Patent Description:
This application relates to the field of communications, and particularly to the determination of network slices.

Network Slice (NSL) will be used as an important technical means for meeting special service requirements of different industries in 5th generation mobile (<NUM>) networks. An NSL is a communication resource capable of ensuring that a bearer service may meet a service level requirement (SLR). For example, in some scenarios, network service quality of a protocol data unit (PDU) session between a user equipment (UE) and a server may be supported through an established NSL.

Currently, in an NSL architecture supported by the 3rd generation partnership project (3GPP), when it is required to establish a network slice, the establishment of the network slice is usually initiated by an application (APP) installed in a user equipment, and the APP is required to have an APP identifier (ID) allocated by applying to a <NUM> operator. Document <CIT> discloses an application-initiated network slice in roaming scenarios according to the state of the art. The invention is directed to receive a first message indicating a request for a network slice for a wireless device from first home network entity, wherein this request comprises a third party charging indication and charging policy. Based on the first message, a network slice identifier is generated and a second message is sent, which indicates a request to establish the network slice. The second message comprises the network slice identifier, the third party charging indication and the charging policy. Further, document <CIT>proposes a <NUM> NIDD architecture including different options of data paths for NIDD through a <NUM> core network.

In this manner, many currently used APPs can support the foregoing NSL establishment function only after being architecturally upgraded or even being re-developed, and it is necessary to additionally apply to the operator for IDs. As a result, the adaptation costs are greatly increased.

In order to solve the foregoing technical problem, a network slice determination method is provided according to this application, so that an NSL can be established under an original APP system architecture without initiating a slice establishment request by a terminal, which reduces difficulties in APP adaptation and the human costs.

Embodiments of this application provide the following technical solutions.

According to an aspect, a network slice determination method is provided according to an embodiment of this application, which includes:.

In a possible implementation, in a case that a UE route selection policy record corresponding to the service server is established, the method further includes:
deleting the UE route selection policy record.

According to another aspect, a network slice determination apparatus is provided according to an embodiment of this application, which includes a first acquisition unit, a first determination unit, a first initiation unit, a second acquisition unit, and a first returning unit. The first acquisition unit is configured to acquire a first device trigger request, the first device trigger request includes a service quality parameter that is carried in a slice establishment request initiated by a service server. The first determination unit is configured to determine a slice configuration identifier based on the service quality parameter, the slice configuration identifier is used for identifying a configuration parameter of a network slice supporting the service quality parameter. The first initiation unit is configured to initiate a data path establishment request for the service server based on the slice configuration identifier. The second acquisition unit is configured to acquire an establishment complete message returned for the data path establishment request, the establishment complete message is used for identifying that an established data path has been imported into an established target network slice, and the target network slice is established based on the slice configuration identifier. The first returning unit is configured to return, for the first device trigger request, a first device trigger response including an identifier of the data path, the first device trigger response is used for identifying that the target network slice is established.

According to another aspect, a network slice determination method is provided according to an embodiment of this application, which includes:.

In an implementation, the method further includes:.

In an implementation, in a case that a correspondence is established, the method further includes:
deleting the correspondence.

According to another aspect, a network slice determination apparatus is provided according to an embodiment of this application, which includes a first initiation unit and a first acquisition unit. The first initiation unit is configured to initiate a slice establishment request, the slice establishment request includes a service quality parameter and an identifier of user equipment, and the slice establishment request is used for instructing the user equipment to initiate a data path establishment request for a service server based on the service quality parameter. The first acquisition unit is configured to acquire a slice establishment response including an identifier of a data path, the slice establishment response is used for identifying that a target network slice corresponding to a slice configuration identifier is established, and the data path between the user equipment and the service server has been imported into the target network slice.

According to another aspect, a network slice determination system is provided according to an embodiment of this application, which includes a user equipment and a service server. The user equipment is configured to perform the network slice determination method as described in the foregoing aspect. The service server is configured to perform the network slice determination method as described in the foregoing aspect.

According to another aspect, a network slice determination device is provided according to an embodiment of this application, which includes a processor and a memory. The memory is configured to store program code and transmit the program code to the processor. The processor is configured to perform the network slice determination methods as described in the foregoing aspects according to instructions in the program code.

According to another aspect, a computer-readable storage medium is provided according to an embodiment of this application, which is configured to store a computer program for performing the network slice determination methods as described in the foregoing aspects.

It can be seen from the foregoing technical solutions that the service server may actively initiate a slice establishment request in response to a service requirement for establishing an NSL, the slice establishment request includes a service quality parameter supporting the service requirement. Correspondingly, the terminal may acquire a first device trigger request corresponding to the slice establishment request, and determine a slice configuration ID according to the service quality parameter in the first device trigger request, the slice configuration ID being capable of reflecting a configuration parameter of an NSL capable of supporting the service quality parameter. The terminal initiates a data path establishment request for the service server according to the slice configuration ID, the data path establishment request being capable of instructing a <NUM> network to establish a data path between the terminal and the service server in an established NSL supporting the service quality parameter. The terminal returns, in response to confirming that the data path is established, a first device trigger response including an ID of the data path so as to notify the service server that the NSL is established. It can be seen therefrom that, when there is a need to establish an NSL between the terminal and the service server, the service server may serve as an initiator of a slice establishment request, and an APP deployed in the terminal only needs to request for establishing a data path after the service server initiates the request, without being architecturally upgraded for initiating the slice establishment request to transmit dedicated network signaling, and the terminal may cooperate with the service server to establish the NSL under an original APP system architecture, meeting a service requirement in the <NUM> network without having to apply for a specific APP ID, thus greatly reducing the adaptation costs for accessing the <NUM> network.

To describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the related art more clearly, the following briefly describes the accompanying drawings required for describing the embodiments or the related art. Apparently, the accompanying drawings in the following description show merely some embodiments of this application, and a person of ordinary skill in the art may still derive other drawings from the accompanying drawings without creative efforts.

The following describes the embodiments of this application with reference to the accompanying drawings.

In a related technology of a <NUM> network, only an APP in <NUM> UE may initiate a request of establishing an NSL. As a result, many currently used APPs can support the foregoing NSL establishment function only after being architecturally upgraded or even re-developed, and these APPs also need to have APP IDs allocated by a <NUM> network operator. The establishment conditions are strict.

