Network device for collecting UE-related measurements in dual connectivity

Abstract

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a solution for collecting UE-related measurements in dual connectivity. In a solution according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a network device includes a processor and a transceiver coupled to the processor. The processor is configured to: transmit, via the transceiver, a first message to request a user equipment (UE)-related measurement; sending, via the transceiver, a second message to trigger provisioning of UE-related measurements to the UE as part of a dual connectivity procedure of the UE; and receiving, via the transceiver, a third message in response to completion of the dual connectivity procedure, the third message comprising: the requested UE-related measurements associated with the dual connectivity procedure. Accordingly, UE-related measurements for UEs may be collected in dual connectivity. The UE-related measurements may be provided to a network device to improve network operation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of this disclosure generally relate to the field of communications, and particularly to network devices for collecting UE-related measurements in dual connectivity. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of communication technology, artificial intelligence (AI) is being used to achieve network optimization. For example, a very typical workflow for AI-based network optimization is that a next-generation base station (gNB) with AI capabilities can use all the data / measurements collected from one or more user equipment (UEs) and neighboring gNBs to train an AI model that can produce inference outputs.

[0003] In this scenario, the gNB can make further decisions and take actions based on a trained AI model. For example, the network action considered could be cell connection / disconnection, and / or (multiple) UE handover to another cell. To monitor the performance of the AI ​​model and trigger updates when necessary, the gNB needs to collect UE-related measurements from the target gNB after the UE handover. However, some issues still need to be addressed in collecting UE-related measurements. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Overall, embodiments of this disclosure provide a solution for collecting UE-related measurements in dual connectivity.

[0005] In a first aspect, a network device is provided. The network device includes a processor; and a transceiver coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: transmit a first message via the transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual-connectivity procedure for the UE, transmit a second message via the transceiver to trigger the supply of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and in response to the completion of the dual-connectivity procedure, receive a third message via the transceiver, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity procedure.

[0006] In a second aspect, a network device is provided. The network device includes: a processor; and a transceiver coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: receive a first message via the transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual-connectivity procedure for the UE, receive a second message via the transceiver to trigger the supply of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and in response to the completion of the dual-connectivity procedure, transmit a third message via the transceiver, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity procedure.

[0007] In a third aspect, a network device is provided. The network device includes: a processor; and a transceiver coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: receive a first message via the transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE, receive a second message via the transceiver to trigger the supply of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and in response to the completion of the dual-connectivity process, transmit a third message via the transceiver, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity process.

[0008] In a fourth aspect, a method performed by a network device is provided. The method includes: sending a first message via a transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE, sending a second message via the transceiver to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and receiving a third message via the transceiver in response to the completion of the dual-connectivity process, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity process.

[0009] In a fifth aspect, a method performed by a network device is provided. The method includes: receiving a first message via a transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; receiving a second message via the transceiver as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and, in response to the completion of the dual-connectivity process, sending a third message via the transceiver, the third message including the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity process.

[0010] In a sixth aspect, a method performed by a network device is provided. The method includes: as part of a dual connectivity procedure for a user equipment (UE), receiving a first message via a transceiver from a source secondary node (SN), wherein the first message includes a measurement identifier that identifies a second message sent by the source SN to request a first UE-related measurement; and in response to receiving the first message, sending a third message via the transceiver to a target SN to trigger the provision of a second UE-related measurement associated with the dual connectivity procedure.

[0011] In a seventh aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided. Instructions are stored on the computer-readable medium. When executed on at least one processor of a device, the instructions cause the device to perform the method of the fourth aspect.

[0012] In an eighth aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided. Instructions are stored on the computer-readable medium. When executed on at least one processor of the device, the instructions cause the device to perform the method of the fifth aspect.

[0013] In a ninth aspect, a computer-readable medium is provided. Instructions are stored on the computer-readable medium. When executed on at least one processor of a device, the instructions cause the device to perform the method of the sixth aspect.

[0014] It should be understood that the summary portion is not intended to identify key or essential features of the embodiments of this disclosure, nor is it intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. Other features of this disclosure will become readily apparent from the following description. Attached Figure Description

[0015] Some embodiments will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0016] Figure 1 The illustration shows an example communication system in which some embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented;

[0017] Figure 2A An example signaling diagram is shown, illustrating a process for collecting UE-related measurements according to some example embodiments of this disclosure;

[0018] Figure 2B An example signaling diagram is shown, illustrating a process for collecting UE-related measurements according to some example embodiments of this disclosure;

[0019] Figure 3 The illustration shows an example schematic diagram of collecting UE-related measurements during MN-initiated (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change, according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0020] Figure 4 The illustration shows an example schematic diagram of collecting UE-related measurements during an SN-initiated (conditional) SN change, according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0021] Figure 5 The illustration shows another example schematic diagram of collecting UE-related measurements during an SN-initiated (conditional) SN change, according to some example embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0022] Figure 6 The illustration shows an example flowchart of an example method implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0023] Figure 7 The illustration shows an example flowchart of an example method implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 8 The illustration shows an example flowchart of an example method implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0025] Figure 9 A simplified example block diagram of an apparatus suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0026] Throughout the accompanying drawings, the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements. Detailed Implementation

[0027] The principles of this disclosure will now be described with reference to some embodiments. It should be understood that these embodiments are described for illustration and to help those skilled in the art to understand and implement this disclosure, and do not impose any limitation on the scope of this disclosure. The disclosure described herein can be implemented in various other ways besides those described below. In the following description and claims, unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains.

[0028] References to "an embodiment," "example embodiment," "embodiment," etc., in this disclosure indicate that the described embodiment may include a particular feature, structure, or characteristic, but not every embodiment necessarily includes that particular feature, structure, or characteristic. Furthermore, such phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. Additionally, when a particular feature, structure, or characteristic is described in connection with an embodiment, it is believed that incorporating other embodiments (whether explicitly described or not) to affect such a feature, structure, or characteristic is within the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

[0029] It should be understood that although the terms “first” and “second”, etc., may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are used to distinguish one element from another. For example, a first element may also be referred to as a second element without departing from the scope of the embodiments, and similarly, a second element may also be referred to as a first element. As used herein, the term “and / or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the listed terms. In some examples, values, processes, or devices are referred to as “best,” “lowest,” “highest,” “minimum,” “maximum,” etc. It should be understood that such descriptions are intended to indicate that a choice can be made among many functional alternatives used, and that such a choice need not be better, smaller, higher, or more desirable than other choices.

[0030] The terminology used herein is for describing particular embodiments and is not intended to limit the embodiments. As used herein, unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” should also include the plural forms. It will be further understood that the terms “comprising,” “including,” “having,” “containing,” and / or “containing,” when used herein, specify the presence of the stated features, elements, components, etc., but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof. For example, the term “comprising” and variations thereof should be understood as open terms meaning “including, but not limited to.” The term “based on” should be understood as “at least partially based on.” The terms “one embodiment” and “embodiment” should be understood as “at least one embodiment,” and the term “another embodiment” should be understood as “at least one other embodiment.” Other explicit and implicit definitions may be included below.

[0031] As used herein, the term "communication network" refers to a network that follows any suitable communication standard, such as 5G NR, Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-A Advanced (LTE-A), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), High-Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), etc. Furthermore, communication between terminal devices and network devices in a communication network can be performed according to any suitable generation of communication protocol, including but not limited to first-generation (1G), second-generation (2G), 2.5G, 2.75G, third-generation (3G), fourth-generation (4G), 4.5G, fifth-generation (5G) communication protocols, and / or any other currently known or to be developed in the future. Embodiments of this disclosure can be applied to various communication systems. Given the rapid development of communications, there will also be communication technologies and systems that embody future types of this disclosure. This should not be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure to the systems described above.

[0032] As used herein, the term "network device" generally refers to a node in a communication network through which terminal devices can access the network and receive services. Network devices can refer to base stations (BS) or access points (APs), such as Node B (NodeB or NB), Radio Access Network (RAN) nodes, Evolved Node B (eNodeB or eNB), NR NB (also known as gNB), Remote Radio Unit (RRU), Radio Header (RH), infrastructure equipment for V2X (Vehicle-to-Everything) communication, Transmitter Receiver Point (TRP), Receiver Point (RP), Remote Radio Header (RRH), relay, Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) nodes, low-power nodes (such as femtoBS, picoBS), etc., depending on the terminology and technology used.

