Radio resource management and cell reselection for network slice access layer groups

Abstract

Systems, methods, and circuitry are provided for prioritization based on network slices. In one example, the UE receives, from a serving cell, a non-access stratum (NAS) message indicating network slice AS group (NSAG) priority information. The UE receives system information indicating NSAG-frequency priority information, the NSAG-frequency priority information including, for each of the one or more NSAG-frequency pairs, an NSAG-frequency priority for the NSAG-frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG-frequency pair, and whether the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair. The UE prioritizes frequencies based on the NSAG priority information and the NSAG-frequency priority information, and performs radio resource management (RRM) measurements or cell reselection based on the prioritized frequencies.

Description

Background Art

[0001] Network slicing refers to the selection and allocation of network resources to meet the requirements of specific services. For example, some applications may require high throughput, and UE applications using such services should be allocated network slices that include network resources that support high throughput. In contrast, other applications require low latency and should be allocated different network resources optimized for low latency. Quality of Service (QoS) for various UEs and applications can also be a consideration when selecting network slices for different services. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0002] Some examples of circuits, devices and / or methods will be described below by way of example only.In this context, reference will be made to the accompanying drawings.

[0003] Figure 1 Cell reselection according to frequency priority according to various aspects disclosed are schematically illustrated.

[0004] Figure 2 An example communication network in accordance with various aspects disclosed is illustrated.

[0005] Figure 3 is a message flow diagram illustrating example message exchanges related to slice-based prioritization in accordance with various aspects disclosed.

[0006] Figure 4 is a flow chart illustrating an example method for slice-based frequency prioritization in accordance with various aspects disclosed.

[0007] Figure 5 is a flowchart illustrating an example method for determining slice-specific service frequency priorities in accordance with various aspects disclosed.

[0008] Figure 6 Examples of infrastructure equipment according to various aspects disclosed are illustrated.

[0009] Figure 7 An example of a UE platform according to various aspects disclosed is illustrated. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] The present disclosure is described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The drawings are not drawn to scale and are provided only for the purpose of illustrating the present disclosure. Several aspects of the present disclosure are described below with reference to example applications / use cases for illustration. Many specific details, relationships, and methods are set forth to provide an understanding of the present disclosure. The present disclosure is not limited by the order of the actions or events illustrated, as some actions may occur in a different order and / or simultaneously with other actions or events. In addition, not all of the illustrated actions or events are necessary to implement the method according to the selected present disclosure.

[0011] Cell reselection is the process by which a UE reselects a serving cell to obtain an improved channel state. Cell reselection may be in response to UE movement, changes in channel conditions, network re-prioritization of channels, and the like. In order to facilitate cell reselection, the UE performs radio resource management (RRM) measurements on reference signals sent by the serving cell and nearby cells. In one example, the reference signals measured for RRM purposes include synchronization signal / physical broadcast channel block (SSB) signals. In one example, the measurement quantity used for cell reselection is reference signal received power (RSRP). In other examples not described herein, the measurement quantity used for cell reselection is reference signal received quality (RSRQ). Other reference signals and measurement quantities may be used for RRM measurements or cell reselection.

[0012] To control the reselection process (e.g., for load balancing), the network assigns a priority to each frequency that can be used by the UE for communication. For example, if the network assigns a higher priority to F1 than F2, the probability that the UE will select F1 for communication increases. Priority information for different frequencies is broadcast through a system information block (SIB) (e.g., SIB16) or can be provided to a specific UE through a radio resource control (RRC) connection release message. The UE gives priority to the UE-specific frequency priority information in the RRC connection release message over the SIB16 frequency priority information.

[0013] Figure 1 An overview of the cell reselection process is provided. In the illustrated example, the idle UE resides on cell 110 (illustrated by the dashed line). The frequency priority information received by the UE from SIB16 and / or RRC connection release messages affects which frequencies the UE measures for RRM purposes. For example, the UE may always perform measurements on higher priority frequencies compared to the priority of the serving frequency, regardless of the channel quality of the serving cell. Frequencies with a priority equal to or lower than the priority of the serving frequency may not be measured, or may only be measured if certain conditions are met (such as the channel quality of the serving cell drops below a threshold) to save power. In addition, the RRM measurement and cell reselection process includes a set of thresholds that favor measurements or cell reselections in the same frequency (intra-frequency) over measurements or cell reselections on different frequencies (inter-frequency).

[0014] In one example, a UE camped in cell 110 will perform RRM measurements on SSBs on F1 cell 2 110 (serving cell), and will not perform RRM measurements on F1 cell 1 120 or F2 cell 1 130 of equal or lower priority as long as the channel quality is above the intra-frequency measurement threshold. If a higher priority frequency (e.g., F3 cell 1140) has been identified, the UE will perform RRM measurements on that frequency even when the channel quality of the serving cell is above the intra-frequency measurement threshold. If the serving cell channel quality drops below the intra-frequency measurement threshold but remains above the inter-frequency measurement threshold below the intra-frequency measurement threshold, the UE will additionally measure F1 cell 1 120. If the channel quality drops below the inter-frequency measurement threshold, the UE will additionally measure F2 cell 1 130.

