CN112040532B

CN112040532B - Network slice selection method, device, equipment and storage medium

Info

Publication number: CN112040532B
Application number: CN202010977687.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 陈智颖
Original assignee: Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp Ltd
Current assignee: Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp Ltd
Priority date: 2020-09-17
Filing date: 2020-09-17
Publication date: 2022-12-20
Anticipated expiration: 2040-09-17
Also published as: CN112040532A; WO2022057516A1

Abstract

The application discloses a network slice selection method, a network slice selection device, network slice selection equipment and a network slice storage medium, and relates to the technical field of communication. The method is applied to the terminal, and comprises the following steps: acquiring slice identification information from an input string, the input string being a string related to a setting of an APN, the slice identification information being used to specify a target network slice; generating a registration request according to the slice identification information; sending the registration request, wherein the registration request is used for requesting a network device to allocate the target network slice. The technical scheme provided by the application can meet the requirement that a user independently selects the network slice.

Description

Network slice selection method, device, equipment and storage medium

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of communications technologies, and in particular, to a method, an apparatus, a device, and a storage medium for selecting a network slice.

Background

A network slice (network slice) is a logically isolated network for supporting specific network capabilities and network characteristics, and may be an End-to-End (E2E) network including the entire network, or a part of network functions may be shared in multiple network slices, which is a key technology for meeting network differentiation requirements in the 5G mobile communication technology.

In the related art, a user cannot autonomously select a network slice.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the application provides a method, a device, equipment and a storage medium for selecting a network slice. The technical scheme is as follows:

according to an aspect of the present application, there is provided a method for selecting a network slice, which is applied to a terminal, the method including:

acquiring slice identification information from an input string, the input string being a string related to a setting of an APN, the slice identification information being used to specify a target network slice;

generating a registration request according to the slice identification information;

sending the registration request, wherein the registration request is used for requesting a network device to allocate the target network slice.

According to an aspect of the present application, there is provided a device for selecting a network slice, the device comprising: a wireless interface layer module and a modem module;

the wireless interface layer module is used for acquiring slice identification information from an input character string, wherein the input character string is a character string related to the setting of APN, and the slice identification information is used for specifying a target network slice;

the wireless interface layer module is used for transmitting the slice identification information into the modem module;

the modem module is used for generating a registration request according to the slice identification information;

the modem module is configured to send the registration request, where the registration request is used to request a network device to allocate the target network slice.

According to an aspect of the present application, there is provided a terminal including: a processor; a transceiver coupled to the processor; a memory for storing executable instructions of the processor; wherein the processor is configured to load and execute the executable instructions to implement the method of network slice selection as described in the above aspect.

According to another aspect of the present application, there is provided a computer readable storage medium having stored therein at least one instruction, at least one program, code set or instruction set, which is loaded and executed by a processor to implement the method of network slice selection as described above.

According to another aspect of the present application, a computer program product is provided that includes computer instructions stored in a computer readable storage medium. The processor of the computer device reads the computer instructions from the computer-readable storage medium, and executes the computer instructions, so that the computer device executes the method for selecting a network slice provided in the above-mentioned alternative implementation.

The beneficial effects brought by the technical scheme provided by the embodiment of the application at least comprise:

the slice identification information is added into an input character string related to the APN setting, the terminal acquires the slice identification information designated by the user from the input character string and sends a registration request generated according to the slice identification information, and the registration request can request the network equipment to distribute the target network slice corresponding to the slice identification information, so that the requirement of the user for independently selecting the network slice is met.

Meanwhile, by utilizing a mechanism for setting the APN, the slice identification information is added into the input character string for setting the APN, and the application processor in the terminal can acquire the slice identification information without greatly modifying the code of the application processor in the terminal, so that the difficulty of selecting the network slice by a user is reduced.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application, the drawings required to be used in the description of the embodiments are briefly introduced below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the description below are only some embodiments of the present application, and it is obvious for those skilled in the art to obtain other drawings without creative efforts.

