CN101217810A - A Selection Method of Policy and Charging Rule Function - Google Patents

Abstract

A method for selecting policy and charging rule functions, when the UE accesses the 3GPP system through the E-UTRAN of the visited network or the trusted non-3GPP IP: when the DRA of the visited network receives the session establishment request message sent by PCEF and/or GWCF , forward it to the PCRF of the visited network selected by the DRA of the visited network; the PCRF of the visited network forwards the above message to the DRA of the home network; when the DRA of the home network receives the session establishment request message, it forwards it to the The PCRF of the home network selected by the DRA of the home network; if the AF is located in the visited network, when the DRA of the visited network receives the application/service information message, it forwards it to the PCRF of the visited network selected by the DRA of the visited network; the visited network The PCRF forwards the application/service information message to the DRA of the home network.

Description

A Selection Method of Policy and Charging Rule Function

technical field

The invention relates to the communication field, in particular to a method for selecting policy and charging rule functions.

Background technique

3GPP (3rd Generation Partnership Project, 3rd Generation Partnership Project) evolved packet system (Evolved Packet System, referred to as EPS) consists of evolved UTRAN (Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network, referred to as E-UTRAN), MME (Mobility Management Entity, mobile management unit), S-GW (Serving Gateway, service gateway), PDN GW (Packet Data Network GateWay, data network gateway, referred to as P-GW), HSS (Home Subscriber Server, home user server), 3GPP AAA (Authentication Authorization Accounting ) server, PCRF (Policy and Charging Rules Function, policy and charging rule function), and other supporting nodes.

Among them, MME is responsible for mobility management, non-access stratum signaling processing, user mobility management context management and other control plane related work; S-GW is an access gateway device connected to E-UTRAN, between E-UTRAN and The P-GWs forward data and are responsible for caching the paging waiting data. P-GW is the border gateway between 3GPP EPS and PDN network, responsible for PDN access, data forwarding between EPS and PDN and other functions.

PCRF is a policy and charging rule functional entity, which obtains service information through the Rx interface and the operator's IP (Internet Protocol, Internet Protocol) service network interface; and connects with the gateway device in the network through the S7/S7a/S7c interface, and is responsible for initiating The establishment of IP bearer ensures the QoS (Quality of Service) of business data and performs billing control.

Figure 1 is a system architecture diagram of the EPS. As shown in Figure 1, EPS supports interworking with non-3GPP networks. Intercommunication with non-3GPP networks is realized through the S2a/b interface, and P-GW serves as the anchor point between 3GPP and non-3GPP networks. Among them, the non-3GPP system is divided into trusted non-3GPP IP access and untrusted non-3GPP IP access. Trusted non-3GPP IP access can directly interface with P-GW through S2a; untrusted non-3GPP IP access needs to be connected to P-GW through ePDG (Evolved Packet Data Gateway, evolved data gateway), ePDG and P-GW The interface is S2b.

In the traditional 3GPP network, the policy and charging enforcement function (PCEF, Policy and charging forcement function) only exists in the P-GW, and the PCRF can complete the control of all functions as long as it interfaces with the P-GW. Information is exchanged via the S7 interface. However, when the interface between P-GW and S-GW is based on PMIPv6 (Proxy Mobile IP v6, proxy mobile IP version 6), the policy enforcement function in the PCEF function also partially exists in the S-GW, which is called the gateway control function (GWCF, Gateway Control Function, gateway control function), also known as BBERF (BearerBinding and Event Reporting Function, bearer binding and event reporting function); S-GW and PCRF exchange information through the S7c interface. When accessing through the trusted non-3GPP access system, the GWCF also resides in the trusted non-3GPP access gateway. Information is exchanged between the trusted non-3GPP access gateway and the PCRF through the S7a interface.

When the UE (User Equipment, user terminal) roams, the S9 interface serves as the interface between the home network PCRF and the visited network PCRF; at the same time, the AF (Application Function, application function) that provides services for the UE sends to the PCRF through the Rx+ interface to generate a PCC (Policy ChargingContorl, Policy Charging Control) Policy service information.

There are three roaming architectures in the EPS system. The first is called Home Routed. As shown in Figure 1, the P-GW is in the home network (home network), and the home network operator provides IP services (that is, the AF is in the home network). home network); the second is called local break and the home network operator provides IP services (Local Break, with home operator's Application Functions only), as shown in Figure 2; the third is called local break and is provided by the visiting Network operators provide IP services (LocalBreak, with visited operator's Application Functions only), as shown in Figure 3.

There are multiple PCRF nodes in one PLMN of the EPS, and all PCRF nodes belong to one or more Diameter (PCRF) domains (hereinafter referred to as PCRF domains), that is, the Diameter (diameter) protocol is used between PCRF entities. All PCRFs in a PCRF domain are equal. A connection from a UE to a PDN network is called an IP-CAN (IP Connectivity Access Network, IP connection access network) session. The PCC policy of an IP-CAN session is only decided by one PCRF. In order to ensure that all PCEFs, GWCFs, and AFs related to an IP-CAN session are associated with the same PCRF, EPS introduces a logical function module DRA (Diameter Routing Agent, Diameter routing agent) in each PCRF domain. When the UE establishes an IP-CAN session to a PDN, a PCRF is selected by the DRA for the IP-CAN session. The PCEF, GWCF and AF related to this IP-CAN session are associated to the selected PCRF by the DRA. However, how to perform the initial selection of the PCRF through the DRA, and how to associate the PCEF, GWCF and AF related to an IP-CAN session to the same PCRF is still a problem to be solved.

