CN103813300A

CN103813300A - Data transmission method, device and system

Info

Publication number: CN103813300A
Application number: CN201210457485.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 段小嫣; 金辉; 衣强; 高晨亮
Original assignee: Huawei Device Co Ltd
Current assignee: Huawei Device Co Ltd
Priority date: 2012-11-14
Filing date: 2012-11-14
Publication date: 2014-05-21

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a data transmission method, device and system. The method comprises that a network access device receives a first signaling containing small data and sent by user equipment (UE); the network access device obtains the small data according to the first signaling; the network access device sends the small data to a core network service device to enable the core network service device to send the small data to a packet data network through a core network gateway device. According to the data transmission method, device and system, the small data is carried by the signaling for transmission, signaling interaction due to establishment and release of connection for small data transmission can be reduced, and further network problems due to 'signaling storm' can be avoided.

Description

Data transmission method, equipment and system

Technical Field

The present invention relates to communications technologies, and in particular, to a data transmission method, device, and system.

Background

With the development of internet technology, more and more application clients (application clients) such as MSN, QQ, Facebook, etc. are running in User Equipment (UE) for long-term online applications (Always-online applications).

According to the existing mechanism for implementing instant messaging, an Application Client (Application Client) running on a UE needs to send a heartbeat Message (Keep-alive Message), which may also be referred to as a Keep-alive Message, to an Application Server (Application Server) in order to ensure a communication connection with the Application Server. Heartbeat messages are sent at intervals ranging from seconds to minutes. To transmit small data such as heartbeat messages, the UE needs to perform signaling interaction with the communication network to establish a dedicated channel to transmit the small data. If the UE does not send and receive data within a preset Inactivity time (Inactivity Timer), the communication network may perform signaling interaction with the UE to release the previously established bearer.

If a large amount of small data such as heartbeat messages are transmitted by an application client of a long-term online application of a large amount of UEs, the UEs need to perform signaling interaction with a communication network frequently to establish and release bearers for transmitting the small data, which results in generation of a large amount of signaling, brings a large signaling load to the communication network, also called "signaling Storm" (signaling Storm), and causes congestion and even paralysis of the communication network. Therefore, a mechanism is needed to reduce the signaling interaction caused by the small data transmission, so as to reduce the signaling load of the communication network and avoid the network problems caused by the "signaling storm".

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the invention provides a data transmission method, equipment and a system.

In a first aspect, a first data transmission method provided in an embodiment of the present invention includes:

the method comprises the steps that access network equipment receives a first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE); the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the first signaling; and the access network equipment sends the small data to core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment sends the small data to a packet data network through core network gateway equipment.

In a first possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the acquiring the small data according to the first signaling includes: and the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling.

According to the first possible implementation manner, in a second possible implementation manner, the obtaining, by the access network device, the small data from the first signaling includes: and if the first signaling does not use non-access stratum encryption, the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling.

According to the first or second possible implementation manner, in a third possible implementation manner, the obtaining, by the access network device, the small data from the first signaling includes: and the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling according to a first indication contained in the first signaling, wherein the first indication is used for indicating that the first signaling contains the small data.

In a fourth possible implementation manner of the first aspect, the acquiring the small data according to the first signaling includes: the access network device sends the first signaling to a core network control device, so that the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling and carries the small data in a second signaling to send to the access network device; and the access network equipment receives a second signaling containing the small data sent by the core network control equipment, and acquires the small data from the second signaling.

According to a fourth possible implementation manner, in a fifth possible implementation manner, the sending, by the access network device, the first signaling to the core network control device includes: and if the first signaling uses non-access stratum encryption, the access network equipment sends the first signaling to core network control equipment.

According to the fourth or fifth possible implementation manner, in a sixth possible implementation manner, the acquiring, by the access network device, the small data from the second signaling includes: the access network equipment acquires the small data from the second signaling according to a second indication contained in the second signaling; the second indication is for indicating that the second signaling includes the small data.

According to the first aspect or one of the first six possible implementation manners of the first aspect, in a seventh possible implementation manner, before the receiving, by the access network device, the first signaling that includes the small data and is sent by the UE, the method further includes: the access network equipment receives a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection request message sent by the UE, wherein the connection establishment reason contained in the RRC connection request message is small data transmission; the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the first signaling, and the method comprises the following steps: and the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the connection establishment reason and the first signaling.

According to the first aspect or one of the first seven possible implementation manners of the first aspect, in an eighth possible implementation manner, the sending, by the access network device, the small data to the core network service device includes: the access network equipment sends the small data acquired from the first signaling to the core network service equipment according to the reserved address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier; or, the access network device sends the small data acquired from the second signaling to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier included in the second signaling.

According to the first aspect or one of the first eight possible implementation manners of the first aspect, in a ninth possible implementation manner, the first signaling and/or the second signaling further include priority indication information.

In a tenth possible implementation form, the small data comprises small data corresponding to at least one service or application according to the first aspect or one of the first nine possible implementation forms of the first aspect.

According to the first aspect or one of the first ten possible implementation manners of the first aspect, in an eleventh possible implementation manner, the sending, by the access network device, the small data to a core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to a packet data network through a core network gateway device includes: and the access network equipment sends the small data to a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) service node (SGSN) so that the SGSN sends the small data to a packet data network through a GPRS gateway node (GGSN).

According to the first aspect or one of the first eleventh possible implementation manner of the first aspect, in a twelfth possible implementation manner, before the receiving, by the access network device, the first signaling that includes small data and is sent by the UE, the method further includes: the access network equipment sends a connection release message to the UE and starts a timer; and the access network equipment does not send a UE context release request to a Mobility Management Entity (MME) within the timing period of the timer, and reserves the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

According to the first aspect or one of the first eleventh possible implementation manner of the first aspect, in a thirteenth possible implementation manner, before the receiving, by the access network device, the first signaling that includes small data and is sent by the UE, the method further includes: the access network equipment sends a UE context release request to the core network control equipment, wherein the UE context release request comprises indication information for reserving the context information of the UE; the access network equipment reserves the context information of the UE according to the indication information; or, the access network device receives a UE context release command sent by a core network control device, where the UE context release command includes indication information for retaining context information of the UE; and the access network equipment reserves the context information of the UE according to the indication information.

According to a thirteenth possible implementation manner, in a fourteenth possible implementation manner, the reserving, by the access network device, context information of the UE includes: and the access network equipment reserves the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identification.

In a second aspect, a second data transmission method provided in the embodiment of the present invention includes:

the method comprises the steps that core network control equipment receives a first signaling containing small data sent by access network equipment; and the core network control equipment sends a second signaling to the access network equipment, wherein the second signaling comprises the small data, the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier, so that the access network equipment acquires the small data from the second signaling and sends the small data to the core network service equipment according to the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

In a third aspect, a third data transmission method provided in the embodiment of the present invention includes:

the method comprises the steps that core network control equipment receives a first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE); the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling; and the core network control equipment sends a third signaling containing the small data to core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment sends the small data to a packet data network through core network gateway equipment.

In a first possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the sending, by the core network control device, the third signaling including the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through a core network gateway device includes: and the core network control equipment sends the third signaling containing the small data to a serving gateway (S-GW) so that the S-GW sends the small data to a packet data network through a packet data network gateway (PDN GW).

According to the third aspect or the first possible implementation manner of the third aspect, in a second possible implementation manner, the receiving, by the core network control device, a first signaling containing small data sent by the UE includes: the core network control device receives an extended service request message sent by the UE, wherein the extended service request message comprises a third indication and small data, and the third indication is used for indicating that the extended service request message comprises the small data; the core network control device obtaining the small data from the first signaling, including: the core network control device acquires the small data from the extended service request message according to the third indication; the sending, by the core network control device, the third signaling including the small data to the core network service device includes: the core network control device sends a bearer modification request to the core network service device, where the bearer modification request includes a fourth indication and small data, and the fourth indication is used to indicate that the bearer modification request message includes the small data.

In a third possible implementation manner of the third aspect, the sending, by the core network control device, the third signaling including the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through a core network gateway device includes: and the core network control equipment sends the third signaling containing the small data to a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) service node (SGSN) so that the SGSN sends the small data to a packet data network through a gateway GPRS (general packet radio service) node (GGSN).

In a fourth aspect, a fourth data transmission method provided in the embodiment of the present invention includes:

the method comprises the steps that core network service equipment receives a modification bearing request containing small data sent by core network control equipment; and the core network service equipment sends the small data to core network gateway equipment.

In a first possible implementation manner of the fourth aspect, before the receiving, by the core network service device, a bearer modification request containing small data sent by the core network control device, the method further includes: the core network service equipment receives an access bearer releasing request sent by the core network control equipment, wherein the access bearer releasing request comprises indication information for reserving context information related to access network equipment of User Equipment (UE); and the core network service equipment reserves the context information related to the access network equipment of the UE according to the indication information.

