COMMUNICATION METHOD, USER EQUIPMENT, ACCESS NETWORK DEVICE, AND APPLICATION SERVER

• US 20170156048A1
• Filed: 02/10/2017
• Published: 06/01/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/11/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (Huawei Investment & Holding Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Zeng, Qinghai
• Granted Patent: US 10,575,163 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/00 Network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communication real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM] H04L51/04; selective video distribution H04N21/00
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1043 Gateway controllers, e.g. media gateway control protocol [MGCP] controllers
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1063 Application servers providing network services systems providing special services to telephonic subscribers H04M3/42
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1073 Registration or de-registration
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/611 for multicast or broadcast systems for broadcast or conference H04L12/18; arrangements for broadcast or distribution combined with broadcast H04H20/00; arrangements for broadcast applications with a direct linkage to broadcast information or to broadcast space-time H04H60/00; selective distribution of broadcast services, e.g. multimedia broadcast multicast service [MBMS], H04W4/06
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/80 Responding to QoS
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/02 Processing of mobility data, e.g. registration information at HLR [Home Location Register] or VLR [Visitor Location Register]; Transfer of mobility data, e.g. between HLR, VLR or external networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/08 Mobility data transfer
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/183 Processing at user equipment or user record carrier
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/20 Transfer of user or subscriber data
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 8/24 Transfer of terminal data

Abstract

The present invention provides a communication method, user equipment, an access network device, and an application server. The method is: allocating, by the access network device, an IP address to the UE; and after the UE notifies the IP address to the application server, performing, by the application server, a data transmission service for the UE by using the IP address. By using the technical solutions of the present invention, a PDN-GW, an SGW, a PCRF entity, an MME, and an HSS in an existing wireless communications network are deleted, and functions of the foregoing network side devices are implemented by using the access network device and the application server. Therefore, it is avoided that an SGW-to-PDN-GW link becomes a bottleneck of a processing capability of the wireless communications network, network layers are greatly reduced, a data transmission delay is effectively reduced, and a network paralysis risk is reduced.

Claims

1. User equipment, comprising:

an obtaining unit, configured to obtain an Internet Protocol (IP) address allocated by an access network device to the user equipment; and

a transceiver unit, configured to;

notify the IP address obtained by the obtaining unit to an application server, and receive a data transmission service provided by the application server by using the IP address, wherein the application server is a server that manages mobility of a terminal and service quality.

2. The user equipment according to claim 1, wherein the transceiver unit is further configured to:

when notifying the IP address to the application server, notify a user identity to the application server, so that the application server verifies, according to the user identity, whether a user is valid.

3. The user equipment according to claim 1, further comprising:

an access unit, configured to;

after accessing an access network corresponding to the access network device, if it is detected, according to a preset rule, that at least one other accessible access network is available, request to access the at least one other access network, wherein the other access network is a cellular network or a non-cellular network.

4. The user equipment according to claim 3, wherein:

the obtaining unit is further configured to;

after the at least one other access network is accessed, obtain an IP address corresponding to the at least one other access network; and

the transceiver unit is further configured to;

notify the IP address corresponding to the at least one other access network to the application server.

5. An access network device, comprising:

an allocation unit, configured to;

after it is determined that user equipment gains access locally, allocate an Internet Protocol (IP) address to the user equipment; and

a transceiver unit, configured to send, to the user equipment, the IP address allocated by the allocation unit to the user equipment, so that the user equipment sends the IP address to an application server and receives a data transmission service provided by the application server by using the IP address, wherein the application server is a server configured to manage mobility of a terminal and service quality.

6. An application server, comprising:

a transceiver unit, configured to receive an Internet Protocol (IP) address sent by user equipment, wherein the IP address is allocated by an access network device; and

a data transmission service providing unit, configured to provide a data transmission service for the user equipment by using the IP address received by the transceiver unit and that is corresponding to the user equipment.

7. The application server according to claim 6, wherein the transceiver unit is further configured to:

when receiving the IP address sent by the user equipment, receive a user identity sent by the user equipment, and verify, according to the user identity, whether a user corresponding to the user equipment is valid.

8. The application server according to claim 7, wherein when the user equipment accesses at least one other accessible access network, and obtains an IP address corresponding to the at least one other access network, the transceiver unit is further configured to:

receive the IP address that is sent by the user equipment and corresponds to the at least one other access network.

9. A communication method, comprising:

obtaining, by user equipment, an Internet Protocol (IP) address that is allocated by an access network device to the user equipment;

notifying, by the user equipment, the IP address to an application server, wherein the application server is a server configured to manage mobility of a terminal and service quality; and

receiving, by the user equipment, a data transmission service provided by the application server by using the IP address.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein when the user equipment notifies the IP address to the application server, the method further comprises:

notifying a user identity to the application server, so that the application server verifies, according to the user identity, whether a user is valid.

11. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

after accessing an access network corresponding to the access network device, if it is detected, according to a preset rule, that at least one other accessible access network is available, requesting, by the user equipment, to access the at least one other access network, wherein the other access network is a cellular network or a non-cellular network.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein after the user equipment accesses the at least one other access network, the method further comprises:

obtaining an IP address corresponding to the at least one other access network; and

notifying the IP address corresponding to the at least one other access network to the application server.

13. The method according to claim 12, further comprising:

when determining that any IP address is in a no-longer-being-used state, disconnecting, by the user equipment, from an access network corresponding to the IP address; and

notifying, to the application server, the IP address and information about disconnecting from the access network corresponding to the IP address, so that the application server no longer uses the IP address to provide a data transmission service for the user equipment.

14. The method according to claim 13, further comprising:

after disconnecting from all access networks corresponding to the user equipment, receiving, by the user equipment, a tracking area identity broadcast by an access network device in at least one access network; and

notifying the received tracking area identity to the application server, so that the application server determines corresponding one or more access network device identities according to the tracking area identity when the user equipment is paged.

15. A communication method, comprising:

after determining that user equipment gains access locally, allocating, by an access network device, an Internet Protocol (IP) address to the user equipment; and

sending, by the access network device, the IP address to the user equipment, so that the user equipment sends the IP address to an application server, and receives a data transmission service provided by the application server by using the IP address, wherein the application server is a server configured to manage mobility of a terminal and service quality.

16. A communication method, comprising:

receiving, by an application server, an Internet Protocol (IP) address sent by user equipment, wherein the IP address is allocated by an access network device; and

providing, by the application server, a data transmission service for the user equipment by using the IP address.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein when the application server receives the IP address sent by the user equipment, the method further comprises:

receiving a user identity sent by the user equipment, and verifying, according to the user identity, whether a user corresponding to the user equipment is valid.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein when the user equipment accesses at least one other accessible access network, and obtains an IP address corresponding to the at least one other access network, the method further comprises:

receiving, by the application server, the IP address sent by the user equipment and that is corresponding to the at least one other access network.

19. The method according to claim 18, further comprising:

when any IP address corresponding to the user equipment is in a no-longer-being-used state, receiving, by the application server, the IP address and information about disconnecting from an access network corresponding to the IP address that are sent by the user equipment; and

determining, by the application server, that the IP address and the access network corresponding to the IP address are not used locally to provide a data transmission service for the user equipment.