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WO2025201905A2 - Radio network node, managing node, user equipment and methods performed therein - Google Patents

Radio network node, managing node, user equipment and methods performed therein

Info

Publication number
WO2025201905A2
WO2025201905A2 PCT/EP2025/056909 EP2025056909W WO2025201905A2 WO 2025201905 A2 WO2025201905 A2 WO 2025201905A2 EP 2025056909 W EP2025056909 W EP 2025056909W WO 2025201905 A2 WO2025201905 A2 WO 2025201905A2
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
network slice
network
node
radio network
network node
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Pending
Application number
PCT/EP2025/056909
Other languages
French (fr)
Other versions
WO2025201905A3 (en
Inventor
Serban Purge
Ali PARICHEHREHTEROUJENI
Angelo Centonza
Luca LUNARDI
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson AB
Original Assignee
Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson AB
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson AB filed Critical Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson AB
Publication of WO2025201905A2 publication Critical patent/WO2025201905A2/en
Publication of WO2025201905A3 publication Critical patent/WO2025201905A3/en
Pending legal-status Critical Current
Anticipated expiration legal-status Critical

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W24/00—Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
    • H04W24/10—Scheduling measurement reports ; Arrangements for measurement reports
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W24/00—Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
    • H04W24/02—Arrangements for optimising operational condition
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W24/00—Supervisory, monitoring or testing arrangements
    • H04W24/08—Testing, supervising or monitoring using real traffic
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W48/00—Access restriction; Network selection; Access point selection
    • H04W48/18—Selecting a network or a communication service
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04W—WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
    • H04W60/00—Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration
    • H04W60/04—Affiliation to network, e.g. registration; Terminating affiliation with the network, e.g. de-registration using triggered events

Definitions

  • Embodiments herein relate to a radio network node, a user equipment (UE), a managing node and methods performed therein for communication. Furthermore, a computer program and a computer readable storage medium are also provided herein. In particular, embodiments herein relate to admission to a network slice or network slice service comprised in a communication network.
  • UE user equipment
  • UEs also known as wireless communication devices, mobile stations, stations (STA) and/or wireless devices, communicate via a Radio Access Network (RAN) with one or more core networks (CN).
  • the RAN covers a geographical area which is divided into service areas or cell areas, with each service area or cell area being served by radio network node such as an access node e.g. a Wi-Fi access point or a radio base station (RBS), which in some networks may also be called, for example, a NodeB, a gNodeB, or an eNodeB.
  • the service area or cell area is a geographical area where radio coverage is provided by the radio network node.
  • the radio network node operates on radio frequencies to communicate over an air interface with the UEs within range of the radio network node.
  • the radio network node communicates over a downlink (DL) to the UE and the UE communicates over an uplink (UL) to the radio network node.
  • DL downlink
  • UL uplink
  • a Universal Mobile Telecommunications System is a third generation telecommunications network, which evolved from the second generation (2G) Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM).
  • the UMTS terrestrial radio access network (UTRAN) is essentially a RAN using wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) and/or High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) for communication with user equipment.
  • WCDMA wideband code division multiple access
  • HSPA High-Speed Packet Access
  • 3GPP Third Generation Partnership Project
  • M4 Data Volume measurement separately for DL and UL, per QCI per UE, by eNB
  • M5 Scheduled IP Throughput measurement separately for DL and UL, per RAB per UE and per UE for the DL, per UE for the UL, by eNB
  • M6 Packet Delay measurement, separately for DL and UL, per QCI per UE, see UL PDCP Delay, by the UE, and Packet Delay in the DL per QCI, by the eNB
  • M7 Packet Loss rate measurement, separately for DL and UL per QCI per UE, by the eNB M8: RSSI measurement by UE for WLAN and Bluetooth®
  • M1 DL signal quantities measurement results for the serving cell and for intra-frequency/lnter-frequency/inter-RAT neighbour cells, including cell/beam level measurement by UE.
  • M2 Power headroom (PH) measurement by UE
  • M5 Average UE throughput measurement separately for DL and UL, per DRB, per S-NSSAI, per UE and per UE for the DL, per DRB per UE and per UE for the UL, by gNB
  • M6 Packet delay measurement, separately for DL and UL, per DRB, per S-NSSAI, per UE by gNB
  • M7 Packet loss rate measurement, separately for DL and UL, per DRB, per S-NSSAI, per UE by gNB
  • M8 RSSI measurement by UE for WLAN and Bluetooth®
  • the support of a network slice in a given area of the network has to be configured manually by the network operator via the operation, administration and maintenance (OAM) node.
  • OAM operation, administration and maintenance
  • the most difficult part of this task is determining the fine mapping between cell’s coverage and the geographical area in which the slice must be supported.
  • a network operator may aim at covering the premises of a customer with user access to services for a given slice.
  • the challenge for the operator is to find out the fine mapping between the network coverage and the customer premises in order to enable users’ access to the slice in all the cells whose coverage overlaps the customer’s premises. Even if the operator at the end manages to establish such a mapping, network radio environment is a dynamic environment so due to new radio conditions the users may request access to the slice services in a cell which was not initially configured with support or availability for the slice in question.
  • An object of embodiments herein is to provide a mechanism for enabling communication, such as enabling managing network slices and/or services related to a network slice, in a communication network in an efficient manner.
  • the object is achieved by a method performed by a UE for handling communication, such as usage of a service, in a communication network.
  • the UE logs and sends information indicating that a request, from the UE, requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service, is rejected.
  • the object is achieved by a method performed by a managing node for handling communication such as usage of a service in a communication network.
  • the managing node transmits configuration data to a radio network node.
  • the configuration data configures the radio network node log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service.
  • the configuration data comprises a request for the radio network node to configure a UE with measurements and the radio network node to log for one or more events in which the UE requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, but core network rejects the UE to access such network slice.
  • a computer program comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out any of the methods above, as performed by the managing node, the UE or the radio network node, respectively.
  • a computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the methods above, as performed by the managing node, the UE or the radio network node, respectively.
  • the object is achieved, according to embodiments herein, by providing a radio network node, a managing node, and a UE configured to perform the methods herein, respectively.
  • the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service.
  • the configuration data may, alternatively or additionally, comprise a request for the radio network node to configure a UE with measurements and the radio network node to log for one or more events in which the UE requests over NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access a the service for the network slice service, but core network rejects the UE to access such network slice.
  • an OAM node being an example of the managing node, configures one or several radio network nodes and/or UEs in a certain geographical area, directly or via the CN, with, for example, an MDT configuration according to which one or several radio network nodes and/or UEs should log information concerning an event of PDU session resources for PDU sessions associated to a given network slice to be requested by the CN but not being admitted by the RAN.
  • the one or several radio network nodes and/or UEs may log the reason why such admission failure occurred, for example, because of lack of slice availability, namely the node and cell serving the UE have been configured with zero resources for the given network slice, or because of lack of resources, namely, all resources available for the network slice service are used and not available.
  • the radio network node and the UE may include details of the network slice for which the UE could not register or could not be admitted to network slice services. Such details may include the slice S-NSSAI.
  • the radio network node handling the MDT configuration and in charge of collection of the MDT measurements from the UE and from the radio network node itself may log all measurements received from the UE and collected by itself in logs associated to an MDT trace.
  • the radio network node may send the logged measurements to the managing node in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the network and to enable optimization on where the slice is supported and available.
  • embodiments herein enable communication, such as enabling managing network slices and/or network slice services, in the communication network in an efficient manner.
  • FIG. 3 is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a UE according to embodiments herein;
  • Fig. 4a is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a radio network node according to embodiments herein;
  • wireless devices e.g. a user equipment (UE) 10 such as a mobile station, a non-access point (non-AP) STA, a STA, a wireless device and/or a wireless terminal, communicate via one or more Access Networks (AN), e.g. RAN, to one or more core networks (CN).
  • AN e.g. RAN
  • CN core networks
  • UE is a non-limiting term which means any terminal, wireless communication terminal, internet of things (loT) capable device, Machine Type Communication (MTC) device, Device to Device (D2D) terminal, or node, e.g., smart phone, laptop, mobile phone, sensor, relay, mobile tablets or even a base station communicating within a cell.
  • MTC Machine Type Communication
  • D2D Device to Device
  • the communication network 1 comprises a radio network node 12 providing radio coverage over a geographical area, a first service area or first cell 11, of a first radio access technology (RAT), such as 6G, NR, LTE, UMTS, Wi-Fi or similar.
  • the radio network node 12 may be a radio access network node such as radio network controller or an access point such as a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point or an Access Point Station (AP STA), an access controller, a base station, e.g.
  • a radio base station such as a NodeB, an eNodeB, a gNodeB (gNB), a base transceiver station, Access Point Base Station, base station router, a transmission arrangement of a radio base station, a stand-alone access point or any other network unit capable of serving a UE within the service area served by the second radio network node 13 depending e.g. on the second radio access technology and terminology used.
  • the second radio network node 13 may be denoted as target RAN node, neighboring node, target node or radio network node.
  • the communication network 1 comprises a core network (CN) and/or RAN that are virtually network sliced into a number of slices also referred to as network slices, each network slice or RAN/core network slice supports a type of UEs and/or a type of services i.e. each network slice supports a different set of functionalities.
  • Network slicing introduces the possibility that the network slices are used for different services and use cases and these services and use cases may introduce differences in the functionality supported in the different network slices.
  • Each network slice may comprise one or more network nodes or elements of network nodes providing the services/functionalities for the respective network slice.
  • Each slice may comprise one or more network nodes.
  • a first network slice for, e.g., massive MTC devices may comprise a first network node 16.
  • a second network slice for, e.g., critical MTC devices may comprise a second network node 17.
  • a third network slice for, e.g., MBB devices may comprise a third network node 18.
  • Each network slice supports a set of functionalities out of a total set of functionalities in the communication network.
  • the first network node 13 supports a first set of functionalities out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network 1.
  • the first set of functionalities is separated from a different set of functionalities out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network 1.
  • the first set of functionalities being associated with Massive MTC devices is separated or logically separated from a second set of functionalities of the second network slice.
  • Examples herein may cover any of the referenced network nodes.
  • the first set of functionalities may use one or more resources in a core network and/or a RAN of the communication network, which one or more resources are separated from other resources used by a different set of functionalities, i.e., different network slices, out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network 1.
  • the resources may then be dedicated or virtually dedicated for each set of functionalities or network slice.
  • the first network node is separated from other network nodes supporting a second set of functionalities out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network.
  • Network nodes may be executed on different hardware platforms and therefore using different resources of the hardware, and logically separated wherein the network nodes may be executed on a same hardware platform and use different resources such as memory parts or resources of processor capacity but may also use some same resources of the hardware e.g. a single physical network node may be partitioned into multiple virtual network nodes.
  • the UE 10 may report to the RAN, upon radio network node request, one or more events where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s one or more cells and where such requests resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject or rejection.
  • a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s one or more cells and where such requests resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject or rejection.
  • An advantage with embodiments herein is to enable configuring and/or optimizing the network slice support and availability in the different coverage areas of a network, e.g. cells, and/or tracking areas, from a manual human performed task into an automatic or semi-automatic task in which the human or the process performing the task is provided with UE and/or network performed measurements helping to understand where in the coverage of a network, a network slice should be supported or available.
  • a network e.g. cells, and/or tracking areas
  • the term “admission control failure” refers to cases where the RAN node in charge of assigning resources for traffic bearers decides not to allocate resources to a given bearer.
  • “bearer” it is intended any means to instruct the RAN of the establishment of data channels to serve services at the UE, namely a “bearer” could be a PDU Session, a quality of service (QoS) Flow, a data radio bearer (DRB) and/or similar.
  • the radio network node 120 may transmit a configuration to the UE 10 to configure the UE 10 to log and/or send information for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to a network slice or to access a service for a given network slice, and the UE 10 is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
  • the UE 10 logs information indicating, where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection.
  • the UE 10 may report information indicating, where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection.
  • the UE 10 may report to the RAN, upon radio network node request, one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s cells and where such requests resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject.
  • the radio network node 120 may log and/or store information relating to admission to the network slice or network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service.
  • the radio network node 120 may send the information related to the admission to the network slice and/or network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service.
  • the radio network node 120 may log and/or send in an MDT trace one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S- NSSAI that were not admitted.
  • the MDT trace may comprise an indication for differentiating between a case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
  • the information may be based on a decision at the radio network node 120, and/or reports from the UE 10.
  • the UE 10 may obtain the configuration to configure the UE 10 to log and/or send information for one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, i.e., a service for the network slice, and the UE 10 is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
  • the configuration may be received from the radio network node 120 and/or be preconfigured.
