Handover management system and user device

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a handover management system for managing handover of a first user device between a private network comprising at least one private base station and a public network comprising a plurality of public base stations, and to a user device for use with such a system. The wireless coverage areas of the private network and the public network at least partially overlap. The handover management system includes a receiving system configured to receive, from a first user device, a first set of radio signal parameter values of at least one dedicated base station and at least one common base station of a plurality of common base stations. The handover management system includes service area information representing a private service area of the private network defined based on a plurality of second sets of radio signal parameter values of the at least one private base station and the at least one common base station. The handover management system is configured to initiate a handover of the first user device from the private network to the public network only when the first set of radio signal parameter values indicates that a location of the first user device is outside the private service area based on the service area information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a handover management system and a user device. In particular, the present disclosure relates to a handover management system and a user device used in such a system, wherein the system is used to manage a handover of a first user device between a private network including at least one private base station and a public network including a plurality of public base stations, wherein the wireless coverage areas of the private network and the public network at least partially overlap. Background Art

[0002] A public wireless communication network comprises a plurality of public radio base stations or cells providing wireless coverage areas, so as to facilitate the communication of mobile devices of subscribers of operators of the public network. The basic element of this mobility is handover, in which a mobile device is connected to a plurality of radio base stations or cells of the public network successively or simultaneously. In some wireless communication networks, a mobile device measures the radio signal parameter values ​​from one or more public radio base stations, and reports the measured values ​​to a serving public radio base station to determine whether this serving radio base station is appropriate. When a neighboring radio base station or cell becomes better than a serving base station or cell (possibly using a set threshold), a handover can be triggered. When the measured radio signal parameter values ​​of these base stations or cells are approximately equal, the use of a threshold to be exceeded before performing a handover can be used to avoid frequent handovers between neighboring base stations or cells.

[0003] In recent years, the development of private wireless communication networks has provided wireless coverage areas that may overlap with the coverage areas of public wireless communication areas. Such private networks are not open to everyone willing to subscribe like public telecommunication networks, but restrict access to specific user groups. Such networks include in-home networks, private networks (e.g., factory networks), or even private parts of public networks, such as network slices of 5G telecommunication networks. These private networks provide wireless coverage through one or more private radio base stations, which can be connected to the public wireless communication network via a gateway device. User devices connected to the private network can be switched to the public network based on the same mechanism as switching between public base stations or cells within the public telecommunication network. Summary of the invention

[0004] The inventors have recognized that the handover mechanism as applied in the public telecommunication network may not be suitable for the handover of the user device from the private network to the public network. In some instances, even when the radio signal parameter value indicates that a better wireless connection with the public network is available, it is preferred that the user device wirelessly connected to the private base station maintains the connection to the private network to use the services in the private network.

[0005] To this end, one aspect of the present disclosure relates to a handover management system for managing the handover of a first user device between a private network including at least one private base station and a public network including multiple public base stations, wherein the wireless coverage areas of the private network and the public network overlap at least partially. The handover management system may include a receiving system configured to receive a first set of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one of the multiple public base stations from the first user device. The handover management system may also include service area information, which represents a dedicated service area of ​​the private network defined based on multiple second sets of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one public base station. In addition, the handover management system may be configured to initiate the handover of the first user device from the private network to the public network only when the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​indicates that the location of the first user device is outside the dedicated service area based on, for example, the service area information in the storage system.

[0006] The handover management system allows the control of handover by estimating whether the position of the user device is within or outside the dedicated service area based on the radio signal parameter value, and the radio signal parameter value can be used as a rough coordinate system for handover purposes. When the handover management system estimates that the user device is located in the dedicated service area, even when the radio signal parameter value of the public network for the user device indicates that a better radio connection with the public network is available, the communication with the private network can be maintained. When the position of the user device is estimated to be outside the dedicated service area (or logically equivalent, estimated to be not within the dedicated service area), the handover to the public network can be performed. However, when the user device approaches the private network from the public network, according to the prior art method described in the background technology, the handover to the private network can be performed based on the best signal strength. Therefore, the handover management system can asymmetrically control the handover between the private network and the public network.

[0007] It should be appreciated that the service area information may be stored in a storage system or memory system of a handover management system, for example in the system of the private base station or in a system connected to the private base station.

[0008] It should also be appreciated that the switching management system allows the dedicated service area to be defined in an arbitrary manner. One example is to define the dedicated service area within the boundaries formed by the walls of a residence or other indoor building, or along the perimeter of an area containing a residence or building (e.g., a garden or factory area). However, more complex dedicated service areas can be envisioned, such as areas within a building, such as some specific rooms of a building, where a continuous connection to a dedicated network is particularly preferred.

[0009] It should also be appreciated that both public networks and private networks may include 3GPP 5G networks.

[0010] It should also be appreciated that a private base station may include a wireless access point. Such a wireless access point may employ a radio access technology that is different from the radio access technology of a public radio base station, such as WiFi.

[0011] Finally, it should be appreciated that the radio signal parameter values ​​may include values ​​measured based on radio signals received from public and / or private base stations. The first set of radio signal parameter values ​​may include a set of dynamically changing radio signal parameter values ​​that are measured instantaneously during normal operation of the user device (or an average of several measurements) and reported to the base station. The second set of radio signal parameter values ​​may include a larger number of measurements that may be relatively static, compared to the first set, to define a dedicated service area.

[0012] In one embodiment, the first and second sets of radio signal parameter values ​​include reference signal received power RSRP measurements. RSRP measurements (usually expressed in dBm) are frequently used in telecommunications for handover decisions and provide a relatively simple implementation for the disclosed handover system. It should be appreciated that other parameters such as reference signal received quality RSRQ and / or reference signal signal-to-interference ratio (RS-SINR) (usually expressed in dB) can be used as alternatives or additionally used to estimate the position of the user device, although some additional processing of these parameter values ​​may be required.

[0013] In one embodiment, the handover management system is configured to use service area information that may include a machine learning model. The model may be trained using at least a second set of radio signal parameter values. In this way, the trained model may estimate when the user device is outside the dedicated service area by inputting a first set of radio signal parameter values ​​in the trained machine learning model, and outputting an indication of whether the first user device is located outside the dedicated service area. The machine learning model may be applied to obtain a more accurate estimate of the position of the user device relative to the (vis-à-vis) dedicated service area. For example, the application of the model may be useful when higher accuracy is required or for more complex dedicated service areas. In a further embodiment, the output of the machine learning model is a binary output indicating whether the position of the first user device is within or outside the dedicated service area, and the model is additionally trained using at least a third set of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one dedicated base station and at least one public base station outside the dedicated service area. It should be appreciated that in order to collect the third set of radio signal parameter values, the first user device or another user device may register the dedicated service area in a mode different from the service area definition mode.

[0014] In one embodiment, the handover management system is configured to use service area information, which may include a representation of a second set of radio signal parameter values, so that an evaluation can be performed against the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​to estimate whether the first user device is located outside the dedicated service area. In this embodiment, the second set of radio signal parameters may be processed using one or more mathematical operations to obtain the service area information. The service area information may, for example, include a value, a boundary value, an interval, or any other representation of a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​suitable for defining a dedicated service area and estimating the position of the user device relative to the dedicated service area. In one embodiment, the evaluation may include comparing the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​with a representation of the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to estimate whether the first user device is located outside the dedicated service area.

[0015] In one embodiment, the handover management system is configured to obtain a second radio signal parameter value set for defining a dedicated service area from at least one of the first user device or another user device in a service area definition mode. This embodiment allows the user to define a dedicated service area, wherein the connection with the private network is to be maintained. To this end, the user device can be set to a service area definition mode, as will be explained in further detail below. In one example, the user can utilize the user device in the service area definition mode to traverse (traverse) track in the wireless coverage area of ​​the private network to define the dedicated service area. During this operation, the user device can collect several second radio signal parameter values ​​(such as RSRP values) sets and report these to the handover management system, each set including both values ​​from one or more private base stations and values ​​from one or more public base stations. The handover management system can then process these values ​​to obtain service area information.

[0016] It should be appreciated that the user device in the service area definition mode may be a device for communicating with a private network after defining a dedicated service area (such as the first user device mentioned above), or a dedicated device for defining a dedicated service area.

[0017] In one embodiment, the handover management system is configured to send a service area definition mode instruction to the first user device or another user device. This embodiment enables control from the handover management system to set one or more user devices to the service area definition mode. In one embodiment, the service area definition mode instruction provides a reporting time interval for the first user device and / or another user device to report a second set of radio signal parameter values. The reporting time interval may be different from the reporting time interval of the radio signal parameter value (e.g., the first radio signal parameter value) used for handover in normal operation, so as to obtain appropriate definition of the dedicated service area.