As shown in <FIG> is a schematic diagram of an NSL establishment method according to a related art. In the schematic diagram, there are multiple APPs in UE. An APP in need of initiating an NSL may initiate a slice establishment request to a network slice selection function (NSSF) module, and the NSSF module establishes the NSL in a <NUM> network. The NSL may be used for connecting the APP in the UE and a service server in a local data network (Local DN) module or a central data network (Central DN) module. The APP capable of initiating the request is required to have an APP ID allocated by a <NUM> network operator.

Since an APP is required to have an APP ID during the initiation of a slice establishment request, and also needs to be capable of supporting <NUM> network signaling, in order to enable the APP to initiate the establishment of an NSL and adapt to the <NUM> network, a developer needs to apply for the APP ID for the APP, and even needs to architecturally upgrade the APP, which difficult to implement adaptation.

In order to solve the foregoing technical problem, a network slice determination method is provided according to this application. Based on the method, when there is a need to establish an NSL, a service server may initiate a request of establishing the NSL, and a terminal only needs to initiate a data path establishment request in response to the request, so as to establish the NSL and a data path in the NSL in a <NUM> network. Therefore, the NSL can be established under an original APP system architecture without initiating a slice establishment request by the terminal, which reduces difficulties in APP adaptation and the human costs.

It may be understood that the method may be applied to a processing device capable of processing NSL related information, such as UE or a service server with a function of processing NSL related information. The method may be applied to a network scenario that UE communicates with a service server, and is performed cooperatively by the UE and the service server. The UE may be a computer, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer or the like. The service server may be an application server, or may be a Web server. During actual deployment, the service server may be an independent server, or may be a cluster server. In addition, in terms of hardware environment, environments in which the technology may be implemented include an ARM architecture processor and an X86 architecture processor. In terms of software environment, environments in which the technology may be implemented include an Android platform, a Windows XP operating system and later operating systems thereof, or a Linux operating system.

For easier understanding of the technical solutions of this application, the NSL determination method provided in this embodiment of this application is described below in combination with practical application scenarios.

Referring to <FIG> is a schematic diagram of a practical application scenario of an NSL determination method according to an embodiment of this application. In the application scenario, UE <NUM> and a service server <NUM> are processing devices. An APP in the UE <NUM> may have various service processing requirements during service processing. Some of the service processing requirements may highly require the security, reliability and transmission rate of service data transmission. In this case, a corresponding NSL may be established for data transmission between the UE <NUM> and the service server <NUM> by use of an NSL technology in a <NUM> network borne by a <NUM> network base station. As shown in <FIG> is a schematic diagram of a system architecture of a <NUM> network borne by a base station. The NSL determination method provided in the technical solution of this application may be performed in the system architecture. In addition to the UE <NUM> and the service server <NUM>, the system architecture further includes a <NUM> NSSF module, a <NUM> network exposure function (NEF) module, a <NUM> user plane function (UPF) module, a radio access network (RAN) module, a <NUM> unified data management (UDM) module, a <NUM> access and mobility management function (AMF) module, and a <NUM> session management function (SMF) module. When it is determined that an NSL needs to be established for data transmission, the service server <NUM> may initiate a slice establishment request and transmit the slice establishment request to the <NUM> network. In order to enable the established NSL to meet a service processing requirement, the service server <NUM> may add a service quality parameter to the initiated slice establishment request, the service quality parameter is used for identifying a parameter requirement required by this service processing. In addition, in order to enable the <NUM> network to determine UE in need of performing this data transmission, the slice establishment request further includes an ID of the UE <NUM>.

After receiving the slice establishment request, the <NUM> network may convert the slice establishment request into a first device trigger request that the UE <NUM> can receive and respond to, the first device trigger request includes a service quality parameter in the slice establishment request. The <NUM> network may transmit the first device trigger request to the UE <NUM> according to the ID of the UE <NUM>. After acquiring the first device trigger request, the UE <NUM> may determine a corresponding slice configuration ID according to the service quality parameter in the first device trigger request. The slice configuration ID is used for identifying a configuration parameter of an NSL supporting the service quality parameter. In the <NUM> network, a corresponding NSL may be established according to the configuration parameter.

It may be understood that the NSL provides a resource for data transmission. In order to perform data transmission between the UE <NUM> and the service server <NUM>, a data path for connecting the UE <NUM> and the service server <NUM> needs to be established in the NSL. Therefore, after determining the slice configuration ID, the UE <NUM> may initiate a data path establishment request for the service server <NUM> to the <NUM> network according to the slice configuration ID.

After receiving the data path establishment request, the <NUM> network may establish a target NSL supporting the service quality parameter according to the slice configuration ID in the data path establishment request, the target NSL is used for providing a network resource for the data transmission between the UE <NUM> and the service server <NUM>. In order to implement the data transmission between the UE <NUM> and the service server <NUM>, after the target NSL is established, the <NUM> network further needs to establish a data path for the service server <NUM> according to the request and import the data path into the established target NSL. Therefore, data transmission between the UE <NUM> and the service server <NUM> may be performed through the data path in the target NSL capable of supporting data transmission.

After the data path is imported into the established target network slice, the <NUM> network may return an establishment complete message to the UE <NUM> to notify the UE <NUM> that the target NSL and the data path have been established and that the data path has been imported into the target NSL. In this case, in order to notify the service server <NUM> of the establishment complete message, the UE <NUM> may return a first device trigger response including an ID of the data path for the first device trigger request. After receiving the first device trigger response, the <NUM> network may return a slice establishment response including the ID of the data path to the service server <NUM> to notify the service server <NUM> that the NSL has been established.

It can be seen that, in the application scenario of this application, when there is a need to establish an NSL for data transmission, the service server <NUM> may initiate a slice establishment request. The UE <NUM> only needs to initiate a corresponding data path establishment request in response to the slice establishment request, so as to establish a target NSL and a data path for data transmission in the <NUM> network, and import the data path into the target NSL for data transmission. Therefore, the UE <NUM> does not need to initiate a slice establishment request, so that there is no need to upgrade or even re-develop an APP architecture in the UE <NUM> and acquire an APP ID required by initiating the network establishment request. Therefore, difficulties in NSL establishment are reduced to a certain extent, and the adaptation costs for the access of the APP in the UE <NUM> to the <NUM> network are reduced.

A network slice determination method provided in an embodiment of this application is described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Referring to <FIG> is a signaling diagram of an NSL determination method. The method includes the following steps S401 to S407.