According to a first possible implementation manner, in a second possible implementation manner, the indication information includes: and indication information for indicating that the release reason is user inactivity.

According to the first or second possible implementation manner, in a third possible implementation manner, the step of retaining, by the core network service device, context information related to access network equipment of the UE includes: and the core network service equipment reserves the address information and the tunnel endpoint information of the access network equipment of the UE.

In a fifth aspect, an access network device provided in the embodiment of the present invention includes:

the receiver is used for receiving first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE); a processor configured to obtain the small data according to the first signaling; and the transmitter is used for transmitting the small data to core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment transmits the small data to a packet data network through core network gateway equipment.

In a first possible implementation manner of the fifth aspect, the processor is specifically configured to: and acquiring the small data from the first signaling.

According to the first possible implementation manner, in a second possible implementation manner, the processor is specifically further configured to: and if the first signaling does not use non-access stratum encryption, acquiring the small data from the first signaling.

According to the first or second possible implementation manner, in a third possible implementation manner, the processor is further configured to: and acquiring the small data from the first signaling according to a first indication contained in the first signaling, wherein the first indication is used for indicating that the first signaling contains the small data.

In a fourth possible implementation manner, according to the fifth aspect or one of the first three possible implementation manners of the fifth aspect, the transmitter is specifically configured to: sending the first signaling to a core network control device, so that the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling and carries the small data in a second signaling to send to the access network device; the receiver is specifically configured to: receiving a second signaling containing the small data sent by the core network control equipment; the processor is specifically configured to: and acquiring the small data from the second signaling.

According to a fourth possible implementation manner, in a fifth possible implementation manner, the transmitter is further specifically configured to: and if the first signaling uses non-access stratum encryption, sending the first signaling to core network control equipment.

According to the fourth or fifth possible implementation manner, in a sixth possible implementation manner, the processor is further configured to: acquiring the small data from the second signaling according to a second indication contained in the second signaling; the second indication is for indicating that the second signaling includes the small data.

In a seventh possible implementation form according to the fifth aspect as such or according to one of the first six possible implementation forms of the fifth aspect, the receiver is further configured to: receiving a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection request message sent by the UE, wherein the connection establishment reason contained in the RRC connection request message is small data transmission; the processor is further configured to: and acquiring the small data according to the connection establishment reason and the first signaling.

According to the fifth aspect or one of the first seven possible implementation manners of the fifth aspect, in an eighth possible implementation manner, the sender is further configured to send the small data acquired from the first signaling to the core network service device according to a reserved address of the core network service device and a tunnel endpoint identifier; or, the sender is further configured to send the small data acquired from the second signaling to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier included in the second signaling.

In a ninth possible implementation form of the method according to the fifth aspect or one of the first eight possible implementation forms of the fifth aspect, the transmitter is further configured to send the small data to a general packet radio service GPRS service node SGSN, so that the SGSN sends the small data to a packet data network through a GPRS gateway node GGSN.

In a tenth possible implementation form, the transmitter is further configured to send a connection release message to the UE, start a timer, and not send a UE context release request to a mobility management entity MME within a timing period of the timer; the access network device further includes: and the memory is used for reserving the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identification.

In an eleventh possible implementation form of the fifth aspect as such or according to one of the first nine possible implementation forms of the fifth aspect, the transmitter is further configured to: sending a UE context release request to the core network control equipment, wherein the UE context release request comprises indication information for reserving the context information of the UE; the receiver is further configured to receive a UE context release command sent by a core network control device, where the UE context release command includes indication information for retaining context information of the UE; correspondingly, the access network device further includes a memory, configured to retain context information of the UE according to the indication information.

According to an eleventh possible implementation manner, in a twelfth possible implementation manner, the indication information includes: and indication information for indicating that the release reason is user inactivity.

In a thirteenth possible implementation manner, according to the eleventh possible implementation manner or the twelfth possible implementation manner, the memory is specifically configured to reserve an address of the core network service device and a tunnel endpoint identifier.

In a sixth aspect, a core network control device provided in an embodiment of the present invention includes:

the receiver is used for receiving a first signaling containing small data sent by the access network equipment; a sender, configured to send a second signaling to the access network device, where the second signaling includes the small data, an address of a core network service device, and a tunnel endpoint identifier, so that the access network device obtains the small data from the second signaling and sends the small data to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

In a seventh aspect, another core network control device provided in the embodiment of the present invention includes:

the receiver is used for receiving first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE); a processor configured to obtain the small data from the first signaling; and the transmitter is used for transmitting a third signaling containing the small data to the core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment transmits the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway equipment.

In a first possible implementation manner of the seventh aspect, the transmitter is specifically configured to: sending the third signaling containing the small data to a serving gateway (S-GW) so that the S-GW sends the small data to a packet data network through a packet data network gateway (PDN GW).

According to the seventh aspect or the first possible implementation manner of the seventh aspect, in a second possible implementation manner, the receiver is specifically configured to: receiving an extended service request message sent by the UE, wherein the extended service request message includes a third indication and the small data, and the third indication is used for indicating that the extended service request message includes the small data; the processor is specifically configured to: acquiring the small data from the extended service request message according to the third indication; the transmitter is specifically configured to: sending a bearer modification request to the core network service device, where the bearer modification request includes a fourth indication and the small data, and the fourth indication is used to indicate that the bearer modification request message includes the small data.

In a third possible implementation manner of the seventh aspect, the transmitter is further configured to: and sending the third signaling containing the small data to a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) service node (SGSN) so that the SGSN sends the small data to a packet data network through a gateway GPRS (general packet radio service) node (GGSN).

In an eighth aspect, a core network service device provided in an embodiment of the present invention includes:

the receiver is used for receiving a modification bearing request containing small data sent by core network control equipment; and the transmitter is used for transmitting the small data to the gateway equipment of the core network.

In a first possible implementation manner of the eighth aspect, the receiver is further configured to: receiving an access bearer releasing request sent by core network control equipment, wherein the access bearer releasing request comprises indication information for reserving context information related to access network equipment of User Equipment (UE); correspondingly, the method further comprises the following steps: and the memory is used for reserving the access network equipment related context information of the UE according to the indication information.

According to a first possible implementation manner, in a second possible implementation manner, the memory is specifically configured to: and reserving address information and tunnel endpoint information of the access network equipment of the UE.

In a ninth aspect, a data transmission system provided in an embodiment of the present invention includes:

an access network device as described in any one of the possible embodiments of the fifth aspect and a core network control device as described in the sixth aspect; or

A core network control device as described in any one of the possible embodiments of the seventh aspect and a core network service device as described in any one of the possible embodiments of the ninth aspect.

The data transmission method, the equipment and the system provided by the embodiment of the invention transmit the small data by carrying the small data in the signaling, thereby reducing signaling interaction caused by establishing or releasing connection for small data transmission, and further avoiding the network problem caused by 'signaling storm'.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings needed to be used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below, and it is obvious that the drawings in the following description are some embodiments of the present invention, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained according to these drawings without creative efforts.

Fig. 1 is a flowchart of a first embodiment of a data transmission method according to the present invention;

fig. 2 is a flowchart of a second embodiment of a data transmission method according to the present invention;

fig. 3 is a flowchart of a third embodiment of a data transmission method provided in the present invention;

fig. 4 is a flowchart of a fourth embodiment of a data transmission method provided in the present invention;

fig. 5 is a signaling flowchart of a fifth embodiment of a data transmission method provided in the present invention;

fig. 6 is a signaling flowchart of a sixth embodiment of a data transmission method according to the present invention;

fig. 7 is a signaling flowchart of a seventh embodiment of a data transmission method provided in the present invention;

fig. 8 is a signaling flowchart of an eighth embodiment of a data transmission method provided in the present invention;

fig. 9 is a signaling flowchart of a ninth embodiment of a data transmission method according to the present invention;

fig. 10 is a signaling flowchart of a context connection processing procedure included in a data transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 11 is a signaling flowchart of a capability indication process of a data transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of an access network device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 13 is a schematic structural diagram of a first core network control device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of a second core network control device according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of a core network service device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are some, but not all, embodiments of the present invention. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments given herein without making any creative effort, shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

For the data transmission method, device, and system provided in the embodiments of the present invention, the following description will take the small data with the transmission data being the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages as an example. The Small Data may be Small Data specified by the current protocol, for example, the description about the size of Small Data in the current protocol is: "The observed size of The distance of The data exchange on The order of 1K (1024) bytes or less", that is, data with a data length below 1 kbyte is defined as small data, which is not limited to this definition mode in practical application, and may be adjusted according to practical needs, which is not limited in this embodiment of The present invention.