Contents of the invention

The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to propose a method for selecting a PCRF for an IP-CAN session through a DRA, so that the PCEF, GWCF and AF related to the IP-CAN session are all associated with the same PCRF.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a method for selecting a policy and charging rule function, which is characterized in that, when the UE accesses the 3GPP system through the E-UTRAN of the visited network or the trusted non-3GPP IP:

When the DRA of the visited network receives the session establishment request message sent by the PCEF and/or GWCF, it forwards it to the PCRF of the visited network selected by the DRA of the visited network for the corresponding IP-CAN session; the PCRF of the visited network sends the above The message is forwarded to the DRA of the home network;

When the DRA of the home network receives the session establishment request message sent by the PCEF and/or GWCF, it forwards it to the PCRF of the home network selected by the DRA of the home network for the corresponding IP-CAN session;

If the AF is located in the visited network, when the DRA of the visited network receives the application/service information message of the IP-CAN session, it forwards it to the DRA of the visited network selected for the corresponding IP-CAN session. PCRF; the PCRF of the visited network forwards the above application/service information message to the DRA of the home network;

If the AF is located in the home network, when the DRA of the home network receives the application/service information message of the IP-CAN session, it forwards it to the PCRF of the home network selected by the DRA of the home network for the IP-CAN session.

In addition, the session establishment request message sent by the PCEF is an IP-CAN session establishment indication message; the session establishment request message sent by the GWCF is a gateway control session establishment message.

In addition, when the DRA of the visited network and the DRA of the home network receive the IP-CAN session establishment indication message and/or the gateway control session establishment message, they search for a locally stored record:

If the record of the IP-CAN session is not found, then select a PCRF for the IP-CAN session, and record the correspondence between the IP-CAN session and the PCRF; and forward the above message to the selected PCRF;

If the record of the IP-CAN session is found, the above message is forwarded to the PCRF corresponding to the record;

When the DRA of the visited network and the home network, or the DRA of the home network receives the application/service information message, forward the message to the corresponding PCRF according to the locally recorded correspondence between the IP-CAN session and the PCRF .

In addition, when the PCRF of the visited network receives the IP-CAN session establishment indication message and/or the gateway control session establishment message, it searches for the home network DRA corresponding to the IP-CAN session according to the UE ID contained in the above message, and records The corresponding relationship between the IP-CAN session and the home network DRA, and sending the above message to the home network DRA;

When the PCRF of the visited network receives the application/service information message, it sends the message to the corresponding home network DRA according to the recorded correspondence between the IP-CAN session and the home network DRA.

In addition, when the PCRF of the home network receives the IP-CAN session establishment instruction message, it generates a corresponding PCC policy, and includes it in the IP-CAN session establishment confirmation message and sends it to the DRA of the home network;

If the network element where the PCEF is located is located in the home network, the DRA of the home network will forward it to the PCEF after receiving the above confirmation message; if the network element where the PCEF is located is located in the visited network, the DRA of the home network will receive the above confirmation message. The PCRF and DRA of the visited network forward it to the PCEF.

In addition, when the PCRF of the home network receives the gateway control session establishment message, it generates a corresponding QoS policy, and includes it in the gateway control session establishment confirmation message and sends it to the DRA of the home network;

If the network element where the GWCF is located is located in the home network, the DRA of the home network receives the above confirmation message and forwards it to the GWCF; if the network element where the GWCF is located is located in the visited network, the DRA of the home network receives the above confirmation message. The PCRF and DRA of the visited network forward it to the GWCF.

In addition, when the PCRF of the home network receives the application/service information message, it saves the service information contained therein for generating the PCC policy, and sends an acknowledgment message to the DRA of the home network;

If the AF is located in the home network, the DRA of the home network forwards it to the AF after receiving the confirmation message; if the AF is located in the visited network, the DRA of the home network receives the confirmation message and forwards it to the Forward to AF.

In addition, after receiving the IP-CAN session establishment confirmation message, the PCRF of the visited network modifies the PCC policy included therein according to the local policy, and forwards the message to the PCEF through the DRA of the visited network.

In addition, after receiving the gateway control session establishment confirmation message, the PCRF of the visited network modifies the QoS policy included therein according to the local policy, and then forwards the message to the GWCF through the DRA of the visited network.

In addition, when the UE is handed over from E-UTRAN to a trusted or untrusted non-3GPP IP to access the 3GPP system, or performs reverse handover, and the PCEF is located in the visited network:

When the DRA of the visited network receives the IP-CAN session modification message sent by the PCEF, it forwards the message to the corresponding PCRF of the visited network according to the stored record of the IP-CAN session;

The PCRF of the visited network forwards the above message to the DRA of the home network according to the UE ID contained in the message, or according to the corresponding relationship between the IP-CAN session recorded locally and the DRA of the home network;

When the DRA of the home network receives the above message, it forwards it to the corresponding PCRF of the home network according to the stored record of the IP-CAN session;

The PCRF of the home network modifies the PCC policy of the IP-CAN session, includes the modified PCC policy in the IP-CAN session modification confirmation message, and sends it to the PCEF through the DRA of the home network, the PCRF of the visited network, and the DRA of the visited network.

