Selection of a serving node in a wireless communication system

ES 2 819 014 T3

DESCRIPTION

Selecting a service node in a wireless communication system

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to communication systems and, more particularly, to the selection of a serving node in a wireless communication system.

BACKGROUND

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely implemented to provide various telecommunication services, such as telephony, video, data, messaging and broadcasting. These wireless technologies have undergone many stages of improvement in various telecommunications standards, each of which provides protocols that allow various wireless devices to communicate at the municipal, national, regional, and global levels. Such a wireless communication system may include various components, such as a user equipment (UE), a radio access network (RAN) node, and a serving node. An example of an existing telecommunication standard is Long Term Evolution (LTE), which is also known as Evolved Packet System (EPS). In LTE, the RAN node can be an Evolved Node B (eNB), and the serving node can be a Mobility Management Entity (MME).

[0003] In existing communication systems (eg LTE), the selection of the serving node (eg MME) may be done in part on the basis of load balancing. Load balancing can avoid disproportionate overload of one service node relative to another service node. However, existing communication systems may not be better suited to the complexities introduced by the types of devices and / or services operable in various UEs. Consequently, existing communication systems can benefit from distinctive features that better accommodate such complexities and provide other enhancements to the overall user experience.

[0004] EP 2 523 505 A1 relates to a method for implementing a machine-to-machine core network access. In the method, a network element receives an access request message carrying equipment identity indication information, in which the access request message is initiated by the terminal equipment; the network element determines that the terminal equipment is M2M equipment according to the equipment identity indication information and selects a corresponding M2M core network for the terminal equipment to implement the terminal equipment access.

[0005] Document EP 2 763 496 A1 refers to a core network that includes a plurality of nodes that serve as nodes that manage the mobility of a terminal and that are different with respect to the service functions that the nodes provide to the terminal . Based on the subscriber information and the terminal information, a node is selected to connect to the terminal on the core network side, depending on a service characteristic used by the terminal or a type of terminal and the terminal connects to the selected node.

[0006] Document EP 2 747 376 A1 refers to a procedure for the selection of MMEs that includes receiving at a base station a message from each of the multiple MMEs that includes information for the advertisement functionalities of each of the MMEs . The procedure also includes receiving at the BTS a request from a UE for a communication session. The request includes session type information indicating a type of session requested by the UE. The procedure further includes selecting a service MME based on information related to the advertised functionalities.

BRIEF EXPLANATION OF SOME WAYS OF IMPLEMENTATION

[0007] A brief simplified explanation of one or more aspects of the present disclosure is provided below to provide a basic understanding of those aspects. This brief explanation is not an extensive overview of all contemplated features of the disclosure and is not intended to identify key or critical elements of all aspects of the disclosure or to delineate the scope of some, or all, aspects of the disclosure. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of one or more aspects of the disclosure in a simplified manner as a prelude to the more detailed description that follows.

[0008] In one aspect, the present disclosure provides a wireless communication method that can be operated on a user equipment (UE). The method may include receiving a broadcast message from a radio access network, RAN, node, the broadcast message comprising information indicating whether at least one serving node associated with the RAN node supports the UE's service profile; determine to establish the initial connection with the RAN node according to the received broadcast message that transmits a connection request message configured to request a connection with the RAN node

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RAN, the connection request message comprising information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE, the service profile being configured to indicate that one or more services of the UE are to be supported by a service node; and receiving a connection acceptance message comprising information configured to indicate a selected service node, selected at least in part based on the service profile of the UE. Some aspects of the present disclosure provide a UE configured for wireless communication to implement such a wireless communication procedure that can be carried out in a UE user equipment.

[0009] In another aspect, the present disclosure provides a wireless communication method that can be carried out at a RAN node. The method may include transmitting a broadcast message to a user equipment, UE, the broadcast message comprising information indicating whether at least one service node associated with the RAN node supports the service profile of the UE; receiving a connection request message from a user equipment (UE), the connection request message comprising information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE; selecting a service node for the UE at least in part based on the service profile of the UE, the service profile being configured to indicate that one or more services of the UE are to be supported by a service node; and sending the connection request message to the selected service node. Some aspects of the present disclosure provide a RAN node configured for wireless communication to implement such a wireless communication procedure that can be carried out at a RAN node.

[0010] In still another aspect, the present disclosure provides a wireless communication method that can be carried out at a serving node. The method may include receiving a connection request message from a radio access network, RAN, node, the connection request message configured to establish communication with a user equipment, UE, and comprising a service profile corresponding to the EU; determining an identifier for the UE, the identifier being a function of the service profile corresponding to the UE, the service profile being configured to indicate one or more services of the UE to be supported by the service node; and transmitting a connection acceptance message to the RAN node, the connection acceptance message comprising the identifier for the UE. Some aspects of the present disclosure provide a serving node configured for wireless communication to implement such a wireless communication procedure that can be carried out at a serving node. Certain aspects of the present disclosure provide a computer-readable medium that includes computer-executable code.

These and other aspects of the invention will be more fully understood upon review of the detailed description, which follows. Other aspects, characteristic features, and embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reviewing the following description of exemplary and specific embodiments of the present disclosure in conjunction with the accompanying figures. Although the features of the present disclosure can be discussed with respect to certain embodiments and figures below, all of the embodiments of the present disclosure may include one or more of the advantageous features discussed herein. In other words, although one or more embodiments can be analyzed as having certain advantageous characteristic features, one or more of said characteristic features can also be used in accordance with the various embodiments of the disclosure discussed herein. Similarly, while the exemplary embodiments can be discussed below as the device, system, or method embodiments, it should be understood that such exemplary embodiments can be implemented in various devices, systems and procedures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012]

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an Evolved Packet System (EPS) network architecture in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of an access network in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of a downlink (DL) frame structure in an EPS network, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of an uplink (UL) frame structure in an EPS network, in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a radio protocol architecture for the user and control planes in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

ES 2 819 014 T3

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a radio access network (RAN) node and user equipment (UE) in an access network according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network topology for the EPS network according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a network architecture in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of establishing communication between a RAN node and a serving node according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of establishing communication between a UE and various components of a network in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary serving node in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating an example of various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out in a UE.

FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating another example of various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out in a UE.

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out at a RAN node.

FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out at a serving node.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation of a UE that includes a processing system.

FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation of a RAN node that includes a processing system.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation of a service node that includes a processing system.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The detailed description set forth below, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, is intended to be a description of various configurations and is not intended to represent the only configurations in which the concepts described herein can be practiced. The detailed description includes specific details for the purpose of providing a thorough understanding of various concepts. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that these concepts can be practiced without these specific details. In some examples, well-known structures and components are shown in block diagram form to avoid complicating such concepts. In an effort to provide various non-limiting examples to illustrate some of the aspects of the present disclosure, the description below may describe some characteristic features and embodiments in the context of a Long Term Evolution (LTE) architecture as one might define according to the third generation partnership project (3GPP). However, any specific LTE terminology or entity is provided merely as non-limiting examples, and some aspects of this disclosure may be implemented in any suitable network or technology.

[0014] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of an Evolved Packet System (EPS) 100 network architecture in accordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure. The network architecture of the EPS 100 may be an LTE network architecture or any other network architecture without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The EPS 100 may include one or more user equipment (UE) 102, an evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) terrestrial radio access network (EUTRAN) 104, an evolved packet core (EPC) 110, a server local subscriber (HSS) 120 and operator IP services 122. The EPC 100 can be interconnected with other access networks (not shown). The EPS 100 provides packet-switched services; however, as those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, the various concepts presented throughout this disclosure can be extended to networks that provide circuit switched services.

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The E-UTRAN 104 may include a radio access network (RAN) node 106. A non-limiting example of the RAN node 106 is an evolved Node B (eNB). The E-UTRAN 104 may also include other RAN 108 nodes (eg, other eNBs). The RAN node 106 provides user and control plane protocol terminations to the UE 102. The RAN node 106 can be connected to the other eNBs 108 via an X2 interface (ie backhaul). The RAN node 106 may also be referred to as a base station, base transceiver station, radio base station, radio transceiver, transceiver function, Basic Service Set (BSS), Extended Service Set (ESS), or some other suitable terminology. RAN node 106 provides an access point to EPC 110 for a UE 102. Examples of UE 102 include a mobile phone, a smartphone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a laptop, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a satellite radio, a global positioning system, a multimedia device, video device, digital audio player (for example, MP3 player), camera, game console, household appliance (for example, washing machine) or any other similar operating device. Those skilled in the art may also refer to the UE 102 as mobile station, subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other suitable terminology.

[0016] RAN node 106 connects to EPC 110 via an S1 interface. The EPC 110 may include a serving gateway (SGW) 116 and a packet data network (PDN) gateway 118. The EPC 110 also includes a serving node 112. A non-limiting example of the serving node 112 is an entity Mobility Management (MME) 112. The EPC 110 may also include various other service nodes 114 (eg, other MMEs). A serving node (SN) 112 may be a control node that processes signaling between the UE 102 and the EPC 110. In general, the serving node 112 provides bearer and connection management. All user Internet Protocol (IP) packets are transferred through SGW 116, which itself is connected to packet data network (PDN) gateway 118. PDN gateway 118 provides address mapping UE IP, as well as other functions. PDN gateway 118 is connected to operator's IP services 122. Operator's IP services 122 may include the Internet, intranet, an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS), and a packet-switched streaming service (PSS).

[0017] Within EPS 100, service node 112 supports a number of functions and interfaces, including non-access stratum signaling and security (NAS); security control with access layer (AS); management of the monitoring area list; PDN gateway 118 and SGW selection 116; service node selection (eg MME) for handovers between service nodes (eg between MME); inter-core network node signaling for mobility between 3GPP access networks; roaming and authentication; and EPS carrier management. Details of these functions and interfaces can be found in the 3GPP technical specifications numbered 23,401, 23,402 and 23,002, incorporated herein by reference. The service node 112 generally manages which services are active, as well as the mobility of the UE. That is, the service node 112 manages how to connect to a UE. When a UE is connected, the serving node 112 knows which RAN node the UE is connected to. When the UE is idle, the serving node 112 lists the RAN nodes to locate the UE.

[0018] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example access network 200 in an LTE network architecture. In this example, the access network 200 is divided into a number of cellular regions (cells) 202. One or more lower power class RAN nodes 206 may have cellular regions 210 that overlap with one or more of the cells 202 . The lower power class RAN node 206 may be a femtocell (eg, home eNB (HeNB)), a picocell, a microcell, or a remote radio head (RRH). The RAN macrodes 106 are each assigned to a respective cell 202 and are configured to provide an access point to the EPC 110 for all UEs 102 in cells 202. There is no centralized controller in this example of an access network 200, but in alternative configurations a centralized controller can be used. The nodes of RAN 106 are responsible for all radio-related functions, including radio bearer control, admission control, mobility control, scheduling, security, and connectivity to the SGW 116. A RAN node can support one or multiple cells (for example, three) (also called sectors). The term cell can refer to the smallest coverage area of ​​a RAN node and / or a RAN node subsystem serving a particular coverage area. Furthermore, the terms RAN node, eNB, base station, and / or cell may be used interchangeably herein without departing from the scope of the present disclosure.

The multiple access and modulation scheme employed by access network 200 may vary depending on the particular telecommunications standard being implemented. In LTE applications, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) is used on the downlink (DL) and single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) is used on the uplink (UL) to support both frequency division duplexing (FDD) and time division duplexing (TDD). As will be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, the various concepts presented herein are well suited for LTE applications. However, these concepts can easily be extended to other telecommunication standards using other techniques.