  • the radio network node 120 may receive, from the managing node 15 or a CN node, configuration data for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log information. Additionally, or alternatively, the configuration data may comprise a request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the radio network node 120 to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the CN rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
  • the radio network node 120 and/or the UE 10 may include details of the network slice for which the UE 10 could not register or could not be admitted to services. Such details may comprise S-NSSAI.
  • the radio network node 120 may be in charge of collection of MDT measurements from the UE 10 (and/or other UEs) and from the radio network node 120 itself, and may log all measurements received from the UE 10 and collected by itself in logs associated to the MDT trace.
  • the radio network node 120 may further send the logged measurements to the managing node 15 in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
  • the managing node 15 transmits the configuration data, also referred to as just configuration, to one or more radio network nodes, directly or via a CN node, such as the radio network node 120, wherein the configuration data is for the radio network node 120 to log and/or send information relating to admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, wherein the information comprises the cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service.
  • the configuration data also referred to as just configuration
  • the configuration data is for the radio network node 120 to log and/or send information relating to admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, wherein the information comprises the cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service.
  • the managing node 15 may include as part of the MDT configuration a request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the UE/radio network node to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to a network slice or to access a service for a given network slice, and the CN rejects the UE to access such network slice or network slice service.
  • the managing node 15 may receive from the radio network node 120 the information related to the admission to the network slice and/or network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service.
  • the managing node 15 may receive information in an MDT trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S-NSSAI that were not admitted.
  • the MDT trace may comprise an indication for differentiating between a case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
  • the managing node 15 may perform an operation taking the information into account. For example, the managing node 15 may update slice information such as network slice support and network slice availability based on the received information.
  • the method described herein is based on a first RAN node, such as the radio network node 120, receiving an MDT configuration from an external system such as the OAM, either directly, e.g. for management based MDT, or indirectly via the CN, e.g. for signaling based MDT.
  • a first RAN node such as the radio network node 120
  • receiving an MDT configuration from an external system such as the OAM, either directly, e.g. for management based MDT, or indirectly via the CN, e.g. for signaling based MDT.
  • TAI tracking area identifier
  • TAC tracking area codes
  • a PDU Session associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o
  • the radio network node 120 is not able to admit the one or more entities listed above because the network slice associated to it at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is has zero resources. Namely, no services for such network slice can be admitted in this area.
  • the radio network node 120 is not able to accept the request to resume the service for the UE 10 because of one of the following options: • The network slice associated to the service at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is has zero resources allocated
  • a PDU Session associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o
  • the radio network node 120 is not able to admit the one or more entities listed above because the resources allocated to the network slice associated to the service at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is have been all allocated and no more resources are available for the services to be admitted.
  • the SNPN where the UE 10 was served when the event occurred.
  • the radio network node 120 may log one or more of the following information regarding the source and target cells involved in the mobility: o the CGIs of the source and the target cells o the TAIs of the source and target cells o the PLMN IDs of the source and target cells o the PNI-NPNs of the source and target cells o the SNPNs of the source and target cells
  • the slice service type and/or the slice differentiator such as QoS or service level agreement
  • Information concerning the services for which the admission control failure occurred may include one or more of the following: o
  • the service type of the services affected by admission control failure such as
  • Non GBR service Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) service
  • Latency bounded service o a Domain Name System (DNS) o a Domain Name Network (DNN) o an enumerated field describing the service, e.g. video call or video streaming, o a 5QI identifying certain QoS characteristics of the service o a set of QoS parameters identifying for example the service requested throughput
  • DNS Domain Name System
  • DNN Domain Name Network
  • the second radio network node 13 further logs information related to admission control in MDT report.
  • Action 56 The second radio network node 13 transmits/forwards the logged information as part of MDT report to OAM/TCE.
  • Action 57 The OAM/TCE performs the Network orchestration and reallocation of resources/slices based on collected MDT results.
  • the MDT measurements included in the MDT configuration request the radio network node 120 receiving the configuration and in charge of the measurement collection to configure a UE with measurements/logs reporting the following information:
  • URSP UE Route Selection Policy Rule
  • a 5QI identifying certain QoS characteristics of the service o a set of QoS parameters identifying for example the service requested throughput o one or a set of PDU Set QoS parameters in UL and/or DL, such as PDU Set Delay Budget, PDU Set Error Rate, PDU Set Integrated Handling Information
  • the UE 10 may log one or more of the following information regarding the source and target cells involved in the mobility: o the CGIs of the source and the target cells o the TAIs of the source and target cells o the PLMN IDs of the source and target cells o the PNI-NPNs of the source and target cells o the SNPNs of the source and target cells
  • the UE 10 may report them to the serving radio network node 120.
  • the reporting may occur by first indicating availability of the report to the serving radio network node 120.
  • the UE 10 may transition to RRCJDLE, and may keep the logged information related to the rejected slice and associated measurements.
  • the UE 10 may signal to the radio network node 120the availability of reports, e.g., MDT reports, comprising rejected I not admitted network slice information.
  • the radio network node 120 thus fetches the information and forwards it to the OAM/TCE.
  • the serving radio network node 120 may create a measurement log that includes results for all the measurements included in the MDT configuration that could be collected, namely measurements collected at the radio network node 120 and at the UE 10.
  • the radio network node 120 may further signal such measurements log to a preconfigured entity, such as a Trace Collection Entity (TCE), being an example of the managing node 15.
  • TCE Trace Collection Entity
  • ReportConfigNR SEQUENCE ⁇ reportType CHOICE ⁇ periodical PeriodicalReportConfig, eventTriggered EventTriggerConfig, reported ReportCGI, reportSFTD ReportSFTD-NR, condTriggerConfig-rl6 CondTriggerConfig-rl6, cli- Periodical-rl6 CLI-PeriodicalReportConfig-rl6, cli-EventTriggered-rl6 CLI-EventTriggerConfig-rl6, rxTxPeriodical-rl7 RxTxPeriodical-rl7, reportOnScellActivation-rl8 ReportOnScellActivation-rl8
  • the IE MeasResults covers measured results for intra-frequency, inter-frequency, inter-RAT mobility and measured results for NR sidelink communication/discovery.
  • This IE defines the MDT configuration parameters of NR.
  • This IE defines the parameters for MX measurement collection.
  • Fig. 7 shows a block diagram depicting the UE 10 for handling communication in the communication network such as usage of a network slice, or enabling communication/service of the UE 10, in the communication network.
  • the UE 10 may comprise processing circuitry 701, e.g. one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
  • processing circuitry 701 e.g. one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
  • the UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to obtain the configuration to configure the UE 10 to log and send information for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to the network slice service, and the UE 10 is rejected to access such network slice or the network slice service.
  • the configuration may be received from the radio network node 120 and/or be preconfigured.
  • the UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to perform the admission procedure to the network slice or a network slice service.
  • the UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to request the network slice or the network slice service. The request may be rejected.
  • the UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 is configured to log and send information indicating that the request, from the UE 10, requesting admission or registration to the network slice or the network slice service, is rejected.
  • the information may indicate, where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection.
  • the UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to report to the radio network node 120, upon radio network node request, one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s cell or cells and where such request resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject or a Non Access Stratum Network level rejection.
  • the UE 10 may further comprise a memory 705.
  • the memory comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as indications, configuration, signal strengths or qualities, indications, slice information, values, scheduling information, timers, applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar.
  • the UE 10 comprises a communication interface 706 comprising transmitter, receiver, transceiver and/or one or more antennas.
  • the UE for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the UE comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said UE is operative to perform any of the methods herein.
  • the methods according to the embodiments described herein for the UE 10 are respectively implemented by means of, e.g., a computer program product 707 or a computer program product, comprising instructions, i.e. , software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the UE 10.
  • the computer program product 707 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 708, e g. a universal serial bus (USB) stick, a disc or similar.
  • the computer-readable storage medium 708, having stored thereon the computer program product may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the UE 10.
  • the computer-readable storage medium may be a non-transitory or transitory computer- readable storage medium.
  • Fig. 8 shows a block diagram depicting the radio network node 120 for handling communication in the communication network.
  • the radio network node 120 may comprise processing circuitry 801 , e.g., one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
  • processing circuitry 801 e.g., one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
  • the radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to receive, from the managing node 15 or a CN node, a configuration , i.e., the configuration data for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log and/or send information. Additionally, or alternatively, the configuration data may comprise a request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the radio network node 120 to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the CN rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
  • the radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 is configured to log and/or send, to the managing node 15, the information relating to admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, wherein the information comprises the cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service.
  • the radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to log and/or send in the MDT trace one or more instances of resource allocation for the PDU Session associated to the S-NSSAI that were not admitted.
  • the MDT trace comprises the indication, i.e.
  • the radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to include details of the network slice for which the UE 10 could not register or could not be admitted to services. Such details may comprise S-NSSAI.
  • the radio network node 120 handling the MDT configuration and in charge of collection of the MDT measurements from the UE 10 and from the radio network node 120 itself may be configured to log all measurements received from the UE and collected by itself in logs associated to an MDT trace.
  • the radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to send the logged measurements to the managing node 15 in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
  • Fig. 9 shows a block diagram depicting the managing node 15, such as an OAM and/or a TCE, for handling communication in the communication network.
  • the managing node 15 may comprise processing circuitry 901, e.g., one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
  • the configuration data comprises the request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the radio network node 120 to log for one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the core network rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
  • the configuration data may be for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log information such as MDT information.
  • the managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to include as part of the configuration the request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the UE/radio network node to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service (for the given network slice), and the CN rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
  • the managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to receive from the radio network node 120 the information related to the admission to the network slice and/or network slice service.
  • the information may comprise the cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service.
  • the managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to receive the information in the MDT trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for the PDU Session associated to the S-NSSAI that were not admitted.
  • the MDT trace may comprise the indication for differentiating between the case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and the case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
  • the managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to perform an operation taking the information into account. For example, the managing node 15 may update slice information such as network slice support and network slice availability based on the received information.
  • wireless device or user equipment refers to any type of wireless device communicating with a network node and/or with another wireless device in a cellular or mobile communication system.
  • UE refers to any type of wireless device communicating with a network node and/or with another wireless device in a cellular or mobile communication system.
  • Examples of UE are target device, device to device (D2D) UE, proximity capable UE (aka ProSe UE), loT capable device, machine type UE or UE capable of machine to machine (M2M) communication, Tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, laptop embedded equipped (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles etc.
  • Fig. 10 shows an example of a communication system 1100 in accordance with some embodiments.
  • the communication system 1100 includes a telecommunication network 1102 that includes an access network 1104, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network 1106, which includes one or more core network nodes 1108.
  • the access network 1104 includes one or more access network nodes, such as network nodes 1110a and 1110b (one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes 1110 being examples of the radio network nodes 120), or any other similar 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points.
  • 3GPP 3rd Generation Partnership Project
  • a network node is not necessarily limited to an implementation in which a radio portion and a baseband portion are supplied and integrated by a single vendor.
  • the telecommunication network 1102 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes.
  • ORAN Open-RAN
  • An ORAN network node is a node in the telecommunication network 1102 that supports an ORAN specification (e.g., a specification published by the O-RAN Alliance, or any similar organization) and may operate alone or together with other nodes to implement one or more functionalities of any node in the telecommunication network 1102, including one or more network nodes 1110 and/or core network nodes 1108.
  • ORAN Open-RAN
  • Examples of an ORAN network node include an open radio unit (0-Rll), an open distributed unit (0-Dll), an open central unit (O-CU), including an O-CU control plane (O- CLI-CP) or an O-CU user plane (O-CU-UP), a RAN intelligent controller (near-real time or non-real time) hosting software or software plug-ins, such as a near-real time control application (e.g., xApp) or a non-real time control application (e.g., rApp), or any combination thereof (the adjective “open” designating support of an ORAN specification).
  • a near-real time control application e.g., xApp
  • rApp non-real time control application
  • the network nodes 1110 facilitate direct or indirect connection of user equipment (UE), such as by connecting UEs 1112a, 1112b, 1112c, and 1112d (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs 1112 or UE 10) to the core network 1106 over one or more wireless connections.
  • UE user equipment
  • the UEs 1112 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes 1110 and other communication devices.
  • the network nodes 1110 are arranged, capable, configured, and/or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with the UEs 1112 and/or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunication network 1102 to enable and/or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and/or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunication network 1102.
  • the core network 1106 connects the network nodes 1110 to one or more host computing systems, such as host 1116. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts.