In addition, when the UE is switched from E-UTRAN access to trusted or untrusted non-3GPP IP access to the 3GPP system, or reverse switching, and the PCEF is located in the home network:

When the DRA of the home network receives the IP-CAN session modification message sent by the PCEF, it forwards it to the corresponding PCRF of the home network according to the stored record of the IP-CAN session;

The PCRF of the home network modifies the PCC policy of the IP-CAN session, includes the modified PCC policy in the IP-CAN session modification confirmation message, and sends it to the PCEF through the DRA of the home network.

In addition, after receiving the IP-CAN session modification confirmation message, the PCRF of the visited network modifies the PCC policy contained in the message, and sends the message to the PCEF through the DRA of the visited network.

The present invention also provides a method for selecting policy and charging rule functions, which is characterized in that, when the UE adopts the roaming architecture of the home route, and accesses the 3GPP system through the untrustworthy non-3GPP IP of the visited network:

When the DRA of the home network receives the IP-CAN session establishment indication message sent by the PCEF, it selects the PCRF of the home network for the corresponding IP-CAN session, and forwards the message to the PCRF; and upon receiving the application/ For a service information message, forward the message to the above PCRF;

When the PCRF of the home network receives the IP-CAN session establishment instruction message, it generates the corresponding PCC policy, and includes it in the corresponding confirmation message and sends it to the PCEF through the DRA of the home network; and when receiving the application/service information message , saving the service information contained therein for generating the PCC policy, and sending a confirmation message to the AF through the DRA of the home network.

In addition, after the DRA of the home network selects the PCRF of the home network for the IP-CAN session, record the corresponding relationship between the IP-CAN session and the PCRF;

When receiving the application/service information message, the DRA of the home network forwards the message to the corresponding PCRF according to the recorded correspondence between the IP-CAN session and the PCRF.

The present invention also provides a method for selecting policy and charging rule functions, which is characterized in that, when the UE adopts the roaming architecture of local transmission, when accessing the 3GPP system through the untrustworthy non-3GPP IP of the visited network:

When the DRA of the visited network receives the IP-CAN session establishment indication message sent by the PCEF, it selects the PCRF of the visited network for the corresponding IP-CAN session; and forwards the message to the PCRF of the visited network; the PCRF of the visited network will The above message is forwarded to the DRA of the home network;

When the DRA of the home network receives the above message, it selects the PCRF of the home network for the corresponding IP-CAN session; and forwards the message to the PCRF of the home network;

When the DRA of the visited network and the home network, or the DRA of the home network receives the application/service information message of the IP-CAN session sent by the AF, it forwards it to the above-mentioned PCRF selected for the IP-CAN session.

In addition, after the DRA of the visited network and the DRA of the home network select the PCRF of the visited network for the corresponding IP-CAN session, record the corresponding relationship between the IP-CAN session and the PCRF;

When the DRA of the visited network and the home network, or the DRA of the home network receives the application/service information message sent by the AF, it forwards the message to the Corresponding PCRF.

In addition, when the PCRF of the visited network receives the IP-CAN session establishment instruction message, it searches for the home network DRA corresponding to the IP-CAN session according to the UE ID contained in the above message, and records the IP-CAN session and the home network DRA. The corresponding relationship of the network DRA, and sending the above message to the home network DRA;

When the PCRF of the visited network receives the application/service information message, it sends the message to the corresponding home network DRA according to the recorded correspondence between the IP-CAN session and the home network DRA.

It can be seen from the above that, with the PCRF selection method of the present invention, when the UE is in the roaming state of home routing or local routing, a single PCRF of the visited network and the home network can be selected for the IP-CAN session of the UE.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is a roaming architecture diagram of the home route of the EPS system;

Fig. 2 is a roaming architecture diagram of the local transmission of the EPS system and the IP service provided by the home network operator;

Figure 3 is a roaming architecture diagram of the local transmission of the EPS system and the IP service provided by the visited network operator;

Fig. 4 is the flowchart of the first embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 5 is the flowchart of the second embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 6 is the flowchart of the third embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 7 is a flowchart of the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed ways

The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings and embodiments.

first embodiment

This embodiment describes: when the UE adopts the roaming architecture of home routing (as shown in Figure 1), it accesses from E-UTRAN, or accesses from a trusted non-3GPP IP, or accesses a 3GPP IP from an untrusted non-3GPP IP. system, in the process of establishing an IP-CAN session, the P-GW selects the PCRF process, the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway finds the P-GW selected PCRF process, and when the UE initiates the process based on the IP- When a service request of the CAN session is triggered, the AF providing the service is triggered to provide application/service information to the PCRF, and the AF finds the process of the PCRF selected by the P-GW. The flow chart of this embodiment is shown in Figure 4, and each step is described as follows:

402. During the UE attachment process, after receiving the proxy binding update request message sent by the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP IP access gateway, the P-GW sends an IP-CAN session establishment indication request message, and the P-GW acts as a PCEF entity Located in the home network of the UE, the message is sent to the DRA of the home network (referred to as hDRA);

The above-mentioned "IP-CAN session establishment instruction" request message carries: NAI (Network Access Identifier, network access identifier), the IP address of the UE, and the APN (AccessPoint Name, access point name) of the PDN to be accessed.

