Method for signaling packet data unit session information list for core network buffering with long extended discontinuous reception

Abstract

A method (200) performed by a network node (510) for signaling packet data unit, PDU, session information is provided. The method includes transmitting (202), to a core network, CN, (506) first PDU session information, the first PDU session information including a PDU session resource list indicating at least one PDU session having active user plane resources. For example, the first PDU session information can include at least one PDU session identifier.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This disclosure generally relates to wireless communications, and more specifically, to systems and methods for signaling a list of packet data unit (PDU) session information for a core network (CN) buffer having long extended discontinuous reception (eDRX). Background Technology

[0002] Figure 1 This describes the overall architecture of the fifth-generation radio access network (5G RAN or NG-RAN). Figure 1 The gNB in ​​the text is described using a split architecture.

[0003] Regarding the version 18 Reduced Capability (RedCap) work, support for Radio Resource Control Inactivity (RRC_INACTIVE) states with a length greater than 10.24 seconds is specified by introducing a new signaling procedure between NG-RAN and CN.

[0004] For example, a new procedure has been introduced in the Next Generation Application Protocol (NGAP) in 3GPP TS 38.413 v. 18.0.0, where the NG-RAN serving a User Equipment (UE) that is in RRC_INACTIVE and has a long eDRX, sends an MT Communication Processing Request message to the CN. Once the CN receives the request message, it triggers the high-latency communication processing defined in 3GPP TS 23.502 v. 18.4.0. When downlink (DL) Mobile Terminal (MT) data or DL ​​signaling is available from the CN, the CN sends a RAN Paging Request message to the NG-RAN node to perform RAN paging, causing the UE in RRC_INACTIVE to trigger a connection recovery procedure. If paging has been successful and the UE becomes reachable, the NG-RAN sends an MT Communication Processing Request message to the CN to notify the CN that the UE is reachable, allowing the CN to deliver buffered data / buffered signaling to the UE without the risk of loss.

[0005] Figure 2 Corresponding to 3GPP TS 23.502 V.18.4.0 Figure 4 Section 8.2.2b-1 illustrates network-triggered connection restoration for a UE in RRC_INACTIVE mode, with CN-based MT communication processing. Specifically, Section 4.8.2.2b of 3GPP TS 23.502 V.18.4.0 specifies: When the UE is in a CM-CONNECTED state with RRC_INACTIVE status and CN-based mobile termination (MT) communication processing, the high-latency communication described in Clause 5.31.8 of TS 23.501 [2] applies.

[0006] This process can be triggered by MT data, or by the N1 process from the Session Management Function (SMF) and the User Plane Function (UPF), such as... Figure 4 As shown in 8.2.2b-1. When this process is triggered by other [Network Functions (NFs)] (e.g., Short Message Service Function (SMSF), Location Management Function (LMF), Gateway Mobility Center (GMLC)), [ Figure 4 The UPF (or SMF) in 8.2.2b-1] should be replaced by the corresponding NF (the corresponding service operation used by other NFs when communicating with the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) may also be different from the service operation used by the SMF / UPF).

[0007] During this process, the NG-RAN (i.e., [gNodeB (gNB)] performs a RAN paging to the UE based on the N2 message from the AMF in order to trigger the UE-triggered connection restoration procedure in Clause 4.8.2.2.

[0008] 1a. When downlink data is received and the SMF / UPF is requested to execute the buffer specified in Clause 4.8.1.1a, the UPF / SMF, together with the AMF, checks the likelihood of data delivery, similar to step 2 of Clause 4.24.2, but with the following differences: As defined in Clause 5.4.3.2 of TS 23.501, in Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability, the SMF may also send the PPI, [Assign and Maintain Priority (ARP)] and [5G QoS Identifier (5QI)] and / or [Quality of Service (QoS)] streams of the PDU session that triggers the paging policy differentiation request, and the [Quality Flow Indicator (QFI)].

[0009] If, while the SMF is awaiting a UE-triggered connection restoration indication or rejection response from the AMF (with an estimated maximum waiting time), it receives any additional data notification message due to additional data packets from another QoS flow associated with a higher priority (i.e., ARP priority) than the priority indicated to the AMF in the previous Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability request, or if the SMF derives a different paging policy indicator based on the additional data notification, the SMF invokes a new Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability request to indicate the higher priority or the different paging policy indicator to the AMF. The information contained in the new Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability request overrides the information from the previous Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability request stored in the AMF. If the SMF receives any additional data notification message due to additional data packets of another QoS flow associated with the same or lower priority indicated to the AMF in the previous Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability, or if the SMF has sent a second Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability message indicating a higher priority and received additional downlink data packets from the UE, the SMF buffers these downlink data packets and does not send a new Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability message.

