Early state handling assistance for efficient RRC state changes

Abstract

The UE receives a configuration of the early state handling assistance information and determines whether the early state handling assistance should be reported in a request for a connection to the network. The UE requests a connection to the network, performing one of: reporting early state handling assistance from the network using the RRC message (s); or the early state handling assistance is not reported from the network by the UE using the RRC message (s) having no indication of the early state handling assistance. The base station transmits the configuration, receives the RRC message (s), and determines whether the message (s) includes a report of early state handling assistance. The base station performs one of: performing an RRC reconfiguration with an early state handling process for the RRC message (s) including the early state handling assistance report; alternatively, RRC reconfiguration without early state handling processing is performed with respect to the RRC message (s) without early state handling assistance report.

Description

[0001] This application is a divisional application of the invention patent application with international application number PCT / EP2020 / 078711, international application date October 13, 2020, entering the Chinese national stage on June 14, 2022, Chinese national application number 202080086819.8, and invention name “Early state handling assistance for efficient RRC state changes”. Technical Field

[0002] The present invention relates generally to wireless communications, and more particularly to a radio resource control (RRC) state of a user equipment (UE) connected to a wireless network via a base station. Background Art

[0003] For Radio Resource Control (RRC), there are several main RRC states for a user equipment (UE): an idle state, called RRC IDLE (or RRC IDLE); a connected state, called RRC CONNECTED (or RRC CONNECTED); and an inactive state, called RRC INACTIVE (or RRC INACTIVE). Each of these states has a set of characteristics. For example, the RRC idle state is useful for power saving, but allows a small amount of reception from the network. However, uplink transmission is only possible when the UE requests a connection or the UE is in the RRC connected state. In the RRC connected state, the UE has all communication possibilities available, but this is a state involving higher power than the RRC idle state. For the RRC inactive state, this can achieve similar UE power saving as the RRC idle state, but the RRC inactive state also allows faster restoration of the connection to the network, thereby reducing the initial access delay for data transmission.

[0004] Because the RRC idle state and the RRC inactive state can provide better UE power saving opportunities, it is beneficial for the UE to remain in these states if possible. However, the transition from the RRC idle state to the RRC connected state is relatively time-consuming and requires signaling between the UE and the network. Although the transition from the RRC inactive state is less time-consuming, it still takes some time and requires similar signaling. Summary of the invention

[0005] This section is intended to include examples and is not intended to be limiting.

[0006] In an exemplary embodiment, a method is disclosed, the method comprising receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, a configuration of early state handling assistance information from a network. The method comprises determining, by the user equipment at least, the configuration, whether early state handling assistance should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network. The method also comprises requesting, by the user equipment, connection to the network, and in response to the determination, performing one of the following in the request: reporting, by the user equipment, early state handling assistance from the network using one or more radio resource control messages; or not reporting, by the user equipment, early state handling assistance from the network, at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of early state handling assistance.

[0007] Another exemplary embodiment includes a computer program comprising code for performing the method of the previous paragraph when the computer program is run on a processor. A computer program according to this paragraph, wherein the computer program is a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium carrying computer program code embodied therein, the computer program code for use with a computer. Another example is a computer program according to this paragraph, wherein the program is directly loadable into an internal memory of a computer.

[0008] An exemplary apparatus includes one or more processors and one or more memories including computer program code. The one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations including: receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, a configuration of early state handling assistance information from a network; determining, by the user equipment at least the configuration, whether early state handling assistance should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network; requesting connection to the network by the user equipment; and in response to the determination, performing one of the following in the request: reporting early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages; or not reporting early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of early state handling assistance.

[0009] An exemplary computer program product includes a computer-readable storage medium carrying computer program code embodied therein for use with a computer. The computer program code includes: code for receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, a configuration of early state handling assistance information from a network; code for determining, by the user equipment at least, whether early state handling assistance should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network; code for requesting connection to the network by the user equipment; and code for performing, in response to the determination, one of the following in the request: reporting early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages; or not reporting early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of early state handling assistance.

[0010] In another exemplary embodiment, an apparatus includes components for performing the following: receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, a configuration of early state handling assistance information from a network; determining, by the user equipment at least using the configuration, whether early state handling assistance should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network; requesting connection to the network by the user equipment; and performing one of the following in the request in response to the determination: reporting, by the user equipment, early state handling assistance from the network using one or more radio resource control messages; or not reporting, by the user equipment, early state handling assistance from the network, at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages that do not have an indication of early state handling assistance.

[0011] In an exemplary embodiment, a method is disclosed, the method including a configuration of transmitting early state handling assistance information by a base station in a wireless network toward a user equipment in the network. The method includes receiving one or more radio resource control messages from a user equipment in a request for connection to the network, and determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include a report of early state handling assistance. The method also includes performing one of the following in response to the determination: performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages including a report of early state handling assistance; or performing a radio resource control reconfiguration without early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages without a report of early state handling assistance.

[0012] Another exemplary embodiment includes a computer program including code for performing the method of the previous paragraph when the computer program is run on a processor. A computer program according to this paragraph, wherein the computer program is a computer program product including a computer readable medium carrying computer program code embodied therein, the computer program code for use with a computer. Another example is a computer program according to this paragraph, wherein the program is directly loadable into an internal memory of a computer.

[0013] An exemplary apparatus includes one or more processors and one or more memories including computer program code. The one or more memories and computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations including: transmitting, by a base station in a wireless network, a configuration of early state handling assistance information toward a user equipment in the network; receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network; determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include a report assisted by early state handling; and in response to the determination, performing one of the following: performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages including a report assisted by early state handling; or performing a radio resource control reconfiguration without early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages without a report assisted by early state handling.

[0014] An exemplary computer program product includes a computer-readable storage medium carrying computer program code embodied therein for use with a computer. The computer program code includes: code for transmitting, by a base station in a wireless network, a configuration of early state handling assistance information toward a user equipment in the network; code for receiving one or more radio resource control messages from a user equipment in a request for connection to the network; code for determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include a report of early state handling assistance; and code for performing one of the following in response to the determination: performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages including a report of early state handling assistance; or performing a radio resource control reconfiguration without early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages without a report of early state handling assistance.

[0015] In another exemplary embodiment, an apparatus includes components for performing each of the following: configuring a base station in a wireless network to transmit early state handling assistance information toward a user equipment in the network; receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network; determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include a report assisted with early state handling; and performing one of the following in response to the determination: performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages including a report assisted with early state handling; or performing a radio resource control reconfiguration without early state handling processing for one or more radio resource control messages without a report assisted with early state handling. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] In the attached picture:

[0017] Figure 1 is a block diagram of one possible and non-limiting exemplary system in which exemplary embodiments may be practiced;

[0018] Figure 2 is a block diagram of an NR RRC state machine with RRC state transitions in NR Rel-15;

[0019] Figure 3 It is a signaling diagram of the RRC state transition handling framework;

[0020] Figure 4 Information including cause values ​​defined for the RRC setup / resumption request message, which is from 3GPP TS38.331, is shown;

[0021] Figure 5A It is a signaling diagram of the 4-step RACH process;

[0022] Figure 5B It is a signaling diagram of a 2-step RACH process;

[0023] Figure 6 are signaling diagrams and procedures of an exemplary embodiment;

[0024] Figure 7 is a logic flow diagram covering certain exemplary embodiments from the perspective of a UE (e.g., Figure 6 1 to 3), and illustrate the operation of one or more exemplary methods according to the exemplary embodiments, the results of execution of computer program instructions embodied on a computer readable memory, functions performed by logic implemented in hardware, and / or interconnected components for performing functions; and

[0025] Figure 8is a logic flow diagram covering certain exemplary embodiments from the perspective of a gNB, and illustrates the operation of one or more exemplary methods according to the exemplary embodiments, the results of execution of computer program instructions embodied on a computer-readable memory, the functions performed by logic implemented in hardware, and / or interconnected components for performing the functions. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The following abbreviations that may be found in the specification and / or drawings are defined as follows:

[0027] 3GPP: Third Generation Partnership Project

[0028] 5G: Fifth Generation

[0029] 5GC: 5G core network

[0030] AMF: Access and Mobility Management Function

[0031] AS: Access layer

[0032] BSR: Buffer Status Report

[0033] BWP: Bandwidth Part

[0034] CCCH: Common Control Channel

[0035] CIoT: Cellular IoT

[0036] CP: Control Plane

[0037] CU: Central Unit

[0038] DL: Downlink (from the network to the user equipment)

[0039] DRB: Data Radio Bearer

[0040] DRX: Discontinuous Reception

[0041] DU: Distributed Unit

[0042] EDT: Early Data Transfer

[0043] efeMTC: Further Enhanced MTC

[0044] eNB (or eNodeB): Evolved Node B (e.g., LTE base station)

[0045] EN-DC: E-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity

[0046] en-gNB or En-gNB: A node that provides NR user plane and control plane protocol termination towards the UE and acts as a secondary node in EN-DC

[0047] E-UTRA: Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access, i.e., LTE radio access technology