[0015] To determine whether to switch cells, the UE sorts the measured cells according to frequency priority, then compares the RSRP of any higher priority frequency cell (compared to the priority of the serving cell) with a priority-based reselection threshold, and if the RSRP exceeds the priority-based threshold, the UE will select the higher priority frequency cell to reside in, regardless of the RSRP of the serving cell. For equal or lower priority frequency cells, the UE compares the RSRP of each cell with the RSRP of the serving cell, and performs cell reselection based on the difference in RSRP compared to various thresholds and frequency priorities. As with RRM measurements, the cell reselection process generally favors intra-frequency cell reselection. Therefore, the intra-frequency reselection threshold is higher than the inter-frequency reselection threshold. For the sake of brevity, the specific cell reselection process will not be described in detail.

[0016] In addition to prioritizing certain frequencies, the network may also identify a preferred network slice for a given UE based on the data processing requirements of the UE (e.g., UE capabilities, active applications, etc.). Network slice priority is also considered by the UE for RRM measurements and cell reselection. Figure 2An exemplary wireless communication system supporting network slicing for UE 201 is shown. The wireless communication system may be a 5G New Radio (NR) network, including UE 201, base station (BS) 222, access and mobility management function (AMF) 203, policy control function (PCF) 205, user plane function (UPF) 204, and data network (DN) 206. UE 201 and BS 202 are part of a radio access network (RAN) 210. AMF 203, PCF 205, UPF 204, and DN 206 are part of a core network (CN) 220. CN 220 may be considered to include network nodes associated with a control plane (e.g., AMF 203 and PCF 205) and network nodes associated with a user plane (e.g., UPF 204 and DN 206). UE 201 may be a smart phone, a wearable device, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, a tablet, etc. BS 202 can be a 5G gNB, 4G LTE eNB, etc.

[0017] In the access stratum (AS) layer, the RAN 210 may provide radio access for the UE 201 via a radio access technology (RAT) 230 such as Bluetooth, WiFi, GSM, UMTS, LTE, or 5G NR. In the non-access stratum (NAS), the AMF 203 may communicate with the BS 202 or the RAN 210 to manage the connection of the UE in the communication network. The PCF 205 may provide access and mobility management related policies to the AMF 203. The UPF 204 may communicate with the BS 202 or the RAN 210, and the DN 206 may communicate with the UPF 204.

[0018] Data traffic may be delivered in Internet Protocol (IP) packets such as Protocol Data Unit (PDU) sessions. A PDU session defines an association between a UE (e.g., UE 201) and a DN 106 that provides a PDU connectivity service. The PDU connectivity service provides for the exchange of PDUs between the UE and the DN 206. Each PDU session may include a PDU session ID and one or more QoS flows and QoS rules.

[0019] When a connected UE triggers an application, outgoing traffic associated with the application may be routed through the network slices according to the UE Routing Policy (URSP) determined by the PCF 205 and provided to the UE by the AMF 203. The URSP includes URSP rules that define how different types of traffic are routed (e.g., through which network slices). Based on the UHSP, outgoing traffic may be routed to an established PDU session, may be offloaded to a non-3GPP access outside of the PDU session, or a new PDU session may be established for the outgoing traffic. It should be noted that the same network slice may support more than one PDU session.

[0020] A network slice access layer group (NSAG) may be dynamically configured by the network to include multiple network slices, each of which may be uniquely identified by a single network slice selection assistance information (S-NSSAI) identifier. NAS messages for UEs may refer to NSAGs instead of individual network slices to reduce signaling overhead. NAS messages are used to configure NSAG priorities for UEs. In one example, NSAGs are configured by a registration acceptance message or a UE configuration command message of a public land mobile network (PLMN). The terms NSAG and slice group are used interchangeably herein.

[0021] In order to reduce the signaling overhead associated with indicating the NSAG, the number of NSAG identifiers is limited (e.g., not more than 4). NSAG identifiers (hereinafter referred to as NSAGs) are reused for different tracking areas. Tracking areas (e.g., 262, 264) identify groups of cells within the registration area 260, between which the UE can move without notifying the network. The NSAG for the first tracking area (tracking area identifier (TAI) 1) may include a different network slice than the same NSAG in a different tracking area TAI2. Therefore, the TAI used for the NSAG should be considered during RRM measurements and cell reselection. In some examples, a unique NSAG is identified in NAS messages and system information using a combination of an NSAG identifier unique to a specific tracking area and a tracking area identifier (TAI) for a specific tracking area.

[0022] Systems, methods, and circuits are described herein to facilitate RRM measurements and cell reselection based on NSAG priority information.

[0023] Serving cell NSAG support information in system information

[0024] Figure 3is a message flow diagram that provides an overview of slice group-based prioritization for RRM measurements and cell reselection. A UE connected to a base station has been configured with one or more NSAGs and corresponding NSAG priorities through one or more NAS messages (e.g., during registration with the BS). When the UE transitions to idle mode, at 310, the BS sends a release message (e.g., an RRCRelease message) confirming that the UE can enter idle mode. The release message includes NSAG-frequency priority information that indicates the NSAG-frequency priority for each NSAG-frequency pair in a plurality of NSAG-frequency pairs. For example, the RRCRelease message may include IEfreqPriorityDedicatedSlicing indicating the NSAG-frequency priority. The UE will give priority to the NSAG-frequency priority information received by the UE through the release message over the NSAG-frequency priority information received through system information.