ES 2 819 014 T3 modulation and multiple access. By way of example, these concepts can be extended to Evolutionary Optimized Data (EV-DO) or Ultramobile Broadband (UMB). eV-DO and UMB are air interface standards promulgated by Third Generation Collaborative Project 2 (3GPP2) as part of the CDMA2000 family of standards and use CDMA to provide mobile stations with broadband Internet access. These concepts can also be extended to Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which uses broadband CDMA (W-CDMA) and other variants of CDMA, such as TD-SCDMA; the Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) using TDMA; already Evolved UTRA (E-UTRA), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20 and OFDM-Flash that uses OFDMA. UTRA, E-UTRA, UMTS, LTE and GSM are described in 3GPP organization documents. CDMA2000 and UMB are described in 3GPP2 organization documents. The specific wireless communication standard and multiple access technology employed will depend on the specific application and the overall design limitations imposed on the system.

The nodes of RAN 106 may have multiple antennas that support multiple input, multiple output (MIMO) technology. The use of MIMO technology enables the nodes of RAN 106 to take advantage of the spatial domain to support spatial multiplexing, beamforming, and transmission diversity. Spatial multiplexing can be used to transmit different data streams simultaneously on the same frequency. The data streams can be transmitted to a single UE 102 to increase the data transfer rate, or to multiple UE 102 to increase the overall capacity of the system. This is accomplished by spatially precoding each data stream (ie, scaling one amplitude and one phase) and then transmitting each spatially precoded stream through multiple transmitting antennas on the DL. The spatially precoded data streams arrive at the UE 102 with different spatial signatures, which enables each of the UE 102 to retrieve the one or more data streams destined for that UE 102. In the UL, each UE 102 transmits a spatially precoded data stream, allowing the RAN node 106 to identify the source of each spatially precoded data stream.

[0021] Spatial multiplexing is generally used when channel conditions are good. When channel conditions are less favorable, beamforming can be used to focus transmission energy in one or more directions. This can be achieved by spatially precoding the data for transmission through multiple antennas. To achieve good coverage at the cell edges, single stream beamforming transmission can be used in combination with transmission diversity.

In the following detailed description, some aspects of an access network will be described with reference to a MIMO system that supports OFDM on the DL. OFDM is a spread spectrum technique that modulates data across a number of subcarriers in an OFDM symbol. The subcarriers are separated at precise frequencies. The separation provides orthogonality, which enables a receiver to retrieve the data from the subcarriers. In the time domain, a guard interval (eg a cyclic prefix) can be added to each OFDM symbol to cope with interference between OFDM symbols. The UL can use SC-FDMA, in the form of a Discrete Fourier Transform (DFT) spread OFDM signal, to compensate for a high maximum to mean power ratio (PAPR).

[0023] FIG. 3 is a diagram 300 illustrating an example of a DL frame structure in LTE. A frame (10 ms) can be divided into 10 subframes of equal size. Each subframe can include two consecutive time slots. A resource grid can be used to represent two timeslots, each timeslot including a resource block. The resource grid is divided into multiple resource items. In LTE, for a normal cyclic prefix, a resource block contains 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 7 consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain, for a total of 84 resource elements. For an extended cyclic prefix, a resource block contains 12 consecutive subcarriers in the frequency domain and 6 consecutive OFDM symbols in the time domain, for a total of 72 resource elements. Some of the resource elements, indicated as R 302, 304, include DL reference signals (DL-RS). DL-RSs include Cell Specific RS (CRS) (sometimes also referred to as Common RS) 302 and UE Specific RS (UE-RS) 304. The RS-UE 304 are transmitted only in the resource blocks after which they are assigns the corresponding physical DL shared channel (PDSCH). The number of bits carried by each resource element depends on the modulation system. Therefore, the more resource blocks a UE receives and the higher the modulation system, the higher the data transfer rate for the UE.

[0024] FIG. 4 is a diagram 400 illustrating an example of a UL frame structure in LTE. The resource blocks available to the UL can be partitioned into a data section and a control section. The control section can be formed at the two edges of the system bandwidth and can have a configurable size. The resource blocks of the control section can be assigned to UEs for the transmission of control information. The data section can include all resource blocks not included in the control section. The UL frame structure results in the data section including contiguous subcarriers, which can allow a single UE to have all contiguous subcarriers assigned in the data section.

[0025] A UE may be assigned resource blocks 410a, 410b in the control section to transmit

ES 2 819 014 T3 control information to a RAN node. The UE may also be allocated resource blocks 420a, 420b in the data section to transmit data to the RAN node. The UE can transmit control information on a physical UL control channel (PUCCH) in the resource blocks allocated in the control section. The UE can only transmit data, or both data and control information, on a physical UL shared channel (PUSCH) in the resource blocks allocated in the data section. A UL transmission can span both slots of a subframe and can jump in frequency.

[0026] A set of resource blocks can be used to perform initial system access and achieve UL synchronization on a physical random access channel (PRACH) 430. The PRACH 430 carries a random sequence and cannot carry anything of UL data / signaling. Each random access preamble occupies a bandwidth corresponding to six consecutive resource blocks. The network specifies the starting frequency. That is, the transmission of the random access preamble is restricted to certain time and frequency resources. There is no frequency hopping for PRACH. The PRACH attempt is carried in a single subframe (1 ms) or in a sequence of some contiguous subframes, and a UE can only perform a single PRACH attempt per frame (10 ms).

[0027] FIG. 5 is a diagram 500 illustrating an example of a radio protocol architecture for the user and control plane in LTE. The radio protocol architecture for the UE and RAN node is shown with three layers: Layer 1, Layer 2, and Layer 3. Layer 1 (L1 layer) is the lowest layer and implements various signal processing functions of physical layer. Herein, the L1 layer will be referred to as the physical layer 506. Layer 2 (L2 layer) 508 is above the physical layer 506 and is responsible for the link between the UE and the RAN node on the physical layer 506.

In the user plane, the L2 layer 508 includes a media access control (MAC) sublayer 510, a radio link control (RLC) sublayer 512, and a data convergence protocol sublayer by packets (PDCP) 514, which are terminated at the RAN node on the network side. Although not shown, the UE may have several upper layers on top of the L2 layer 508, including a network layer (e.g., an IP layer) that terminates at the PDN gateway 118 on the network side, and a application layer terminating at the other end of the connection (eg, a far-end UE, server, etc.).

The PDCP sublayer 514 provides multiplexing between different radio bearers and logical channels. The PDCP sublayer 514 also provides overhead compression for higher layer data packets to reduce overhead on radio transmission, security by encrypting the data packets, and handover capability of UEs between RAN nodes. The RLC sublayer 512 provides higher layer data packet segmentation and reassembly, retransmission of lost data packets, and data packet reordering to compensate for messy reception due to hybrid auto-repeat request (HARQ). MAC sublayer 510 provides multiplexing between logical and transport channels. The MAC sublayer 510 is also responsible for allocating the various radio resources (eg, resource blocks) of a cell among the UEs. The MAC 510 sublayer is also responsible for HARQ operations.

In the control plane, the radio protocol architecture for the UE and the RAN node is substantially the same for the physical layer 506 and the L2 layer 508, with the exception that there is no compression function of header for the control plane. The control plane also includes a radio resource control (RRC) sublayer 516 at layer 3 (L3 layer). The RRC sublayer 516 is responsible for obtaining radio resources (ie, radio bearers) and for configuring the lower layers using RRC signaling between the RAN node and the UE.

[0031] FIG. 6 is a block diagram of a RAN node 106 in communication with a UE 102 in an access network. In DL, the upper layer packets from the core network are provided to a controller / processor 675. Controller / processor 675 implements the functionality of the L2 layer. In DL, controller / processor 675 provides header compression, encryption, segmentation and reordering of packets, multiplexing between transport and logical channels, and radio resource allocations to UE 102 based on various priority metrics. Controller / processor 675 also handles HARQ operations, retransmission of lost packets, and signaling to UE 102.

[0032] Transmission (TX) processor 616 implements various signal processing functions for the L1 layer (ie, the physical layer). Signal processing functions include encoding and interleaving to facilitate receive error correction (FEC) in the UE 102, and correlation with constellations of signals based on various modulation schemes (for example, binary phase shift keying ( BPSK), quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), M-ary phase shift keying (MPSK), M-ary quadrature amplitude modulation (M-QAM)). The encoded and modulated symbols are then divided into parallel streams. Each stream is then assigned to an OFDM subcarrier, multiplexed with a reference signal (e.g. pilot) in the time and / or frequency domain, and then combined together using a fast Fourier transform. inverse (IFFT) to produce a physical channel that carries a stream of OFDM symbols in the time domain. The OFDM stream is

ES 2 819 014 T3 spatially precodes to produce multiple spatial streams. The channel estimates from a channel estimator 674 can be used to determine the coding and modulation scheme, as well as for spatial processing. The channel estimate can be obtained from a reference and / or feedback signal of the channel condition transmitted by the UE 102. Each spatial stream can then be provided to a different antenna 620 by means of a separate 618TX transmitter. Each 618TX transmitter can modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

In the UE 102, each receiver 654RX receives a signal through its respective antenna 652. Each receiver 654RX recovers information modulated on an RF carrier and provides the information to the receive (RX) processor 656. The RX processor 656 implements various L1 layer signal processing functions. The RX processor 656 can perform spatial processing on the information to retrieve any spatial stream destined for the UE 102. If there are multiple spatial streams destined for UE 102, they can be combined by RX processor 656 into a single OFDM symbol stream. Next, the RX processor 656 converts the OFDM symbol stream from the time domain to the frequency domain using a fast Fourier transform (FFT). The frequency domain signal comprises a separate OFDM symbol stream for each subcarrier of the OFDM signal. The symbols on each subcarrier, and the reference signal, are recovered and demodulated by determining the most probable signal constellation points transmitted by the RAN node 106. These flexible decisions can be based on channel estimates calculated by the channel estimator. 658. The soft decisions are then decoded and de-interleaved to recover the data and control signals that were originally transmitted by RAN node 106 on the physical channel. The data and control signals are then provided to the controller / processor 659.

[0034] Controller / processor 659 implements layer L2. The controller / processor may be associated with a memory 660 that stores program codes and data. Memory 660 can be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In UL, controller / processor 659 provides transport and logical channel demultiplexing, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to retrieve higher layer packets from the core network. The upper layer packets are then provided to a data collector 662, which represents all the protocol layers above the L2 layer. Various control signals can also be provided to data collector 662 for L3 processing. Controller / processor 659 also handles error detection using an acknowledgment (ACK) and / or negative acknowledgment (NACK) protocol to support HARQ operations.

In UL, a data source 667 is used to provide higher layer packets to controller / processor 659. Data source 667 represents all protocol layers above the L2 layer. Similar to the functionality described in relation to DL transmission over RAN node 106, controller / processor 659 implements the L2 layer for the user plane and the control plane providing header compression, encryption, segmentation, and reordering. packet, and multiplexed between logical and transport channels based on radio resource allocations by RAN node 106. Controller / processor 659 also handles HARQ operations, retransmission of lost packets, and signaling to RAN node 106.

[0036] Channel estimates derived by a channel estimator 658 from a reference or feedback signal transmitted by RAN node 106 can be used by TX processor 668 to select appropriate modulation and coding schemes, and to facilitate spatial processing. The spatial streams generated by the TX processor 668 can be provided to different antennas 652 by means of separate transmitters 654TX. Each 654TX transmitter can modulate an RF carrier with a respective spatial stream for transmission.

[0037] The UL transmission is processed at the RAN node 106 in a similar manner to that described in relation to the receiver function in the UE 102. Each 618RX receiver receives a signal through its respective antenna 620. Each 618RX receiver retrieves modulated information on an RF carrier and provides the information to an RX 670 processor. The RX 670 processor may implement the L1 layer.

[0038] Controller / processor 675 implements layer L2. Controller / processor 675 may be associated with memory 676 that stores program codes and data. Memory 676 can be referred to as a computer-readable medium. In UL, the controller / processor 675 provides demultiplexing between transport and logical channels, packet reassembly, decryption, header decompression, and control signal processing to recover higher layer packets from the UE 102. The upper layer packets from the 675 controller / processor can be provided to the core network. The 675 controller / processor is also responsible for error detection using an ACK and / or NACK protocol to support HARQ operations.