Fig. 1 is a flowchart of a first embodiment of a data transmission method provided by the present invention, and as shown in fig. 1, this embodiment describes the data transmission method provided by the present invention with an access network device as an execution main body, where the access network device may be an enhanced base station eNB (enhanced Node B, abbreviated as eNB).

The data transmission method provided by the embodiment may include:

step S110, receiving a first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE) by access network equipment; taking the access network device as the eNB as an example, the eNB may receive a first signaling containing small data sent by the UE, where the first signaling may be an Extended Service Request message (Extended Service Request) or a Service Request message.

Step S120, the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the first signaling; for example, the eNB acquires the small data according to the received first signaling.

Step S130, the access network device sends the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway device.

The data transmission method provided by the embodiment transmits the small data by carrying the small data in the signaling, so that signaling interaction caused by establishing or releasing connection for small data transmission is reduced, and the network problem caused by a signaling storm is avoided.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, acquiring the small data according to the first signaling includes: and the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling. The access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling and comprises the following steps: and if the first signaling does not use the non-access stratum encryption, the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling. The access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling and comprises the following steps: the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling according to a first indication contained in the first signaling, wherein the first indication is used for indicating that the first signaling contains the small data. In other words, if the first signaling received by the access network device does not use the non-access stratum encryption, the small data can be directly obtained from the first signaling; the access network device may obtain the small data in the first signaling according to a first indication contained in the first signaling, where the first indication may be a traffic type field or another indication field, and the indication field may be "application," "small data," or "keep-alive" (heartbeat message), and the like, for indicating that the first signaling contains the small data or the heartbeat message, and the like. The first signaling may be an extended service request message or a service request message.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, acquiring the small data according to the first signaling includes: the access network equipment sends the first signaling to the core network control equipment so that the core network control equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling and carries the small data in the second signaling to send to the access network equipment; and the access network equipment receives a second signaling containing the small data sent by the core network control equipment and acquires the small data from the second signaling. The access network device sending the first signaling to the core network control device includes: and if the first signaling uses non-access stratum encryption, the access network equipment sends the first signaling to the core network control equipment. The access network equipment acquires the small data from the second signaling, and the method comprises the following steps: the access network equipment acquires the small data from the second signaling according to a second instruction contained in the second signaling; the second indication is for indicating that the second signaling contains small data. In other words, if the first signaling received by the access network device uses non-access stratum encryption, or the access network device desires to process the small data in the first signaling by the network side device, the first signaling may be sent to the core network control device, after obtaining the small data in the first signaling, the core network control device carries the small data in the second signaling and sends the small data to the access network device, and the access network device obtains the small data from the second signaling; the access network device may obtain the small data in the second signaling according to a second indication included in the second signaling, where the second indication may be a service type field or another indication field, and the indication field may be an "application," "small data," or "keep-alive," and the like, and is used to indicate that the second signaling includes the small data or the heartbeat message, and the like. The second signaling may be an initial context setup request. In this embodiment, the processing of the small data in the first signaling is completed by the core network control device, which simplifies the processing of the small data by the access network device.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, the sending, by the access network device, the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway device includes: the access Network equipment sends the small Data to a Serving Gateway (S-GW) so that the S-GW sends the small Data to a Packet Data Network (PDN GW) through a Packet Data Network Gateway (PDN GW). In brief, the core network control device in the embodiment of the present invention may be a Mobility Management Entity MME (Mobility Management Entity, MME for short), the core network service device may be an S-GW, and the core network gateway device may be a pdn GW.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, before the access network device receives the first signaling containing the small data sent by the UE, the method further includes: the access network equipment receives a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection request message sent by UE, wherein the connection establishment reason contained in the RRC connection request message is small data transmission; the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the first signaling, and the method comprises the following steps: and the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the connection establishment reason and the first signaling. Specifically, before receiving a first signaling sent by the UE, the access network device may first receive a radio resource control Connection Request (RRC Connection Request) message sent by the UE, where a Connection establishment cause included in the RRC Connection Request message is small data transmission; after receiving the first signaling containing the small data, the eNB may obtain the small data according to the connection establishment cause and the first signaling.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, the sending, by the access network device, the small data to the core network service device includes: the access network equipment sends the small data acquired from the first signaling to the core network service equipment according to the reserved address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier; or the access network equipment sends the small data acquired from the second signaling to the core network service equipment according to the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier contained in the second signaling. For example: and the eNB sends the small data acquired from the first signaling or the second signaling to the S-GW according to the reserved address of the S-GW and the Tunnel Endpoint Identifier (TEID for short), or the address of the S-GW and the Tunnel Endpoint Identifier contained in the second signaling. That is, the eNB may transmit the small data to the S-GW based on the address and TEID of the S-GW configured in advance, or based on the address and TEID of the S-GW included in the second signaling.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, the first signaling and/or the second signaling further include priority indication information. The priority indication information is used to indicate a priority of the first signaling and/or the second signaling, for example, when the priority indication information takes a value of 1, a low priority is indicated, and when the priority indication field takes a value of 0, a high priority is indicated, and the eNB may prioritize or defer processing of the service request of the first signaling and/or the second signaling according to the priority indication information and a network state (e.g., whether congestion occurs).

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, the small data comprises small data corresponding to at least one service or application. That is, the small data may be multiple small data, and after the eNB acquires the multiple small data, if the multiple small data need to be sent to the same S-GW, the eNB may package the multiple small data for sending.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, the sending, by the access network device, the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway device includes: the access network equipment sends the small data to a general packet radio service GPRS service node SGSN so that the SGSN sends the small data to a packet data network through a GPRS gateway node GGSN. All the above embodiments describe the flow of transmitting small data through signaling in the fourth generation 4G mobile communication system, i.e. long term evolution lte (long term evolution) system (including the core network and the access network).

The data transmission method provided by the above embodiment transmits the small data by carrying the small data in the signaling, and reduces signaling interaction caused by establishing or releasing connection for small data transmission, thereby avoiding a network problem caused by a "signaling storm".

Further, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, before the access network device receives the first signaling containing the small data sent by the UE, the method further includes:

the access network equipment sends a connection release message to the UE and starts a timer; when the eNB does not receive uplink data from the UE and downlink data sent to the UE within a certain preset time, the eNB may send a connection release message to the UE to release the connection with the UE in an inactive state, and start a timer at the same time. If the uplink data or the downlink data corresponding to the UE are not received within the timing period of the timer, sending a UE context release request to a Mobility Management Entity (MME); and if the uplink data or the downlink data corresponding to the UE is not received within the timing period of the timer, the eNB sends a UE context release request to the MME after the timer is timed out so as to release the UE context related information. It can also be understood that the access network device does not send the UE context release request to the mobility management entity MME within the timing period of the timer, and retains the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

In the context connection processing method provided in this embodiment, the timer is set before the UE context is released, so that the effective time of the established connection for small data transmission is prolonged, thereby reducing signaling interaction caused by establishing or releasing the connection, and further avoiding a network problem caused by a "signaling storm".

Further, in the embodiment provided in fig. 1, before the access network device receives the first signaling containing the small data sent by the UE, the method further includes: the access network equipment sends a UE context release request to the core network control equipment, wherein the UE context release request comprises indication information for reserving the UE context information; the access network equipment reserves the context information of the UE according to the indication information; or the access network equipment receives a UE context release command sent by the core network control equipment, wherein the UE context release command comprises indication information for reserving the context information of the UE; and the access network equipment reserves the context information of the UE according to the indication information. The indication information includes: information indicating that the reason for release is user inactivity. The access network equipment reserves the context information of the UE, and comprises the following steps: the access network equipment reserves the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identification.

In the context connection processing method provided by this embodiment, the eNB uses the context information of the UE for small data transmission by reserving the context information of the UE in the connection release process, thereby reducing signaling interaction caused by establishing or releasing a connection for transmitting small data later, and further avoiding a network problem caused by a "signaling storm".

Fig. 2 is a flowchart of a second embodiment of the data transmission method according to the present invention, and as shown in fig. 2, the data transmission method according to the embodiment of the present invention is described with a core network control device as an execution main body, where the core network control device may be an MME.

The data transmission method provided by the embodiment may include:

step S210, a core network control device receives a first signaling containing small data sent by an access network device; specifically, the MME may receive a first signaling containing small data sent by the eNB, where the first signaling may be an Extended Service Request message (Extended Service Request) or a Service Request message.

