gNB or transmission point, such as a distributed unit (DU), or next-generation communications Base stations in 6G systems, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the specific technology and specific equipment form used by the AN equipment.

In the satellite communication scenario, wireless access network equipment can also be called wireless satellite access network site (or wireless satellite access network equipment, wireless satellite access network), satellite access network site (or satellite access network equipment, Satellite access network) or satellite network site (or satellite network equipment, satellite network), which is not limited in the embodiments of the present application. Satellite access networks can be deployed in a variety of ways. For example, the same PLMN has both a terrestrial 3GPP access network and a satellite 3GPP access network, and the two access networks have independent interfaces with the core network. Another example: Different core networks share the same satellite access network, and the shared satellite access network will include available PLMNs in the broadcast system information; for another example: the ground access network and the satellite access network are independent, that is, the ground access network and The satellite access network corresponds to an independent PLMN; for another example: the satellites in the sky are only responsible for signal transmission and do not have the function of accessing the network. In this scenario, satellite access can also be called satellite backhaul. In the above non-satellite backhaul scenario, the satellite may include all or part of the network access function, which is not limited in this application. When all functions of the base station are integrated on the satellite, the satellite access network equipment can be understood as the equipment with partial functions of the base station on the satellite, and all relevant signaling and data processing of the access network are performed on the satellite. When some functions of the base station are integrated on the satellite and some functions are located on the ground, the satellite access network equipment can be understood as equipment with partial functions of the base station on the satellite and equipment with partial functions of the base station on the ground. Related signaling and data of the access network Processing occurs partly on the satellite and partly on the ground. When the satellite returns, the satellite access network equipment can be understood as a base station on the ground. All relevant signaling and data processing of the access network are performed on the ground. The satellite transparently transmits signaling and data between the terminal equipment and the satellite access network equipment. data.

3. Mobility management network element: mainly used for functions such as access control, mobility management, attachment and detachment.

In the 5G communication system, the mobility management network element may be an access and mobility management function (AMF) network element. In future communication systems, the access management network element can still be an AMF network element, or it can also have other names, which is not limited in this application.

4. Location management network element: Responsible for the location-related information business of the terminal device, including providing auxiliary information to the terminal device for location measurement, or processing the location measurement information reported by the terminal device or base station and calculating the final coordinates, location movement speed, etc.

In the 5G communication system, the location management network element can be an LMF network element. In future communication systems, the location management network element can still be an LMF network element, or have other names. This application does not limit it.

5. Data management network element: Mainly used for UE subscription data management, including storage and management of UE identification, UE access authorization, etc.

In the 5G communication system, the data management network element may be a unified data management (UDM) network element. In future communication systems, unified data management can still be a UDM network element, or it can also have other names, which is not limited by this application.

6. Location mobile gateway center: used to be responsible for the interaction between 5GC internal and external LCS clients. The location mobile gateway center may also be a device that delivers location information.

In the 5G communication system, the location mobile gateway center may be a location mobile gateway center (gateway mobile location center, GMLC) network element. In future communication systems such as 6G communication systems, unified data management can still be GMLC network elements, or it can also have other names, which is not limited by this application.

7. External client: used to obtain the location information of single or multiple UEs from the 3GPP network.

In the 5G communication system, the external client may be a location service (LCS) client network element. In future communication systems, application network elements can still be LCS client network elements, or they can have other names, which are not limited in this application.

8. Network opening network element: used to securely open services and capabilities provided by 3GPP network functions to the outside world.

In the 5G communication system, the network exposure network element may be a network exposure function (NEF) network element. In future communication systems such as 6G communication systems, network open network elements can still be NEF network elements, or they can have other names, which are not limited in this application.

9. Application network element: Responsible for providing services to the 3GPP network, such as affecting service routing, interacting with policy control network elements for policy control, etc.

In the 5G communication system, the application network element may be an application function (AF) network element. In future communication systems, application network elements can still be AF network elements, or they can have other names, which are not limited in this application.

It can be understood that the above network elements or functions can be network elements in hardware devices, software functions running on dedicated hardware, or virtualization functions instantiated on a platform (for example, a cloud platform). As a possible implementation method, the above network element or function can be implemented by one device, can be implemented by multiple devices, or can be a functional module in one device, which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of this application.

In the architecture shown in Figure 1, devices can communicate with each other through the interfaces shown in the figure. As shown in Figure 1, the next generation network (Next generation, NG) 1 interface (referred to as the N1 interface) is the reference point between the terminal device and the mobility management network element; the N2 interface is the (R)AN and mobility management network element The reference point is used for sending non-access stratum (NAS) messages, etc.; the NL1 interface is the reference point between the mobility management network element and the location management network element, and is used for location positioning request and response messages. Sending etc. In addition, the relationship between other interfaces and each device is shown in Figure 1. For the sake of simplicity, they will not be described in detail here.

In Figure 1, N1, N2, NL1, NL7, N8, NL2, N51, N52, NL6, N33, Le, etc. are interface serial numbers. The meaning of these interface serial numbers can be found in the meaning defined in the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP) standard protocol, which is not limited here.

It should be noted that the names of the various devices involved in Figure 1 and the communication interfaces between the devices are simply explained using the ones stipulated in the current protocol as an example, but this does not limit the embodiments of the present application to only those currently used. Known communication system. Therefore, the standard names that appear when describing the current protocol as an example are all functional descriptions. This application does not limit the specific names of devices, interfaces or signaling, etc. It only indicates the functions of the device, interface or signaling, and can correspond to can be extended to other systems, such as 2G, 3G, 4G or future communication systems.

The architecture that can be applied to the embodiment of the present application shown in Figure 1 is only an example. The architecture applicable to the embodiment of the present application is not limited to this. Any architecture that can realize the functions of each of the above devices is suitable for the implementation of the present application. example.

It should also be understood that the above nomenclature is only defined to facilitate the differentiation of different functions and should not constitute any limitation on this application. This application does not rule out the possibility of using other naming in 5G networks and other future networks. For example, in a 6G network, some or all of the above-mentioned devices may use the terminology used in 5G, or may adopt other names. The interface names between the various devices in Figure 1 are just examples. In specific implementations, the names of the interfaces may be other names, and this application does not specifically limit this. In addition, the names of the messages (or signaling) transmitted between the various devices mentioned above are only examples and do not constitute any limitation on the function of the messages themselves.