[0039] FIG. 7 illustrates the network topology of an EPS network. In particular, FIG. 7 illustrates certain aspects of mobility procedures within the EPS network. The EPS network may include various cells, the service of which may be provided by various RAN nodes (eg eNB). The EPS network may also include various service nodes (eg, MMEs). EPS network can also include various SGWs,

ES 2 819 014 T3 that can be grouped into one or more service areas. For example, Service Area 1 may include SGW 1 and SGW2, as well as Service Node Group 1, which includes Service Node 1 and Service Node 2. Service Area 2 may include SGW1 and SGW 2 , as well as the group of service nodes 2, which includes the service node 3 and the service node 4. Each service area may include one or more Tracking Areas (TA). For example, Service Area 1 may include Tracking Area 1, Tracking Area 2, and Tracking Area 3. Service Area 2 may include Tracking Area 4 and Tracking Area 5. Each Tracking Area Trace can include one or more RAN nodes. The UE 102 can be in an active mode or in an inactive mode. In active mode, UE 102 can perform handover 702 like UE 102. In idle mode, UE 102 can perform cell 706 reselection and / or TA 704 update. One skilled in the art will understand that the EPS network can include any number of tracking areas, cells, SGW, groups of service nodes, service nodes, and / or RAN nodes that can be implemented without departing from the scope of this disclosure. For example, multiple service nodes can be included in the service area of ​​the same group of service nodes. The service areas of various service nodes and / or MMEs can overlap each other.

[0040] A UE 102 can make its way without having to change the service node. A service area can be served by one or more service nodes in parallel. In existing LTE and EPS networks, as additional functionality for a service node that has been defined in successive versions, the service node has become more complex over time. In such networks, service node selection is done primarily for load balancing and RAN sharing. Such networks have defined service node groups and the service node selection is based on the device identifier (for example, a globally unique temporary identifier (GUTI)).

[0041] FIG. 8 illustrates an exemplary network architecture 800 that includes a UE 102, a RAN node 106, and various serving nodes 112, 814, 816. As described in greater detail above, a non-limiting example of the RAN node 106 is an eNB , and a non-limiting example of the serving nodes 112, 814, 816 are various MMEs. The UE 102 can perform various communications on a particular RAN 820. UE 102 in RAN 820 can communicate with node of RAN 106. The UE 102 can communicate with various other RAN nodes (eg, other RAN nodes 108) without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The RAN node 106 can communicate with one or more service nodes 112, 814, 816. A service node can be part of a core network (CN). For example, service node 112 may be part of core network A 802, another service node 814 may be part of core network B 804, and another service node 816 may be part of core network C 806. An expert It will be understood in the art that network architecture 800 may include various other components not illustrated in FIG. 8 without departing from the scope of this disclosure.

Conventional initial connection establishment and service node selection

[0042] FIG. 9 is a diagram 900 illustrating the initial establishment of a communication interface between RAN node 106 (eg, eNB) and serving node 112 (eg, MME). Communication between RAN node 106 and serving node 112 is through a signaling interface, such as an S1-MME interface in LTE standards. During the initial establishment of the communication interface between the RAN node 106 and the service node 112, the RAN node 106 can transmit a configuration request S1 902 to the service node 112. After receiving the configuration request S1 902 , the serving node 112 may transmit an S1 configuration response 904 to the RAN node 106. Such a signaling interface can be established when RAN node 106 and serving node 112 connect to each other during initial provisioning. Generally speaking, the purpose of such a signaling interface configuration procedure is to exchange application-level data necessary for RAN node 106 and serving node 112 to interact correctly on the signaling interface. Such a signaling interface configuration procedure may erase some existing application-level configuration data at RAN node 106 and service node 112 and replace that existing application-level configuration data with the existing application-level configuration data. application received. As part of the signaling interface configuration, the RAN node 106 can be configured with a relative capacity information element (IE) for each serving node in the group. Consequently, the probability that RAN node 106 selects a particular serving node (eg, serving node 112) within that group of serving nodes is proportional to its relative capacity. Relative capacity is typically set according to the capacity of a serving node relative to other serving nodes, and generally does not change frequently.

Conventional UE connection establishment and service node reselection

When a UE 102 arrives at RAN node 106 and attempts to connect or join RAN node 106, UE 102 may send a connection request message configured to request the establishment of a connection to RAN node 106. Said The message may be called a join request 1002. Such a message may be transmitted to the RAN node 106. If the UE 102 has registered with a serving node 112 (eg, an MME), then the UE 102 provides the RAN node 106 with a temporary identifier that is globally unique (eg, a GUTI). The identifier may provide a unique identification of the UE 102 and allow the identification of the serving node 112 and the network. Said identifier can be used by the network and the UE 102 to

ES 2 819 014 T3 establishing the identity of the UE during signaling between the UE 102 and the network. The identifier may include two components: a first component that uniquely identifies a service node 112 that assigned the identifier, and a second component that uniquely identifies the UE 102 within the service node 112 that assigned the identifier.

The identifier may include a globally unique serving node identifier (eg, a globally unique mobility management entity identifier (GUMMEI) when serving node 112 is an MME) and a temporary mobile subscriber identity of serving node (eg, a temporary mobile subscriber identity (TMSI)). The GUMMEI may include a mobile country code (MCC) that identifies the mobile subscriber's country of residence, a mobile network code (MNC) that identifies the mobile subscriber's public land mobile network (PLMN), a group ID of MME (MMEGI) and an MME code (MMEC).

If the UE 102 is not yet registered with any service node 112, then the UE 102 does not provide information such as a registered service node entity to be sent by the RAN node 106 to the service node 112. In this step, the RAN node 106 may perform a serving node selection for the UE 102. The RAN node 106 selects the serving node 112 for the UE 102 based on the relative capacity IE, as described in more detail above. . A load balancing function is performed based on the relative capacity of the service nodes. Load balancing directs UEs entering a group of service nodes to an appropriate service node in a way that achieves load balancing between service nodes.

In some existing networks, during connection establishment signaling (eg radio resource control signaling (RRC)) between the UE 102 and the RAN node 106, the UE 102 provides the RAN node 106 a certain establishment causing IE. Among other things, the setup causes the IE to include parameters that indicate what the connection will be used for, such as for an emergency call, for access with mobile termination, for signaling or mobile originated data, etc. Consequently, the RAN node 106 can determine whether or not the UE 102 is configured for a low access priority based on the information received in the connection setup signaling and can use this information for the selection of the serving node. However, this information still lacks an indication about the UE 102 itself, such as a type of device or services operating in the UE 102, which can better improve the selection of the service node.

[0047] Once RAN node 106 has selected service node 112, RAN node 106 transmits an initial UE message to selected service node 112. That is, through the signaling interface (eg, an S1-MME interface), the RAN node 106 transmits the initial message from the UE to transfer the information corresponding to the connection request message from the UE to the serving node 112. This message may include a NAS message (eg, a connection request message), the UE signaling reference ID, and other S1 addressing information (ie, signaling interface). Service node 112 may use the identifier in the initial UE message to determine if service node 112 has an existing UE context. The serving node 112 begins to create a UE context by storing the UE network capability information, a packet data network (PDN) connectivity request, etc., which are used later during security activation and the establishment of the carrier. Service node 112 responds to RAN node 106 with a NAS join accept message. The RAN node 106 may then transfer a NAS join acceptance message received from the serving node to the UE 102 (unless this message is transferred to the UE 102 otherwise). When the UE 102 moves away from the service area of ​​the selected service node, the selected service node performs the service node selection on behalf of the UE 102.

Improved initial connection establishment and service node selection

In accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure, the configuration procedure for establishing a new signaling interface (eg, an S1-MME connection) between a RAN node 106 and a serving node 112 can be modified or enhance to include one or more additional information items. For example, referring to FIG. 9, In ​​some aspects of the present disclosure, the configuration request S1 from RAN node 106 to serving node 112 may indicate information about RAN node 106 that supports different technologies (e.g., different RATs, different types of UE device and / or different UE services, etc.), which may be useful for a service node 112. For example, in response to a request for signaling interface configuration, the service node 112 may provide the RAN node 106 with information related to the capabilities of the service node, including, but not limited to, a list of types. of compatible devices, a list of compatible services, a list of initial device identifier prefixes, and / or a list of radio access technology (RAT).

[0049] Table 1 below provides some non-limiting examples of such parameters that can be included in a serving node S1 configuration response message.

ES 2 819 014 T3

Table 1

<td>Group name / IE</td><td>Semantic description</td>

<td>List of device types</td><td>Enumerated list of device types supported by the service node</td>

<td>List of services</td><td>Enumerated list of services supported by the service node</td>

<td>Initial Device Identifier Prefix List</td><td>Enumerated list of device identifier prefixes supported by the service node, that is, the RAN node can select this service node for devices with an initial identifier in this list</td>

<td>RAT list</td><td>Enumerated list of supported RATs for access by the service node</td>

Table 1 (above) lists some non-limiting examples of various parameters, one or more of which can be communicated from serving node 112 to RAN node 106 in some aspects of the present disclosure. The device type list may be an enumerated list of the device types supported by the service node 112, and the service list may be an enumerated list of services supported by the service node 112.

[0050] Some non-limiting examples of services compatible with the UE 102 include a data service, a voice service, a video service, an Internet service, and any other suitable services that can be carried out in the UE 102. The initial device identifier prefix list may be an enumerated list of device identifier prefixes supported by the service node 112. The RAN node 106 can select this service node 112 for devices or UE 102 that have an initial identifier that appears in this list. The RAT list may be an enumerated list of compatible RATs for access by the service node 112. That is, a particular service node 112 could not only serve different types of devices; In some aspects of the present disclosure, different serving nodes may also serve different RATs. For example, one service node can service fifth generation (5G) devices and fourth generation (4G) devices, while another service node can only service wireless local area network (WLAN) devices. Therefore, a list of RATs provided by the serving node can aid in the selection of the serving node. Said parameters, in addition to one or more other parameters corresponding to the service node 112 (for example, the relative capacity IE) can be provided from the service node 112 to the RAN node 106 in the configuration response S1 904. From this Thus, the RAN node 106 can store in its memory these parameters with respect to the service node 112. Said parameters can be used after connection with the UE 102 for the selection of the service node.

[0051] In some aspects of the present disclosure, the configuration response message S1 904 transmitted from the serving node 112 to the RAN node 106 may include one or more device identifier prefixes compatible with the serving node 112. It is that is, the UE 102 may implicitly indicate its device type by means of a part of its device identifier. Here, by storing a list of compatible device identifier prefixes for service node 112, RAN node 106 can select this service node 112 for UEs indicating an identifier within said list. In some other aspects of the present disclosure, in addition to or as an alternative to the configuration response message S1 904, the parameters of the service node 112 described above can be provided to the RAN node 106 using configuration operation and maintenance (OAM) messages. . That is, the parameters listed in Table 1 (above) may be included in one or both of the S1 904 configuration responses and / or OAM signaling in some configurations of the present disclosure.

Enhanced UE connection establishment

[0052] FIG. 10 is a diagram 1000 illustrating an initial connection establishment procedure between the UE 102 and the EPS network in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure. The UE 102 may select a core network from a plurality of core networks or virtualized core networks, for example, in accordance with a network identifier, such as the PLMN ID. Before attempting to join a particular RAN node 106, the UE 102 may initially determine the RAN node 106 that it wishes to join. In accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure, the UE 102 can be enabled to determine if the RAN node 106 has a signaling interface (eg, an S1-MME interface) with serving nodes that are capable of supporting the type device and / or services corresponding to that UE 102. For example, RAN node 106 may be configured to broadcast a message or messages indicating information related to serving nodes 112 associated with that RAN node 106. Here, these broadcasts may include information from Table 1 (above). For example, such information may include a list of device types, a list of services, a list of initial device identifier prefixes, and / or a list of RATs. Consequently, the UE 102 can use such information (in addition to the existing mechanisms for selecting the RAN node 106) to determine if an attempt is made to connect to that RAN node 106.