In step S401, a service server initiates a slice establishment request.

With the development of UE, various APPs in UE have become an indispensable part of people's daily life. For example, people often watch TV series, movies, and other entertainment videos through various film and television APPs in leisure time, or transmit and share files through some network disk APPs. In a <NUM> technology, in order to meet data transmission requirements of different APPs, NSLs may be established, when needed, for corresponding various APPs according to slice establishment requests initiated by the APPs for the APPs to perform data transmissions.

For example, in the schematic diagram shown in <FIG>, an APP C with an NSL establishment requirement in the UE may transmit a slice establishment request to the NSSF module through the AMF module. After receiving the request, the NSSF module notifies the RAN module and UPF module in the <NUM> base station of reserving resources respectively through the AMF module and the SMF module, the resources is used for establishing an NSL. Confirmation information indicating that an NSL is established successfully may be notified to the APP C after the NSL is established. The APP C may initiate a PDU session request. The <NUM> network may establish a PDU session between the APP C and the central DN according to the request, and allocate the PDU session to the established NSL. Therefore, the APP C in the UE may perform data transmission with the service server in the central DN through the session. For example, transmitted data may be transmitted from the APP C in the UE and forwarded to the service server in the central DN through the RAN and UPF modules.

However, in the related art, for initiating a slice establishment request, an APP needs to acquire an APP ID allocated by an operator, and also needs to support <NUM> network signaling. Therefore, when an APP needs to initiate a slice establishment request, it is required to apply for a corresponding APP ID and architecturally upgrade the APP, resulting in high costs.

In order to reduce the costs of establishing an NSL, in the technical solution provided in this embodiment of this application, a slice establishment request may be initiated by the service server. Therefore, the initiation of a slice establishment request by an APP is avoided. Therefore, there is no need to apply for a required APP ID or change an existing APP architecture.

When it is required to establish an NSL, for example, when an APP is a film and television APP, a dedicated NSL may need to be established for the transmission of video data, so as to ensure a viewing experience of a user and prevent video lags. In this case, in order to establish the NSL, the service server may initiate a slice establishment request. It may be understood that different NSLs may provide different network service capabilities. In order to enable a network resource provided by the established NSL to meet a data transmission requirement, the slice establishment request may include a service quality parameter, such as a quality of service (QoS) parameter. The service quality parameter is used for selecting a required NSL configuration parameter from multiple NSL configuration parameters preset in the <NUM> network.

It may be understood that the NSL provides a network resource for data transmission, and data transmission also requires the establishment of a corresponding data path. Therefore, a data path connecting the service server and the UE also needs to be established in the established NSL to perform data transmission between the UE and the service server. The service server may instruct, in response to the slice establishment request, the UE to initiate a data path establishment request for the service server based on the service quality parameter.

In step S402, the UE acquires a first device trigger request.

After the service server initiates the slice establishment request, the slice establishment request may be transmitted to the <NUM> network for the <NUM> network to trigger the UE to establish an NSL. It may be understood that, in order to enable the <NUM> network to determine UE in need of establishing an NSL, the slice establishment request may include an ID of the UE, such as a generic public subscription identifier (GPSI) of the UE, which may be represented by a telephone number. The <NUM> network may convert the slice establishment request into a first device trigger request according to the ID of the UE, and transmit the first device trigger request to the UE corresponding to the ID of the UE. The first device trigger request includes a service quality parameter in the slice establishment request.

For example, in the system architecture shown in <FIG>, after initiating a slice establishment request, the service server may transmit the slice establishment request to a slice management component, the slice establishment request includes a GPSI of the UE and a QoS parameter. The slice management component is a functional component that may be deployed in the service server <NUM> or another server to manage related operations of the service server in initiating the establishment of an NSL and closing of an NSL. After receiving the slice establishment request, the slice management component may forward the slice establishment request to the <NUM> NEF module. In order to find the UE in the <NUM> network, after receiving the request, the <NUM> NEF module first extracts the GPSI of the UE, and initiates a user ID conversion request to the <NUM> UDM module according to the ID, so that the <NUM> UDM module returns the ID of the UE in the <NUM> network, such as a subscription permanent identifier (SUPI).

The <NUM> NEF module may transmit a first device trigger request to the corresponding UE according to the SUPI. The request is forwarded to the UE by the <NUM> AMF module. After acquiring the first device trigger request, the UE may establish the NSL and the data path according to the first device trigger request.

In step S403, the UE determines a slice configuration ID according to the service quality parameter.

After acquiring the first device trigger request, the UE may extract the service quality parameter in the first device trigger request, and determine, according to the service quality parameter, a corresponding slice configuration ID from multiple slice configuration IDs provided by NSL configuration information. The slice configuration ID is used for identifying a configuration parameter of an NSL supporting the service quality parameter, such as single network slice selection assistance information (S-NSSAI) corresponding to the NSL. The NSL configuration information is used for providing multiple sets of quality parameters. Each set of quality parameters corresponds to one slice configuration ID. For example, the NSL configuration information may be acquired by the UE by subscribing to a <NUM> network.

For example, in the system architecture shown in <FIG>, after acquiring the first device trigger request, the UE may extract the QoS parameter in the first device trigger request, and select S-NSSAI meeting the QoS parameter from NSL configuration information provided by UE subscription information.

In step S404, the UE initiates a data path establishment request for the service server according to the slice configuration ID.

After determining the slice configuration ID of the NSL that needs to be established, the UE may transmit the slice configuration ID to establish the corresponding NSL in the <NUM> network. Based on this, in order to perform data transmission with the service server, the UE needs to establish a data path corresponding to the service server in the NSL. In this case, in order to establish the data path, the UE may initiate a data path establishment request for the service server to the <NUM> network according to the slice configuration ID, the data path establishment request includes the slice configuration ID.

In step S405, the UE acquires an establishment complete message returned for the data path establishment request.

After receiving the data path establishment request transmitted by the UE, the <NUM> network may establish a corresponding target NSL according to the slice configuration ID in the data path establishment request. The target NSL is an NSL capable of supporting the service quality parameter in multiple NSLs that may be established through the <NUM> network. After establishing the target NSL, the <NUM> network may establish a data path for data transmission between the UE and the service server according to the data path establishment request. In order to enable the data path to share a network resource provided by the <NUM> network through the target NSL, after establishing the data path, the <NUM> network may import the data path into the established target NSL.