In order to facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, before introducing the solutions of the embodiments of the present application based on the architecture of Figure 1 , some terms or concepts that may be involved in the embodiments of the present application are first briefly described.

1. Mobility restrictions for UE

In the 5G communication system, mobility restrictions on UE mainly refer to restricting the mobility processing or service access of the UE. In the embodiment of the present application, it mainly involves the mobility restrictions of the UE related to the tracking area (tracking area, TA). Related to TA include prohibited areas (forbidden Area) and service area restrictions (service area restrictions). In the forbidden area, the UE is not allowed to initiate any communication with the network. The service restricted area can be divided into "allowed area" and "not allowed area". If the UE is in the "not allowed area", the UE and the network are not allowed to initiate a "service request" or any user plane data, control plane data, and abnormal data. Report connection requests for session management (SM) signaling to obtain user services unrelated to mobility.

2. Satellite communications

Satellite communication technology refers to the technology that wireless communication equipment on the ground accesses the network through satellites. Compared with traditional mobile communication systems, satellite communications have wider coverage and can help 5G networks cover sparsely populated remote areas, oceans, isolated islands and other areas that are difficult to reach by terrestrial networks.

Based on the communication system architecture shown in Figure 1, satellite communication and 5G mobile communication system (the 5th-generation mobile communications system, 5GS) can be integrated. Currently, one scenario for the integration of satellite communications and 5GS is: the satellite is accessed as 3GPP, and the UE accesses 5GS through the satellite.

Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a scenario where satellite communications and 5GS are integrated. As can be seen in Figure 2, satellites can contain the RAN in its entirety or Part of the access network function, therefore, the UE can access the 5G Core Network (5G Core Network, 5GC) through satellite. Among them, 5GC can include core network elements such as AMF, AF, and UDM as shown in Figure 1.

For example, the satellites in Figure 2 can be low earth orbit satellites (LEO), mid earth orbit satellites (MEO), other satellites (Other SAT), etc.

Due to the relative ground motion of non-geostationary satellites such as MEO and LEO, 3GPP stipulates that as the satellite moves, the satellite needs to broadcast the tracking area code (TAC) corresponding to the current beam coverage ground area. During the movement of the satellite, there may be a situation where the beam of the satellite covers multiple TAs at the same time. In order to avoid switching the broadcast TAC due to the movement of the satellite, causing the UE stationary in one TA to initiate a mobility registration update (MRU) due to receiving the TAC corresponding to another TA, 3GPP stipulates that if a satellite is moving during If different TA areas are covered, the TACs corresponding to the multiple TA areas covered must be broadcast simultaneously.

As shown in Figure 3, the satellite covers both TA1 and TA2 in a period of time. In order to avoid switching the broadcast TAC due to the movement of the satellite, causing the UE stationary in TA1 to initiate a mobile registration update due to receiving TAC2, the satellite needs to broadcast at the same time. TA1 and TA2 correspond to TAC1 and TAC2. In this way, when the UE is located near the boundary of a certain TA1, since it can always receive the TAC1 of the TA1 where it is located without initiating the MRU process, it avoids the signaling caused by a large number of UEs initiating registration updates when the UE passively switches and satellite mobile switches TA. impact.

However, satellite broadcast of multiple TACs also brings new problems. The RAN may not be able to accurately determine the current location of the UE, so it may report the multiple TACs currently broadcast to the AMF through UE location information (ULI). For multiple TACs reported by the RAN, the network adopts a loose principle for UE mobility restrictions. That is, if the TAs corresponding to the multiple TACs reported are all TAs with restricted or prohibited services, mobility restrictions will be applied to the UE; otherwise, mobility restrictions will not be applied to the UE. At this time, when the TAs corresponding to some TACs among the reported multiple TACs are subject to mobility restrictions (for example, the TA corresponding to a certain TAC is a prohibited area or a service-restricted area), if mobility restrictions are not imposed on the UE, the UE may Bypassing mobility restrictions.

In an existing solution, in order for the RAN to report the accurate location of the UE, or to determine the TA where the UE is located, the RAN needs to rely on the UE's global navigation satellite system (GNSS) positioning capability. Specifically, the RAN receives its own location information reported by the UE, where the location information is determined based on the GNSS positioning capability of the UE. The RAN can map the location information reported by the UE into the corresponding TAC and inform the AMF. Therefore, the AMF can learn the actual location of the UE, that is, the TA where the UE is located. The AMF can determine whether the TA where the UE is located is a prohibited area or a service-restricted area, and then determine whether to impose mobility restrictions on the UE.

However, in this solution, the RAN needs to rely on its own location information reported by the UE to determine the TA where the UE is located. The location information reported by the UE is determined based on its own GNSS positioning capability. The location information reported by the UE exists. Reliability issues. For example, the UE may be malicious and allow itself to bypass mobility restrictions by forging location information.

In view of this, this application provides a communication method and communication device. When the RAN cannot accurately determine the current location of the terminal device and report multiple TACs, the network side can effectively implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device to prevent the terminal device from Bypass mobility restrictions.

In order to facilitate understanding of the embodiments of the present application, the following points are explained.

First, the first, second and various numerical numbers (for example, "#1", "#2", etc.) shown in this application are only for convenience of description and are used to distinguish objects, and are not used to limit this application. Scope of Application Embodiments. For example, distinguish different information, etc. It is not used to describe a specific order or sequence. It is to be understood that objects so described are interchangeable where appropriate to enable description of aspects other than the embodiments of the present application.

Second, the term "and/or" involved in this application is only an association relationship describing related objects, indicating that there can be three relationships. For example, A and/or B can mean: A exists alone, and exists simultaneously A and B, there are three situations of B alone. In addition, the character "/" in this article generally indicates that the related objects are an "or" relationship.

The communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The embodiments provided in this application can be applied to the network architecture shown in any of the above-mentioned Figures 1 and 2 without limitation.

Figure 4 shows a schematic diagram of a communication method 400 provided by an embodiment of the present application. Method 400 may include the following steps.

S410. The access network device sends the first information to the access and mobility management network element.

Correspondingly, the access and mobility management network element receives the first information from the access network device.

The first information includes identifiers of multiple areas covered by the access network device.