As another example, the UE 102 can be configured with a list of nodes from RAN 106. The UE 102 can use appropriate identifiers for the nodes of RAN 106. Non-limiting examples of such identifiers include PLMN ID, code of tracking area and / or a cell ID, where support is available for the device type (s) corresponding to the UE 102. Consequently, in some configurations, the UE 102 can be configured to attempt to join specific cells according to its RAN 106 node list.

In some configurations, the device type of the UE 102 may be related to the services running on the UE 102. For example, the UE 102 may be a washing machine that connects to a network. The washing machine may indicate that it is an Internet of Everything (IOE) device, and the services it runs are related to that type of device (for example, washing machine-related services). However, in some other configurations, the device type of the UE may not be related to the services running on the UE 102. That is, a particular device type does not necessarily imply a particular type of service. For example, the UE 102 can be a tablet. The tablet can connect to the network, but the tablet can run multiple and different services (eg voice, internet, data, video, etc.)

[0054] When the UE 102 tries to connect to the RAN node 106, the UE 102 can transmit a connection request message. A non-limiting example of the connection request message is a join request 1002. However, in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure, the join request 1002 transmitted from the UE 102 to the RAN node 106 may include information that the RAN node 106 can be used for service node selection. For example, join request 1002 can include a UE device ID or other suitable identifier, one or more device types corresponding to UE 102, one or more services that UE 102 can use. For example, UE 102 can transmitting a join request 1002 that includes a 'service profile' of the UE 102. The service profile can be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of the UE 102 and / or one or more operational services in the UE 102 . In some aspects of the present disclosure, the indication of device type from UE 102 to RAN node 106 for service node selection by RAN node 106 may be explicit and / or implicit.

With respect to an implicit indication of the device type of the UE, the RAN node 106 may select a serving node 112 for the UE 102 according to the indication of a UE identifier. An identifier signaled by the UE 102 and used for selection of the serving node can be any suitable identifier, including but not limited to, the UE's International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) or a media access control identifier ( MAC-ID) of the UE 102. For example, the identifier may be defined to include information related to the device type of the UE. The UE identifier can be used by RAN node 106 to select serving node 112 based, for example, on an IMSI prefix match. An IMSI prefix match list can be provided from serving node 112 to RAN node 106 using an OAM configuration or during S1 configuration signaling. The explicit selection of the serving node may exist when the UE 102 explicitly indicates the device type and / or the services of the UE 102 required to be compatible with the serving node 112 in the initial NAS message of the UE 102 when establishing the Connection. In some aspects of the present disclosure, the information is configured to indicate that the UE's service profile can only be included in the join request 1002 when the UE 102 is not already connected to the network. That is, device type information can only be included in an initial join message but not in subsequent connection setup signaling.

[0056] In some aspects of the present disclosure, the UE 102 may have multiple device types. Said UE 102 can perform a separate join procedure for each type of device, thereby resulting in separate connections (eg, one connection per device type). For example, a smartphone can be configured to connect to a service node 112 for telephone services. The smartphone can establish another connection for video player services. The smartphone can establish yet another connection for low power services, such as a connection configured to send logs.

[0057] Service types and Access Point Names (APNs) can be configured in various configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some configurations, a particular service can be assigned to one or more associated APNs (for example, Internet APNs, Voice APNs, Data APNs, etc.). For example, a particular application running on the UE 102 may use the voice APN and the data APN. In some configurations, one or more applications can be assigned to a single APN. For example, a video application and an Internet browsing application running on the UE 102 can both be assigned to the Internet APN. In some configurations, a particular APN can be disabled if there are no active services for that particular APN. For example, if a voice-related application is assigned to a data APN, and the user is not currently on a voice call, then the data APN can be disabled. APNs can be enabled and disabled based on the active services that use that APN. In some configurations, some services can be assigned to their own dedicated APN (s). For example, the operator's voice services may use their own dedicated APN (s).

In block 1004, RAN node 106 may select service node 112. RAN node 106 may determine the set of service nodes 112 capable of handling device type (s) and / or or service (s) corresponding to the UE 102. This information from serving node 112 to RAN node 106 can be stored in memory at RAN node 106 and can be provided from serving node 112 to RAN node 106 using OAM configuration signaling and / or signaling. setup procedure S1. The RAN node 106 may accordingly select a specific serving node 112 from the pool based on said parameters, as well as the relative capacity IE to facilitate load balancing across various serving nodes. In some aspects of the present disclosure, the service node 112 may

ES 2 819 014 T3 assign a GUTI to the UE 102. The assigned GUTI can be a function of the device type and / or the services or subscription profile of the UE 102. After the RAN node 106 selects the service node 112 , RAN node 106 may transmit a join request 1006 to service node 112. After receiving join request 1006, service node 112 may transmit a join acceptance 1008 to RAN node 106. In response, RAN node 106 may transmit a join acceptance 1010 to UE 102.

If a service node (eg, service node 112) is selected according to a particular device type of UE 102, then the selected service node (eg, service node 112) in general it must be able to handle all the services associated with that type of device. For example, the UE 102 can be a smartphone. If the smartphone connects to the service node 112, then that service node 112 in general should be able to handle all (eg, up to tens or hundreds of) services that the smartphone can implement. If the smartphone activates a service that is currently unavailable or not compatible with the selected service node 112, then the service node 112 can perform reselection of the service node to another service node that supports that particular service, as described in more detail below.

Enhanced Service Node Reselection

[0060] FIG. 11 is a diagram 1100 illustrating a service node reselection procedure in accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure. As described in more detail above, the selected service node (eg, service node 112) should be capable of handling all services associated with the UE device type. If the UE 102 attempts to activate a service that is currently unavailable or not compatible with the current service node, then the service node 112 may perform reselection of the service node (eg, reselection to another service node 1112). The RAN node 106 may use the UE device type and / or signaled services to select the destination RAN 106 nodes for the UE 102 handover. In some configurations, the selected device types and / or services of the UE 102 may be provided by the UE 102 during RRC signaling. In some configurations, the selected device types and / or services from UE 102 may be provided by the source service node 112 and / or RAN node 106 in an S1 / X2 handover to select destination cells for future handovers. For example, the RAN node 106 may exchange the types of devices and / or services available from its connected service nodes as part of an X2 configuration procedure. In general, the X2 configuration procedure configures an X2 interface between various nodes of RAN 106 (eg, eNB). As such, when a connected UE 102 is preparing for handover, the RAN node 106 can limit the set of RAN 106 nodes candidates for connected cells to serving nodes that support the device type and / or services of that UE. . As described in more detail above, the UE 102 may transmit a join request message 1002 to the RAN node 106. Subsequently, at block 1004, the RAN node 106 may perform the serving node selection. The detailed description corresponding to said steps is provided above with reference to FIG. 10 and therefore will not be repeated.

[0061] Various circumstances can trigger a service node reselection procedure. In some circumstances, after the UE 102 is connected to the serving RAN node 106, the UE 102 may indicate one or more new services and / or indicate a new or different device type to the RAN node 106. If the currently connected service node 112 is not compatible with said indicated service (s) and / or device type (s) of the UE 102, reselection of the service node may occur under such circumstances. In some of other circumstances, the UE 102 having an existing serving node connection may be moved into location. Due to movement in location, the UE 102 may change its tracking area and / or move out of the service area of ​​its selected service node 112. In such circumstances, reselection of the service node may occur.

[0062] According to some aspects of the disclosure, the UE 102 may transmit certain information to the RAN node 106, such as a Tracking Area Update (TAU) service or request. Such transmission may include information suitable for selection of the serving node as described in more detail above. Such information may include, but is not limited to, a device ID, one or more device types, and / or one or more services used by the UE 102. The RAN node may perform the service node selection procedure, as described in more detail above. The RAN node 106 may verify the type (s) of device and / or service (s) to ensure that they are compatible with the existing service node 112 indicated in the device ID. If the device type (s) and / or service (s) are compatible with the indicated existing service node 112 (for example, the UE GUTI), then the RAN node 106 can send the request to the current service node 112.

If the device type (s) and / or service (s) of the UE 102 is (are) not compatible with the existing service node 112, the RAN node 106 may determine to select a new serving node 1112. As described above, RAN node 106 can query information stored in its memory as received from serving nodes 112, 1112 to find a suitable serving node 1112 for UE 102. The set of service nodes capable of handling the type (s) of device and / or service (s) can be selected from among the service nodes for which said information has been stored in the RAN node

ES 2 819 014 T3

106. From among this set of serving nodes, the RAN node 106 can then select a specific serving node 1112 based on the relative ability IE to achieve load balancing between the serving nodes.

[0064] To select a new service node 1112, the RAN node 106 can transmit a service or a TAI request 1106 to the new service node 1112. Subsequently, the new service node 1112 can transmit a context request 1108 to the node existing (eg old) service node 112, which in response may transmit a context response 1110 to the new service node 1112. In response to the receipt of the context response 1110, the new serving node 1112 may transmit a TAU response service or acceptance 1114 to the RAN node 106, which will send a TAI response service or acceptance 1116 to the UE 102. In Consequently, the newly selected service node 1112 may retrieve the UE 102 context from the existing service node 112 based on the GUTI. The new service node 1112 may further select and assign a new GUTI to the UE 102. The new service node 1112 may assign a GUTI that is a function of the device type (s), service (s), and / or subscription profile of the EU 102.

Various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out in the EU

[0065] FIG. 12 is a diagram 1200 illustrating an example of various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out in the UE 102. In step 1202, the UE 102 can determine if the service profile of the UE 102 is included in the message. connection request. For example, referring to FIG. 10, the connection request message may be join request 1002. Such a determination can be made according to many configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some configurations, the UE 102 may determine whether the service profile of the UE 102 is included in the connection request message (eg, join request 1002) if the UE 102 is not already registered with the network. In some of the other configurations, the UE 102 may determine whether the UE 102's service profile is included in the connection request message (e.g., join request 1002) if the service profile has changed since the last time the UE 102 established a connection in the network. In some of the other configurations, the UE 102 may determine to establish the initial connection with the RAN node 106 according to a determination that the RAN node 106 is associated with at least one of a network identifier, an area code of tracking, a cell ID or an SSID known to the UE 102 to support the service profile of the UE 102 according to a list of RAN nodes stored in a memory in the UE 102.

Subsequently, in step 1204, the UE 102 can transmit the connection request message (eg, the join request 1002) configured to request the initial connection with the RAN node 106. The connection request message it may include information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE 102. The service profile may be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of the UE 102 and / or one or more services operative in the UE 102. As described in more detail above, the service profile of the UE 102 may include an implicit indication of the device type of the UE 102 and / or explicit information configured to indicate the device type of the UE 102. The device type of the UE 102 may include a voice device, a streaming media device, a web browsing device, a mission critical device, a low power device, an Internet device, a sensor device and / or an IOE device. The additional description regarding the service profile, device type and operational services in the UE 102 is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

[0067] After transmitting the connection request message, in step 1206, the UE 102 can receive a connection acceptance message. The connection acceptance message may include information configured to indicate a selected service node, at least in part, based on the service profile of the UE 102. For example, referring to FIG. 10, UE 102 may receive join acceptance 1010 from RAN node 106, and join acceptance 1010 may include information indicating the selected service node at least in part based on the UE 102 service profile.

[0068] In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE 102 may change. For example, the UE 102 may have a change in one or more of the device types of the UE 102 and / or one or more operational services in the UE 102. In such circumstances, in step 1208, the UE 102 may transmit information to the RAN node 106 to indicate the change in the service profile. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the device type (s) and / or service (s) of the UE 102 may not be compatible with the existing service node 112. Consequently, the RAN node 106 may need to determine to select a new serving node 1112. Later, in step 1210, the UE 102 may receive information indicating a change in the selected serving node. The change in the selected service node may be in accordance with the modified service profile of the UE 102. For example, the information may indicate a change from service node 112 to service node 1112. Service node 112 can be changed (to another service node 1112) because service node 1112 can adapt to the modified service profile. of the UE 102.