[0025] At 320, the idle UE camps on a serving cell provided by the BS. The idle UE is configured with NSAG priority information from the NAS message and NSAG-frequency priority information from the release message. At 330, the network uses system information to configure slice group availability for neighboring cells on a per-frequency basis. For example, the system information may be a system information block SIB16 including an IE cellReselectionPriorities or freqPriorityListNRSlicing indicating NSAG-frequency priority. SIB16 indicates, for each NSAG-frequency pair, NSAG-frequency priority, a list of slice allowed cells that support slice groups, and a list of slice exclusion cells that do not support slice groups. However, SIB16 does not currently indicate slice group availability for a serving cell for each NSAG-frequency pair.

[0026] At 340, the idle UE prioritizes frequencies for RRM measurements and cell reselection. Generally, frequency prioritization is performed first based on slice group priority and then based on frequency priority within the frequency supporting the highest priority slice group. TS 38.304 outlines the process by which the UE prioritizes frequencies for the purpose of RRM measurements and cell reselection. TS 38.304 can be summarized as follows. Frequencies that support at least one prioritized NSAG (NSAG priority provided to the UE by a NAS message) have a higher priority than frequencies that do not support any of the NSAGs provided by the NAS message. Frequencies that support at least one NSAG provided by the NAS message are prioritized in the order of NSAG-frequency priorities provided by the NAS. Frequencies with equal NSAG-frequency priorities are prioritized in the order of their slice group specific cell reselection priorities (which can be configured in system information). Frequencies that do not have slice group specific cell reselection priorities have a lower priority than frequencies that have slice group specific cell reselection priorities. Frequencies that do not support any of the NSAGs provided by the NAS message are prioritized in the order of their cell reselection priorities.

[0027] Recall that system information (e.g., SIB16) currently does not provide information about whether a serving cell supports a given NSAG. If the UE has not been provided with information about which NSAGs the serving cell supports, the UE may implicitly perform RRM measurements and / or cell reselection based on the NSAG-frequency priority information for the serving cell, assuming that the serving cell supports all NSAGs. This may enable a UE camped on a cell that does not support a high priority NSAG-frequency to avoid reselecting to a cell that supports a high priority NSAG-frequency. When the UE accesses a cell for a high priority NSAG, service will not be available.

[0028] To improve cell reselection, system information (e.g., SIB16) may be modified to also indicate the NSAG availability for the serving cell for each NSAG-frequency pair in the same manner as SIB16 indicates this information for neighboring cells. With this approach, if SIB16 includes the serving cell in the slice allowed cell list, the UE determines that the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair. If SIB16 does not include the serving cell in the slice allowed cell list or the slice excluded cell list for a given NSAG-frequency pair, the UE assumes that the serving cell supports the given NSAG-frequency pair. In this way, the UE can consider the NSAG availability for the serving frequency in the frequency prioritization and avoid camping on cells that do not support high priority NSAGs.

[0029] At 350, the UE performs RRM measurements based on the NSAG priority information and the NSAG-frequency priority information, and at 360, the UE performs cell reselection based on the NSAG priority information and the NSAG-frequency priority information. If a cell outside the current tracking area (TA) of the UE is selected, the UE may register the new TA of the UE with the BS at 370. As part of the registration process, a new NAS message with the NSAG configuration and priority information may be provided to the UE.

[0030] To implement the solution outlined above, the following changes may be made to 3GPP TS 38.331.

[0031]

[0032]

[0033] Figure 4 A method 400 for performing slice group based prioritization is outlined. The method 400 may be performed by a UE, or more specifically, by a baseband processor of the UE. The method includes, at 410, receiving from a serving cell a non-access stratum (NAS) message configuring one or more network slice AS groups (NSAGs) and an indication of corresponding priority information for the NSAGs. At 420, receiving system information configuring NSAG / frequency priority information, the NSAG / frequency priority information including, for each NSAG / frequency pair of one or more NSAG / frequency pairs: an NSAG / frequency priority for the NSAG / frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG / frequency pair, and whether the serving cell supports the NSAG / frequency pair. In one example, the system information includes lists of cells that are allowed to be listed or excluded, and the lists appropriately include or exclude neighboring cells or serving cells. In one example, the system information includes SIB16.

[0034] At 430, the method includes prioritizing frequencies based on the NSAG priority information and the NSAG / frequency priority information. At 440, radio resource management (RRM) measurements or cell reselection are performed based on the prioritized frequencies.

[0035] Prioritization based on serving frequency slice groups

[0036] Figure 5is a flow chart outlining a method 500 for performing slice group based prioritization. The method may be performed by a UE, or more specifically, by a baseband processor of the UE. At 510, system information is received. The system information indicates NSAG / frequency priority information for one or more NSAG-frequency pairs and information about which cells support a given NSAG-frequency pair. In one example, the system information is SIB16. At 520, a determination is made based on the system information whether the serving cell supports the highest priority NSAG. When the serving cell supports the highest priority NSAG, at 530, the UE prioritizes the frequencies as described above based on the priority information received via NAS messages, release messages, and system information.