In one example, the multiple areas are divided at TA granularity, or in other words, the multiple areas covered by the access network device are multiple TAs.

In another example, the area covered by the access network device is divided with a granularity smaller than the TA range, or in other words, the multiple areas covered by the access network device are multiple areas smaller than the TA range.

It should be noted that the multiple areas may be all areas covered by the access network device, or part of all areas covered by the access network device.

In a possible implementation manner, the access network device may send the first information to the access and mobility management network element during the registration process of the terminal device.

In another possible implementation manner, the access network device may also send the first information to the access and mobility management network element during the service request process of the terminal device.

Optionally, S420, the access and mobility management network element obtains the subscription data of the terminal device.

Specifically, the access and mobility management network element can obtain the subscription data of the terminal device through the unified data management network element or the first access and mobility management network element.

The first access and mobility management network element may be the access and mobility management network element that serves the terminal device before executing the method according to the embodiment of the present application.

The subscription data of the terminal device includes mobility restriction subscription data of the terminal device. The mobility restriction subscription data of the terminal device may include information on the mobility restriction area of the terminal device, for example, information on a prohibited area or service restricted area corresponding to the terminal device. That is, the terminal device is not allowed to initiate any communication with the network or obtain data unrelated to mobility in the mobility restricted area.

The mobility restricted area of the terminal device may include at least one area. For simplicity, the mobility restriction area of the terminal device is recorded as the first area, and description of the same situation is omitted below.

Exemplarily, the mobility restriction area of the terminal device may include one or more TAs. Alternatively, the mobility restriction area of the terminal device may include one or more areas smaller than the TA range.

It can be understood that, in the case where multiple areas covered by the access network device are multiple TAs, the mobility restriction area of the terminal device obtained by the access and mobility management network element may include one or more TAs. Therefore, the access and mobility management network element can implement mobility restrictions on terminal devices at the TA granularity.

In the case where the multiple areas covered by the access network device are multiple areas smaller than the TA range, the mobility restriction area of the terminal device obtained by the access and mobility management network element may include one or more areas smaller than the TA range. Area. Therefore, the access and mobility management network element can perform mobility restrictions on the terminal device at a granularity smaller than the TA range.

When it is determined that some of the multiple areas covered by the access network device belong to the first area, S430, the access and mobility management network element calls a positioning service to obtain the location information of the terminal device.

Wherein, part of the multiple areas covered by the access network equipment belongs to the first area can be understood as: the multiple areas covered by the access network equipment intersect with the first area, and the access network The multiple areas covered by the device do not belong to the subset of the first area.

The access and mobility management network element calls the positioning service to obtain the location estimate of the terminal device, including: the access and mobility management network element sends a positioning request to the location management network element; in response to the positioning request, the location management network element sends a positioning request to the location management network element. The access and mobility management network element sends the location information of the terminal device.

The positioning request may carry first indication information indicating a positioning method (or positioning mode).

In one example, the first indication information may indicate one or more positioning modes required by the access and mobility management network element. The positioning mode required by the access and mobility management network element may be at least one of a UE-Based positioning mode, a UE-Assisted positioning mode and a network-based positioning mode.

Among them, the UE-Based positioning mode can be understood as: the terminal device obtains positioning measurement data by itself, and calculates the position of the terminal device based on the obtained positioning measurement data. Optionally, in some embodiments, the terminal device can obtain assistance data (assistance data) from the network side, and the assistance data can assist in determining the location estimate of the terminal device.

The UE-Assisted positioning mode can be understood as: the terminal device obtains positioning measurement data and sends the positioning measurement data to other network elements (for example, location management network elements), so that other network elements can determine the position estimate of the terminal device.

The network-based positioning mode can be understood as: the network side (such as the location management network element) obtains the measurement information of the terminal device and performs End device location estimation.

The position estimation of the terminal device in the embodiment of the present application can be the longitude and latitude coordinates of the terminal device, the XYZ coordinates of the Cartesian or Earth-centered earth-fixed (ECEF) coordinate system, or other information or data that can characterize the position, etc. , without limitation.

In the case where the first indication information indicates one or more positioning modes required by the access and mobility management network element, the location management network element performs positioning according to the positioning mode required by the access and management network element. If the location management network element determines that the terminal device does not support the positioning mode indicated by the first indication information, the subsequent process may not be executed, that is, the access and mobility management network element implements mobility for the terminal device according to the existing relaxed principles. limit.

In another example, the first indication information may indicate at least one positioning mode preferred by the access and mobility management network element. The at least one positioning mode may refer to the description in the first example.

In the case where the first indication information indicates one or more positioning modes preferred by the access and mobility management network element, the location management network element may determine whether to follow the positioning mode indicated by the first indication information in combination with the positioning capability of the terminal device. Positioning mode for positioning.

In another example, the first indication information may also indicate at least one positioning mode prohibited by the access and mobility management network element. The at least one positioning mode may refer to the description in the first example.

In the case where the first indication information indicates a positioning mode prohibited by the access and mobility management network element, the location management network element may select a positioning mode supported by the terminal device and not prohibited by the access and mobility management network element for positioning. .

In yet another example, the first indication information may indicate the purpose of the positioning request. For example, the purpose of the positioning request may be: positioning requested to determine the area where the terminal device is located, or to implement mobility restrictions, or to verify the position of the terminal device under satellite access.

If the first indication information indicates the purpose of the positioning request, the location management network element may select at least one of the above positioning modes according to the first indication information.

By sending the instruction information indicating the positioning method to the location management network element through the access and mobility management network element, the reliability of determining the location information of the terminal device can be improved.

The location management network element sending the location information of the terminal device to the access and mobility management network element specifically includes: the location management network element sending the location estimate of the terminal device to the access and mobility management network element; or, the location The management network element sends the identification of the area where the terminal device is located to the access and mobility management network element.

If the location management network element sends the identification of the area where the terminal device is located to the access and mobility management network element, the method further includes: the location management network element determines the area where the terminal device is located based on the location estimate of the terminal device. area. Specifically, the location management network element may map the location estimate of the terminal device to the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located. For example, the TAC corresponding to the TA where the terminal device is located is mapped, or the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located, and the range of the area is smaller than the range of the TA.

S440: The access and mobility management network element determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device.