[0048] E-UTRAN: Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network

[0049] FTP: File Transfer Protocol

[0050] gNB (or gNodeB): a base station for 5G / NR, i.e., a node that provides NR user plane and control plane protocol termination towards the UE and is connected to the 5GC via the NG interface

[0051] IE: Information Element

[0052] I / F: Interface

[0053] IoT: Internet of Things

[0054] I-RNTI: Inactive RNTI

[0055] LCG0: Logical Channel Group 0 (zero)

[0056] LCH: Logical Channel

[0057] LTE: Long Term Evolution

[0058] MAC: Media Access Control

[0059] MBB: Mobile Broadband

[0060] MME: Mobility Management Entity

[0061] MTC: Machine Type Communication

[0062] NB-IoT: Narrowband IoT

[0063] ng or NG: Next Generation

[0064] ng-eNB or NG-eNB: Next Generation eNB

[0065] NR: New Radio

[0066] N / W or NW: Network

[0067] PDCP: Packet Data Convergence Protocol

[0068] PDU: Protocol Data Unit

[0069] PHY: Physical layer

[0070] PPI: Power Preference Indicator

[0071] PRACH: Physical Random Access Channel

[0072] PUSCH: Physical Uplink Shared Channel

[0073] QoS: Quality of Service

[0074] RA: Random Access

[0075] RAI: Release Assist Indicator

[0076] RAN: Radio Access Network

[0077] rel: version

[0078] RLC: Radio Link Control

[0079] RNTI: Radio Network Temporary Identifier

[0080] RRH: Remote Radio Head

[0081] RRC: Radio Resource Control

[0082] RU: Radio Unit

[0083] Rx: Receiver

[0084] SCell: Secondary cell

[0085] SDAP: Service Data Adaptation Protocol

[0086] SDT: Small Data Transfer

[0087] SGW: Serving Gateway

[0088] SI: System Information

[0089] SMF: Session Management Function

[0090] SRB: Signalling Radio Bearer

[0091] TCP / IP: Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol

[0092] TS: Technical Specification

[0093] Tx: Transmitter

[0094] UE: User Equipment (e.g., wireless, usually mobile)

[0095] UL: Uplink (from user equipment to network)

[0096] UPF: User Plane Function

[0097] UTRAN: Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network

[0098] WI: Work Item

[0099] The word "exemplary" is used herein to mean "serving as an example, instance, or illustration". Any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. All embodiments described in this "Detailed Description" are exemplary embodiments provided to enable those skilled in the art to make or use the invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention as defined by the claims.

[0100] The exemplary embodiments herein describe techniques for early state handling assistance for efficient RRC state changes.Additional description of these techniques is presented after describing a system in which the exemplary embodiments may be used.

[0101] Steering Figure 1 , which shows a block diagram of one possible and non-limiting exemplary system in which exemplary embodiments may be practiced. A user equipment (UE) 110, a radio access network (RAN) node 170, and (multiple) network elements 190 are shown. Figure 1 In the embodiment of the present invention, a user equipment (UE) 110 wirelessly communicates with a wireless network 100. A UE is a wireless, typically mobile device that can access a wireless network. The UE 110 includes one or more processors 120, one or more memories 125, and one or more transceivers 130 interconnected by one or more buses 127. Each of the one or more transceivers 130 includes a receiver Rx 132 and a transmitter Tx 133. The one or more buses 127 may be an address, data, or control bus, and may include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of lines on a motherboard or integrated circuit, an optical fiber or other optical communication device, etc. The one or more transceivers 130 are connected to one or more antennas 128. The one or more memories 125 include computer program code 123. The UE 110 includes a control module 140, which includes one or both of the parts 140-1 and / or 140-2, and the control module 140 may be implemented in a variety of ways. The control module 140 may be implemented in hardware as the control module 140-1, such as being implemented as part of the one or more processors 120. The control module 140-1 may also be implemented as an integrated circuit, or implemented by other hardware such as a programmable gate array. In another example, the control module 140 may be implemented as a control module 140-2, which is implemented as a computer program code 123 and executed by one or more processors 120. For example, one or more memories 125 and the computer program code 123 may be configured to cause the user equipment 110 to perform one or more operations as described herein together with the one or more processors 120. The UE 110 communicates with the RAN node 170 via a wireless link 111.

[0102] The RAN node 170 is a base station that provides access to the wireless network 100 through wireless devices such as the UE 110. The RAN node 170 may be, for example, a base station for 5G (also referred to as New Radio (NR)). In 5G, the RAN node 170 may be a NG-RAN node, which is defined as a gNB or ng-eNB. A gNB is a node that provides NR user plane and control plane protocol termination towards the UE and is connected to the 5GC (e.g., (multiple) network elements 190) via an NG interface. An ng-eNB is a node that provides E-UTRA user plane and control plane protocol termination towards the UE and is connected to the 5GC via an NG interface. The NG-RAN node may include multiple gNBs, which may also include a central unit (CU) (gNB-CU) 196 and (multiple) distributed units (DU) (gNB-DU), of which DU 195 is shown. Note that a DU may include or be coupled to and control a radio unit (RU). The gNB-CU is a logical node that hosts the RRC, SDAP, and PDCP protocols of a gNB or the RRC and PDCP protocols of an en-gNB, and controls the operation of one or more gNB-DUs. The gNB-CU terminates the F1 interface connected to the gNB-DU. The F1 interface is shown as reference numeral 198, although reference numeral 198 also shows a link between a remote element of the RAN node 170 and a centralized element of the RAN node 170, such as a link between a gNB-CU 196 and a gNB-DU 195. The gNB-DU is a logical node that hosts the RLC, MAC, and PHY layers of a gNB or en-gNB, and its operation is partially controlled by the gNB-CU. One gNB-CU supports one or more cells. One cell is supported by only one gNB-DU. The gNB-DU terminates the F1 interface 198 connected to the gNB-CU. Note that the DU 195 is considered to include the transceiver 160, e.g., as part of the RU, but some examples thereof may have the transceiver 160 as part of a separate RU, e.g., under the control of and connected to the DU 195. The RAN node 170 may also be an eNB (evolved NodeB) base station for LTE (Long Term Evolution) or any other suitable base station.

[0103] The RAN node 170 includes one or more processors 152, one or more memories 155, one or more network interfaces ((multiple) N / WI / F) 161, and one or more transceivers 160 interconnected by one or more buses 157. Each of the one or more transceivers 160 includes a receiver Rx 162 and a transmitter Tx 163. The one or more transceivers 160 are connected to one or more antennas 158. The one or more memories 155 include computer program code 153. The CU 196 may include (multiple) processors 152, memories 155, and network interfaces 161. Note that the DU 195 may also contain its own memory / memory and (multiple) processors and / or other hardware, but these are not shown.

[0104] The RAN node 170 includes a control module 150, which includes one or both of the parts 150-1 and / or 150-2, and the control module 150 can be implemented in a variety of ways. The control module 150 can be implemented in hardware as the control module 150-1, such as being implemented as part of one or more processors 152. The control module 150-1 can also be implemented as an integrated circuit, or implemented by other hardware such as a programmable gate array. In another example, the control module 150 can be implemented as a control module 150-2, which is implemented as a computer program code 153 and executed by one or more processors 152. For example, one or more memories 155 and the computer program code 153 are configured to cause the RAN node 170 to perform one or more operations as described herein together with the one or more processors 152. Note that the functionality of the control module 150 can be distributed, such as distributed between the DU 195 and the CU 196, or implemented only in the DU 195.

[0105] One or more network interfaces 161 communicate over a network, such as via links 176 and 131. Two or more RAN nodes 170 communicate using, for example, link 176. Link 176 may be wired or wireless or both, and may implement, for example, an Xn interface for 5G, an X2 interface for LTE, or other suitable interfaces for other standards.

[0106] The one or more buses 157 may be address, data, or control buses, and may include any interconnection mechanism, such as a series of wires on a motherboard or integrated circuit, optical fiber or other optical communication devices, wireless channels, etc. For example, the one or more transceivers 160 may be implemented as a remote radio head (RRH) 195 for LTE or a distributed unit (DU) 195 for a gNB implementation for 5G, while other elements of the RAN node 170 may be physically located at a different location from the RRH / DU, and the one or more buses 157 may partially implement, for example, optical fiber cables or other suitable network connections that connect other elements of the RAN node 170 (e.g., central unit (CU), gNB-CU) to the RRH / DU 195. Reference numeral 198 also indicates these (multiple) suitable network links.

[0107] Note that the RAN node 170 is hereinafter primarily referred to as gNB 170. This is for ease of reference only, and the RAN node 170 may be or include other elements as previously described.

[0108] Note that the descriptions herein refer to a "cell" performing a function, but it should be clear that the base station forming the cell will perform that function. The cell constitutes part of the base station. That is, each base station can have multiple cells. For example, a single carrier frequency and associated bandwidth may have three cells, each covering one-third of a 360-degree area, so that the coverage area of ​​a single base station covers an approximate ellipse or circle. In addition, each cell may correspond to a single carrier, and a base station may use multiple carriers. Therefore, if each carrier has three 120-degree cells and there are two carriers, the base station has a total of 6 cells.