After the data path is imported into the established target network slice, the <NUM> network may transmit an establishment complete message to the UE, the establishment complete message being used for identifying that the established data path has been imported into the established target NSL. The UE may acquire the establishment complete message returned for the data path establishment request, thereby learning that the required NSL and the data path have been established.

For example, in the system architecture shown in <FIG>, the UE may transmit a data path establishment request to the <NUM> NSSF module. The request is first transmitted to the <NUM> AMF module and then forwarded to the <NUM> NSSF module by the <NUM> AMF module. The <NUM> NSSF module may establish the NSL and the data path in the <NUM> RAN module and the <NUM> UPF module according to the request, and return an establishment complete message to the UE. The establishment complete message is received by the UE after being forwarded by the <NUM> AMF module.

In step S406, the UE returns a first device trigger response including an ID of the data path for the first device trigger request.

In order to enable the service server to use the data path for data transmission, after acquiring the establishment complete message, the UE needs to notify the service server of a message indicating that the NSL and the data path are established. The UE may return a first device trigger response including an ID of the data path to the <NUM> network for the first device trigger request, the first device trigger response is used for identifying that the target NSL is established.

In step S407, the service server acquires a slice establishment response including the ID of the data path.

In order to enable the service server to receive a message indicating that the NSL is established, after receiving the first device trigger response transmitted by the UE, the <NUM> network may convert the first device trigger response into a slice establishment response that may be received and recognized by the service server and transmit the slice establishment response to the service server. The service server may receive the slice establishment response, the slice establishment response is used for identifying that the target NSL corresponding to the slice configuration ID is established, and the data path between the UE and the service server has been imported into the target NSL. In this case, the service server may perform data transmission with the UE through the data path by using the network resource provided by the target NSL.

For example, in the system architecture shown in <FIG>, after receiving the establishment complete message, the UE may transmit a first device trigger response to the <NUM> NEF module. The <NUM> NEF module may transmit a slice establishment response to the slice management component according to the response. The slice establishment response is transmitted to the service server by the slice management component to notify the service server that the target NSL is established.

It can be seen from the foregoing technical solution that the service server may actively initiate a slice establishment request in response to determining a service requirement for establishing an NSL, the slice establishment request includes a service quality parameter supporting the service requirement. Correspondingly, the terminal may acquire a first device trigger request corresponding to the slice establishment request, and determine a slice configuration ID according to the service quality parameter in the first device trigger request, the slice configuration ID being capable of reflecting a configuration parameter of an NSL capable of supporting the service quality parameter. The terminal initiates a data path establishment request for the service server according to the slice configuration ID, the data path establishment request being capable of instructing the <NUM> network to establish a data path between the terminal and the service server in an established NSL supporting the service quality parameter. The terminal returns, in response to confirming that the data path is established, a first device trigger response including an ID of the data path so as to notify the service server that the NSL is established. It can be seen therefrom that, when there is a need to establish an NSL between the terminal and the service server, the service server may serve as an initiator of a slice establishment request, and an APP deployed in the terminal only needs to request for establishing a data path after the service server initiates the request, without being architecturally upgraded to transmit dedicated network signaling so as to initiate the slice establishment request, and the terminal may cooperate with the service server to establish the NSL under an original APP system architecture, meeting a service requirement in the <NUM> network without having to apply for a specific APP ID, thus greatly reducing the adaptation costs for accessing the <NUM> network.

It may be understood that, since an APP corresponding to a service in the UE dominates service processing in most cases, the APP in the UE may determine whether the service processing needs the establishment of an NSL. In a possible implementation, the UE may transmit a service request including an ID of the UE, the service request is used for requesting the service server to initiate a slice establishment request. The service server may acquire the service request including the ID of the UE and initiate the slice establishment request according to the request.

For example, when there is a certain film and television APP in the UE, a user may want to watch a certain high-definition video through the APP. Since a high-definition video usually includes a large volume of video data, in order to ensure that the user can view the video fluently, the film and television APP may transmit a service request including the ID of the UE to a service server storing the video data, so that the service server initiates a slice establishment request for an NSL for transmitting the video data.

In addition, in the <NUM> network, in order to make full use of network resources provided by NSLs, multiple data paths may be imported into one NSL, each of the data paths is used for data transmission between a group of UE and the service server. In this case, in order to distinguish data transmitted through the NSL to transmit the data between the service server and the corresponding UE, in a possible implementation, address information of the service server may further be included in the slice establishment request initiated by the service server. After determining that the data path is established and is imported into the target NSL, the UE may establish a URSP record corresponding to the slice configuration ID, the URSP record includes a correspondence between the address information and the ID of the data path. The address information is used for identifying a position of the service server in a DN. There may be multiple types of address information. In a possible implementation, the address information may include a network address, a port number, and a network protocol number of the service server.

It may be understood that multiple data paths may be imported into each NSL, and each of the data paths corresponds to one URSP record. When the UE needs to perform data transmission after the URSP record is established according to the address information of the service server initiating this slice establishment request, in a possible implementation, in order to determine whether this data transmission is data transmission with the service server, the UE may first determine whether destination address information of a data message to be transmitted is consistent with the URSP record, the destination address information of the data message is used for identifying the service server that the UE is intended to transmit the data message to. In a case that the destination address information of a data message to be transmitted is consistent with the UE route selection policy record, it is indicated that the data message is to be transmitted to the service server. In this case, the UE may transmit the data message to the service server through the data path imported into the target NSL.

For example, in the system architecture shown in <FIG>, after acquiring the establishment complete message, the UE may extract the network address, port number, and network protocol number of the service server from the first device trigger request, and establish a URSP corresponding to the S-NSSAI in combination with the S-NSSAI. The URSP corresponds to an ID of a PDU session one to one. That is, there is a correspondence between the network address, port number, and network protocol number of the service server in the URSP and the ID of the PDU session. When transmitting the data message, the UE may determine whether a destination network address, destination port number, and destination network protocol number of the data message are consistent with the URSP, and transmits the data message to the service server through the PDU session in a case that the destination network address, destination port number, and destination network protocol number of the data message are identical to the URSP.