Specifically, if the access and mobility management network element receives the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located from the location management network element, then the access and mobility management network element determines the location of the area where the terminal device is located based on the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located, and The mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device determines whether mobility restriction is implemented on the terminal device.

If the access and mobility management network element receives the location estimate of the terminal device from the location management network element, the method may further include: the access and mobility management network element determines the location of the terminal device based on the location estimate of the terminal device. The area where the terminal device is located; the access and mobility management network element determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located and the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device.

Wherein, the access and mobility management network element determines the area where the terminal device is located based on the location estimate of the terminal device. Specifically, the access and mobility management network element maps the location estimate of the terminal device to the area where the terminal device is located. Identification of the area.

Exemplarily, the access and mobility management network element determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the identification of the area where the terminal device is located and the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device, including: if the terminal device The access and mobility management network element determines that the area where the terminal device is located belongs to the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device, and then the access and mobility management network element implements mobility restrictions on the terminal device.

For detailed steps for the access and mobility management network element to implement mobility restrictions on terminal devices, please refer to the existing relevant descriptions.

Based on the above solution, the access and mobility management network element can obtain the information by calling the positioning service when it is determined that some of the multiple areas covered by the access network device belong to the mobility restricted area in the subscription data of the terminal device. The location information of the terminal device, And determine whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device, thereby preventing the terminal device from bypassing mobility restrictions.

Figure 5 shows a schematic diagram of a communication method 500 provided by an embodiment of the present application. In this method, the registration process is taken as an example to illustrate the communication method provided by the embodiment of the present application. As shown in Figure 5, the method may include the following steps.

S501, the UE sends a registration request (registration request) to the RAN; accordingly, the RAN receives the registration request from the UE.

Among them, all or part of the functions of RAN (such as radio frequency modules) can be implemented by satellites. The RAN may cover multiple TAs within a time period.

The registration request may carry the UE's identity, registration type, etc. Please refer to the existing relevant descriptions for details.

S502, RAN selects AMF.

Exemplarily, after receiving the registration request from the UE, the RAN selects the AMF. This AMF is used for UE access and mobility management. For the specific process of RAN selecting AMF, please refer to the existing relevant descriptions.

S503. The RAN sends a registration request and the UE location information (UE location information, ULI) to the selected AMF.

Accordingly, the AMF receives the registration request and the ULI from the AMF.

The registration request may refer to existing relevant descriptions; the ULI includes TACs corresponding to multiple TAs covered by the RAN (for simplicity, it is recorded as the first TAC). The multiple TAs may be all TAs covered by the RAN, or part of all TAs covered by the RAN.

S504: AMF obtains the subscription data of the UE.

AMF can obtain the UE's subscription data from UDM. The subscription data includes information about the mobility restriction area of the UE. The mobility restriction area of the UE may include at least one TA, and the information of the mobility restriction area of the UE includes the TAC corresponding to the at least one TA (for simplicity, it is denoted as the second TAC).

For example, the at least one TA includes a prohibited area and/or a TA corresponding to a "not allowed area". That is, the UE's access or movement in the at least one TA is restricted.

S505: Determine whether the first TAC and the second TAC intersect, and the first TAC is not a subset of the second TAC.

If not, the mobility restriction of the UE is performed according to the existing solution.

If yes, perform subsequent steps.

For example, the first TAC includes {TAC#1, TAC#2, TAC#3}, the second TAC includes {TAC#2, TAC#3}, and the first TAC and the second TAC have an intersection {TAC#2, TAC#3}, and the first TAC is not a subset of the second TAC; the first TAC includes {TAC#1, TAC#2, TAC#3}, and the second TAC includes {TAC#2, TAC#4}, then There is an intersection {TAC#2} between the first TAC and the second TAC, and the first TAC is not a subset of the second TAC.

Before performing subsequent steps, the AMF may send a registration acceptance message to the UE via the RAN.

S506, AMF sends a positioning request to LMF.

Accordingly, the LMF receives the positioning request from the AMF.

For example, the location request can be Nlmf_Location_DetermineLocation Request.

The positioning request may carry the positioning capability of the UE, and the positioning capability of the UE indicates the positioning method (which may also be called a positioning mode) supported by the UE.

The positioning request may also carry indication information #1, and the indication information #1 indicates the positioning mode.

In one example, the indication information #1 may include one or more positioning modes required by the AMF.

When the instruction information #1 includes one or more positioning modes required by the AMF, the LMF performs positioning according to the positioning mode indicated by the instruction information #1.

For example, the positioning mode required by the AMF may be at least one of a UE-Based positioning mode, a UE-Assisted positioning mode, and a network-based positioning mode.

In another example, the indication information #1 may include one or more positioning modes preferred by the AMF.

The multiple positioning modes can be referred to the description in the first example.

In the case where the indication information #1 includes one or more positioning modes preferred by the AMF, the LMF may determine whether to perform positioning in accordance with the positioning mode indicated by the indication information #1 in combination with the UE's positioning capability.

For example, AMF specifies a preference for network-based targeting mode. If the LMF determines that the UE supports network-based positioning mode, the LMF selects network-based positioning mode positioning. If the LMF determines that the UE does not support network-based positioning mode, the LMF may select the UE Other supported positioning modes, for example, select UE-Assisted positioning mode.

For another example, the AMF may indicate the priority of its preferred positioning mode, and accordingly, the LMF determines the positioning mode based on the priority information. For example, the positioning modes with priorities indicated by the AMF from high to low may be: network-based positioning mode, UE-Assisted positioning mode, and UE-Based positioning mode. The LMF preferentially selects a positioning mode with a higher priority based on the indication information #1. If the UE does not support the positioning mode with a high priority, the LMF may select a positioning mode with a lower priority. If the UE does not support the positioning mode preferred by the AMF, the LMF selects the positioning mode supported by other UEs.

In another example, the indication information #1 may indicate an AMF prohibited positioning mode.

In the case where the indication information #1 indicates a positioning mode prohibited by AMF, the LMF may select a positioning mode supported by the UE and not prohibited by AMF for positioning.

In another example, the indication information #1 may indicate the purpose of the positioning request.

In the case where the indication information #1 indicates the purpose of the positioning request, the LMF may select at least one of the UE-Based positioning mode, the UE-Assisted positioning mode and the network-based positioning mode.