[0010] The AMF determines UE reachability based on the stored eDRX value of the RRC_INACTIVE state provided by NG-RAN in Clause 4.8.1.1a. If the UE is unreachable, the AMF stores the information received in the Namf_MT_EnableUEReachability request and provides an estimated maximum waiting time in the response message based on the AMF's RRC_INACTIVE eDRX value (steps 2-5 are deferred until the UE becomes reachable). If the UE is deemed reachable, step 2 is executed immediately.

[0011] Note: This process is similar to eDRX's [Connection Management-Idle (CM-IDLE)]. When the AMF provides an estimated maximum latency, it can take into account the time required for RRC-level procedures (e.g., RRC RAN-based Notification Area (RNA) update procedures) when the UE wakes up from the eDRX cycle.

[0012] 2. When the AMF determines that the UE is reachable, the AMF sends an N2 DL data notification message to the NG-RAN, requesting the restoration of the UE's RRC connection. The AMF may include one or more of the following parameters in the N2 DL data notification message: PPI of the PDU session ID, ARP, and 5QI, and / or QFI of the QoS flow, to trigger and enable RAN paging.

[0013] 3. NG-RAN considers parameters provided by AMF to perform RAN paging toward the UE.

[0014] 4. When the UE receives a paging from the RAN, it initiates a UE-triggered connection restoration procedure, and the NG-RAN notifies the CN as specified in Clause 4.8.2.2, which includes the N2 notification in step 3b.

[0015] 5. If applicable, the UPF triggers downlink data delivery. If applicable, the AMF sends a downlink NAS message.

[0016] NGAP process Section 8.3.13 of TS 138 413 discusses the NGAP process: 8.3.13 MT Communication Processing 8.3.13.1 Overview The purpose of the MT communication processing procedure is to request the AMF to activate or deactivate CN-based MT communication processing for a UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state where the extended DRX exceeds 10.24 seconds, as specified in TS 23.501 [9]. The procedure uses UE-related signaling.

[0017] 8.3.13.2 Successful operation NG-RAN nodes initiate this process by sending an MT communication processing request message to the AMF.

[0018] If the 5GC action IE is included in the MT communication processing request message and is set to "HLCom active", then the AMF should activate the MT communication processing as specified in TS 23.501 [9], and when applying the MT communication processing, take into account the NR paging length eDRX information of the RRC inactive IE as specified in TS38.304

[12] and TS 23.502

[10] .

[0019] If the 5GC action IE is included in the MT communication processing request message and is set to "HLCom disabled", then the AMF should disable MT communication processing as specified in TS 23.501 [9].

[0020] 8.3.13.3 Failed Operation If, in the RRC_INACTIVE state, the AMF cannot activate CN-based mobile termination communication processing for a UE configured with an eDRX period value longer than 10.24 seconds, it should send an MT communication processing failure message to the NG-RAN node.

[0021] 8.3.14 RAN Paging Request 8.3.14.1 Overview This process is initiated by the AMF to indicate the presence of buffered DL data in the 5GC, or the arrival of DL signaling for the UE. The process uses UE-related signaling.

[0022] 8.3.14.2 Successful operation AMF initiates the RAN paging request process by sending a RAN paging request message to the NG-RAN node.

[0023] Upon receiving a RAN paging request message, the NG-RAN node should perform a RAN paging for the UE that is in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

[0024] If the paging policy distinguishes IE included in the RAN paging request message, then the NG-RAN node should consider it when performing RAN paging for a UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state, if supported.

[0025] If the DL signaling IE is included in the RAN paging request message, the NG-RAN node should consider it when performing RAN paging for a UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state, if supported.

[0026] 8.3.14.3 Abnormal Conditions invalid However, certain challenges exist. For example, the current process lacks information to support RRC_Inactive with long eDRX, including network-triggered connection recovery in RRC_INACTIVE with CN-based MT communication processing.