[0109] The wireless network 100 may include one or more network elements 190, which may include core network functions and provide connections to additional networks (such as telephone networks and / or data communication networks (e.g., the Internet)) via one or more links 181. Such core network functions for 5G may include access and mobility management functions (AMFs) and / or user plane functions (UPFs) and / or session management functions (SMFs). Such core network functions for LTE may include MME (mobility management entity) / SGW (serving gateway) functions. These are merely exemplary functions that the network element(s) 190 may support, and note that both 5G and LTE functions may be supported. The RAN node 170 is coupled to the network element 190 via a link 131. The link 131 may be implemented as, for example, an NG interface for 5G, or an S1 interface for LTE, or other suitable interfaces for other standards. The network element 190 includes one or more processors 175, one or more memories 171, and one or more network interfaces ((multiple) N / WI / F) 180 interconnected by one or more buses 185. The one or more memories 171 include computer program code 173. The one or more memories 171 and the computer program code 173 are configured to, together with the one or more processors 175, cause the network element 190 to perform one or more operations.

[0110] The wireless network 100 can implement network virtualization, which is the process of combining hardware and software network resources and network functions into a single software-based management entity (virtual network). Network virtualization involves platform virtualization, which is usually combined with resource virtualization. Network virtualization is divided into external network virtualization or internal network virtualization. External network virtualization combines many networks or parts of networks into virtual units, and internal network virtualization provides network-like functions to software containers on a single system. Note that the virtualized entities generated by network virtualization are still implemented using hardware such as processors 152 or 175 and memories 155 and 171 to some extent, and such virtualized entities also produce technical effects.

[0111] Computer readable memories 125, 155, and 171 may be of any type suitable for the local technical environment and may be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as semiconductor-based memory devices, flash memory, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. Computer readable memories 125, 155, and 171 may be components for performing storage functions. Processors 120, 152, and 175 may be of any type suitable for the local technical environment and may include, as non-limiting examples, one or more of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), and a processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Processors 120, 152, and 175 may be components for performing functions such as controlling UE 110, RAN node 170, and other functions described herein.

[0112] In general, various embodiments of user device 110 may include, but are not limited to, cellular phones such as smart phones, tablet computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs) with wireless communication capabilities, portable computers with wireless communication capabilities, image capture devices such as digital cameras with wireless communication capabilities, gaming devices with wireless communication capabilities, music storage and playback devices with wireless communication capabilities, Internet applications (including Internet of Things (IoT) devices) that allow wireless Internet access and possible browsing, IoT devices with sensors and / or actuators for automation applications for wireless communication tablet computers with wireless communication capabilities, and portable units or terminals that include combinations of such functionality.

[0113] Having thus introduced a suitable but non-limiting technical context for the practice of exemplary embodiments of this invention, the exemplary embodiments will now be described in more detail.

[0114] The exemplary embodiments herein propose to enhance the initial access procedure of the 5G NR system for UEs in RRC IDLE and inactive states with the help of UE assistance, with the aim of achieving more efficient RRC state transition. An introduction to the technical field is provided, and then the exemplary embodiments are described in more detail.

[0115] As an introduction to this technical field, the topic of efficient transition is discussed in the Rel-16 energy saving study (RP-181463, TR 38.840) recently finalized by RAN2. See "New SID: Study on UE Power Saving in NR" by CATT et al. in RP-181463 (3GPP TSG RAN Meetings #80, La Jolla, USA, 11th–14th June 2018); and "Study on User Equipment (UE) power saving in NR (Release 16)" in 3GPP TR 38.840 V16.0.0 (2019-06). Specifically, at the RAN2 #106 meeting (May 2019), it was agreed that UE-assisted energy saving should be part of the work item, as shown below ("UE provides UE assistance to transition out of the RRC connection. Details on signaling and whether the UE provides release assistance and / or state preference can be discussed in the WI phase"). As a result, RAN Plenary #84 (June 2019) has confirmed the following dedicated goals as part of the corresponding Rel-16 work items (see RP-191607, which is a revision of RP-191582):

[0116] Specify a mechanism for the UE to indicate its preference for transitioning out of the RRC_CONNECTED state, which includes providing UE assistance to help the network transition the UE out of the RRC connected state. Details on signaling and whether the UE provides release assistance and / or state preference will be discussed in the WI phase.

[0117] The following potential UE assistance information is extracted from 3GPP TR 38.840:

[0118] Mobility history information

[0119] Power Preference Indicator (PPI)

[0120] Enable UE assistance information, including the UE's preferred C-DRX configuration / parameters.

[0121] Whether to enable UE assistance information, including UE's preferred BWP configuration / parameters

[0122] Whether to enable UE assistance information, including the UE's preferred SCell-related configuration (e.g., considering (a) SCell index-based, (b) SCell (de)activation, (c)

[0123] CA (de)activation, (d) number of DL cells and / or UL cells, and / or (e)

[0124] The maximum number of Scells to be configured).

[0125] RP-191607 (CATT and CAICT of RP-191607, “New WID: UE Power Saving in NR” (3GPP TSG RAN Meetings #84, Newport Beach, USA, 3rd–6th June 2019)) is a revision of RP-191582 (CATT and CAICT of RP-191582, “New WID: UE Power Saving in NR” (3GPP TSG RAN Meetings #83, Shenzhen, China, 18th–21st March 2019)).

[0126] Rel-15 NR introduces a new RRC state, called RRC INACTIVE (see 3GPP TS 38.300 / 38.304), which allows a faster transition to RRC CONNECTED (control plane CP delay of about 10ms), ensuring faster recovery of the RRC connection. See "NR and NG-RAN Overall Description" of 3GPP TS 38.300V15.7.0 (2019-09); and "User Equipment (UE) procedures in Idle mode and RRC Inactive state" of 3GPP TS 38.304V15.5.0 (2019-09). The CP delay is significantly improved compared to a UE in RRC IDLE, which takes about 76ms to transition to RRC CONNECTED. Therefore, although in Rel-15 a UE in RRCINACTIVE state needs to first transition to RRC_CONNECTED any time the UE needs to perform a data transfer, such a transmission can be initiated with a much lower initial access delay and lower associated signaling overhead compared to a UE in RRC_IDLE state. The reduction in control signaling for requesting and obtaining resumption of a suspended RRC connection obviously results in UE power savings. At the same time, a UE in RRC_INACTIVE state is able to achieve similar power savings as in RRC_IDLE state compared to RRC_CONNECTED, for example benefiting from a longer period of paging monitoring and relaxed RRM measurements. NR RRC state mechanism in Figure 2 It is shown in Figure 2 is a block diagram of an NR RRC state machine 200 with RRC state transitions in NR Rel-15. Figure 2 In the NR RRC CONNECTED state 210, the NR RRC INACTIVE state 220 and the NR RRC IDLE state 240 exist. A connection suspend / resume / reject / release with a suspend message 215 causes the UE to transition between the NR RRC CONNECTED state 210 and the NR RRC INACTIVE state 220. A release message 230 transitions the UE from the NR RRC INACTIVE state 220 to the NR RRC IDLE state 240. A connection establishment / release / reject message 225 causes the UE to transition between the NR RRC CONNECTED state 210 and the NR RRC IDLE state 240.

[0127] It is worth noting that when the gNB moves the UE to the RRC INACTIVE state 220 by sending an RRC Connection Release message (the message includes, for example, a suspension indication and related configuration (where the message is illustrated by the Connection Suspend / Resume / Reject / Release with Suspend message 215)), the UE Access Stratum (AS) context (referred to as UE Inactive AS Context) (which is required for fast resumption of the connection) is maintained on both the UE side and the RAN side, and the context is identified by the UE identifier (i.e., Inactive RNTI (I-RNTI)).

[0128] In Rel-15 NR uplink (UL), small data transfer (SDT) in RRC INACTIVE state 220 is not supported, so UEs in RRC INACTIVE state 220 always need to transition to RRC CONNECTED state 210 before any data transmission. However, such support is expected to be introduced in Rel-17. This can be implemented as described in Rel-14 TR 38.804, similar to the early data transfer (EDT) scheme supported in Rel-15 of LTE. Limited to the uplink "efeMTC" scenario, EDT during 4-step RACH allows UE 110 to transmit up to 1000 bits in Msg3 of the random access procedure using a special EDT PRACH preamble, where the use of the special preamble indicates that up to 1000 bits are present in the UE buffer.

[0129] The UE benefits from being in the most appropriate RRC state to meet QoS requirements while extending battery life. However, the optimal RRC state for the UE depends on various aspects, including UE mobility, data transmission activity, network load conditions, QoS requirements, etc. On the one hand, the RRC INACTIVE or IDLE state provides better UE power saving opportunities compared to the RRC CONNECTED state, so these RRC states should be preferred during periods of no data activity. On the other hand, since no RRC state transition is required, the RRC CONNECTED state allows the fastest data transmission, thereby avoiding related control plane processes. Therefore, the RRC CONNECTED state 210 should be preferred during periods of data transmission that may be accompanied by some bursts.