[0037] When the serving cell does not support the highest priority NSAG, at 540, the priority of the serving frequency is modified to be equal to the priority of the serving frequency in the next highest priority NSAG supported by the serving cell for a predetermined time period. In one example, the predetermined time is 300 seconds. During the predetermined time period, the UE prioritizes the frequencies based on the modified serving frequency priorities. At the end of the time period, the serving frequency is reassigned the configured priority, and the method returns to 520 to determine whether the serving cell supports the highest priority NSAG.

[0038] By way of example, the UE is configured with NSAG1>NSAG2, and F1 is the serving frequency. The UE receives system information configuring the following:

[0039] NSAG1 / F1 priority 8, supported cells do not include serving cells

[0040] NSAG1 / F2 priority 7, supported cells do include serving cells

[0041] NSAG2 / F1 priority 6, supported cells do include serving cells

[0042] NSAG2 / F2 priority 8, supported cells do include serving cells

[0043] Because the serving cell does not support NSAG1, the serving frequency F1 with a priority of 8 for NSAG1 is downgraded to the priority of F1 in the next highest NSAG (i.e., NSAG2) that supports the serving cell. In NSAG2, F1 has a priority of 6. Now, F2 will have a higher priority than F1 because NSAG2 / F2 has a priority of 8, while NSAG2 / F1 has a priority of 6. When the inter-frequency cell reselection criteria are met, the UE will reselect to F2. This re-prioritization (F2>F1) will remain valid for a predetermined time period. In one example, the predetermined time period is 300 seconds. After the predetermined time period has passed, F1 returns to its configured priority of 8, and if the best cell under this priority ranking supports NSAG1, F1 will remain at this priority and use the priority ranking per system information. If the best cell does not support NSAG1, the priority of F1 will be de-prioritized or reduced to priority 6 (from the priority of F1 in NSAG2) again.

[0044] In another example, the UE receives system information configuring:

[0045] NSAG1 / F1 priority 8, supported cells do not include serving cells

[0046] NSAG1 / F2 priority 5, supported cells do include serving cells

[0047] NSAG2 / F1 priority 6, supported cells do include serving cells

[0048] NSAG2 / F2 priority 5, supported cells do include serving cells

[0049] In this example, in response to NSAG1 not supporting F1 in the serving cell, the priority for F1 is reallocated to priority 6 corresponding to the NSAG2 / F1 priority. Thus, F1 maintains a higher priority than F2, which has priority 5 in both NSAG1 and NSAG2. If the intra-frequency reselection criteria are met, the UE will reselect to F1. F1 will remain at priority 6 until the predetermined period expires, at which time F1 will return to priority 8. If the best cell at that priority ranking supports NSAG1, F1 will remain at that priority and the priority ranking per system information is used. If the best cell does not support NSAG1, the priority of F1 will again be de-prioritized or reduced to priority 6.

[0050] As can be seen from the previous description, providing information about whether a serving cell supports a slice group can improve the RRM measurement and cell reselection process. In addition, reallocating the priority of the serving frequency in the serving cell that does not support the highest priority slice group to the priority of the serving frequency in the supported slice group can also improve the RRM measurement and cell reselection process.

[0051] In this specification and the appended claims, the use of the term determine in describing method steps or functions with reference to some entity (e.g., parameter, variable, etc.) is to be interpreted broadly. For example, determine is to be interpreted to cover communications such as receiving and parsing an encoded entity or value of an entity. Determine should be interpreted to cover accessing and reading a memory (e.g., a lookup table, register, device memory, remote memory, etc.) storing an entity or a value for an entity. Determine should be interpreted to cover calculating or deriving an entity or a value of an entity based on other quantities or entities. Determine should be interpreted to cover any way of inferring or identifying an entity or a value of an entity.

[0052] As used herein, the term identification, when used with reference to an entity or a value of an entity, is to be broadly interpreted to encompass any manner of determining an entity or a value of an entity. For example, the term identification is to be interpreted to encompass communications such as receiving and parsing an encoded entity or a value of an entity. The term identification should be interpreted to encompass accessing and reading a memory storing an entity or a value for an entity (e.g., a device queue, a lookup table, a register, a device memory, a remote memory, etc.).

[0053] As used herein, the term "select" when used with reference to an entity or value of an entity is to be interpreted broadly to encompass any manner of determining an entity or value of an entity from a plurality or a series of possible choices. For example, the term "select" is to be interpreted as encompassing accessing and reading a memory (e.g., a lookup table, register, device memory, remote memory, etc.) storing an entity or value for an entity and returning an entity or entity value from those stored. The term "select" is to be interpreted as applying one or more constraints or rules to a set of input parameters to determine an appropriate entity or entity value. The term "select" is to be interpreted broadly to encompass any manner of selecting an entity based on one or more parameters or conditions.