[0018] In one embodiment, the handover management system may be configured to be set to a service area definition mode to obtain a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​for defining a dedicated service area. The handover management system in the service area definition mode may be configured to prohibit the first user device or another user device from switching to at least one public network base station. This embodiment facilitates that when the definition of the service area is in progress, the handover management system does not command the user device that collects the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to connect to the public base station, but maintains the connection to the dedicated base station so that the handover management system can collect the second set.

[0019] It should also be appreciated that the handover measurement system is configured to terminate the service area defined mode in itself and / or in the user equipment.

[0020] A private network with a large service area and a private network with a higher frequency base station may have deployed multiple private base stations. In one embodiment, the private network includes at least a first private base station and a second private base station. The switching management system can be configured to: based on receiving a first radio signal parameter value of the first private base station and a second radio signal parameter value of the second private base station and comparing these values, initiate a switch of the first user device from the first private base station to the second private base station. This embodiment allows the switching between private base stations to be performed according to a traditional switching mechanism, so that the user device communicating in the private network can be served by the base station with the best radio connection. Again, as in a public network, when the user device measures approximately equal radio signal parameter values, a threshold value can be applied to avoid frequent switching between private base stations.

[0021] In one embodiment, the handover management system can be configured to identify at least one base station, such as a private base station, based on a preconfigured list of a closed access group identifier CAG ID or a private cell identifier, i.e., a cell ID, of a private base station. The identifier can help control access to a private network, and can help the handover management system distinguish between radio signal parameter values ​​of a private base station and a public base station when deciding a handover of a user device, such as from one private base station to another private base station (at which time it may be necessary to apply a traditional handover decision). In a further embodiment, the handover management system can also provide (one or more) identifiers to a user device in a service area definition mode. Such an identifier can, for example, be included in a service area definition instruction. (One or more) identifiers can be used to inform the user device which base stations should measure the radio signal parameter values ​​of the second set.

[0022] The handover management system and / or the user device may be set to the service area limited mode in various ways.

[0023] In one embodiment, the handover management system may be configured to be set to a service area definition mode to obtain a second set of radio signal parameter values. The handover management system may be configured to be set to this mode in response to receiving a service area definition mode instruction from a user device. This embodiment enables a user to control when a dedicated service area is defined.

[0024] For a private network comprising more than one private base station, one embodiment involves a first private base station being configured to communicate a setting service area definition mode to a second private base station. Such communication may be performed via a direct connection between the private base stations or via a public network. This embodiment facilitates service area definition mode behavior of all private base stations of the private network. Such service area definition mode behavior comprises: collecting and / or processing a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to define a dedicated service area or obtain a representation of such a dedicated service area, for example by training a machine learning model.

[0025] The handover management system and / or the user equipment may store, use or distribute the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​in various ways.

[0026] For a private network comprising more than one private base station, an embodiment relates to: at least a first private base station and a second private base station being configured to store a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​received from a first user device or another user device at least during a service area definition mode. Because the user device reports the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to the serving private base station, both the first private base station and the second private base station can receive the second set of radio signal parameter values. In order to define the dedicated service area, it is advantageous that the private base stations of the private network store these values ​​to allow the dedicated service area to be defined when the user device has ended the measurement.

[0027] In one embodiment, at least the first dedicated base station and the second dedicated base station can exchange the second radio signal parameter value set with each other. This embodiment enables multiple or each dedicated base station to obtain all second radio signal parameter value sets of the dedicated base stations of the private network, so that each individual base station can obtain the service area information of the complete service area.

[0028] In one embodiment, the first private base station and the second private base station may send the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to a central location or to the user device. This facilitates centralizing service area information for centralized handover management or enables distribution of the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​by the user device.

[0029] In one embodiment, the first private base station can be configured to obtain service area information representing a dedicated service area of ​​the first private base station of the private network based on the received second radio signal parameter value set. Similarly, the second base station can be configured to obtain service area information representing a dedicated service area of ​​the second private base station of the private network based on the received second radio signal parameter value set. This embodiment facilitates decentralized handover control by making only a portion of the service area information available to a specific private base station, so that a decentralized handover management system can be obtained.

[0030] The handover management system and / or the user device may terminate the service area definition mode in various ways. Termination of the service area definition mode enables activation of the handover management system to decide on handover of the user device based on the service area information by estimating the location of the user device.

[0031] In one embodiment, the handover management system is configured to receive a service area limited mode termination instruction from the user device. This embodiment facilitates user control of switching the handover management system back to normal operation so as to use the acquired service area information for handover decisions.

[0032] In one embodiment, the handover management system is configured to terminate the service area restriction mode. For example, the handover management system may monitor the expiration of the restricted mode timer and / or analyze the second radio signal parameter value set to determine the termination of the service area restriction mode.

[0033] For a private network including more than one private base station, one embodiment involves: the handover management system is configured to transfer the termination of the service area limited mode from a private base station of the private network to one or more other private base stations. This embodiment may be advantageous when the private base stations in the private network are aware of each other's existence and are communicatively connected to each other.

[0034] Another embodiment relates to: the handover management system is configured to: store information from which private base station the user device entered the cell of the private base station in the service area definition mode, and forward the service area definition mode termination indication based on this information. When the user device sends a service area definition termination instruction to the private base station to which it is connected at the time of termination, this embodiment enables the service area definition mode termination indication to be forwarded back along and in the order of the private base stations to which the user device is connected in the service area definition mode. This is advantageous for a private network, in which the private base stations are unaware of each other's existence in the network.

[0035] In one embodiment, the handover management system may be part of at least one private base station. For example, the handover management system may be: implemented in one private base station, distributed on two or more private base stations of a private network, or part of a management system for a base station.

[0036] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a user device, which is configured to be used with a handover management system as disclosed herein. In particular, the user device can be configured to be set to a service area definition mode to transmit a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to the handover management system. A user can use a user device in a service area definition mode to traverse a track in a wireless coverage area of ​​a private network to define a dedicated service area. During this operation, the user device can collect several second radio signal parameter values ​​(such as RSRP values) from both one or more private base stations and one or more public base stations, and report these to the handover management system. The handover management system can then process these values ​​to obtain service area information.

[0037] In one embodiment, the user device may be configured to transmit at least one identifier of at least one private base station, such as a closed access group identifier CAG ID or a cell ID group, to the handover management system. The identifier helps the handover management system to distinguish between the radio signal parameter values ​​of the private base station and the public base station when deciding the handover of the first user device in normal operation.

[0038] In one embodiment, the user device is configured to be set to the service area definition mode in response to at least one of a service area definition mode instruction from a handover management system and a user input on the user device. This embodiment enables the user device to be used both in the service area definition mode for defining a dedicated service area and in normal operation.

[0039] In one embodiment, the user device may be configured to store a set of radio signal parameter values ​​during a service area definition mode, and send the set to a handover management system after storage. This embodiment facilitates: collecting a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​of multiple private base stations at the user device, and providing these sets to the handover management system at an appropriate time (e.g., when the connection to the private base station is poor or temporarily lost, or when the private base station cannot be reached due to the user device being outside the wireless coverage area of ​​the private base station). This embodiment also facilitates the collection of a third set of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one public base station outside the dedicated service area. The third set of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one public base station can be collected outside the dedicated service area. This embodiment avoids: measures should be taken to obtain a third set of radio signal parameter values ​​from a public network. It should be appreciated that in order to collect the third set of radio signal parameter values, the first user device or another user device may adopt a service area definition mode different from that used to register a dedicated service area.

[0040] In one embodiment, the user device may be configured to receive and process one or more CAG IDs used in the private network and / or a cell ID list for a private base station from a handover management system. Such an identifier or identifiers may be included in a service area limited mode instruction received from a private base station. An identifier or identifiers may be used to inform the user device which private base station(s) the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​should be collected for.

[0041] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a telecommunications system, the telecommunications system comprising a public network, at least one private network, a handover management system, and at least one user device, wherein the wireless coverage areas of the private network and the public network overlap at least partially. The handover management system may be configured to manage the handover of a first user device between a private network including at least one private base station and a public network including a plurality of public base stations. The handover management system may include a receiving system configured to receive a first set of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one of the plurality of public base stations from the first user device. The handover management system may also include service area information, the service area information representing a dedicated service area defined based on a plurality of second sets of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one public base station of the private network. In addition, the handover management system may be configured to initiate a handover of the first user device from the private network to the public network only when the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​indicates that the location of the first user device is outside the dedicated service area based on the service area information. At least one user device may be configured to be set to a service area definition mode to transmit a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to the handover management system. The user may traverse a track in the wireless coverage area of ​​the private network using at least one user device in a service area definition mode to define a private service area.