404. hDRA searches locally stored information according to NAI, IP address and APN, but does not find the record of the IP-CAN session, so hDRA selects a PCRF (denoted as hPCRF) of the home network for P-GW, establishes and saves IP-CAN The corresponding relationship between the session and the hPCRF: (NAI, IP address, APN, hPCRF address), and forward the request message to hPCRF;

406. hPCRF generates a PCC strategy according to the user's subscription information, network strategy, etc., and uses a tuple (NAI, IP address, APN) to identify the IP-CAN session; hPCRF will include the "IP-CAN session establishment confirmation" message of the above PCC strategy Send to hDRA to issue PCC strategy;

408. The hDRA forwards the above-mentioned "IP-CAN session establishment confirmation" message to the P-GW, and the P-GW installs the PCC rule according to the PCC policy included in the message;

410. After receiving the proxy binding confirmation message sent by the P-GW, the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway sends a gateway control session establishment message; the message carries NAI, IP address and APN; the S-GW or can The trusted non-3GPP access gateway is located in the visited network of the UE as the GWCF entity, and the message is sent to the DRA of the visited network (denoted as vDRA);

412. vDRA searches locally stored information according to NAI, IP address and APN, but does not find the IP-CAN session record, so vDRA selects a vPCRF for S-GW or trusted non-3GPP access gateway, establishes and saves IP-CAN The corresponding relationship between the session and the vPCRF: (NAI, IP address, APN, vPCRF address), and forward the "gateway control session establishment" request message to vPCRF;

414. vPCRF does not find the record of the IP-CAN session according to the NAI, IP address and APN, so it creates a record for it and identifies it with the tuple (NAI, IP address, APN); at the same time, it forwards the "gateway control session establishment" to hDRA according to the NAI "Request message, establish and save the corresponding relationship (NAI, IP address, APN, hDRA address);

416. The hDRA searches locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, finds that hPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and forwards the above-mentioned "gateway control session establishment" request message to the hPCRF;

418. hPCRF searches the locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, finds that the IP-CAN session has been registered, associates the gateway control session with the IP-CAN session, and generates QoS according to the user's subscription information and network policies, etc. Policy, which is included in the "Gateway Control Session Establishment Confirmation" message and sent to hDRA to deliver the QoS policy;

420. The hDRA returns the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message to the vPCRF;

422. The vPCRF modifies the QoS policy contained in the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message according to the local policy, and then forwards the message to the vDRA;

424. The vDRA forwards the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message to the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway, and the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway installs a QoS policy;

426. The UE initiates a service request to the AF, and the AF sends an "application/service information" message, which carries an IP address and an APN. The AF is located in the home network of the UE, and the message is sent to hDRA;

428. hDRA searches the locally stored information according to the IP address and APN, finds that hPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then forwards the message to the hPCRF;

430. hPCRF obtains and saves the service information, uses it to generate a PCC strategy, and returns a confirmation message to hDRA;

432. The hDRA forwards the confirmation message to the AF.

In the above embodiment, if the UE accesses through untrusted non-3GPP, steps 410-424 are omitted.

second embodiment

This embodiment describes: when the UE uses local transmission and the home network operator provides the roaming architecture diagram of IP services (as shown in Figure 2), the UE accesses from E-UTRAN, or from a trusted non-3GPP IP When accessing the 3GPP system from an untrusted non-3GPP IP, in the process of establishing an IP-CAN session, the P-GW selects the PCRF process, and the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway finds the P-GW selected The process of PCRF, and when the UE initiates a service request based on the IP-CAN session, the AF that provides the service is triggered to provide application/service information to the PCRF, and the AF finds the process of the PCRF selected by the P-GW. The flow chart of this embodiment is shown in Figure 5, and each step is described as follows:

502. During the UE attachment process, after receiving the proxy binding update request message sent by the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP IP access gateway, the P-GW sends an "IP-CAN session establishment indication" request message, and the P-GW acts as The PCEF entity is located in the UE's visited network, and the message is sent to vDRA;

The above "IP-CAN session establishment indication" request message carries: NAI, the IP address of the UE, and the APN of the PDN to be accessed.