[0054] As used herein, the term "derive" is to be interpreted broadly when used with reference to an entity or a value of an entity. Derivation should be interpreted to encompass accessing and reading a memory (e.g., a lookup table, a register, a device memory, a remote memory, etc.) that stores some initial or underlying values, and performing processing and / or logical / mathematical operations on one or more values ​​to generate a derived entity or a value for an entity. Derivation should be interpreted to encompass calculating or measuring an entity or a value of an entity based on other quantities or entities. Derivation should be interpreted to encompass any way of inferring or identifying an entity or a value of an entity.

[0055] As used herein, when used with reference to the value of an entity or parameter, the term indication is to be interpreted broadly as any way of communicating the value of an entity or parameter. Indication should be interpreted as covering encoding the indicated information as a bit value sent to another processor in a message. For example, indication can be performed by providing a bit value in a message, which is mapped to a corresponding value or parameter setting by the receiver based on a pre-configured value stored in the receiver or provided to the receiver in a previous or subsequent message. Indication can also be performed by avoiding explicitly communicating a value, so that the lack of a bit encoding the first information is interpreted by the receiver as an indication of the second information.

[0056] The use of the word "exemplary" is intended to present concepts in a specific way. The terms used herein are only for describing specific examples and are not intended to limit the examples. As used herein, the singular forms "one" and "the" are intended to include plural forms as well, unless the context otherwise indicates. It will also be understood that the term "including" when used herein specifies the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements and / or components, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and / or their grouping. As used herein, the term "or" includes the options of all elements associated with the word "or". For example, A or B is interpreted as including only A, only B, and both A and B. In addition, the phrase "one or more" followed by A, B or C is interpreted as including A, B, C, AB, AC, BC and ABC.

[0057] Figure 6 An example of infrastructure equipment 600 according to various aspects is illustrated. The infrastructure equipment 600 (or "system 600") can be implemented as a base station, a radio head, a RAN node (such as Figure 2 BS 202) and / or any other element / device discussed herein. In other examples, system 600 may be implemented in a UE (such as Figure 2 UE 201) is implemented in or by it.

[0058] System 600 includes application circuit 605, baseband circuit 610, one or more radio front end modules (RFEM) 615, memory circuit 620, power management integrated circuit (PMIC) 625, power tee circuit 630, network controller circuit 635, network interface connector 640, satellite positioning circuit 645 and user interface circuit 650. In some aspects, device 600 may include additional elements such as, for example, memory / storage, display, camera, sensor, or input / output (I / O) interface. In other aspects, the components described below may be included in more than one device. For example, the circuit may be included separately in more than one device for CRAN, vBBU or other similar implementations.

[0059] The application circuit 605 may include circuits such as, but not limited to, one or more processors (or processor cores), cache memory, and one or more of the following: a low dropout regulator (LDO), an interrupt controller, a serial interface such as SPI, I2C or a general programmable serial interface module, a real-time clock (RTC), a timer (including an interval timer and a watchdog timer), a general input / output (I / O or IO), a memory card controller such as a secure digital (SD) multimedia card (MMC) or similar product, a universal serial bus (USB) interface, a mobile industry processor interface (MIPI) interface, and a joint test access group (JTAG) test access port. The processor (or core) of the application circuit 605 may be coupled to or may include a memory / storage element and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory / storage device to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the system 600. In some implementations, the memory / storage element can be an on-chip memory circuit that can include any suitable volatile and / or non-volatile memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, solid-state memory, and / or any other type of memory device technology, such as those discussed herein.

[0060] The processor of the application circuit 605 may include, for example, one or more processor cores (CPUs), one or more application processors, one or more graphics processing units (GPUs), one or more reduced instruction set computing (RISC) processors, one or more Acorn RISC Machine (ARM) processors, one or more complex instruction set computing (CISC) processors, one or more digital signal processors (DSPs), one or more FPGAs, one or more PLDs, one or more ASICs, one or more microprocessors or controllers, or any suitable combination thereof. In some aspects, the application circuit 605 may include or may be a dedicated processor / controller for operating in accordance with various aspects of the present disclosure. As an example, the processor of the application circuit 605 may include one or more processor, Processor: Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Processor, Accelerated Processing Unit (APU) or processors; ARM-based processors licensed by ARM Holdings, Ltd., such as the ARM Cortex-A series processors provided by Cavium(TM), Inc. and MIPS-based designs from MIPS Technologies, Inc., such as the MIPS Warrior P-class processor; etc. In some aspects, system 600 may not utilize application circuit 605, and instead may include a dedicated processor / controller to process IP data received, for example, from an EPC or 5GC.

[0061] The user interface circuit 650 may include one or more user interfaces designed to enable a user to interact with the system 600, or a peripheral component interface designed to enable a peripheral component to interact with the system 600. The user interface may include, but is not limited to, one or more physical or virtual buttons (e.g., a reset button), one or more indicators (e.g., light emitting diodes (LEDs)), a physical keyboard or keypad, a mouse, a touch pad, a touch screen, a speaker or other audio emitting device, a microphone, a printer, a scanner, a headset, a display screen or display device, etc. The peripheral component interface may include, but is not limited to, a non-volatile memory port, a universal serial bus (USB) port, an audio jack, a power interface, etc.