[0042] Another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method for managing a handover of a first user device between a private network including at least one private base station and a public network including a plurality of public base stations, wherein the wireless coverage areas of the private network and the public network overlap at least partially. The method involves the following steps: receiving a first set of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one of the plurality of public base stations from the first user device. The method may also involve obtaining service area information, the service area information representing a dedicated service area of ​​the private network defined based on a plurality of second sets of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station and at least one public base station. The method may further involve the following steps: initiating a handover of the first user device from the private network to the public network only when the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​indicates that the location of the first user device is outside the dedicated service area based on, for example, the service area information in a storage system.

[0043] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure relates to a method in a user device for use in the method for managing handover set out in the previous paragraph, the method involving the following steps: arranging the user device in a service area limited mode to transmit a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to the handover management system.

[0044] Other aspects of the present disclosure include a computer program comprising software code portions which, when run on a computer system, cause the computer system to perform one or more steps of a method for managing handover, or cause the computer system to perform one or more steps of a method for setting a user device to be in a service area limited mode.

[0045] As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, aspects of the present invention may be embodied as systems, methods, or computer program products. Therefore, aspects of the present invention may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment (including firmware, resident software, microcode, etc.), or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects (all of which may be generally referred to as "circuit", "module" or "system" herein). The functions described in this disclosure may be implemented as algorithms executed by a processor / microprocessor of a computer. In addition, aspects of the present invention may take the form of a computer program product, which is embodied in one or more computer-readable media, and the one or more computer-readable media embody (e.g., store) computer-readable program code thereon.

[0046] Any combination of one or more computer-readable media may be utilized. A computer-readable medium may be a computer-readable signal medium or a computer-readable storage medium. For example, a computer-readable storage medium may be (but not limited to): an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared or semiconductor system, device or apparatus, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples of computer-readable storage media may include (but not limited to) the following: an electrical connection with one or more wires, a portable computer floppy disk, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), an optical fiber, a portable compact disk read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a magnetic storage device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. In the context of the present invention, a computer-readable storage medium may be any tangible medium that may contain or store a program used by or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, device or apparatus.

[0047] Computer readable signal media may include, for example, a data signal propagated in baseband or as part of a carrier wave, in which computer readable program code is embodied. Such propagated signals may take any of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to, electromagnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. A computer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium that is not a computer readable storage medium and that may convey, propagate, or transmit a program used by or in conjunction with an instruction execution system, device, or apparatus.

[0048] Any suitable medium can be used to transmit the program code embodied in the computer-readable medium, and any suitable medium includes (but is not limited to) wireless, wired, optical fiber, cable, RF, etc. or any suitable combination of the foregoing. The computer program code for the operation of the aspect of the present invention can be written with any combination of one or more programming languages, and the one or more programming languages ​​include object-oriented programming languages ​​(such as Java, Smalltalk, C++ or the like) and traditional process programming languages ​​(such as "h", "C" programming languages ​​or similar programming languages). The program code can be: executed completely on a personal computer, partially on a personal computer, executed as an independent software package, partially on a personal computer and partially on a remote computer, or executed completely on a remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer can be connected to the personal computer through any type of network (including a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN)), or a connection to an external computer (for example, by using the Internet of an Internet service provider) can be performed.

[0049] Aspects of the present invention are described below with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, devices (systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of the present invention. It will be understood that each frame of the flowchart illustration and / or block diagram and the combination of frames in the flowchart illustration and / or block diagram can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer or other programmable data processing device, particularly a microprocessor or a central processing unit (CPU), to produce a machine so that instructions executed by a processor of a computer, other programmable data processing device or other device create components for implementing the functions / actions specified in one or more frames of the flowchart and / or block diagram.

[0050] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable medium, which can guide a computer, other programmable data processing device or other apparatus to operate in a specific manner so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable medium produce a product including instructions for implementing the functions / actions specified in one or more boxes of the flowchart and / or block diagram.

[0051] The computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer, other programmable data processing device or other apparatus to cause a series of operating steps to be performed on the computer, other programmable device or other apparatus, thereby producing a computer-implemented process, so that the instructions executed on the computer or other programmable device provide a process for implementing the functions / actions specified in one or more boxes of the flowchart and / or block diagram.

[0052] The flow charts and block diagrams in the accompanying drawings illustrate the possible architecture, functionality and operation of the system, method and computer program product according to various embodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each frame in the flow chart or block diagram can represent a part, a fragment or a module of a code including one or more executable instructions for implementing (one or more) specified logical functions. It should also be noted that in some alternative implementations, the functions marked in the frame may not occur in the order marked in the accompanying drawings. For example, the two frames shown in succession can actually be performed substantially simultaneously, or the frame can sometimes be performed in the opposite order, depending on the functionality involved. It will also be noted that each frame of the block diagram and / or flow chart illustration and the combination of frames in the block diagram and / or flow chart illustration can be implemented by a combination of a dedicated hardware-based system or dedicated hardware and computer instructions that perform a specified function or action.

[0053] Furthermore, a computer program for executing the method described herein and a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing the computer program are provided.

[0054] Unless otherwise explicitly stated, elements and aspects discussed for or with respect to a particular embodiment may be appropriately combined with elements and aspects of other embodiments. Embodiments of the present invention will be further described with reference to the accompanying drawings, which will schematically illustrate embodiments according to the present invention. It will be understood that the present invention is not limited to these specific embodiments in any way. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0055] Aspects of the invention will be explained in more detail with reference to exemplary embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0056] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of several public base stations of a public telecommunication network providing cells overlapping with a private telecommunication network having at least one private base station;

[0057] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 details of which illustrate inefficient traffic flow when a user device is connected to a public base station while consuming services from a private network;

[0058] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a handover management system for managing handover of a user device between a private network including at least one private base station and a public network including a plurality of public base stations;

[0059] Figure 4 is a signaling flow diagram showing some steps of a handover management system and a user device used with the handover management system;

[0060] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a user device for use with a handover management system;

[0061] Fig. 6A and 6B is a schematic diagram of a practical example of the operation of a handover management system and a user device;

[0062] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a handover management system and a user device for use with the handover management system for a private network having a plurality of private base stations; and

[0063] Figure 8 A processing system is depicted in accordance with an embodiment of a handover management system or a user device for use with a handover management system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0064] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a public telecommunication network showing several public base stations BSA-BSD connected to a core network system 1. The base stations BSA to BSD define a plurality of cells of a radio coverage area. The terms base station and cell will be used interchangeably in this disclosure.

[0065] In one example, the public telecommunication network is a 5G telecommunication network as defined by 3GPP. The 5G telecommunication network consists of a 5G access network and a 5G core network (5GC) 1. The access network consists of a new generation radio access network (NG-RAN) using a 5G new air interface (NR). NG-RAN includes 5G base stations (also referred to as gNBs), such as BSA to BSD, which are connected to 5GC 1 and to each other. The higher frequency of the 5G network reduces the range of the 5G base stations BSA-BSD. In order to provide continuous coverage, the public base stations BSA-BSD are placed closer to each other, and thus the density of the public base stations increases. As a result, more adjacent public base stations overlap, and users will be more likely to be under coverage from multiple public base stations (from other cells).

[0066] The private network is deployed in the coverage area of ​​the base stations BSA to BSD. The private network includes base stations BS1, BS2 and BS3 and is connected to the public telecommunication network via a gateway GW in a wired or wireless manner. The wireless coverage area of ​​the base stations BS1-BS3 of the private network overlaps with the wireless coverage area of ​​the public base stations BSA-BSD and may span specific areas 2, 3, such as residences, offices or factory sites. Such base stations BS1-BS3 may also be composed of wireless access points applying a radio access technology different from that of the public radio base stations BSA-BSD.

[0067] Private networks include: in-home networks, private networks (e.g., factory networks), or even private parts of public networks (such as network slices of 5G telecommunication networks), etc. These private networks provide wireless coverage through one or more private base stations BS1-BS3, which can be connected to the public wireless communication network via a gateway device GW. User devices connected to the private network can be switched to the public network based on the same mechanism as switching between public base stations or cells within the public telecommunication network.