It may be understood that data transmission is usually bidirectional. Therefore, in a possible implementation, in order to enable the service server to find a corresponding data path for data transmission with UE with a data transmission requirement, after acquiring the slice establishment response including the ID of the data path, the service server may establish a correspondence between the address information and the ID of the data path according to address information of the service server in the slice establishment request. When data transmission is needed, the service server may determine an ID of a corresponding data path according to the own address information of the service server and perform data transmission with a corresponding UE through the data path. It may be understood that the ID of the data path may differ at the UE side and the service server side. For example, the ID of the data path at the UE side may be an ID of a PDU session, and the ID of the data path at the service server side may be a hypertext transport protocol (HTTP) ID.

In addition, in a related <NUM> network architecture, service servers are usually distributed in a DN. There may be multiple DNs, such as a local DN and a central DN. Different service server may be distributed in different DNs. When data transmission is performed in a <NUM> network, it may be necessary to first determine a DN where a service server is distributed and then determine a specific distribution position of the service server in the DN according to address information. Therefore, in a possible implementation, when the first device trigger request is transmitted to the UE, a DN ID, such as a data network name (DNN), of a DN where the service server is located may be added to the first device trigger request. After receiving the request, the UE may initiate a data path establishment request for the service server according to the slice configuration ID and the DN ID so that the <NUM> network can establish a data path to the DN according to the establishment request. For example, in the schematic diagram shown in <FIG>, the slice management component can acquire underlying information of the DN. When the service server <NUM> initiates the slice establishment request, the slice management component may acquire a DNN of the service server <NUM> and add the DNN to the slice establishment request for transmitting to the <NUM> NEF module together. The <NUM> network adds the DNN to the first device trigger request for transmitting to the UE <NUM>.

The UE may transmit the data message to the DN where the service server is located through the data path. Then, the data message is transmitted to the corresponding service server through a related module, such as the <NUM> UPF module, according to the destination address information in the data message.

It may be understood that, after the data transmission ends, in order to save network resources, the NSL for this data transmission may be closed to release the network resource occupied by the NSL for other UE and service servers with data transmission requirements to establish NSLs. In a possible implementation, the service server may initiate a slice closing request including the ID of the data path, the slice closing request is used for instructing the UE to release the data path to close the target NSL. It may be understood that, in a possible implementation, the service server may perform an NSL closing operation through another functional component. For example, in the schematic diagram shown in <FIG>, after initiating a slice closing request, the service server <NUM> may communicate with the <NUM> network through the slice management component to perform the NSL closing operation.

After receiving the slice closing request, the <NUM> network may convert the request into a second device trigger request that the UE can receive and respond to, and transmit the second device trigger request to the corresponding UE , the second device trigger request includes the ID of the data path carried in the slice closing request initiated by the service server. After acquiring the second device trigger request, the UE may initiate a data path release request for the data path according to the ID of the data path in the request. After receiving the data path release request, the <NUM> network may release the data path and close the target NSL where the data path is located. Then, the <NUM> network may return a release complete message to the UE for the data path release request, the release complete message is used for indicating that the data path is released and the target NSL is closed.

After acquiring the release complete message, the UE may return a second device trigger response for the second device trigger request so as to notify the service server of a message that the slice is closed, the second device trigger response is used for identifying that the target NSL is closed. After receiving the second device trigger response, the <NUM> network may convert the second device trigger response into a slice closing response and transmit the slice closing response to the service server initiating the slice closing request, the slice closing response is used for indicating that the target NSL is closed.

In addition, since the data path is released after the NSL is closed, the URSP record established by the UE and corresponding to the slice configuration ID and the correspondence between the address information stored in the service server and the ID of the data path are invalid. In this case, in order to cleanse useless information in the UE and the service server to facilitate the initiation of the subsequent establishment of the NSL and the data path, in a possible implementation, in a case that a URSP record corresponding to the NSL is established, the UE may delete the URSP record. In addition, in a case that the above correspondence is established in the service server, the correspondence may be deleted.

The following describes a network slice determination method provided in an embodiment of this application with reference to a practical application scenario. As shown in <FIG> is a schematic diagram of an NSL determination method in a practical application scenario according to an embodiment of this application. <FIG> mainly shows a flow of establishing a network slice in the practical application scenario.

In the practical application scenario, the UE is a mobile phone held by the user, and there is a network disk APP in the mobile phone. The APP determines that an NSL needs to be established for data transmission when the user downloads a certain large file through the network disk. In this case, the UE may transmit a service request including an ID of the mobile phone to the service server and add a GPSI of the mobile phone to the request. After receiving the request, the service server may determine whether to establish the NSL according to content of the service request. For example, the service server may determine whether a mobile phone corresponding to the GPSI has a qualification for data transmission through the NSL, the qualification being capable of indicating whether the user subscribes to a service for data transmission using an NSL.

After determining to establish the NSL, the service server transmits a slice establishment request to the slice management component, and writes the GPSI of the mobile phone, a network address, a port number, and a network protocol number of the service server, and a QoS parameter into the request. The slice management component may transmit the slice establishment request to the <NUM> NEF module. The <NUM> NEF module may extract the GPSI of the mobile phone in the request and transmit a GPSI query request to the <NUM> UDM module according to the GPSI. The <NUM> UDM module may read the GPS I in the query request, and return a SUPI corresponding to the GPSI to the <NUM> NEF module in a case of finding the SUPI.

After reading the returned SUPI, the <NUM> NEF module transmits a first data terminal ready (DTR) request to the <NUM> AMF module, and writes the SUPI of the mobile phone, the network address, the port number, and the network protocol number of the service server, a DNN corresponding to the service server, and the QoS parameter into the request, and indicates that the request requires the mobile phone to initiate the establishment of a data path. The <NUM> AMF module may forward the first DTR request to the corresponding UE, i.e., the mobile phone, according to the SUPI in the first DTR request. After receiving the request, the mobile phone may read address information of the service server, the DNN, and the QoS parameter in the first DTR request.

After reading the foregoing parameters, the mobile phone may search locally stored subscription information with a network operator for an NSL configuration meeting the QoS parameter, and extract corresponding S-NSSAI. Then, the mobile phone initiates a PDU session establishment request to the <NUM> RAN module according to the S-NSSAI, and writes the DNN and the S-NSSAI into the request.

The <NUM> AMF module first receives the request and then transmits the PDU session establishment request to the <NUM> SMF module. The <NUM> AMF module may transmit a slice establishment request to the <NUM> NSSF module in response to the PDU session establishment request, and write the S-NSSAI into the request. The <NUM> SMF module may also transmit a slice establishment request to the <NUM> NSSF module, and write the S-NSSAI into the request.