504. The vDRA searches the locally saved information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, but does not find a record related to the IP-CAN session. Therefore, the vDRA selects the vPCRF for the P-GW, and establishes a corresponding relationship between the IP-CAN session and the vPCRF:( NAI, IP address, APN, vPCRF address), and forward the "IP-CAN session establishment indication" request message to vPCRF;

506. vPCRF does not find the record of the IP-CAN session according to the NAI, IP address and APN, so it creates a record for it and identifies it with a tuple (NAI, IP address, APN); at the same time, it forwards the "IP-CAN session session" to hDRA according to the NAI Create an instruction" request message, and establish a corresponding relationship: (NAI, IP address, APN, hDRA address);

508. hDRA searches locally stored information according to NAI, IP address and APN, but does not find the record of the IP-CAN session, so hDRA selects a hPCRF for the P-GW, and establishes a corresponding relationship between the IP-CAN session and the hPCRF:( NAI, IP address, APN, hPCRF address), and forward the "IP-CAN session establishment indication" request message to hPCRF;

510. hPCRF generates a PCC strategy according to the user's subscription information, network strategy, etc., and uses a tuple (NAI, IP address, APN) to identify the IP-CAN session; hPCRF will include the "IP-CAN session establishment confirmation" message of the above PCC strategy Send it to hDRA to deliver the PCC policy.

512. The hDRA forwards the above-mentioned "IP-CAN session establishment confirmation" message to the vPCRF;

514. The vPCRF modifies the PCC policy contained in the "IP-CAN session establishment confirmation" message according to the local policy, and then forwards the message to the vDRA;

516. The vDRA forwards the "IP-CAN session establishment confirmation" message to the P-GW, and the P-GW installs the PCC rule according to the PCC policy included in the message;

518. After receiving the proxy binding confirmation message sent by the P-GW, the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway sends a "gateway control session establishment" request message; the message carries NAI, IP address and APN; S-GW The GW or trusted non-3GPP access gateway is located in the UE's visited network as a GWCF entity, and the message is sent to vDRA;

520. The vDRA searches the locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, and finds that a vPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then forwards the "gateway control session establishment" request message to the vPCRF;

522. The vPCRF searches locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, finds the hDRA corresponding to the IP-CAN session, and then sends the "gateway control session establishment" request message to the hDRA;

524. hDRA searches locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, and finds that hPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then sends the "gateway control session establishment" request message to the hPCRF;

526. hPCRF generates a QoS policy according to the user's subscription information, network policy, etc., and includes it in the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message and sends it to hDRA, and delivers the QoS policy;

528. The hDRA returns the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message to the vPCRF;

530. The vPCRF modifies the QoS policy contained in the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message according to the local policy, and then forwards the message to the vDRA;

532. The vDRA forwards the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message to the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway, and the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway installs a QoS policy;

534. The UE initiates a service request to the AF, and the AF sends an "application/service information" message, which carries an IP address and an APN. The AF is located in the UE's home network, and the message is sent to hDRA;

536. The hDRA searches the information stored locally according to the IP address and APN, and finds that hPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, so forwards the message to the hPCRF;

538. The hPCRF obtains and saves the service information, which is used to generate a PCC strategy and returns a confirmation message to the hDRA;

540. The hDRA forwards the confirmation message to the AF.

In the above embodiment, if the UE accesses through untrusted non-3GPP, steps 518-532 are omitted.

third embodiment

This embodiment describes: when the UE uses local transmission and the roaming architecture diagram of the IP service provided by the visited network operator (as shown in Figure 3), the UE accesses from E-UTRAN or from a trusted non-3GPP IP, Or when accessing the 3GPP system from an untrusted non-3GPP IP, in the process of establishing an IP-CAN session, the P-GW selects the PCRF process, and the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway finds the PCRF selected by the P-GW and when the UE initiates a service request based on the IP-CAN session, the AF that provides the service is triggered to provide application/service information to the PCRF, and the AF finds the PCRF selected by the P-GW. The flow chart of this embodiment is shown in Figure 6, and each step is described as follows:

602-632, the same as steps 502-532;

634. The UE initiates a service request to the AF, and the AF sends an "application/service information" message, which carries an IP address and an APN. The AF is located in the UE's visited network, and the message is sent to vDRA;

636. The vDRA searches the locally stored information according to the IP address and APN, and finds that vPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then forwards the "application/service information" message to the vPCRF;

638. The vPCRF searches locally stored information according to the IP address and APN, finds the hDRA corresponding to the IP-CAN session, and forwards the "application/service information" message to the hDRA;

640. The hDRA searches the locally stored information according to the IP address and the APN, finds that hPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then forwards the message to the hPCRF;

642. hPCRF obtains and saves the service information, uses it to generate a PCC strategy, and returns a confirmation message to hDRA;

644. The hDRA forwards the confirmation message to the vPCRF;

646. The vPCRF forwards the confirmation message to the vDRA;

648. The vDRA forwards the confirmation message to the AF.

In the above embodiment, if the UE accesses through an untrusted non-3GPP, steps 618-632 are omitted.