For example, the purpose of the positioning request may be: positioning requested to determine the TA where the UE is located, to implement mobility restrictions, or to verify the position of the UE under satellite access.

It can be understood that in the above example, if the LMF determines that the positioning capability of the UE does not support the positioning mode required by the AMF or the positioning mode other than the positioning mode prohibited by the AMF, the LMF may use other positioning methods supported by the UE; or, the LMF may also Reject the positioning request and return the reason for the rejection to AMF. In this case, subsequent processes do not need to be executed, and AMF implements mobility restrictions according to the existing relaxed principles.

S507, LMF executes the positioning process.

Depending on the selected positioning mode, the LMF positioning process includes two situations.

Situation one:

If in S506 the LMF determines to adopt the network-based positioning mode according to the instruction information #1, the positioning process may include S508 to S510:

S508: The LMF sends a downlink new radio positioning protocol A (new radio position protocol a, NRPPa) message to the RAN through the AMF.

For example, the LMF may send the NRPPa message to the AMF through the N1N2 message transfer container message (Namf_Communication_N1N2MessageTransfer) or the N2 message transfer container message (Namf_Communication_NonUeN2MessageTransfer); and then the AMF sends the NRPPa message to the RAN through the N2 transport (N2Transport).

S509, RAN obtains measurement information.

S510: RAN sends the measurement information to LMF through AMF.

For example, the RAN sends the measurement information to the AMF through N2Transport; the AMF then sends the measurement information to the LMF through the N1N2 notification message (Namf_Communication_N1N2MessageNotify) or the N2 notification message (Namf_Communication_NonUeN2MessageNotify).

Situation two:

If in S506 the LMF determines to use the UE-Assisted positioning mode or the UE-Based positioning mode according to the indication information #1, the positioning process may include S511 to S513:

S511. The LMF sends a downlink long term evolution position protocol (LPP) message to the UE through the AMF.

For example, the LMF can send the downlink LPP message to the AMF through the N1N2 message transfer container message (Namf_Communication_N1N2MessageTransfer), and then the AMF sends the downlink LPP message to the UE through the downlink NAS message transmission (DL NAS TRANSPORT).

S512: The UE obtains measurement information and/or determines the location estimate.

S513: The UE sends measurement information or location estimation to the LMF through the AMF.

For example, the UE sends the uplink LPP message to the AMF through the uplink NAS message transmission (UL NAS TRANSPORT); and then the AMF sends the uplink LPP message to the LMF through the N1 notification message (Namf_Communication_N1MessageNotify).

It should be noted that if LMF adopts UE-Assisted positioning mode or UE-Based positioning mode, and the network needs to provide assistance information, information, you also need to execute S508 to S510 to obtain network-assisted measurement information.

Optionally, S514, the LMF determines the location estimate of the UE.

The LMF may determine the location estimate of the UE based on the measurement information in S510 and/or S513.

It can be understood that if the UE sends the location estimate of the UE to the LMF through the AMF in S513, this step may not be performed.

The position estimation of the UE in the embodiment of this application can be the latitude and longitude coordinates of the terminal device, the XYZ coordinates of the Cartesian or earth-centered earth-fixed (ECEF) coordinate system, or other information or data that can characterize the position, etc. Not limited.

S515: The LMF determines the location information of the UE and sends a positioning response to the AMF.

For example, the location response may be Nlmf_Locaion_Determine Location Response.

The positioning response carries the location information of the UE. Depending on the location information of the UE, S516 can be divided into two situations.

Situation one:

S515a: The LMF maps the location estimate of the UE to the TAC corresponding to the TA where the UE is located.

S515b: The LMF sends a positioning response to the AMF. The positioning response carries the TAC corresponding to the TA where the UE is located.

Accordingly, the AMF receives the positioning response from the LMF.

Situation two:

S515c: The LMF sends a positioning response to the AMF. The positioning response carries the location estimate of the UE.

In the above two cases, optionally, the positioning response can also carry the positioning mode adopted by the LMF. The AMF may refer to the adopted positioning mode returned by the LMF to determine the reliability of the position estimate.

Corresponding to case 2, the method may also include S516, where the AMF maps the UE position estimate returned by the LMF to the TAC corresponding to the TA where the UE is located.

S517: The AMF determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the UE based on the TAC corresponding to the TA where the UE is located and the TAC corresponding to the mobility restriction area of the UE.

For example, the AMF may query whether the TAC corresponding to the TA where the UE is located is the TAC in the second TAC. If so, the AMF performs mobility restrictions on the UE. For example, if the TA where the UE is located belongs to a prohibited area in the mobility subscription data, the AMF initiates a deregistration process or rejects the UE's registration request.

Based on the above solution, when part of the TAC in the first TAC belongs to the second TAC, the AMF can determine the TAC of the TA where the UE is currently located by calling the positioning service, and make a judgment based on the TAC of the area where the UE is currently located and the mobility restriction subscription data. Whether to enforce mobility restrictions for the UE, thereby preventing the UE from bypassing mobility restrictions.

The mobility restriction of the UE implemented according to the method 500 can be regarded as the mobility restriction implemented based on the granularity of the TA.

Figure 6 shows a schematic diagram of another communication method 600 provided by an embodiment of the present application. Unlike the TA in the method 500, the method 600 can implement the mobility restriction of the UE at a granularity smaller than the area of the TA range. The method 600 may include the following steps.

S601. The UE sends a registration request to the RAN.

Accordingly, the RAN receives the registration request from the UE.

S602, RAN selects AMF.

Steps S601 and S602 may refer to S501 and S502 respectively, and will not be described again.

S603. The RAN sends a registration request and ULI to the selected AMF.

The ULI includes identifiers of multiple geographical locations covered by the RAN (for convenience of description, it is recorded as the first geographical location identifier).

The range of this geographical location is smaller than the range of TA. For example, the geographical location can be a certain province, a certain city, a certain county, a certain town or a certain street, etc. The identifier of the geographical location may be a code corresponding to a province, city, county, town or street.

It can be understood that the geographical location expressed by administrative region in this application is only an example, and the geographical location can also be expressed in other forms, which is not limited in this application.

S604: AMF obtains the UE's subscription data from UDM.