[0130] Currently, the network 100 controls the RRC state transition of the served UE based on a timer (such as an RRC connection release / inactivity timer) running on the network side to detect data inactivity. Figure 3 Depicted in Figure 3 It is a signaling diagram of the RRC state transition handling framework. Figure 3 These timers are typically set in the order of seconds in commercial LTE deployments and apply to any UE in the cell.

[0131] exist Figure 3 In step 1, the UE is in the RRC IDLE state 240. In step 2, UE 110 sends an RRC SETUP REQUEST message to gNB 170. In step 3, gNB 170 responds with an RRC SETUP message via signaling. In step 4, UE 110 responds with an RRC SETUP COMPLETE message. In step 5, the UE transitions to the RRC CONNECTED state 210.

[0132] In step 6, gNB 170 sends an RRC reconfiguration message to UE 110, and in step 7, UE 110 responds with an RRC reconfiguration complete message. In step 8, data transmission occurs between UE 110 and gNB 170.

[0133] In step 9, gNB 170 starts a data inactivity timer, for example due to lack of data from the UE. The data inactivity timer is typically 10 seconds (secs), or thereabouts. The data inactivity timer expires in step 10. In step 11, gNB 170 then sends an RRC Release message, and in step 12, the UE enters the RRC IDLE state 240.

[0134] In addition to the network-based reference Figure 3RRC connection release due to data inactivity timer described in Figure 2 Message 215 in ), the following indicator is also used (sent by the UE to the network):

[0135] 1) Signaling Connection Release Indicator (SCRI) in UTRAN,

[0136] 2) Power Preference Indicator (PPI) in E-UTRAN,

[0137] 3) Release Assistance Indicator (RAI) via MAC in NB-IoT,

[0138] 4) Release Assistance Indicator (RAI) via NAS in CIoT,

[0139] 5) UE requests to be released to IDLE or INACTIVE state,

[0140] 6) UE's preferred SCell / BWP / DRX configuration, and / or

[0141] 7) Mobility history information.

[0142] Furthermore, inactivity and timer-based autonomous UE release from CONNECTED state to IDLE / INACTIVE state are proposed.

[0143] In Rel-15 NR, during the connection establishment / resumption phase, the UE may only provide the network with information about the reason for setting up the connection request based on information, for example, received from an upper layer such as TCP / IP or FTP protocol. As is well known, there are multiple layers in the wireless communication protocol stack, and these layers have upper layers and lower layers. However, the cause value does not describe the characteristics of the required data transmission. Specifically, the current cause values ​​defined for the RRC SETUP / RESUMEMENT REQUEST message include: Figure 4 The information shown is from 3GPP TS 38.331. See "Radio Resource Control (RRC) protocol specification" of 3GPP TS 38.331 V15.7.0 (2019-09). Reference numeral 410 shows an EstablishmentCause information element (IE) with multiple enumerated (ENUMERATED) values ​​(see the RRCSetupRequest message in TS 38.331), and reference numeral 420 shows a ResumeCause IE with additional enumerated (ENUMERATED) values ​​(see the ResumeCause information element in TS 38.331).

[0144] It should also be noted that 3GPP has an ongoing work item on the 2-step RACH procedure for NR in RP-182894. See RP-182894, ZTE Corporation, Sanechips, "New work item: 2-step RACH for NR" (3GPP TSG RAN Meeting #82, Sorrento, Italy, Dec. 10-13, 2018). 4-step RACH procedure (see Figure 5A ) is supported in Rel-15 NR. Figure 5A In the 4-step process, UE 110 sends a random access preamble in step 1 (Msg1), and gNB 170 responds with a random access response in step 2 (Msg2). In step 3 (Msg3), UE 110 sends a scheduled transmission, to which gNB 170 responds with contention resolution signaling in step 4 (Msg4).

[0145] The 2-step RACH procedure is intended to shorten this process. Figure 5B ), MsgA combines the preamble signal (Msg1) transmitted on the PRACH and the data signal (Msg3) transmitted on the PUSCH, while MsgB combines the random access response (Msg2) and the contention resolution (Msg4) of the traditional 4-step RACH process.

[0146] Having provided an introduction to the technical field, an overview of exemplary embodiments is now provided. The exemplary embodiments propose a UE-assisted network configuration, which facilitates optimizing network decisions for RRC state transitions and is able to differentiate decisions on a per-UE basis and take into account current UE needs. As an illustrative difference, the above indicators (1)-(7) are always provided by the UE in the RRCCONNECTED state, which is different from the exemplary embodiments, in which the network configures the UE to already provide UE assistance during the connection establishment / recovery phase.

[0147] In addition, the exemplary embodiments herein introduce network configuration of UE assistance information for efficient RRC state change, where the UE should provide the same information as the early indication during the connection establishment phase or the connection recovery phase. This UE assistance (mainly represented by "early (e.g., RRC) state handling assistance" in this article) indicates information about the required RRC connection that the UE is requesting, with the purpose of helping the network determine the benefit of the upcoming RRC state transition to the UE.

[0148] In broad and non-limiting terms, exemplary embodiments are as follows:

[0149] A) First, the network configures the UE to report "early state handling assistance information" at connection establishment / recovery. This network configuration may include whether the UE should report such assistance information for a given session / application, and what information the UE should include when reporting this information (e.g., "data volume", "session length", and / or "DRB preference" information, as described below).

[0150] B) Then, in response to the data appearing in the UE's buffer, the UE will initiate the currently executed connection establishment / resumption process for one or more applications when the UE is in the RRC idle / inactive state. However, according to the exemplary embodiments herein, the UE determines whether the UE can determine and fill in the "early state handling assistance information" field to report the information, for example, based on the application running when the establishment or resumption is requested and / or according to the network configuration (e.g., whether the report is configured, whether the application has a long session or a short session, etc.). If the determination is positive, the UE will report the "early state handling assistance information" to the network during the establishment / resumption, for example, via MSG1 / MsgA or MSG3 or MSG5.

[0151] C) If received, the network shall use the “early state handling assistance information” to determine the RRC state handling of the UE, e.g. whether to release its connection immediately after connection establishment / recovery, or to keep the UE in the RRC connected state.

[0152] The network configuration configured in operation (A) and used in other operations indicates which information UE 110 should include as part of the UE assistance information. This network information may be configured by the gNB to the UE (e.g., see Figure 6 2, as described below) to be reported by the UE and also reported by the UE to the gNB (e.g., see Figure 6 The information includes characteristics of the desired data transfer according to one or more of the following non-limiting examples:

[0153] a) Data Amount: This field indicates the amount of data expected to be delivered during the requested connection, and may have the following values ​​as non-limiting examples:

[0154] (i) “no data expected”, “not that much data expected”, “no DL and / or UL data expected”; or

[0155] ii) "Expecting less than X bits", "Expecting a single data packet"; or

[0156] iii) any combination thereof.

[0157] b) Session Length: This field indicates the session length to be accommodated during the requested connection, and may have the following values, as examples: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds" (where X is the expected session length in seconds);

[0158] c) DRB preference: Indicates whether the UE prefers / needs DRB for data transmission.

[0159] d) State Preference: This field indicates the RRC state (IDLE / INACTIVE / CONNECTED) that the UE prefers after data is transmitted.

[0160] e) State Transition Condition: This field indicates the RRC state preferred by the UE, for example:

[0161] i) a certain amount of UL and / or DL ​​is transmitted, and / or

[0162] ii) The connection has lasted for a certain amount of time.

[0163] In one embodiment, the network configuration may also indicate whether the UE should provide "early state handling assistance" based on, for example, the UE / subscriber type and / or the service type. For example, the network configuration may be based on each UE, so that some UEs may be configured with reporting of such "early state handling assistance" while others are not. If configured and if the information is available, the UE will have to report "early state handling assistance". Regarding the service type, services within the enhanced MBB category may be used, including, for example, web browsing, video / audio streaming, and / or file downloading. The network configuration may instruct the UE to report recommended assistance information based on the application / service currently running at the UE. The UE may provide assistance information using, for example, MSG1 / MsgA or MSG3 or MSG5.

[0164] In one embodiment, random access resources are reserved based on the UE's preferred RRC state. The network (e.g., gNB 170) may determine which RRC state UE 110 prefers based on the random access resources used (e.g., PRACH preamble, associated PUSCH). There may be, for example, three different random access resource states, such as IDLE, INACTIVE, and CONNECTED states. The selection and use of resource states may be based, for example, on the expected amount of UL / DL data, session length, etc.

[0165] In one embodiment, a new RRC message is defined for this purpose, which can be transmitted via, for example, CCCH after MSG3 has been transmitted / submitted to lower layers for transmission. This enables UE 110 to send such RRC messages via dedicated resources that are not limited by the RA MSG3 size. In one option, the UE can indicate in MSG3 that such an auxiliary message is triggered and should be scheduled after the RA process is completed. Alternatively, a new BSR triggering / reporting can be defined, where CCCH data can be reported using the BSR before MSG4 is received, or reported together with the BSR; such CCCH data can use, for example, LCG0. Note that the SRB on which the RRC message is sent is usually allocated to LCG0.