Fourth embodiment

This embodiment describes the roaming architecture diagram (as shown in Figure 3) when the UE adopts local transmission and the IP service is provided by the visited network operator, and the UE switches from E-UTRAN access to trusted non-3GPP IP access Or when an untrusted non-3GPP IP is accessed, in the process of establishing an IP-CAN session, the P-GW selects the PCRF process, the S-GW or the trusted non-3GPP access gateway finds the PCRF process selected by the P-GW, and When the UE initiates a service request based on the IP-CAN session, the AF providing the service is triggered to provide application/service information to the PCRF, and the AF finds the PCRF selected by the P-GW. Among them, the PMIPv6 protocol is used between the S-GW and the P-GW, and the PMIPv6 protocol is used between the trusted non-3GPP IP access or the untrusted non-3GPP IP access and the P-GW. The flow chart of this embodiment is shown in Figure 7, and each step is described as follows:

702. The UE accesses through the E-UTRAN, initially attaches to the 3GPP system, and establishes a connection to a certain PDN. During this process, the process of the third embodiment is adopted, and vPCRF1 is selected through vDRA1, and hPCRF is selected through hDRA.

704. The UE discovers a non-3GPP system (including a trusted or untrusted 3GPP system), and decides to initiate a handover procedure. During the handover process, the trusted non-3GPP access gateway and the P-GW need to interact with the PCRF to obtain a new PCC policy.

706. During UE handover, the trusted non-3GPP access gateway sends a "gateway control session establishment" request message after receiving the radio bearer establishment request; the message carries NAI, IP address and APN; the trusted non-3GPP access gateway As the GWCF entity is located in the UE's visited network, and is different from the PCRF domain where the S-GW is located; the DRA of the PCRF domain where the non-3GPP access gateway is trusted is vDRA2, so the message is sent to vDRA2;

708. vDRA2 searches the locally saved information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, but does not find the record of the IP-CAN session, so vDRA2 selects a PCRF for the trusted non-3GPP access gateway: vPCRF2, and establishes the IP-CAN session with vPCRF2 Correspondence: (NAI, IP address, APN, vPCRF2 address), and forward the "gateway control session establishment" request message to vPCRF2;

710. vPCRF2 does not find the record of the IP-CAN session based on the NAI, IP address and APN, so it creates a record for it and identifies it with a tuple (NAI, IP address, APN); at the same time, it forwards the "gateway control session establishment" to hDRA according to the NAI "Request message and establish a corresponding relationship: (NAI, IP address, APN, hDRA address);

712. hDRA searches locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address and APN, finds the record of the IP-CAN session, and forwards the "gateway control session establishment" request message to the corresponding hPCRF;

714. hPCRF generates a QoS policy according to the user's subscription information, network policy, etc., includes it in the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message and sends it to hDRA, and delivers the QoS policy;

716. The hDRA returns the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message to vPCRF2;

718. vPCRF2 modifies the QoS policy contained in the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message according to the local policy, and then forwards the message to vDRA2;

720. vDRA2 forwards the "gateway control session establishment confirmation" message to the trusted non-3GPP access gateway, and the trusted non-3GPP access gateway installs a QoS policy;

722. After the handover, the P-GW does not change, so after receiving the proxy binding update request message sent by the trusted non-3GPP access gateway, the P-GW sends an "IP-CAN session modification" request message to vDRA1, in which Carry NAI, IP address and APN.

724. vDRA1 searches for locally saved information according to the NAI, IP address, and APN, and finds that vPCRF1 has been selected for the IP-CAN, so it forwards the "IP-CAN session modification" request message to vPCRF1;

726. vPCRF1 searches locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address, and APN, finds the hDRA corresponding to the IP-CAN session, and then sends the "IP-CAN session modification" request message to the hDRA;

728. The hDRA searches the locally stored information according to the NAI, IP address, and APN, and finds that hPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then sends the "IP-CAN session modification" request message to the hPCRF;

730. hPCRF modifies the PCC strategy according to the user's subscription information, network strategy and IP-CAN type, includes it in the "IP-CAN session modification confirmation" message and sends it to hDRA, and issues the modified PCC strategy;

732. The hDRA forwards the "IP-CAN session modification confirmation" message to vPCRF1;

734. vPCRF1 modifies the PCC policy contained in the "IP-CAN session modification confirmation" message according to the local policy, and then forwards the message to vDRA1;

736. vDRA1 forwards the "IP-CAN session modification confirmation" message to the P-GW, and the P-GW installs the PCC rule according to the PCC policy included in the message;

738. After the handover, the AF does not change, so when the UE initiates a new service request to the AF, the AF sends an "application/service information" message to vDRA1, and the message carries the IP address and APN;

740. vDRA1 searches locally stored information according to the IP address and APN, and finds that vPCRF1 has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then forwards the "application/service information" message to vPCRF1;

742. vPCRF1 searches locally stored information according to the IP address and APN, finds the hDRA corresponding to the IP-CAN session, and forwards the "application/service information" message to the hDRA;

744. The hDRA searches the locally stored information according to the IP address and APN, finds that hPCRF has been selected for the IP-CAN session, and then forwards the message to the hPCRF;

746. hPCRF obtains and saves the service information, uses it to generate a PCC strategy, and returns a confirmation message to hDRA;

748. The hDRA forwards the confirmation message to vPCRF1;

750. vPCRF1 forwards the confirmation message to vDRA1;

752. vDRA1 forwards the confirmation message to the AF.

In the above embodiment, if the UE switches to untrusted non-3GPP access, steps 706-720 are omitted.