[0027] In fact, the requirements for SA2 are as follows: Clause 4.8.1.1a of TS 23.502 stipulates: For each PDU session that has activated user plane resources, the AMF calls Nsmf_PDU Session to the SMF. _ UpdateSMContext request (PDU session ID, reason, operation type, user location information, location age information, N2 SM) Information (assistive RAT usage data), CN-based MT processing instructions). The operation type is set to indicate cessation of sending data to the UE user. Planar DL data transfer and enable data buffering values. If data buffering is processed in SMF, then SMF begins processing MT data. buffer.

[0028] However, the AMF does not know exactly whether user plane resources have been established for a given PDU session. The AMF is transparent to those session management processes.

[0029] Similarly, during the recovery period, Clause 4.8.2.2 of TS 23.502 stipulates: “4b.2 If the AMF has already requested a data buffer, the AMF calls the Nsmf_PDUSession_UpdateSMContext request to the SMF, indicating downlink data delivery for each PDU session with the active user plane, as described in Clause 4.8.1.1a.” The requirement for the AMF to send an Update SM Context Request to all SMFs to "pause" or "resume" regardless of whether the corresponding user plane resources have been established resulted in a large amount of additional signaling.

[0030] The requirement for the AMF to remember the existence of DL data / signaling from the SMF for a given PDU session and to generate an Update SM Context request for that SMF adds a new, unnecessary requirement to the AMF. This is because when the UE enters RRC inactivity with a long eDRX, all SMFs for PDU sessions with established PDU session resources are notified that their UP connections are suspended. Thus, the SMF triggers EnableUeReachability upon receiving DL data. However, if the UE is restored, the UP connection status of all PDU sessions should be updated from suspended to active. This limits functionality to PDU sessions that have some DL data to send. Summary of the Invention

[0031] Certain aspects of this disclosure and its embodiments may provide solutions to these or other challenges. For example, methods and systems are provided for signaling a list of PDU session information for a CN buffer with a long eDRX.

[0032] According to some embodiments, a method for a network node to transmit PDU session information by signaling includes transmitting first PDU session information to a CN, the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one PDU session with active UP resources.

[0033] According to some embodiments, a network node for signaling PDU session information is configured to transmit first PDU session information to a CN, the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one PDU session with active UP resources.

[0034] According to some embodiments, a method by which a CN transmits PDU session information by signaling includes receiving first PDU session information from a network node, the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one first PDU session with active UP resources.

[0035] According to some embodiments, a CN for signaling PDU session information is configured to receive first PDU session information from a network node, the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one first PDU session with active UP resources.

[0036] Some embodiments may provide one or more of the following technical advantages. For example, some embodiments may provide the technical advantage of enabling the AMF to know which PDU sessions have active user plane resource connections. As another example, some embodiments may provide the technical advantage of enabling the NG-RAN to know that the SMF has received an MT call and triggered a paging PDU session.

[0037] Other advantages will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Some embodiments may have some or all of the listed advantages, or advantages not listed. Attached Figure Description

[0038] To gain a more complete understanding of the disclosed embodiments and their features and advantages, reference is now made to the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 The architecture of the entire fifth-generation radio access network (5G RAN or NG-RAN) is shown; Figure 2 This illustrates network-triggered connection recovery for a UE in RRC_INACTIVE with CN-based MT communication processing; Figure 3 An example method is shown for a network node to transmit PDU session information using signaling according to certain embodiments; Figure 4 Another example method of transmitting PDU session information by signaling by a network node according to certain embodiments is shown; Figure 5 An example method of transmitting a PDU session using signaling by a CN according to certain embodiments is shown; Figure 6 Another example method of transmitting a PDU session using signaling by a CN according to certain embodiments is shown; Figure 7 An example communication system according to certain embodiments is shown; Figure 8 An example UE according to certain embodiments is shown; Figure 9Example network nodes according to certain embodiments are shown; and Figure 10 A virtualized environment according to certain embodiments is illustrated, wherein functionality implemented by some embodiments can be virtualized. Detailed Implementation

[0039] Some embodiments contemplated herein will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Embodiments are provided by way of example to convey the scope of the subject matter to those skilled in the art. The term "node" as used in this article can refer to either a network node or a UE. Examples of network nodes include NodeBs, base stations (BSs), multi-standard radio (MSR) radio nodes such as MSR BSs, eNodeBs (eNBs), gNodeBs (gNBs), primary eNBs (MeNBs), secondary eNBs (SeNBs), integrated access backhaul (IAB) nodes, network controllers, radio network controllers (RNCs), base station controllers (BSCs), relays, donor node control relays, base transceiver stations (BTSs), central units (e.g., in gNBs), distributed units (e.g., in gNBs), baseband units, centralized baseband, C-RAN, access points (APs), transmission points, transmission nodes, remote radio units (RRUs), remote radio heads (RRHs), nodes in distributed antenna systems (DAS), CN nodes (e.g., mobile switching centers (MSCs), mobility management entities (MMEs), etc.), operations and maintenance (O&M), operations support systems (OSSs), ad hoc networks (SONs), location nodes (e.g., E-SMLCs), etc.