[0166] Based on receiving such "early state handling assistance", the network (e.g., a serving cell, as one cell formed by gNB 170 and assigned to serve the UE) can determine a better (optimal) decision regarding the UE's RRC connection. Specifically, the gNB can release the UE to the INACTIVE or IDLE state immediately after data transmission occurs, or can maintain the RRC connection for longer as long as needed to accommodate the current data.

[0167] A schematic flow chart of an exemplary embodiment is shown in Figure 6 It is shown in Figure 6 Signaling diagrams and processes of exemplary embodiments are shown. Exemplary steps are indicated by ascending numbers. These steps also illustrate the operation of one or more exemplary methods according to exemplary embodiments, the result of computer program instructions embodied on a computer readable memory, functions performed by logic implemented in hardware, and / or interconnected components for performing functions. UE 110 will perform these operations under the control of control module 140, and gNB will perform these operations under the control of its control module 150.

[0168] In this example, it is assumed that UE 110 is in RRC IDLE state. However, a similar process can be applied to UE 110 in RRC INACTIVE state, where "Early State Handling Assistance" can be provided as part of the RRC recovery message. If available, the UE assistance information "Early State Handling Assistance" can be provided as part of MSG1 / 3 / MsgA according to the network configuration. As an alternative, the UE assistance information can be provided by extending the establishment / recovery cause value or by adding one or more additional fields. Whenever possible, the UE can determine and fill in the "Early State Handling Assistance" field, for example, based on the application running when the establishment or recovery is requested and according to the network configuration, which determines whether the UE should include any combination of potential fields. Potential fields may include, for example, "data volume", "session length" and "DRB preference" information.

[0169] exist Figure 6 , it is assumed that UE 110 is in RRC IDLE state in step 1. In step 2, gNB 170 sends system information in signaling, including the configuration of "Early State Handling Assistance". UE 110 responds in step 3 with an RRC SETUP REQUEST message, including "Early State Handling Assistance" such as "Short Session" for the "Session Length" field. In step 4, gNB 170 responds in signaling with an RRC SETUP RESPONSE message, and in step 5, UE 110 responds in its signaling with an RRC SETUP COMPLETE message. At this point, UE 110 is connected to the network and is in RRC CONNECTED state (see step 6).

[0170] In step 7, gNB 170 sends an RRC Reconfiguration message via signaling. UE 110 responds in step 8 with signaling including an RRC Reconfiguration Complete message. gNB 170 responds with an RRC Reconfiguration message in its signaling. See step 9.

[0171] In step 10, gNB 170 determines whether the RRC connection can be released immediately based at least on "early state handling assistance" (e.g., "short session"). In this example, it is assumed that gNB 170 has decided to release the RRC connection, and therefore in step 11, gNB 170 sends an RRC release message to UE 110. Therefore, the UE moves to the RRC IDLE state in step 12.

[0172] Steering Figure 7 , which is a logical flow diagram covering certain exemplary embodiments from the perspective of a UE (e.g., Figure 6There are multiple possibilities to solve the problem of making the configuration of "early state handling assistance" UE-specific. For example, in box 705, UE 110 can be in RRC CONNECTED state. As shown in box 706, UE 110 in RRC CONNECTED state receives network configuration (e.g., via RRC release message) to configure "early state handling assistance". Based on the received RRC release message, the UE transitions to RRC IDLE (or INACTIVE) state, as shown in box 710. This is a technique for configuring "early state handling assistance". The RRC IDLE (or INACTIVE) state corresponds to Figure 6 Follow step 1 in .

[0173] Other examples are shown in blocks 707 and 708, which occur when UE 110 is in RRC IDLE / INACTIVE state. In block 707, UE 110 receives a network configuration that configures "early state handling assistance". For example, such information may be sent via system information (SI). This corresponds to Figure 6 Block 708 shows that the UE in the RRC INACTIVE state determines the configuration according to the services used during the previous RRC CONNECTED state and / or the services for which the UE has established a PDU session with the network in the previous RRC CONNECTED state. The previous RRC CONNECTED state can be considered as block 705.

[0174] Therefore, there are multiple techniques for the network (e.g., via gNB 170) to configure "early state handling assistance" for UE 110. The configuration can be per UE, which means that certain (some) UEs will be configured with the configuration, while (multiple) other UEs will not be so configured.

[0175] In block 720, UE 110 determines whether information for the session is available. That is, the information in the buffer should cause the UE to start a connection procedure to change the RRC state. Based on the configuration from block 710 and the session information available in the buffer, the UE can then determine whether "early state handling assistance" information should be sent.

[0176] If there is no information in the buffer (block 720 =No), the UE waits. If there is information in the buffer (block 720 =Yes), the UE 110 determines in block 725 whether early state handling assistance should be requested.

[0177] There are multiple ways to view the process so far. One is to consider the general 3GPP paradigm. At a high level, this paradigm is as follows:

[0178] 1: The network configures the UE to report UE assistance information about X (e.g., whether to report, when to report, and what to report);

[0179] 2: The UE assists the network by providing UE assistance information about X (if the UE can determine this information); and

[0180] 3: The network decides X taking into account the received UE assistance.

[0181] For the exemplary embodiments herein, the paradigm may be considered as follows: X=RRC state change; and UE assistance information="early state handling assistance information" (ie, early assistance information for RRC state handling).

[0182] Thus, at one level, the UE may determine whether “Early State Handling Assistance” should be reported in box 725 simply by whether the UE is configured to report “Early State Handling Assistance” (e.g., and whether such “Early State Handling Assistance” information is available).

[0183] However, in block 725, the UE may also consider additional information. For example, the UE may decide not to report early state handling assistance, for example, in the case of an expected long session, such as via a video, audio or other application that is assumed to last for a long time. At the same time, a text, email or checking the weather may not last for a long time. In more detail, since it is foreseeable that many UE implementations transmit information from upper layers to fill in UE assistance information, when the UE will report early state handling assistance may depend on the UE implementation. This may depend on the control / awareness that the application client (in the UE) may have over the requested session length, or more simply, this may depend on the typical session length of a given application. For example, when Netflix (an Internet entertainment service) is running, the UE may report assistance because a typical Netflix session is long (on the order of tens of minutes or more), or if a YouTube (a video sharing website) client is running (which can be assumed to be short videos, each video is still on the order of a few minutes), the UE may report assistance. No reporting is required when requesting voice services, because the length may vary greatly. Similarly, reporting of web browsing may depend on the actual web pages visited.

[0184] As an initial implementation, the above example is used. However, as described herein, the UE may build upon this example using information such as session length and other considerations.

[0185] If UE 110 determines not to request early state handling (block 725=No), then in block 740, the UE in RRC IDLE / INACTIVE state sends an RRC SETUP / RESUME request without any "early state handling assistance" indicator. That is, the UE will send (multiple) RRC SETUP REQUEST messages (or (multiple) RRC RESUME REQUEST messages) without "early state handling assistance" information. See Figure 2 Step 2 or Figure 6 The difference in step 3 is that Figure 6 The "Early State Handling Aid" information is not used in step 3 of . Figure 6 This can be considered as step 3A.

[0186] If the UE does decide to request early state handling assistance (block 725 = YES), the UE 110 in RRC IDLE / INACTIVE state sends (multiple) RRC SETUP / RESUME REQUEST with the corresponding fields populated with “Early State Handling Assistance” (e.g., “Short Session”). See block 730. This corresponds to Figure 6 Follow step 3 in the

[0187] In block 750, the UE completes the connection procedure and transitions to the RRC CONNECTED state. This corresponds to Figure 6 Follow steps 4, 5, and 6 in the .

[0188] It can therefore be seen that UE 110 has the ability to request or not request early state handling assistance. gNB 170 can similarly resolve early state handling assistance based on information provided by the UE.

[0189] Steering Figure 8 , which is a logic flow diagram covering certain exemplary embodiments from the perspective of a gNB. The diagram illustrates the operation of one or more exemplary methods according to the exemplary embodiments, the result of execution of computer program instructions embodied on a computer readable memory, the functions performed by logic implemented in hardware, and / or interconnected components for performing the functions. Figure 8 The operations in are performed by gNB 170, for example under the control of control module 150.

[0190] In block 810, gNB 170 configures “early state handling assistance” information for UE 110. This configuration may use system information (SI). This corresponds to Figure 6In block 815, gNB 170 receives the RRC SETUP REQUEST message, and gNB 170 determines whether the RRC SETUP REQUEST message includes “early state handling assistance” information. If not (step 820=No), gNB 170 performs a future (i.e., subsequent) RRC state reconfiguration without early state handling assistance information processing in block 840. This corresponds to Figure 7 As previously described, there may be situations where the UE may not provide this information, such as when the UE determines that the current session is not suitable for early release. This means (see block 845) that gNB 170 may set a data activity timer ( Figure 3 9 in step 1), and perform RRC release based on the expiration of the timer ( Figure 3 Steps 10 and 11).