After a target NSL is established, the <NUM> AMF module notifies the <NUM> RAN module that a PDU session is established, and the <NUM> SMF module notifies the <NUM> UPF module that the PDU session is established. During the establishment of the data path, the <NUM> network may first establish a general packet radio service tunneling protocol (GTP) tunnel according to the DNN and a GTP, the GTP tunnel is established in the target NSL and used for transmitting data to a DN corresponding to the DNN. The PDU session is imported into the GTP tunnel after being established, thereby importing the PDU session into the target NSL.

Then, the <NUM> NSSF module confirms with the <NUM> AMF module and the <NUM> SMF module that the NSL is established, and returns an ID of the PDU session. The <NUM> AMF module confirms with the mobile phone that the PDU session is established. After receiving a PDU session establishment response, the mobile phone may establish a new URSP record, write the address information of the service server into the record, and establish a one-to-one correspondence between the address information and the ID of the PDU session. After performing the establishment, the mobile phone returns a first DTR response to the <NUM> NEF module to confirm that the PDU session is established, and writes the ID of the PDU session into the response.

The <NUM> NEF module may return a slice establishment response to the slice management component to confirm that the NSL is established, and write the ID of the PDU session into the response. The slice management component may forward the response to the service server to notify the service server that the NSL is established. The service server may establish a correspondence between its own address information and the ID of the PDU session for data transmission.

In addition, an NSL closing method is also shown in the practical application scenario. Referring to <FIG> mainly shows a flow of closing an NSL in the practical application scenario. In order to save network resources, after determining that the file transmission is completed, the network disk APP in the mobile phone determines to close the NSL established for this data transmission. In this case, the mobile phone may transmit a service request including the GPSI of the mobile phone to the service server. After receiving the service request, the service server determines to close the NSL, transmits a slice closing request to the slice management component, and writes the GPSI of the mobile phone and the address information of the service server into the request.

After receiving the slice closing request, the slice management component may determine an ID of a PDU session corresponding to the address information from stored information. Then, the slice management component may transmit a slice closing request to the <NUM> NEF module, and writes the GPSI of the mobile phone and the ID of the PDU session into the request. After receiving the request, the <NUM> NEF module may extract the GPSI in the slice closing request, transmit a query request to the <NUM> UDM module, and acquire the SUPI of the mobile phone found by the <NUM> UDM module and corresponding to the GPSI.

The <NUM> NEF module may transmit a second DTR request to the <NUM> AMF module, and write the SUPI and the ID of the PDU session into the request, and indicate that the request requires the mobile phone to initiate a PDU session release request. The <NUM> AMF module may forward the request to the corresponding UE, i.e., the mobile phone, according to the SUPI. After receiving the second DTR request, the mobile phone may read the ID of the PDU session in the second DTR request and then transmit a PDU session release request to the <NUM> AMF module through the <NUM> RAN module according to the ID. After receiving the request, the <NUM> AMF module may transmit a PDU session release request to the <NUM> SMF module and transmit a slice closing request to the <NUM> NSSF module. The <NUM> SMF module may also transmit an NSL establishment request to the <NUM> NSSF module.

After the NSL is closed and the PDU session is released, the <NUM> AMF module notifies the <NUM> RAN module that the PDU session is released, and the <NUM> SMF module notifies the <NUM> UPF module that the PDU session is released. In addition, the <NUM> NSSF module confirms with the <NUM> AMF module and the <NUM> SMF module that the NSL is closed. Then, the <NUM> AMF module returns a PDU session release response to the mobile phone to notify that the PDU session is released. After receiving the response, the mobile phone clears a corresponding URSP record and returns a second DTR response to the <NUM> NEF module to confirm that the NSL is closed.

The <NUM> NEF module may return a slice establishment response to the slice management component for the slice management component to forward to the service server to notify the service server that the NSL is closed. Finally, the service server deletes the stored correspondence between the ID of the PDU session and the address information for next NSL establishment.

Based on the NSL determination methods provided in the foregoing embodiments, a UE <NUM> is provided according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to <FIG>, the UE includes a first acquisition unit <NUM>, a first determination unit <NUM>, a first initiation unit <NUM>, a second acquisition unit <NUM>, and a first returning unit <NUM>. The first acquisition unit <NUM> is configured to acquire a first device trigger request, the first device trigger request includes a service quality parameter carried in a slice establishment request initiated by a service server. The first determination unit <NUM> is configured to determine a slice configuration ID according to the service quality parameter, the slice configuration ID is used for identifying a configuration parameter of an NSL supporting the service quality parameter. The first initiation unit <NUM> is configured to initiate a data path establishment request for the service server according to the slice configuration ID. The second acquisition unit <NUM> is configured to acquire an establishment complete message returned for the data path establishment request, the establishment complete message is used for identifying that an established data path has been imported into an established target NSL, and the target NSL is established according to the slice configuration ID. The first returning unit <NUM> is configured to return a first device trigger response including an ID of the data path for the first device trigger request, the first device trigger response is used for identifying that the target NSL is established.

In a possible implementation, the first device trigger request further includes address information of the service server, and the UE <NUM> further includes an establishment unit <NUM>. The establishment unit <NUM> is configured to establish a URSP record corresponding to the slice configuration ID, the URSP record includes a correspondence between the address information and the ID of the data path.

In a possible implementation, the UE <NUM> further includes a second determination unit <NUM>. The second determination unit <NUM> is configured to determine whether destination address information of a data message to be transmitted is consistent with the URSP record; and transmit, in a case that the data message is consistent with the UE route selection policy record, the data message to the service server through the data path imported into the target NSL.

In a possible implementation, the address information includes a network address, a port number, and a network protocol number of the service server.

In a possible implementation, the first device trigger request further includes a DN ID of a DN where the service server is located. The first initiation unit <NUM> is further configured to: initiate the data path establishment request for the service server according to the slice configuration ID and the DN ID.

In a possible implementation, the UE <NUM> further includes a transmission unit <NUM>. The transmission unit <NUM> is configured to transmit a service request including an ID of UE, the service request is used for requesting the service server to initiate the slice establishment request.