[0062] Figure 6 The components shown can communicate with each other using interface circuits that can include any number of bus and / or interconnect (IX) technologies, such as industry standard architecture (ISA), extended ISA (EISA), peripheral component interconnect (PCI), peripheral component interconnect extended (PCIx), PCI express (PCIe), or any number of other technologies. The bus / IX can be a proprietary bus, for example, used in a SoC-based system. Other bus / IX systems can be included, such as an I2C interface, an SPI interface, a point-to-point interface, and a power bus, etc.

[0063] Figure 7 An example of a platform 700 (or "device 700") according to various aspects is illustrated. In various aspects, computer platform 700 may be suitable for use as Figure 2 UE 201, Figure 2 The network node 202 and / or any other element / device discussed herein. The platform 700 may include any combination of components shown in the example. The components of the platform 700 may be implemented as integrated circuits (ICs), parts thereof, discrete electronic devices, or other modules, logic, hardware, software, firmware, or combinations thereof suitable for the computer platform 700, or implemented as components otherwise incorporated within the chassis of a larger system. Figure 7 The block diagram is intended to show a high-level view of the components of computer platform 700. However, some of the components shown may be omitted, additional components may be present, and different arrangements of the components shown may occur in other implementations.

[0064] The application circuit 705 includes circuits such as, but not limited to, one or more processors (or processor cores), cache memory, and one or more of the following: LDO, interrupt controller, serial interface (such as SPI), I2C or general programmable serial interface module, RTC, timer (including interval timer and watchdog timer), general I / O, memory card controller (such as SD MMC or similar controller), USB interface, MIPI interface, and JTAG test access port. The processor (or core) of the application circuit 705 may be coupled to or may include a memory / storage element and may be configured to execute instructions stored in the memory / storage element to enable various applications or operating systems to run on the system 700. In some specific implementations, the memory / storage element may be an on-chip memory circuit that may include any suitable volatile and / or non-volatile memory, such as DRAM, SRAM, EPROM, EEPROM, flash memory, solid-state memory, and / or any other type of memory device technology, such as those discussed herein.

[0065] For example, the processor of application circuit 705 may include a general purpose or special purpose processor, such as a processor available from Inc., Cupertino, CA's A-series processor (e.g., A13 Bionic) or any other such processor. The processor of the application circuit 705 may also be one or more of the following: Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Processor or Accelerated Processing Unit (APU); from Inc.'s core processors, Snapdragon by Technologies, Inc. TM Processor, Texas Instruments, Open Multimedia ApplicationsPlatform(OMAP) TM processors; MIPS-based designs from MIPS Technologies, Inc., such as the MIPS Warrior M-class, Warrior I-class, and Warrior P-class processors; ARM-based designs licensed from ARM Holdings, Ltd., such as the ARM Cortex-A, Cortex-R, and Cortex-M series processors; etc. In some implementations, the application circuit 705 can be part of a system on a chip (SoC), in which the application circuit 705 and other components are formed as a single integrated circuit or a single package.

[0066] Baseband circuitry or processor 710 may be implemented, for example, as a solder-in substrate including one or more integrated circuits, a single packaged integrated circuit soldered to a main circuit board, or a multi-chip module containing two or more integrated circuits.

[0067] The platform 700 may further include an interface circuit (not shown) for connecting external devices to the platform 700. External devices connected to the platform 700 via the interface circuit include a sensor circuit 721 and an electromechanical component (EMC) 722, and a removable memory device coupled to a removable memory circuit 723.

[0068] The battery 730 can power the platform 700, but in some examples, the platform 700 can be mounted in a fixed location and can have a power source coupled to a power grid. The battery 730 can be a lithium-ion battery, a metal-air battery such as a zinc-air battery, an aluminum-air battery, a lithium-air battery, etc. In some implementations, such as in V2X applications, the battery 730 can be a typical lead-acid car battery.

[0069] Embodiments may include subject matter such as a method, components for performing acts or blocks of the method, at least one machine-readable medium including instructions that, when executed by a machine, cause the machine to perform the acts of the method, or acts of an apparatus or system for practicing the embodiments and examples described herein.

[0070] Embodiment 1 is a baseband processor for a user equipment (UE), the baseband processor being configured to enable the UE to receive a non-access stratum (NAS) message indicating network slice AS group (NSAG) priority information from a serving cell; receive system information indicating NSAG-frequency priority information, the NSAG-frequency priority information including, for each NSAG-frequency pair of one or more NSAG-frequency pairs: an NSAG-frequency priority for the NSAG-frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG-frequency pair, and whether the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair; and prioritize frequencies based on the NSAG priority information and the NSAG-frequency priority information; and perform radio resource management (RRM) measurements or cell reselection based on the prioritized frequencies.

[0071] Embodiment 2 includes the subject matter of embodiment 1, including or omitting optional elements, wherein the system information includes a list of cells supporting NSAG-frequency pairs and a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pairs, and further wherein the baseband processor is configured to determine that: when the serving cell is identified in the list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, or when the serving cell is not identified in the list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, the serving cell supports a given NSAG-frequency pair.