  • the core network 1106 includes one more core network nodes (e.g., core network node 1108) that are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, network nodes, and/or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node 1108.
  • the communication system 1100 of Figure 10 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts.
  • the communication system may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and/or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard, e.g., 6G; wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and/or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, light fidelity (LiFi), and/or any low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox.
  • GSM Global System for Mobile Communications
  • UMTS Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
  • the hub 1114 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data.
  • the hub 1114 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR device, display, loudspeaker, or other media delivery device, the hub 1114 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub 1114 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and/or after adding additional local content.
  • the hub 1114 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.
  • the hub 1114 may have a constant/persistent or intermittent connection to the network node 1110b.
  • the hub 1114 may also allow for a different communication scheme and/or schedule between the hub 1114 and UEs (e.g., UE 1112c and/or 1112d), and between the hub 1114 and the core network 1106.
  • the hub 1114 is connected to the core network 1106 and/or one or more UEs via a wired connection.
  • the hub 1114 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network 1104 and/or to another UE over a direct connection.
  • UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes 1110 while still connected via the hub 1114 via a wired or wireless connection.
  • processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium.
  • some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner.
  • the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and/or by end users and a wireless network generally.
  • Mobility Switching Centre MSC
  • MME Mobile Management Entity
  • O&M Operation and Maintenance
  • OSS Operation Support System
  • SON SelfOrganizing Network
  • positioning node e.g. Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centre (E-SMLC), Minimizing Drive Test (MDT), etc.
  • E-SMLC Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centre
  • MDT Minimizing Drive Test
  • the non-limiting term wireless device or user equipment refers to any type of wireless device communicating with a network node and/or with another UE in a cellular or mobile communication system.
  • UE refers to any type of wireless device communicating with a network node and/or with another UE in a cellular or mobile communication system.
  • Examples of UE are target device, device-to-device (D2D) UE, proximity capable UE (aka ProSe UE), machine type UE or UE capable of machine to machine (M2M) communication, PDA, PAD, Tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, laptop embedded equipped (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles etc.
  • D2D device-to-device
  • ProSe UE proximity capable UE
  • M2M machine type UE or UE capable of machine to machine
  • PDA personal area network
  • PAD tablet
  • mobile terminals smart phone
  • LEE laptop embedded equipped
  • LME laptop mounted equipment
  • functions means or modules may be implemented using digital logic and/or one or more microcontrollers, microprocessors, or other digital hardware. In some embodiments, several or all of the various functions may be implemented together, such as in a single application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or in two or more separate devices with appropriate hardware and/or software interfaces between them. Several of the functions may be implemented on a processor shared with other functional components of a wireless device or network node, for example.
  • ASIC application-specific integrated circuit
  • processors or “controller” as used herein does not exclusively refer to hardware capable of executing software and may implicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor (DSP) hardware, read-only memory (ROM) for storing software, random-access memory for storing software and/or program or application data, and non-volatile memory.
  • DSP digital signal processor
  • ROM read-only memory
  • RAM random-access memory
  • non-volatile memory non-volatile memory
  • a method performed by a UE for handling communication in a communication network comprising logging and/or sending information indicating, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE, that such request resulted in a rejection.
  • a method performed by a radio network node for handling communication in a communication network comprising logging and/or sending information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission C1.
  • a method performed by a managing node for handling communication in a communication network comprising transmitting configuration data to a radio network node, wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
  • a managing node for handling communication in a communication network wherein the managing node is configured to transmit configuration data to a radio network node, wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
  • a UE for handling communication in a communication network comprising: processing circuitry and memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processing circuity, wherein the UE is configured to: log and/or send information indicating, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE, that such request resulted in a rejection.

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Abstract

Embodiments herein may relate to, for example, a method performed by a UE (10), for handling communication in a communication network. The UE (10) logs and sends information indicating that a request from the UE (10) requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service is rejected.

Description

RADIO NETWORK NODE, MANAGING NODE, USER EQUIPMENT AND METHODS
PERFORMED THEREIN
TECHNICAL FIELD
Embodiments herein relate to a radio network node, a user equipment (UE), a managing node and methods performed therein for communication. Furthermore, a computer program and a computer readable storage medium are also provided herein. In particular, embodiments herein relate to admission to a network slice or network slice service comprised in a communication network.
BACKGROUND
In a typical communication network, UEs, also known as wireless communication devices, mobile stations, stations (STA) and/or wireless devices, communicate via a Radio Access Network (RAN) with one or more core networks (CN). The RAN covers a geographical area which is divided into service areas or cell areas, with each service area or cell area being served by radio network node such as an access node e.g. a Wi-Fi access point or a radio base station (RBS), which in some networks may also be called, for example, a NodeB, a gNodeB, or an eNodeB. The service area or cell area is a geographical area where radio coverage is provided by the radio network node. The radio network node operates on radio frequencies to communicate over an air interface with the UEs within range of the radio network node. The radio network node communicates over a downlink (DL) to the UE and the UE communicates over an uplink (UL) to the radio network node.
A Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is a third generation telecommunications network, which evolved from the second generation (2G) Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM). The UMTS terrestrial radio access network (UTRAN) is essentially a RAN using wideband code division multiple access (WCDMA) and/or High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) for communication with user equipment. In a forum known as the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), telecommunications suppliers propose and agree upon standards for present and future generation networks and UTRAN specifically and investigate enhanced data rate and radio capacity. In some RANs, e.g., as in UMTS, several radio network nodes may be connected, e.g., by landlines or microwave, to a controller node, such as a radio network controller (RNC) or a base station controller (BSC), which supervises and coordinates various activities of the plural radio network nodes connected thereto. The RNCs are typically connected to one or more core networks.
Specifications for the Evolved Packet System (EPS) have been completed within the 3GPP and this work continues in the coming 3GPP releases, such as 5G networks for example New Radio (NR). The EPS comprises the Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN), also known as the Long-Term Evolution (LTE) radio access network, and the Evolved Packet Core (EPC), also known as System Architecture Evolution (SAE) core network. E-UTRAN/LTE is a 3GPP radio access technology wherein the radio network nodes are directly connected to the EPC core network. As such, the Radio Access Network (RAN) of an EPS has an architecture comprising radio network nodes connected directly to one or more core networks.
With the emerging 5G technologies such as new radio (NR), focus is on a set of features such as the use of very many transmit- and receive-antenna elements that makes it possible to utilize beamforming, such as transmit-side and receive-side beamforming. Transmit-side beamforming means that the transmitter can amplify the transmitted signals in a selected direction or directions, while suppressing the transmitted signals in other directions. Similarly, on the receive-side, a receiver can amplify signals from a selected direction or directions, while suppressing unwanted signals from other directions. NR is connected to the 5G Core Network (5GC) which comprises a number of Network Functions (NF) such as Session Management Function (SMF), Access Management Function (AMF), Authentication Service Function (AUSF), Policy Control Function (PCF), Unified Data Manager (UDM), Network Repository Function (NRF), Network Exposure Function (NEF), just to mention some. In the 5GC, NFs can discover other NFs by using a discovery service provided by the NRF.
A key function of 5G Core network is to allow for flexibility in network service creation, making use of different network functions suitable for the offered service in a specific network slice, e.g., Evolved Mobile Broadband (MBB), Massive Machine Type Communication (MTC), Critical MTC, Enterprise, etc.
Slicing may also be used to isolate different services in an operator’s network. The goal of the network slice selection mechanism is therefore to direct a UE to the correct network slice as early as possible and to avoid re-direction from one network slice to another, which breaks the isolation between the network slices.
A network slice is a logical network serving a defined business purpose or customer, consisting of all required network resources end-to-end. This means that a network slice consists of all NFs and both Control Plane (CP) and User Plane (UP) required to provide given service(s). Some functions can be shared, i.e., the same NF can be in multiple network slices, but a network slice consists of all network functions and is not just a subset.
The current working assumption is that there will be one shared or dedicated RAN infrastructure that will connect to several CN instances, with one or more shared NFs, interfacing the RAN, plus additional CN functions which may be dedicated for a slice. Such CN instances may be part of the Central Data Centre (DC) and/or CN functions may be virtualized.
Services supported on some specific network slices, defined by Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (S-NSSAI), may be configured and preferably used in dedicated frequency layers. S-NSSAI is a signaling parameter used to convey slice- related information during communication between the UE and the network. To have a more efficient way of signaling to UEs what network slices are configured on some frequency layer, one or more Network Slice Access Groups (NSAG) are introduced. The NSAG can be associated with a priority and that priority can be used by a UE to reselect to a specific frequency layer where some NSAG is configured/supported.
Rejected and not available slices
A UE may request over the non access stratum (NAS) protocol the use of a network slice identified by an S-NSSAI or the UE may request for one or more network slice to be registered by signaling the registered Network Slice Selection Assistance Information (NSSAI) over NAS to the network.
TS23.501 describes the following with regards to such UE requests:
Start of excerpt from 3GPP TS 23.501 v.18.4.0:
When providing a requested NSSAI to the network upon registration, the UE in a given public land mobile network (PLMN) only includes and uses S-NSSAIs applying to this PLMN. The mapping of S-NSSAIs of the requested NSSAI to home (H) PLMN S- NSSAIs may also be provided, see clause 5.15.4.1.2 for when this is needed. The S- NSSAIs in the requested NSSAI are part of the configured and/or allowed NSSAIs applicable for this PLMN, when they are available. If the UE has received network slice simultaneous registered group (NSSRG) information together with the configured NSSAI, it only includes in the requested NSSAI, S-NSSAIs that all share a common NSSRG. If the UE has stored pending NSSAI and the UE is still interested in the pending NSSAI then all the S-NSSAIs in the requested NSSAI and the pending S-NSSAI shall share a common NSSRG. If no configured NSSAI and allowed NSSAI for the PLMN are available, the S-NSSAIs in the requested NSSAI correspond to the default configured NSSAI, if configured in the UE. Upon successful completion of a UE's registration procedure over an access type, the UE obtains from the AMF an allowed NSSAI or partially allowed NSSAI for this access type, which includes one or more S-NSSAIs and, if needed, see clause 5.15.4.1.2 for when this is needed, their mapping to the HPLMN S-NSSAIs. These S-NSSAIs are valid for the current registration area and access type provided by the AMF the UE has registered with and can be used simultaneously by the UE, up to the maximum number of simultaneous network slice instances or protocol data unit (PDU) Sessions.
The UE might also obtain from the AMF, one or more rejected S-NSSAIs with cause and validity of rejection. An S-NSSAI may be rejected: for the entire PLMN; for the current registration area; or partially in the current registration area. Such S-NSSAI rejected partially in the current registration area is associated with a list of tracking areas (TA) where the S- NSSAI is not supported.
The AMF may also reject the use of an S-NSSAI due to congestion as described in clause 5.19.7.4.
While the UE remains registration management (RM)-REGISTERED in the PLMN and regardless of the access type, the UE shall not re-attempt to register to an S-NSSAI rejected for the entire PLMN until this rejected S-NSSAI is deleted as specified below. End of excerpt from TS23.501 v.18.4.0.
As it can be seen from the above, the UE may be rejected a request to access a network slice by means of receiving a rejected S-NSSAI.
If an S-NSSAI is allowed to be used for the UE, the CN may trigger resource allocation at the RAN for a PDU Session associated to such S-NSSAI. However, such resource allocation may not be admitted by the RAN because the network slice is not available in the area where the request was made. This implies that, in such area, the network slice has zero resources allocated in the corresponding cells. Minimization drive test (MDT) configuration is disclosed in 3GPP TS 38.413 v.18.0.0. TS32.422 v.18.1.0 defines the measurements that can be collected via MDT as follows:
5.10.3 List of measurements
This parameter is mandatory if the Job type is configured for Immediate MDT or combined Immediate MDT and Trace. This parameter defines the measurements that shall be collected. For further details see also TS 37.320 [30], The parameter is 4 octet long bitmap.
The parameter can have the following values in UMTS:
M1 : CPICH RSCP and CPICH Ec/No measurement by UE.
M2: For 1.28 Mcps TDD, P-CCPCH RSCP and Timeslot ISCP measurement by UE.
M3: SIR and SIR error (FDD) by NodeB
M4: UE power headroom (UPH) by the UE, applicable for E-DCH transport channels.
M5: Received total wideband power (RTWP) by Node B
M6: Data Volume measurement, separately for DL and UL, by RNC.
M7: Throughput measurement, separately for DL and UL, per RAB and per UE, by RNC.