Based on the principle of the present invention, the above-mentioned embodiment can also have multiple transformation modes, for example:

(1) In the first to third embodiments, the IP-CAN session establishment indication message is sent prior to the gateway control session establishment message; in other embodiments, the gateway control session establishment message may also be prior to the IP-CAN session establishment indication Correspondingly, DRA selects PCRF for the IP-CAN session after receiving the gateway control session establishment message, and forwards the message using the previously selected PCRF when the IP-CAN session establishment indication message arrives.

(2) in the foregoing embodiment, uniquely identify the IP-CAN session with (NAI, IP address, APN), also can use (NAI, APN), (IP address, APN) etc. to identify the IP-CAN session;

In addition, the NAI can be replaced by other UE IDs (identifiers), and the APN can also be replaced by other PDN IDs.

(3) In the fourth embodiment, the roaming architecture of local guidance is taken as an example to describe the PCRF selection method when switching from E-UTRAN access to trusted non-3GPP IP access or untrustworthy non-3GPP IP access; for The roaming architecture of the home route is basically the same, the difference is that because the P-GW and the AF are located in the home network, the corresponding messages are directly sent to the hDRA.

Claims (17)

1. the system of selection of a "Policy and Charging Rules Function is characterized in that, E-UTRAN or the trusted non-3GPP IP when inserting 3GPP system of UE by visited network:

The DRA of visited network receives session that PCEF and/or GWCF send when setting up request message, forwards it to the PCRF of the DRA of this visited network for the selected visited network of corresponding IP-CAN session; The PCRF of this visited network is with the DRA of above-mentioned forwards to home network;

The DRA of home network receives session that PCEF and/or GWCF send when setting up request message, forwards it to the PCRF of the DRA of this home network for the selected home network of corresponding IP-CAN session;

If AF is positioned at visited network, then the DRA of visited network forwards it to the PCRF of the DRA of above-mentioned visited network for the selected visited network of corresponding IP-CAN session when receiving the application of described IP-CAN session/business information message; The PCRF of this visited network is with the DRA of above-mentioned application/business information forwards to home network;

If AF is positioned at home network, when then the DRA of home network receives the application of described IP-CAN session/business information message, forward it to the PCRF of the DRA of above-mentioned home network for the selected home network of this IP-CAN session.

2. the method for claim 1 is characterized in that, the described session that PCEF sends is set up request message and set up Indication message for the IP-CAN session; It is that gateway control session is set up message that request message is set up in the described session that GWCF sends.

3. method as claimed in claim 2 is characterized in that,

The DRA of described visited network and the DRA of described home network receive the IP-CAN session when setting up Indication message and/or gateway control session and setting up message, search the record of local storage:

If do not find the record of this IP-CAN session, then be that a PCRF is selected in this IP-CAN session, and write down the corresponding relation of this IP-CAN session and this PCRF; And with above-mentioned forwards to described selected PCRF;

If find the record of this IP-CAN session, then with the PCRF of above-mentioned forwards to this record correspondence;

The DRA of described visited network and home network, or the DRA of home network is when receiving described application/business information message, according to the described IP-CAN session of local record and the corresponding relation of PCRF, with this forwards to corresponding PCRF.

4. method as claimed in claim 3 is characterized in that,

The PCRF of described visited network receives described IP-CAN session when setting up Indication message and/or gateway control session and setting up message, search the home network DRA of this IP-CAN session correspondence according to the UE ID that comprises in the above-mentioned message, write down the corresponding relation of this IP-CAN session and this home network DRA, and above-mentioned message is sent to this home network DRA;

When the PCRF of described visited network receives described application/business information message,, this message is sent to the home network DRA of correspondence according to the IP-CAN session and the corresponding relation of home network DRA of record.

5. method as claimed in claim 2 is characterized in that,

The PCRF of home network receives the IP-CAN session when setting up Indication message, generates corresponding PCC strategy, and it is included in the IP-CAN session sets up the DRA that sends to home network in the acknowledge message;

If the network element at PCEF place is positioned at home network, then the DRA of home network forwards it to PCEF after receiving above-mentioned acknowledge message; If the network element at PCEF place is positioned at visited network, after then the DRA of home network received above-mentioned acknowledge message, PCRF and DRA by visited network forwarded it to PCEF.

6. method as claimed in claim 2 is characterized in that,

The PCRF of home network receives gateway control session when setting up message, generates corresponding qos policy, and it is included in gateway control session sets up the DRA that sends to home network in the acknowledge message;

If the network element at GWCF place is positioned at home network, then the DRA of home network forwards it to GWCF after receiving above-mentioned acknowledge message; If the network element at GWCF place is positioned at visited network, after then the DRA of home network received above-mentioned acknowledge message, PCRF and DRA by visited network forwarded it to GWCF.

7. method as claimed in claim 2 is characterized in that,

When the PCRF of home network receives application/business information message, preserve the business information that is used to generate the PCC strategy that wherein comprises, and send acknowledge message to the DRA of home network;

If AF is positioned at home network, then the DRA of home network forwards it to AF after receiving above-mentioned acknowledge message; If AF is positioned at visited network, after then the DRA of home network received above-mentioned acknowledge message, PCRF and DRA by visited network forwarded it to AF.