[0072] Embodiment 3 includes the subject matter of embodiment 1, including or omitting optional elements, wherein the system information comprises broadcast system information block 16 (SIB16).

[0073] Embodiment 4 includes the subject matter of embodiment 3, including or omitting optional elements, wherein the SIB16 includes a sliceAllowedCellListNR information element (IE) indicating a list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair and a sliceExcludedCellListNR IE indicating a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, and further wherein the baseband processor is configured to determine: when the serving cell is identified in the sliceAllowedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, or when the serving cell is not identified in the sliceExcludedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

[0074] Embodiment 5 includes the subject matter of embodiment 1, including or omitting optional elements, wherein the baseband processor is configured to: in response to determining that the serving cell does not support the highest priority NSAG, modify the configuration priority of the serving frequency to the priority of the serving frequency in the next highest priority NSAG within a certain time period; and during the time period, prioritize the frequencies based on the modified serving frequency priority.

[0075] Example 6 includes the subject matter of Example 5, including or omitting the optional elements, wherein the time period is 300 seconds.

[0076] Embodiment 7 includes the subject matter of embodiment 1, including or omitting optional elements, wherein a unique NSAG is identified in the NAS message and the system information using a combination of a NSAG identifier unique to a particular tracking area and a tracking area identifier (TAI) for the particular tracking area.

[0077] Embodiment 8 is a processor for a base station, the processor being configured to send a non-access stratum (NAS) message indicating network slice AS group (NSAG) priority information; and broadcast system information indicating NSAG-frequency priority information, the NSAG-frequency priority information including, for each NSAG-frequency pair of one or more NSAG-frequency pairs: the NSAG-frequency priority for the NSAG-frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG-frequency pair, and whether the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

[0078] Embodiment 9 includes the subject matter of embodiment 8, including or omitting optional elements, wherein the system information comprises system information block 16 (SIB16).

[0079] Embodiment 10 includes the subject matter of embodiment 9, including or omitting optional elements, wherein the SIB16 includes, for each NSAG-frequency pair, a sliceAllowedCellListNR information element (IE) indicating a list of cells that support the NSAG-frequency pair and a sliceExcludedCellListNR IE indicating a list of cells that do not support the NSAG-frequency pair, and further wherein when the serving cell is identified in the sliceAllowedCellListNR IE for the NSAG / frequency pair or when the serving cell is not identified in the sliceExcludedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, the SIB16 indicates that the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

[0080] Embodiment 11 includes the subject matter of embodiment 8, including or omitting optional elements, wherein a unique NSAG is identified in the NAS message and the system information using a combination of a NSAG identifier unique to a particular tracking area and a tracking area identifier (TAI) for the particular tracking area.

[0081] Embodiment 12 is a method comprising any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in the detailed description.

[0082] Example 13 is a method as substantially described herein with reference to each or any combination of the figures included herein or with reference to each or any combination of the paragraphs in the detailed description.

[0083] Embodiment 14 is a user equipment configured to perform any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in a specific embodiment included in the user equipment.

[0084] Embodiment 15 is a network node configured to perform any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in a specific embodiment included in the network node.

[0085] Embodiment 16 is a non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed, cause performance of any action or combination of actions as substantially described herein in the detailed description.

[0086] Although the method is illustrated above and described as a series of actions or events, it should be understood that the order of such actions or events illustrated should not be interpreted as having a limiting meaning. For example, some actions can occur simultaneously with other actions or events other than those illustrated and / or described herein in different orders. In addition, all illustrated actions may not be required to implement one or more aspects or embodiments disclosed herein. In addition, one or more actions in the actions shown herein may be performed in one or more separate actions and / or stages. In some examples, the method illustrated above can be implemented in a non-volatile computer-readable medium using instructions stored in a memory. Many other embodiments and variations are possible within the scope of the present disclosure protected by the claims.

[0087] It is understood that the use of personally identifiable information should be subject to privacy policies and practices that are generally recognized to meet or exceed industry or government requirements for maintaining user privacy. Specifically, personally identifiable information data should be managed and processed to minimize the risk of unintentional or unauthorized access or use, and the nature of the authorized use should be clearly stated to users.

Claims

1. A user equipment (UE), the user equipment comprising a radio frequency (RF) transceiver and a baseband processor, the baseband processor being configured to, when executing instructions stored in a memory, cause the UE to: receiving, via the RF transceiver, a non-access stratum (NAS) message indicating network slice AS group (NSAG) priority information from a serving cell; Receiving, via the RF transceiver, system information indicating NSAG-frequency priority information, the NSAG-frequency priority information comprising, for each NSAG-frequency pair of one or more NSAG-frequency pairs: a NSAG-frequency priority for the NSAG-frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG-frequency pair, and whether the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair; as well as prioritizing frequencies based on the NSAG priority information and the NSAG-frequency priority information; as well as Radio resource management (RRM) measurements or cell reselection are performed based on the prioritized frequencies.

2. The UE according to claim 1, wherein the system information includes a list of cells supporting NSAG-frequency pairs and a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pairs, and further wherein the baseband processor is configured to determine that: when the serving cell is identified in the list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, or when the serving cell is not identified in the list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, the serving cell supports a given NSAG-frequency pair.