[0033] As used herein, the term "terminal device" generally refers to any terminal device capable of wireless communication. By way of example and not limitation, a terminal device may also be referred to as a communication device, user equipment (UE), end-user equipment, subscriber station (SS), unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), portable subscriber station, mobile station (MS), or access terminal (AT). Terminal devices may include, but are not limited to, mobile phones, cellular phones, smartphones, Voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, tablets, wearable terminal devices, personal digital assistants (PDAs), portable computers, desktop computers, image capture terminal devices (such as digital cameras), gaming terminal devices, music storage and playback devices, in-vehicle wireless terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, laptop embedded devices (LEEs), laptop mounted devices (LMEs), USB dongles, smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPEs), Internet of Things (IoT) devices, watches or other wearable devices, head-mounted displays (HMDs), vehicles, drones, medical devices and applications (e.g., remote surgical equipment), industrial devices and applications (e.g., robots and / or other wireless devices operating in industrial and / or automated processing chain environments), consumer electronics devices, devices operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, etc. In the following description, the terms "terminal device," "communication device," "terminal," "user equipment," and "UE" are used interchangeably.

[0034] As used herein, the term “Fast Primary Cell Group (MCG) Link Recovery” typically refers to the Radio Resource Control (RRC) procedure in Multiple Radio Dual Connectivity (MR-DC), in which the UE sends an MCG Failure Information Message to the Primary Node (MN) via the Secondary Cell Group (SCG) when it detects a radio link failure on the MCG.

[0035] As used herein, the term “primary cell group” generally refers to the serving cell group associated with the primary node in the MR-DC, including SpCell (PCell) and optionally one or more SCells.

[0036] As used herein, the term “secondary cell group” generally refers to the serving cell group associated with the secondary node in the MR-DC, including SpCell (PSCell) and optionally one or more SCells.

[0037] As used herein, the term "secondary node" typically refers to a radio access node in an MR-DC that is not connected to the control plane of the core network and provides additional resources to the UE. It can be an en-gNB (in EUTRA-NR dual connectivity (EN-DC), a secondary ng-eNB (in NR-EUTRA dual connectivity (NE-DC), or a secondary gNB (in New Radio Dual Connectivity (NR-DC) and NG-RANE-UTRA-NR Dual Connectivity (NGEN-D)).

[0038] As used herein, the term “SCG bearer” generally refers to a radio bearer in an MR-DC that has only radio link control (RLC) bearers in the SCG (or two RLC bearers in the case of carrier aggregation (CA) packet replication in an E-UTRAN cell group, or up to four RLC bearers in the case of CA packet replication in a new radio (NR) cell group).

[0039] As used in this article, the term "SpCell" typically refers to the primary cell of a primary cell group or a secondary cell group.

[0040] As used herein, the term “signaling radio bearer 3 (SRB3)” generally refers to NGEN-DC and NR-DC, i.e., the direct SRB between the SN and UE in the EN-DC.

[0041] As used herein, the term “split bearer” generally refers to a radio bearer that has an RLC bearer in both the MCG and SCG of an MR-DC.

[0042] As described above, when monitoring the performance of the AI ​​model, UE-related measurements are collected from the target gNB after the UE hands over to it. These UE-related measurements can be used to determine whether the network (NW) operational decisions are sound. In 3GPP discussions, it has been agreed that a Type 1 data collection request / response procedure via the Xn interface is used for the source gNB to request measurements before handover occurs (i.e., send a handover request message). Then, after handover is complete, the actual measurements are sent from the target gNB to the source gNB.

[0043] Furthermore, before the source gNB decides to disconnect the cell and hand over all user equipment (UEs) to the adjacent target gNB, the source gNB can request an estimate of the additional energy cost from the target gNB using the same Type 1 procedure. Then, when deciding to disconnect the cell, the source gNB will consider the estimated additional energy cost at the target gNB. For example, if the estimated additional energy cost at the target gNB is less than the reduced energy cost at the source gNB, the source gNB can disconnect the cell.

[0044] As mentioned above, UE-related measurements are collected in independent scenarios, such as non-dual-connectivity (non-DC) scenarios. However, the applicability of this data collection process to dual-connectivity scenarios has not yet been discussed in 3GPP, where, for example, the MN can use the SN to offload some services for load balancing or to conserve network energy. Therefore, it is impossible to estimate or determine the performance of operations in dual-connectivity scenarios.

[0045] In view of the above, embodiments of this disclosure provide a solution for collecting UE-related measurements in a dual-connectivity scenario. For example, a network device may send a first message to request UE-related measurements. The network device also sends a second message, as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE, to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE. The second message includes a measurement identifier that identifies the first message. After the dual-connectivity process is completed, the network device may receive a third message, which includes the requested UE-related measurements associated with the dual-connectivity process. Through the solution of this disclosure, a signaling mechanism that allows a network device to collect UE-related measurements in a dual-connectivity scenario can be introduced. Therefore, UE-related measurements can be used to further determine the performance of operations in a dual-connectivity scenario, and can be further used to determine whether to offload some services for load balancing or to conserve network energy.

[0046] The principles and implementation of embodiments of this disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it should be noted that these embodiments are given to enable those skilled in the art to implement the solutions presented herein, and not to limit the scope of this application in any way.

[0047] Figure 1 An example communication system 100 in which some embodiments of the present disclosure may be implemented is illustrated. The communication network 100 includes three network devices 110, 130, and 140, and a terminal device 120. The terminal device 120 is also referred to as a UE device. Network devices 110, 130, and 140 can provide services to the terminal device 120 in a dual-connectivity scenario. For example, in a dual-connectivity scenario, the terminal device 120 can be connected to network devices 110 and 130.

[0048] In system 100, it is assumed that terminal device 120 is within the coverage area of ​​network devices 110 and 130. In some examples, the link from network devices 110, 130, or 140 to terminal device 120 is referred to as a downlink (DL), and the link from terminal device 120 to network devices 110, 130, or 140 is referred to as an uplink (UL). In the downlink, network devices 110, 130, or 140 are transmitting (TX) devices (or transmitters), and terminal device 120 is a receiving (RX) device (or receiver). In the uplink, terminal device 120 is a transmitting TX device (or transmitter), and network devices 110, 130, or 140 are RX devices (or receivers). In some embodiments, network devices 110, 130, or 140 and terminal device 120 can communicate via a direct link / channel. The DL may include one or more logical channels, including but not limited to the Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) and the Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH). A UL may include one or more logical channels, including but not limited to the Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH) and the Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH). As used herein, the term “channel” may refer to a carrier or a portion of a carrier consisting of a set of contiguous resource blocks (RBs) on which channel access procedures are performed in the shared spectrum.

[0049] Communication within system 100 (e.g., communication between network devices 110, 130, or 140 and terminal device 120) can be implemented according to any suitable communication protocol(s), including but not limited to cellular communication protocols of first generation (1G), second generation (2G), third generation (3G), fourth generation (4G), and fifth generation (5G), wireless local area network communication protocols (such as IEEE 802.11), and / or any other protocol currently known or to be developed in the future. Furthermore, such communication can utilize any suitable wireless communication technology, including but not limited to: Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA), Time Division Multiple Access (TDMA), Frequency Division Duplex (FDD), Time Division Duplex (TDD), Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO), Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM), Discrete Fourier Transform Spread Spectrum OFDM (DFT-s-OFDM), and / or any other technology currently known or to be developed in the future.

[0050] The embodiments of this disclosure can be applied to any suitable scenario. For example, embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented on a reduced-capacity NR device. Alternatively, embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented in one of the following: NR multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), NR side link enhancement, NR system with frequencies above 52.6 GHz, extended NR operation up to 71 GHz, narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) / enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) over a non-terrestrial network (NTN), NTN, UE power saving enhancement, NR coverage enhancement, NB-IoT and LTE-MTC, integrated access and backhaul (IAB), NR multicast and broadcast services, or multi-radio dual connectivity enhancement.

[0051] It should be understood that Figure 1 The number, connection relationships, and types of devices shown (i.e., network devices 110, 130, and 140, and terminal device 120) are for illustrative purposes only and do not represent any limitation. System 100 may include any suitable number of devices suitable for implementing embodiments of this disclosure.

[0052] Further reference Figure 2A and Figure 2B The diagram illustrates signaling diagrams 200A and 200B for collecting UE-related measurements according to some example embodiments of this disclosure. For discussion purposes, reference will be made to... Figure 1 Describe processes 200A and 200B. Process 200A may involve network devices 110 and 130, and process 200B may involve network devices 110, 130, and 140.

[0053] like Figure 2A As shown, network device 110 sends a first message 206 to request relevant measurements from user equipment (UE). The first message is sent to network device 130, and network device 130 receives the first message. For example, the first message is a data collection request message.

[0054] In some embodiments, the first message is used to instruct network device 130 to collect UE-related measurements, such as UL / DL throughput, packet latency, packet error rate, UE mobility / trajectory, UE service load, etc. Alternatively or additionally, the first message includes a measurement identifier used to identify the first message. Furthermore, network device 110 may send multiple messages to multiple network devices, including network device 130. For example, multiple messages are sent to several network devices. Each of the multiple messages is sent to the corresponding network device to request UE-related measurements.