Step S220, the core network control device sends a second signaling to the access network device, where the second signaling includes the small data, the address of the core network service device, and the tunnel endpoint identifier, so that the access network device obtains the small data from the second signaling and sends the small data to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier. After the MME acquires the small data carried in the first signaling, the small data can be carried in the second signaling and sent to the eNB together with the address and the TEID of the S-GW, and the eNB sends the small data acquired from the second signaling to the corresponding S-GW according to the address and the TEID of the S-GW.

Fig. 3 is a flowchart of a third embodiment of the data transmission method according to the present invention, and as shown in fig. 3, the data transmission method according to the third embodiment of the present invention is described with a core network control device as an execution main body, where the core network control device may be an MME.

The data transmission method provided by the embodiment may include:

step S310, a core network control device receives a first signaling containing small data sent by UE; the MME may receive the first signaling containing the small data directly transmitted by the UE or receive the first signaling containing the small data forwarded by the UE via the eNB.

Step S320, the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling; and the MME acquires the small data contained in the first signaling from the received first signaling.

Step S330, the core network control device sends a third signaling containing the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network via the core network gateway device. The MME carries the small data acquired from the first signaling in a third signaling and sends the small data to the core network service equipment, and after the core network service equipment receives the third signaling containing the small data, the core network service equipment can forward the small data in the third signaling to the packet data network through the core network gateway equipment.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 3, the sending, by the core network control device, the third signaling containing the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway device includes: and the core network control equipment sends third signaling containing the small data to the service gateway S-GW so that the S-GW sends the small data to the packet data network through the packet data network gateway PDN GW. Briefly, the core network serving device may be an S-GW and the core network gateway device may be a PDN GW.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 3, the receiving, by the core network control device, the first signaling containing the small data sent by the UE includes: the core network control equipment receives an extended service request message sent by UE, wherein the extended service request message comprises a third instruction and small data, and the third instruction is used for indicating that the extended service request message comprises the small data; the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling, and the method includes: the core network control equipment acquires the small data from the extended service request message according to the third indication; the core network control device sends a third signaling containing the small data to the core network service device, and the third signaling comprises the following steps: the core network control equipment sends a bearer modification request to the core network service equipment, wherein the bearer modification request comprises a fourth indication and the small data, and the fourth indication is used for indicating that the bearer modification request message comprises the small data. In other words, the first signaling may be an extended service request message, the extended service request message may include a third indication for indicating that the extended service request message includes small data, and the MME may obtain the small data in the extended service request message according to the third indication; and the third signaling may be a modified bearer request (modified bearer request), where the modified bearer request may include a fourth indication besides the small data, and the fourth indication is also used to indicate that the modified bearer request includes the small data.

Optionally, in the embodiment provided in fig. 3, the sending, by the core network control device, the third signaling containing the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway device includes:

the core network control device sends a third signaling containing small data to a general packet radio service GPRS service node SGSN, so that the SGSN sends the small data to the packet data network through a GPRS gateway node GGSN.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart of a fourth embodiment of the data transmission method provided by the present invention, and as shown in fig. 4, this embodiment describes the data transmission method provided by the embodiment of the present invention with a core network service device as an execution subject, where the core network service device may be an S-GW.

The data transmission method provided by the embodiment may include:

step S410, a core network service device receives a modification bearing request containing small data sent by a core network control device;

and the S-GW receives a load modification request sent by the core network control equipment, wherein the load modification request comprises the small data. The core network control device may be an MME, and the modify bearer request may further include a fourth indication in addition to the small data, where the fourth indication is used to indicate that the modify bearer request message includes the small data.

Step S420, the core network service device sends the small data to the core network gateway device.

The S-GW can send the bearer modification request to the core network gateway equipment according to a fourth indication in the bearer modification request, and the core network gateway equipment acquires the small data from the bearer modification request according to the fourth indication; the S-GW can also acquire the small data from the modification bearing request according to a fourth indication in the modification bearing request, and then send the acquired small data to the core network gateway equipment; the core network gateway device may be a packet data network gateway, PDN GW.

Further, in the embodiment provided in fig. 4, the core network service device receives an access bearer release request sent by the core network control device, where the access bearer release request includes indication information for retaining context information related to the access network device of the UE;

and the core network service equipment reserves the context information related to the access network equipment of the UE according to the indication information.

For example, after receiving the request for releasing the access bearer sent by the core network control device, the S-GW retains the context information related to the access network device of the UE according to the indication information therein for retaining the context information related to the access network device of the UE, and then may return a response for releasing the access bearer to the core network control device. Wherein the indication information may also be used to indicate that the release reason is user inactivity. And reserving access network equipment related context information of the UE, wherein the access network equipment related context information of the UE comprises address information and Tunnel Endpoint Identification (TEID) of the access network equipment of the UE. The core network control device may be an MME, and the access network device may be an eNB.

In the context connection processing method provided in this embodiment, in the process of releasing the connection, the S-GW uses the context information related to the access network device of the UE for transmitting the small data by retaining the context information related to the access network device of the UE, thereby reducing signaling interaction caused by establishing or releasing a connection for transmitting the small data later, and further avoiding a network problem caused by a "signaling storm".

The following describes the data transmission method provided in the embodiment of the present invention specifically through the implementation manner of interaction between network elements provided in fig. 5 to fig. 9:

fig. 5 is a signaling flowchart of a fifth embodiment of the data transmission method provided in the present invention, and as shown in fig. 5, the method provided in this embodiment may include:

step S510, the UE sends a first signaling to the eNB, where the first signaling may be a Non-Access Stratum (NAS) message, for example, an extended service Request (extended service Request).

The extended service request message may include: a Security header Type (Security header Type) field, a Service Type (Service Type) field, and an Application Data Container (Application Data Container) field, and optionally, a priority indication (priority) field may also be included.

Wherein, the value of the safety head type field can be '0000', which indicates that the extended service request message is not encrypted; the service type field can be "application", "small data", or "keep-alive" (heartbeat message), etc. to indicate the service request type of the extended service request message; the contents of the application data container field include small data that needs to be transmitted, such as small data of heartbeat messages or other non-heartbeat messages. The priority indication field is used to indicate the priority of the extended service request message, for example, when the priority indication field takes a value of 1, it indicates a low priority, and when the priority indication field takes a value of 0, it indicates a high priority, and the eNB may prioritize or defer processing the service request according to the network state (e.g., whether congestion occurs) according to the low priority indication.

Step S520, the eNB acquires the small data included in the extended service request message.

In this embodiment, the eNB acquires, according to the service request type indicated by the service type field in the extended service request message, small data to be transmitted, which is included in the application data container field in the extended service request message, for example, small data of a heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages.

Step S530, the eNB sends a heartbeat message or other small data to the S-GW. In this embodiment, the eNB sends the heartbeat message or the small data of other non-heartbeat messages to the S-GW according to the S-GW address and TEID included in the UE context stored by the eNB itself. If the UE context includes multiple S-GW addresses and TEIDs, the eNB may select an S-GW address and TEID corresponding to a default bearer (default bearer), and send the small data to the S-GW corresponding to the default bearer. If there are multiple small data, the eNB may encapsulate the multiple small data together and transmit to the S-GW. The S-GW forwards the received small data to the PDN GW. If there are multiple small data to be sent to the same PDN GW, the S-GW may also encapsulate multiple small data together and send to the PDN GW.

Step S540, the PDN GW sends the small data to an application server AS (AS) according to a Destination Address (DS), for example, an AS Address of the AS, included in the small data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages. And when a plurality of small data exist, the PDN GW respectively sends the small data to corresponding AS according to the destination address of the small data.

Optionally, the following steps may also be included:

step S550, AS returns heartbeat response message or small data response message of other non-heartbeat message to PDN GW; if the PDN GW transmits multiple small data to different ASs in step S104, the multiple ASs return multiple small data response messages to the PDN GW accordingly.

Step S560, the PDN GW sends a heartbeat response message or a small data response message other than the heartbeat message to the S-GW. If there are multiple small data response messages, the PDN GW may package them together for transmission. And the S-GW returns a heartbeat response message or a small data response message of other non-heartbeat messages to the eNB according to the eNB address and the TEID contained in the stored UE context. If there are multiple heartbeat response messages or other small data response messages that are not heartbeat messages, the S-GW can package them together for transmission.

Step S570, the eNB sends an Extended service request response message (Extended service response) to the UE, where the Extended service request response message carries the small data response message of the heartbeat response message or other non-heartbeat messages received by the eNB in step S560.