[0069] FIG. 13 is a diagram 1300 illustrating another example of various other procedures and / or processes that can be performed in the UE 102. In some configurations, the UE 102 service profile may include the device type of the UE 102. In some configurations, in step 1302, the UE 102 can receive a broadcast message

ES 2 819 014 T3 from the RAN node 106. The broadcast message may include information indicating whether at least one serving node associated with the RAN node supports the device type of the UE. For example, referring to FIG. 10, said information may indicate whether at least one of the service nodes 112, 1112 associated with the RAN node 106 supports the particular device type of the UE 102. In step 1304, the UE 102 may determine to establish the initial connection with the RAN node 106. The UE 102 may determine to establish the initial connection with the RAN node 106 according to the received broadcast message. For example, referring to FIG. 10, the UE 102 may determine to establish the initial connection with the RAN node 106 because at least one of the serving nodes 112, 1112 supports the particular device type of the UE 102.

Subsequently, in step 1306, the UE 102 can transmit the connection request message (eg, the join request 1002) configured to request the initial connection with the RAN node 106. The connection request message it may include information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE 102. The service profile may be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of the UE 102 and / or one or more services operative in the UE 102. As described in more detail above, the service profile of the UE 102 may include an implicit indication of the device type of the UE 102 and / or explicit information configured to indicate the device type of the UE 102. The device type of the UE 102 may include a voice device, a streaming media device, a web browsing device, a mission critical device, a low power device, an Internet device, a sensor device and / or an IOE device. The additional description regarding the service profile, device type and operational services in the UE 102 is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

In some configurations, at step 1308, the UE 102 may transmit a TAU request message. The TAU request message may include information configured to indicate the service profile of the UE 102. For example, such transmission may include information suitable for the selection of the service node as described in more detail above. Such information may include, but is not limited to, a device ID, one or more device types, and / or one or more services used by the UE 102. As described above with reference to FIG. 11, the RAN node 106 may verify the device type (s) and / or service (s) to ensure that they are compatible with the existing service node 112 indicated in the device ID. If the device type (s) and / or service (s) are compatible with the indicated existing service node 112 (e.g. UE GUTI), then the RAN node 106 can send the request to the current service node 112. To select a new service node 1112, RAN node 106 may transmit a service or TAI request 1106 to the new service node 1112. Subsequently, the new service node 1112 may transmit a context request 1108 to the existing service node 112, which in response may transmit a context response 1110 to the new service node 1112. In response to the receipt of the context response 1110 , the new serving node 1112 may transmit a TAU response acceptance or service 1114 to the RAN node 106, which will send a TAI response acceptance or service 1116 to the UE 102. Consequently, in step 1310, the UE 102 may receive a TAU request acceptance message. The TAU request acceptance message may include information indicating a service node (eg, service node 1112) selected at least in part based on the service profile of the UE 102.

Various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out in the RAN node

[0072] FIG. 14 is a diagram 1400 illustrating an example of various procedures and / or processes that may be performed at RAN node 106. At step 1402, RAN node 106 may receive information from the serving node. Such information may indicate one or more types of UE devices and / or services compatible with the selected service node. Such information may also include an identifier that identifies the UE 102. Such information may include various aspects described herein with reference to the service profile of the UE 102. In step 1404, the RAN node 106 may store said information in the memory of the RAN node 106. In some configurations, such information it may be received by RAN node 106 as signaling including a portion of setup signaling to establish an interface between RAN node 106 and the selected serving node. In some of the other configurations, such information may be received by the RAN node 106 as OAM signaling between the RAN node 106 and the selected serving node.

In step 1406, the RAN node 106 may broadcast a message that includes information indicating the compatible service profiles of a set of service nodes associated with the RAN node. By broadcasting such a message, RAN node 106 can provide notifications to UEs about the capabilities of the set of serving nodes associated with RAN node 106 to support various support profiles. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the RAN node 106 may broadcast said message to indicate the compatible service profiles of the service node 112 and the service node 1112.

In step 1408, RAN node 106 may receive a connection request message from UE 102. For example, referring to FIG. 10, RAN node 106 may receive join request 1002 from UE 102. The connect request message (eg, join request 1002) may include information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE. Additional information regarding the service profile of the UE 102 is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

ES 2 819 014 T3

In step 1410, the RAN node 106 may select a service node for the UE 102 at least in part based on the service profile of the UE 102. For example, referring to FIG. 10, at block 1004, RAN node 106 may select service node 112 at least in part because service node 112 supports the service profile of UE 102. In some configurations, the RAN node 106 may select the serving node for the UE 102 by: (i) determining a set of one or more serving nodes capable of joining a UE 102 that has a device type such as is indicated in the service profile of the UE 102; and (ii) the selection of the service node from among the set of one or more service nodes according to the capability information element received from each service node of the set of one or more service nodes. In step 1412, the RAN node 106 can send the connection request message to the selected serving node. For example, referring to FIG. 10, RAN node 106 may send join request 1006 to serving node 112.

[0076] In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE 102 may change. For example, the UE 102 may have a change in one or more of the device types of the UE 102 and / or one or more operational services in the UE 102. In such circumstances, in step 1414, the RAN node 106 may receiving information from the UE 102 indicating a change in the service profile of the UE 102. In accordance with a determination that the selected service node is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE 102, in step 1416, the RAN node 106 may select a new service node for the UE 102 at least in part. based on the modified service profile of the UE 102. For example, referring to FIG. 11, upon determining that the service node 112 is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE 102, the RAN node 106 may select a new service node 1112 for the UE 102 because the existing service node 112 is not compatible with the modified service profile of UE 102. In step 1418, RAN node 106 may transmit an indication of the new service node 1112 to UE 102 or existing service node 112.

Various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out at the service node

[0077] FIG. 15 is a diagram 1500 illustrating an example of various procedures and / or processes that can be carried out at the serving node. At step 1502, the serving node may receive a request from RAN node 106 to establish an interface between RAN node 106 and serving node 112. For example, referring to FIG. 9, the service node 112 may receive a configuration request S1 902 from the RAN node 106 to establish an interface between the RAN node 106 and the service node 112. In step 1504, the service node may transmit a response that includes information related to one or more service profiles supported by the service node. For example, referring to FIG. 9, the service node 112 may transmit the S1 configuration response 904 to the RAN node 106, and the S1 configuration response 904 may include information related to the service profiles supported by the service node 112.

Such information can be provided in various configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some configurations, such information may indicate one or more RATs compatible with service node 112. The service profile may indicate one or more types of devices compatible with service node 112. In some of the other configurations, such information may include one or more device identifier prefixes compatible with the service node 112. The service profile of the service node 112 can be provided in various configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The service profile may indicate one or more service profiles compatible with the service node 112. The additional description regarding the service profile is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

In step 1506, the serving node may receive a connection request message from the RAN node 106. For example, referring to FIG. 10, the service node 112 may receive the join request 106 from the RAN node 106. The connection request message (eg, join request 106) can be configured to establish communication with the UE 102. The connect message Connection request may include a service profile corresponding to UE 102. In step 1508, the serving node may determine an identifier for the UE 102. The identifier may be a function of the service profile corresponding to the UE 102. In step 1510, the serving node may transmit a connection acceptance message to the RAN node 106. The connection accept message may include the identifier for the UE 102. For example, referring to FIG. 10, the service node 112 may transmit the join acceptance 1008, and the join acceptance 1008 may include the identifier for the UE 102.

In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE 102 may change. For example, the UE 102 may have a change in one or more of the device types of the UE 102 and / or one or more operational services in the UE 102. In such circumstances, in step 1512, the service node may receive a message indicating an update of the service profile corresponding to the UE. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the serving node 112 may receive the context request 1108. In step 1514, the serving node may determine that the received message indicates that the UE 102 is no longer compatible with the serving node (eg, node 112). For example, service node 112 may determine that service node 112 is no longer compatible with the updated service profile of UE 102. Subsequently, in step 1516, the service node can transmit information to another service node that is compatible with the updated service profile.

ES 2 819 014 T3 corresponding to UE 102. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the service node 1112 may be compatible with the updated service profile corresponding to the UE 102. Accordingly, the service node 112 may transmit the context response 1110 to the service node 1112. In some configurations, at step 1518, the serving node may also transmit information to the RAN node 106 so that the UE 102 indicates the other serving node (eg, the serving node 1112) to the UE 102.

UE hardware implementation

[0081] FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation of a UE that includes a processing system 1601. By way of example and not limitation, the UE 1600 described herein with reference to FIG. 16 may be the same as UE 102 described herein with reference to FIGS. 1,2,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 and / or 13. In some configurations, the processing system 1601 may include a user interface 1612. User interface 1612 can be configured to receive one or more input from a user of the processing system 1601. User interface 1612 can also be configured to display information (eg, text and / or images) to the user of the processing system. processing 1601. User interface 1612 can exchange data to and / or from processing system 1601 via bus interface 1608.

[0082] Processing system 1601 may also include a transceiver 1610. Transceiver 1610 may be configured to receive data and / or transmit data in communication with another apparatus. Transceiver 1610 provides a means of communicating with another apparatus by means of a wired and / or wireless transmission medium. The transceiver 1610 can be configured to perform such communications using various types of technologies. One skilled in the art will understand that many types of technologies can be used to accomplish such communication without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Processing system 1601 may also include memory 1614, one or more processors 1604, computer-readable medium 1606, and bus interface 1608. Bus interface 1608 may provide an interface between bus 1603 and transceiver 1610. The memory 1614, the one or more processors 1604, the computer-readable medium 1606, and the bus interface 1608 can be connected to each other via the bus 1603. The processor 1604 can be communicatively coupled to the transceiver 1610 and / or the memory 1614 .

The processor 1604 may include a receive circuit 1620, a control circuit 1621, a transmit circuit 1622, and / or other circuits 1623. In general, the receiving circuit 1620, the control circuit 1621, the transmitting circuit 1622, and / or other circuits 1623 may, individually or jointly, include various hardware components and / or software modules that can perform and / or enable any or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, characteristic features and / or aspects described herein with reference to a UE.

In some configurations, control circuit 1621 can be configured to determine if a UE 1600 service profile is included in a connection request message. Such a determination can be made in accordance with many configurations described in more detail herein. For example, the control circuit 1621 may make such a determination if the UE 1600 is not yet registered with the network. As another example, the control circuit 1620 may make such a determination if the service profile has changed since the UE 1600 last established a connection on the network. In yet another example, the control circuit 1620 may make such a determination in accordance with a determination that a RAN node is associated with at least one of a network identifier, a tracking area code, a cell ID, or a SSID known to the UE 1600 to support the service profile of the UE 1600 according to a list of RAN nodes stored in a memory on the UE 1600.

[0085] Transmission circuit 1622 can be configured to use transceiver 1610 to transmit the connection request message, wherein the connection request message is configured to request an initial connection to the RAN node. The connection request message may include information configured to indicate a UE 1600 service profile. The service profile can be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of the UE 1600 and / or one or more operational services in the UE 1600. As described in more detail above, the service profile of the UE 1600 can include an implicit indication of the device type of the UE 1600 and / or explicit information configured to indicate the device type of the UE 1600. The UE 1600 device type may include a voice device, a streaming media device, a web browsing device, a mission critical device, a low-power device, an Internet device, a sensor device and / or an IOE device. The additional description regarding the service profile, device type and operational services in the UE 1600 is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

The receive circuit 1620 can be configured to receive a connection acceptance message. The connection acceptance message may include information configured to indicate a selected service node, at least in part, based on the service profile of the UE 1600. In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE 1600 may change. For example, the UE 1600 may have a change in one or more of the UE 1600 device types and / or one or more operational services on the UE 1600. In such circumstances, the transmission circuit 1622 may be configured to use the 1610 transceiver to transmit information to the

ES 2 819 014 T3

RAN to indicate the change in the service profile. The RAN node may need to determine to select a new service node. Accordingly, the receiving circuit 1620 can be configured to use the transceiver 1610 to receive information indicating a change in the selected serving node. The change in the selected service node may be in accordance with the modified service profile of the UE 1600. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the information may indicate a change from one service node 112 to another service node 1112 because the other service node 1112 may adapt to the modified service profile.