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of an Android architecture provided in an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a communication system provided by an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 3 is a flow chart of a method for network slice selection provided by an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a method of selecting a network slice provided by an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating a terminal sending a registration request according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a method for selection of a network slice as provided by an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

fig. 7 is a schematic diagram of an APN setting interface provided in an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

figure 8 is a schematic diagram of an APN setting interface provided by an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

fig. 9 is a diagram illustrating a registration procedure of a terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a selection apparatus for a network slice according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application;

fig. 11 is a block diagram of a terminal according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

To make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present application more clear, embodiments of the present application will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

First, terms referred to in the embodiments of the present application are briefly described:

access Point Name (Access Point Name, APN): it refers to a network access technology, which is a parameter that must be configured when a user accesses the internet through a terminal (e.g. a mobile phone).

APNs are used to identify Data Networks (DNs), and different APNs correspond to different DNs, which may be defined by the operator. The APN determines which access method the terminal accesses to the network, and different APNs have different access ranges and access methods.

In the related art, a user may set an APN. Illustratively, a user inputs an APN, an application layer in the terminal transfers the APN to a wireless interface layer, and the wireless interface layer transfers the APN to a modem and sends the APN to a core network to request to access an external data network corresponding to the APN.

Radio Interface Layer (RIL): and the middle layer in the Android is responsible for the communication function. The RIL comprises two parts: RILJ and RILD.

1) RIL Java (RILJ): responsible for sending the communication request of the upper application to a Hardware Abstraction Layer (HAL);

2) RIL C + + (RILD): the system daemon is responsible for sending request commands of RILJ to a Communication Processor (CP), and may be regarded as a HAL layer corresponding to the CP.

With reference to fig. 1 in combination, fig. 1 shows a schematic diagram of an Android architecture provided in an exemplary embodiment of the present application, including: application layer (Application), application Framework layer (Application Framework), system runtime layer (Libraries), linux Kernel, and Modem (Modem).

The top layer is the application layer, which includes various application programs, such as Call, short Message and SIM card management (SIM TOOL, STK), and is mainly responsible for sending the user's instructions to RILJ.

The second layer is an application framework layer that developers can use to access device hardware, obtain location information, and the like. RILJ in the Application framework layer provides a universal Application Programming Interface (API) for an upper layer, such as a call manager (TelephonyManager), including call and network status; a subscription manager (SubscriptionManager) including a card status; and a Sms manager (SmsManager), etc. Meanwhile, RILJ is also responsible for maintaining communication with the RILD and sending upper layer requests to the RILD.

The third layer is a system runtime layer. The RILD in the system runtime layer is a daemon process of the system, and is essential for a mobile platform supporting a call function. The main function of the RILD is to forward the request sent by the RILJ to the CP, and to send the state change of the CP to the RILJ in time.

The fourth layer is a core layer for providing core system services based on the Linux kernel. When receiving a Data Packet (Data Packet), the Linux kernel transmits the Data Packet to the CP, and finally the CP transmits the Data Packet to the network side, and after the network side returns a result, the CP transmits the result back to the RILD.

The modem is a bottom module in the terminal, and the modem includes a CP for communicating with the network side.

Fig. 2 is a diagram illustrating a communication system provided by an embodiment of the present application. The communication system includes: user Equipment (3 GPP naming mobile terminal) (User Equipment, UE), (radio) access Network ((R) AN), core Network, and Data Network (DN).

The core network may include: user Plane Function (UPF) and control Plane Function. The control plane functions may include: access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), session Management Function (SMF), policy Control Function (PCF), and Unified Data Manager (UDM), application Function (AF), network Slice Selection Function (NSSF), authentication service Function (AUSF). The AMF is a mobility management function in the core network, the SMF is a session management function in the core network, and the AMF is responsible for forwarding session management related messages between the UE and the SMF in addition to performing mobility management on the UE. The PCF is a policy management function in the core network, and is responsible for formulating policies related to mobility management, session management, charging, etc. for the UE. The UPF is a user plane function in the core network, and performs data transmission with AN external data network through AN N6 interface and performs data transmission with the AN through AN N3 interface.

The UE may include various handheld devices with wireless communication functions, car-mounted devices, wearable devices, computing devices or other processing devices connected to a wireless modem, as well as various forms of user equipment, mobile Stations (MS), terminals (terminal device), and so on.

AS shown in fig. 2, the UE performs Access Stratum (AS) connection with the AN through a Uu air interface, exchanges AS messages and performs wireless data transmission, and the UE performs Non-Access Stratum (NAS) connection with the AMF through AN N1 interface, and exchanges NAS messages.