Any combination of the above
Detailed information for M3, M5, is defined TS 25.215 [54], for M1, M2 in TS 25.331 [31] and for M4 in TS 25.321 [55],
The parameter can have the following values in LTE:
M1 : RSRP, RSRQ and SINR measurement by UE
M2: Power Headroom (PH) measurement by UE
NOTE: Available from MAC layer
M3: Received Interference Power measurement by eNB
M4: Data Volume measurement separately for DL and UL, per QCI per UE, by eNB
M5: Scheduled IP Throughput measurement separately for DL and UL, per RAB per UE and per UE for the DL, per UE for the UL, by eNB
M6: Packet Delay measurement, separately for DL and UL, per QCI per UE, see UL PDCP Delay, by the UE, and Packet Delay in the DL per QCI, by the eNB
M7: Packet Loss rate measurement, separately for DL and UL per QCI per UE, by the eNB M8: RSSI measurement by UE for WLAN and Bluetooth®
M9: RTT measurement by UE only for WLAN
And any combination of above.
Detailed information for M4, M5, M6, M7 is defined TS 36.314 [56], for M1, M3, M8, M9 in TS 36.331 [31], for M2 in TS 36.321 [57],
The parameter can have the following values in NR:
M1 : DL signal quantities measurement results for the serving cell and for intra-frequency/lnter-frequency/inter-RAT neighbour cells, including cell/beam level measurement by UE.
M2: Power headroom (PH) measurement by UE
M3 is not supported by this release
M4: PDCP SDU Data volume measurement separately for DL and UL, per DRB, per S-NSSAI, per UE by gNB
M5: Average UE throughput measurement separately for DL and UL, per DRB, per S-NSSAI, per UE and per UE for the DL, per DRB per UE and per UE for the UL, by gNB
M6: Packet delay measurement, separately for DL and UL, per DRB, per S-NSSAI, per UE by gNB
M7: Packet loss rate measurement, separately for DL and UL, per DRB, per S-NSSAI, per UE by gNB
M8: RSSI measurement by UE for WLAN and Bluetooth®
M9: RTT measurement by UE for WLAN And any combination of above
SUMMARY
As part of developing embodiments herein one or more issues have been identified. In the existing solutions the support of a network slice in a given area of the network has to be configured manually by the network operator via the operation, administration and maintenance (OAM) node. For the network operator this is a rather difficult task as it must configure the support of the slice in each cell that covers the geographical area in which the slice has to be supported or available. The most difficult part of this task is determining the fine mapping between cell’s coverage and the geographical area in which the slice must be supported. As an example, a network operator may aim at covering the premises of a customer with user access to services for a given slice. The challenge for the operator is to find out the fine mapping between the network coverage and the customer premises in order to enable users’ access to the slice in all the cells whose coverage overlaps the customer’s premises. Even if the operator at the end manages to establish such a mapping, network radio environment is a dynamic environment so due to new radio conditions the users may request access to the slice services in a cell which was not initially configured with support or availability for the slice in question.
An issue addressed in this application is therefore that of enabling observability for areas where a slice is requested but not supported or available. A solution to this problem would enable the operator to automate the process of slice support and/or availability in different parts of its network and to optimize how the slice is supported in the network compared to contractual agreements signed by the operator concerning where the slice services should be available.
An object of embodiments herein is to provide a mechanism for enabling communication, such as enabling managing network slices and/or services related to a network slice, in a communication network in an efficient manner.
According to an aspect the object is achieved by a method performed by a UE for handling communication, such as usage of a service, in a communication network. The UE logs and sends information indicating that a request, from the UE, requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service, is rejected.
According to another aspect the object is achieved by a method performed by a radio network node for handling communication such as usage of a service in a communication network. The radio network node logs and/or sends, to a managing node, information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service. For example, the radio network node may log and/or send information in an MDT trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S-NSSAI that were not admitted. The MDT trace may comprise an indication for differentiating between a case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
According to another aspect the object is achieved by a method performed by a managing node for handling communication such as usage of a service in a communication network. The managing node transmits configuration data to a radio network node. The configuration data configures the radio network node log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service. Additionally, or alternatively, the configuration data comprises a request for the radio network node to configure a UE with measurements and the radio network node to log for one or more events in which the UE requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, but core network rejects the UE to access such network slice. The configuration data may define the radio network node to log and/or send in an MDT trace, one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S-NSSAI that were not admitted. The MDT trace may comprise an indication for differentiating between a case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
It is furthermore provided herein a computer program comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out any of the methods above, as performed by the managing node, the UE or the radio network node, respectively. It is additionally provided herein a computer-readable storage medium, having stored thereon a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the methods above, as performed by the managing node, the UE or the radio network node, respectively.
According to yet another aspect the object is achieved, according to embodiments herein, by providing a radio network node, a managing node, and a UE configured to perform the methods herein, respectively.
Thus, according to an aspect the object is achieved by providing a UE for handling communication, such as usage of a service, in a communication network. The UE is configured to log and/or send information indicating that a request, from the UE, requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service, is rejected.
According to another aspect the object is achieved by a radio network node for handling communication such as usage of a service in a communication network. The radio network node is configured to log and/or send, to a managing node, information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service. According to another aspect the object is achieved by a managing node for handling communication such as usage of a service in a communication network. The managing node is configured to transmit configuration data to a radio network node. The configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service. The configuration data may, alternatively or additionally, comprise a request for the radio network node to configure a UE with measurements and the radio network node to log for one or more events in which the UE requests over NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access a the service for the network slice service, but core network rejects the UE to access such network slice.
According to embodiments herein, an OAM node, being an example of the managing node, configures one or several radio network nodes and/or UEs in a certain geographical area, directly or via the CN, with, for example, an MDT configuration according to which one or several radio network nodes and/or UEs should log information concerning an event of PDU session resources for PDU sessions associated to a given network slice to be requested by the CN but not being admitted by the RAN. Additionally, the one or several radio network nodes and/or UEs may log the reason why such admission failure occurred, for example, because of lack of slice availability, namely the node and cell serving the UE have been configured with zero resources for the given network slice, or because of lack of resources, namely, all resources available for the network slice service are used and not available.
Additionally, or alternatively, the managing node may include as part of the MDT configuration a request for the RAN to configure the UE with measurements and to log for the events in which the UE requests over NAS to be registered to a network slice or to access a service for a given network slice, i.e. , the network slice service, and the CN rejects the UE to access such network slice or network slice service. Upon logging such measurements, the UE may report them to the serving RAN.
In both cases described above the radio network node and the UE may include details of the network slice for which the UE could not register or could not be admitted to network slice services. Such details may include the slice S-NSSAI.
The radio network node handling the MDT configuration and in charge of collection of the MDT measurements from the UE and from the radio network node itself may log all measurements received from the UE and collected by itself in logs associated to an MDT trace. The radio network node may send the logged measurements to the managing node in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the network and to enable optimization on where the slice is supported and available. Thus, embodiments herein enable communication, such as enabling managing network slices and/or network slice services, in the communication network in an efficient manner.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Embodiments will now be described in more detail in relation to the enclosed drawings, in which:
Fig. 1 is a schematic overview depicting a communication network according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 2 is a combined flowchart and signaling scheme according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 3 is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a UE according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 4a is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a radio network node according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 4b is a flowchart depicting a method performed by a managing node according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 5 are combined flowchart and signaling schemes according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 6 are combined flowchart and signaling schemes according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 7 is a block diagram depicting a UE according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 8 is a block diagram depicting a radio network node according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 9 is a block diagram depicting a managing node according to embodiments herein;
Fig. 10 schematically illustrates embodiments of a communication system,
Fig. 11 is a generalized block diagram of embodiments of a UE,
Fig. 12 is a generalized block diagram of embodiments of a network node, and
Fig. 13 is a generalized block diagram of embodiments of a virtualization environment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Embodiments herein relate to communication networks in general. Fig. 1 is a schematic overview depicting a communication network 1. The communication network 1 comprises a wireless communication network comprising one or more RANs and one or more CNs. The communication network 1 may use a number of different technologies, such as Wi-Fi, Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced, NR, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Global System for Mobile communications/Enhanced Data rate for GSM Evolution (GSM/EDGE), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), just to mention a few possible implementations. Embodiments herein relate to recent technology trends that are of particular interest in a 5G context, however, embodiments are applicable also in further development of the existing communication systems such as e.g. WCDMA and LTE, and upcoming as 6G.
In the communication network 1, wireless devices e.g. a user equipment (UE) 10 such as a mobile station, a non-access point (non-AP) STA, a STA, a wireless device and/or a wireless terminal, communicate via one or more Access Networks (AN), e.g. RAN, to one or more core networks (CN). It should be understood by those skilled in the art that “UE” is a non-limiting term which means any terminal, wireless communication terminal, internet of things (loT) capable device, Machine Type Communication (MTC) device, Device to Device (D2D) terminal, or node, e.g., smart phone, laptop, mobile phone, sensor, relay, mobile tablets or even a base station communicating within a cell.
The communication network 1 comprises a radio network node 12 providing radio coverage over a geographical area, a first service area or first cell 11, of a first radio access technology (RAT), such as 6G, NR, LTE, UMTS, Wi-Fi or similar. The radio network node 12 may be a radio access network node such as radio network controller or an access point such as a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point or an Access Point Station (AP STA), an access controller, a base station, e.g. a radio base station such as a NodeB, an eNodeB, a gNodeB (gNB), a base transceiver station, Access Point Base Station, base station router, a transmission arrangement of a radio base station, a stand-alone access point or any other network unit capable of serving a UE within the service area served by the radio network node 12 depending e.g. on the first radio access technology and terminology used. The radio network node 12 may be denoted as serving RAN node, serving node, source node, or first radio network node 12.
The communication network 1 comprises a second radio network node 13 providing radio coverage over a geographical area, a second service area, or second cell 14, of a second RAT, such as NR, LTE, UMTS, Wi-Fi or similar. The second radio network node 13 may be a radio access network node such as radio network controller or an access point such as a wireless local area network (WLAN) access point or an Access Point Station (AP STA), an access controller, a base station, e.g. a radio base station such as a NodeB, an eNodeB, a gNodeB (gNB), a base transceiver station, Access Point Base Station, base station router, a transmission arrangement of a radio base station, a stand-alone access point or any other network unit capable of serving a UE within the service area served by the second radio network node 13 depending e.g. on the second radio access technology and terminology used. The second radio network node 13 may be denoted as target RAN node, neighboring node, target node or radio network node.
It should be noted that the communication network 1 comprises a core network (CN) and/or RAN that are virtually network sliced into a number of slices also referred to as network slices, each network slice or RAN/core network slice supports a type of UEs and/or a type of services i.e. each network slice supports a different set of functionalities. Network slicing introduces the possibility that the network slices are used for different services and use cases and these services and use cases may introduce differences in the functionality supported in the different network slices. Each network slice may comprise one or more network nodes or elements of network nodes providing the services/functionalities for the respective network slice. Each slice may comprise one or more network nodes. For example, a first network slice for, e.g., massive MTC devices may comprise a first network node 16. A second network slice for, e.g., critical MTC devices may comprise a second network node 17. A third network slice for, e.g., MBB devices may comprise a third network node 18. Each network slice supports a set of functionalities out of a total set of functionalities in the communication network. E.g. the first network node 13 supports a first set of functionalities out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network 1. The first set of functionalities is separated from a different set of functionalities out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network 1. E.g., the first set of functionalities being associated with Massive MTC devices is separated or logically separated from a second set of functionalities of the second network slice. Examples herein may cover any of the referenced network nodes. The first set of functionalities may use one or more resources in a core network and/or a RAN of the communication network, which one or more resources are separated from other resources used by a different set of functionalities, i.e., different network slices, out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network 1. The resources may then be dedicated or virtually dedicated for each set of functionalities or network slice. Thus, the first network node is separated from other network nodes supporting a second set of functionalities out of the total set of functionalities in the communication network. Separated as used herein means physical separated wherein the network nodes may be executed on different hardware platforms and therefore using different resources of the hardware, and logically separated wherein the network nodes may be executed on a same hardware platform and use different resources such as memory parts or resources of processor capacity but may also use some same resources of the hardware e.g. a single physical network node may be partitioned into multiple virtual network nodes.
A managing node 15 such as an OAM node and/or trace collection entity (TCE) may be comprised in the communication network 1. The managing node 15 may configure a radio network node 120, such as the first radio network node 12 and/or the second radio network node 13, to log and/or report MDT related information.
The radio network node 120 may log in an MDT trace the instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S-NSSAI that were not admitted, differentiating between cases where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability in the area and cases where they were due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
The UE 10 may report to the RAN, upon radio network node request, one or more events where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s one or more cells and where such requests resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject or rejection.