8. method as claimed in claim 5, it is characterized in that, the PCRF of visited network receives after described IP-CAN session sets up acknowledge message, and after according to local policy the PCC strategy that wherein comprises being made amendment, the DRA by described visited network is forwarded to PCEF with this message.

9. method as claimed in claim 6, it is characterized in that, the PCRF of visited network receives after described gateway control session sets up acknowledge message, and after according to local policy the qos policy that wherein comprises being made amendment, the DRA by described visited network is forwarded to GWCF with this message.

10. method as claimed in claim 4 is characterized in that, described UE inserts the 3GPP system being switched to by E-UTRAN by trusted or trustless non-3GPP IP, or oppositely switches, and PCEF is when being positioned at visited network:

When the DRA of described visited network receives the IP-CAN session modification message of PCEF transmission, according to the record of this IP-CAN session of storing, with the PCRF of above-mentioned forwards to corresponding visited network;

The PCRF of this visited network is according to the UE ID that comprises in this message, or according to the IP-CAN session of local record and the corresponding relation of home network DRA, with the DRA of above-mentioned forwards to home network;

When the DRA of home network receives above-mentioned message,, forward it to the PCRF of corresponding home network according to the record of this IP-CAN session of storage;

The PCRF of home network revises the PCC strategy of this IP-CAN session, and amended PCC strategy is included in the IP-CAN session modification acknowledge message, and DRA, the PCRF of visited network, the DRA of visited network by home network are sent to PCEF.

11. method as claimed in claim 4 is characterized in that, described UE inserts the 3GPP system being inserted by E-UTRAN to switch to by trusted or trustless non-3GPP IP, or oppositely switches, and PCEF is when being positioned at home network:

When the DRA of home network receives the IP-CAN session modification message of PCEF transmission,, forward it to the PCRF of corresponding home network according to the record of this IP-CAN session of storing;

The PCRF of home network revises the PCC strategy of this IP-CAN session, and amended PCC strategy is included in the IP-CAN session modification acknowledge message, and the DRA by home network is sent to PCEF.

12. method as claimed in claim 10 is characterized in that, the PCRF of visited network makes amendment to the PCC strategy that comprises in this message after receiving described IP-CAN session modification acknowledge message, and the DRA of this message by visited network is sent to PCEF.

13. the system of selection of a "Policy and Charging Rules Function is characterized in that, UE adopts the roaming framework of local route, when the trustless non-3GPP IP by visited network inserts the 3GPP system:

The DRA of home network receives IP-CAN session that PCEF sends when setting up Indication message, is the PCRF of the selected home network of IP-CAN session of correspondence, and with this forwards to this PCRF; And when receiving the application that AF sends/business information message, with this forwards to above-mentioned PCRF;

The PCRF of home network generates corresponding PCC strategy receiving the IP-CAN session when setting up Indication message, it is included in the DRA by home network sends to PCEF in the corresponding affirmation message; And when receiving application/business information message, preserve the business information that is used to generate the PCC strategy that wherein comprises, the DRA by home network sends acknowledge message to AF.

14. method as claimed in claim 13 is characterized in that,

Behind the PCRF of the DRA of described home network for the selected home network of IP-CAN session, write down the corresponding relation of this IP-CAN session and this PCRF;

When the DRA of described home network receives described application/business information message, according to the IP-CAN session of above-mentioned record and the corresponding relation of PCRF, with this forwards to corresponding PCRF.

15. the system of selection of a "Policy and Charging Rules Function is characterized in that, UE adopts the roaming framework of local transporting, when the trustless non-3GPP IP by visited network inserts the 3GPP system:

The DRA of visited network receives IP-CAN session that PCEF sends when setting up Indication message, is the PCRF of the selected visited network of IP-CAN session of correspondence; And with the PCRF of this forwards to this visited network; The PCRF of this visited network is with the DRA of above-mentioned forwards to home network;

When the DRA of home network receives above-mentioned message, be the PCRF of the selected home network of IP-CAN session of correspondence; And with the PCRF of this forwards to this home network;

The DRA of visited network and home network, or the DRA of home network forwards it to the above-mentioned selected PCRF of this IP-CAN session that is when receiving the application of the described IP-CAN session that AF sends/business information message.

16. method as claimed in claim 15 is characterized in that,

The DRA of described visited network and the DRA of described home network write down the corresponding relation of this IP-CAN session and this PCRF being after the PCRF of visited network is selected in corresponding IP-CAN session;

The DRA of described visited network and home network, or the DRA of home network is when receiving the application that described AF sends/business information message, according to the described IP-CAN session of local record and the corresponding relation of PCRF, with the PCRF of this forwards to correspondence.

17. method as claimed in claim 16 is characterized in that,

The PCRF of described visited network receives described IP-CAN session when setting up Indication message, search the home network DRA of this IP-CAN session correspondence according to the UE ID that comprises in the above-mentioned message, write down the corresponding relation of this IP-CAN session and this home network DRA, and above-mentioned message is sent to this home network DRA;

When the PCRF of described visited network receives described application/business information message,, this message is sent to the home network DRA of correspondence according to the IP-CAN session and the corresponding relation of home network DRA of record.

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