It is understood that fig. 2 is only an architecture diagram of an exemplary communication system, and the technical solution of the embodiment of the present application can be applied to various communication systems, for example: global System for Mobile communications (GSM) System, code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) System, wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) System, general Packet Radio Service (GPRS), long Term Evolution (Long Term Evolution, LTE) System, LTE Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) System, LTE Time Division Duplex (TDD) System, advanced Long Term Evolution (Advanced Long Term Evolution), an LTE-a) System, a New Radio (NR) System, an Evolution System of the NR System, an LTE (LTE-based Access to Unlicensed spectrum) System on an Unlicensed Frequency band, an NR-U System, a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS), a Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) Communication System, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN), a Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), a next generation Communication System, or other Communication systems.

Generally, the conventional Communication system supports a limited number of connections and is easy to implement, however, with the development of Communication technology, the mobile Communication system will support not only conventional Communication but also, for example, device-to-Device (D2D) Communication, machine-to-Machine (M2M) Communication, machine Type Communication (MTC), vehicle-to-Vehicle (V2V) Communication, and Vehicle networking (V2X) system, etc. The embodiments of the present application can also be applied to these communication systems.

The technical solution of the present application will be described below with reference to several exemplary embodiments.

Fig. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a method for selecting a network slice according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application, which may be applied to a terminal (i.e., UE) in the communication system shown in fig. 2. The method may comprise the steps of:

in step 310, slice identification information is acquired from an input string, which is a string related to the setting of the APN.

Wherein the slice identification information is used to specify the target network slice. Network slicing is a technique of improving flexibility by configuring a separate logical network for each service or subscriber by dividing a network into a plurality of types of virtual networks using a network virtualization technique. With network slicing, required resources can be allocated from a virtualized network resource pool according to service type.

The slice identification information may specify one or more network slices, i.e. the number of target network slices may be one or more. The following embodiments are exemplary only in that the target network slice is a network slice.

The APN is used for indicating an external target data network accessed by the terminal. Different APNs correspond to different DNs, which may be defined by the operator. The APN determines which access method the terminal accesses to the network, and different APNs have different access ranges and access methods.

The input string is a string related to the setting of the APN. The user may set the APN of the terminal. In this embodiment, the input string may include a variety of information including slice identification information and an APN. The input character string may be designated by the user and then acquired by the terminal. That is, the user can autonomously select a network slice and a data network to which the terminal is accessed.

Illustratively, a radio interface layer in the terminal is used to obtain slice identification information from the input string. The radio interface layer is an intermediate layer in Android which is responsible for communication functions. The radio interface layer may comprise two parts: RILJ and RILD, RILJ in the radio interface layer acquires an input string from an upper layer.

Illustratively, the radio interface layer passes the slice identification information in the input string to the modem. The modem is the underlying module of the terminal.

The radio interface layer may comprise two parts: RILJ and RILD. In one possible implementation, RILJ obtains the input string from the upper layer, extracts the slice identification information in the input string, transmits the slice identification information to RILD, and transmits the slice identification information to the modem. In another possible implementation, the input string is obtained by RILJ from an upper layer, the input string is passed into RILD, the RILD extracts the slice identification information in the input string, and passes the slice identification information into the modem.

And step 320, generating a registration request according to the slice identification information.

After the terminal acquires the slice identification information from the input character string, a registration request is generated according to the acquired slice identification information.

Wherein the registration request is for requesting the network device to allocate the target network slice.

Illustratively, the registration request is part of the registration process. The registration procedure may attach the terminal to a core network comprising one or more network slices.

Illustratively, a modem in the terminal is configured to generate the registration request based on the slice identification information.

Step 330, a registration request is sent.

The terminal sends a registration request (registration request) to the network device, and requests the network device to allocate the target network slice so as to hope to obtain the service corresponding to the target network slice.

Illustratively, a modem in the terminal may initiate communication with the network device, the modem for transmitting a registration request, the registration request including the slice identification information.

In summary, in the method provided in this embodiment, the slice identification information is added to the input character string related to the APN setting, and the terminal obtains the slice identification information specified by the user from the input character string and sends the registration request generated according to the slice identification information.

Meanwhile, according to the method provided by the embodiment, by using a mechanism for setting the APN, the slice identification information is added into the input character string for setting the APN, and the application processor in the terminal can acquire the slice identification information without greatly modifying the code of the application processor in the terminal, so that the difficulty in selecting the network slice by the user is reduced.