An advantage with embodiments herein is to enable configuring and/or optimizing the network slice support and availability in the different coverage areas of a network, e.g. cells, and/or tracking areas, from a manual human performed task into an automatic or semi-automatic task in which the human or the process performing the task is provided with UE and/or network performed measurements helping to understand where in the coverage of a network, a network slice should be supported or available.
Radio network node and RAN node are used interchangeably. A non-limiting example of a radio network node or a RAN node may be any of: eNB, gNB, gNB-central unit (CU), gNB-CU-control plane (CP), gNB-CU-user plane (UP), and a gNB-distributed unit (DU). The term wireless terminal/device and UE are interchangeable and refers to any device capable of being served/used by a network node, e.g. the radio network node 120.
Embodiments may be applicable for virtual RAN (vRAN) slice as well as virtual core (vCORE) slices.
The description of the methods herein applies to Radio Access Networks supporting network slicing. Without loss of generality, the descriptions are detailed by taking a 5G system into account. However, the methods can be applied to any system supporting network slicing.
In the remaining parts the term network node is used to specify any of the following entities: a logical node, a function, a system.
In this description the term “list of network slices” is used. This term not only indicates a list of network slice identifiers, but it can also refer to one or more NSAG IDs, namely Network Slice Access Stratum Group identifier, representing a group of network slices.
It should be noted that a network slice is available in a coverage area if the network slice is supported by the cell serving the area and if resources for the network slice are available to serve services associated to the network slice. On the other hand, a network slice may be supported within a cell, but not be available because no resources are available for the network slices.
In this description the term “admission control failure” refers to cases where the RAN node in charge of assigning resources for traffic bearers decides not to allocate resources to a given bearer. For “bearer” it is intended any means to instruct the RAN of the establishment of data channels to serve services at the UE, namely a “bearer” could be a PDU Session, a quality of service (QoS) Flow, a data radio bearer (DRB) and/or similar.
Fig. 2 is a combined flowchart and signaling scheme according to some embodiments herein exemplifying one embodiment herein.
Action 201. The managing node 15, such as an OAM, configures, directly or via a CN node, the radio network node 120 with a configuration for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log information such as MDT information. Additionally, or alternatively, the managing node 15 may include as part of the MDT configuration a request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and logs for the events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to a network slice or to access a service for a given network slice, and the CN rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
Action 202. The radio network node 120 may transmit a configuration to the UE 10 to configure the UE 10 to log and/or send information for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to a network slice or to access a service for a given network slice, and the UE 10 is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
Action 203. The UE 10 logs information indicating, where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection.
Action 204. The UE 10 may report information indicating, where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection. For example, the UE 10 may report to the RAN, upon radio network node request, one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s cells and where such requests resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject.
Action 205. The radio network node 120 may log and/or store information relating to admission to the network slice or network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service.
Action 206. The radio network node 120 may send the information related to the admission to the network slice and/or network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service. For example, the radio network node 120 may log and/or send in an MDT trace one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S- NSSAI that were not admitted. The MDT trace may comprise an indication for differentiating between a case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice. The information may be based on a decision at the radio network node 120, and/or reports from the UE 10. For example, sessions associated to a given network slice to be requested by the CN may not be admitted by the radio network node 120. One or several radio network nodes and/or UEs may log the reason why admission failure occurred, for example because of lack of slice availability, namely the node and cell serving the UE have been configured with zero resources for the given slice, or because of lack of resources, namely, all resources available for the network slice service are not enough. The radio network node 120 and/or the UE 10 may include details of the network slice for which the UE 10 could not register or could not be admitted to services. Such details may comprise S-NSSAI. The radio network node 120 handling the MDT configuration and in charge of collection of the MDT measurements from the UE 10 and from the radio network node 120 itself may log all measurements received from the UE 10 and collected by itself in logs associated to an MDT trace. The radio network node 120 may send the logged measurements to the managing node 15 in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
Action 207. The manging node 15 may perform an operation taking the information into account. For example, the managing node 15 may update slice information such as network slice support and network slice availability based on the received information.
The method actions performed by the UE 10 for handling communication, such as network slices and/or network slice services, in the communication network according to embodiments will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in Fig. 3. The actions do not have to be taken in the order stated below but may be taken in any suitable order. Dashed boxes indicate optional features.
Action 301. The UE 10 may obtain the configuration to configure the UE 10 to log and/or send information for one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, i.e., a service for the network slice, and the UE 10 is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service. The configuration may be received from the radio network node 120 and/or be preconfigured.
Action 302. The UE 10 may perform an admission procedure to the network slice or the network slice service. The UE 10 may request registration or admission to the network slice or the network slice service. The request may be rejected.
Action 303. The UE logs and sends information indicating that the request, from the UE 10, requesting admission or registration to the network slice or the network slice service, is rejected. Thus, the information may indicate, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection. In other words, the UE logs and sends information indicating that the request, from the UE 10, for admission or registration to the network slice or the network slice service is rejected. For example, the UE 10 may transmit a report to the radio network node 120, upon a request from the radio network node 120, wherein the report indicates one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under a coverage of a cell or cells of the radio network node and where such request resulted in a Non Access Stratum reject, i.e. , indicating a rejection by the Core Network.
The method actions performed by the radio network node 120 for handling communication, such as handling network slices and/or network slice services, in the communication network according to embodiments will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in Fig. 4a. The actions do not have to be taken in the order stated below but may be taken in any suitable order. Dashed boxes indicate optional features.
Action 401. The radio network node 120 may receive, from the managing node 15 or a CN node, configuration data for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log information. Additionally, or alternatively, the configuration data may comprise a request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the radio network node 120 to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the CN rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
Action 402. The radio network node 120 may transmit configuration to the UE 10 to configure the UE 10 to log and/or send information for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the UE 10 is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
Action 403. The radio network node 120 may receive, from the UE 10, the information indicating that the request, from the UE 10, requesting admission or registration to the network slice or the network slice service, is rejected. Thus, the radio network node 120 may receive report information indicating, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection. For example, the radio network node 120 may receive a report from the UE 10, upon radio network node request, indicating one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the cell of the radio network node 120, and where such request resulted in a Non Access Stratum reject. For example, under coverage of radio network node’s cells and where such request resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject.
Action 404. The radio network node 120 logs and/or sends, to the managing node 15, information relating to admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service. The information may be sent to the managing node 15, directly or via the CN node. For example, the radio network node 120 may log and/or send information in an MDT trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S-NSSAI that were not admitted. The MDT trace may comprise an indication, i.e. , the cause indication, for differentiating between a case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice. The information may be based on a decision at the radio network node 120 and/or reports from the UE 10. For example, sessions associated to a given network slice to be requested by the CN may not be admitted by the radio network node 120. One or several radio network nodes and/or UEs may log the reason why admission failure occurred, for example because of lack of slice availability, namely the node and cell serving the UE have been configured with zero resources for the given network slice, or because of lack of resources, namely, all resources available for the network slice service are not enough. The radio network node 120 and/or the UE 10 may include details of the network slice for which the UE 10 could not register or could not be admitted to services. Such details may comprise S-NSSAI. The radio network node 120 may be in charge of collection of MDT measurements from the UE 10 (and/or other UEs) and from the radio network node 120 itself, and may log all measurements received from the UE 10 and collected by itself in logs associated to the MDT trace. The radio network node 120 may further send the logged measurements to the managing node 15 in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
The method actions performed by the managing node 15, such as an OAM and/or a TCE, for handling communication such as network slices and/or network slice services, in the communication network according to embodiments will now be described with reference to a flowchart depicted in Fig. 4b. The actions do not have to be taken in the order stated below but may be taken in any suitable order. Dashed boxes indicate optional features. Action 411. The managing node 15 transmits the configuration data, also referred to as just configuration, to one or more radio network nodes, directly or via a CN node, such as the radio network node 120, wherein the configuration data is for the radio network node 120 to log and/or send information relating to admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, wherein the information comprises the cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service. The configuration data may, alternatively or additionally, comprise the request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the radio network node 120 to log for one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, but core network rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice. The configuration data may be for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log information such as MDT information. Additionally, or alternatively, the managing node 15 may include as part of the MDT configuration a request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the UE/radio network node to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to a network slice or to access a service for a given network slice, and the CN rejects the UE to access such network slice or network slice service.
Action 412. The managing node 15 may receive from the radio network node 120 the information related to the admission to the network slice and/or network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service. For example, the managing node 15 may receive information in an MDT trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to an S-NSSAI that were not admitted. The MDT trace may comprise an indication for differentiating between a case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice. The managing node 15 may receive reason indication why admission failure occurred, for example because of lack of slice availability, namely the node and cell serving the UE have been configured with zero resources for the given slice, or because of lack of resources, namely, all resources available for the slice service are not enough. The received information may include details of the network slice for which the UE could not register or could not be admitted to services. Such details may comprise S-NSSAI. The managing node 15 may receive the logged measurements from the radio network node 120 in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
Action 413. The managing node 15 may perform an operation taking the information into account. For example, the managing node 15 may update slice information such as network slice support and network slice availability based on the received information.
The method described herein is based on a first RAN node, such as the radio network node 120, receiving an MDT configuration from an external system such as the OAM, either directly, e.g. for management based MDT, or indirectly via the CN, e.g. for signaling based MDT.
In such MDT configuration the first RAN node is configured to collect measurements concerning the support and availability of one or more network slices in a given coverage area. The details of the coverage area in which such measurements should be collected may include one or more of the following:
- A List of cells, identified by their cell global identities (CGI), where the measurements have to be collected
- A List of tracking areas, identified by their tracking area identifier (TAI) or tracking area codes (TAC), where the measurements have to be collected
- A List of PLMNs, e.g., terrestrial networks and/or non-terrestrial networks, identified by their PLMN IDs, where the measurements have to be collected
- A List of beam coverage areas, identified for example by their SSB IDs, where the measurements have to be collected
- A List of Non Public Networks (NPN) where the measurements have to be collected, where such list may include o Public Network Integrated (PNI)-NPN networks, identified by their public land mobile network (PLMN) ID and closed access group (CAG) IDs o Standalone NPN (SNPN) networks, identified by their PLMN ID and network ID (NID)
- A List of frequencies, identified for example by their E-UTRA Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number (EARFCN), where the measurements have to be collected
- A geographical area expressed as polygon(s), or as circular area(s), or as a LocationFilter, e.g., as defined in TS 26.247 v.17.4.1. In such MDT configuration one or more network slices for which the measurements have to be collected is listed, together with the coverage area within which the measurements need to be collected. Such network slices may be identified by their S-NSSAIs. If the MDT configuration is intended to collect measurements for a group of network slices in the same NSAG, the NSAG may be indicated instead of, or in addition to, the list of individual network slices.
In one embodiment, the MDT measurements included in the MDT configuration request the radio network node 120 receiving the configuration and in charge of the measurement collection to log one or more of the following events:
Events concerning an admission control failure due to the fact that a network slice is not available in the area where resources are requested for the UE, for resource allocation to one or more of the following: o A PDU Session associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A QoS Flow associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A DRB associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A PDU Set associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A multicast radio bearer (MRB) associated to a network slice with S- NSSAI included in the MDT configuration
In this type of event the radio network node 120 is not able to admit the one or more entities listed above because the network slice associated to it at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is has zero resources. Namely, no services for such network slice can be admitted in this area.
In another example of this type of event, the radio network node 120 is not able to accept the mobility request from the neighboring RAN node for a UE because the network slice associated to it at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is has zero resources. Namely, no UE with running services for such network slice can be admitted in this area or accept the HO request while not provisioning the resources required for the services.
In another example of this type of event, the radio network node 120 is not able to accept the request to resume the service for the UE 10 because of one of the following options: • The network slice associated to the service at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is has zero resources allocated
• The network slice associated to the service at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is has no more resources available for the services to be resumed
Events concerning admission control failure due to the fact that resources for a given network slice have been exhausted at the radio network node 120 and in the coverage area serving the UE 10, for resource allocation to one or more of the following: o A PDU Session associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A QoS Flow associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A DRB associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A PDU Set associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration o A MRB associated to a network slice with S-NSSAI included in the MDT configuration
In this type of event the radio network node 120 is not able to admit the one or more entities listed above because the resources allocated to the network slice associated to the service at the radio network node 120 and for the coverage area where the UE 10 is have been all allocated and no more resources are available for the services to be admitted.