[0068] An example of a dedicated network is a private network, such as a home network, an office network, or a factory network. For example, with the rise of home automation and personal IoT, more and more traditional non-networked home devices can become networked and can be used and managed via remote monitoring (e.g., using a mobile application in a user device UE). In addition to existing applications (e.g., printers, computers, smart phones), home networks can also be used for other home elements, such as entertainment (e.g., smart TVs, audio and game consoles), lighting, security, and climate systems (i.e., environmental conditioning). These local devices can be connected via a (converged) home network, and these local devices can be provided as local services via a local UPF residing at home. Users can use these home services through a converged home network by connecting to a home UPF via local base stations BS1, BS2, BS3 (also referred to as home gNBs), while also accessing a public network (i.e., the Internet). This can result in lower user costs, higher performance, and more privacy protection because home services are used within a (local) home network.

[0069] Private base stations BS1-BS3 can provide 5G small cells, which are easy to deploy and can help fill the coverage gaps between the large 5G base stations BSA-BSD of the public telecommunication network, thereby supplementing the coverage of macro sites. Depending on the signal strength, these private networks may have a smaller coverage area and are intended to provide only intra-home connectivity. However, since radio signals attenuate across different surfaces, they may not follow a specific geographical shape.

[0070] Based on the received signal strength at a particular moment, the mobile user device can be handed over from the base stations BS1, BS2, BS3 of the private network to the base stations BSA-BSD of the public network. This signal strength is generally measured for the pilot signals or reference signals transmitted from the various base stations. Handover may occur more easily when the user device is near the border of the residential area 2, i.e., in the garden or in the attic of the house (if far away from the private base stations BS1, BS2 or BS3).

[0071] like Figure 2 As shown in FIG, when the user device UE is in the home network, it is connected to the core network of the network operator via the base station BS1 and the UPF / GW. Figure 1 Local services (e.g., home services) are used via the UPF within the home area depicted above. When the UE is connected via the in-home base station BS1, the UE is configured to measure certain radio signal parameter values ​​from the current serving cell of the base station BS1 and surrounding cells (such as base stations of a public network, e.g., base station BSA) to estimate whether another cell / base station may be a more suitable access for the UE. These measurements may include at least one of the reference signal received power (RSRP), the reference signal received quality (RSRQ), and the signal-to-interference ratio (RS-SINR), expressed in dB (or in dBm in the case of RSRP). The measurements are periodically sent to the current serving base station, i.e., base station BS1, and BS1 determines whether to perform a handover based on these measurements.

[0072] The handover procedure may be triggered when a neighboring cell (in this case a public network provided by base station BSA) becomes better than the currently used cell, or when the value of the current cell drops below a given threshold and the neighboring cell performs better than the given threshold or another given threshold. If base station BS1 decides to perform a handover procedure to a public base station BSA, for example because the received signal power of the external BSA is stronger than the currently used BS, it sends a handover request to the public base station BSA and triggers a RAN handover initiation towards the UE, in which case the UE detaches from base station BS1 and synchronizes to the new base station BSA. After the handover procedure, the UE is connected to the public base station BSA. In this case, the UE uses local services in the home area 2 via the public base station BSA, which routes the connection towards the UPF / GW via the operator transport network. This becomes even more undesirable since there is usually no direct operator transport network between the BSA and the home, such as with Figure 2 As shown in the dotted line in the figure.

[0073] Therefore, when the UE is still in residential area 2 and is using home services, the UE is now connected to the public base station BSA, and the public base station BSA routes the user plane traffic through the operator's transport network to return only towards the home UPF to use local services. Even though the UE may be geographically in the wireless coverage area of ​​the home network, the switch causes the data to pass through different and often longer paths instead of being used directly. This is inefficient because the UE traffic is transmitted twice instead of once, because it goes through the operator backhaul because the user plane is first transported from the public base station BSA to the home UPF (first transmission) and then from the home UPF to the public UPF in the 5GC (second transmission). In addition, due to, for example, delay time, the privacy of the service is lower than necessary and performance may be affected.

[0074] Figure 3 The present invention is an embodiment of a switching management system 10 that allows a user device UE1 to continue to use local services via a private base station BS1. However, when UE1 actually leaves the home area 2 (for example, the user device UE1 leaves the house), it is useful to perform a switch to a base station of a public network to continue the service. In addition, when UE1 re-enters the home area 2 or is close to the area so that the private network provides a suitable connection, UE1 should be switched to the private network based on a conventional radio signal parameter value comparison. The switching management system 10 according to the present disclosure is therefore particularly suitable for a decision on whether to perform a switch from a private base station BS1 to a public base station BSA-BSD, and such a decision is based on the estimated position of the UE within the service area.

[0075] The handover management system 10 comprises a receiving system 11, which is configured to receive a first set of radio signal parameter values ​​FS={x1, x2, x3, x4} of a user device UE1 for at least one private base station BS1 and other public base stations BSA-BSC of a public telecommunication network, for which these values ​​are measured. In particular, the user device UE can measure the radio signal parameter value x1 from the private base station BS1, x2 from the public base station BSA, x3 from the public base station BSB and x4 from the public base station BSC.

[0076] The handover management system 10 may further comprise or be connected to a storage system or memory system 12, the storage system or memory system 12 storing service area information SAI, the service area information SAI representing a dedicated service area 2 of a private network, the dedicated service area 2 being defined based on a plurality of second radio signal parameter value sets SS of at least one private base station BS1 and a public base station BSA-BSC at different locations throughout the service area 2, as will be described in further detail below. In addition, the handover management system 10 may be configured to initiate a handover of the user device UE1 from the private network to the public network only when the first radio signal parameter value set FS indicates that the location of the user device UE1 is outside the dedicated service area 2 based on the service area information SAI in the storage system 12.

[0077] The handover management system 10 allows controlling handover by estimating whether the location of the user equipment UE1 is inside or outside the dedicated service area 2 based on a radio signal parameter value x, which can be used as a kind of rough coordinate system for making handover decisions. When the handover management system estimates that the user equipment UE1 is located in the dedicated service area 2, communication with the private network can be maintained even when the radio signal parameter value x of the public network (i.e., base station BSA, BSB or BSC) for the user equipment UE1 indicates that a better radio connection with the public network would be available. When the location of the user equipment UE1 is estimated to be outside the dedicated service area 2, a handover to the public network can be performed, as will be referred to in Figure 6B Described in more detail.

[0078] It should be appreciated that the switching management system allows the dedicated service area to be defined in an arbitrary manner. One example is to define the dedicated service area within the boundaries formed by the walls of the residence 2 or other indoor building, or along the perimeter of an area containing the residence or building (e.g., a garden 4 or a factory area). However, more complex dedicated service areas can be envisaged, such as areas within a building, such as some specific rooms of a building, where a continuous connection to the dedicated network is particularly preferred.

[0079] although Figure 3 The handover management system is shown connected to a private base station BS1, but it is possible that the handover management system 10 is part of at least one private base station. For example, the handover management system 10 can be implemented in one private base station BS1, or distributed on two or more private base stations of a private network, or in another centralized system or even in a public network.

[0080] Now refer to Figure 3-5 An embodiment for acquiring service area information SAI is described.

[0081] The user equipment UE may be set to be in the service area limited mode, and the user equipment UE may be or may not be the user equipment UE1 described above. Figure 4 In step S1 of , a service area limitation mode start instruction SI is sent to the user equipment UE. This embodiment enables the control from the handover management system 10 to set the user equipment UE to the service area limitation mode. The service area limitation mode instruction may include a reporting time interval ΔT for the user equipment UE to report the second radio signal parameter value set SS. The reporting time interval ΔT may be different from the conventional reporting time interval used for handover in order to obtain appropriate definition of the dedicated service area 2. As another example, the user may set the user equipment UE to be in the service area limitation mode by interacting with the user equipment UE. To this end, the user equipment UE may be configured with a program code C to, by Figure 5 A menu is shown on the screen S shown in to enable this mode. The user equipment UE may be configured to store in the memory M one or more second sets SS with measured radio signal parameters x.

[0082] In the service area limited mode, the user equipment UE is positioned, for example, approximately along the desired perimeter of the dedicated service area (e.g., as determined by Figure 3 The radio signal parameter value is measured while moving (as shown by the dotted line in the figure). The radio signal parameter value is measured by Figure 4 For example, at the starting position in the upper right corner, the user equipment UE can measure the radio signal parameter value x5 from the private base station BS1, x6 from the public base station BSA, x7 from the public base station BSB, and x8 from the public base station BSC to form a second set SS. Some other second sets SS are also Figure 3 It should be appreciated that more (or much more) second sets may be acquired by the user equipment UE.