The subscription data includes information about the mobility restriction area of the UE. The mobility restricted area of the UE may include at least one geographical location, and the information of the mobility restricted area of the UE includes an identifier of the at least one geographical location (for simplicity, it is recorded as a second geographical location identifier).

For example, the at least one geographical location includes a geographical location corresponding to a prohibited area and/or a "not allowed area". That is, the UE's access or movement in the at least one geographical location is restricted.

That is to say, the mobility restriction area in the UE's subscription data may not be divided based on TA as a granularity, but may be divided on a geographical location as a granularity, and the range of the geographical location is smaller than the range of TA.

It should be noted that the range of the geographical location belonging to the mobility restriction area of the UE may be greater than or equal to the range of the geographical location covered by the RAN.

For example, the geographical location covered by the RAN may be at a town granularity or a city granularity, and the geographical location of the UE's mobility restricted area may be at a city granularity.

S605: Determine whether the first geographical location identifier and the second geographical location identifier intersect, and the first geographical location identifier is not a subset of the second geographical location identifier.

If yes, perform subsequent steps.

It should be noted that when the range of the geographical location belonging to the UE's mobility restriction area is greater than the range of the geographical location covered by the RAN, the AMF can determine whether the address location corresponding to the first geographical location identifier belongs to the second geographical location identifier. The geographical location is used to determine whether there is an intersection between the first geographical location identifier and the second geographical location identifier.

For example, the geographical location corresponding to the second geographical location identifier is a city, the second geographical location identifier includes the identifier of city #1, the geographical location corresponding to the first geographical location identifier includes the town, and the first geographical location identifier includes the identifier of town #1, AMF can determine whether town #1 belongs to city #1. If it does, the first geographical location identifier and the second geographical location identifier overlap.

Before performing subsequent steps, the AMF may send a registration acceptance request to the UE through the RAN.

S606: AMF sends a positioning request to LMF.

Accordingly, the LMF receives the positioning request from the AMF.

The positioning request may carry indication information #1, and the indication information #1 indicates the positioning mode. For other information carried in the positioning request and the specific form of the positioning request, please refer to the description in S506.

This instruction information #1 is similar to the instruction information #1 in S506 and will not be described again.

S607, LMF executes the positioning process.

Depending on the selected positioning mode, the LMF positioning process includes two situations. Refer to case 1 and case 2 in S507 respectively.

Optionally, S608, the LMF determines the location estimate of the UE.

This step is similar to S514 and will not be described again.

S609: The LMF determines the location information of the UE and sends a positioning response to the AMF.

The positioning response carries the location information of the UE. Depending on the location information of the UE, S608 is specifically divided into two situations.

Situation one:

S609a: The LMF maps the location estimate of the UE to the geographical location identifier corresponding to the geographical location where the UE is located.

The geographical location identifier corresponding to the geographical location where the UE is located may have the same granularity as the first geographical location identifier, or the granularity of the geographical location identifier corresponding to the geographical location where the UE is located may be finer than the granularity of the first geographical location identifier. .

S609b: The LMF sends a positioning response to the AMF. The positioning response carries the geographical location identifier corresponding to the geographical location where the UE is located.

Accordingly, the AMF receives the positioning response from the LMF.

Situation two:

S609c: The LMF sends a positioning response to the AMF, where the positioning response carries the location estimate of the UE.

Accordingly, the AMF receives the positioning response from the LMF.

Corresponding to case 2, the method may also include S610, where the AMF maps the location estimate of the UE to a geographical location identifier corresponding to the geographical location where the UE is located.

S611: The AMF determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the UE based on the geographical location identifier corresponding to the geographical location of the UE and the second geographical location identifier.

For example, the AMF may query whether the geographical location identifier corresponding to the geographical location where the UE is located is an identifier in the second geographical location identifier, and if so, the AMF performs mobility restrictions on the UE. For example, if the geographical location of the UE belongs to a mobility subscription Forbidden areas in the data, the AMF initiates a deregistration process or rejects the UE's registration request.

Based on the above solution, when part of the geographical location identifier in the first geographical location identifier belongs to the second geographical location identifier, the AMF can determine the current geographical location of the UE by calling the positioning service, and determine the current geographical location of the UE according to the current geographical location of the UE and The mobility restriction subscription data is used to determine whether to execute the mobility restriction of the UE, thereby preventing the UE from bypassing the mobility restriction.

Furthermore, based on the above solution, by dividing the area to which the UE belongs to a finer granularity (compared to TA), it is possible to avoid the large coverage area of the satellite beam when planning the TA for the satellite access network. The size may be larger than the TA area of the terrestrial access network, which leads to the problem that the granularity of ground mobility restrictions is not fine enough.

Figure 7 shows a schematic diagram of a communication device 700 provided by an embodiment of the present application.

The device 700 includes a transceiver unit 710 and a processing unit 720. The transceiver unit 710 can be used to implement corresponding communication functions. The transceiver unit 710 can also be called a communication interface or a communication unit. The processing unit 720 can be used to perform data processing.

Optionally, the device 700 also includes a storage unit, which can be used to store instructions and/or data, and the processing unit 720 can read the instructions and/or data in the storage unit, so that the device implements each of the foregoing method embodiments. actions of different devices.

In a possible design, the device 700 may be the access and mobility management network element in the aforementioned embodiment, or may be a component (such as a chip) of the access and mobility management network element. The device 700 can implement steps or processes corresponding to those performed by the access and mobility management network element in the above method embodiment. Among them, the transceiver unit 710 can be used to perform the operations related to the transceiver and transceiver of the access and mobility management network element in the above method embodiment, such as the transceiver and transceiver operation of the access and mobility management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4, and as Operations related to AMF transceiver in the embodiment shown in Figure 5 or Figure 6; the processing unit 720 can be used to perform operations related to access and mobility management network element processing in the above method embodiment, as in the embodiment shown in Figure 4 Access operations related to the processing of the mobility management network element, and operations related to the processing of the AMF in the embodiment shown in Figure 5 or Figure 6.

In another possible design, the device 700 may be the location management network element in the aforementioned embodiment, or may be a component (such as a chip) of the location management network element. The device 700 can implement steps or processes corresponding to those performed by the location management network element in the above method embodiment. Among them, the transceiver unit 710 can be used to perform operations related to the transceiver and transceiver of the location management network element in the above method embodiment, such as the transceiver-related operations of the location management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4, and as shown in Figure 5 or Figure 6. The processing unit 720 can be used to perform operations related to the processing of the location management network element in the above method embodiment, such as the processing related operations of the location management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4. There are also operations related to LMF processing in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 or FIG. 6 .