In a possible implementation, the UE <NUM> further includes a third acquisition unit <NUM>, a second initiation unit <NUM>, a fourth acquisition unit <NUM>, and a second returning unit <NUM>. The third acquisition unit <NUM> is configured to acquire a second device trigger request, the second device trigger request includes the ID of the data path carried in a slice closing request initiated by the service server. The second initiation unit <NUM> is configured to initiate a data path release request for the data path according to the ID of the data path. The fourth acquisition unit <NUM> is configured to acquire a release complete message returned for the data path release request, the release complete message is used for identifying that the data path is released and the target NSL is closed. The second returning unit <NUM> is configured to return a second device trigger response for the second device trigger request, the second device trigger response is used for identifying that the target NSL is closed.

In a possible implementation, if the URSP record corresponding to the service server is established, the UE <NUM> further includes a deletion unit <NUM>. The deletion unit <NUM> is configured to delete the URSP record.

Based on the NSL determination methods provided in the foregoing embodiments, a service server <NUM> is further provided according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to <FIG>, the service server <NUM> includes a first initiation unit <NUM> and a first acquisition unit <NUM>. The first initiation unit <NUM> is configured to initiate a slice establishment request, the slice establishment request includes a service quality parameter and an ID of UE, and the slice establishment request is used for instructing the UE to initiate a data path establishment request for the service server based on the service quality parameter. The first acquisition unit <NUM> is configured to acquire a slice establishment response including an ID of a data path, the slice establishment response is used for identifying that a target NSL corresponding to a slice configuration ID is established, and the data path between the UE and the service server has been imported into the target NSL.

In a possible implementation, the slice establishment request further includes address information of the service server. The service server <NUM> further includes an establishment unit <NUM>. The establishing unit <NUM> is configured to establish a correspondence between the address information and the ID of the data path.

In a possible implementation, the service server <NUM> further includes a second acquisition unit <NUM>. The second acquisition unit <NUM> is configured to acquire a service request including the ID of the UE, the service request is used for requesting the service server to initiate the slice establishment request.

In a possible implementation, the service server <NUM> further includes a second initiation unit <NUM> and a third acquisition unit <NUM>. The second initiation unit <NUM> is configured to initiate a slice closing request including the ID of the data path, the slice closing request is used for instructing the UE to release the data path to close the target NSL. The third acquisition unit <NUM> is configured to acquire a slice closing response, the slice closing response is used for identifying that the target NSL is closed.

In a possible implementation, if the correspondence is established, the service server <NUM> further includes a deletion unit <NUM>. The deletion unit <NUM> is configured to delete the correspondence.

A network slice determination device is further provided according to an embodiment of this application, which is described in the following with reference to the drawings. Referring to <FIG>, a device <NUM> is provided according to an embodiment of this application, and the device <NUM> may be a terminal device. The terminal device may be any smart terminal including a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a PDA, a point of sales (POS), or an on-board computer, and a mobile phone is described as an example of the terminal device.

<FIG> is a block diagram of a partial structure of a mobile phone related to a terminal device according to an embodiment of this application. Referring to <FIG>, the mobile phone includes components such as a radio frequency (RF) circuit <NUM>, a memory <NUM>, an input unit <NUM>, a display unit <NUM>, a sensor <NUM>, an audio circuit <NUM>, a wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) module <NUM>, a processor <NUM>, and a power supply <NUM>. A person skilled in the art may understand that the structure of the mobile phone shown in <FIG> does not constitute a limitation on the mobile phone, and the mobile phone may include more or fewer components than those shown in <FIG>, or some components may be combined, or a different component deployment may be used.

The components of the mobile phone are described in detail with reference to <FIG> in the following.

The RF circuit <NUM> may be configured to receive and transmit signals during an information receiving and transmission process or a call process. Specifically, the RF circuit <NUM> receives downlink information from a base station, then delivers the downlink information to the processor <NUM> for processing, and transmits designed uplink data to the base station. Generally, the RF circuit <NUM> includes, but is not limited to, an antenna, at least one amplifier, a transceiver, a coupler, a low noise amplifier (LNA), a duplexer, and the like. In addition, the RF circuit <NUM> may also communicate with a network and another device through wireless communication. The wireless communication may use any communication standard or protocol, including, but not limited to a global system for mobile communications (GSM), a general packet radio service (GPRS), code division multiple access (CDMA), wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA), long term evolution (LTE), an email, a short messaging service (SMS), and the like.

The memory <NUM> may be configured to store a software program and module. The processor <NUM> runs the software program and module stored in the memory <NUM>, to implement various functional applications and data processing of the mobile phone. The memory <NUM> may mainly include a program storage area and a data storage area. The program storage area may store an operating system, an application program required by at least one function (such as a sound playback function and an image display function), and the like. The data storage area may store data (such as audio data and an address book) created according to the use of the mobile phone, and the like. In addition, the memory <NUM> may include a high speed random access memory, and may further include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one magnetic disk storage device, a flash storage device, or other non-volatile solid state storage devices.

The input unit <NUM> may be configured to receive inputted digit or character information, and generate a keyboard signal input related to the user setting and function control of the mobile phone. Specifically, the input unit <NUM> may include a touch panel <NUM> and another input device <NUM>. The touch panel <NUM>, which may also be referred to as a touchscreen, may collect a touch operation of a user on or near the touch panel (such as an operation of a user on or near the touch panel <NUM> by using any suitable object or accessory such as a finger or a stylus), and drive a corresponding connection apparatus according to a preset program. Alternatively, the touch panel <NUM> may include two parts: a touch detection apparatus and a touch controller. The touch detection apparatus detects a touch position of the user, detects a signal generated by the touch operation, and transfers the signal to the touch controller. The touch controller receives the touch information from the touch detection apparatus, converts the touch information into touch point coordinates, and transmits the touch point coordinates to the processor <NUM>. Moreover, the touch controller can receive and execute a command transmitted from the processor <NUM>. In addition, the touch panel <NUM> may be implemented by using various types, such as a resistive type, a capacitive type, an infrared type, and a surface acoustic wave type. In addition to the touch panel <NUM>, the input unit <NUM> may further include another input device <NUM>. Specifically, the input device <NUM> may include, but is not limited to, one or more of a physical keyboard, a functional key (for example, a volume control key or a switch key), a track ball, a mouse, and a joystick.