[0083] If a reporting time interval ΔT is implemented, the measurements of the radio signal parameter values ​​are reported at this time interval as shown. In steps S3, S5 and S7, the UE reports a second set of values ​​SS for various locations of the user equipment to the serving dedicated base station BS1. It should be noted that Figure 4 It is not necessary to report a separate second value set SS to the serving base station as shown in FIG. Figure 5 Storing the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS (or values ​​allowing construction of the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS) in the memory M of the user device may be beneficial when the connection to the serving base station is (temporarily) lost.

[0084] The serving base station BS1 in the service area definition mode is configured to prohibit handover of UE during this mode. Therefore, when the definition of the service area is in progress, the handover management system 10 does not command the user device UE collecting the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS to connect to the public base station BSA-BSC, but maintains the connection to the private base station BS1 so that the handover management system 10 can collect the second set SS and report these via the private base station BS1.

[0085] The measurements (and the associated reporting of the second set of values ​​SS) may be repeated as long as the service area definition mode is in operation.

[0086] When the service area limitation mode ends, the user equipment UE may indicate this to the serving dedicated base station BS1 in a service area limitation mode termination instruction T1 in step S8. Step S8 may be triggered by the user of the user equipment UE operating a menu item on the screen S of the user equipment UE to transmit the service area limitation mode termination instruction T1.

[0087] Other implementations for terminating the service area definition mode are envisioned, such as terminating the mode from the network based on one or more of the following: expiration of a timer and analysis of the second set of parameters. For example, when the radio signal parameter values ​​of the second set stay within a specific value range for a certain period of time, the handover management system may decide to terminate the service area definition mode or send a request to the terminal to end the service area definition mode.

[0088] The radio signal parameter values ​​of the first and second sets FS, SS may include reference signal received power RSRP measurements. RSRP measurements (usually expressed in dBm) are frequently used in telecommunications for handover decisions and provide a relatively simple implementation for the handover management system 10. It should be appreciated that other parameters such as reference signal received quality RSRQ and / or reference signal signal-to-interference ratio (RS-SINR) (usually expressed in dB) may be used as an alternative or additionally to determine the location of the user device, although some additional processing of these parameter values ​​may be required.

[0089] In step S9 , the handover management system processes the received second radio signal parameter value set to obtain service area information SAI, so as to estimate the location of the user equipment UE or UE1 for controlling the handover.

[0090] The handover management system 10 may be configured to use service area information that may include a machine learning model. The model may be trained using at least a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS obtained from the user device UE. In this way, the model may estimate when the user device UE1 is outside the dedicated service area by inputting a first set of radio signal parameter values ​​FS into the trained machine learning model, and outputting an indication of whether the first user device is located outside the dedicated service area 2. The machine learning model may be applied to obtain a more accurate estimate of the location of the user device UE1 relative to the dedicated service area 2. For example, the application of the model may be useful when a higher degree of accuracy is required or for more complex dedicated service areas.

[0091] The output of the machine learning model is a binary output indicating whether the location of the first user device is inside or outside the dedicated service area 2. For example, the user may use the user device UE and walk around the building 2 through the garden 4 to measure radio signal parameter values ​​for a third set of values ​​(which represents a location outside the dedicated service area). In this mode, the user device UE may: connect to one or more public base stations, and store third sets of radio signal parameter values ​​for BS1 and BSA-BSC in the memory M, and report these third sets to the handover management system at a later point in time when connected to the base station BS1. Alternatively, the user device UE may remain connected to the dedicated base station BS1, but have a poor connection that is even temporarily disconnected, in which case it would be beneficial to temporarily store the third set of parameter values ​​in the user device UE.

[0092] The model may be additionally trained using at least a third set of radio signal parameter values ​​of at least one private base station BS1 and a public base station BSA-BSC outside the dedicated service area. It should be appreciated that in order to collect the third set of radio signal parameter values, the first user device or another user device may adopt a service area definition mode different from that used to register the dedicated service area.

[0093] Alternatively, the handover management system 10 may be configured to use service area information SAI, which may include a representation of the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS, enabling evaluation against the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​FS to estimate that the location of the first user device is outside the dedicated service area. In this embodiment, the second set of radio signal parameters SS may be processed using one or more mathematical operations to obtain the service area information SAI. The service area information may, for example, include values, boundary values, intervals, or any other representation suitable for defining a dedicated service area and estimating the location of the user device relative to the dedicated service area. Reference will be made below to Fig. 6A and 6B Describe an example of this situation.

[0094] When the service area definition mode is terminated and the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​has been processed, the user device UE continues to measure the radio signal parameter values ​​from the base station BS1 and the BSA-BSC, as indicated in step S10. In step S11, the user device UE reports these values ​​as the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​FS to the serving base station BS1. When the handover management system 10 estimates that the user device UE1 is located in the dedicated service area 2 based on the first set of parameter values ​​FS obtained in step S11, even when the radio signal parameter value x of the public network (i.e., the base station BSA, BSB or BSC) for the user device UE indicates that a better radio connection with the public network will be available, the communication with the private base station BS1 is maintained. The same is true for another user device UE1 that has not yet participated in obtaining the service area information SAI, steps S12 and S13. These measurements and reports to the handover management system 10 continue to enable the estimation of the location of the user device UE and UE1.

[0095] At a certain point in time, the handover management system 10 may estimate that the location of the user equipment UE is not within the dedicated service area 2. The handover management system 10 may: perform an analysis of the signal strength of each of the base stations in the first set FS according to the prior art and find that, for example, the public base station BSB provides the best connection. Steps S14 and S15 indicate signaling from the handover management system 10 to the user equipment UE and the public base station BSB to prepare for the handover.

[0096] like Figure 5 The user device depicted in is particularly suitable for use with the switching management system 10. The user device UE is configured to be set to a service area definition mode to transmit a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS to the switching management system 10. The user can traverse a trajectory in the wireless coverage area of ​​the private network using the user device UE in the service area definition mode to define, for example, a dedicated service area 2. During this operation, the user device UE can collect several second sets of radio signal parameter values ​​SS, such as RSRP values, from both one or more private base stations BS1 and one or more public base stations BSA-BSC, and report these to the switching management system 10. The switching management system 10 can then process these values ​​to obtain the service area information as described above. The user device UE can be configured to respond to the service area definition mode instruction ( Figure 4 At least one of step S1) in the step S2) and user input on the user device is used to adopt the service area limitation mode.

[0097] Fig. 6A and 6BA practical example of obtaining service area information SAI using the handover management system 10 and the user equipment UE in the home network is illustrated.

[0098] The private base station BS1 is configured to broadcast a closed access group (CAG) ID that is provisioned in UEs belonging to the home, so other user devices do not attempt to access the home network, and the home UE can distinguish when a cell is part of the home network. It should be appreciated that other solutions for making user devices aware of the difference between public and private base stations have been envisioned, including configuring the cell ID of the private base station in the handover management system.

[0099] The UE may measure the RSRP value RSRP1 associated with the private base station BS1. At the same time, the home location is also within the coverage of the public network, so that the user device UE will measure RSRP2, RSRP3 and RSRP4 of, for example, base stations BSA, BSB and BSC, respectively.

[0100] For the private network, good radio planning is assumed, ie the private base station BS1 is well placed such that it can provide the best signal strength to the UEs within the whole physical area of ​​the home 2 .

[0101] During the service area definition phase, as the user equipment UE passes through the physical area of ​​the home, the RSRP values ​​of the base stations are recorded so that for several locations within the home, RSRP values ​​can be recorded. This can be done by means of the user with the user equipment UE walking around the residence so that the values ​​can be recorded and stored. It should be appreciated that the locations themselves need not be recorded, but only the radio signal parameter values ​​are measured, and as Figure 3 As shown in , the radio signal parameter values ​​are collected in sets {RSRP1, RSRP2, RSRP3, RSRP4}, which have values ​​shown as x5-x20. These values ​​can be used as a kind of coordinate system, although their values ​​may not decrease linearly with increasing distance due to the nature of wave propagation.