FIG. 8 is a schematic block diagram of a communication device 800 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The apparatus 800 includes a processor 810 coupled to a memory 820 . Optionally, a memory 820 is also included for storing computer programs or instructions and/or data, and the processor 810 is used to execute the computer programs or instructions stored in the memory 820, or read the data stored in the memory 820 to perform the above. Methods in Method Examples.

Optionally, there are one or more processors 810 .

Optionally, there are one or more memories 820 .

Optionally, the memory 820 is integrated with the processor 810, or is provided separately.

Optionally, as shown in Figure 8, the device 800 also includes a transceiver 830, which is used for receiving and/or transmitting signals. For example, the processor 810 is used to control the transceiver 830 to receive and/or transmit signals.

As a solution, the device 800 is used to implement the operations performed by the access and mobility management network element in each of the above method embodiments.

For example, the processor 810 is used to execute computer programs or instructions stored in the memory 820 to implement related operations of accessing and moving management network elements in each of the above method embodiments. For example, the method performed by the access and mobility management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4, or the method performed by the AMF in the embodiment shown in Figures 5 and 6.

As another solution, the device 800 is used to implement the operations performed by the location management network element in each of the above method embodiments.

For example, the processor 810 is configured to execute computer programs or instructions stored in the memory 820 to implement related operations of the location management network element in each of the above method embodiments. For example, the method performed by the location management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4; for another example, the method performed by the LMF in the embodiment shown in Figure 5 or Figure 6.

During the implementation process, each step of the above method can be completed by instructions in the form of hardware integrated logic circuits or software in the processor 810 . The method disclosed in conjunction with the embodiments of the present application can be directly implemented by a hardware processor for execution, or can be executed by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor. The software module can be located in random access memory, flash memory, read-only memory, programmable read-only memory or electrically erasable programmable memory, registers and other mature storage media in this field. The storage medium is located in the memory 820. The processor 810 reads the information in the memory 820 and completes the steps of the above method in combination with its hardware. To avoid repetition, it will not be described in detail here.

It should be understood that in the embodiments of the present application, the processor may be one or more integrated circuits, used to execute relevant programs to execute the method embodiments of the present application.

A processor (eg, processor 810) may include one or more processors and be implemented as a combination of computing devices. The processor may include one or more of the following: microprocessor, microcontroller, digital signal processor (digital signal processor, DSP), digital signal processing device (digital signal processing device, DSPD), application specific integrated circuit (application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), field programmable gate array (FPGA), programmable logic device (PLD), gate logic, transistor logic, discrete hardware circuits, processing circuits or other suitable Hardware, firmware, and/or a combination of hardware and software to perform the various functions described in this disclosure. The processor may be a general purpose processor or a special purpose processor. For example, processor 810 may be a baseband processor or a central processing unit. The baseband processor can be used to process communication protocols and communication data. The central processing unit may be used to cause the device to execute software programs and process data in the software programs. Additionally, a portion of the processor may include non-volatile random access memory. For example, the processor may also store information about the device type.

Program in this application is used in a broad sense to mean software. Non-limiting examples of software include: program code, programs, subroutines, instructions, sets of instructions, code, code segments, software modules, applications, or software applications, and the like. Programs can run on a processor and/or computer. To cause the device to perform various functions and/or processes described in this application.

Memory (eg, memory 820) may store data required by a processor (eg, processor 810) when executing software. The memory can be implemented using any suitable storage technology. For example, memory may be any available storage medium accessible to the processor and/or computer. Non-limiting examples of storage media include: random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM, EEPROM), optical disks Read-only memory (Compact Disc-ROM, CD-ROM), static random access memory (static RAM, SRAM), dynamic random access memory (dynamic RAM, DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (synchronous DRAM, SDRAM) , double data rate synchronous dynamic random access memory (double data rate SDRAM, DDR SDRAM), enhanced synchronous dynamic random access memory (enhanced SDRAM, ESDRAM), synchronous link dynamic random access memory (synchlink DRAM, SLDRAM) and Direct rambus RAM (DR RAM), removable media, optical disk storage, magnetic disk storage media, magnetic storage devices, flash memory, registers, state memory, remote mount memory, local or remote memory components, or Any other medium capable of carrying or storing software, data or information and accessible by a processor/computer. It should be noted that the memories described herein are intended to include, but are not limited to, these and any other suitable types of memories.

The memory (eg, memory 820) and the processor (eg, processor 810) may be provided separately or integrated together. The memory may be used in connection with the processor to enable the processor to read information from the memory, store and/or write information in the memory. The memory can be integrated into the processor. The memory and processor may be provided in an integrated circuit (eg, the integrated circuit may be provided in a UE or other network node).

FIG. 9 is a schematic block diagram of a chip system 900 provided by an embodiment of the present application. The chip system 900 (or can also be called a processing system) includes a logic circuit 910 and an input/output interface 920.

The logic circuit 910 may be a processing circuit in the chip system 900 . The logic circuit 910 can be coupled to the memory unit and call instructions in the memory unit, so that the chip system 900 can implement the methods and functions of various embodiments of the present application. The input/output interface 920 can be an input/output circuit in the chip system 900, which outputs information processed by the chip system 900, or inputs data or signaling information to be processed into the chip system 900 for processing.

As a solution, the chip system 900 is used to implement the operations performed by the access and mobility management network element in each of the above method embodiments.

For example, the logic circuit 910 is used to implement operations related to the processing performed by the access and mobility management network element in the above method embodiment, such as, the operations related to the processing performed by the access and mobility management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4 Operations, or operations related to processing performed by the AMF in the embodiments shown in Figures 5 and 6; the input/output interface 920 is used to implement the sending and/or operations performed by the access and mobility management network element in the above method embodiments. Reception-related operations, such as transmission and/or reception-related operations performed by the access and mobility management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4, or transmission and reception performed by the AMF in the embodiments shown in Figures 5 and 6 /or receive related operations.

As another solution, the chip system 900 is used to implement the operations performed by the location management network element in each of the above method embodiments.