In an alternative embodiment based on fig. 3, fig. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for selecting a network slice according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application, which may be applied to a terminal (i.e., UE) in the communication system shown in fig. 2. The method may comprise the steps of:

in step 410, slice identification information is acquired from an input string, which is a string related to the setting of the APN.

Wherein the slice identification information is used to specify the target network slice. The APN is used to indicate the external target data network to which the terminal is accessing.

The input string is a string related to the setting of the APN. The input string contains a variety of information including slice identification information and an APN. The input character string may be designated by the user and then acquired by the terminal. That is, the user may autonomously select both the network slice and the data network to which the terminal is accessed.

Illustratively, a radio interface layer in the terminal is used to obtain the slice identification information from the input string.

And step 420, segmenting the input character string, and determining APN and slice identification information.

Because the input character string includes the slice identification information and the APN, the terminal needs to segment the input character string, thereby determining the APN and the slice identification information in the input character string.

Optionally, the input character string corresponds to a preset format, and the terminal segments the input character string according to the preset format to determine the APN and the slice identification information. The preset format may be: the input character string has segmentation characters; or, the character length of each information in the input character string is fixed. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific representation form of the preset format.

In an exemplary embodiment, the terminal determines a segmentation character corresponding to an input character string; and segmenting the input character string according to the segmentation characters, and determining the APN and the slice identification information.

Wherein the segmentation characters comprise at least one of letters, numbers, words and symbols. Segmentation characters are known to the terminal, which upon receiving an input string can use the segmentation characters to segment the input string. Different terminals may correspond to the same segmentation character or different segmentation characters, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

Illustratively, the input string includes: ctnet [ nssai1:2]. Wherein, the segmentation character is: []. Then, the terminal segments the input character string, and determines that the APN is: ctnet, slice identification information is: nssai1:2.

Illustratively, the input string includes: ctnet/nssai1:1. Wherein, the segmentation character is: /. Then, the terminal segments the input character string, and determines that the APN is: ctnet, slice identification information is: nssai1:1.

Illustratively, a radio interface layer in the terminal is configured to segment the input string and determine the APN and the slice identification information. After the wireless interface layer in the terminal divides the section identification information and the APN in the input character string, the wireless interface layer transmits the obtained section identification information and the APN to the modem.

In an exemplary embodiment, the radio interface layer determines API interface parameters between the radio interface layer and the modem; and the wireless interface layer transmits the APN and the slice identification information to the modem according to the API interface parameters.

Step 430, a registration request is generated according to the slice identification information.

Step 440, a registration request is sent.

After determining the slice identification information and the APN, the terminal sends a registration request to the network equipment, wherein the registration request comprises the slice identification information and requests the network equipment to allocate a target network slice.

Illustratively, a modem in the terminal is configured to send a registration request, the registration request including the slice identification information.

Step 450, sending an APN setting request, the APN setting request including an APN.

The APN setting request is used for requesting access to a target data network corresponding to the APN.

Illustratively, after a terminal successfully requests a network device to allocate a target network slice by sending a registration request, the terminal sends an APN setting request to a core network (such as an AMF network element) according to an obtained APN, where the APN setting request includes an APN.

Illustratively, after the terminal establishes a connection with a target data network corresponding to the APN through the core network, the terminal successfully accesses the target data network.

Illustratively, a modem in the terminal is configured to send an APN setting request, which includes an APN.

Meanwhile, according to the method provided by the embodiment, the terminal segments the input character string through the segmentation character, so that the APN and the slice identification information can be obtained, and the method is convenient and efficient.

In an alternative embodiment based on fig. 3, the registration request comprises: a first registration request and a second registration request. The destination of the first registration request is a base station, and the destination of the second registration request is a core network.

Fig. 5 is a diagram illustrating a terminal sending a registration request according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application. Fig. 5 includes: a terminal 501, a base station 502 and a core network 503.

A modem may be included in terminal 501 and may be used to send registration requests.

The base station 502 is a device deployed in an access network to provide a wireless communication function for the terminal 501. The base stations may include various forms of macro base stations, micro base stations, relay stations, and the like. In systems using different radio access technologies, the names of devices with base station functionality may differ, for example in LTE systems, called eNodeB or eNB; in a 5G NR-U system, it is called gNodeB or gNB. The description of "base station" may change as communication technology evolves. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific implementation form of the base station.