[0040] Another example of a node is a User Equipment (UE), which is a non-limiting term and refers to any type of wireless device that communicates with a network node and / or another UE in a cellular or mobile communication system. Examples of UEs are target devices, device-to-device (D2D) UEs, vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) UEs, machine-type UEs, MTC UEs or UEs capable of machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, personal digital assistants (PDAs), tablets, mobile terminals, smartphones, laptop embedded devices (LEEs), laptop-mounted devices (LMEs), unified serial bus (USB) dongles, etc.

[0041] In some embodiments, the generic term "radio network node" or simply "network node (NW node)" is used. It can be any kind of network node, which may include base stations, radio base stations, base transceivers, base station controllers, network controllers, evolved Node B (eNB), Node B, gNode B (gNB), relay nodes, access points, radio access points, remote radio units (RRU), remote radio heads (RRH), central units (e.g. in gNB), distributed units (e.g. in gNB), baseband units, centralized baseband, C-RAN, access points (AP), etc.

[0042] The term Radio Access Technology (RAT) can refer to any RAT, such as Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (UTRA), Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRA), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT), WiFi, Bluetooth, Next Generation RAT, NR, 4G, 5G, etc. Any device represented by the terms node, network node, or radio network node can be capable of supporting one or more RATs.

[0043] The term "signal" or "radio signal" as used herein can refer to any physical signal or physical channel. Examples of downlink (DL) physical signals are reference signals (RS), such as the primary synchronization signal (PSS), secondary synchronization signal (SSS), channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS), demodulation reference signal (DMRS) in the SS / PBCH block (SSB), discovery reference signal (DRS), cell-specific reference signal (CRS), location reference signal (PRS), etc. RS can be periodic. For example, an RS carrying one or more RSs may occur at a certain period (e.g., 20 ms, 40 ms, etc.). RS can also be aperiodic.

[0044] Each SSB carries a new Radio Primary Synchronization Signal (NR-PSS), a new Radio Secondary Synchronization Signal (NR-SSS), and a new Radio Physical Broadcast Channel (NR-PBCH) in four consecutive symbols. One or more Synchronization Signal Blocks (SSBs) are transmitted in an SSB burst that repeats at a certain period, such as, for example, 5 ms, 10 ms, 20 ms, 40 ms, 80 ms, and 160 ms. The UE is configured with information about the SSBs on a cell for a given carrier frequency through one or more SS / PBCH block measurement timing configurations (SMTC). SMTC configurations include parameters such as the SMTC period, the SMTC timing duration or duration, and the SMTC time offset relative to a reference time (e.g., the SFN of the serving cell). Therefore, SMTC events can also occur at a certain period (e.g., 5 ms, 10 ms, 20 ms, 40 ms, 80 ms, and 160 ms). Examples of uplink (UL) physical signals are reference signals, such as the Sounding Reference Signal (SRS), the Demodulation Reference Signal (DMRS), etc. The term physical channel refers to any channel that carries higher-level information (such as data, control, etc.). Examples of physical channels include Physical Broadcast Channel (PBCH), Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH), Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH), Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), Physical Uplink Control Channel (PUCCH), Physical Uplink Shared Channel (PUSCH), Short PUSCH (sPUSCH), Short PDSCH (sPDSCH), Short PUCCH (sPUCCH), Short PUSCH (sPUSCH), MTC PDCCH (MPDCCH), Narrowband PBCH (NPBCH), Narrowband PDCCH (NPDCCH), Narrowband PDSCH (NPDSCH), Narrowband PUSCH (NPUSCH), Enhanced PDCCH (E-PDCCH), etc.

[0045] The term "time resource" as used herein can refer to any type of physical or radio resource expressed in terms of time length. Examples of time resources are: symbols, time slots, subframes, radio frames, TTI, interleaving time, time slots, sub-time slots, micro-time slots, system frame number (SFN) periods, super SFN (H-SFN) periods, etc.