[0055] In some embodiments, the first message includes an indicator that indicates whether the first message is applied to a handover process, a dual-connectivity process, or both. Thus, network device 130 can determine which process uses the first message.

[0056] In some embodiments, the dual-connection process involves the MN initiating the addition of a secondary node (SN) or the MN initiating a change of the SN for both the MN and the target SN. For example... Figure 2A As shown, in the process of MN initiating the addition of a secondary node (SN) or MN initiating the change of an SN, network device 110 is the primary node (MN), and network device 130 is the SN. Network device 110 can initiate MN-initiated (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change.

[0057] In some embodiments, after receiving the first message, network device 130 will send a response message to network device 110. For example, the response message is a data collection response message.

[0058] like Figure 2A As shown, as part of the dual-connectivity process for the UE, network device 110 sends a second message 208 to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE. The second message includes a measurement identifier that identifies the first message. The second message is sent to network device 130, and network device 130 receives the second message. After receiving the second message, network device 130 needs to collect UE-related measurements. Because the second message contains the measurement identifier that identifies the first message, network device 130 can determine which information is collected based on the first message identified by the measurement identifier. For example, the measurement identifier could be a measurement / event identifier.

[0059] In some embodiments, the second message may include a UE identifier assigned by the MN, for example, a UE identifier assigned by network device 110. In some embodiments, in an MN-initiated (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change, the second message may be an SN addition request message.

[0060] In some embodiments, after receiving the second message, network device 130 may send an acknowledgment message to the network device. For example, the acknowledgment message is an SN addition acknowledgment message.

[0061] like Figure 2A As shown, in response to the completion of the dual connectivity process, network device 110 receives a third message 210, which includes requested UE-related measurements associated with the dual connectivity process. The third message originates from network device 130. For example, the third message could be a data update message.

[0062] In some embodiments, during a (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change initiated by the MN, when the dual connectivity procedure for the UE is completed, network device 110 may send a complete message to network device 130. For example, this message may be an SN reconfiguration completion message.

[0063] In some embodiments, after the UE's dual connectivity process is completed, the network device 130 collects the requested UE-related measurements. The requested UE-related measurements are SN-specific UE-related measurements measured by the target SN.

[0064] In some embodiments, SN-specific UE-related measurements are returned to network device 110 via a third message. SN-specific UE-related measurements are embodied in the information element (IE) of the third message. The IE used for SN-specific UE-related measurements is the same as the IE used for UE-related measurements during the handover process. In one example, SN-specific UE-related measurements may include: received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput related to SN termination of primary / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearers. In another example, SN-specific UE-related measurements may include: packet delay related to SN termination of primary / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearers. In another example, SN-specific UE-related measurements may include: packet error rate related to SN termination of primary / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearers. In another example, SN-specific UE-related measurements may include: UE traffic load related to SN termination of primary / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearers. In another example, SN-specific UE-related measurements may include received UE mobility / trajectory related to one or more visited PSCells for the target SN. The above examples are used to illustrate this disclosure and are not intended to limit this disclosure. SN-specific UE-related measurements may include two or more of the following: received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, UE traffic load, or received UE mobility / trajectory, or other information.

[0065] In some embodiments, the information element (IE) used for SN-specific UE-related measurements differs from the IE used for UE-related measurements during the handover process. For example, in one example, SN-specific UE-related measurements include average SN termination uplink / downlink throughput. In another example, SN-specific UE-related measurements include average SN termination latency. In yet another example, SN-specific UE-related measurements include average SN termination packet error rate. In yet another example, SN-specific UE-related measurements include average SN termination service load. The above embodiments are used to illustrate this disclosure and not to limit it. SN-specific UE-related measurements may include two or more of the following, or other information: average SN termination uplink / downlink throughput, average SN termination latency, average SN termination packet error rate, or average SN termination service load.

[0066] In some embodiments, network device 110 can receive third messages from network device 130 as long as the UE is connected to network device 130. During DC operations, such as SN addition or SN change, the target PSCell is determined by the target SN itself. Therefore, SN-specific UE-related measurements can be determined by network device 130.

[0067] Figure 2A This illustrates an MN initiating a (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change. During the process of an MN initiating a (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change, network device 110 is the MN, and network device 130 is the SN. Figure 2B An example signaling diagram is illustrated, which illustrates a process for collecting UE-related measurements according to some example embodiments of this disclosure.

[0068] exist Figure 2B The diagram illustrates a conditional SN change initiated by the SN, target SN, and MN. This process can occur after a conditional SN addition or conditional SN change initiated by the MN. Network devices 110 and 130 can also be used to illustrate the communication process. In this case, network device 130 can be used as the source SN, network device 110 can be used as the MN, and network device 140 can be used as the target SN. The operation of network device 130 in this process is similar to... Figure 2A The operation of network device 110 shown is similar, and the operation of network device 140 is also similar. Figure 2A The operation of the network device 130 shown is similar.

[0069] like Figure 2BAs shown, as part of a dual connectivity procedure for a user equipment (UE), network device 110 receives a first message 220 from a source secondary node (SN). The first message includes a measurement identifier that identifies a second message sent by the source SN to request a first UE-related measurement. This measurement identifier is also referred to as the first measurement identifier. In response to receiving the first message, MN 110 sends a third message 222 to a target SN 140 to trigger the provision of a second UE-related measurement associated with the dual connectivity procedure. The target SN 140 is the network device used by the UE to implement the dual connectivity procedure.

[0070] for Figure 2B The SN-initiated (conditional) SN change shown in the diagram has at least two solutions. The first solution is that the UE-related feedback is sent directly from the target SN to the source SN. The second solution is that the UE-related feedback is sent indirectly from the target SN to the source SN via the MN. Figure 2B The operations described above were used in at least two solutions.

[0071] In the first solution, source SN 130 directly sends a second message 218 to target SN 140. The second message is used to request UE-related measurements from the target SN. UE-related measurements can be used to determine whether an SN-initiated (conditional) SN change is acceptable. Alternatively and additionally, the second message includes a measurement identifier that identifies the second message. Alternatively or additionally, the second message may include an indicator indicating what information will be obtained from the target SN. For example, the second message is a data collection request message, and the measurement identifier may be a measurement / event identifier.

[0072] In some embodiments, the source SN 130 may send a set of messages to a set of candidate SNs to request UE-related measurements. The set of candidate SNs includes the target SN. For an SN initiating an SN change, the set of candidate SNs includes one SN. For an SN initiating a conditional SN change, the set of candidate SNs includes several SNs. Furthermore, after receiving the second message, the target SN 140 may send a response message to the source SN. For example, the response message may be a data collection response message.

[0073] In some embodiments, the first message uses an IE to carry a measurement identifier. For example, the first message is a SN change request message, and the measurement identifier can be used to identify the second message. The IE used for the measurement identifier in the first message can be the same as the IE used for the measurement identifier in the second message. In this case, MN 110 will by default assume that the relevant measurement / event ID references the data collection request process between the source SN and the target SN to avoid conflicts with the data collection request / response between the source SN and MN. In some embodiments, the IE used for the measurement identifier in the first message is different from the IE used for the measurement identifier in the second message.

[0074] In some embodiments, the first message includes a set of SN identifiers for a set of candidate SNs including the target SN. The first message also includes a set of measurement identifiers. The set of measurement identifiers indicates messages sent to the set of candidate SNs. Therefore, the set of measurement identifiers includes a first measurement identifier from a second message sent to the target SN. Thus, the set of measurement identifiers corresponds to the set of SN identifiers of the candidate SN set. The first message also includes a first UE identifier assigned to the UE by the source SN.

[0075] In some embodiments, in the first solution, the third message sent from MN 110 to target SN 140 includes: an SN identifier for the SN source, a UE identifier for the UE assigned by the source SN, and a measurement identifier that identifies the first message sent directly from source SN 130 to target SN 140. For example, the third message is an SN add request message.

[0076] In some embodiments, after the third message is sent to the target SN 140, the target SN 140 will send a fourth message to the MN 110, including a second UE identifier assigned by the target SN. Therefore, the MN 110 can receive the fourth message from the target SN. For example, the fourth message is an SN add request confirmation message.

[0077] In some embodiments, MN 110 sends a fifth message to source SN 130. The fifth message includes a set of UE identifiers assigned by the candidate SN set. For example, each candidate SN in the candidate SN set receives a fourth message. After the fourth message is received, each candidate SN assigns a UE identifier to the UE. Therefore, the set of UE identifiers comes from the candidate SN set. Furthermore, the set of UE identifiers includes a second UE identifier. For example, the fifth message could be an SN change confirmation message.

[0078] In some embodiments, source SN 130 receives measurement messages from target SN 140. In one example, the measurement message includes a first UE identifier. In another example, the measurement message includes a second UE identifier assigned by the target SN. The measurement message also includes SN-specific UE-related measurements. SN-specific UE-related measurements have been discussed above. For example, the measurement message is a data update message.

