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EP-4736394-A1 - METHODS FOR ACCESSING A SERVICE, METHOD FOR PROVIDING SERVICES, CONTROL METHOD, MANAGEMENT METHOD, AND CORRESPONDING TERMINAL, SERVICE FUNCTION INSTANCE, CONTROLLER, BORDER NODE AND COMPUTER PROGRAMS

EP4736394A1EP 4736394 A1EP4736394 A1EP 4736394A1EP-4736394-A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for accessing at least one service by a terminal (11) via a communication network using network slices, the method involving: • obtaining (111) at least one identifier for classifying the traffic to said terminal, said at least one identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, • transmitting (112) the at least one identifier to at least one first service function instance (131) that is able to provide said at least one service to the terminal, • receiving (113) a message comprising data associated with the at least one service routed via at least one network slice that is associated with the at least one identifier and is selected by a border node (141) in the communication network by applying at least one traffic classification rule known to said border node.

Inventors

  • BOUCADAIR, Mohamed Boucadair
  • JACQUENET, CHRISTIAN

Assignees

  • ORANGE

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20240625

Claims (20)

  1. Method for accessing at least one service by a terminal (11), via a communication network implementing network slices, comprising: obtaining (111) at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, the transmission (112) of said at least one first identifier to at least one first service instance (131) capable of providing said at least one service to said terminal, receiving (113) a message comprising data associated with said at least one service routed via at least one network slice associated with said at least one first identifier, selected by an edge node (141) of said communication network by applying at least one traffic classification rule known to said edge node.
  2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that said at least one network slice or said type of network slice is associated with a transmission mode belonging to the group comprising: the routing of data to said terminal, the routing of data from said terminal, the routing of data to and from said terminal.
  3. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said obtaining comprises obtaining at least one first identifier per network to which said terminal is connected.
  4. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises the transmission, to said first service instance, of at least one traffic classification rule.
  5. Method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it implements a prior selection of said at least one first service instance authorized to receive said at least one first identifier.
  6. Method for controlling the provision of at least one service to a terminal (11), via a communication network implementing network slices, comprising: obtaining (151) at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, the transmission (152) of said at least one first identifier to said terminal, directly or via at least one intermediate router, the transmission (153), to at least one edge node (141) of said communication network, of at least one traffic classification rule for the selection of at least one network slice intended to route to said terminal data associated with said at least one service.
  7. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that it comprises the transmission of said at least one first identifier to at least one other terminal connected to said communication network.
  8. Method for providing at least one service to a terminal (11), via a communication network implementing network slices, comprising: receiving (1311) at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, the transmission (1312), via at least one border node (141) of said communication network, of a message comprising at least one second identifier, a function of said at least one first identifier, and data associated with said at least one service, said data being intended to be routed via at least one network slice associated with said at least one first identifier, selected by said border node by applying at least one traffic classification rule known to said border node.
  9. Method according to claim 8, characterized in that it comprises receiving at least one traffic classification rule for routing data associated with said at least one first identifier, and storing said at least one traffic classification rule and said at least one associated first identifier.
  10. Method according to any one of claims 8 and 9, characterized in that said reception comprises the reception of at least two first identifiers each associated with at least one network slice and the application of at least one traffic classification rule to select one of said first identifiers.
  11. Method according to any one of claims 8 to 10, characterized in that it comprises the transmission of said message comprising said at least one second identifier and data associated with said at least one service to at least one second service instance capable of providing said at least one service.
  12. Method for managing access to at least one service by a terminal, via a communications network, comprising: receiving (1412) at least one message from at least one first service instance (131) capable of providing said at least one service, said message comprising at least one second identifier, a function of at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, and data associated with said at least one service, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, selecting (1413) at least one network slice associated with said at least one first identifier by applying at least one known traffic classification rule, transmitting (1414) said data associated with said at least one service on said at least one selected network slice.
  13. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 12, characterized in that said at least one first identifier is associated with a validity period.
  14. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that said at least one first identifier is associated with a security key.
  15. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that at least one of said network slices is composed of at least one local network slice deployed in at least one subnetwork of said communication network.
  16. Terminal (11) capable of accessing at least one service, via a communication network implementing network slices, comprising at least one processor configured to: obtaining at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, transmit said at least one first identifier to at least one first service instance capable of providing said at least one service to said terminal, receiving a message comprising data associated with said at least one service routed via at least one network slice associated with said at least one first identifier, selected by an edge node of said communication network by applying at least one traffic classification rule known to said edge node.
  17. Controller (15) capable of controlling the provision of at least one service to a terminal, via a communication network implementing network slices, comprising at least one processor configured to: obtaining at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, transmit said at least one first identifier to said terminal, directly or via at least one intermediate router, transmitting, to at least one edge node of said communication network, at least one traffic classification rule for the selection of at least one network slice intended to route to said terminal data associated with said at least one service.
  18. Service instance (131, 132) capable of providing at least one service to a terminal, via a communication network implementing network slices, comprising at least one processor configured to: receive at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, the transmission, via at least one edge node of said communication network, of a message comprising at least one second identifier, a function of said at least one first identifier, and data associated with said at least one service, said data being intended to be routed via at least one network slice associated with said at least one first identifier, selected by said edge node by applying at least one traffic classification rule known to said edge node.
  19. Border node (141, 142) capable of managing access to at least one service by a terminal, via a communication network, comprising at least one processor configured to: receiving at least one message from at least one first service instance capable of providing said at least one service, said message comprising at least one second identifier, a function of at least one first identifier intended for the classification of traffic to said terminal, and data associated with said at least one service, said at least one first identifier being associated with at least one network slice or one type of network slice, select at least one network slice associated with said at least one first identifier by applying at least one known traffic classification rule, transmitting said data associated with said at least one service on said at least one selected network slice.
  20. Computer program comprising instructions for implementing a method according to any one of claims 1 to 15 when this program is executed by a processor.