[0046] According to certain embodiments, methods and systems are provided for transmitting a list of PDU session information with a CN buffer having a long eDRX via signaling. For example, according to certain embodiments, the list of PDU session information is added to an MT communication processing request message from the NG-RAN to the CN to inform the AMF of the user plane connection status of the PDU sessions, and in a particular embodiment, triggers further signaling to the SMF. Specifically, in a particular embodiment, since the NG-RAN should be able to inform the AMF which PDU sessions have corresponding PDU session resources established in the NG-RAN, the NG-RAN includes a "PDU session ID list" in the MT communication processing request message to indicate to the AMF that the user plane connection of these PDU sessions will be "suspended" or "resumed" due to the UE entering an RRC inactive state with a long eDRX. Therefore, the AMF can trigger UpdateSmContext accordingly.

[0047] Later, when the AMF receives MT signaling from the SMF that supports multiple PDU sessions, the AMF provides the NG-RAN with a list of PDU sessions in the RAN paging request message, so that the RAN uses the list of PDU sessions when deciding on a paging policy, such as paging small data transmissions based on the cumulative data size across all PDU sessions.

[0048] In a particular embodiment, when an NGAP MT communication processing request message is sent, the NG-RAN includes a list of PDU session information (e.g., PDU session IDs) for which the AMF should assume that the PDU session has active user plane resources in the network.

[0049] In a particular embodiment, the AMF considers the received PDU session to have an active user plane connection and decides to trigger UpdateSmContext accordingly. Specifically, the AMF may perform one of the following operations: - If the 5GC action is set to "HLCOM active", the AMF triggers UpdateSmContext to enable buffering for the indicated PDU session.

[0050] - If the 5GC action is set to "HLCOM disabled", the AMF triggers UpdateSmContext to allow the PDU session indicated by the stop buffer to be stopped.

[0051] Example implementation in 3GPP TS 38.413 In a particular embodiment, section 9.2.2.22 of 3GPP TS 38.413 relating to MT communication processing requests is updated as follows, wherein modified or added text is indicated by underscores and italics: 9.2.2.22 MT Communication Processing Request The message is sent by the NG-RAN node to the AMF to request activation or deactivation of CN-based MT communication processing for UEs in an RRC_INACTIVE state with a long eDRX of more than 10.24 seconds, as specified in TS 23.501 [9].

[0052] Direction: NG-RAN Node® AMF In another specific embodiment, the AMF includes a list of PDU sessions in the RAN paging request message. Possible revisions to TS 38.413 V18.0.0 affecting this implementation are provided below, with revised or added text indicated by underscores and italics: 9.3.3.63 Paging Strategy Differentiation This IE provides paging policy differentiation information for UEs in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

[0053] In a particular embodiment, NG-RAN acquires a list of PDU sessions and accumulates the data size across all PDU sessions for Small Data Transmission (SDT) to determine MT-SDT paging.

[0054] Figure 3 An example method 100 for a network node to signal PDU session information according to certain embodiments is shown. In the illustrated embodiment, the method includes at least one of a transmission step 102 and a reception step 104. For example, in step 102, the network node may transmit first PDU session information to the CN, which at least indicates an active or inactive PDU session. Additionally or alternatively, in step 104, for example, the network node may receive second PDU session information from the CN that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0055] In a particular embodiment, the network node’s method may include any operations and / or features disclosed in the example embodiments of Group C, and / or any other operations and / or features described herein.

[0056] Figure 4Another example method 200 for a network node to signal PDU session information according to certain embodiments is shown. In the illustrated embodiment, the method includes, in step 202, the network node transmitting first PDU session information to the CN, the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one PDU session with active user plane resources.

[0057] In a particular embodiment, the first PDU session information includes at least one PDU session identifier.

[0058] In a particular embodiment, the first PDU session information is transmitted to the CN in an NGAP MT communication processing request message.

[0059] In another specific embodiment, the first PDU session information is included or is included in a message that requests activation of CN-based MT communication processing for at least one UE associated with at least one PDU session. Alternatively, the first PDU session information is included or is included in a message that requests deactivation of CN-based MT communication processing for at least one UE associated with at least one PDU session.

[0060] In a particular embodiment, the network node receives second PDU session information from the CN that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0061] In another specific embodiment, the second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session for which the network node will transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0062] In another specific embodiment, second PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission to at least one UE associated with at least one second PDU session.