In another example of this type of event, the radio network node 120 is not able to accept the mobility, e.g., handover (HO), request from the neighboring RAN node for a UE because the resources allocated to the slice associated to it at the RAN node and for the coverage area where the UE is, have been all allocated and no more resources are available for the services to be admitted. Namely, no more UEs with running services for such slice can be admitted in this area. Therefore, the radio network node 120 rejects the HO request or accept the HO request while not provisioning the resources required for the services. Upon being configured with these measurements the radio network node 120 may log, together with the event requested in the measurement configuration one or more of the following:
The CGI where the UE 10 was served when the event occurred. The TAI where the UE 10 was served when the event occurred. The PLMN ID where the UE 10 was served when the event occurred. The PNI-NPN where the UE 10 was served when the event occurred.
The SNPN where the UE 10 was served when the event occurred.
In case of mobility, the radio network node 120 may log one or more of the following information regarding the source and target cells involved in the mobility: o the CGIs of the source and the target cells o the TAIs of the source and target cells o the PLMN IDs of the source and target cells o the PNI-NPNs of the source and target cells o the SNPNs of the source and target cells
The time when the event logged by the UE 10 occurred
The S-NSSAI for which the event occurred
The slice service type and/or the slice differentiator such as QoS or service level agreement
Information concerning the services for which the admission control failure occurred. Examples of such information may include one or more of the following: o The PDU Session ID of the PDU Session affected by admission control failure o The QoS Flow ID the QoS Flows affected by the admission control failure o The DRB ID of the DRBs affected by admission control failure o The MRB ID of the MRB affected by admission control failure. The 5G QoS Identifier (5QI) associated to the traffic bearers, e.g., DRBs, MRBs, and/or QoS Flows, affected by admission control failure o The service type of the services affected by admission control failure, such as
GBR service
Non GBR service ■ Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) service
■ Extended reality (XR) service
■ Latency bounded service o a Domain Name System (DNS) o a Domain Name Network (DNN) o an enumerated field describing the service, e.g. video call or video streaming, o a 5QI identifying certain QoS characteristics of the service o a set of QoS parameters identifying for example the service requested throughput
Fig. 5 shows a non-limiting example of signaling flow of a method comprising the MDT configuration and the MDT report to enable data collection on the supported/available slices and associated resources to the slices. Action 51. The OMA/TCE transmits MDT Configuration (including slice related measurement configuration) to the radio network node 120, being exemplified herein as the second radio network node 13. Action 52. The first radio network node 12 transmits to the second radio network node 13, a HO request for UE running services associated with certain slices. Action 53. The second radio network node 13 performs an admission control for the UE. Action 54. The second radio network node 13 sends a HO reject/accept/accept without provisioning resource for the services. Action 55. The second radio network node 13 further logs information related to admission control in MDT report. Action 56. The second radio network node 13 transmits/forwards the logged information as part of MDT report to OAM/TCE. Action 57. The OAM/TCE performs the Network orchestration and reallocation of resources/slices based on collected MDT results.
In another embodiment, the MDT measurements included in the MDT configuration request the radio network node 120 receiving the configuration and in charge of the measurement collection to configure a UE with measurements/logs reporting the following information:
Events where the UE 10 received over the NAS protocol a rejection for a given network slice, e.g. in the form of a Rejected S-NSSAI, as a consequence of the UE 10 registering to the network and presenting to the network a list of network slices for registration Events where the UE 10 received over the NAS protocol a rejection for a given network slice, e.g. in the form of a Rejected S-NSSAI, as a consequence of the UE signaling a service request associated to a given network slice
Events where the UE 10 received over the NAS protocol a rejection for a given network slice, e.g., in the form of a Rejected S-NSSAI, as a consequence of the UE 10 performing an update on the tracking area.
Upon being configured with these measurements the UE 10 may log, together with the event requested, such as a NAS rejection, in the measurement configuration one or more of the following:
The time when the event occurred
The geolocation, e.g., global positioning system (GPS) coordinates, of the UE position when the event occurred
The CGI where the UE was served when the event occurred
The TAI where the UE was served when the event occurred
The PLMN ID where the UE was served when the event occurred
The PNI-NPN where the UE was served when the event occurred
The SNPN where the UE was served when the event occurred
The time when the event logged by the UE occurred
The S-NSSAI for which the event occurred
The NSAG for which the event occurred
- An indication of the NAS procedure leading to the event
- A reason, at NAS level, associated to the event
Details concerning UE Route Selection Policy Rule (URSP) associated to the slice, e.g., OSId, Appld,
- An identifier for the service for which a service request was triggered, which resulted in a network slice rejection. As an example, such service identifier could be provided in the form of one or more of the following: o an Access Point Name (APN) o a Domain Name System (DNS) o a Domain Name Network (DNN) o an enumerated field describing the service, e.g. video call or video streaming, o a 5QI identifying certain QoS characteristics of the service o a set of QoS parameters identifying for example the service requested throughput o one or a set of PDU Set QoS parameters in UL and/or DL, such as PDU Set Delay Budget, PDU Set Error Rate, PDU Set Integrated Handling Information
In case of mobility, the UE 10 may log one or more of the following information regarding the source and target cells involved in the mobility: o the CGIs of the source and the target cells o the TAIs of the source and target cells o the PLMN IDs of the source and target cells o the PNI-NPNs of the source and target cells o the SNPNs of the source and target cells
Once the UE 10 has logged information concerning the requested measurements and events, the UE 10 may report them to the serving radio network node 120. The reporting may occur by first indicating availability of the report to the serving radio network node 120.
For example, upon receiving a rejection in admitting the requested network slice, the UE 10 may transition to RRCJDLE, and may keep the logged information related to the rejected slice and associated measurements. Upon reconnecting to the network, the UE 10 may signal to the radio network node 120the availability of reports, e.g., MDT reports, comprising rejected I not admitted network slice information. The radio network node 120 thus fetches the information and forwards it to the OAM/TCE.
The serving radio network node 120 may create a measurement log that includes results for all the measurements included in the MDT configuration that could be collected, namely measurements collected at the radio network node 120 and at the UE 10. The radio network node 120 may further signal such measurements log to a preconfigured entity, such as a Trace Collection Entity (TCE), being an example of the managing node 15.
Fig. 6 shows a non-limiting example of signaling flow of the method comprising the MDT configuration and the MDT report to enable data collection on the rejected slices over NAS and reporting it to the OAM/TCE. Action 61. MDT Configuration (slice related configuration). Action 62. RRC: MDT Configuration (slice related configuration). Action 63. NAS message: slice request. Action 64. NAS message: slice Reject. Action 65. Log information related to rejected slice. Action 66. RRC: MDT/RRM measurements including rejected slice information. Action 67. MDT measurements including rejected slice information.
Example implementation in RRC based on the 38.331 version (18.0.0). Amendments are underlined and italic.
ReportConfigNR information element
- AS N1 START
- TAG-REPORTCONFIGNR-START
ReportConfigNR : : = SEQUENCE { reportType CHOICE { periodical PeriodicalReportConfig, eventTriggered EventTriggerConfig, reported ReportCGI, reportSFTD ReportSFTD-NR, condTriggerConfig-rl6 CondTriggerConfig-rl6, cli- Periodical-rl6 CLI-PeriodicalReportConfig-rl6, cli-EventTriggered-rl6 CLI-EventTriggerConfig-rl6, rxTxPeriodical-rl7 RxTxPeriodical-rl7, reportOnScellActivation-rl8 ReportOnScellActivation-rl8
[[ rejectedSlicesConfiq-rl 8 ENUMERATED true OPTIONAL, - Need R
]]
[...]
- ASN1STOP
MeasResults
The IE MeasResults covers measured results for intra-frequency, inter-frequency, inter-RAT mobility and measured results for NR sidelink communication/discovery.
MeasResults information element
- AS N1 START
- TAG-MEASRESULTS-START
MeasResults : : = SEQUENCE {
[...]
[[ reiected-S-NSSAI-List-rl 8 SEQUENCE (SIZE (1.. maxNrofS-NSSAT) ) OF S-NSSAI OPTIONAL
]]
[...]
}
[...] - ASN1ST0P
[...]
Example implementation in NGAP based on the 38.413 version (18.0.0):
Here is an example of implementation in case of signaling-based MDT over the NGAP protocol. Amendments are underlined and italic. MDT Configuration-NR
This IE defines the MDT configuration parameters of NR.
MX Configuration
This IE defines the parameters for MX measurement collection.
Fig. 7 shows a block diagram depicting the UE 10 for handling communication in the communication network such as usage of a network slice, or enabling communication/service of the UE 10, in the communication network.
The UE 10 may comprise processing circuitry 701, e.g. one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
The UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to obtain the configuration to configure the UE 10 to log and send information for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to the network slice service, and the UE 10 is rejected to access such network slice or the network slice service. The configuration may be received from the radio network node 120 and/or be preconfigured.
The UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to perform the admission procedure to the network slice or a network slice service. The UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to request the network slice or the network slice service. The request may be rejected.
The UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 is configured to log and send information indicating that the request, from the UE 10, requesting admission or registration to the network slice or the network slice service, is rejected. Thus, the information may indicate, where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection. For example, the UE 10 and/or the processing circuitry 701 may be configured to report to the radio network node 120, upon radio network node request, one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s cell or cells and where such request resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject or a Non Access Stratum Network level rejection.
The UE 10 may further comprise a memory 705. The memory comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as indications, configuration, signal strengths or qualities, indications, slice information, values, scheduling information, timers, applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar. The UE 10 comprises a communication interface 706 comprising transmitter, receiver, transceiver and/or one or more antennas. Thus, it is herein provided the UE for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the UE comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said UE is operative to perform any of the methods herein.
The methods according to the embodiments described herein for the UE 10 are respectively implemented by means of, e.g., a computer program product 707 or a computer program product, comprising instructions, i.e. , software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the UE 10. The computer program product 707 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 708, e g. a universal serial bus (USB) stick, a disc or similar. The computer-readable storage medium 708, having stored thereon the computer program product, may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the UE 10. In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be a non-transitory or transitory computer- readable storage medium.
Fig. 8 shows a block diagram depicting the radio network node 120 for handling communication in the communication network.
The radio network node 120 may comprise processing circuitry 801 , e.g., one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
The radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to receive, from the managing node 15 or a CN node, a configuration , i.e., the configuration data for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log and/or send information. Additionally, or alternatively, the configuration data may comprise a request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the radio network node 120 to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the CN rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
The radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to transmit configuration to the UE 10 to configure the UE 10 to log and send information for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the UE is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
The radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to receive the information that the request, from the UE 10, requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service, is rejected. Thus, the information may indicate, where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10, that such request resulted in a rejection. For example, the radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to receive a report from the UE 10, upon radio network node request, for one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE 10 while under the coverage of the radio network node’s cells and where such request resulted in a rejection by the Core Network, such as a Non Access Stratum reject.
The radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 is configured to log and/or send, to the managing node 15, the information relating to admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, wherein the information comprises the cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service. For example, the radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to log and/or send in the MDT trace one or more instances of resource allocation for the PDU Session associated to the S-NSSAI that were not admitted. The MDT trace comprises the indication, i.e. , the cause indication, for differentiating between the case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and the case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice. The information may be based on a decision at the radio network node 120 and/or reports from the UE 10. For example, sessions associated to a given network slice to be requested by the CN may not be admitted by the radio network node 120. One or several radio network nodes and/or UEs can log the reason why admission failure occurred, for example because of lack of slice availability, namely the node and cell serving the UE have been configured with zero resources for the given slice, or because of lack of resources, namely, all resources available for the slice service are not enough. The radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to include details of the network slice for which the UE 10 could not register or could not be admitted to services. Such details may comprise S-NSSAI. The radio network node 120 handling the MDT configuration and in charge of collection of the MDT measurements from the UE 10 and from the radio network node 120 itself may be configured to log all measurements received from the UE and collected by itself in logs associated to an MDT trace. The radio network node 120 and/or the processing circuitry 801 may be configured to send the logged measurements to the managing node 15 in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
The radio network node 120 further comprises a memory 805. The memory comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as indications, slice information, signal strengths or qualities, resource information, information, indications, configuration, values, scheduling information, timers, applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar. The radio network node 120 comprises a communication interface 806 comprising transmitter, receiver, transceiver and/or one or more antennas. Thus, it is herein provided the radio network node 120 for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the radio network node 120 comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said radio network node 120 is operative to perform any of the methods herein.