The core network 503 may be more specifically a functional network element AMF in the core network 503.

The terminal 501 sends a first registration request to the base station 502 through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, where the first registration request includes slice identification information; the terminal 501 sends a second registration request to the core network 503 through NAS signaling, where the second registration request includes slice identification information.

The NAS layer exists in a radio communication protocol stack of a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) and serves as a functional layer between a core network and a terminal. NAS signaling is signaling transmitted in the NAS layer, and data transmission between the terminal 501 and the core network 503 is realized by the NAS signaling.

The RRC layer is a functional layer responsible for handling control plane procedures related to the radio access network. The RRC signaling is signaling transmitted in an RRC layer, and data transmission between the terminal 501 and the base station 502 is achieved through the RRC signaling.

For example, the base station 502 may receive RRC signaling and NAS signaling, and the base station 502 resolves RRC signaling whose destination is the base station, but does not resolve NAS signaling whose destination is the core network. The base station 502 selects an AMF for the terminal 501 according to the slice identification information obtained by analyzing the RRC signaling, and then the base station 502 forwards the NAS signaling to the selected AMF.

In an alternative embodiment based on fig. 3, the slice identification information comprises: network Slice assisted Selection Information (NSSAI).

The NSSAI may include two parts, namely, a Slice Service Type (SST) and a Slice Differentiator (SD). Where SST may include standardized and operator-customized types, SD is optional information that complements SST to distinguish multiple network slices of the same SST.

Illustratively, with reference to Table one, standardized SST values are shown.

Watch 1

Exemplarily, when NSSAI is 1, the target network slice is network slice 1; when NSSAI is 1; NSSAI is 2.

In an alternative embodiment based on fig. 3, the terminal comprises, in addition to the radio interface layer and the modem: and (5) an application layer. As shown in fig. 1, the application layer is an upper layer of the radio interface layer.

Fig. 6 shows a flowchart of a method for selecting a network slice according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application, which may be applied to a terminal (i.e., UE) in the communication system shown in fig. 2. The method may comprise the steps of:

and step 610, determining an input character string according to the APN setting interface.

The APN setting interface is a user interface which is displayed on the terminal and used for setting the APN. The input string is specified by the user. The input string is a string related to the setting of the APN.

In one possible implementation, step 610 includes: displaying an APN setting interface; and determining an input character string in response to receiving an input operation on the APN setting interface.

Illustratively, the APN setting interface includes an input area where a user can perform input operations, which include, but are not limited to: text input, voice input, picture input, and the like. After receiving the input operation, the terminal can determine the input character string corresponding to the input operation.

Referring to fig. 7 in combination, the apn setting interface 701 displays a plurality of selectable candidate options, each candidate option corresponding to a candidate input string. Such as: the candidate input character string corresponding to the candidate option "internet _ no _ NSSAI" is "internet"; the candidate input character string corresponding to the candidate option "internet2_ vEPG _ no _ NSSAI" is "internet2"; the candidate input character string corresponding to the candidate option "internet2_ vEPG _ Slice _2" is "internet2[ nssai1:2]". It is understood that the candidate input strings corresponding to the first two candidate options include only the APN and do not include the slice identification information, and the candidate input string corresponding to the last candidate option includes the APN and the slice identification information. If the user does not want to select the network slice, the user can select from the first two candidate options, and only set the APN.

In the APN setting interface 701, an addition control 702 is also displayed. When the user does not want to select among the provided candidate options, the user may trigger the add control to display the APN setting interface 703. The user can perform an input operation in an input area 704 in the APN setting interface 703, such as inputting: internet [ nssai1:3]. The application layer determines that the input string is "internet [ nssai1:3]".

In another possible implementation, step 610 includes: displaying an APN setting interface, wherein the APN setting interface comprises candidate options corresponding to the slice identification information; and in response to receiving a selection operation of a target option in the candidate options on the APN setting interface, determining an input character string corresponding to the target option.

The APN setting interface displays at least one candidate option, and each candidate option corresponds to one candidate input character string. And the user selects from the candidate options, and the candidate option selected by the user is taken as a target option. It will be appreciated that the candidates within the selection range of the user are candidates corresponding to slice identification information, such as: the candidate option "internet _ Slice _1" is not within the selection range of the user if the candidate option does not correspond to the Slice identification information, and only corresponds to the APN, such as the candidate option "internet _ no _ NSSAI" in fig. 7.