[0063] In another specific embodiment, the second PDU session information is included or is included in the RAN paging request message.

[0064] In another specific embodiment, based on the second PDU session information, the network node determines the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions for at least one paging message and / or at least one small data transmission, and determines to transmit at least one paging message and / or at least one small data transmission based on the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions.

[0065] In a particular embodiment, the network node transmitting the first PDU session information to the CN includes transmitting the first PDU session information to the AMF.

[0066] In a particular embodiment, the first PDU session information is associated with at least one user equipment (UE) in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

[0067] Figure 5 An example method 300 for a CN to transmit a PDU session using signaling according to certain embodiments is illustrated. In the illustrated embodiment, the method includes at least one of a receiving step at 302 and a transmitting step at 304. For example, in step 302, the CN receives first PDU session information from a network node indicating at least an active or inactive PDU session. Additionally or alternatively, in step 304, for example, the CN transmits second PDU session information to the network node that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0068] In certain embodiments, the CN method may include any operations and / or features disclosed in the example embodiments of Group D included below, and / or any other operations and / or features described herein.

[0069] Figure 6 Another example method 400 for signaling PDU session information, performed by a CN according to certain embodiments, is shown. In the illustrated embodiment, the method includes, in step 402, the CN receiving first PDU session information from a network node, the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one first PDU session with active user plane resources.

[0070] In a particular embodiment, based on the first PDU session information, the CN determines to trigger a context update for at least one UE.

[0071] In a particular embodiment, determining that triggering a context update for at least one UE includes at least one of the following: when the 5GC action is set to HLCOM active, triggering UpdateSmContext to enable buffering of at least one first PDU session associated with the first PDU session information, and / or when the 5GC action is set to HLCOM deactivated, triggering UpdateSmContext to enable stopping buffering of at least one first PDU session associated with the first PDU session information.

[0072] In a particular embodiment, the first PDU session information includes at least one PDU session identifier.

[0073] In a particular embodiment, the first PDU session information is received from the network node in the NGAP MT communication processing request message.

[0074] In a particular embodiment, first PDU session information is included or is included in a message that requests activation of CN-based MT communication processing for at least one UE associated with at least one first PDU session. Alternatively, first PDU session information is included or is included in a message that requests deactivation of CN-based MT communication processing for at least one UE associated with at least one first PDU session.

[0075] In a particular embodiment, the CN transmits second PDU session information to the network node that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0076] In another specific embodiment, the second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session for which the network node will transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0077] In another specific embodiment, the second PDU session information includes or is included in a message that has a request to transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission to at least one UE associated with at least one second PDU session.

[0078] In a particular embodiment, the second PDU session information is included or is included in the RAN paging request message.

[0079] In a particular embodiment, the CN receives from the SMF a message indicating at least one of the following: the SMF supports multiple PDU sessions, and the SMF has received at least one MT call for at least one second PDU session associated with at least one second PDU session information.

[0080] In another specific embodiment, at least one second PDU information is transmitted based on a message received from the SMF.

[0081] In a specific embodiment, when receiving the first PDU session information, the CN receives the first PDU session information through the AMF.

[0082] In a particular embodiment, the first PDU session information is associated with at least one UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

[0083] Figure 7An example of a communication system 500 according to some embodiments is shown. In this example, the communication system 500 includes a telecommunications network 502, which includes an access network 504, such as a radio access network (RAN), and a CN 506, which includes one or more CN nodes 508. The access network 504 includes one or more access network nodes, such as network nodes 510a and 510b (one or more of which are generally referred to as network node 510), or any other similar 3GPP access node or non-3GPP access point. Network node 510 facilitates direct or indirect connections of user equipment (UE), for example, connecting wireless devices 512a, 512b, 512c, and 512d (one or more of which may be collectively referred to as UE 512) to CN 506 via one or more wireless connections.

[0084] Examples of wireless communication via wireless connection include transmitting and / or receiving wireless signals using electromagnetic waves, radio waves, infrared waves, and / or other types of signals suitable for transmitting information without the use of wires, cables, or other conductors. Furthermore, in various embodiments, communication system 500 may include any number of wired or wireless networks, network nodes, UEs, and / or any other components or systems that can facilitate or participate in the transmission of data and / or signals, whether via wired or wireless connections. Communication system 500 may include any type of communication, telecommunications, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar system and / or be connected to any type of communication, telecommunications, data, cellular, radio network, and / or other similar system via an interface.