The methods according to the embodiments described herein for the radio network node 120 are respectively implemented by means of, e.g., a computer program product 807 or a computer program product, comprising instructions, i.e. , software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the radio network node 120. The computer program product 807 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 808, e.g., a universal serial bus (USB) stick, a disc or similar. The computer-readable storage medium 808, having stored thereon the computer program product, may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the radio network node 120. In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be a non- transitory or transitory computer-readable storage medium.
Fig. 9 shows a block diagram depicting the managing node 15, such as an OAM and/or a TCE, for handling communication in the communication network.
The managing node 15 may comprise processing circuitry 901, e.g., one or more processors, configured to perform the methods herein.
The managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 is configured to transmit the configuration data to one or more radio network nodes, such as the radio network node 120, directly or via a CN node, wherein the configuration data is for the radio network node 120 to log and/or send information relating to admission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service. Additionally, or alternatively, the configuration data comprises the request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the radio network node 120 to log for one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the core network rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service. The configuration data may be for reporting MDT indicating to the radio network node 120 to log information such as MDT information. Additionally, or alternatively, the managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to include as part of the configuration the request for the radio network node 120 to configure the UE 10 with measurements and the UE/radio network node to log for the one or more events in which the UE 10 requests over NAS to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service (for the given network slice), and the CN rejects the UE 10 to access such network slice or network slice service.
The managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to receive from the radio network node 120 the information related to the admission to the network slice and/or network slice service. The information may comprise the cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or network slice service. For example, the managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to receive the information in the MDT trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for the PDU Session associated to the S-NSSAI that were not admitted. The MDT trace may comprise the indication for differentiating between the case where the admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and the case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice. The managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to receive reason indication why admission failure occurred, for example because of lack of slice availability (namely the node and cell serving the UE have been configured with zero resources for the given slice) or because of lack of resources (namely, all resources available for the slice service are not enough. The received information may include details of the network slice for which the UE 10 could not register or could not be admitted to services. Such details may comprise S-NSSAI. The managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to receive the logged measurements from the radio network node 120 in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
The managing node 15 and/or the processing circuitry 901 may be configured to perform an operation taking the information into account. For example, the managing node 15 may update slice information such as network slice support and network slice availability based on the received information.
The managing node 15 further comprises a memory 905. The memory comprises one or more units to be used to store data on, such as indications, slice information, signal strengths or qualities, resource information, information, indications, configuration, values, scheduling information, timers, applications to perform the methods disclosed herein when being executed, and similar. The managing node 15 comprises a communication interface 906 comprising transmitter, receiver, transceiver and/or one or more antennas. Thus, it is herein provided the managing node 15 for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the managing node 15 comprises processing circuitry and a memory, said memory comprising instructions executable by said processing circuitry whereby said managing node 15 is operative to perform any of the methods herein.
The methods according to the embodiments described herein for the managing node 15 are respectively implemented by means of, e.g., a computer program product 907 or a computer program product, comprising instructions, i.e. , software code portions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the managing node 15. The computer program product 907 may be stored on a computer-readable storage medium 908, e.g., a universal serial bus (USB) stick, a disc or similar. The computer-readable storage medium 908, having stored thereon the computer program product, may comprise the instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the actions described herein, as performed by the managing node 15. In some embodiments, the computer-readable storage medium may be a non- transitory or transitory computer-readable storage medium.
In some embodiments a more general term “network node” is used and it can correspond to any type of radio-network node or any network node, which communicates with a UE and/or with another network node.
In some embodiments the non-limiting term wireless device or user equipment (UE) is used and it refers to any type of wireless device communicating with a network node and/or with another wireless device in a cellular or mobile communication system. Examples of UE are target device, device to device (D2D) UE, proximity capable UE (aka ProSe UE), loT capable device, machine type UE or UE capable of machine to machine (M2M) communication, Tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, laptop embedded equipped (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles etc.
Embodiments are applicable to any RAT or multi-RAT systems, where the wireless device receives and/or transmit signals (e.g. data) e.g. NR, Wi-Fi, LTE, LTE-Advanced, Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), Global System for Mobile communications/enhanced Data rate for GSM Evolution (GSM/EDGE), Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), or Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), just to mention a few possible implementations.
Fig. 10 shows an example of a communication system 1100 in accordance with some embodiments.
In the example, the communication system 1100 includes a telecommunication network 1102 that includes an access network 1104, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a core network 1106, which includes one or more core network nodes 1108. The access network 1104 includes one or more access network nodes, such as network nodes 1110a and 1110b (one or more of which may be generally referred to as network nodes 1110 being examples of the radio network nodes 120), or any other similar 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) access nodes or non-3GPP access points. Moreover, as will be appreciated by those of skill in the art, a network node is not necessarily limited to an implementation in which a radio portion and a baseband portion are supplied and integrated by a single vendor. Thus, it will be understood that network nodes include disaggregated implementations or portions thereof. For example, in some embodiments, the telecommunication network 1102 includes one or more Open-RAN (ORAN) network nodes. An ORAN network node is a node in the telecommunication network 1102 that supports an ORAN specification (e.g., a specification published by the O-RAN Alliance, or any similar organization) and may operate alone or together with other nodes to implement one or more functionalities of any node in the telecommunication network 1102, including one or more network nodes 1110 and/or core network nodes 1108.
Examples of an ORAN network node include an open radio unit (0-Rll), an open distributed unit (0-Dll), an open central unit (O-CU), including an O-CU control plane (O- CLI-CP) or an O-CU user plane (O-CU-UP), a RAN intelligent controller (near-real time or non-real time) hosting software or software plug-ins, such as a near-real time control application (e.g., xApp) or a non-real time control application (e.g., rApp), or any combination thereof (the adjective “open” designating support of an ORAN specification). The network node may support a specification by, for example, supporting an interface defined by the ORAN specification, such as an A1 , F1 , W1, E1 , E2, X2, Xn interface, an open fronthaul user plane interface, or an open fronthaul management plane interface. Moreover, an ORAN access node may be a logical node in a physical node. Furthermore, an ORAN network node may be implemented in a virtualization environment (described further below) in which one or more network functions are virtualized. For example, the virtualization environment may include an O-Cloud computing platform orchestrated by a Service Management and Orchestration Framework via an O-2 interface defined by the O-RAN Alliance or comparable technologies. The network nodes 1110 facilitate direct or indirect connection of user equipment (UE), such as by connecting UEs 1112a, 1112b, 1112c, and 1112d (one or more of which may be generally referred to as UEs 1112 or UE 10) to the core network 1106 over one or more wireless connections.
Example wireless communications over a wireless connection include transmitting and/or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and/or other types of signals suitable for conveying information without the use of wires, cables, or other material conductors. Moreover, in different embodiments, the communication system 1100 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and/or any other components or systems that may facilitate or participate in the communication of data and/or signals whether via wired or wireless connections. The communication system 1100 may include and/or interface with any type of communication, telecommunication, data, cellular, radio network, and/or other similar type of system.
The UEs 1112 may be any of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and/or operable to communicate wirelessly with the network nodes 1110 and other communication devices. Similarly, the network nodes 1110 are arranged, capable, configured, and/or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with the UEs 1112 and/or with other network nodes or equipment in the telecommunication network 1102 to enable and/or provide network access, such as wireless network access, and/or to perform other functions, such as administration in the telecommunication network 1102.
In the depicted example, the core network 1106 connects the network nodes 1110 to one or more host computing systems, such as host 1116. These connections may be direct or indirect via one or more intermediary networks or devices. In other examples, network nodes may be directly coupled to hosts. The core network 1106 includes one more core network nodes (e.g., core network node 1108) that are structured with hardware and software components. Features of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UEs, network nodes, and/or hosts, such that the descriptions thereof are generally applicable to the corresponding components of the core network node 1108. Example core network nodes include functions of one or more of a Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Subscription Identifier Deconcealing function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Security Edge Protection Proxy (SEPP), Network Exposure Function (NEF), and/or a User Plane Function (UPF).
The host 1116 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than an operator or provider of the access network 1104 and/or the telecommunication network 1102. The host 1116 may host a variety of applications to provide one or more service. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio/video content, data collection services such as retrieving and compiling data on various ambient conditions detected by a plurality of UEs, analytics functionality, social media, functions for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functions for an alarm and surveillance center, or any other such function performed by a server.
As a whole, the communication system 1100 of Figure 10 enables connectivity between the UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system may be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards that include, but are not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and/or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard, e.g., 6G; wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standards (WiFi); and/or any other appropriate wireless communication standard, such as the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax), Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC) ZigBee, light fidelity (LiFi), and/or any low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox.
In some examples, the telecommunication network 1102 is a cellular network that implements 3GPP standardized features. Accordingly, the telecommunications network 1102 may support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices that are connected to the telecommunication network 1102. For example, the telecommunications network 1102 may provide Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC) services to some UEs, while providing Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and/or Massive Machine Type Communication (mMTC)/Massive loT services to yet further UEs.
In some examples, the UEs 1112 are configured to transmit and/or receive information without direct human interaction. For instance, a UE may be designed to transmit information to the access network 1104 on a predetermined schedule, when triggered by an internal or external event, or in response to requests from the access network 1104. Additionally, a UE may be configured for operating in single- or multi-RAT or multi-standard mode. For example, a UE may operate with any one or combination of Wi-Fi, NR (New Radio) and LTE, i.e. being configured for multi-radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), such as E-UTRAN (Evolved-UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) New Radio - Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).
In the example, the hub 1114 communicates with the access network 1104 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 1112c and/or 1112d) and network nodes (e.g., network node 1110b). In some examples, the hub 1114 may be a controller, router, content source and analytics, or any of the other communication devices described herein regarding UEs. For example, the hub 1114 may be a broadband router enabling access to the core network 1106 for the UEs. As another example, the hub 1114 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UEs. Commands or instructions may be received from the UEs, network nodes 1110, or by executable code, script, process, or other instructions in the hub 1114. As another example, the hub 1114 may be a data collector that acts as temporary storage for UE data and, in some embodiments, may perform analysis or other processing of the data. As another example, the hub 1114 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR device, display, loudspeaker, or other media delivery device, the hub 1114 may retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node, which the hub 1114 then provides to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and/or after adding additional local content. In still another example, the hub 1114 acts as a proxy server or orchestrator for the UEs, in particular if one or more of the UEs are low energy loT devices.
The hub 1114 may have a constant/persistent or intermittent connection to the network node 1110b. The hub 1114 may also allow for a different communication scheme and/or schedule between the hub 1114 and UEs (e.g., UE 1112c and/or 1112d), and between the hub 1114 and the core network 1106. In other examples, the hub 1114 is connected to the core network 1106 and/or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Moreover, the hub 1114 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider over the access network 1104 and/or to another UE over a direct connection. In some scenarios, UEs may establish a wireless connection with the network nodes 1110 while still connected via the hub 1114 via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, the hub 1114 may be a dedicated hub - that is, a hub whose primary function is to route communications to/from the UEs from/to the network node 1110b. In other embodiments, the hub 1114 may be a non-dedicated hub - that is, a device which is capable of operating to route communications between the UEs and network node 1110b, but which is additionally capable of operating as a communication start and/or end point for certain data channels.
Although the computing devices described herein (e.g., UEs, network nodes) may include the illustrated combination of hardware components, other embodiments may comprise computing devices with different combinations of components. It is to be understood that these computing devices may comprise any suitable combination of hardware and/or software needed to perform the tasks, features, functions and methods disclosed herein. Determining, calculating, obtaining or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry, which may process information by, for example, converting the obtained information into other information, comparing the obtained information or converted information to information stored in the network node, and/or performing one or more operations based on the obtained information or converted information, and as a result of said processing making a determination. Moreover, while components are depicted as single boxes located within a larger box, or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, computing devices may comprise multiple different physical components that make up a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between separate components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and/or the functionality of the components may be partitioned between the processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any of such components may be implemented in software or firmware and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.
In certain embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry executing instructions stored on in memory, which in certain embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by the processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, whether executing instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium or not, the processing circuitry can be configured to perform the described functionality. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to the processing circuitry alone or to other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole, and/or by end users and a wireless network generally.
In some embodiments a more general term “network node” is used and it can correspond to any type of radio network node or any network node, which communicates with a wireless device and/or with another network node. Examples of network nodes are NodeB, Master eNB, Secondary eNB, a network node belonging to Master cell group (MCG) or Secondary Cell Group (SCG), base station (BS), multi-standard radio (MSR) radio node such as MSR BS, eNodeB, network controller, radio network controller (RNC), base station controller (BSC), relay, donor node controlling relay, base transceiver station (BTS), access point (AP), transmission points, transmission nodes, Remote Radio Unit (RRU), Remote Radio Head (RRH), nodes in distributed antenna system (DAS), core network node e.g. Mobility Switching Centre (MSC), Mobile Management Entity (MME) etc., Operation and Maintenance (O&M), Operation Support System (OSS), SelfOrganizing Network (SON), positioning node e.g. Evolved Serving Mobile Location Centre (E-SMLC), Minimizing Drive Test (MDT), etc.