[0079] In the second solution, where UE-related feedback is indirectly sent from the target SN to the source SN via the MN, the second message is sent from the source SN 130 to the MN 110. The second message includes a set of SN identifiers that includes a set of candidate SNs containing the target SN. In an SN-initiated SN change, the candidate SN set includes one SN, namely the target SN. In an SN-initiated conditional SN change, the candidate SN set includes several SNs, including the target SN. Furthermore, the second message also includes a measurement identifier that identifies the second message, and an indicator that indicates the UE-related measurement to be returned. For example, the second message is a data collection request message.

[0080] In some embodiments, after receiving the second message, MN 110 sends a sixth message to target SN 130 to request second user equipment (UE) related measurements. The second UE related measurements include the first UE related measurements. For example, MN 110 may also request more information based on the first UE related measurements than the information requested by the source SN. Furthermore, the sixth message includes a second measurement identifier that identifies the sixth message. For example, the sixth message is a data collection request message.

[0081] In the second solution, a first message is sent from the source SN to the MN. The first message also includes: a set of SN identifiers of the candidate SN set, and a set of measurement identifiers corresponding to the set of SN identifiers. For example, a measurement identifier in the set of measurement identifiers corresponds to an SN identifier in the set of SN identifiers. The SN having an SN identifier receives a message identified by a measurement identifier. The set of measurement identifiers includes a first measurement identifier. Furthermore, the first message also includes the UE identifier of the UE assigned by the source SN.

[0082] In some embodiments, in response to receiving the first message, MN 110 sends a seventh message to the target SN 140. The seventh message includes a second measurement identifier identifying the sixth message sent by MN 110. Furthermore, the seventh message includes a UE identifier assigned by MN 110. For example, the seventh message is an SN add request message.

[0083] In some embodiments, after receiving the seventh message, the target SN 140 sends an acknowledgment message for the seventh message to the MN 110. The acknowledgment message includes the UE identifier assigned by the target SN 140. For example, the acknowledgment message could be an SN add request acknowledgment message. The MN 110 then sends an acknowledgment message to the source SN 130. For example, the acknowledgment message could be an SN change acknowledgment message.

[0084] In some embodiments, the target SN 140 sends an eighth message to the MN 110. The eighth message includes SN-specific UE-related measurements. For example, the eighth message is a data update message, also referred to as a first data update message. After receiving the eighth message, the MN 110 sends a second data update message to the source SN 130. The second data update message includes at least SN-specific UE-related measurements. In one embodiment, the second data update message includes SN-specific UE-related measurements received by the MN from the target SN. In another example, the second data update message includes SN-specific UE-related measurements and / or MN-specific UE-related measurements. In another example, the second data update message includes: an average / merged UE-related measurement for the MN-specific UE-related measurements and the SN-specific UE-related measurements. In some examples, the second data update message includes two or more of the following: SN-specific UE-related measurements, SN-specific UE-related measurements or MN-specific UE-related measurements, or an average / merged UE-related measurement for the MN-specific UE-related measurements and the SN-specific UE-related measurements. Furthermore, the second data update message also includes a target SN identifier for the target SN.

[0085] Figure 3 The illustration shows an example schematic diagram of collecting UE-related measurements during a (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change initiated by an MN, according to some example embodiments of this disclosure. It should be understood that process 300 can be considered as... Figure 2A A more specific example of process 200A is shown. Therefore, Figure 3 gNB 1 302 in the text can be Figure 2A Example of network device 110 in the example, and Figure 3 gNB 2 304 in the text can be Figure 2B Example of network device 130.

[0086] Figure 3This illustrates the process of collecting UE-related feedback during a (conditional) SN addition or (conditional) SN change initiated by the MN. In this embodiment, after the UE connects to peer gNB 2 304 as a secondary node in a dual-connectivity scenario, gNB 1 302 sends a 306 data collection request message to gNB 2 304 to request UE-related measurements from the peer gNB 2 304. If gNB 2 304 accepts the data collection request and responds with a 308 data collection response message, gNB 1 sends a 310 SN addition request message to gNB 2 304 (which includes a reference to the measurement / event ID of a previously requested measurement / event, for example, the same measurement / event ID included in a previous request). Then, gNB 2 304 sends a 312 SN addition confirmation message to gNB 1 302. After receiving the associated SN addition request and the UE successfully connecting to gNB 2, gNB 2 304 should provide gNB 1 302 with a 316 data update including the requested UE-related measurements. When the UE successfully connects to gNB#2, gNB 1 302 sends a 314 SN reconfiguration complete message to gNB 2 304. This applies to both MN-initiated (conditional) SN addition and (conditional) SN change procedures, where the target gNB 2 304 will receive an SN addition request message from the MN. The requested UE-related measurements can be any of the following: UL / DL throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, UE mobility / trajectory, or UE service load.

[0087] In some embodiments, an indicator is added to the data collection request message to indicate whether the data request applies to a handover process, a dual-connectivity process, or both. For example, a UL / DL throughput request can apply to both a handover process and a dual-connectivity process, while a UE mobility / trajectory request can apply to a handover process. In this way, UE-related measurement requests for both handover and dual-connectivity processes can be requested in the same data collection request message.

[0088] In some embodiments, after gNB 2 304 receives the 318 SN reconfiguration complete message from the MN via the XnAP interface, gNB 2 304 begins measuring the accepted / requested UE-related measurements. After gNB 2 304 receives the SN reconfiguration complete message from the MN, the SN knows that the UE has successfully applied the SN-related radio bearer configuration and can begin UL / DL data transmission. In this case, gNB 1 and gNB 2 304 are also referred to as the MN and SN, respectively.

[0089] In some embodiments, if the requested UE-related measurements are accepted, gNB 2 304 will measure and provide gNB 1 302 with a data update message including SN-specific UE-related measurements. SN-specific UE-related measurements can be provided using the same IE as the UE-related measurements supplied for handover. In this case, gNB#1 should assume that the received UE-related measurements are SN-specific, for example: received UL / DL throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, and UE traffic load are only related to the SN-terminated MCG / SCG bearer; received UE mobility / trajectory is only related to the visited PSCell(s) and optional associated dwell time. Alternatively, SN-specific UE-related measurements can be provided using a different IE than the IE supplied for the UE-related measurements used for handover, for example, by introducing new IEs in the data update message, such as average SN-terminated throughput UL / DL, average SN-terminated delay, average SN-terminated packet error rate, and average SN-terminated traffic load.

[0090] The UE performance measurement IE indicates the performance measurement for the UE. Example UE performance measurement IE designs for some embodiments are shown in Table 1 below. Table 1: Example UE performance measurement IE design of some embodiments

[0091] In some embodiments, as long as the UE is connected to the same target SN, the target SN will continue to provide the requested / accepted UE-related measurements, regardless of which PSCell the UE is connected to. During independent handover, if the UE switches to another cell, the target gNB may stop providing UE-related measurements to the source gNB. This is because, during the HO procedure, the source gNB points to the target PSCell. However, in DC operations, such as SN additions or SN changes, the target PSCell is determined by the target SN itself.

[0092] Figure 4 and Figure 5 The illustrations depict two solutions for collecting UE-related measurements during an SN-initiated (conditional) SN change. It should be understood that process 400 can be viewed as... Figure 2B A more specific example of process 200B is shown. Therefore, Figure 4 The source SN 402 in the text can be Figure 2B Example of source SN 130, Figure 4 MN 404 in the text can be Figure 2B Example of MN 110, Figure 4 The target SN 406 in the middle can be Figure 2B Example of target SN 140. It should be understood that process 500 can be considered as... Figure 2BA more specific example of process 200B is shown. Therefore, Figure 5 The source SN 502 in the text can be Figure 2B Example of source SN 130, Figure 5 MN 504 in the text can be Figure 2B Example of MN 110, Figure 5 The target SN 506 in the middle can be Figure 2B Example of target SN 140.

[0093] exist Figure 4 and Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, when the SN initiates a (conditional) SN change, the MN will assist the source SN in requesting and receiving UE-related measurements from the target SN. If accepted, the UE-related measurements will be measured by the target SN and transmitted directly or indirectly to the source SN via the MN. Furthermore, Figure 3 The embodiments are also applicable Figure 4 The embodiment shown.

[0094] Figure 4 The illustration shows an example schematic diagram of collecting a set of UE-related measurements during an SN-initiated (conditional) SN change, according to some example embodiments of this disclosure. Specifically, Figure 4 A solution is shown that includes sending UE-related measurements directly from the target SN to the source SN.