For example, the logic circuit 910 is used to implement the processing-related operations performed by the location management network element in the above method embodiment, such as the processing-related operations performed by the location management network element in the embodiment shown in Figure 4, and Figure 5 Or the processing-related operations performed by the LMF in the embodiment shown in Figure 6; the input/output interface 920 is used to implement the sending and/or reception-related operations performed by the location management network element in the above method embodiment. Operations, such as the sending and/or receiving related operations performed by the location management network element in the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, and the sending and/or receiving related operations performed by the LMF in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 or 6.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer-readable storage medium on which is stored the method for implementing the methods executed by the communication device (such as the access and mobility management network element, and such as the location management network element) in the above method embodiments. Computer instructions.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product, which includes instructions. When executed by a computer, the instructions are executed by a communication device (such as an access and mobility management network element, or a location management network element) in the embodiments to implement the above methods. Methods.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a communication system, which includes one or more of the access and mobility management network elements, location management network elements, access network equipment, and terminal equipment in the above embodiments.

For explanations of relevant content and beneficial effects of any of the devices provided above, please refer to the corresponding method embodiments provided above, and will not be described again here.

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

The units described above as separate components may or may not be physically separated. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place, or they may be distributed to multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to implement the solution provided by this application.

In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application can be integrated into one unit, or each unit can exist physically alone, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the units and algorithm steps of each example described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented with electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are performed in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality using different methods for each specific application, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

When implemented using software, it may 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 computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, the processes or functions described in the embodiments of the present application are generated in whole or in part. The computer may be a general purpose computer, a special purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. For example, the computer may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device. Computer instructions may be stored in or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another computer-readable storage medium, e.g., computer instructions may be transmitted from a website, computer, server or data center via a wired link (e.g. Coaxial cable, optical fiber, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (such as infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means to transmit to another website site, computer, server or data center. Regarding the computer-readable storage medium, please refer to the above description.

The above are only specific embodiments of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto. Any person familiar with the technical field can easily think of changes or substitutions within the technical scope disclosed in the present application. should be covered by the protection scope of this application. Therefore, the protection scope of this application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

A communication method, characterized by including:

The access and mobility management network element receives first information from the access network device, where the first information includes identifiers of multiple areas covered by the access network device;

When it is determined that some of the multiple areas covered by the access network device belong to the first area, the access and mobility management network element calls a positioning service to obtain the location information of the terminal device, wherein: The terminal equipment is located within the coverage of the access network equipment, and the first area includes a mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal equipment;

The access and mobility management network element determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device.
The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the access and mobility management network element calls a positioning service to obtain the location information of the terminal device, including:

The access and mobility management network element sends a positioning request to the location management network element. The positioning request carries instruction information indicating a positioning method. The positioning method includes at least one of a network-based positioning method and a terminal device-based positioning method. A sort of;

The access and mobility management network element receives the location information of the terminal device from the location management network element, and the location information of the terminal device is determined based on the positioning method.
The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the location information of the terminal device is a location estimate of the terminal device, and the method further includes:

The access and mobility management network element maps the location information of the terminal device to an identifier of the area where the terminal device is located.
The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the access and mobility management network element calls a positioning service to obtain the location information of the terminal device, including:

The access and mobility management network element sends a positioning request to the location management network element. The positioning request carries indication information indicating a positioning method. The positioning method includes at least one of a network-based positioning method and a terminal device-based positioning method. A sort of;

The access and mobility management network element receives the identification of the area where the terminal device is located from the location management network element.
The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, before the access and mobility management network element receives the identification of the area where the terminal device is located from the location management network element, the method further includes:

The location management network element determines the location estimate of the terminal device according to the positioning request;

The location management network element maps the location estimate of the terminal device to an identifier of the area where the terminal device is located.
The method according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the access and mobility management network element determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device including:

The access and mobility management network element determines whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the identifier of the area where the terminal device is located and the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the area is a tracking area TA.
The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the area is an area smaller than or equal to the range of the tracking area TA.
A communication device, characterized in that it includes a transceiver unit and a processing unit,

The transceiver unit is configured to receive first information from an access network device, where the first information includes identifiers of multiple areas covered by the access network device;

When it is determined that some of the multiple areas covered by the access network device belong to the first area, the processing unit is configured to call a positioning service to obtain the location information of the terminal device, wherein the terminal device Located within the coverage of the access network device, the first area includes a mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device;

The processing unit is also configured to determine whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the location information of the terminal device.
The device according to claim 9, characterized in that the transceiver unit is specifically used for:

Send a positioning request to the location management network element, where the positioning request carries indication information indicating a positioning method, where the positioning method includes at least one of a network-based positioning method and a terminal device-based positioning method;

Receive location information of the terminal device from the location management network element, where the location information of the terminal device is determined based on the positioning method.
The device according to claim 9 or 10, characterized in that the location information of the terminal device is a location estimate of the terminal device, and the processing unit is further configured to:

The location information of the terminal device is mapped to an identifier of the area where the terminal device is located.
The device according to claim 9, characterized in that the transceiver unit is specifically used for:

Send a positioning request to the location management network element, where the positioning request carries indication information indicating a positioning method, where the positioning method includes at least one of a network-based positioning method and a terminal device-based positioning method;

Receive an identification of the area where the terminal device is located from the location management network element.
The device according to claim 11 or 12, characterized in that the processing unit is specifically used for:

Determine whether to implement mobility restrictions on the terminal device based on the identification of the area where the terminal device is located and the mobility restriction area in the subscription data of the terminal device.
The device according to any one of claims 9 to 13, characterized in that said area is a tracking area TA.
The device according to any one of claims 9 to 13, wherein the area is an area smaller than or equal to the range of the tracking area TA.
A communication device, characterized by including:

At least one processor, the at least one processor is used to execute a computer program stored in the memory, so that the device performs the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and 6 to 8.
A communication system, characterized by including an access and mobility management network element and a location management network element,

The access and mobility management network element is used to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 4 and 6 to 8, and the location management network element is used to perform the method according to claim 5.
A computer-readable storage medium characterized by:

A computer program is stored on the computer-readable storage medium. When the computer program is run on a computer, the computer is caused to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.
A computer program product characterized by:

The computer program product includes instructions for performing a method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 8.