[0191] In contrast, if the RRC SETUP REQUEST message includes “EARLY STATE HANDLING ASSISTANCE” information (block 820=YES), then the flow proceeds to block 830 where gNB 170 performs future RRC state reconfiguration with early state handling processing. This also corresponds to Figure 6 and Figure 7 Step 3 of . An example of an early state handling process is, for example, whether the gNB 170 decides to release the RRC connection immediately after connection establishment / restore (and thereby cause the UE to transition from RRC CONNECTED to RRC IDLE or RRC INACTIVE). This is an early state handling process. In contrast, if the gNB maintains the UE in the RRC CONNECTED state after connection establishment / restore, the gNB 170 operates without an early state handling procedure. Note that this early state handling process is performed without reference to an inactivity timer set by the network. That is, the early state handling process is performed without reference to an inactivity timer and should be completed before any inactivity timer expires. In addition, when the gNB operates without an early state handling process, the gNB uses an inactivity timer, such as Figure 3 shown.

[0192] In block 850, gNB 170 determines whether it is time for an RRC reconfiguration decision. If not (block 850=No), gNB 170 waits. If it is time (block 850=Yes), then in block 860, gNB 170 determines whether the RRC connection should be released based at least on “early state handling assistance” (such as using information for “short session” for the “session length” field). This corresponds to Figure 6 Step 10.

[0193] If gNB 170 determines that the RRC connection should be released immediately, gNB 170 sends an RRC release message to the UE in block 870. This corresponds to Figure 6 Step 11. After all data has been transmitted, the gNB should release the connection. If gNB 170 determines that the connection should not be released immediately (block 860 = No), such as if not all data for the current session has been transmitted, the flow continues to block 860.

[0194] Without in any way limiting the scope, interpretation or application of the claims appearing below, the technical effect of one or more of the example embodiments disclosed herein is to enable more efficient RRC state management based on early indications from the UE, where such auxiliary information is provided already in the connection establishment phase rather than during the RRC_CONNECTED state. This, in turn, leads to further UE power savings.

[0195] Here are some other examples.

[0196] Example 1. A method comprising:

[0197] Receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, configuration of early state handling assistance information from the network;

[0198] determining, by the user equipment, using at least the configuration, whether early status handling assistance should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network;

[0199] requesting, by the user equipment, the connection to the network; and

[0200] In response to the determination, performing one of the following in the request:

[0201] reporting the early status handling assistance from the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages; or

[0202] The early status handling assistance is not reported by the user equipment from the network at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of the early status handling assistance.

[0203] Example 2. The method of Example 1, wherein the request is performed in a process to transition the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to the radio resource control connected state.

[0204] Example 3. The method according to any one of Examples 1 to 2, wherein:

[0205] reporting, by the user equipment from the network using one or more radio resource control messages, that the early status handling assistance is performed;

[0206] The method further comprises:

[0207] entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and

[0208] In response to receiving a radio resource control release message for the current session from the network, moving by the user equipment from the radio resource control connected state to a state different from the radio resource control connected state.

[0209] Example 4. The method according to Example 3 further includes: before the reporting of the early state handling assistance, determining by the user equipment that the user equipment will report early state handling assistance from the network, and performing the reporting based on the determination.

[0210] Example 5. The method of Example 4, wherein the determining that the user equipment is to report early status handling assistance from the network is based at least on: a traffic type of data to be transmitted by the user equipment after connection to the network.

[0211] Example 6. A method according to any one of Examples 3 to 5, wherein reporting the early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment also includes: reporting the early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control establishment or recovery request messages.

[0212] Example 7. The method of any one of Examples 3 to 6, wherein the report of the early state treatment assistance includes one or more of the following:

[0213] Amount of data field, indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session, and including one or more of the following: (i) "no data expected", "not so much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof;

[0214] a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds;

[0215] a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session;

[0216] a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or

[0217] A state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted and / or ii) a connection used in the current session has lasted for a certain amount of time.

[0218] Example 8. The method according to any one of Examples 1 to 2, wherein:

[0219] not reporting that said early state treatment assistance was performed;

[0220] The method further comprises:

[0221] entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and

[0222] In response to receiving a radio resource control release message for a current session from the network, moving by the user equipment to a state different from the radio resource control connected state, wherein the radio resource control release message for the current session has been sent due to expiration of a timer on the network.

[0223] Example 9. A method according to any one of Examples 1 to 2 or 8, wherein the user equipment not reporting the early state handling assistance from the network also includes: the user equipment not reporting the early state handling assistance from the network by sending one or more radio resource control establishment or recovery request messages without an indication of the early state handling assistance.

[0224] Example 10. The method of any one of Examples 1 to 9, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

[0225] Example 11. A method comprising:

[0226] Configuration for transmitting early state handling assistance information by a base station in a wireless network towards a user equipment in the network;

[0227] receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network;

[0228] determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include an early status handling assisted report; and

[0229] In response to the determination, performing one of the following:

[0230] performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for the one or more radio resource control messages including the early state handling assisted report; or

[0231] For the one or more radio resource control messages reported without the early state handling assistance, a radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed.

[0232] Example 12. The method of Example 11, wherein the request is performed in a process to transition the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to the radio resource control connected state.

[0233] Example 13. The method of any one of Examples 11 or 12, wherein:

[0234] the one or more radio resource control messages including an indication of early state handling assistance, and the performing radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing is performed;

[0235] The method further comprises sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; and

[0236] The performing of radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing further comprises:

[0237] determining, by the base station, based at least on the early status handling assisted reporting in the one or more radio resource control messages, that a radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released; and

[0238] In response to determining that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released, a radio resource control release message is sent to the user equipment to cause the user equipment to release the radio resource control connection.

[0239] Example 14. The method of Example 13, wherein receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment further comprises: receiving the one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment using one or more radio resource control establishment or recovery request messages.

[0240] Example 15. The method of any one of Examples 13 to 14, wherein:

[0241] The early state treatment assistance report includes one or more of the following:

[0242] Amount of Data field indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session and including one or more of: (i) "no data expected", "not so much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof; or

[0243] a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds;

[0244] a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session;

[0245] a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or

[0246] a state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted, and / or ii) a connection used in said current session has lasted for a certain amount of time; and

[0247] Determining, by the base station, that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released uses one or more of the fields in the early state handling assisted indication in the one or more radio resource control messages to determine that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment should be released.

[0248] Example 16. The method of any one of Examples 11 or 12, wherein:

[0249] the one or more radio resource control messages are received without an indication of early state handling assistance, and the performing of radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed;

[0250] The method further comprises sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; and

[0251] The performing of the radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process comprises:

[0252] setting, by the base station, a timer in response to a lack of activity received from the user equipment;

[0253] In response to the timer expiring without receiving activity from the user equipment, a radio resource control release message is sent from the base station to the user equipment.

[0254] Example 17. A method according to any one of Examples 11 to 16, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

[0255] Example 18. A computer program comprising code, wherein when the computer program is run on a computer, the code is used to perform the method according to any one of Examples 1 to 17.

[0256] Example 19. A computer program according to Example 18, wherein the computer program is a computer program product comprising a computer readable medium, the computer readable medium carrying computer program code embodied therein, the computer program code for use with the computer.

[0257] Example 20. The computer program of Example 18, wherein the computer program is directly loadable into an internal memory of the computer.

[0258] Example 21. An apparatus comprising:

[0259] means for receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, early state handling assistance information from the network;

[0260] means for determining, by the user equipment, using at least the configuration, whether early status handling assistance should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network;

[0261] means for requesting, by said user equipment, said connection to said network; and

[0262] Means for performing one of the following in the request in response to the determining:

[0263] reporting the early status handling assistance from the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages; or

[0264] The early state handling assistance is not reported by the user equipment from the network at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of the early state handling assistance.

[0265] Example 22. The apparatus of Example 21, wherein the request is performed in a process to transition the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to the radio resource control connected state.

[0266] Example 23. The apparatus of any one of Examples 21 to 22, wherein:

[0267] reporting, by the user equipment from the network using one or more radio resource control messages, that the early status handling assistance is performed;

[0268] The device also includes:

[0269] means for entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and

[0270] means for moving, by the user equipment, from the radio resource control connected state to a state different from the radio resource control connected state in response to receiving a radio resource control release message for a current session from the network.

[0271] Example 24. The apparatus according to Example 23 further includes: a component for being executed by the user equipment to determine, before the reporting of the early state handling assistance, that the user equipment will report early state handling assistance from the network, and a component for performing the reporting based on the determination.

[0272] Example 25. An apparatus according to Example 24, wherein the determining that the user equipment is to report early status handling assistance from the network is based at least on a traffic type of data to be transmitted by the user equipment after connection to the network.

[0273] Example 26. An apparatus according to any one of Examples 23 to 25, wherein reporting the early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment also includes: reporting the early state handling assistance from the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control establishment or recovery request messages.

[0274] Example 27. The apparatus of any one of Examples 23 to 26, wherein the report of the early state treatment assistance comprises one or more of the following:

[0275] Amount of data field, indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session, and including one or more of the following: (i) "no data expected", "not so much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof;

[0276] a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds;

[0277] a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session;

[0278] a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or

[0279] A state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted and / or ii) a connection used in the current session has lasted for a certain amount of time.