The display unit <NUM> may be configured to display information inputted by the user or information provided for the user, and various menus of the mobile phone. The display unit <NUM> may include a display panel <NUM>. Alternatively, the display panel <NUM> may be configured in the form of a liquid crystal display (LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED), or the like. Further, the touch panel <NUM> may cover the display panel <NUM>. After detecting a touch operation on or near the touch panel <NUM>, the touch panel <NUM> transfers the touch operation to the processor <NUM>, so as to determine a type of the touch event. Then, the processor <NUM> provides corresponding visual output on the display panel <NUM> according to the type of the touch event. Although in <FIG>, the touch panel <NUM> and the display panel <NUM> are used as two separate parts to implement input and output functions of the mobile phone, in some embodiments, the touch panel <NUM> and the display panel <NUM> may be integrated to implement the input and output functions of the mobile phone.

The mobile phone may further include at least one sensor <NUM> such as an optical sensor, a motion sensor, and other sensors. Specifically, the optical sensor may include an ambient light sensor and a proximity sensor. The ambient light sensor may adjust luminance of the display panel <NUM> according to brightness of the ambient light. The proximity sensor may switch off the display panel <NUM> and/or backlight when the mobile phone is moved to the ear. As one type of motion sensor, an acceleration sensor may detect magnitude of accelerations in various directions (generally on three axes), may detect magnitude and a direction of the gravity when being static, and may be applied to an application that recognizes the attitude of the mobile phone (for example, switching between landscape orientation and portrait orientation, a related game, and magnetometer attitude calibration), a function related to vibration recognition (such as a pedometer and a knock), and the like. Other sensors, such as a gyroscope, a barometer, a hygrometer, a thermometer, and an infrared sensor, which may be configured in the mobile phone, are not further described herein.

The audio circuit <NUM>, a speaker <NUM>, and a microphone <NUM> may provide audio interfaces between a user and the mobile phone. The audio circuit <NUM> may convert received audio data into an electrical signal and transmit the electrical signal to the speaker <NUM>. The speaker <NUM> converts the electrical signal into a sound signal for output. On the other hand, the microphone <NUM> converts a collected sound signal into an electrical signal. The audio circuit <NUM> receives the electrical signal, converts the electrical signal into audio data, and outputs the audio data to the processor <NUM> for processing. Then, the processor <NUM> transmits the audio data to, for example, another mobile phone by using the RF circuit <NUM>, or outputs the audio data to the memory <NUM> for further processing.

Wi-Fi refers to a short distance wireless transmission technology. A user may receive and transmit an email, browse a web page, access stream media, and the like via the mobile phone by using the Wi-Fi module <NUM>. This provides wireless broadband Internet access for the user. Although <FIG> shows the Wi-Fi module <NUM>, it may be understood that the Wi-Fi module is not a necessary component of the mobile phone, and the Wi-Fi module may be omitted as required provided that the scope of the essence of the present disclosure is not changed.

The processor <NUM> is the control center of the mobile phone, and is connected to various parts of the mobile phone by using various interfaces and lines. By running or executing the software program and/or module stored in the memory <NUM>, and invoking data stored in the memory <NUM>, the processor performs various functions and data processing of the mobile phone, thereby performing overall monitoring on the mobile phone. Alternatively, the processor <NUM> may include one or more processing units. Preferably, an application processor and a modulation and demodulation processor may be integrated into the processor <NUM>. The application processor mainly processes an operating system, a user interface, an application program, and the like, and the modulation and demodulation processor mainly processes wireless communication. It may be understood that the foregoing modem may either not be integrated into the processor <NUM>.

The mobile phone further includes the power supply <NUM> (such as a battery) for supplying power to the components. Preferably, the power supply may be logically connected to the processor <NUM> by using a power management system, thereby implementing functions such as charging, discharging, and power consumption management by using the power management system.

Although not shown in the figure, the mobile phone may further include a camera, a Bluetooth module, and the like.

In this embodiment, the processor <NUM> included in the terminal device further has the following functions:.

Alternatively, the processor <NUM> included in the terminal device further has the following functions:.

A server is further provided according to an embodiment of this application, which is as shown in <FIG> is a structural diagram of a server <NUM> according to an embodiment of this application. The server <NUM> may vary greatly due to different configurations or performance, and may include one or more central processing units (CPUs) <NUM> (for example, one or more processors) and a memory <NUM>, and one or more storage media <NUM> (for example, one or more mass storage devices) that store application programs <NUM> or data <NUM>. The memory <NUM> and the storage media <NUM> may be transient storage or persistent storage. The program stored in the storage medium <NUM> may include one or more modules (not shown in <FIG>), and each module may include a series of instruction operations on the server. Furthermore, the CPUs <NUM> may be configured to be in communication with the storage media <NUM> and to execute the series of instructions in the storage media <NUM> on the server <NUM>.

The server <NUM> may further include one or more power supplies <NUM>, one or more wired or wireless network interfaces <NUM>, one or more input/output interfaces <NUM>, and/or one or more operating systems <NUM>, such as Windows Server™, Mac OS X™, Unix™, Linux™, and FreeBSD™.

The steps performed by the server in the foregoing embodiments may be based on the server structure shown in <FIG>.

A computer-readable storage medium is further provided according to an embodiment of this application, which is configured to store a computer program, the computer program is configured to perform the network slice determination method described in the foregoing embodiments.

A network slice determination system is further provided according to an embodiment of this application. The system includes UE and a service server. The UE and the service server in the system may be configured to perform the NSL determination method provided in the foregoing embodiments.

A person of ordinary skill in the art may understand that all or some of the steps of the method embodiments may be implemented by a program instructing relevant hardware. The program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. When the program runs, the steps of the method embodiments are performed. The foregoing storage medium may be at least one of the following media: any medium that can store program code, such as a read-only memory (ROM), a RAM, a magnetic disk, or an optical disc.

Claim 1:
A network slice determination method, comprising:
acquiring (S402) a first device trigger request, the first device trigger request comprising a service quality parameter that is carried in a slice establishment request initiated by a service server;
determining (S403) a slice configuration identifier based on the service quality parameter, the slice configuration identifier being used for identifying a configuration parameter of a network slice supporting the service quality parameter;
initiating (S404) a data path establishment request for the service server based on the slice configuration identifier;
acquiring (S405) an establishment complete message returned for the data path establishment request, the establishment complete message being used for identifying that an established data path has been imported into an established target network slice, and the target network slice being established based on the slice configuration identifier; and
returning (S406), for the first device trigger request, a first device trigger response comprising an identifier of the data path, the first device trigger response being used for identifying that the target network slice is established.