[0085] UE 512 can be any communication device of a wide variety of communication devices, including wireless devices arranged, configured, and / or operable to communicate wirelessly with network node 510 and other communication devices. Similarly, network node 510 is arranged, capable, configured, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with UE 512 and / or with other network nodes or devices in telecommunication network 502 to enable and / or provide network access (such as wireless network access) and / or to perform other functions (such as management in telecommunication network 502).

[0086] In the illustrated example, CN 506 connects network node 510 to one or more hosts (such as host 516). These connections may be direct or indirect, via one or more intermediate networks or devices. In other examples, the network node may be directly coupled to a host. CN 506 includes one or more CN nodes (e.g., CN node 508) constructed from hardware and software components. The characteristics of these components may be substantially similar to those described with respect to the UE, network node, and / or host, such that the description generally applies to the corresponding components of CN node 508. Example CN nodes include one or more of the following: Mobile Switching Center (MSC), Mobility Management Entity (MME), Home Subscriber Server (HSS), Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF), Session Management Function (SMF), Authentication Server Function (AUSF), Subscription Identifier Dehiding Function (SIDF), Unified Data Management (UDM), Secure Edge Protection Agent (SEPP), Network Open Function (NEF), and / or User Plane Function (UPF).

[0087] Host 516 may be under the ownership or control of a service provider other than the operator or provider of telecommunications network 502 and / or access network 504, and may be operated by or on behalf of the service provider. Host 516 may host various applications to provide one or more services. Examples of such applications include live and pre-recorded audio / video content, data collection services (such as retrieving and compiling data on various environmental conditions detected by multiple UEs), analytics functionality, social media, functionality for controlling or otherwise interacting with remote devices, functionality for alarm and monitoring centers, or any other such functionality performed by the server.

[0088] on the whole, Figure 7 The communication system 500 enables connectivity between UEs, network nodes, and hosts. In that sense, the communication system can be configured to operate according to predefined rules or procedures, such as specific standards, including but not limited to: Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM); Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS); Long Term Evolution (LTE), and / or other suitable 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G standards, or any applicable future generation standard (e.g., 6G); Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) standards, such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 standard (WiFi); and / or any other suitable wireless communication standards, such as WiMax, Bluetooth, Z-Wave, Near Field Communication (NFC), ZigBee, LiFi, and / or any Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) standards such as LoRa and Sigfox.

[0089] In some examples, telecommunications network 502 is a cellular network implementing 3GPP standardized features. Therefore, telecommunications network 502 can support network slicing to provide different logical networks to different devices connected to it. For example, telecommunications network 502 can provide ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC) services to some UEs while providing enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB) services to other UEs, and / or massive machine-type communication (mMTC) / massive IoT services to yet another UE.

[0090] In some examples, UE 512 is configured to transmit and / or receive information without direct human interaction. For example, the UE may be designed to transmit information to access network 504 according to a predetermined schedule when triggered by an internal or external event or in response to a request from access network 504. Additionally, the UE may be configured to operate in single-RAT, multi-RAT, or multi-standard modes. For example, the UE may operate with any or a combination of Wi-Fi, NR (New Radio), and LTE, such as being configured for multiple radio dual connectivity (MR-DC), such as E-UTRAN (Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access Network) NR-Dual Connectivity (EN-DC).

[0091] In the example, hub 514 communicates with access network 504 to facilitate indirect communication between one or more UEs (e.g., UE 512c and / or 512d) and network nodes (e.g., network node 510b). In some examples, hub 514 may be a controller, router, content source, and analytics tool, or any other communication device described herein with respect to the UE. For example, hub 514 may be a broadband router for enabling access to CN 506 for the UE. As another example, hub 514 may be a controller that sends commands or instructions to one or more actuators in the UE. Commands or instructions may be received from the UE, network node 510, or may be received via executable code, scripts, procedures, or other instructions in hub 514. As another example, hub 514 may be a data collector that acts as a temporary storage device for UE data, and in some embodiments, data analysis or other processing may be performed. As another example, hub 514 may be a content source. For example, for a UE that is a VR headset, display, speaker, or other media delivery device, hub 514 can retrieve VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information via a network node. Hub 514 then provides the VR assets, video, audio, or other media or data related to sensory information to the UE either directly, after performing local processing, and / or after adding additional local content. In another example, hub 514 acts as a proxy server or coordinator for the UE, particularly if one or more of the UEs are low-power IoT devices.