Description

Methods of accessing a service, method of providing services, method of control, method of management, terminal, service instance, controller, border node and corresponding computer programs. 1. Technical domain The field of the invention is that of communications within at least one communications network, and in particular that of value-added IP services. More specifically, the invention relates to access to at least one service using the network slice resources of a communications network. In particular, the invention proposes a solution for selecting one or more network slices to be used for all or part of the traffic destined for a terminal. 2. Prior art A network slice can be defined as a partition of the network such as a virtual private network (VPN) deployed on fixed infrastructure, mobile infrastructure, or a combination of both. The characteristics of a network slice are mainly expressed in terms of capacity (bandwidth) and quality of service (e.g. latency, one-way transit time, etc.), or even security (e.g. preservation of the confidentiality of information transmitted within the VPN through the use of encryption techniques) and service functions (“Service Functions” or SFs). The characteristics of a network slice are for example presented in the document “A Framework for IETF Network Slices” by A. Farrel et al., version 21 published on June 15, 2023. An example of using network slices deployed in a 5G mobile infrastructure is presented in the paper “A Realization of IETF Network Slices for 5G Networks Using Current IP/MPLS Technologies” by K. G. Szarkowicz et al., version 9 published on May 23, 2023. Traditionally, traffic that can be routed within a network slice is authorized (also called access control) to use the paths established within said network slice. Such authorization is typically based on the application of traffic classification rules. These rules are generally applied by a network access point within which network slices have been deployed. This access point is a node located at the edge of the network and which is generally deployed in front of client accesses or used to connect a network to other neighboring networks. For example, such an access point can be located at the connection interface of a gateway that provides access to the Internet network. This gateway is called a "packet gateway" for the most recent generations (4G, 5G) of mobile networks. In this case, the traffic classification function could be located at the connection interface of a "packet gateway" to the Internet network. The access point may also be located at the interface for connecting a mobile terminal (or “User Equipment” or UE) to the radio access network (or “Radio Access Network” or RAN), in particular to optimize the use of radio resources according to the type of network slice and the profile of the traffic that it is likely to carry. A traffic profile is the set of characteristics specific to the traffic. These characteristics may reflect the sensitivity of applications to latency, transit delay or packet loss, but also usage practices, for example traffic that would only be generated over a given period (for example management traffic linked to the execution of a maintenance operation on equipment scheduled during the night). The traffic classification and admission control rules are therefore applied at the edge of the network. It should also be remembered that the 3GPP organization has defined different types of network slices, according to their characteristics: a first type of network slices allowing to offer an improved mobile broadband service (“Enhanced Mobile BroadBand” or EMBB in English); a second type of network slices enabling a service to be offered as part of a (massive) deployment of the Internet of Things (massive Internet of Things or mIoT); and a third type of network slices enabling the provision of an ultra-reliable, low-latency communications service (“Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communications” or URLLC in English). The choice to design and deploy one or the other of these types of network slice is conditioned by the nature of the traffic characteristic of the applications or services used or subscribed to by a user. For example, a so-called "immersive" service that uses augmented or virtual reality techniques is generally very demanding in terms of latency and reliability of data exchanges: the use of URLLC type slices is therefore preferred for an immersive service of this type. It is also noted that traffic classification rules can be complex, because the level of granularity associated with the engineering and deployment of a network slice can be macroscopic (for example a network slice deployed to route traffic to the Internet), or microscopic (for example a network slice deployed for application traffic exchanged between two mobile terminals). This granularity generates an overall complexity of network slice engineering, for example a difficulty in optimizing the use o