Wherein, the selection operation can be at least one of clicking, double-clicking, dragging, sliding, pressing, scanning, copying, pasting and searching. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the specific type of the selection operation.

Referring to fig. 8 in conjunction, the apn settings interface 801 displays a plurality of selectable candidate options, each candidate option corresponding to a candidate input string. Such as: the candidate input character string corresponding to the candidate option "internet _ Slice _1" is "internet [ nssai1:1 ]; the candidate input character string corresponding to the candidate option "internet2_ vEPG _ Slice _2" is "internet2[ nssai1:2]"; the candidate input string corresponding to the candidate option "internet2_ vEPG _ Slice _3" is "internet2[ nssai1:3]".

The user selects a candidate option 'internet _ Slice _ 1' as a target option, correspondingly, the input character string is 'internet [ nssai1:1 ]', and the terminal determines that the input character string is 'internet [ nssai1:1 ]'.

Illustratively, an application layer in the terminal is used to determine the input string. After determining the input character string, the application layer transmits the input character string to the wireless interface layer. The radio interface layer is an intermediate layer in Android which is responsible for communication functions. The radio interface layer may comprise two parts: RILJ and RILD. RILJ in the radio interface layer obtains the input string from the application layer.

In step 620, slice identification information is obtained from an input string, which is a string related to the setting of the APN.

Wherein the slice identification information is used to specify the target network slice.

Illustratively, a radio interface layer in the terminal is configured to obtain the slice identification information from the input string and to transmit the slice identification information to the modem.

Step 630, a registration request is generated according to the slice identification information.

At step 640, a registration request is sent.

Illustratively, a modem in the terminal is used to send the registration request.

Meanwhile, in the method provided by the embodiment, by using the mechanism for setting the APN, the slice identification information is added to the input character string for setting the APN, and the application processor in the terminal can acquire the slice identification information without greatly modifying the code of the application processor in the terminal, thereby reducing the difficulty of the user in selecting the network slice.

Meanwhile, according to the method provided by the embodiment, the terminal determines the input character string from the user, the user can select one target option through selection operation on the APN setting interface, the terminal obtains the input character string corresponding to the target option, the user can also perform input operation, the terminal obtains the input character string input by the user, and the flexibility of the selection method of the network slice is improved.

The registration request sent by the modem is part of a registration procedure performed between the terminal and the network device. With combined reference to fig. 9, fig. 9 shows a schematic diagram of a registration procedure provided by an exemplary embodiment of the present application.

As shown in fig. 9, in step 903, the terminal transmits a registration request (i.e., a first registration request) to the base station through RRC signaling. In step 904, the base station performs AMF selection. In step 905, the terminal sends a registration request (i.e., a second registration request) to the AMF in the core network through NAS signaling. The first registration request and the second registration request may carry slice identification information of the terminal, for example: NSSAI.

In the subsequent steps, the AMF and AUSF, UDM will authenticate the terminal. And after the authentication is passed, the terminal is successfully registered in the core network. Referring to step 938, the terminal feeds back a registration completion message to the AMF through NAS signaling.

After the terminal is successfully registered to the core network, the core network can distribute the target network slice to the terminal according to the slice identification information. The terminal can establish connection with the target network slice distributed by the core network and use the service provided by the target network slice.

The following exemplary application scenarios are used to exemplarily describe the embodiments of the present application:

in a display meeting in the communication field, a user is a staff of a mobile phone manufacturer, and the user is performing function display of network slicing. The user knows slice identification information (e.g., NSSAI) corresponding to the network slice, and characteristics of the service that the network slice can provide, such as: the time delay corresponding to the network slice 1 is small, and the speed corresponding to the network slice 2 is high.

A user can input slice identification information corresponding to the network slice 1 on an APN setting interface, establish connection between the terminal and the network slice 1, and demonstrate the characteristics of the network slice 1, such as: the time delay is very low when the video is displayed; the user can also input slice identification information corresponding to the network slice 2 on the APN setting interface, establish connection between the terminal and the network slice 2, and demonstrate the characteristics of the network slice 2, such as: the rate of real-time gaming is fast.