In some configurations, the receiving circuit 1620 can be configured to receive a broadcast message from the RAN node. The broadcast message may include information indicating whether at least one serving node associated with the RAN node supports the UE 1600 device type. The control circuit 1621 may be configured to determine to establish the initial connection to the RAN node. according to the broadcast message received. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the UE 102 may determine to establish the initial connection with the RAN node 106 because at least one of the serving nodes 112, 1112 supports the particular device type of the UE 102. The transmission circuit 1622 can be configured to use the transceiver 1610 to transmit the connection request message, and the connection request message can be configured to request an initial connection with the RAN node. The connection request message may include information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE 1600. The service profile may be configured to indicate one or more than one type of UE 1600 device and / or one or more services operating on the UE 1600. The further description regarding the service profile, device type and operational services in the UE 1600 is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

In some configurations, transmission circuit 1622 can be configured to use transceiver 1610 to transmit a TAU request message. The TAU request message may include information configured to indicate the service profile of the UE 1600. Such information may include, but is not limited to, a device ID, one or more device types, and / or one or more services used. by UE 1600. Receive circuit 1620 can be configured to use transceiver 1610 to receive a TAU request acceptance message. The TAU request acceptance message may include information indicating a selected service node at least in part based on the UE 1600 service profile.

[0089] The foregoing description provides a non-limiting example of processor 1604 of processing system 1601. Although various circuits are described above, one skilled in the art will understand that processor 1604 may also include various other circuits 1623 that are additional and / or alternatives to circuits 1620, 1621, 1622. Said other circuits 1623 may provide the means to perform any one or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, features, and / or aspects described herein with reference to the UE.

[0090] Computer-readable medium 1606 includes various computer-executable instructions. The computer executable code can be executed by various hardware components (eg, the processor 1604, or any or more of its circuits 1620, 1621, 1622, 1623) of the processing system 1601. The instructions can be part of various programs software and / or software modules. Computer-readable medium 1606 may include receive instructions 1640, control instructions 1641, transmit instructions 1642, and / or other instructions 1643. In general, the receive instructions 1640, the control instructions 1641, the transmit instructions 1642 and / or the other instructions 1643 can be configured, individually or jointly, to perform and / or enable any or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, characteristic features and / or aspects described herein with reference to a UE.

[0091] In some configurations, control instructions 1641 may include computer-executable instructions configured to determine if a UE 1600 service profile is included in a connection request message. Such a determination can be made in accordance with many configurations described in more detail above. For example, control instructions 1641 can be configured to make such a determination if the UE 1600 is not yet registered on the network. As another example, the control instructions 1640 can be configured to make such a determination if the service profile has changed since the UE 1600 last established a connection on the network. As yet another example, the control instructions 1640 can be configured to make such a determination in accordance with a determination that a RAN node is associated with at least one of a network identifier, a tracking area code, an ID of cell or an SSID known to the UE 1600 to support the service profile of the UE 1600 according to a list of RAN nodes stored in a memory in the UE 1600.

The transmission instructions 1642 may include computer-executable instructions configured to transmit the connection request message, and the connection request message can be configured to request an initial connection to the RAN node. The connection request message may include information configured to indicate a UE 1600 service profile. The service profile can be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of the UE 1600 and / or one or more operational services on the UE 1600. As described in more detail above, the service profile of the UE 1600 can include an implicit indication of the device type of the UE 1600 and / or explicit information configured to indicate the device type

ES 2 819 014 T3 of the UE 1600. The device type of the UE 1600 may include a voice device, a streaming media device, a web browsing device, a mission critical device, a low power device, an Internet device, a sensor device, and / or an IOE device. The additional description regarding the service profile, device type and operational services in the UE 1600 is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

The receive instructions 1640 may include computer executable instructions configured to receive a connection acceptance message. The connection acceptance message may include information configured to indicate a selected service node, at least in part, based on the service profile of the UE 1600. In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE 1600 may change. For example, the UE 1600 may have a change in one or more of the UE 1600 device types and / or one or more operational services on the UE 1600. In such circumstances, the transmission instructions 1642 may include computer-executable instructions. configured to transmit information to the RAN node to indicate the change in the service profile. The RAN node may need to determine to select a new service node. Accordingly, the receive instructions 1640 may include computer-executable instructions configured to receive information indicating a change in the selected serving node. The change in the selected service node may be in accordance with the modified service profile of the UE 1600. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the information may indicate a change from one service node 112 to another service node 1112 because the service node 1112 can adapt to the modified service profile.

[0094] In some configurations, receive instructions 1640 may include computer-executable instructions configured to receive a broadcast message from the RAN node. The broadcast message may include information indicating whether at least one serving node associated with the RAN node supports the device type of the UE 1600. The control instructions 1641 may include computer-executable instructions configured to determine to establish the initial connection to the RAN node in accordance with the received broadcast message. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the UE 102 may determine to establish the initial connection with the RAN node 106 because at least one of the serving nodes 112, 1112 supports the particular device type of the UE 102. The transmission instructions 1642 can include computer-executable instructions configured to transmit the connection request message, and the connection request message can be configured to request an initial connection to the RAN node. The connection request message may include information configured to indicate a UE 1600 service profile. The service profile can be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of the UE 1600 and / or one or more operational services in the UE 1600. Additional description regarding the service profile, device type and operational services in the UE 1600 is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

In some configurations, transmission instructions 1642 may include computer-executable instructions configured to transmit a TAU request message. The TAU request message may include information configured to indicate the service profile of the UE 1600. Such information may include, but is not limited to, a device ID, one or more device types, and / or one or more services used. by UE 1600. Receive instructions 1640 may include computer executable instructions configured to receive a TAU request acceptance message. The TAU request acceptance message may include information indicating a selected service node at least in part based on the UE 1600 service profile.

[0096] The foregoing description provides a non-limiting example of the computer-readable medium 1606 of the processing system 1601. Although various instructions (eg, computer-executable code) have been described above, one skilled in the art will understand that the readable medium Computer 1606 may also include various other 1643 instructions that are additional and / or alternatives to 1640, 1641, 1642 instructions. Said other instructions 1643 may include computer executable code configured to perform any one or more of the functions, procedures, processes, operations, features, and / or aspects described herein with reference to the UE.

[0097] Memory 1614 can include various memory modules. The memory modules can be configured to store, and be read from, various values ​​and / or information by the processor 1604, or any of its circuits 1620, 1621, 1622, 1623. The memory modules can also be configured to store, and read from, various values ​​and / or information upon execution of the computer-executable code included in the computer-readable medium 1606, or any of its instructions 1640, 1641. , 1642, 1643. In some configurations, memory 1614 may include service profile information 1630. Service profile information 1630 may include data pertaining to the service profile. The service profile can be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of the UE 1600 and / or one or more operational services in the UE 1600. As described in more detail above, the service profile of the UE 1600 can include an implicit indication of the device type of the UE 1600 and / or explicit information configured to indicate the device type of the UE 1600. The UE 1600 device type may include a voice device, a streaming media device, a web browsing device, a mission critical device, a low-power device, an Internet device, a sensor device and / or an IOE device. The additional description regarding the service profile, device type and operational services in the UE 1600 is

ES 2 819 014 T3 provides above and therefore will not be repeated. One skilled in the art will also understand that memory 1614 may also include various other memory modules 1632. The other 1632 memory modules can be configured to store information therein and read information from them, with respect to any of the features, functions, procedures, processes, operations, and / or aspects described herein.

[0098] One skilled in the art will also understand that the processing system 1601 may include alternative and / or additional elements without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure, an item, or any part of an item, or any combination of items, may be implemented with a 1601 processing system that includes one or more 1604 processors. Examples of the one or more 1604 processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSP), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gate logic, control circuits. discrete hardware and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functionality described throughout this disclosure. Processing system 1601 can be implemented with a bus architecture, generally represented by bus 1603 and bus interface 1608. Bus 1603 can include any number of interconnect buses and bridges depending on the specific application of the device. 1601 processing system and global design constraints. Bus 1603 can link various circuits including the one or more processors 1604, memory 1614, and computer-readable media 1606. Bus 1603 can also link various other circuits, such as timing sources, peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are widely known in the art.

The one or more processors 1604 are responsible for managing the bus 1603 and general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium 1606. The software, when executed by the one or more processors 1604, does that the processing system 1601 performs the various functions described below for any one or more of the apparatuses. The computer-readable medium 1606 can also be used to store data that the one or more processors 1604 manipulate when executing the software. Software should be widely understood to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable modules , threads, procedures, functions, etc., regardless of whether they are called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise. The software may reside on computer-readable medium 1606. Computer-readable medium 1606 may be a non-transient computer-readable medium. A non-transient computer-readable medium includes, by way of example, a magnetic storage device (for example, a hard disk, a floppy disk, a magnetic tape), an optical disk (for example, a compact disk (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD)), a smart card, a flash memory device (for example, a card, memory, or USB device), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM) , a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasable PROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), a registry, a removable disk, and any other suitable medium for storing software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. Computer-readable medium 1606 may also include, by way of example, a carrier wave, a transmission line, and any other suitable medium for transmitting software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. Computer-readable medium 1606 can reside in processing system 1601, be external to processing system 1601, or distributed across multiple entities including processing system 1601. Computer-readable medium 1606 can be realized in a program product. computer scientist. By way of example and not limitation, a computer program product may include a computer-readable medium in packaging materials. Those skilled in the art will recognize how to best implement the described functionality presented throughout this disclosure depending on the particular application and overall design limitations imposed on the overall system.

RAN node hardware implementation

[0100] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation of a RAN 1700 node that includes a 1701 processing system. By way of example and not limitation, the RAN 1700 node described herein with reference to the FIG. 17 may be the same as RAN node 106 described herein with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and / or 14. The processing system 1701 may include a transceiver 1710. Transceiver 1710 can be configured to receive data and / or transmit data in communication with another apparatus. Transceiver 1710 provides a means of communicating with another apparatus via a wired and / or wireless transmission medium. Transceiver 1710 can be configured to perform such communications using various types of technologies. One skilled in the art will understand that many types of technologies can be used to accomplish such communication without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Processing system 1701 may also include memory 1714, one or more processors 1704, computer-readable medium 1706, and bus interface 1708. Bus interface 1708 may provide an interface between bus 1703 and transceiver 1710. Memory 1714, one or more processors 1704, computer-readable medium 1706, and bus interface 1708 can be connected to each other via bus 1703. Processor 1704 can be communicatively coupled to transceiver 1710 and / or memory

ES 2 819 014 T3

1714.

[0101] Processor 1704 may include receive circuit 1720, control circuit 1721, transmit circuit 1722, and / or other circuits 1723. In general, the receiving circuit 1720, the control circuit 1721, the transmitting circuit 1722, and / or other circuits 1723 may, individually or together, include various hardware components and / or software modules that can perform and / or enable any or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, features and / or aspects described herein with reference to a RAN node.

[0102] Receive circuit 1720 can be configured to use transceiver 1710 to receive information from a serving node. Such information may indicate one or more types of UE devices and / or services compatible with the selected service node. Such information may also include an identifier that identifies the UE. Such information may include various aspects described herein with reference to the UE service profile. The control circuit 1721 may be configured to store such information in the memory of the RAN 1700 node. In some configurations, such information may be received by the RAN 1700 node as signaling that includes a portion of the setup signaling to establish a interface between the RAN 1700 node and the selected service node. In some of the other configurations, such information may be received by the RAN node 1700 as OAM signaling between the RAN node 1700 and the selected serving node.

[0103] In some configurations, transmission circuit 1722 can be configured to use transceiver 1710 to broadcast a message that includes information indicating the supported service profiles of a set of service nodes associated with RAN node 170. By broadcasting such a message, the RAN node 1700 can provide notifications to UEs about the capabilities of the set of serving nodes associated with the RAN node 1700 to support various support profiles. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the RAN node 106 may broadcast said message to indicate the compatible service profiles of the existing service node 112 and the new service node 1112.