[0095] In some embodiments, before a (conditional) SN change is triggered by the source SN, the source SN initiates a data collection request procedure to the target SN to request relevant measurements from the UE. For example... Figure 4As shown, source SN 402 sends a 408 data collection request message to target SN 406. Then, upon receiving the data collection request message, target SN 406 sends a 410 data collection response message to source SN 402. Next, source SN 402 sends a 412 SN change request message to MN 404. The SN change request message triggers the SN to initiate a (conditional) SN change process. The SN change request message includes a reference to the measurement / event ID of a previously requested request (e.g., using the same measurement / event ID contained in the previous data collection request message). When MN sends a 414 SN add request message to target SN, MN should include the same measurement / event ID as in the SN change request message. Thus, the target SN can reference the previous data collection request from the source SN based on the measurement / event ID received from MN in the SN add request message. After receiving the SN add request message, target SN 406 sends a 416 SN add confirmation message to MN. The SN add confirmation message includes the target SN (T-SN) assigning the UE XNAP ID Z. Then, MN 404 sends a SN change confirmation message (418) to the source SN, which also includes the T-SN assigning the UE XNAP ID Z. When the UE successfully connects to the target SN 406, MN 404 sends a SN reconfiguration complete message (420) to the target SN 406. Next, the target SN 406 directly sends a data update message (422) to the source SN 402.

[0096] In some embodiments, in the SN change request message, the measurement / event ID of the data collection request between the reference source and the target SN (e.g., using the same measurement / activity ID as included in previous data collection request messages) is included as a separate IE (e.g., the measurement / event ID of the target SN IE) compared to the IE used for the data collection request procedure (e.g., the measurement / event ID IE). Alternatively, SN-specific UE-related measurements are included in the same IE as the IE used for the data collection request procedure. In this case, the MN will by default assume that the relevant measurement / event ID refers to the data collection request procedure between the source SN and the target SN.

[0097] Because data collection requests / responses can occur between the source SN and the MN, the measurement / event IDs used between the source SN and the target SN can conflict with those used between the source SN and the MN. Therefore, as in some embodiments, it is important that the MN distinguishes between data collection request procedures referenced by received measurement / event IDs between the source SN and the target SN, and data collection request procedures between the source SN and the MN. The MN should then ensure that the measurement / event ID in the SN Add Request message to the target SN is the same as the measurement / event ID in the received SN Change Requirement message.

[0098] In some embodiments, when a conditional SN change is initiated by the SN, the SN change requirement message will contain a list of target SN IDs. In this case, the SN change requirement message can convey a list of measurement / event IDs, with each measurement / event ID associated with a target SN ID.

[0099] In some embodiments, in an SN add request message sent from the MN to the target SN, the measurement / event ID is provided along with the associated source SN ID and the UE ID Y (e.g., SN UE XnAP ID) assigned by the source SN, which is included in a previously received SN change request message from the source SN. Considering possible measurement / event ID conflicts between the target SN and other gNBs, the target SN can precisely reference previous data requests from the source SN ID. Furthermore, conventionally, the source SN and the target SN do not actually know the UE XnAP ID assigned by the other node. To support some embodiments, the UE XnAP ID assigned by the source SN and the target SN needs to be forwarded by the MN to the other node.

[0100] In some embodiments, the SN change confirmation message may also include a UE ID Z assigned by the target SN to the relevant UE. In the case of a conditional SN initiating an SN change, the SN change confirmation message will include a list of UE IDs, each associated with a target SN ID.

[0101] In some embodiments, a data update message sent from a target SN to a source SN may include at least one of a UE ID Y previously assigned by the source SN and a UE ID Z previously assigned by the target SN.

[0102] Figure 5 The illustration shows another example schematic diagram of collecting UE-related measurements during an SN-initiated (conditional) SN change, according to some example embodiments of this disclosure; specifically, Figure 5 A solution is shown that includes UE-related measurements being indirectly transmitted from the target SN to the source SN via the MN.

[0103] In some embodiments, SN addition is performed at box 08. The data collection request between the source SN and the target SN is performed in two steps. First, the source SN initiates a data collection request process with the MN. Then, the MN initiates another data collection request to the target SN to request UE-related measurements previously requested by the source SN. After the SN initiates a (conditional) SN change, the target SN first sends the requested UE-related measurements to the MN, and the MN further forwards them to the source SN.

[0104] For example, source SN 502 sends a 510 data collection request 1 message to MN 504. Then, MN 504 sends a 512 data collection request 2 message to target SN 506. Figure 5 As shown, the measurement / event IDs are different. For example, the measurement / event ID X in the Data Collection Request 1 message is assigned by source SN 502 to identify the Data Collection Request 1 message. The measurement / event ID Y in the Data Collection Request 2 message is assigned by source SN 502 to identify the Data Collection Request message. Then, a Data Collection Response 2 message (514) is sent from target SN 506 to MN 504, and a Data Collection Response 1 message (516) is sent from MN 504 to source SN 502. The source SN sends a SN Change Required message (518) to MN 504. Next, MN 504 sends a SN Add Request message (520) to target SN 506. MN 504 will receive a SN Add Request Confirmation message (522) and send a SN Change Confirmation message (524) to source SN 502. Then, MN receives a Data Update 2 message (526) from target SN 506 and sends a Data Update 1 message (528) to source SN 502.

[0105] In some embodiments, the Data Collection Request 1 message also includes a target sequence number ID, which helps the MN identify and request UE-related measurements from the corresponding target SN. In the case of a conditional SN change initiated by the SN, the data collection request may include a list of target SN IDs.

[0106] In some embodiments, the measurement / event ID X in the data collection request 1 message is assigned by the source SN, and the measurement / event ID Y in the data collection request 2 message is assigned by the MN. X and Y can be the same or different values. The exact UE-related measurement Z requested in the data collection request 1 message should be the same as or a subset of the UE-related measurement Z' requested in the data collection request 2 message.

[0107] In some embodiments, the measurement / event ID X assigned by the source SN comes from a specific ID pool (e.g., measurement IDs for other nodes) that is used to assign measurement / event IDs for requesting data from another gNB (e.g., the target SN).

[0108] In some embodiments, measurement / event ID X and the requested UE-related measurement Z can also be transmitted as a container from the source SN to the MN in the data collection request 1 message. This container is associated with the target SN ID. The MN will forward the container to the target SN without interpretation. In this case, measurement / event IDs X and Y, and the requested UE-related measurements Z and Z' are the same.

[0109] In some embodiments, when a conditional SN change is initiated by the SN, the SN change requirement message will contain a list of target SN IDs. In this case, the SN change requirement message can convey a list of measurement / event IDs, each associated with a target SN ID.

[0110] In some embodiments, when the MN forwards the requested UE-related measurement A' to the source SN, the MN may provide only the same SN-specific UE-related measurement as the SN-specific UE-related measurement A received from the target SN. Alternatively or additionally, the MN may provide both the SN-specific UE-related measurement and the MN-specific UE-related measurement separately. Alternatively or additionally, the MN may consider both the MN-specific UE-related measurement and the SN-specific UE-related measurement to provide an average / merged UE-related measurement. The SN-specific UE-related measurement A may be a subset of the UE-related measurement A'.

[0111] In some embodiments, the data update 1 message may also include the corresponding target SN ID. In the case of a conditional SN change initiated by the SN, the source SN may ultimately not know which target SN the UE is connected to during the legacy process.

[0112] Figure 6 An example flowchart illustrating an example method implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this example method for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 600 is described from the perspective of network device 110.

[0113] At block 602, network device 110 sends a first message via transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements. At block 604, network device 110, as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE, sends a second message via transceiver to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes a measurement identifier that identifies the first message. At block 606, network device 110 determines whether the dual-connectivity process is complete. In response to the completion of the dual-connectivity process, at block 608, network device 110 receives a third message via transceiver, the third message including the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity process. In response to the dual-connectivity process not being completed, no operation is performed.

[0114] In some embodiments, the first message includes an indicator that indicates whether the first message is applied to a switching process, a dual-connection process, or both.

[0115] In some embodiments, the network device is a master node (MN), and the dual-connection process is an MN initiating the addition of a secondary node (SN) or an MN initiating a change of the SN for both the MN and the target SN.

[0116] In some embodiments, the requested UE-related measurement is an SN-specific UE-related measurement measured by the target SN.

[0117] In some embodiments, the information element (IE) for SN-specific UE-related measurements is the same as the IE for UE-related measurements for the handover process, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, UE traffic load, or received UE mobility / trajectory, wherein the received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, and UE traffic load are related to the SN terminating the primary cell group / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearer, and the received UE mobility / trajectory is related to one or more visited PSCells of the target SN.

[0118] In some embodiments, the information element IE for SN-specific UE-related measurements is different from the IE for UE-related measurements for the handover process, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: average SN termination uplink / downlink throughput, average SN termination delay, average SN termination packet error rate, or average SN termination service load.

[0119] In some embodiments, a third message is received from the target SN as long as the UE is connected to the target SN.