It should be noted that, the method embodiments described above may be implemented individually or in combination, and the present application is not limited to this.

Fig. 10 is a block diagram of a device for selecting a network slice according to an exemplary embodiment of the present application, where the device may be implemented as a terminal or as a part of a terminal, and the device includes: a radio interface layer module 1001 and a modem module 1002;

a radio interface layer module 1001 configured to acquire slice identification information from an input character string, where the input character string is a character string related to setting of an APN, and the slice identification information is used to specify a target network slice;

a radio interface layer module 1001 for transmitting the slice identification information to the modem module 1002;

a modem module 1002, configured to generate a registration request according to the slice identification information;

the modem module 1002 is configured to send a registration request, where the registration request is used to request a network device to allocate a target network slice.

In an optional embodiment, the radio interface layer module 1001 is configured to segment the input string, and determine the APN and the slice identification information.

In an alternative embodiment, the wireless interface layer module 1001 is configured to determine a segmentation character corresponding to an input character string; the wireless interface layer module 1001 is configured to segment the input character string according to the segmentation character, and determine the APN and the slice identification information.

In an alternative embodiment, the radio interface layer module 1001 is configured to determine API interface parameters between the radio interface layer module 1001 and the modem module 1002; and a radio interface layer module 1001 configured to transmit the APN and the slice identifier information to the modem module 1002 according to the API interface parameter.

In an optional embodiment, the modem module 1002 is configured to initiate an APN setting request to a core network, where the APN setting request includes an APN, and the APN setting request is used to request access to a target data network corresponding to the APN.

In an alternative embodiment, the modem module 1002 is configured to send a first registration request to the base station through RRC signaling, where the first registration request includes slice identification information; the modem module 1002 is configured to send a second registration request to the core network through NAS signaling, where the second registration request includes slice identification information.

In an alternative embodiment, the slice identification information includes: NSSAI.

In an optional embodiment, the apparatus further comprises: an application layer module 1003; an application layer module 1003, configured to determine an input character string according to an APN setting interface, where the APN setting interface is a user interface for setting an APN; the application layer module 1003 is configured to transmit the input character string into the wireless interface layer module 1001.

In an optional embodiment, the application layer module 1003 is configured to display an APN setting interface; an application layer module 1003, configured to determine an input character string in response to receiving an input operation on the APN setting interface.

In an optional embodiment, the application layer module 1003 is configured to display an APN setting interface, where the APN setting interface includes candidate options corresponding to the slice identification information; and the application layer module 1003 is configured to determine, in response to receiving a selection operation on a target option in the candidate options on the APN setting interface, an input character string corresponding to the target option.

It should be noted that: the network slice selection apparatus provided in the foregoing embodiment is only illustrated by dividing the functional modules, and in practical applications, the functions may be distributed by different functional modules according to needs, that is, the internal structure of the device is divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the functions described above. In addition, the apparatus and method embodiments provided by the above embodiments belong to the same concept, and specific implementation processes thereof are described in the method embodiments for details, which are not described herein again.

Referring to fig. 11, which shows a schematic structural diagram of a terminal 1100 according to an embodiment of the present application, the terminal 1100 may include: a processor 1101, a receiver 1102, a transmitter 1103, a memory 1104, and a bus 1105.

The processor 1101 includes one or more processing cores, and the processor 1101 executes various functional applications and information processing by running software programs and modules.

The receiver 1102 and the transmitter 1103 may be implemented as one communication component, which may be one communication chip.

The memory 1104 is coupled to the processor 1101 by a bus 1105.

The memory 1104 may be used for storing a computer program which the processor 1101 is used for executing in order to implement the various steps performed by the terminal in the above-described method embodiments.

Further, memory 1104 may be implemented by any type or combination of volatile or non-volatile storage devices, including, but not limited to: magnetic or optical disks, electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only memories (EEPROMs), erasable Programmable Read-Only memories (EPROMs), static Random Access Memories (SRAMs), read-Only memories (ROMs), magnetic memories, flash memories, programmable Read-Only memories (PROMs).

The present application further provides a computer-readable storage medium having at least one instruction, at least one program, a set of codes, or a set of instructions stored therein, which is loaded and executed by a processor to implement the method for selecting a network slice provided in any of the above exemplary embodiments.