[0102] Once RSRP values ​​have been measured in the service area definition mode and stored (and possibly processed), a set of values ​​can be created and the boundary values ​​of these four different RSRP values ​​can be identified to represent a dedicated service area. Using a combination of these values ​​can make it possible to estimate whether the UE is in the service area or not in the service area (which corresponds to not being in the service area). Fig. 6A , 6BThe remaining values ​​in the table of ). Since the user equipment UE regularly reports the RSRP values ​​of the base stations, the algorithm running in the handover management system can fetch the RSRP value of the relevant base station and cross-reference this with the set of values ​​initially recorded in the service area limitation mode to estimate whether the user equipment UE1 is in the home area or outside. For example, if the values ​​of the first set FS fall into the interval designated as inpremise, then: even if one or more public base stations BSA-BSC have a better RSRP than the RSRP of the private base station BS1, the private base station BS1 will not initiate a handover. Otherwise, the UE is found to be outside the home area and the private base station BS1 will initiate a handover towards a public base station as usual based on the signal strength (RSRP).

[0103] It should be understood that although Fig. 6A and 6B The example uses four base stations, which is adequate for good three-dimensional spatial positioning, but the disclosed system can be used with fewer base stations for reference. However, the more base stations that can be measured by the UE, the more reference points there are for decisions, and the more accurate the decision can be, especially with respect to positioning in a 2D plane or 3D space. Furthermore, with the advancement of advanced antenna systems and other similar solutions for base stations, it should be appreciated that actual signal strength shows even more variation, but if the best value is taken (i.e., the best possible beam from each base station), appropriate results can still be obtained.

[0104] like Fig. 6A and 6B As shown in , base stations can broadcast their cell IDs and private base stations can also broadcast its CAG ID. The closed access group identifies a group of subscribers that are allowed to access one or more CAG cells associated with the CAG. CAG is used to prevent (one or more) UEs that are not allowed to access the associated (one or more) cells from automatically selecting and accessing the associated (one or more) CAG cells. In order to use CAG, a UE (supporting CAG as indicated as part of the UE 5GMM core network capabilities) can be pre-configured or (re)configured with the following CAG information (which is included in the subscription as part of the mobility restrictions).

[0105] In operation, a user equipment UE is connected to a private base station BS1 and is configured by the private base station BS1 to send measurement reports at specific time intervals. The UE and the private base station BS1 are placed in a service area definition mode, which is a calibration mode of the UE and the private base station BS1 in order to define the dedicated service area for the handover management system algorithm. The service area definition mode is performed by the user equipment sending regular measurements of all measurable base stations, optionally including their CAG ID (if they belong to the same CAG as the currently serving private base station BS1, otherwise the measurement is discarded because it belongs to another group / family). In this state, the private base station BS1 does not initiate a handover to a public base station for this user equipment UE at all. This mode can be: Figure 5 ), or triggered by a base station using a signaling message (ie, an RRC reconfiguration message), such as Figure 4 As shown in step S1.

[0106] In order to enable a baseline to be established for measurements within the home area, the user of the user equipment UE moves through the home area that needs to be defined, while the user equipment UE keeps sending measurements regularly. The user may be informed that this activity is needed to define the dedicated service area. The length of the interval for the measurements is either set by the dedicated base station in e.g. an RRC reconfiguration message, or configured by the user in the UE, depending on the trigger mentioned above. The measurements contain at least an indication of the signal strength (in the form of RSRP or other indications like RSSI, SINR etc.) and the cell ID (including the CAG ID if applicable) of each of the four base stations. Fig. 6A The trajectory of the user equipment UE is depicted with a dotted line in FIG. In general, the user needs to allow the user equipment UE to perform measurements in the relevant area where he / she wants to define a "home area", especially along the boundary between the home area 2 and areas that may be outside (e.g. in the attic, near a window, in the garden 4).

[0107] When the private base station BS1 receives all these measurements, the measurements are stored in, for example, a handover management system (not shown separately in these figures) as follows: Fig. 6A , 6B After the house crossing is finished, either by the user or automatically by the user device UE (ie by storing all samples and analyzing that no new samples exist any more), the user device UE sends a message to the private base station BS1 that the data has been collected (see also Figure 4 The service area limitation mode may be terminated.

[0108] After all the data is collected, the handover management system at the private base station BS1 processes the data and can determine the range of values ​​that fall in the home area, for example by taking the minimum and maximum RSRP of each base station. Fig. 6A In the table of three samples for positions 1, 2, 3, these intervals are RSRP1 = (-141, -62), RSRP2 = (-149, -54), RSRP3 = (-200, -124) and RSRP4 = (-210, -105). This is a simple calculation and assumes a linear relationship between distance and signal strength, which may be sufficient for some arrangements. It should be appreciated that the accuracy requirements are not necessarily as stringent as the accuracy requirements for UE positioning. Simplicity is an advantage and may be suitable for widespread use. If more stringent requirements are set, then: a more sophisticated algorithm may be used, or a machine learning model may be applied, as described above.

[0109] In real scenarios, complexity may arise from the actual physical environment, frequencies used, and other variables. Another complexity is the presence of beamforming and non-omnidirectional antenna solutions. In order to gain accuracy and capture real relationships, supervised machine learning algorithms for binary classification may be helpful. Binary classification refers to classification tasks with two class labels, and popular algorithms to accomplish this are logistic regression, k-nearest neighbors, decision trees, support vector machines, naive Bayes, and others. The two class labels applicable to the disclosed solution are service area = yes and service area = no. As Fig. 6A As illustrated in , as the UE traverses across the service area, training data for the "service area = yes" label has been collected. For the label "service area = no", training data may also be needed, because otherwise there may not be enough information for the algorithm to generate the boundary.

[0110] Such training data may be generated in a second run after the first house traversal when the user equipment UE is outside the service area boundary. In this embodiment, the dedicated base station may send a message to the user equipment UE to activate a "house boundary limited mode" (e.g., Figure 4), which may pop up on the screen S of the user device UE as a prompt to the user and request input when to start data collection. After the user initiates this mode, the traversal of the user device UE outside the service area begins and data is collected in the same way as before, but this time with a different label - Service Area = No. During this process, a third set of radio signal parameters is measured, but, since the coverage of the private base station BS1 is optimized for the house, the user device UE may lose connectivity with the private base station BS1 (because handover to non-CAG-ID base stations is not allowed) and may not be able to send regular RRC measurement reports. In this case, the user device UE may: use the memory M to store the radio signal parameter values ​​and send them in batches whenever connectivity with the private base station BS1 is reestablished by the lower layers. Alternatively, the UE in the house boundary limited mode may be forced to communicate only with the private base station BS1, and if communication with the private base station BS1 is temporarily not possible, the memory M may be used to store the third set.

[0111] When this process is complete, the private base station BS1 can use the combined data set with "service area = yes" and "service area = no" labels to train a supervised ML algorithm that outputs a classifier for handover decisions.

[0112] When this measurement process is completed and the dedicated service area information is available, the private base station BS1 and the user equipment UE leave the service area definition mode and switch to normal operation by using these ranges in the handover decision. The user equipment UE keeps sending regular measurement reports as usual. This is described in clause 9.2.3.2 from 3GPP TS 38.300. During this normal operation, when the private base station BS1 senses that a handover needs to be initiated towards a cell ID without a CAG ID, the handover management system performs an additional check and obtains the measurement reports of the three public base stations BSA-BSC as described above, and checks whether these four values ​​(including its own) are within the calculated (or defined) premises values ​​or intervals. If the result is positive, the user equipment is still considered to be on premises and no handover is initiated.

[0113] For example, when the user equipment UE1 is in Figure 6B 4, the first set of RSRP values ​​reported to the private base station BS1 may indicate that the public base station BSA provides a better connection than the private base station BS1. The first set FS may, for example, include {-130, -110, -170, -140}, all of which are in the service area information interval, so that the user equipment UE1 is still considered to be in the house. If UE1 moves out of the service area, such as Figure 6BAs shown in , the first reporting value set FS will no longer fall within the interval, and the user equipment UE1 can be switched in a known manner.

[0114] Private network(s) having a large service area and private network(s) having a higher frequency of base stations may have deployed multiple private base stations.

[0115] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a handover management system for a private network comprising a first private base station BS2 and a second private base station BS3. Further private base stations BS4, BS5 (not shown), ... may be deployed for the private network.

[0116] The handover management system comprises a handover manager 10', which can be configured to: initiate a handover of the first user equipment UE1 from the first private base station BS2 to the second private base station BS3 based on receiving a first radio signal parameter value of the first private base station and a second radio signal parameter value of the second private base station and comparing these values. This may occur when the user equipment UE1 is close to the base station BS3, such as Figure 7 . This embodiment allows to perform handovers between private base stations BS2, BS3 according to conventional handover mechanisms, so that user equipment UE communicating within the private network can be served by the private base station with the best radio connection. Again, as in the public network, when the user equipment measures approximately equal radio signal parameter values, thresholds can be applied to avoid frequent handovers between private base stations. As a result of UE1 reporting a CAG ID or a cell ID for which the handover system knows that this cell ID is associated with a private base station, the handover manager 10' can detect internal handovers within the private network.