[0120] In some embodiments, the network device is the source SN, and the dual-connection process is an SN change process initiated for the source SN, the master node (MN), and the target SN.

[0121] In some embodiments, the IE used for the measurement identifier in the second message is the same as, or different from, the IE used for the measurement identifier in the first message.

[0122] In some embodiments, a first message is sent to a target SN and a second message is sent to an MN, and includes: a set of SN identifiers for a set of candidate SNs including the target SN; a set of measurement identifiers including a measurement identifier and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers; and a first UE identifier of the UE assigned by the source SN.

[0123] In some embodiments, network device 110 receives a fourth message from MN via a transceiver, the fourth message including a set of UE identifiers for a UE assigned by a set of candidate SNs.

[0124] In some embodiments, the third message is received from the target SN and includes either a first UE identifier or a second UE identifier of the UE assigned by the target SN, wherein the set of UE identifiers includes the second UE identifier.

[0125] In some embodiments, a first message is sent to the MN and includes a set of SN identifiers containing a set of candidate SNs for the target SN, and a second message is sent to the MN and includes a set of SN identifiers and a set of measurement identifiers, the set of measurement identifiers including measurement identifiers and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers.

[0126] In some embodiments, the third message may also include a target SN identifier for the target SN.

[0127] In some embodiments, the third message is received from the MN, and the requested UE-related measurement includes one of the following: SN-specific UE-related measurement received by the MN from the target SN, SN-specific UE-related measurement, or MN-specific UE-related measurement, or average / merged UE-related measurement for MN-specific UE-related measurement and SN-specific UE-related measurement.

[0128] Figure 7 An example flowchart illustrating an example method implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this example method for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 700 is described from the perspective of network device 130.

[0129] At block 702, network device 130 receives a first message via transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements. At block 704, network device 130, as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE, receives a second message via transceiver to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes a measurement identifier that identifies the first message. At block 706, network device 130 determines whether the dual-connectivity process is complete. In response to the completion of the dual-connectivity process, at block 708, network device 130 sends a third message via transceiver, the third message including the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity process. In response to the dual-connectivity process not being completed, no operation is performed.

[0130] In some embodiments, the first message further includes an indicator that indicates whether the first message is applied to a switching process, a dual-connection process, or both.

[0131] In some embodiments, the network device is a target secondary node (SN), and the dual-connection process is initiated by the primary node (MN) of the target SN and the primary node (MN) of the MN to add a secondary node SN or by the MN to change the SN.

[0132] In some embodiments, the requested UE-related measurement is an SN-specific UE-related measurement of the target SN.

[0133] In some embodiments, the information element (IE) for SN-specific UE-related measurements is the same as the IE for UE-related measurements for the handover process, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, UE traffic load, or received UE mobility / trajectory, wherein the received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, and UE traffic load are related to the SN terminating primary cell group / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearer, and the received UE mobility / trajectory is related to one or more visited PSCells for the target SN.

[0134] In some embodiments, the information element (IE) for SN-specific UE-related measurements is different from the IE for UE-related measurements for the handover process, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: average SN termination uplink / downlink throughput, average SN termination delay, average SN termination packet error rate, or average SN termination service load.

[0135] In some embodiments, a third message is sent to the MN as long as the UE is connected to the target SN.

[0136] In some embodiments, the network device is the target SN, and the dual-connection process is an SN change process initiated for the source SN, the master node (MN), and the target SN.

[0137] In some embodiments, the IE used for the measurement identifier in the second message is the same as, or different from, the IE used for the measurement identifier in the first message.

[0138] In some embodiments, a first message is received from a source SN and a second message is received from a MN, and the message further includes: an SN identifier for the SN source; and a first UE identifier assigned to the UE by the source SN.

[0139] In some embodiments, network device 130 sends a fourth message to MN via a transceiver, the fourth message including a UE identifier assigned by the target SN.

[0140] In some embodiments, a third message is sent to the source SN and includes one of the following: a first UE identifier assigned by the source SN, or a second UE identifier assigned by the target SN.

[0141] In some embodiments, a first message is received from the master node MN, and a second message is received from MN.

[0142] In some embodiments, a third message is sent to the MN and includes SN-specific UE-related measurements.

[0143] Figure 8 An example flowchart illustrating an example method implemented at a network device according to some embodiments of the present disclosure is shown. Reference will be made to this example method for discussion purposes. Figure 1 Method 800 is described from the perspective of network device 110.

[0144] At block 802, network device 110, as part of a dual-connectivity process for a user equipment (UE), receives a first message via a transceiver from a source secondary node (SN), wherein the first message includes a measurement identifier that identifies a second message sent by the source SN to request a first UE-related measurement. At block 804, network device 110 determines whether the first message has been received. In response to receiving the first message, at block 806, network device 110 sends a third message via a transceiver to a target SN to trigger the provisioning of a second UE-related measurement associated with the dual-connectivity process. In response to not receiving the first message, no action is taken.

[0145] In some embodiments, the measurement identifier is a first measurement identifier, and the first message includes: a set of SN identifiers for a set of candidate SNs including a target SN; a set of measurement identifiers including the first measurement identifier and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers; and a first UE identifier of the UE assigned by the source SN.

[0146] In some embodiments, the third message includes: an SN identifier for the source SN; a first measurement identifier; and a first UE identifier.

[0147] In some embodiments, network device 110 receives a fourth message from target SN via a transceiver, the fourth message including a second UE identifier assigned by target SN.

[0148] In some embodiments, network device 110 sends a fifth message to source SN via transceiver. The fifth message includes a set of UE identifiers assigned by a set of candidate SNs, wherein the set of UE identifiers includes a second UE identifier.

[0149] In some embodiments, the second message is received from the source SN and includes a set of SN identifiers that includes a set of candidate SNs containing the target SN, the measurement identifier is the first measurement identifier, and in response to receiving the second message, the network device 110 sends a sixth message to the target SN via a transceiver to request a second user equipment (UE) related measurement, wherein the second UE related measurement includes the first UE related measurement.

[0150] In some embodiments, the first message includes a set of SN identifiers and a set of measurement identifiers, wherein the set of measurement identifiers includes a first measurement identifier and corresponds to the set of SN identifiers.

[0151] In some embodiments, in response to receiving the first message, the network device 110 sends a seventh message to the target SN via a transceiver. The seventh message includes a second measurement identifier that identifies the sixth message.

[0152] In some embodiments, network device 110 receives an eighth message from a target SN via a transceiver, the eighth message including SN-specific UE-related measurements; and sends a ninth message including a third UE-related measurement to a source SN via a transceiver, wherein the third UE-related measurement includes at least SN-specific UE-related measurements.

[0153] In some embodiments, the third UE-related measurement includes one of the following: SN-specific UE-related measurement, SN-specific UE-related measurement, or MN-specific UE-related measurement, or average / combined UE-related measurement for MN-specific UE-related measurement and SN-specific UE-related measurement.

[0154] Figure 9 A simplified block diagram of a device 900 suitable for implementing embodiments of the present disclosure is illustrated. The device 900 can be considered as follows: Figure 1 Another example of the terminal device 120 and network devices 110, 130 and 140 shown is implemented. Therefore, device 900 may be implemented at or at least in part with terminal device 120 or network devices 110, 130 or 140.

[0155] As shown in the figure, device 900 includes a processor 910, a memory 920 coupled to the processor 910, suitable transmitters (TX) and receivers (RX) 940 coupled to the processor 910, and a communication interface coupled to the TX / RX 940. The memory 920 stores at least a portion of a program 930. The TX / RX 940 is used for bidirectional communication. The TX / RX 940 has at least one antenna to facilitate communication, but in practice, the access node mentioned in this disclosure may have multiple access nodes. The communication interface may represent any interface required for communication with other network elements, such as an X2 interface for bidirectional communication between eNBs or gNBs, an S1 interface for communication between a Mobility Management Entity (MME) / Serving Gateway (S-GW) and an eNB or gNB, an Un interface for communication between an eNB or gNB and a relay node (RN), or a Uu interface for communication between an eNB or gNB and a terminal device.

[0156] Assume that program 930 includes program instructions that, when executed by the associated processor 910, enable device 900 to operate according to embodiments of this disclosure, as referenced herein. Figures 1 to 8 The embodiments discussed herein can be implemented by computer software executable by the processor 910 of device 900, or by hardware, or by a combination of software and hardware. The processor 910 can be configured to implement various embodiments of this disclosure. Furthermore, a combination of the processor 910 and the memory 920 can form a processing unit 950 suitable for implementing various embodiments of this disclosure.