[0280] Example 28. The apparatus of any one of Examples 21 to 22, wherein:

[0281] not reporting that said early state treatment assistance was performed;

[0282] The device also includes:

[0283] means for entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and

[0284] Means for moving, by the user equipment, to a state different from the radio resource control connected state in response to receiving a radio resource control release message for a current session from the network, wherein the radio resource control release message for the current session has been sent due to expiration of a timer on the network.

[0285] Example 29. An apparatus according to any one of Examples 21 to 22 or 28, wherein the user equipment not reporting the early state handling assistance from the network also includes: the user equipment not reporting the early state handling assistance from the network by sending one or more radio resource control establishment or recovery request messages without an indication of the early state processing assistance.

[0286] Example 30. The apparatus of any one of Examples 21 to 29, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

[0287] Example 31. An apparatus comprising:

[0288] means for transmitting, by a base station in a wireless network, early state handling assistance information towards user equipment in said network;

[0289] means for receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network;

[0290] means for determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include an early status handling assisted report; and

[0291] Means for performing one of the following in response to the determining:

[0292] performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for the one or more radio resource control messages including the early state handling assisted report; or

[0293] For the one or more radio resource control messages reported without the early state handling assistance, a radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed.

[0294] Example 32. The apparatus of Example 31, wherein the request is performed in a process to transition the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to the radio resource control connected state.

[0295] Example 33. The apparatus of any one of Examples 31 or 32, wherein:

[0296] the one or more radio resource control messages including an indication of early state handling assistance, and the performing radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing is performed;

[0297] The apparatus further comprises means for sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; and

[0298] The performing of radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing further comprises:

[0299] means for determining, by the base station at least based on the early status handling assisted reporting in the one or more radio resource control messages, that a radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released; and

[0300] means for sending a radio resource control release message to the user equipment to cause the user equipment to release the radio resource control connection in response to determining that the radio resource control connection of the user equipment can be released.

[0301] Example 34. An apparatus according to Example 33, wherein the component for receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment further comprises: a component for receiving the one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment using one or more radio resource control establishment or recovery request messages.

[0302] Example 35. The apparatus of any one of Examples 33 to 34, wherein:

[0303] The early state treatment assistance report includes one or more of the following:

[0304] Amount of Data field indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session and including one or more of: (i) "no data expected", "not so much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof; or

[0305] a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds;

[0306] a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session;

[0307] a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or

[0308] a state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted, and / or ii) a connection used in said current session has lasted for a certain amount of time; and

[0309] Determining, by the base station, that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released uses one or more of the fields in the early state handling assisted indication in the one or more radio resource control messages to determine that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment should be released.

[0310] Example 36. The apparatus of any one of Examples 31 or 32, wherein:

[0311] the one or more radio resource control messages are received without an indication of early state handling assistance, and the performing of radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed;

[0312] The apparatus further comprises means for sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; and

[0313] The performing of the radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process comprises:

[0314] means for setting, by the base station, a timer in response to a lack of activity being received from the user equipment;

[0315] Means for sending a radio resource control release message from the base station to the user equipment in response to expiration of the timer without receiving activity from the user equipment.

[0316] Example 37. An apparatus according to any one of Examples 31 to 36, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

[0317] Example 38. An apparatus comprising:

[0318] one or more processors; and

[0319] one or more memories including computer program code,

[0320] The one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations comprising:

[0321] Receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, configuration of early state handling assistance information from the network;

[0322] determining, by the user equipment, using at least the configuration, whether early status handling assistance should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network;

[0323] requesting, by the user equipment, the connection to the network; and

[0324] In response to the determination, performing one of the following in the request:

[0325] reporting the early status handling assistance from the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages; or

[0326] The early state handling assistance is not reported by the user equipment from the network at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of the early state handling assistance.

[0327] Example 39. An apparatus according to Example 38, wherein the one or more memories and the computer program code are also configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations in the method described in any one of Examples 1 to 17.

[0328] Example 40. An apparatus comprising:

[0329] one or more processors; and

[0330] one or more memories including computer program code,

[0331] The one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations comprising:

[0332] Configuration for transmitting early state handling assistance information by a base station in a wireless network towards a user equipment in the network;

[0333] receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network;

[0334] determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include an early status handling assisted report; and

[0335] In response to the determination, performing one of the following:

[0336] performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for the one or more radio resource control messages including the early state handling assisted report; or

[0337] For the one or more radio resource control messages reported without the early state handling assistance, a radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed.

[0338] Example 41. An apparatus according to Example 40, wherein the one or more memories and the computer program code are also configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations in the method described in any one of Examples 11 to 17.

[0339] As used in this application, the term "circuitry" may refer to one or more or all of the following:

[0340] (a) hardware circuit implementation only (e.g., implementation only in analog and / or digital circuitry), and

[0341] (b) a combination of hardware circuitry and software, such as (as applicable): (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuitry and software / firmware, and (ii) any portion of hardware processor(s) (including digital signal processor(s)), software and memory with software that work together to cause a device (such as a mobile phone or server) to perform various functions), and

[0342] (c) Hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s), such as microprocessor(s) or portion(s) of microprocessor(s), that require software (e.g., firmware) to operate, but where the software may not be present when not required for operation.

[0343] This definition of circuitry applies to all uses of the term in this application, including in any claims. As another example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of only a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors), or a portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuitry also covers (for example and if applicable to a particular claim element) a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device, or a similar integrated circuit in a server, cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0344] The embodiments herein may be implemented in software (executed by one or more processors), hardware (e.g., application specific integrated circuits), or a combination of software and hardware. In example embodiments, the software (e.g., application logic, instruction sets) is maintained on any of a variety of conventional computer-readable media. In the context of this document, a "computer-readable medium" may be any medium or device that can contain, store, communicate, propagate, or transport instructions for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device (such as a computer), such as an example of a computer. Figure 1 Described and depicted in. Computer-readable media may include computer-readable storage media (e.g., memory 125, 155, 171, 71 or other devices), which may be any medium or device that can contain, store and / or transmit instructions for use by or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, apparatus or device (such as a computer). Computer-readable storage media do not include propagating signals.

[0345] If desired, the different functions discussed herein may be performed in different orders and / or simultaneously with each other. In addition, if desired, one or more of the above functions may be optional or may be combined.

[0346] Although various aspects of the invention are set out in the independent claims, further aspects of the invention comprise other combinations of features from the described embodiments and / or the dependent claims with features of the independent claims, not just these combinations explicitly set out in the claims.

[0347] It should also be noted herein that although the above describes example embodiments of the invention, these descriptions should not be viewed in a limiting sense. Rather, numerous variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method of communication, comprising: receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, configuration of early state handling assistance information from the network, wherein the early state handling assistance information indicates information about at least one required radio resource control connection being requested by the user equipment; determining, by the user equipment, using at least the configuration, whether early state handling assistance information should be reported to the network, the early state handling assistance information comprising a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment; requesting, by the user equipment, connection to the network; and In response to the determination, performing one of the following in the report: Reporting, by the user equipment, the determined early state handling assistance information to the network using one or more radio resource control messages; or The early state handling assistance information is not reported by the user equipment to the network at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of the determined early state handling assistance information. 2 . The method according to claim 1 , wherein the request is performed in a process for transitioning the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to a radio resource control connected state.

3. The method according to claim 1, wherein: Reporting, by the user equipment, to the network the early state handling assistance information using one or more radio resource control messages is performed; The method further comprises: entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and In response to receiving a radio resource control release message for the current session from the network, moving by the user equipment from the radio resource control connected state to a state different from the radio resource control connected state.

4. The method according to claim 3, further comprising: Before reporting the early state handling assistance information, the user equipment determines that the user equipment will report early state handling assistance information to the network, and the reporting is performed based on the determination.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the determining that the user equipment is to report early state handling assistance information to the network is based at least on: a traffic type of data to be transmitted by the user equipment after connection to the network.

6. The method according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein reporting the early state handling assistance information to the network by the user equipment further comprises: The early state handling assistance information is reported by the user equipment to the network using one or more radio resource control setup or resume request messages.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the reporting of the early state handling auxiliary information comprises one or more of the following: Amount of Data field, indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session, and including one or more of: (i) "no data expected", "not that much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof; a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds; a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session; a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or A state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted and / or ii) a connection used in the current session has lasted for a certain amount of time.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein: not reporting that said early state handling auxiliary information is executed; The method further comprises: entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and In response to receiving a radio resource control release message for a current session from the network, moving by the user equipment to a state different from the radio resource control connected state, wherein the radio resource control release message for the current session has been sent due to expiration of a timer on the network.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2 or 8, wherein the user equipment not reporting the early state handling assistance information to the network further comprises: The early state handling assistance information is not reported to the network by the user equipment by sending one or more radio resource control setup or resume request messages without an indication of the early state handling assistance information.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

11. A method of communication, comprising: a configuration for transmitting, by a base station in a wireless network, early state handling assistance information towards a user equipment in the network, wherein the early state handling assistance information indicates information about at least one required radio resource control connection being requested by the user equipment; receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network; determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include a report of early state handling assistance information; as well as In response to the determination, performing one of the following: performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for the one or more radio resource control messages including the report of the early state handling assistance information; or For the one or more radio resource control messages without the report of the early state handling assistance information, a radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the request is performed in a process for transitioning the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to the radio resource control connected state.