[0104] In some configurations, the receiving circuit 1720 can be configured to receive a connection request message from the UE. For example, referring to FIG. 10, RAN node 106 may receive join request 1002 from UE 102. The connect request message may include information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE. Additional information regarding the UE service profile is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

[0105] In some configurations, the control circuit 1721 can be configured to select a service node for the UE, at least in part based on the service profile of the UE. For example, referring to FIG. 10, at block 1004, RAN node 106 may select service node 112 at least in part because that service node 112 supports the service profile of UE 102. In some configurations, the control circuit 1721 can be configured to select the serving node for the UE by: (i) determining a set of one or more serving nodes capable of joining a UE that has a device type as indicated in the UE service profile; and (ii) the selection of the service node from among the set of one or more service nodes according to the capability information element received from each service node of the set of one or more service nodes. Transmission circuit 1722 can be configured to use transceiver 1710 to send the connection request message to the selected serving node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, RAN node 106 may send join request 1006 to serving node 112.

[0106] In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE may change. For example, the UE may have a change in one or more of the UE's device types and / or one or more operational services in the UE. In such circumstances, the receiving circuit 1720 can be configured to use the transceiver 1710 to receive information from the UE indicating a change in the UE's service profile. In accordance with a determination that the selected service node is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE, the control circuit 1721 can be configured to select a new service node for the UE, at least in part based on the modified UE service profile. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, upon determining that the service node 112 is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE 102, the RAN node 106 can select a new service node 1112 for the UE 102 because that existing service node 1112 is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE 102. Transmission circuit 1722 can be configured to transmit an indication of the new serving node (eg, serving node 1112) to the UE or existing serving node (eg, serving node 112).

[0107] The foregoing description provides a non-limiting example of processor 1704 of processing system 1701. Although various circuits are described above, one skilled in the art will understand that processor 1704 may also include various other circuits 1723 that are additional and / or alternatives to circuits 1720, 1721, 1722. Such other circuits 1723 may provide the means to perform any one or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, features, and / or aspects described herein with reference to the RAN node.

ES 2 819 014 T3

[0108] Computer-readable medium 1706 includes various computer-executable instructions. Computer-executable code can be executed by various hardware components (eg, processor 1704, or any or more of its circuits 1720, 1721, 1722, 1723) of processing system 1701. Instructions can be part of various programs software and / or software modules. Computer-readable medium 1706 may include receive instructions 1740, control instructions 1741, transmit instructions 1742, and / or other instructions 1743. In general, receive instructions 1740, control instructions 1741, transmit instructions 1742, and / or other instructions 1743 can be configured, individually or together, to perform and / or enable any or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, characteristics and / or aspects described herein with reference to a RAN node.

[0109] Receive instructions 1740 may include computer executable code configured to receive information from a serving node. Such information may indicate one or more types of UE devices and / or services compatible with the selected service node. Such information may also include an identifier that identifies the UE. Such information may include various aspects described herein with reference to the UE service profile. The control instructions 1741 may include computer executable code configured to store such information in the memory of the RAN 1700 node. In some configurations, such information may be received by the RAN 1700 node as signaling that includes a portion of the RAN 1700 signaling. setup to establish an interface between the RAN 1700 node and the selected serving node. In some of the other configurations, such information may be received by the RAN node 1700 as OAM signaling between the RAN node 1700 and the selected serving node.

[0110] In some configurations, transmission instructions 1742 may include computer executable code configured to transmit a message that includes information indicating the compatible service profiles of a set of service nodes associated with RAN node 170. By broadcasting such a message, the RAN node 1700 can provide notifications to UEs about the capabilities of the set of serving nodes associated with the RAN node 1700 to support various support profiles. For example, referring to FIG. 11, the RAN node 1700 may broadcast said message to indicate the compatible service profiles of the service node 112 and the service node 1112.

[0111] In some configurations, the receive instructions 1740 may include computer executable code configured to receive a connection request message from the UE. For example, referring to FIG. 10, RAN node 106 may receive join request 1002 from UE 102. The connect request message may include information configured to indicate a service profile of the UE. Additional information regarding the UE service profile is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

[0112] In some configurations, control instructions 1741 may include computer executable code configured to select a service node for the UE, at least in part based on the UE's service profile. For example, referring to FIG. 10, at block 1004, RAN node 106 may select service node 112 at least in part because service node 112 supports the service profile of UE 102. In some configurations, control instructions 1741 may include computer-executable code configured to select the serving node for the UE by: (i) determining a set of one or more serving nodes capable of joining a UE that has a device type as indicated in the UE service profile; and (ii) the selection of the service node from among the set of one or more service nodes according to the capability information element received from each service node of the set of one or more service nodes. Transmission instructions 1742 may include computer executable code configured to send the connection request message to the selected serving node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, RAN node 106 may send join request 1006 to serving node 112.

[0113] In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE may change. For example, the UE may have a change in one or more of the UE's device types and / or one or more operational services in the UE. In such circumstances, the receive instructions 1740 may include computer executable code configured to receive information from the UE indicating a change in the UE's service profile. In accordance with a determination that the selected service node is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE, control instructions 1741 may include computer-executable code configured to select a new service node for the UE, at least in part based on the modified service profile of the UE. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, upon determining that the service node 112 is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE 102, the RAN node 106 can select a new service node 1112 for the UE 102 because that existing service node 1112 is not compatible with the modified service profile of the UE 102. Transmission instructions 1742 may include computer-executable code configured to transmit an indication of the new serving node (eg, serving node 1112) to the UE or existing serving node (eg, serving node 112).

[0114] The foregoing description provides a non-limiting example of computer-readable medium 1706 of processing system 1701. Although various instructions (eg, computer-executable code) have been described above, one skilled in the art will understand that the readable medium by computer 1706 too

ES 2 819 014 T3 may include various other 1743 instructions that are additional and / or alternatives to instructions 1740, 1741, 1742. Said other 1743 instructions may include computer executable code configured to perform any one or more of the functions, procedures, processes, operations, characteristic features and / or aspects described herein with reference to the RAN node.

[0115] Memory 1714 can include various memory modules. The memory modules can be configured to store, and be read from, various values ​​and / or information by the processor 1704, or any of its circuits 1720, 1721, 1722, 1723. The memory modules can also be configured to store, and read from, various values ​​and / or information upon execution of the computer-executable code included in the computer-readable medium 1706, or any of its instructions 1740, 1741. , 1742, 1743. In some configurations, memory 1714 may include service profile information 1730. Service profile information 1730 may include data pertaining to the service profile. The service profile can be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of any appliance and / or one or more operational services on that appliance. As described in more detail above, the service profile may include an implicit indication of the device type of said appliance and / or explicit information configured to indicate the device type of that appliance. The device type may include a voice device, a streaming media device, a web browsing device, a mission critical device, a low-power device, an Internet device, a sensor device, and / or a device. IOE device. Additional description regarding service profile, device type and operational services is provided above and therefore will not be repeated. One skilled in the art will also understand that memory 1714 may also include various other memory modules 1732. The other 1732 memory modules can be configured to store information therein and read information from them, with respect to any of the characteristic features, functions, procedures, processes, operations, and / or aspects described herein with reference to a RAN node.

[0116] One skilled in the art will also understand that processing system 1701 may include alternative and / or additional elements without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure, an item, or any part of an item, or any combination of items, can be implemented with a 1701 processing system that includes one or more 1704 processors. Examples of the one or more 1704 processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSP), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gate logic, control circuits. discrete hardware and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functionality described throughout this disclosure. Processing system 1701 can be implemented with a bus architecture, generally represented by bus 1703 and bus interface 1708. Bus 1703 can include any number of interconnect buses and bridges depending on the specific application of the device. 1701 processing system and global design constraints. Bus 1703 can link various circuits including one or more processors 1704, memory 1714, and computer-readable media 1706. Bus 1703 can also link various other circuits, such as timing sources, peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are widely known in the art.

[0117] The one or more 1704 processors are responsible for managing the 1703 bus and general processing, including running software stored on the 1706 computer-readable medium. The software, when run by the one or more 1704 processors, does that the processing system 1701 performs the various functions described below for any one or more of the appliances. The computer-readable medium 1706 can also be used to store data that the one or more processors 1704 manipulate when executing the software. Software should be widely understood to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable modules , threads, procedures, functions, etc., regardless of whether they are called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise. The software may reside on computer-readable medium 1706. Computer-readable medium 1706 may be a non-transient computer-readable medium. A non-transient computer-readable medium includes, by way of example, a magnetic storage device (for example, a hard disk, a floppy disk, a magnetic tape), an optical disk (for example, a compact disk (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD)), a smart card, a flash memory device (for example, a card, memory, or USB device), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM) , a programmable ROM (PROM), an erasable PROM (EPROM), an electrically erasable PROM (EEPROM), a registry, a removable disk, and any other suitable medium for storing software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. Computer-readable medium 1706 may also include, by way of example, a carrier wave, a transmission line, and any other suitable medium for transmitting software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. Computer-readable medium 1706 can reside in processing system 1701, be external to processing system 1701, or distributed across multiple entities including processing system 1701. Computer-readable medium 1706 can be realized in a program product. computer scientist. By way of example and not limitation, a computer program product may include a computer-readable medium in packaging materials. Those skilled in the art will recognize how to implement the

The described functionality presented throughout this disclosure is best suited to the particular application and overall design limitations imposed on the overall system.

Hardware implementation of the service node

[0118] FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware implementation of a service node 1800 that includes a processing system 1801. By way of example and not limitation, the service node 1800 described herein with reference to the FIG. 18 may be the same as the serving node (s) 112, 1112 described herein with reference to FIGS. 1,2, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and / or 15. Processing system 1801 may include a transceiver 1810. Transceiver 1810 may be configured to receive data and / or transmit data in communication with another apparatus. Transceiver 1810 provides a means of communicating with another apparatus via a wired and / or wireless transmission medium. The 1810 transceiver can be configured to perform such communications using various types of technologies. One skilled in the art will understand that many types of technologies can be used to accomplish such communication without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Processing system 1801 may also include memory 1814, one or more processors 1804, computer-readable medium 1806, and bus interface 1808. Bus interface 1808 may provide an interface between bus 1803 and transceiver 1810. Memory 1814, one or more processors 1804, computer-readable medium 1806, and bus interface 1808 can be connected to each other via bus 1803. Processor 1804 can be communicatively coupled to transceiver 1810 and / or memory 1814 .

[0119] Processor 1804 may include receive circuit 1820, control circuit 1821, transmit circuit 1822, and / or other circuits 1823. In general, the receiving circuit 1820, the control circuit 1821, the transmitting circuit 1822, and / or other circuits 1823 may, individually or together, include various hardware components and / or software modules that can perform and / or enable any or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, characteristics and / or aspects described herein with reference to a service node.

[0120] Receive circuitry 1820 can be configured to use transceiver 1810 to receive a request from a RAN node to interface between the RAN node and the serving node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the service node 112 may receive a configuration request S1 902 from the RAN node 106 to establish an interface between the RAN node 106 and the service node 112. Transmission circuit 1822 can be configured to use transceiver 1810 to transmit a response that includes information related to one or more service profiles supported by the service node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the service node 112 may transmit the S1 configuration response 904 to the RAN node 106, and the S1 configuration response 904 may include information related to the service profiles supported by the service node 112.