[0157] Memory 920 can be of any type suitable for a local technology network and can be implemented using any suitable data storage technology, such as, as non-limiting examples, non-transitory computer-readable storage media, semiconductor-based memory devices, magnetic memory devices and systems, optical memory devices and systems, fixed memory, and removable memory. Although only one memory 920 is shown in device 900, several physically different memory modules may be present in device 900. Processor 910 can be of any type suitable for a local technology network and, as non-limiting examples, may include one or more of the following: general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, microprocessor, digital signal processor (DSP), and processor based on a multi-core processor architecture. Device 900 may have multiple processors, such as application-specific integrated circuit chips that are time-dependent on a clock synchronized with the main processor.

[0158] In summary, the embodiments of this disclosure can provide the following solutions.

[0159] Section 1. A network device, comprising: a processor; and a transceiver coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: transmit a first message via the transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE, transmit a second message via the transceiver to trigger the supply of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and in response to completion of the dual-connectivity process, receive a third message via the transceiver, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity process.

[0160] Chapter 2. According to the network device in Chapter 1, the first message includes an indicator that indicates whether the first message is applied to a handover process, a dual-connection process, or both.

[0161] Chapter 3. Based on the network device in Chapter 1, where the network device is the master node (MN), and the dual-connection process is initiated by the MN to add a secondary node (SN) or by the MN to change the target SN.

[0162] Chapter 4. According to Chapter 3, the network device in which the requested UE-related measurement is an SN-specific UE-related measurement measured by the target SN.

[0163] Section 5. Network equipment according to Section 4, wherein the information element (IE) for SN-specific UE-related measurements is the same as the IE for UE-related measurements for handover procedures, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, UE traffic load, or received UE mobility / trajectory, wherein the received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, and UE traffic load are related to the SN terminating primary cell group / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearer, and the received UE mobility / trajectory is related to one or more visited PSCells for the target SN.

[0164] Section 6. According to the network device in Section 4, the information element IE for SN-specific UE-related measurements is different from the IE for UE-related measurements for handover procedures, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: average SN termination uplink / downlink throughput, average SN termination delay, average SN termination packet error rate, or average SN termination service load.

[0165] Chapter 7. According to the network device in Chapter 3, the third message is received from the target SN as long as the UE is connected to the target SN.

[0166] Chapter 8. Based on the network device in Chapter 1, where the network device is the source SN, and the dual-connection process is an SN change process initiated for the source SN, the master node (MN), and the target SN.

[0167] Chapter 9. According to Chapter 8, the network device wherein the IE used for the measurement identifier in the second message is the same as or different from the IE used for the measurement identifier in the first message.

[0168] Chapter 10. A network device according to Chapter 8, wherein a first message is sent to a target SN and a second message is sent to an MN, and includes: a set of SN identifiers for a set of candidate SNs including the target SN; a set of measurement identifiers including a measurement identifier and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers; and a first UE identifier of the UE assigned by the source SN.

[0169] Section 11. The network device according to Section 10, wherein the processor is further configured to receive a fourth message from the MN via a transceiver, the fourth message including a set of UE identifiers for a UE assigned by the set of candidate SNs.

[0170] Section 12. According to the network device of Section 11, the third message is received from the target SN and further includes one of a first UE identifier or a second UE identifier of the UE assigned by the target SN, wherein the set of UE identifiers includes the second UE identifier.

[0171] Chapter 13. A network device according to Chapter 8, wherein a first message is sent to the MN and includes a set of SN identifiers including a set of candidate SNs including a target SN, and a second message is sent to the MN and includes a set of SN identifiers and a set of measurement identifiers, the set of measurement identifiers including measurement identifiers and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers.

[0172] Chapter 14. According to Chapter 13, for network devices, the third message also includes the target SN identifier of the target SN.

[0173] Section 15. According to Section 13, the network device wherein the third message is received from the MN and the requested UE-related measurement includes one of the following: SN-specific UE-related measurement received by the MN from the target SN, SN-specific UE-related measurement, or MN-specific UE-related measurement, or average / merged UE-related measurement for MN-specific UE-related measurement and SN-specific UE-related measurement.

[0174] Section 16. A network device, comprising: a processor; and a transceiver coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: receive a first message via the transceiver to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual-connectivity process for the UE, receive a second message via the transceiver to trigger the supply of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and in response to completion of the dual-connectivity process, transmit a third message via the transceiver, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual-connectivity process.

[0175] Section 17. According to the network device in Section 16, the first message also includes an indicator that indicates whether the first message is applied to a handover process, a dual-connection process, or both.

[0176] Chapter 18. According to Chapter 16, the network device is the target secondary node (SN), and the dual-connection process is initiated by the primary node (MN) of the target SN and the primary node (MN) of the MN to add the secondary node SN or the MN to change the SN.

[0177] Section 19. Network devices according to Section 18, wherein the requested UE-related measurement is an SN-specific UE-related measurement of the target SN.

[0178] Section 20. Network devices according to Section 19, wherein the information element (IE) for SN-specific UE-related measurements is the same as the IE for UE-related measurements for handover procedures, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, UE traffic load, or received UE mobility / trajectory, wherein the received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, and UE traffic load are related to the SN terminating primary cell group / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearer, and the received UE mobility / trajectory is related to one or more visited PSCells for the target SN.

[0179] Section 21. Network devices according to Section 19, wherein the information element (IE) for SN-specific UE-related measurements is different from the IE for UE-related measurements for the handover process, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: average SN termination uplink / downlink throughput, average SN termination delay, average SN termination packet error rate, or average SN termination service load.

[0180] Chapter 22. According to the network device in Chapter 18, a third message is sent to the MN as long as the UE is connected to the target SN.

[0181] Chapter 23. According to Chapter 16, the network device is the target SN, and the dual-connection process is an SN change process initiated for the source SN, the master node (MN), and the target SN.

[0182] Section 24. A network device according to Section 23, wherein the IE used for the measurement identifier in the second message is the same as or different from the IE used for the measurement identifier in the first message.

[0183] Section 25. A network device according to Section 23, wherein a first message is received from a source SN and a second message is received from a MN, and further includes: an SN identifier for the SN source; and a first UE identifier for the UE assigned by the source SN.

[0184] Section 26. The network device according to Section 25, wherein the processor is further configured to: send a fourth message to the MN via a transceiver, the fourth message including a UE identifier assigned by the target SN.

[0185] Section 27. According to the network device of Section 25, the third message is sent to the source SN and also includes one of the following: a first UE identifier assigned by the source SN, or a second UE identifier assigned by the target SN.

[0186] Chapter 28. According to the network device in Chapter 23, the first message is received from the master node MN, and the second message is received from MN.

[0187] Section 29. According to the network device in Section 28, the third message is sent to the MN and includes SN-specific UE-related measurements.

[0188] Section 30. A network device, comprising: a processor; and a transceiver coupled to the processor, wherein the processor is configured to: as part of a dual connectivity process for a user equipment (UE), receive via the transceiver a first message from a source secondary node (SN), wherein the first message includes a measurement identifier that identifies a second message sent by the source SN to request a first UE-related measurement; and in response to receiving the first message, send via the transceiver a third message to a target SN to trigger the provision of a second UE-related measurement associated with the dual connectivity process.

[0189] Chapter 31. A network device according to Chapter 30, wherein the measurement identifier is a first measurement identifier, and the first message includes: a set of SN identifiers including a set of candidate SNs of a target SN; a set of measurement identifiers including the first measurement identifier and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers; and

[0190] The first UE identifier assigned to the UE by the source SN.

[0191] Chapter 32. According to Chapter 31, the third message includes: an SN identifier for the source SN; a first measurement identifier; and

[0192] First UE identifier.

[0193] Section 33. A network device according to Section 31, wherein the processor is further configured to receive a fourth message from a target SN via a transceiver, the fourth message including a second UE identifier assigned by the target SN.

[0194] Section 34. The network device according to Section 33, wherein the processor is further configured to: send a fifth message to the source SN via a transceiver, the fifth message including a set of UE identifiers assigned by the candidate SN set, wherein the set of UE identifiers includes a second UE identifier.

[0195] Section 35. A network device according to Section 30, wherein the second message is received from a source SN and includes a set of SN identifiers containing a set of candidate SNs including a target SN, the measurement identifier being a first measurement identifier, and wherein the processor is further configured to: in response to receiving the second message, send a sixth message via a transceiver to the target SN to request a second user equipment (UE) related measurement, wherein the second UE related measurement includes the first UE related measurement.

[0196] Chapter 36. According to the network device in Chapter 35, the first message includes a set of SN identifiers and a set of measurement identifiers, wherein the set of measurement identifiers includes a first measurement identifier and corresponds to the set of SN identifiers.

[0197] Section 37. The network device according to Section 35, wherein the processor is further configured to: in response to receiving the first message, send a seventh message to the target SN via a transceiver, the seventh message including a second measurement identifier that identifies the sixth message.