[0117] The decision to switch to a service area limited mode of a public network may need to accommodate situations where multiple private base stations are deployed.

[0118] The handover management system may be configured to be set to a service area definition mode to obtain a second set of radio signal parameter values. The first private base station BS2 may be configured to transfer the setting to the service area definition mode to the second private base station BS3. Such transfer may be performed by a direct connection between the private base stations BS2 and BS3 or via a public network. This embodiment facilitates starting the service area definition mode for all private base stations BS2 and BS3 of the private network. Such service area definition mode behavior includes collecting and / or processing a second (and possibly a third) set of radio signal parameter values ​​to define a dedicated service area or obtain a representation of such a dedicated service area, for example by training a machine learning model.

[0119] In one example, all private base stations BS2, BS3 of the private network may be part of a closed access group (CAG) and broadcast the CAG ID to the user equipment UE, UE1, such as Figure 7 All user equipment UE, UE1 in the service area can be configured with an "allowed CAG list" so that UE, UE1 can identify which private base stations in the area are available for access. Together with the recorded RSRP values ​​from all public and private base stations, the user equipment UE can also report the associated CAG ID to the serving private base station in the service area limited mode.

[0120] Furthermore, the user equipment UE may be configured to receive and process one or more identifiers, such as a CAG ID or multiple CAG IDs and / or a list of cell IDs of the private base stations BS2, BS3, BS4. This information may be used to determine the private base stations for which the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​are measured during the service area definition mode. The identifier or identifiers may be included in the service area definition mode instruction.

[0121] While the measurements are being taken, when the user device UE in service area limited mode is moving around within the expected service area and moving away from the private base station BS2, RSRP1 will become weaker than the signal from another private base station BS3 associated with the value RSRP5. Before initiating the handover to BS3, the handover manager 10' can check whether the stronger signal of BS2 has an associated CAG ID. If so, this means that the private base station BS2 is associated with the same service area, and the handover can be initiated based on RSRP1 and RSRP5 (using a hysteresis threshold, if applicable). While initiating the handover, the handover manager 10' of the serving private base station BS2 can also send an indication to the new serving private base station BS3 that the user device UE is in service area limited mode. The private base stations BS2 and BS3 can have an Xn interface between each other, so this will be an Xn handover, in which case this indication can be sent via Xn. However, in the case of N2 handover, the same indication can be transmitted via N2 via the AMF of the core network 1. This is also an effective process and is also applicable to private networks with more than two private base stations.

[0122] The handover management system may store, use or distribute the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​in various ways.

[0123] For a private network comprising more than one private base station BS2, BS3, the first private base station BS2 and the second private base station BS3 may be configured to store a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS received from the first user equipment UE1 or another user equipment UE using the switching managers 10' and 10" at least during the service area definition mode. Since the user equipment UE reports the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS to the serving private base station, both the first private base station and the second private base station may receive the second set of radio signal parameter values. In order to define the dedicated service area, it is advantageous that the private base stations BS2, BS3 of the private network store these values ​​to allow the dedicated service area to be defined when the user equipment has ended the service area definition mode.

[0124] In addition, the first private base station BS2 and the second private base station BS3 can exchange the second radio signal parameter value set SS with each other. This embodiment enables each private base station BS2, BS3 to obtain all second radio signal parameter value sets of the private base stations of the private network, so that: each individual base station BS2, BS3 can obtain the service area information of the complete service area, and decide to switch to the public network based on the defined private service area. The base station BS3 is provided with a local switching manager 10" as part of the switching management system.

[0125] The first private base station BS2 and the second private base station BS3 may also send the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to the central switching manager 10'' or to the user device UE. This facilitates centralization of service area information for centralized switching management, or enables distribution of the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​by the user device UE. For example, for a private base station BS4 that does not have a switching manager, the user device UE may: store the second set and make them available to, for example, the central switching manager 10''.

[0126] Furthermore, the first private base station BS2 may be configured to obtain service area information representing a dedicated service area of ​​the first private base station of the private network based on the received second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS. Similarly, the second private base station BS3 may be configured to obtain service area information representing a dedicated service area of ​​the second private base station of the private network based on the received second set of radio signal parameter values ​​SS. This embodiment facilitates decentralized handover control using the handover managers 10' and 10", respectively, by making only a portion of the service area information available to specific private base stations BS2, BS3, so that a decentralized handover management system may be implemented.

[0127] For example, when the handover manager 10', 10" and / or 10'" of the handover management system determines that a handover is to be initiated to a base station having a cell ID (the cell ID does not have a CAG ID and / or is not part of the cell ID list of private base stations of the private network), the handover management system can perform an additional check by referring to the first radio signal parameter set FS of UE1 against the dedicated service area information to estimate whether UE1 is still within the dedicated service area. If the result is positive, the user equipment UE1 is still considered to be inside the house and the handover is not initiated. However, for private base stations with the same CAG ID or on the cell ID list of private base stations, the handover is performed in a normal RSRP check manner following the current standard.

[0128] Termination of the service area limitation mode enables activation of the handover management system to decide handover of the user device based on the service area information by estimating the location of the user device.

[0129] exist Figure 7 In the private network, the private base stations BS2 and BS3 can be aware of each other's existence in the private network. Therefore, when the service area limitation mode is terminated, a termination signal or indication can be sent or forwarded to all private base stations BS2 and BS3, so that normal operation can start and a handover decision can be made based on the defined private service area. For example, when the user equipment UE sends a termination signal to the private base station BS2, the handover manager 10' can send this signal to the handover manager 10" of the private base station BS3 and / or any other handover managers of the private base stations of the private network.

[0130] If the private network is configured so that the private base stations or the handover management system are unaware of each other's presence in the network, the termination indication from the user device UE to the serving private base station may not reach all private base stations. This may be applicable in a private network with three or more private base stations. To this end, the handover management system can be configured to: store information C of which private base station the user device UE enters the cell of the private base stations BS2, BS3, BS4 from in the service area definition mode, and forward the service area definition mode termination indication according to the stored information. When the user device UE sends a service area definition termination instruction to the private base station to which it is connected at the time of termination, this embodiment enables the service area definition mode termination indication to propagate back along and in the order of the private base stations to which the user device UE is connected in the service area definition mode. In this way, the termination indication can be received by all private base stations BS2, BS3, BS4 without configuring the private network so that the private base stations know each other's presence.

[0131] In one example, it may happen that the user device UE returns to the initial private base station BS3 after having reported the second set of radio signal parameters SS to the private base stations BS2, BS3, BS4, BS3. In this case, the process of reporting the second set SS continues (as described above) and each base station stores information from which private base station the UE entered the cell of the private base station in the service area definition mode, for this example, a given base station BS3 stores BS2 for the first time and BS4 for the second time and BS4 stores BS3. Whenever the UE completes the traversal of the house, it sends a message to the current serving base station, which in this example is the private base station BS3. However, since the user device UE traverses all private base stations, this notification must reach all private base stations BS2, BS3, BS4 to terminate the service area definition mode and start normal operation. After the base station BS3 has received the termination indication, it uses the information stored for the second time for the UE and reports this to the base station BS4 from which the user device was handed over for the second time during the service area definition mode. Base station BS4 provides the termination indication back to base station BS3, which has a second stored information for this UE, in this case base station BS2. To this end, the stored information C enables the termination indication to be propagated from the private base station via each hop traversed by the UE in the private network, by indicating that a further handover is to be performed during the service area limited mode. When the indication has reached BS2, all private base stations have been reached and the second set can be processed to derive, for example, RSRP intervals (each with its own collected data) and release the UE context.

[0132] Figure 8 A block diagram illustrating an exemplary processing system (eg, a handover management system 10 as disclosed herein or a user device for use with such a handover management system) according to the disclosed embodiments is depicted. Figure 8 As shown in , the processing system 80 may include at least one processor 81 coupled to a memory element 82 via a system bus 83. Therefore, the processing system can store program codes in the memory element 82. In addition, the processor 81 can execute program codes accessed from the memory element 82 via the system bus 83. In one aspect, the processing system can be implemented as a computer system suitable for storing and / or executing program codes. However, it should be appreciated that the processing system 80 can be implemented in the form of any system including a processor and a memory capable of performing the functions described in this specification.