In some embodiments, the non-limiting term wireless device or user equipment (UE) is used and it refers to any type of wireless device communicating with a network node and/or with another UE in a cellular or mobile communication system. Examples of UE are target device, device-to-device (D2D) UE, proximity capable UE (aka ProSe UE), machine type UE or UE capable of machine to machine (M2M) communication, PDA, PAD, Tablet, mobile terminals, smart phone, laptop embedded equipped (LEE), laptop mounted equipment (LME), USB dongles etc.
The embodiments are described for 5G. However the embodiments are applicable to any RAT or multi-RAT systems, where the UE receives and/or transmit signals (e.g. data) e.g. LTE, LTE FDD/TDD, WCDMA/HSPA, GSM/GERAN, Wi Fi, WLAN, CDMA2000 etc.
As will be readily understood by those familiar with communications design, functions means or modules may be implemented using digital logic and/or one or more microcontrollers, microprocessors, or other digital hardware. In some embodiments, several or all of the various functions may be implemented together, such as in a single application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or in two or more separate devices with appropriate hardware and/or software interfaces between them. Several of the functions may be implemented on a processor shared with other functional components of a wireless device or network node, for example.
Alternatively, several of the functional elements of the processing means discussed may be provided through the use of dedicated hardware, while others are provided with hardware for executing software, in association with the appropriate software or firmware. Thus, the term “processor” or “controller” as used herein does not exclusively refer to hardware capable of executing software and may implicitly include, without limitation, digital signal processor (DSP) hardware, read-only memory (ROM) for storing software, random-access memory for storing software and/or program or application data, and non-volatile memory. Other hardware, conventional and/or custom, may also be included. Designers of communications devices will appreciate the cost, performance, and maintenance trade-offs inherent in these design choices.
It will be appreciated that the foregoing description and the accompanying drawings represent non-limiting examples of the methods and apparatus taught herein. As such, the apparatus and techniques taught herein are not limited by the foregoing description and accompanying drawings. Instead, the embodiments herein are limited only by the following claims and their legal equivalents. Embodiments:
A1.
A method performed by a UE for handling communication in a communication network, the method comprising logging and/or sending information indicating, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE, that such request resulted in a rejection.
B1.
A method performed by a radio network node for handling communication in a communication network, the method comprising logging and/or sending information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission C1.
A method performed by a managing node for handling communication in a communication network, the method comprising transmitting configuration data to a radio network node, wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
D1.
A UE for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the UE is configured to log and/or send information indicating, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE, that such request resulted in a rejection.
E1.
A radio network node for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the radio network node is configured to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
F1.
A managing node for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the managing node is configured to transmit configuration data to a radio network node, wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
G1.
A computer program comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to embodiments A1 , B1 , or C1 , as performed by the managing node, the UE or the radio network node, respectively.
H1. A computer-readable storage medium, having stored thereon a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to embodiments A1 , B1 , or C1 , as performed by the managing node, UE or the radio network node, respectively.
11.
A UE for handling communication in a communication network, the UE comprising: processing circuitry and memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processing circuity, wherein the UE is configured to: log and/or send information indicating, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE, that such request resulted in a rejection.
J1.
A radio network node for handling communication in a communication network, the radio network node comprising: processing circuitry and memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processing circuity, wherein the radio network node is configured to: log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
K1.
A managing node for handling communication in a communication network, the managing node comprising: processing circuitry and memory, the memory containing instructions executable by the processing circuity, wherein the managing node is configured to: transmit configuration data to a radio network node, wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
L1.
A computer program, comprising instructions which, when executed on processing circuitry of a UE, cause the processing circuitry to: log and/or send information indicating, where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE, that such request resulted in a rejection.
M1. A carrier containing the computer program of the preceding claim, wherein the carrier is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium.
N1.
A computer program, comprising instructions which, when executed on processing circuitry of a radio network node, cause the processing circuitry to: log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
01.
A carrier containing the computer program of the preceding claim, wherein the carrier is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium.
P1.
A computer program, comprising instructions which, when executed on processing circuitry of a managing node, cause the processing circuitry to: transmit configuration data to a radio network node, wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission.
Q1.
A carrier containing the computer program of the preceding claim, wherein the carrier is one of an electronic signal, optical signal, radio signal, or computer readable storage medium.

Claims

1. A method performed by a user equipment, UE, (10), for handling communication in a communication network, the method comprising: logging and sending (303) information indicating that a request, from the UE (10), requesting admission or registration, to a network slice or a network slice service is rejected.
2. The method according to claim 1 , comprising: obtaining (301) a configuration to configure the UE (10) to log and/or send information for one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to a network slice or to access a network slice service, and the UE (10) is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
3. The method according to any of the claims 1-2, comprising:
- performing (302) an admission procedure to the network slice or the network slice service comprising requesting admission or registration to the network slice or the network slice service.
4. The method according to claim 3, wherein a report is transmitted to a radio network node (120), upon a request from the radio network node, wherein the report indicates one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE (10) while under a coverage of a cell of the radio network node and where such request resulted in a Non Access Stratum reject.
5. A method performed by a radio network node (120) for handling communication in a communication network, the method comprising: logging and/or sending (404), to a managing node (15), information related to an admission to a network slice and/or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service.
6. The method according to claim 5, comprising: receiving (401), from the managing node (15) or a core network node, configuration data for reporting minimization drive test, MDT, indicating to the radio network node (120) to log information for non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service, and/or the configuration data comprises a request for the radio network node (120) to configure a user equipment, UE, (10) with measurements and the radio network node (120) to log for one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the core network rejects the UE (10) to access such network slice or network slice service.
7. The method according to any of the claims 5-6, comprising: transmitting (402) configuration to a user equipment, UE, (10) to configure the UE (10) to log and/or send information for the one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the UE (10) is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
8. The method according to any of the claims 5-7, comprising: receiving (403), from a UE (10), information indicating that a request, from the UE (10), requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service, is rejected.
9. The method according to any of the claims 5-8, comprising: receiving (403) a report from a UE (10), upon radio network node request, indicating one or more events where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE (10) while under the coverage of a cell of the radio network node (120), and where such request resulted in a Non Access Stratum reject.
10. The method according to any of the claims 5-9, wherein the information is logged and/or sent in a minimization drive test, MDT, trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a protocol data unit, PDU, Session associated to a Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information, S-NSSAI, that was not admitted.
11. The method according to claim 10, wherein the MDT trace comprises a cause indication for differentiating between a case where admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
12. The method according to any of the claims 5-11 , wherein the radio network node (120) is in charge of collection of MDT measurements from a UE (10) and from the radio network node (120) itself, logs all measurements received from the UE and collected by itself in logs associated to an MDT trace, and wherein the radio network node (120) sends the logged measurements to a managing node (15) in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
13. A method performed by a managing node (15) for handling communication in a communication network, the method comprising: transmitting (411) configuration data to a radio network node (120), wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice and/or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of nonadmission to the network slice or the network slice service, and/or the configuration data comprises a request for the radio network node (120) to configure a user equipment, UE, (10) with measurements and the radio network node (120) to log for one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the core network rejects the UE (10) to access such network slice or network slice service.
14. The method according to the claim 13, comprising: receiving (412) from the radio network node (120) the information related to admission to the network slice or network slice service.
15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the information is received in a minimization drive test, MDT, trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to a Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information, S-NSSAI, that were not admitted.
16. The method according to claim 15, wherein the MDT trace comprises an indication for differentiating between a case where admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice
17. The method according to any of the claims 13-16, comprising:
- performing (413) an operation taking the information into account.
18. A user equipment, UE, (10), for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the UE (10) is configured to: log and send information indicating that a request, from the UE (10), requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service, is rejected.
19. The UE (10) according to claim 18, wherein the UE (10) is configured to: receive a configuration to configure the UE (10) to log and/or send information for one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to a network slice or to access a network slice service, and the UE (10) is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
20. The UE (10) according to any of the claims 18-19, wherein the UE (10) is configured to: perform an admission procedure to the network slice or the network slice service comprising requesting admission or registration to the network slice or the network slice service.
21. The UE (10) according to claim 20, wherein a report is transmitted to a radio network node (120), upon a request from the radio network node , wherein the report indicates one or more events where the network slice or the network slice service was requested by the UE (10) while under a coverage of a cell of the radio network node and where such request resulted in a Non Access Stratum reject.
22. A radio network node (120) for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the radio network node is configured to: log and/or send, to a managing node (15), information related to an admission to a network slice and/or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service.
23. The radio network node (120) according to claim 22, wherein the radio network node (120) is configured to: receive, from the managing node (15) or a core network node, configuration data for reporting minimization drive test, MDT, indicating to the radio network node (120) to log information for non-admission to the network slice or the network slice service, and/or the configuration data comprises a request for the radio network node (120) to configure a user equipment, UE, (10) with measurements and the radio network node (120) to log for one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the core network rejects the UE (10) to access such network slice or network slice service.
24. The radio network node (120) according to any of the claims 22-23, wherein the radio network node (120) is configured to: transmit configuration to a user equipment, UE, (10) to configure the UE (10) to log and/or send information for the one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the UE (10) is rejected to access such network slice or network slice service.
25. The radio network node (120) according to any of the claims 22-24, wherein the radio network node (120) is configured to: receive from a UE (10), information indicating that a request from the UE (10) requesting admission or registration to a network slice or a network slice service is rejected.
26. The radio network node (120) according to any of the claims 22-25, wherein the radio network node (120) is configured to: a report from a UE (10), upon radio network node request, indicating one or more events where a network slice or a network slice service was requested by the UE (10) while under the coverage of a cell of the radio network node (120), and where such request resulted in a Non Access Stratum reject.
27. The radio network node (120) according to any of the claims 22-26, wherein the information is logged and/or sent in a minimization drive test, MDT, trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a protocol data unit, PDU, Session associated to a Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information, S- NSSAI, that was not admitted.
28. The radio network node (120) according to claim 27, wherein the MDT trace comprises a cause indication for differentiating between a case where admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice.
29. The radio network node (120) according to any of the claims 22-28, wherein the radio network node (120) is configured to be in charge of collection of MDT measurements from the UE (10) and from the radio network node (120) itself, and to log all measurements received from the UE and collected by itself in logs associated to an MDT trace, and wherein the radio network node (120) is configured to send the logged measurements to a managing node (15) in order to enable observability on slice support and availability in the communication network and to enable optimization on where the network slice is supported and available.
30. A managing node (15) for handling communication in a communication network, wherein the managing node (15) is configured to: transmit configuration data to a radio network node (120), wherein the configuration data configures the radio network node to log and/or send information related to an admission to a network slice and/or a network slice service, wherein the information comprises a cause indication in case of nonadmission to the network slice and/or the network slice service, and/or the configuration data comprises a request for the radio network node (120) to configure a user equipment, UE, (10) with measurements and the radio network node (120) to log for one or more events in which the UE (10) requests over non access stratum, NAS, to be registered to the network slice or to access the network slice service, and the core network rejects the UE (10) to access such network slice or network slice service.
31. The managing node (15) according to the claim 30, wherein the managing node (15) is configured to: receive from the radio network node (120) the information related to admission to the network slice or network slice service.
32. The managing node (15) according to claim 31 , wherein the information is received in a minimization drive test, MDT, trace indicating one or more instances of resource allocation for a PDU Session associated to a Single Network Slice Selection Assistance Information, S-NSSAI, that were not admitted.
33. The managing node (15) according to claim 32, wherein the MDT trace comprises an indication for differentiating between a case where admission failure was due to lack of slice availability, and a case where the admission failure was due to exhaustion of resources for the network slice
34. The managing node (15) according to any of the claims 30-33, wherein the managing node (15) is configured to: perform an operation taking the information into account.
35. A computer program comprising instructions, which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to any of the claims 1-17, as performed by the managing node, the UE or the radio network node, respectively.
36. A computer-readable storage medium, having stored thereon a computer program comprising instructions which, when executed on at least one processor, cause the at least one processor to carry out the method according to any of the claims 1-17, as performed by the managing node, UE or the radio network node, respectively.
PCT/EP2025/056909 2024-03-28 2025-03-13 Radio network node, managing node, user equipment and methods performed therein Pending WO2025201905A2 (en)

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