Fig. 6 is a signaling flowchart of a sixth embodiment of a data transmission method provided by the present invention, and as shown in fig. 6, the main differences between this embodiment and the embodiment shown in fig. 5 include: in this embodiment, a Radio Resource Control Connection (RRC Connection for short) is first established between the UE and the eNB, where the "reason for establishing the Radio Resource Connection" is "data transmission through signaling", and the Radio Resource Control Connection is indicated to be used for data transmission through signaling, so that a NAS message, such as a Service Request message (Service Request) or an extended Service Request message, sent by the UE to the eNB may not carry a Service type field. The method of this embodiment takes the transmission data as the small data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages as an example, and may include:

step S601, the UE sends a radio resource control connection request RRC ConnectionRequest to the eNB, where the radio resource connection establishment Cause (estipaliment Cause) is "data transmission over signaling (madataoverlaersignal)" to indicate that the radio resource control connection is used for data transmission over signaling.

Step S602, after receiving the radio resource control Connection request, if it is determined that the network device (e.g., the eNB itself and/or other core network devices) has the capability of transmitting data through signaling, the eNB sends a radio resource control Connection Setup message (RRC Connection Setup) to the UE; the radio resource control connection request may be rejected if the eNB determines that the network device does not have the capability to transmit data via signaling.

Step S610, the UE sends a NAS message, for example, a service request message (ServiceRequest) or an extended service request message, to the eNB. The extended service request message may include: a security header type field and an application data container field, and optionally, a priority indication field.

Wherein, the value of the safety head type field can be '0000', which indicates that the extended service request message is not encrypted; the contents of the application data container field include data that needs to be transmitted, such as small data of heartbeat messages or other non-heartbeat messages. The priority indication field is used to indicate the priority of the extended service request message, for example, when the priority indication field takes a value of 1, it indicates a low priority, and when the priority indication field takes a value of 0, it indicates a high priority, and the eNB may prioritize or defer processing the service request according to the network state (e.g., whether congestion occurs) according to the low priority indication.

And step S620, acquiring heartbeat messages or other small data contained in the extended service request message. In this embodiment, the eNB acquires, according to the "radio resource connection establishment cause" in the radio resource connection request, small data to be transmitted, which is included in an application data container field in the extended service request message, for example, small data of a heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages.

The remaining steps S630-S670 are the same as the corresponding steps S530-S570 in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5, and are not described herein again.

Fig. 7 is a signaling flowchart of a seventh embodiment of a data transmission method provided by the present invention, and as shown in fig. 7, the main differences between this embodiment and the embodiment shown in fig. 5 include: in this embodiment, the processing procedures of acquiring data in the NAS message, for example, the extended service request message, are completed by the MME, so that the method is also applicable to a scenario where data is transmitted through encrypted signaling. The method of this embodiment takes the transmission data as the small data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages as an example, and may include:

step S710, the UE sends a NAS message, for example, an extended service request message, to the eNB. The extended service request message may include: a security header type field, a service type field, and an application data container field, and optionally, a priority indication field.

Wherein, the service type field can be application, small data or heartbeat message to indicate the service request type of the extended service request message; the contents of the application data container field include data that needs to be transmitted, such as small data of heartbeat messages or other non-heartbeat messages. The priority indication field is used to indicate the priority of the extended service request message, for example, when the priority indication field takes a value of 1, it indicates a low priority, and when the priority indication field takes a value of 0, it indicates a high priority, and the eNB may prioritize or defer processing the service request according to the network state (e.g., whether congestion occurs) according to the low priority indication. The value of the security header type field is not limited in the extended service request message of this embodiment, and the NAS message may be encrypted or not encrypted; when the value of the security header type field is not "0000", for example, "0001", "0010", "0011" or "0100", it indicates that the extended service request message is encrypted.

Step S712, the eNB directly forwards the received extended service request message to a Mobility Management Entity (MME).

In step S714, after receiving the extended service request message, the MME may perform an Authentication/Security (Authentication/Security) procedure for the non-access stratum network for the UE.

Step S720, the MME acquires the heartbeat message or other small data included in the extended service request message. In this embodiment, the MME acquires, according to the service request type indicated by the service type field in the extended service request message, data to be transmitted, which is included in the application data container field in the extended service request message, for example, small data of a heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages.

Step S722, the MME sends an Initial Context setup request (Initial Context setup request) to the eNB, where the Initial Context setup request includes the second application data container field, the indication field, and the S-GW id.

Wherein the content of the second application data container field includes data obtained from the received extended service request message, such as small data of a heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages. If the extended service request message contains small data of a plurality of heartbeat messages or a plurality of non-heartbeat messages, the application data container field contains the small data of the plurality of heartbeat messages or the plurality of non-heartbeat messages. The application data container field includes small data of all heartbeat messages or other non-heartbeat messages contained in the received extended service request message. The indication field may be "application", "small data", or "keep-alive" (heartbeat message), etc. to indicate the service request type of the initial context setup request. The S-GW identity includes an S-GW address and a TEID.

Step S730, the eNB sends a heartbeat message or other small data to the gateway. In this embodiment, after receiving the initial context setup request, the eNB acquires the small data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages in the application data container field according to the indication field therein, and sends the small data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages to the S-GW according to the S-GW address and the TEID therein. If there are multiple heartbeat messages or other small data that is not a heartbeat message, the eNB may package them together for transmission. The S-GW sends heartbeat messages or other small data other than heartbeat messages to the PDN GW. If there are multiple heartbeat messages or other small data that is not a heartbeat message, the S-GW can package them together for transmission.

Step S732, the eNB sends an Initial Context setup response (Initial Context setup response) to the MME.

The remaining steps S740 to S770 are the same as the corresponding steps S540 to S570 in the embodiment shown in fig. 5, and are not described herein again.

In the data transmission method provided by the embodiment, small data is carried in the signaling to transmit the small data, so that signaling interaction caused by establishing or releasing connection for small data transmission is reduced, and the network problem caused by a signaling storm is avoided; meanwhile, the embodiment is also suitable for a scenario in which data is transmitted through encrypted signaling.

Fig. 8 is a signaling flowchart of an eighth embodiment of a data transmission method provided by the present invention, and as shown in fig. 8, main differences between this embodiment and the embodiment shown in fig. 7 include: in the embodiment, the processing processes of acquiring, carrying, sending and the like of the data in the NAS message, such as the extended service request message, are mainly completed by the core network side, so that the interaction of the data in the access network can be simplified, and the implementation modes of the embodiment of the invention are enriched. The method of the embodiment may include:

step S810, step S812, step S814 and step S820 are the same as step S710, step S712, step S714 and step S720 in the embodiment shown in fig. 7, and are not repeated herein.

Step S824, the MME sends a Modify Bearer Request (Modify Bearer Request) to the S-GW, where the Modify Bearer Request includes the third application data container field and the indication field.

The content of the third application data container field includes data acquired from the received extended service request message or a plurality of data to be transmitted, such as small data of heartbeat messages or other non-heartbeat messages. If the extended service request message contains small data of a plurality of heartbeat messages or a plurality of non-heartbeat messages, the application data container field contains the small data of the plurality of heartbeat messages or the plurality of non-heartbeat messages. The application data container field includes small data of all heartbeat messages or other non-heartbeat messages contained in the received extended service request message. The indication field may be "application", "small data", or "keep-alive" (heartbeat message), etc. to indicate the type of service request for modifying the bearer request.

Step S826, the S-GW forwards the modify bearer request to the PDN GW according to the indication field in the modify bearer request. And the PDN GW acquires the heartbeat message or other small data of non-heartbeat messages contained in the third application data container in the modification bearing request according to the indication field in the modification bearing request, and sends the small data to the AS.

Step S840 and step S850 are the same as step S740 and step S750 corresponding to the embodiment shown in fig. 7, and are not described again here. When the embodiment performs step S850, correspondingly, the following steps are further included:

step S862, the PDN GW sends a modified bearer response (modified bearer response) to the S-GW, where the modified bearer response includes a small data response message of the heartbeat response message or other non-heartbeat messages received from the AS. Small data response messages that modify the heartbeat response message or other non-heartbeat messages in the bearer response may also be carried by the application data container field. A plurality of heartbeat response messages, or other small data response messages other than heartbeat messages, may be sent together included in the modified bearer response.

Step S864, the S-GW forwards the received modify bearer response to the MME.

Step S866, the MME transmits the heartbeat response message or the small data response message of other non-heartbeat messages acquired from the modified bearer response to the eNB, wherein the heartbeat response message or the small data response message of other non-heartbeat messages is carried in the extended service request response message.

Step S870 is the same as step S770 in the embodiment shown in fig. 7, and is not described herein again.

The data transmission method provided by this embodiment directly transmits data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages through signaling, thereby avoiding frequent establishment and release of a radio bearer for data transmission, saving air interface resources, and reducing signaling interaction between the terminal and the access network device, thereby avoiding the problem of congestion of the access network caused by a "signaling storm".