[0198] Section 38. The network device according to Section 37, wherein the processor is further configured to: receive an eighth message from a target SN via a transceiver, the eighth message including SN-specific UE-related measurements; and send a ninth message to a source SN via a transceiver including a third UE-related measurement, wherein the third UE-related measurement includes at least SN-specific UE-related measurements.

[0199] Section 39. Network devices according to Section 38, wherein the third UE-related measurement includes one of the following: SN-specific UE-related measurement, SN-specific UE-related measurement, or MN-specific UE-related measurement, or average / combined UE-related measurement for MN-specific UE-related measurement and SN-specific UE-related measurement.

[0200] Section 40. A method performed by a network device, comprising: sending a first message to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual connectivity procedure of the UE, sending a second message to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and in response to completion of the dual connectivity procedure, receiving a third message, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual connectivity procedure.

[0201] Section 41. A method performed by a network device, comprising: receiving a first message to request user equipment (UE) related measurements; as part of a dual connectivity procedure for the UE, receiving a second message to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier identifying the first message; and in response to completion of the dual connectivity procedure, sending a third message, the third message including: the requested UE-related measurements related to the dual connectivity procedure.

[0202] Section 42. A method performed by a network device, comprising: as part of a dual connectivity procedure for a user equipment (UE), receiving a first message from a source secondary node (SN), wherein the first message includes a measurement identifier that identifies a second message sent by the source SN to request a first UE-related measurement; and in response to receiving the first message, sending a third message to a target SN to trigger the provision of a second UE-related measurement associated with the dual connectivity procedure.

[0203] Section 43. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed on at least one processor of the device, cause the device to perform the method according to Section 40.

[0204] Section 44. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed on at least one processor of the device, cause the device to perform the method according to Section 41.

[0205] Section 45. A computer-readable medium having instructions stored thereon, which, when executed on at least one processor of the device, cause the device to perform the method according to Section 42.

[0206] Generally, the various embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented using hardware or dedicated circuitry, software, logic, or any combination thereof. Some aspects can be implemented using hardware, while others can be implemented using firmware or software that can be executed by a controller, microprocessor, or other computing device. Although various aspects of the embodiments of this disclosure are illustrated and described as block diagrams, flowcharts, or using some other graphical representation, it should be understood that, as non-limiting examples, the blocks, devices, systems, techniques, or methods described herein can be implemented using hardware, software, firmware, dedicated circuitry or logic, general-purpose hardware or controllers or other computing devices, or some combination thereof.

[0207] This disclosure also provides at least one computer program product tangibly stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The computer program product includes computer-executable instructions, such as instructions included in a program module, which are executed in a device on a target real or virtual processor to perform the processes or methods described above. Typically, a program module includes routines, programs, libraries, objects, classes, components, data structures, etc., that perform a specific task or implement a specific abstract data type. In various embodiments, the functionality of a program module can be combined or split among program modules as needed. The machine-executable instructions of the program module can execute within a local or distributed device. In a distributed device, the program module can reside on both local and remote storage media.

[0208] Program code used to perform the methods of this disclosure may be written in any combination of one or more programming languages. This program code may be provided to a processor or controller of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus, such that, when executed by the processor or controller, the program code causes the functions / operations specified in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams to be implemented. The program code may be executed entirely on a machine, partially on a machine, as a stand-alone software package, partially on a machine and partially on a remote machine, or entirely on a remote machine or server.

[0209] The aforementioned program code may be embodied on a machine-readable medium, which may be any tangible medium capable of containing or storing a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device. A machine-readable medium may be a machine-readable signal medium or a machine-readable storage medium. A machine-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor systems, apparatuses, or devices, or any suitable combination thereof. More specific examples of machine-readable storage media will include electrical connections having one or more wires, portable computer floppy disks, hard disks, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or flash memory), optical fiber, portable optical disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), optical storage devices, magnetic storage devices, or any suitable combination thereof.

[0210] Furthermore, although operations are described in a specific order, this should not be construed as requiring the operations to be performed in the specific order shown or sequentially, or to perform all of the shown operations to obtain the desired result. In some cases, multitasking and parallel processing may be advantageous. Similarly, while several specific implementation details are included in the foregoing discussion, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of this disclosure, but rather as descriptions of features that may be specific to particular embodiments. Certain features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented in combination in a single embodiment. Conversely, the various features described in the context of a single embodiment may also be implemented individually or in any suitable sub-combination in multiple embodiments.

[0211] Although this disclosure has been described in language specific to structural features and / or methodological actions, it should be understood that this disclosure as defined in the appended claims is not necessarily limited to the specific features or actions described above. Rather, the specific features and actions described above are disclosed as exemplary forms of implementing the claims.

Claims

1. A network device, comprising: processor; as well as The transceiver is coupled to the processor. The processor is configured as follows: A first message is sent via the transceiver to request relevant measurements from the user equipment (UE); As part of the dual-connectivity process for the UE, a second message is sent via the transceiver to trigger the provision of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier that identifies the first message; and In response to the completion of the dual connectivity process, a third message is received via the transceiver, the third message including: requested UE-related measurements associated with the dual connectivity process.

2. The network device according to claim 1, wherein the network device is a master node (MN), and the dual-connection process is for the MN to initiate the addition of a secondary node (SN) or the MN to initiate the change of the SN for the target SN.

3. The network device of claim 2, wherein the requested UE-related measurement is an SN-specific UE-related measurement measured by the target SN.

4. The network device of claim 3, wherein the information element (IE) for the SN-specific UE-related measurements is the same as the IE for UE-related measurements for the handover process, and the SN-specific UE-related measurements include one of the following: Received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, Group delay, Grouping error rate UE service load, or Received UE mobility / trajectory, The received uplink / downlink (UL / DL) throughput, packet delay, packet error rate, and UE service load are related to the SN termination of primary cell group / secondary cell group (MCG / SCG) bearers, and the received UE mobility / trajectory is related to one or more visited PSCells for the target SN.

5. The network device according to claim 1, wherein the network device is a source SN, and the dual-connection process is an SN change process initiated by the source SN, the master node (MN), and the target SN.

6. The network device of claim 5, wherein the IE used for the measurement identifier in the second message is the same as, or different from, the IE used for the measurement identifier in the first message.

7. The network device of claim 5, wherein the first message is sent to the target SN, and the second message is sent to the MN, and includes: A set of SN identifiers for a set of candidate SNs including the target SN; A set of measurement identifiers including the measurement identifier and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers; as well as The first UE identifier of the UE assigned by the source SN.

8. The network device according to claim 7, wherein the processor is further configured to: A fourth message is received from the MN via the transceiver, the fourth message including: A set of UE identifiers for the UE assigned by the candidate SN set.

9. The network device of claim 8, wherein the third message is received from the target SN and further includes one of the first UE identifier or a second UE identifier of the UE assigned by the target SN, wherein the set of UE identifiers includes the second UE identifier.

10. The network device of claim 5, wherein the first message is sent to the MN and includes a set of SN identifiers comprising a set of candidate SNs containing the target SN, and the second message is sent to the MN and further includes the set of SN identifiers and a set of measurement identifiers, the set of measurement identifiers including the measurement identifiers and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers.

11. A network device, comprising: processor; as well as The transceiver is coupled to the processor. The processor is configured as follows: The transceiver receives a first message to request measurements related to the user equipment (UE). As part of the dual-connectivity process for the UE, a second message is received via the transceiver to trigger the supply of UE-related measurements to the UE, wherein the second message includes: a measurement identifier that identifies the first message; and In response to the completion of the dual connectivity process, a third message is sent via the transceiver, the third message including: requested UE-related measurements associated with the dual connectivity process.

12. A network device, comprising: processor; as well as The transceiver is coupled to the processor. The processor is configured as follows: As part of a dual connectivity process for a user equipment (UE), a first message is received from a source secondary node (SN) via the transceiver, wherein the first message includes a measurement identifier that identifies a second message sent by the source SN to request measurements related to the first UE; as well as In response to receiving the first message, a third message is sent to the target SN via the transceiver to trigger the provision of a second UE-related measurement associated with the dual connectivity process.

13. The network device of claim 12, wherein the measurement identifier is a first measurement identifier, and the first message includes: A set of SN identifiers for a set of candidate SNs including the target SN; A set of measurement identifiers including the first measurement identifier and corresponding to the set of SN identifiers; as well as The first UE identifier of the UE assigned by the source SN.

14. The network device of claim 13, wherein the third message includes: The SN identifier for the source SN; The first measurement identifier; as well as The first UE identifier.

15. The network device of claim 12, wherein the second message is received from the source SN and includes a set of SN identifiers comprising a set of candidate SNs including the target SN, the measurement identifier being a first measurement identifier, and wherein the processor is further configured to: In response to receiving the second message, a sixth message is sent to the target SN via the transceiver to request the second user equipment (UE) related measurements, wherein the second UE related measurements include the first UE related measurements.

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