[0121] Such information can be provided in various configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some configurations, such information may indicate one or more RATs supported by the serving node. The service profile can indicate one or more types of devices supported by the service node. In some of the other configurations, such information may include one or more device identifier prefixes supported by the serving node. The service node service profile can be provided in various configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The service profile may indicate one or more service profiles supported by the service node. The additional description regarding the service profile is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

[0122] Receive circuit 1820 can be configured to use transceiver 1810 to receive a connection request message from the RAN node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the service node 112 can receive the join request 106 from the RAN node 106. The connection request message can be configured to establish communication with the UE. The connection request message may include a service profile corresponding to the UE. Control circuit 1821 can be configured to determine an identifier for the UE. The identifier may be a function of the service profile corresponding to the UE. In some configurations, the transmission circuit 1822 can be configured to use the transceiver 1810 to transmit a connection accept message to the RAN node. The connection acceptance message may include the identifier for the UE. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the service node 112 may transmit the join acceptance 1008, and the join acceptance 1008 may include the identifier for the UE 102.

[0123] In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE may change. For example, the UE may have a change in one or more of the UE's device types and / or one or more operational services in the UE. In such circumstances, the receiving circuitry 1820 may be configured to use the transceiver 1810 to receive a message indicating a service profile update for the UE. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the serving node 112 may receive the context request 1108. The control circuit 1821 may be configured to determine that the received message indicates that the UE is no longer compatible with the serving node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the service node 112 may determine that the service node 112 is no longer compatible with the updated service profile of the UE 102. Consequently, the transmission circuit

ES 2 819 014 T3

1822 it can be configured to use transceiver 1810 to transmit information to another service node that is compatible with the updated service profile for the UE. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the service node 1112 may be compatible with the updated service profile corresponding to the UE 102. As such, the service node 112 may transmit the context response 1110 to the service node 1112. In some configurations, the transmission circuit can also be configured to use transceiver 1810 to transmit information to the RAN node for the UE to indicate the other serving node (eg, serving node 1112) to the UE.

[0124] The foregoing description provides a non-limiting example of processor 1804 of processing system 1801. Although various circuits are described above, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that processor 1804 may also include various other circuits 1823 that are additional and / or alternatives to circuits 1820, 1821, 1822. Such other circuits 1823 may provide the means to perform any one or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, features, and / or aspects described herein with reference to the serving node.

[0125] Computer-readable medium 1806 includes various computer-executable instructions. Computer executable code can be executed by various hardware components (eg, processor 1804, or any one or more of its circuits 1820, 1821, 1822, 1823) of processing system 1801. Instructions can be part of various programs software and / or software modules. Computer-readable medium 1806 may include receive instructions 1840, control instructions 1841, transmit instructions 1842, and / or other instructions 1843. In general, receive instructions 1840, control instructions 1841, transmit instructions 1842, and / or other instructions 1843 can be configured, individually or together, to perform and / or enable any or more of the functions, procedures, operations, processes, characteristic features and / or aspects described herein with reference to a service node.

[0126] Receive instructions 1840 may include computer-executable instructions configured to receive a request from a RAN node to interface between the RAN node and the serving node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the service node 112 may receive a configuration request S1 902 from the RAN node 106 to establish an interface between the RAN node 106 and the service node 112. Transmission instructions 1842 may include computer-executable instructions configured to transmit a response that includes information related to one or more service profiles supported by the service node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 9, the service node 112 may transmit the S1 configuration response 904 to the RAN node 106, and the S1 configuration response 904 may include information related to the service profiles supported by the service node 112.

[0127] Such information can be provided in various configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In some configurations, such information may indicate one or more RATs supported by the serving node. The service profile can indicate one or more types of devices supported by the service node. In some of the other configurations, such information may include one or more device identifier prefixes supported by the serving node. The service node service profile can be provided in various configurations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. The service profile may indicate one or more service profiles supported by the service node. The additional description regarding the service profile is provided above and therefore will not be repeated.

[0128] Receive instructions 1840 may include computer executable instructions configured to receive a connection request message from the RAN node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the service node 112 can receive the join request 106 from the RAN node 106. The connection request message can be configured to establish communication with the UE. The connection request message may include a service profile corresponding to the UE. Control instructions 1841 may include computer executable instructions configured to determine an identifier for the UE. The identifier may be a function of the service profile corresponding to the UE. In some configurations, transmission instructions 1842 may include computer executable instructions configured to transmit a connection accept message to the RAN node. The connection acceptance message may include the identifier for the UE. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 10, the service node 112 may transmit the join acceptance 1008, and the join acceptance 1008 may include the identifier for the UE 102.

[0129] In some circumstances, the service profile of the UE may change. For example, the UE may have a change in one or more of the UE's device types and / or one or more operational services in the UE. In such circumstances, the receive instructions 1840 may include computer-executable instructions configured to receive a message indicating a service profile update for the UE. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the service node 112 may receive the context request 1108. The control instructions 1841 may include computer-executable instructions configured to determine that the received message indicates that the UE is no longer compatible with the service node. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the service node 112 may determine that the service node 112 is no longer compatible with the updated service profile of the UE 102. Consequently, transmission instructions 1842 may include

ES 2 819 014 T3 computer-executable instructions configured to transmit information to another service node that is compatible with the updated service profile corresponding to the UE. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 11, the new service node 1112 may be compatible with the updated service profile corresponding to the UE 102. As such, the existing service node 112 may transmit the context response 1110 to the new service node 1112. In some configurations, the transmission circuit can also be configured to use the transceiver 1810 to transmit information to the RAN node for the UE to indicate the other serving node (eg, the new serving node 1112) to the UE.

[0130] The foregoing description provides a non-limiting example of computer-readable medium 1806 of processing system 1801. Although various instructions (eg, computer-executable code) have been described above, one of ordinary skill in the art will understand that the readable medium Computer 1806 may also include various other 1843 instructions that are in addition to and / or alternatives to 1840, 1841, 1842 instructions. Such other instructions 1843 may include computer executable code configured to perform any one or more of the functions, procedures, processes, operations, features, and / or aspects described herein with reference to the serving node.

[0131] Memory 1814 can include various memory modules. The memory modules can be configured to store, and be read from, various values ​​and / or information by the processor 1804, or any of its circuits 1820, 1821, 1822, 1823. Memory modules can also be configured to store, and read from, various values ​​and / or information upon execution of the computer-executable code included in the computer-readable medium 1806, or any of its 1840, 1841 instructions. , 1842, 1843. In some configurations, memory 1814 may include service profile information 1830. Service profile information 1830 may include data pertaining to the service profile. The service profile can be configured to indicate one or more than one device type of any appliance and / or one or more operational services on that appliance. As described in more detail above, the service profile may include an implicit indication of the device type of said appliance and / or explicit information configured to indicate the device type of that appliance. The device type may include a voice device, a streaming media device, a web browsing device, a mission critical device, a low-power device, an Internet device, a sensor device, and / or a device. IOE device. Additional description regarding service profile, device type and operational services is provided above and therefore will not be repeated. One skilled in the art will also understand that memory 1814 may also include various other memory modules 1832. The other 1832 memory modules can be configured to store information therein and read information from them, with respect to any of the characteristic features, functions, procedures, processes, operations and / or aspects described herein with reference to a service node.

[0132] One skilled in the art will also understand that processing system 1801 may include alternative and / or additional elements without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In accordance with some aspects of the present disclosure, an item, or any part of an item, or any combination of items, may be implemented with a processing system 1801 that includes one or more processors 1804. Examples of the one or more 1804 processors include microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors (DSP), field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), programmable logic devices (PLDs), state machines, gate logic, control circuits. discrete hardware and other suitable hardware configured to perform the various functionality described throughout this disclosure. Processing system 1801 may be implemented with a bus architecture, generally represented by bus 1803 and bus interface 1808. Bus 1803 may include any number of interconnect buses and bridges depending on the specific application of the device. 1801 processing system and global design constraints. Bus 1803 can link various circuits including the one or more processors 1804, memory 1814, and computer-readable media 1806. Bus 1803 can also link various other circuits, such as timing sources, peripheral devices, voltage regulators, and power management circuits, which are widely known in the art.

[0133] The one or more processors 1804 are responsible for managing the bus 1803 and general processing, including the execution of software stored on the computer-readable medium 1806. The software, when executed by the one or more processors 1804, does that the processing system 1801 performs the various functions described below for any one or more of the apparatuses. The computer-readable medium 1806 can also be used to store data that the one or more processors 1804 manipulate when executing the software. Software should be widely understood to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable modules , threads, procedures, functions, etc., regardless of whether they are called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description language, or otherwise. The software may reside on computer-readable medium 1806. Computer-readable medium 1806 may be a non-transient computer-readable medium. A non-transient computer-readable medium includes, by way of example, a magnetic storage device (for example, a hard disk, a floppy disk, a magnetic tape), an optical disk (for example, a compact disk (CD), a digital versatile disc (DVD), a smart card, a

ES 2 819 014 T3 flash memory device (for example, a card, a memory or a USB device), a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), a programmable ROM (PRoM), a Erasable PROM (EPROM), an Electrically Erasable PROM (EEPROM), a registry, a removable disk, and any other suitable medium for storing software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. Computer-readable medium 1806 may also include, by way of example, a carrier wave, a transmission line, and any other suitable medium for transmitting software and / or instructions that can be accessed and read by a computer. Computer-readable medium 1806 may reside in processing system 1801, be external to processing system 1801, or distributed across multiple entities including processing system 1801. Computer-readable medium 1806 can be made into a computer program product. By way of example and not limitation, a computer program product may include a computer-readable medium in packaging materials. Those skilled in the art will recognize how to best implement the described functionality presented throughout this disclosure depending on the particular application and overall design limitations imposed on the overall system.

[0134] One or more of the components, steps, features and / or functions illustrated in FIGS. 1215 can be rearranged and / or combined into a single component, stage, feature, or function or incorporated into several components, stages, or functions. Additional elements, components, steps, and / or functions can also be added without departing from the novel features disclosed herein. The apparatus, devices and / or components illustrated in FIGS. 12-15 may be configured to perform one or more of the procedures, features, or steps described herein. The novel algorithms described herein can also be effectively implemented in software and / or integrated into hardware. The specific order or hierarchy of steps in the disclosed procedures will be understood to be an illustration of exemplary processes. Based on design preferences, it is understood that the specific order or hierarchy of steps in procedures can be rearranged. The appended method claims present elements of the various steps in sample order and are not intended to be limited to the specific order or hierarchy presented unless specifically mentioned therein.

[0135] As mentioned above, various aspects of a telecommunications system described herein have been presented with reference to an LTE system. As those skilled in the art will readily appreciate, various aspects described throughout this disclosure can be extended to other telecommunications systems, network architectures, and communication standards, including a 5G system or any other suitable system defined by the 3GPP or another regulatory body. The particular telecommunications standard, network architecture, and / or communication standard employed may depend on the specific application and overall design constraints imposed on the system.

[0136] Within the present disclosure, the term "exemplary" is used to mean that it serves as an example, case, or illustration. Any implementation or aspect described herein as exemplary should not necessarily be construed as preferred or advantageous with respect to other aspects of the disclosure. Also, the term "aspects" does not require that all aspects of the disclosure include the characteristic feature, benefit, or mode of operation discussed. The term coupled is used herein to refer to the direct or indirect coupling between two objects. For example, if object A physically touches object B, and object B touches object C, then objects A and C can still be considered coupled to each other, even if they don't physically touch each other directly. For example, a first chip can be coupled to a second chip in a package even though the first chip is never physically in direct contact with the second chip. The terms circuit and circuitry are widely used, and are intended to include both hardware implementations of electrical and conductive devices that, when connected and configured, enable the performance of the functions described in this disclosure, without limitation as to the type of electronic circuits. , as well as software implementations of information and instructions that, when executed by a processor, enable the performance of the functions described in this disclosure.

[0137] The above description is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to practice some aspects described herein. Various modifications of these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the generic principles defined herein can be applied to other aspects. Therefore, the claims are not intended to be limited to the aspects set forth herein, but are to be granted the full scope compatible with the language of the claims, in which reference to an element in the singular is not intended to mean one and only one, unless specifically stated, but rather one or more. Unless specifically stated otherwise, the term some refers to one or more. A phrase that refers to at least one of a list of items refers to any combination of those items, including individual items. As an example, at least one of: a, b or c is intended to cover: a;