Embodiments of the present application provide a computer program product comprising computer instructions stored in a computer readable storage medium. The processor of the computer device reads the computer instructions from the computer-readable storage medium, and the processor executes the computer instructions to cause the computer device to execute the method for selecting a network slice provided in the above-mentioned alternative implementation.

It will be understood by those skilled in the art that all or part of the steps for implementing the above embodiments may be implemented by hardware, or may be implemented by a program instructing relevant hardware, where the program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, and the storage medium may be a read-only memory, a magnetic disk or an optical disk.

The above description is only exemplary of the present application and should not be taken as limiting, as any modification, equivalent replacement, or improvement made within the spirit and principle of the present application should be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for selecting a network slice, which is applicable to a terminal, is characterized in that the method comprises the following steps:

determining an input character string according to an APN setting interface, wherein the APN setting interface is a user interface used for setting the APN, and the input character string is a character string related to the APN setting;

segmenting the input character string, and determining the APN and slice identification information, wherein the slice identification information is used for specifying a target network slice;

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the segmenting the input string, and determining the APN and the slice identification information comprises:

determining a segmentation character corresponding to the input character string;

and segmenting the input character string according to the segmentation characters, and determining the APN and the slice identification information.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

and initiating an APN setting request to a core network, wherein the APN setting request comprises the APN, and the APN setting request is used for requesting to access a target data network corresponding to the APN.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the registration request comprises:

sending a first registration request to a base station through Radio Resource Control (RRC) signaling, wherein the first registration request comprises the slice identification information;

and sending a second registration request to a core network through non-access stratum (NAS) signaling, wherein the second registration request comprises the slice identification information.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4,

the slice identification information includes: network slice assisted selection information NSSAI.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the input string according to the APN setting interface comprises:

displaying the APN setting interface;

and determining the input character string in response to receiving an input operation on the APN setting interface.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the input string according to the APN setting interface comprises:

displaying the APN setting interface, wherein the APN setting interface comprises candidate options corresponding to the slice identification information;

in response to receiving a selection operation of a target option in the candidate options on the APN setting interface, determining the input character string corresponding to the target option.

8. An apparatus for selecting a network slice, the apparatus comprising: the device comprises an application layer module, a wireless interface layer module and a modem module;

the APN setting interface is a user interface used for setting the APN, and the input character string is a character string related to the APN setting;

the application layer module is used for transmitting the input character string into the wireless interface layer module;

the wireless interface layer module is used for segmenting the input character string and determining the APN and the slice identification information, and the slice identification information is used for designating a target network slice;

9. The apparatus of claim 8,

the wireless interface layer module is used for determining the segmentation character corresponding to the input character string;

and the wireless interface layer module is used for segmenting the input character string according to the segmentation characters and determining the APN and the slice identification information.

10. The apparatus of claim 8,

the wireless interface layer module is used for determining API (application programming interface) interface parameters between the wireless interface layer module and the modem module;

and the wireless interface layer module is used for transmitting the APN and the slice identification information into the modem module according to the API interface parameters.

11. The apparatus of claim 10,

the modem module is configured to initiate an APN setting request to a core network, where the APN setting request includes the APN, and the APN setting request is used to request access to a target data network corresponding to the APN.

12. The apparatus of claim 8,

the modem module is configured to send a first registration request to a base station through radio resource control RRC signaling, where the first registration request includes the slice identification information;

the modem module is configured to send a second registration request to a core network through NAS signaling, where the second registration request includes the slice identification information.

13. The apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 12,

14. The apparatus of claim 8,

the application layer module is used for displaying the APN setting interface;

and the application layer module is used for responding to the input operation received on the APN setting interface and determining the input character string.

15. The apparatus of claim 8,

the APN setting interface is used for displaying the APN setting interface, and the APN setting interface comprises candidate options corresponding to the slice identification information;

the application layer module is used for responding to the received selection operation of a target option in the candidate options on the APN setting interface and determining the input character string corresponding to the target option.

16. A terminal, characterized in that the terminal comprises:

a processor;

a transceiver coupled to the processor;

a memory for storing executable instructions of the processor;

wherein the processor is configured to load and execute the executable instructions to implement the method of network slice selection of any of claims 1 to 7.

17. A computer-readable storage medium, in which at least one program is stored, the at least one program being loaded and executed by a processor to implement the method for selecting a network slice according to any one of claims 1 to 7.