Fig. 9 is a signaling flowchart of a ninth embodiment of a data transmission method provided by the present invention, and as shown in fig. 9, the main differences between this embodiment and the embodiment shown in fig. 8 include: in this embodiment, the S-GW obtains the heartbeat response message or other data from the signaling, and sends the heartbeat response message or other data to the PDN GW through the user plane bearer, without carrying the heartbeat response message or other data in the bearer modification request. The method of this embodiment takes the transmission data as the small data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages as an example, and may include:

steps S910 to S924 are the same as steps S810 to S824 in the embodiment shown in fig. 8, and are not described again here.

Step S928, the S-GW acquires the heartbeat message or other small data of non-heartbeat messages contained in the third application data container in the modification bearing request according to the indication field in the modification bearing request, and sends the heartbeat message or other small data of non-heartbeat messages to the PDN GW through the user plane bearing.

Step S940 and step S950 are the same as step S840 and step S850 in the embodiment shown in fig. 8, and are not described herein again. When the embodiment performs step S950, correspondingly, the following steps are further included:

and step S963, the PDN GW sends the heartbeat response message or the small data response message of other non-heartbeat messages to the S-GW through the user plane bearer. If there are multiple heartbeat messages or other small data that is not a heartbeat message, the PDN GW can package them together for transmission.

And step S965, the S-GW carries the received heartbeat response message or the small data response message of the other non-heartbeat message in the modify bearer response, and sends the modify bearer response to the MME. Modifying the heartbeat response message or other small data response messages in the bearer response that are not heartbeat messages may be accomplished by applying a data container field. A plurality of heartbeat response messages, or other small data response messages other than heartbeat messages, may be sent together included in the modified bearer response.

Step S966 and step S970 are the same as step S866 and step S870 corresponding to the embodiment shown in fig. 8, respectively, and are not described again here.

The data transmission method provided by this embodiment directly transmits data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages through signaling, avoids frequent establishment and release of a radio bearer for data transmission, saves air interface resources, reduces signaling interaction between the terminal and the network device, and can alleviate network congestion to a certain extent.

The following describes a context connection processing procedure and a capability indication procedure included in the data transmission method provided by the embodiment of the present invention in detail through an interactive implementation manner of network elements provided in fig. 10 and fig. 11.

Fig. 10 is a signaling flowchart of a context connection processing procedure included in the data transmission method according to the embodiment of the present invention, and the context connection processing procedure may be applied to the data transmission method according to the embodiment of the present invention, for example, before being applied to the embodiments shown in fig. 5 to 9, so as to avoid a network problem caused by a "signaling storm", or may be separately implemented, and also, a network problem caused by a "signaling storm" may be avoided. As shown in fig. 10, the context connection processing procedure included in the data transmission method provided in this embodiment may include:

in step S1010, the eNB determines that the user Inactivity Timer (Inactivity Timer) is expired. That is, when the eNB does not receive uplink data transmitted by the UE or downlink data transmitted to the UE within the preset inactivity time, the eNB may determine that the user inactivity timer expires.

Step S1012, after the eNB determines that the user inactivity timer is expired, the eNB may send a radio resource Connection Release (RRC Connection Release) message to the UE, and Release the radio signaling Connection and all radio bearers (radio bearers) between the UE and the eNB.

In step S1014, the eNB may start a new timer, and when the eNB still does not receive the uplink data sent by the UE or the downlink data sent to the UE within the time set by the new timer, that is, after the new timer expires, step S1016 is executed.

It should be noted that step S1014 is an optional step of the embodiment of the present invention, and the method for starting a new timer to extend the preset user inactivity time provided by this step may also be applied to the existing bearer release procedure.

Step S1016, the eNB sends a UE context release request to the MME, where the "reason" is "user inactivity".

Step S1018, MME sends request for releasing access bearing to S-GW. In the request for releasing the access bearer, the content of the indication "keep UE eNB context" is carried, or the "Cause" is "User Inactivity" (Cause = User Inactivity).

Step S1020, the S-GW retains eNB related information of the UE according to the indication content or reason carried in the received request for releasing the access bearer, for example, including an eNB address of the UE default bearer and a TEID of the eNB.

Step S1022, S-GW sends response of releasing access bearer to MME.

Step S1024, the MME sends a UE context release command to the eNB. The UE context release command may carry an indication of "keep UE context". Since the radio resource connection release message carries the "reason" of "user inactivity", or according to the indication included in the UE context release command, after receiving the radio resource connection release response message of the UE, the eNB releases the radio bearer with the UE, but retains the UE context stored by the eNB, including the S-GW address of the UE default bearer and the TEID of the S-GW (S1026).

Step S1028, if the radio resource connection between the eNB and the UE has not been released, at this time, the eNB may also send a radio resource connection release message to the UE, and release the radio signaling connection and all radio bearers between the UE and the eNB.

In the embodiment of the present invention, one of step S1012 or step S1028 is usually selected.

Step S1030, the eNB sends a UE context release complete message to the MME.

The context connection processing method provided in this embodiment directly transmits data of a heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages through signaling, thereby avoiding frequent establishment and release of a radio bearer for data transmission. And the UE context is reserved in the process of releasing the radio bearer, and the reserved UE context is used for indicating a data transmission path, so that the establishment and the release of the radio bearer are further reduced, the radio bearer is reduced, the air interface resources are saved, the signaling interaction between the terminal and the network equipment is reduced, and the network congestion can be relieved to a greater extent.

Fig. 11 is a signaling flowchart of a capability indication process of a data transmission method according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 11, when a UE or a network device does not have a capability of supporting data transmission through signaling, although data transmission may be completed through signaling, a probability of an error occurring in data transmitted through the UE or the network device may increase. Therefore, the data transmission method provided by the embodiment of the present invention, on the basis of all the above embodiments, may further include the following capability indication step before data transmission:

step S1110, the eNB sends a bearer establishment Request to the MME, where the eNB may carry an indication that the eNB has the capability of supporting data transmission through signaling in the bearer establishment Request sent to the MME, and the bearer establishment Request may be an S1 establishment Request (S1 Setup Request).

In step S1120, the MME replies a bearer establishment response, for example, an S1 establishment response, to the eNB (S1 SetupResponse).

Step S1130, the UE sends an Attach Request (Attach Request) to the eNB, where the Attach Request carries an indication indicating that the UE supports the Capability of transmitting data (including heartbeat messages or other small data) through signaling, and may be implemented by extending a "Core Network Capability (UE Core Network Capability)" field.

Step S1140, the eNB forwards the attach request to the MME.

Step S1150, perform the attach procedure specified in the existing specification, for example, perform the attach procedure specified in 3GPP TS23.401, until the MME receives the setup session response (Create session response) of the S-GW.

Step S1160, the MME sends an Attach Accept message (Attach Accept) to the eNB, where the Attach Accept message carries an indication indicating that the network side (e.g., including the MME, S-GW, PDN GW, and/or eNB) supports the capability of transmitting data including heartbeat messages or other data through signaling.

Step S1170, the eNB forwards the attachment receiving message to the UE.

Step S1180, the attach procedure specified in the existing specification is completed.

It should be noted that, in the implementation method shown in fig. 6, the determination of whether the network device has the capability of transmitting data through signaling in step S602 is included, so the capability indication step provided in this embodiment may not be adopted any more.

The data transmission method provided in this embodiment directly transmits data of the heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages through signaling, thereby avoiding frequent establishment and release of a radio bearer for data transmission, reducing establishment and release of the radio bearer, reducing radio bearer, saving air interface resources, reducing signaling interaction between the terminal and the network device, and alleviating network congestion to a greater extent. And the capacity indicating step is implemented before data transmission, so that the accuracy of data transmission is ensured on the basis of relieving network congestion.

Fig. 12 is a schematic structural diagram of an access network device embodiment provided in the present invention, and as shown in fig. 12, an access network device 1200 provided in this embodiment may include: receiver 1210, processor 1220, transmitter 1230 and memory 1240, in particular:

a receiver 1210, configured to receive a first signaling containing small data sent by a user equipment UE;

a processor 1220 configured to obtain small data according to the first signaling;

the transmitter 1230 is configured to send the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway device.

Optionally, the processor 1220 is specifically configured to obtain small data from the first signaling.

Optionally, the processor 1220 is further specifically configured to: and if the first signaling does not use the non-access stratum encryption, acquiring the small data from the first signaling.

Optionally, the processor 1220 is further configured to obtain small data from the first signaling according to a first indication included in the first signaling, where the first indication is used to indicate that the first signaling includes small data.

Optionally, the transmitter 1230 is further configured to send the first signaling to the core network control device, so that the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling and carries the small data in the second signaling to send to the access network device; the receiver 1210 is further configured to receive a second signaling containing small data sent by the core network control device; the processor is also configured to obtain the small data from the second signaling.