3. The UE of claim 1, wherein the system information comprises a broadcast system information block 16 (SIB16).

4. The UE according to claim 3, wherein the SIB16 includes a sliceAllowedCellListNR information element (IE) indicating a list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair and a sliceExcludedCellListNR IE indicating a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, and further wherein the baseband processor is configured to determine that: when the serving cell is identified in the sliceAllowedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, or when the serving cell is not identified in the sliceExcludedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

5. The UE of claim 1 , wherein the UE is configured to, in response to determining that the serving cell does not support a highest priority NSAG, Modifying the configuration priority of the service frequency to the priority of the service frequency in the next highest priority NSAG within a certain time period; and During the time period, frequencies are prioritized based on the modified serving frequency priorities. The UE according to claim 5 , wherein the time period is 300 seconds.

7. The UE of claim 1, wherein a unique NSAG is identified in the NAS message and the system information using a combination of a NSAG identifier unique to a specific tracking area and a tracking area identifier (TAI) for the specific tracking area.

8. A processor for a base station, the processor being configured to, when executing instructions stored in a memory: sending a non-access stratum (NAS) message indicating network slice AS group (NSAG) priority information; and Broadcasting system information indicating NSAG-frequency priority information, the NSAG-frequency priority information comprising, for each NSAG-frequency pair of one or more NSAG-frequency pairs: a NSAG-frequency priority for the NSAG-frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG-frequency pair, and Whether the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

9. The processor of claim 8, wherein the system information comprises a system information block 16 (SIB16).

10. The processor of claim 9, wherein the SIB16 comprises, for each NSAG-frequency pair, a sliceAllowedCellListNR information element (IE) indicating a list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair and a sliceExcludedCellListNR IE indicating a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, and further wherein when the serving cell is identified in the sliceAllowedCellListNR IE for the NSAG / frequency pair or when the serving cell is not identified in the sliceExcludedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, the SIB16 indicates that the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

11. The processor of claim 8, wherein a unique NSAG is identified in the NAS message and the system information using a combination of a NSAG identifier unique to a particular tracking area and a tracking area identifier (TAI) for the particular tracking area.

12. A method for a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: receiving a non-access stratum (NAS) message indicating network slice AS group (NSAG) priority information from a serving cell; Receiving system information indicating NSAG-frequency priority information, the NSAG-frequency priority information comprising, for each NSAG-frequency pair of one or more NSAG-frequency pairs: a NSAG-frequency priority for the NSAG-frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG-frequency pair, and whether the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair; and prioritizing frequencies based on the NSAG priority information and the NSAG-frequency priority information; and Radio resource management (RRM) measurements or cell reselection are performed based on the prioritized frequencies.

13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the system information includes a list of cells supporting NSAG-frequency pairs and a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pairs, and further wherein the baseband processor is configured to determine: when the serving cell is identified in the list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, or when the serving cell is not identified in the list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, the serving cell supports a given NSAG-frequency pair.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein the system information comprises a broadcast system information block 16 (SIB16).

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein the SIB16 includes a sliceAllowedCellListNR information element (IE) indicating a list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair and a sliceExcludedCellListNR IE indicating a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, and further wherein the baseband processor is configured to determine that: when the serving cell is identified in the sliceAllowedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, or when the serving cell is not identified in the sliceExcludedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

16. The method of claim 12, wherein the UE is configured to, in response to determining that the serving cell does not support a highest priority NSAG, Modifying the configuration priority of the service frequency to the priority of the service frequency in the next highest priority NSAG within a certain time period; and During the time period, frequencies are prioritized based on the modified serving frequency priorities. The method of claim 16 , wherein the time period is 300 seconds.

18. The method of claim 12, wherein a unique NSAG is identified in the NAS message and the system information using a combination of a NSAG identifier unique to a specific tracking area and a tracking area identifier (TAI) for the specific tracking area.

19. A method for a base station, the method comprising: Sending a non-access stratum (NAS) message indicating network slice AS group (NSAG) priority information; as well as Broadcasting system information indicating NSAG-frequency priority information, the NSAG-frequency priority information comprising, for each NSAG-frequency pair of one or more NSAG-frequency pairs: a NSAG-frequency priority for the NSAG-frequency pair, which neighboring cells support the NSAG-frequency pair, and Whether the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the system information comprises a system information block 16 (SIB16).

21. The method of claim 20, wherein the SIB16 comprises, for each NSAG-frequency pair, a sliceAllowedCellListNR information element (IE) indicating a list of cells supporting the NSAG-frequency pair and a sliceExcludedCellListNR IE indicating a list of cells not supporting the NSAG-frequency pair, and further wherein when the serving cell is identified in the sliceAllowedCellListNR IE for the NSAG / frequency pair or when the serving cell is not identified in the sliceExcludedCellListNR IE for the NSAG-frequency pair, the SIB16 indicates that the serving cell supports the NSAG-frequency pair.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein a unique NSAG is identified in the NAS message and the system information using a combination of a NSAG identifier unique to a specific tracking area and a tracking area identifier (TAI) for the specific tracking area.

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