[0133] The memory element 82 may include one or more physical memory devices, such as, for example, a local memory 84 and one or more mass storage devices 85. Local memory may refer to a random access memory or one or more other non-persistent memory devices generally used during the actual execution of the program code. The mass storage device may be implemented as a hard drive or other persistent data storage device. The processing system 80 may also include one or more cache memories (not shown) that provide temporary storage of at least some program code in order to reduce the number of times the program code must be retrieved from the mass storage device 85 during execution.

[0134] Input / output (I / O) devices, depicted as input device 86 and output device 87, may optionally be coupled to the processing system. Examples of input devices may include, but are not limited to, a space access keyboard, a pointing device such as a mouse, or the like. Examples of output devices may include, but are not limited to, a monitor or display, a speaker, or the like. Input and / or output devices may be coupled to the processing system either directly or through an intervening I / O controller.

[0135] In an embodiment, the input and output devices may be implemented as a combined input / output device (in Figure 8 86 and output device 87). An example of such a combined device is a touch-sensitive display, sometimes referred to as a "touch screen display" or simply a "touch screen", with which a UE may be provided. In such an embodiment, input to the device may be provided by movement of a physical object on or near the touch screen display, such as, for example, a stylus or a human finger.

[0136] A network adapter 88 may also be coupled to the processing system to enable it to be coupled to other systems, computer systems, remote network devices, and / or remote storage devices through an intervening private or public network. The network adapter may include a data receiver for receiving data transmitted to the processing system 80 by the system, device, and / or network, and a data transmitter for transmitting data from the processing system 80 to the system, device, and / or network. Modems, cable modems, and Ethernet cards are examples of different types of network adapters that may be used with the processing system 80.

[0137] like Figure 8 As depicted in FIG. 8 , the memory element 82 may store an application 89. In various embodiments, the application 89 may be stored in the local memory 84, in one or more mass storage devices 85, or separately from the local memory and the mass storage devices. It should be appreciated that the processing system 80 may further execute an operating system ( Figure 8 89), the operating system may facilitate the execution of application 89. Application 89 implemented in the form of executable program code may be executed by processing system 80, for example, by processor 81. In response to executing the application, processing system 80 may be configured to perform one or more operations or method steps described herein.

[0138] In one aspect of the invention, a handover management system as disclosed herein and / or one or more components of a user device for use with such a handover management system may represent a processing system 80 as described herein.

[0139] Various embodiments of the present invention may be implemented as a program product for use with a computer system, wherein the program(s) of the program product define the functionality of the embodiments (including the methods described herein). In one embodiment, the program(s) may be contained on various non-transitory computer-readable storage media, wherein, as used herein, the expression "non-transitory computer-readable storage media" includes all computer-readable media, with the only exception of temporary propagation signals. In another embodiment, the program(s) may be contained on various temporary computer-readable storage media. Illustrative computer-readable storage media include (but are not limited to): (i) non-writable storage media on which information is permanently stored (e.g., a read-only memory device within a computer, such as a CD-ROM disk, a ROM chip, or any type of solid-state non-volatile semiconductor memory that can be read by a CD-ROM drive); and (ii) writable storage media on which variable information is stored (e.g., a flash memory, a floppy disk within a floppy disk drive, or a hard-disk drive, or any type of solid-state random access semiconductor memory). The computer program may be run on the processor 81 described herein.

[0140] The terms used herein are for the purpose of describing specific embodiments only and are not intended to limit the present invention. As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms "comprises and / or comprising", when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements and / or components, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components and / or groups thereof.

[0141] The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of all "means or steps plus function" elements in the following claims are intended to include any structure, material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. The description of the embodiments of the invention has been presented for illustrative purposes, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to implementations in the disclosed form. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope of the claims. The embodiments are selected and described in order to: best explain the principles of the invention and some practical applications, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications suitable for the particular use contemplated.

Claims

1. A handover management system for managing handover of a first user device between a private network including at least one private base station and a public network including a plurality of public base stations, wherein: The wireless coverage areas of the private network and the public network at least partially overlap, wherein the handover management system comprises: a receiving system configured to receive, from the first user device, a first set of radio signal parameter values ​​of the at least one private base station and at least one public base station of the plurality of public base stations; wherein the handover management system comprises service area information, the service area information indicating a dedicated service area of ​​the private network defined based on a plurality of second radio signal parameter value sets of the at least one private base station and the at least one public base station, and; The handover management system is configured to initiate handover of the first user device from the private network to the public network only when the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​indicates that the location of the first user device is outside the dedicated service area based on the service area information.

2. The handover management system according to claim 1, wherein: The service area information includes: a machine learning model, wherein the model is trained using at least the second set of radio signal parameter values, wherein the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​is input to the trained machine learning model and an output indicates whether the first user device is located outside the dedicated service area; or The representation of the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​enables evaluation of the first set of radio signal parameter values ​​to estimate whether the first user device is located outside the dedicated service area.

3. The handover management system according to claim 2, wherein: The output of the machine learning model is a binary output indicating whether the location of the first user device is inside or outside the dedicated service area, and the model is additionally trained using at least a third set of radio signal parameter values ​​of the at least one dedicated base station and the at least one public base station outside the dedicated service area.

4. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The handover management system is configured to obtain the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​for defining the dedicated service area from at least one of the first user device or the other user device in a service area limitation mode, wherein, optionally, the handover management system is configured to send a service area limitation mode instruction to the first user device or the other user device, wherein, optionally, the service area limitation mode instruction provides a reporting time interval for the first user device or the other user device to report the second set of radio signal parameter values.

5. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The handover management system is configured to be set to a service area limitation mode to obtain the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​for limiting the dedicated service area, wherein the handover management system in the service area limitation mode is configured to prohibit the first user device or the other user device from switching to the at least one public network base station.

6. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The private network includes at least a first private base station and a second private base station, wherein the switching management system is configured to initiate switching of the first user device from the first private base station to the second private base station based on receiving a first radio signal parameter value of the first private base station and a second radio signal parameter value of the second private base station and comparing these values.

7. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The handover management system is configured to identify the at least one private base station based on a closed access group identifier, CAG ID, or a preconfigured list of private cell identifiers, cell IDs, of private base stations.

8. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: At least a portion of the handover management system is configured to be set to a service area definition mode to obtain the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​by at least one of the following: - receiving a service area limited mode instruction from a user device; - transferring setting of the service area limitation mode from the first private base station to the second private base station for use in a handover management system according to claim 6.

9. The handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims 6-8, comprising at least one of the following: - the first private base station and the second private base station are configured to store the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​received from the first user device or another user device at least during a service area limited mode; - the first dedicated base station and the second dedicated base station exchange a second set of radio signal parameter values ​​with each other; - the first dedicated base station and the second dedicated base station send the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to a central location or to the user equipment; -The first dedicated base station obtains service area information representing a dedicated service area of ​​the first dedicated base station of the private network based on the received second set of radio signal parameter values, and the second base station obtains service area information representing a dedicated service area of ​​the second dedicated base station of the private network based on the received second set of radio signal parameter values.

10. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The handover management system is configured to terminate the service area limitation mode by at least one of the following: - receiving a service area limited mode termination instruction from a user device; - expiry of a defined mode timer and / or by analysis of said second set of radio signal parameter values; - transferring said termination of said service area limited mode from a private base station of said private network to one or more other private base stations; - configured to store information from which private base station the user equipment enters the cell of the private base station in the service area limitation mode, and forward the service area limitation mode termination indication according to the stored information.

11. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The radio signal parameter values ​​of the first and second sets include Reference Signal Received Power, RSRP, measurements.

12. A handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The system is part of at least one private base station.

13. A user device configured for use with a handover management system according to one or more of the preceding claims, wherein: The user device is configured to be set to a service area limited mode to transmit the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​to the switching management system, wherein, optionally, the user device is configured to transmit at least one identifier of at least one dedicated base station, such as a closed access group identifier CAGID or a cell ID group, to the switching management system.

14. The user device according to claim 11, wherein: The user device is configured to adopt the service area limitation mode in response to at least one of the following: - a service area limited mode instruction from the handover management system; and - User input on said user device.

15. The user device according to claim 11 or 12, wherein: The user equipment is configured to store a set of radio signal parameter values ​​during a service area defined mode and to send the set to the handover management system after storing.

16. A user device according to one or more of the preceding claims 13-15, wherein: The user equipment is configured to receive and process at least one identifier of at least one private base station to determine the private base station for which the second set of radio signal parameter values ​​are measured during a service area definition mode, wherein, optionally, the identifier is included in a service area definition mode instruction.

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