Optionally, the transmitter 1230 is further specifically configured to send the first signaling to the core network control device if the first signaling uses non-access stratum encryption.

Optionally, the processor 1220 is further configured to obtain small data from the second signaling according to a second indication included in the second signaling; the second indication is for indicating that the second signaling contains small data.

Optionally, the receiver 1210 is further configured to receive a radio resource control, RRC, connection request message sent by the UE, where a connection establishment cause included in the RRC connection request message is small data transmission; the processor 1220 is further configured to obtain the small data according to the connection establishment cause and the first signaling.

Optionally, the sender 1230 is further configured to send the small data acquired from the first signaling to the core network service device according to the reserved address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier; or, the sender 1230 is further configured to send the small data acquired from the second signaling to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier included in the second signaling.

Optionally, the sender 1230 is further configured to send the small data to a general packet radio service GPRS service node SGSN, so that the SGSN sends the small data to the packet data network through a GPRS gateway node GGSN.

Optionally, the transmitter 1230 is further configured to send a connection release message to the UE, start a timer, and not send a UE context release request to the mobility management entity MME within a timing period of the timer, where the access network apparatus 1200 further includes: a memory 1240 for retaining the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identification.

Optionally, the transmitter 1230 is further configured to send a UE context release request to the core network control device, where the UE context release request includes indication information for retaining context information of the UE;

the receiver 1210 is further configured to receive a UE context release command sent by the core network control device, where the UE context release command includes indication information for retaining context information of the UE;

correspondingly, the access network device 1200 further includes: a memory 1240 for reserving context information of the UE according to the indication information.

Optionally, the indication information includes: information indicating that the reason for release is user inactivity.

Optionally, the memory 1240 is specifically configured to retain an address of a core network service device and a tunnel endpoint identity.

The access network device 1200 provided in this embodiment may be configured to execute the technical solution of the method embodiment shown in fig. 1 or any one of fig. 5 to fig. 7, and the implementation principle and the technical effect are similar, which are not described herein again.

Fig. 13 is a schematic structural diagram of a first core network control device according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 13, a core network control device 1300 according to this embodiment may include:

a receiver 1310 configured to receive a first signaling containing small data sent by an access network device;

a transmitter 1320, configured to send a second signaling to the access network device, where the second signaling includes the small data, the address of the core network service device, and the tunnel endpoint identifier, so that the access network device obtains the small data from the second signaling and sends the small data to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

The core network control device 1300 provided in this embodiment may be used to execute the technical solution of the method embodiment shown in fig. 2 or fig. 7, and the implementation principle and the technical effect are similar, which are not described herein again.

Fig. 14 is a schematic structural diagram of a second core network control device embodiment provided in the present invention, and as shown in fig. 14, a core network control device 1400 provided in this embodiment may include:

a receiver 1410, configured to receive a first signaling containing small data sent by a UE;

a processor 1420 configured to obtain small data from the first signaling;

a transmitter 1430, configured to send a third signaling containing the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway device.

Optionally, the transmitter 1430 is specifically configured to transmit third signaling containing small data to the serving gateway S-GW, so that the S-GW transmits the small data to the packet data network through the packet data network gateway PDN GW.

Optionally, the receiver 1410 is specifically configured to receive an extended service request message sent by the UE, where the extended service request message includes a third indication and small data, and the third indication is used to indicate that the extended service request message includes the small data; the processor 1420 is specifically configured to obtain the small data from the extended service request message according to the third indication; the transmitter 1430 is specifically configured to send a bearer modification request to the core network service device, where the bearer modification request includes a fourth indication and small data, and the fourth indication is used to indicate that the bearer modification request message includes the small data.

Optionally, the sender 1430 is further configured to send third signaling containing the small data to the general packet radio service GPRS service node SGSN, so that the SGSN sends the small data to the packet data network through the GPRS gateway node GGSN.

The core network control device 1400 provided in this embodiment may be configured to execute the technical solution of any one of the method embodiments shown in fig. 3, fig. 8, or fig. 9, and the implementation principle and the technical effect are similar, which are not described herein again.

Fig. 15 is a schematic structural diagram of an embodiment of a core network service device provided in the present invention, and as shown in fig. 15, the core network service device 1500 provided in this embodiment may include: receiver 1510, transmitter 1520, and memory 1530, specifically:

a receiver 1510, configured to receive a modified bearer request containing small data sent by a core network control device;

and a transmitter 1520, configured to transmit the small data to the core network gateway device.

Optionally, the receiver 1510 is further configured to receive an access bearer release request sent by the core network control device, where the access bearer release request includes indication information for retaining context information related to the access network device of the UE; correspondingly, the memory 1530 is configured to retain the access network equipment related context information of the UE according to the indication information.

Optionally, the memory 1530 is specifically configured to retain address information and tunnel endpoint information of the access network device of the UE.

The core network service device 1500 provided in this embodiment may be configured to execute the technical solution of any one of the method embodiments shown in fig. 4, fig. 8, or fig. 9, and the implementation principle and the technical effect are similar, which are not described herein again.

All the embodiments described above can also be applied to the packet switched PS network of the third generation 3G or second generation 2G mobile communication system, i.e. the PS network of the universal mobile telecommunications system umts (universal mobile telecommunications system) or enhanced Data Rate GSM evolution (enhanced Data Rate for GSM evolution). Namely: the eNB in the above embodiment may be replaced by a base station nb (nodeb)/radio network controller rnc (radio network controller), and correspondingly, the MME and the S-GW may be replaced by a serving GPRS Support node sgsn (serving GPRS Support node), and the PDN GW may be replaced by a gateway GPRS Support node ggsn (gateway GPRS Support node); the signalling in the embodiments may also be replaced by corresponding signalling in 3G or 2G PS systems. And will not be described in detail herein.

In summary, the data transmission method, device and system provided in the embodiments of the present invention transmit data of a heartbeat message or other non-heartbeat messages through signaling, avoid frequent establishment and release of a radio bearer for data transmission, reduce establishment and release of the radio bearer, reduce radio bearer, save air interface resources, reduce signaling interaction between a terminal and a network device, and can relieve network congestion to a greater extent. And the capacity indicating step is implemented before data transmission, so that the accuracy of data transmission is ensured on the basis of relieving network congestion.

Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that: all or a portion of the steps of implementing the above-described method embodiments may be performed by hardware associated with program instructions. The program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. When executed, the program performs steps comprising the method embodiments described above; and the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media that can store program codes, such as ROM, RAM, magnetic or optical disks.

Finally, it should be noted that: the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solution of the present invention, and not to limit the same; while the invention has been described in detail and with reference to the foregoing embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that: the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments may still be modified, or some or all of the technical features may be equivalently replaced; and the modifications or the substitutions do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions depart from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method of data transmission, comprising:

the method comprises the steps that access network equipment receives a first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE);

the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the first signaling;

and the access network equipment sends the small data to core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment sends the small data to a packet data network through core network gateway equipment.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining the small data according to the first signaling comprises:

and the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the access network device obtaining the small data from the first signaling comprises:

and if the first signaling does not use non-access stratum encryption, the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling.

4. The method of claim 2 or 3, wherein the access network device obtaining the small data from the first signaling comprises:

and the access network equipment acquires the small data from the first signaling according to a first indication contained in the first signaling, wherein the first indication is used for indicating that the first signaling contains the small data.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the obtaining the small data according to the first signaling comprises:

the access network device sends the first signaling to a core network control device, so that the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling and carries the small data in a second signaling to send to the access network device;

and the access network equipment receives a second signaling containing the small data sent by the core network control equipment, and acquires the small data from the second signaling.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the access network device sending the first signaling to the core network control device comprises:

and if the first signaling uses non-access stratum encryption, the access network equipment sends the first signaling to core network control equipment.

7. The method of claim 5 or 6, wherein the access network device obtaining the small data from the second signaling comprises:

the access network equipment acquires the small data from the second signaling according to a second indication contained in the second signaling; the second indication is for indicating that the second signaling includes the small data.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7,

before the access network device receives the first signaling containing the small data sent by the UE, the method further includes:

the access network equipment receives a Radio Resource Control (RRC) connection request message sent by the UE, wherein the connection establishment reason contained in the RRC connection request message is small data transmission;

the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the first signaling, and the method comprises the following steps:

and the access network equipment acquires the small data according to the connection establishment reason and the first signaling.

9. The method of any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the access network device sending the small data to the core network service device, comprises:

the access network equipment sends the small data acquired from the first signaling to the core network service equipment according to the reserved address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier;

or,

and the access network equipment sends the small data acquired from the second signaling to the core network service equipment according to the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier contained in the second signaling.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the first signaling and/or the second signaling further comprises priority indication information.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10,

the first signaling is an extended service request message or a service request message;

the second signaling is an initial context setup request.