13. The method according to claim 11, wherein: the one or more radio resource control messages including an indication of early state handling assistance information, and the performing radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing is performed; The method further comprises sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; as well as The performing of radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing further comprises: determining, by the base station, based at least on the reporting of the early state handling assistance information in the one or more radio resource control messages, that a radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released; as well as In response to determining that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released, a radio resource control release message is sent to the user equipment to cause the user equipment to release the radio resource control connection.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment further comprises: The one or more radio resource control messages are received from the user equipment using one or more radio resource control setup or resume request messages.

15. The method according to any one of claims 13 to 14, wherein: The report of the early state handling auxiliary information includes one or more of the following: A data amount field indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session and including one or more of: (i) "no data expected", "not that much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof; or a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds; a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session; a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or a state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted, and / or ii) a connection used in said current session has lasted for a certain amount of time; as well as Determining, by the base station, that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released uses one or more of the fields in the indication of the early state handling assistance information in the one or more radio resource control messages to determine that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment should be released.

16. The method according to any one of claims 11 or 12, wherein: the one or more radio resource control messages are received without an indication of early state handling assistance information, and the performing of radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed; The method further comprises sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; as well as The performing of the radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process comprises: setting, by the base station, a timer in response to a lack of activity received from the user equipment; In response to the timer expiring without receiving activity from the user equipment, a radio resource control release message is sent from the base station to the user equipment.

17. The method according to any one of claims 11 to 14, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

18. A computer readable medium comprising a computer program stored thereon, the computer program comprising codes for executing the method according to any one of claims 1 to 17 when the computer program is run on a computer.

19. An apparatus for communication, comprising: means for receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, early state handling assistance information from the network, wherein the early state handling assistance information indicates information about at least one required radio resource control connection being requested by the user equipment; means for determining, by the user equipment, using at least the configuration, whether early state handling assistance information should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network; means for requesting, by said user equipment, said connection to said network; as well as Means for performing one of the following in the request in response to the determining: Reporting the early state handling assistance information to the network by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages; or The early state handling assistance information is not reported by the user equipment to the network at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of the early state handling assistance information.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the request is performed in a process to transition the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to the radio resource control connected state.

21. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein: Reporting, by the user equipment, to the network the early state handling assistance information using one or more radio resource control messages is performed; The device also includes: means for entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and means for moving, by the user equipment, from the radio resource control connected state to a state different from the radio resource control connected state in response to receiving a radio resource control release message for a current session from the network.

22. The apparatus according to claim 21, further comprising: means for being executed by the user equipment to determine, before the reporting of the early state handling assistance information, that the user equipment will report early state handling assistance information to the network, and means for performing the reporting based on the determination.

23. The apparatus of claim 22, wherein the determining that the user equipment is to report early state handling assistance information to the network is based at least on a traffic type of data to be transmitted by the user equipment following connection to the network.

24. The apparatus according to any one of claims 21 to 23, wherein reporting, by the user equipment, the early state handling assistance information to the network further comprises: The early state handling assistance information is reported by the user equipment to the network using one or more radio resource control setup or resume request messages.

25. The apparatus according to any one of claims 21 to 23, wherein the reporting of the early state handling assistance information comprises one or more of the following: Amount of Data field, indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session, and including one or more of: (i) "no data expected", "not that much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof; a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds; a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session; a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or A state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted and / or ii) a connection used in the current session has lasted for a certain amount of time.

26. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein: not reporting that said early state handling auxiliary information is executed; The device also includes: means for entering, by the user equipment, a radio resource control connected state, the radio resource control connected state indicating that a connection to the network has been established; and Means for moving, by the user equipment, to a state different from the radio resource control connected state in response to receiving a radio resource control release message for a current session from the network, wherein the radio resource control release message for the current session has been sent due to expiration of a timer on the network.

27. The apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 20 or 26, wherein the user equipment not reporting the early state handling assistance information to the network further comprises: The early state handling assistance information is not reported to the network by the user equipment by sending one or more radio resource control setup or resume request messages without an indication of the early state handling assistance information.

28. The apparatus according to any one of claims 19 to 23, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

29. An apparatus for communication, comprising: means for transmitting, by a base station in a wireless network, early state handling assistance information towards a user equipment in the network, wherein the early state handling assistance information indicates information about at least one required radio resource control connection being requested by the user equipment; means for receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network; means for determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include a report of early state handling assistance information; as well as Means for, in response to the determining, performing one of the following: performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for the one or more radio resource control messages including the report of the early state handling assistance information; or For the one or more radio resource control messages without the report of the early state handling assistance information, a radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed.

30. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein the request is performed in a process to transition the user equipment from a first radio resource control state to the radio resource control connected state.

31. The apparatus of claim 29, wherein: the one or more radio resource control messages including an indication of early state handling assistance information, and the performing radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing is performed; The apparatus further comprises means for sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; as well as The performing of radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing further comprises: means for determining, by the base station at least based on the reporting of the early state handling assistance information in the one or more radio resource control messages, that a radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released; as well as means for sending a radio resource control release message to the user equipment to cause the user equipment to release the radio resource control connection in response to determining that the radio resource control connection of the user equipment can be released.

32. The apparatus of claim 31 , wherein the means for receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment further comprises: Means for receiving the one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment using one or more radio resource control setup or resume request messages.

33. The device according to any one of claims 31 to 32, wherein: The report of the early state handling auxiliary information includes one or more of the following: A data amount field indicating the amount of data expected to be delivered during the current session and including one or more of: (i) "no data expected", "not that much data expected", "no DL and / or UL data expected"; or ii) "less than X bits expected", "single data packet expected"; or iii) any combination thereof; or a Session Length field, indicating the length of the current session to be accommodated during the requested connection, and comprising one or more of the following values: "Short", "Long", or "X seconds", where X is the length in seconds; a data radio bearer preference field indicating whether the user equipment prefers or requires a data radio bearer for data transmission to be performed in the current session; a state preference field, indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after data is transmitted in the current session; or a state transition condition field indicating a radio resource control state preferred by the user equipment after: i) a certain amount of uplink and / or downlink data is transmitted, and / or ii) a connection used in said current session has lasted for a certain amount of time; as well as Determining, by the base station, that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment can be released uses one or more of the fields in the indication of the early state handling assistance information in the one or more radio resource control messages to determine that the radio resource control connection for the user equipment should be released.

34. The device according to any one of claims 29 or 30, wherein: the one or more radio resource control messages are received without an indication of early state handling assistance information, and the performing of radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed; The apparatus further comprises means for sending, by the base station, one or more messages to cause the user equipment to enter the radio resource control connected state; as well as The performing of the radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process comprises: means for setting, by the base station, a timer in response to a lack of activity being received from the user equipment; Means for sending a radio resource control release message from the base station to the user equipment in response to expiration of the timer without receiving activity from the user equipment.

35. The apparatus according to any one of claims 29 to 32, wherein the first radio resource control state is one of an inactive state or an idle state.

36. An apparatus for communication, comprising: one or more processors; as well as one or more memories including computer program code, The one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations comprising: receiving, by a user equipment in a wireless network, configuration of early state handling assistance information from the network, wherein the early state handling assistance information indicates information about at least one required radio resource control connection being requested by the user equipment; determining, by the user equipment, using at least the configuration, whether early state handling assistance information should be reported to the network in a request for connection to the network; requesting, by the user equipment, the connection to the network; and In response to the determination, performing one of the following in the request: The user equipment reports the early state handling assistance information to the network using one or more radio resource control messages; or The early state handling assistance information is not reported by the user equipment to the network at least by the user equipment using one or more radio resource control messages without an indication of the early state handling assistance information.

37. An apparatus for communication, comprising: one or more processors; as well as one or more memories including computer program code, The one or more memories and the computer program code are configured to, together with the one or more processors, cause the apparatus to perform operations comprising: a configuration for transmitting, by a base station in a wireless network, early state handling assistance information towards a user equipment in the network, wherein the early state handling assistance information indicates information about at least one required radio resource control connection being requested by the user equipment; receiving one or more radio resource control messages from the user equipment in a request for connection to the network; determining whether the received one or more radio resource control messages include a report of early state handling assistance information; as well as In response to the determination, performing one of the following: performing a radio resource control reconfiguration with early state handling processing for the one or more radio resource control messages including the report of the early state handling assistance information; or For the one or more radio resource control messages without the report of the early state handling assistance information, a radio resource control reconfiguration without the early state handling process is performed.

Images