12. The method of any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the access network device sending the small data to a core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to a packet data network through a core network gateway device comprises:

and the access network equipment sends the small data to a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) service node (SGSN) so that the SGSN sends the small data to a packet data network through a GPRS gateway node (GGSN).

13. The method according to any of claims 1 to 12, wherein before the access network device receives the first signaling containing small data sent by the UE, the method further comprises:

the access network equipment sends a connection release message to the UE and starts a timer;

and the access network equipment does not send a UE context release request to a Mobility Management Entity (MME) within the timing period of the timer, and reserves the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

14. The method according to any of claims 1 to 12, wherein before the access network device receives the first signaling containing small data sent by the UE, the method further comprises:

the access network equipment sends a UE context release request to the core network control equipment, wherein the UE context release request comprises indication information for reserving the context information of the UE; the access network equipment reserves the context information of the UE according to the indication information;

or,

the access network equipment receives a UE context release command sent by core network control equipment, wherein the UE context release command comprises indication information for reserving the context information of the UE;

and the access network equipment reserves the context information of the UE according to the indication information.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the access network device retains context information of the UE, comprising:

and the access network equipment reserves the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identification.

16. A method of data transmission, comprising:

the method comprises the steps that core network control equipment receives a first signaling containing small data sent by access network equipment;

and the core network control equipment sends a second signaling to the access network equipment, wherein the second signaling comprises the small data, the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier, so that the access network equipment acquires the small data from the second signaling and sends the small data to the core network service equipment according to the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

17. A method of data transmission, comprising:

the method comprises the steps that core network control equipment receives a first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE);

the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling;

and the core network control equipment sends a third signaling containing the small data to core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment sends the small data to a packet data network through core network gateway equipment.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the core network control device sending a third signaling containing the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to a packet data network through a core network gateway device comprises:

and the core network control equipment sends the third signaling containing the small data to a serving gateway (S-GW) so that the S-GW sends the small data to a packet data network through a packet data network gateway (PDN GW).

19. The method according to claim 17 or 18, wherein the receiving, by the core network control device, the first signaling containing small data sent by the UE comprises:

the core network control device receives an extended service request message sent by the UE, wherein the extended service request message comprises a third indication and small data, and the third indication is used for indicating that the extended service request message comprises the small data;

the core network control device obtaining the small data from the first signaling, including:

the core network control device acquires the small data from the extended service request message according to the third indication;

the sending, by the core network control device, the third signaling including the small data to the core network service device includes:

the core network control device sends a bearer modification request to the core network service device, where the bearer modification request includes a fourth indication and the small data, and the fourth indication is used to indicate that the bearer modification request message includes the small data.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein the core network control device sending a third signaling containing the small data to the core network service device, so that the core network service device sends the small data to a packet data network through a core network gateway device comprises:

and the core network control equipment sends the third signaling containing the small data to a General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) service node (SGSN) so that the SGSN sends the small data to a packet data network through a gateway GPRS (general packet radio service) node (GGSN).

21. A method of data transmission, comprising:

the method comprises the steps that core network service equipment receives a modification bearing request containing small data sent by core network control equipment;

and the core network service equipment sends the small data to core network gateway equipment.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein before the core network service device receives the request for modifying the bearer containing the small data sent by the core network control device, the method further comprises:

the core network service equipment receives an access bearer releasing request sent by the core network control equipment, wherein the access bearer releasing request comprises indication information for reserving context information related to access network equipment of User Equipment (UE);

23. The method of claim 22, wherein the core network serving device retains access network device related context information for the UE, comprising:

and the core network service equipment reserves the address information and the tunnel endpoint information of the access network equipment of the UE.

24. An access network device, comprising:

the receiver is used for receiving first signaling containing small data sent by User Equipment (UE);

a processor configured to obtain the small data according to the first signaling;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting the small data to core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment transmits the small data to a packet data network through core network gateway equipment.

25. The access network device of claim 24, wherein the processor is further configured to obtain the small data from the first signaling.

26. The access network device of claim 25, wherein the processor is specifically configured to obtain the small data from the first signaling if the first signaling does not use non-access stratum encryption.

27. The access network device of claim 25 or 26, wherein the processor is further configured to obtain the small data from the first signaling according to a first indication included in the first signaling, and wherein the first indication indicates that the first signaling includes the small data.

28. An access network device according to any one of claims 24 to 27,

the transmitter is further configured to send the first signaling to a core network control device, so that the core network control device obtains the small data from the first signaling and carries the small data in a second signaling to send to the access network device;

the receiver is further configured to receive second signaling containing the small data sent by the core network control device;

the processor is further configured to obtain the small data from the second signaling.

29. The access network device of claim 28, wherein the transmitter is further configured to send the first signaling to the core network control device if the first signaling uses non-access stratum encryption.

30. The access network device of claim 28 or 29, wherein the processor is further configured to obtain the small data from the second signaling according to a second indication included in the second signaling; the second indication is for indicating that the second signaling includes the small data.

31. The access network device of any of claims 24 to 30,

the receiver is further configured to receive a radio resource control RRC connection request message sent by the UE, where a connection establishment cause included in the RRC connection request message is small data transmission;

the processor is further configured to obtain the small data according to the connection establishment cause and the first signaling.

32. The access network device of any of claims 24 to 31,

the sender is further configured to send the small data acquired from the first signaling to the core network service device according to the reserved address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier;

or,

the sender is further configured to send the small data acquired from the second signaling to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier included in the second signaling.

33. An access network device according to any one of claims 24 to 32, characterised in that the transmitter is further configured to transmit the small data to a general packet radio service, GPRS, serving node, SGSN, such that the SGSN transmits the small data to a packet data network via a GPRS gateway node, GGSN.

34. An access network device according to any one of claims 24 to 33,

the sender is further configured to send a connection release message to the UE, start a timer, and not send a UE context release request to a mobility management entity MME within a timing period of the timer; the access network device further includes:

and the memory is used for reserving the address of the core network service equipment and the tunnel endpoint identification.

35. An access network device according to any one of claims 24 to 33,

the transmitter is further configured to transmit a UE context release request to the core network control device, where the UE context release request includes indication information for retaining context information of the UE;

the receiver is further configured to receive a UE context release command sent by a core network control device, where the UE context release command includes indication information for retaining context information of the UE;

correspondingly, the access network device further includes:

a memory for retaining context information of the UE according to the indication information.

36. The access network device of claim 35, wherein the memory is specifically configured to retain an address of the core network service device and a tunnel endpoint identification.

37. A core network control device, comprising:

the receiver is used for receiving a first signaling containing small data sent by the access network equipment;

a sender, configured to send a second signaling to the access network device, where the second signaling includes the small data, an address of a core network service device, and a tunnel endpoint identifier, so that the access network device obtains the small data from the second signaling and sends the small data to the core network service device according to the address of the core network service device and the tunnel endpoint identifier.

38. A core network control device, comprising:

a processor configured to obtain the small data from the first signaling;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting a third signaling containing the small data to the core network service equipment so that the core network service equipment transmits the small data to the packet data network through the core network gateway equipment.

39. The core network control apparatus of claim 38,

the transmitter is specifically configured to send the third signaling including the small data to a serving gateway S-GW, so that the S-GW sends the small data to a packet data network through a packet data network gateway PDN GW.

40. Core network control device according to claim 38 or 39,

the receiver is specifically configured to receive an extended service request message sent by the UE, where the extended service request message includes a third indication and the small data, and the third indication is used to indicate that the extended service request message includes the small data;

the processor is specifically configured to obtain the small data from the extended service request message according to the third indication;

the transmitter is specifically configured to send a bearer modification request to the core network service device, where the bearer modification request includes a fourth indication and the small data, and the fourth indication is used to indicate that the bearer modification request message includes the small data.

41. The core network control apparatus of claim 38,

the transmitter is further configured to send the third signaling including the small data to a general packet radio service GPRS service node SGSN, so that the SGSN transmits the small data to a packet data network through a GPRS gateway node GGSN.

42. A core network service device, comprising:

the receiver is used for receiving a modification bearing request containing small data sent by core network control equipment;

and the transmitter is used for transmitting the small data to the gateway equipment of the core network.

43. The core network service equipment of claim 42,

the receiver is further configured to receive an access bearer release request sent by a core network control device, where the access bearer release request includes indication information for retaining context information related to access network equipment of the user equipment UE; correspondingly, the method further comprises the following steps:

and the memory is used for reserving the access network equipment related context information of the UE according to the indication information.

44. The apparatus of claim 43,

the memory is specifically configured to retain address information and tunnel endpoint information of the access network device of the UE.