[0092] Hub 514 may have a constant / persistent or intermittent connection to network node 510b. Hub 514 may also accommodate different communication schemes and / or scheduling between hub 514 and UEs (e.g., UEs 512c and / or 512d) and between hub 514 and CN 506. In other examples, hub 514 is connected to CN 506 and / or one or more UEs via a wired connection. Furthermore, hub 514 may be configured to connect to an M2M service provider via access network 504 and / or to another UE via a direct connection. In some scenarios, a UE can establish a wireless connection to network node 510 while still being connected via hub 514, either via a wired or wireless connection. In some embodiments, hub 514 may be a dedicated hub, i.e., a hub whose primary function is to route communication from network node 510b to UE / to route communication from UE to network node 510b. In other embodiments, hub 514 may be a non-dedicated hub, that is, a device capable of operating to route communication between the UE and network node 510b, but also capable of operating as a communication start and / or end point for certain data channels.

[0093] Figure 8 A UE 600 according to some embodiments is shown, which may be Figure 7 An embodiment of UE 112.

[0094] As used herein, UE refers to a device capable of, configured to, arranged to, and / or operable to wirelessly communicate with network nodes and / or other UEs. Examples of UEs include, but are not limited to, smartphones, mobile phones, cellular phones, Voice over IP (VoIP) phones, wireless local loop phones, desktop computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), wireless cameras, game consoles or devices, music storage devices, playback devices, wearable terminal devices, wireless endpoints, mobile stations, tablets, laptops, laptop embedded devices (LEEs), laptop mounted devices (LMEs), smart devices, wireless customer premises equipment (CPEs), vehicle-mounted or vehicle-embedded / integrated wireless devices, etc. Other examples include any UE identified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), including Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) UEs, Machine Type Communication (MTC) UEs, and / or Enhanced MTC (eMTC) UEs.

[0095] The UE can support device-to-device (D2D) communication, for example, by implementing 3GPP standards for sidelink communication, dedicated short-range communication (DSRC), vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V), vehicle-to-infrastructure (V2I), or vehicle-to-everything (V2X). In other examples, the UE may not necessarily be a user in the sense of a human user owning and / or operating the associated device. Instead, the UE may represent a device intended for sale to or operated by a human user but which may not or can not initially be associated with a specific human user (e.g., a smart sprinkler controller). Alternatively, the UE may represent a device not intended for sale to or operated by an end user but which may be associated with a user or operated for the user's benefit (e.g., a smart meter).

[0096] UE 600 includes processing circuitry 602, which is operatively coupled via bus 604 to input / output interface 606, power supply 608, memory 610, communication interface 612, and / or any other component, or any combination thereof. Some UEs may utilize... Figure 8 All or a subset of the components shown. The level of integration between components can vary from one UE to another. Furthermore, some UEs may contain multiple instances of components, such as multiple processors, memories, transceivers, transmitters, receivers, etc.

[0097] Processing circuitry 602 is configured to process instructions and data and can be configured to implement any sequential state machine that operates to execute instructions stored in memory 610 as a machine-readable computer program. Processing circuitry 602 can be implemented as one or more hardware-implemented state machines (e.g., in discrete logic, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), etc.); programmable logic along with appropriate firmware; one or more stored computer programs, a general-purpose processor such as a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP), along with appropriate software; or any combination of the above. For example, processing circuitry 602 may include multiple central processing units (CPUs).

[0098] In this example, input / output interface 606 can be configured to provide one or more interfaces to input devices, output devices, or one or more input and / or output devices. Examples of output devices include speakers, sound cards, video cards, displays, monitors, printers, actuators, transmitters, smart cards, other output devices, or any combination thereof. Input devices can allow users to capture information into UE 600. Examples of input devices include touch-sensitive or presence-sensitive displays, cameras (e.g., digital cameras, digital camcorders, webcams, etc.), microphones, sensors, mice, trackballs, orientation pads, trackpads, scroll wheels, smart cards, etc. Presence-sensitive displays may include capacitive or resistive touch sensors to sense input from the user. Sensors may be, for example, accelerometers, gyroscopes, tilt sensors, force sensors, magnetometers, light sensors, proximity sensors, biosensors, etc., or any combination thereof. Output devices can use the same type of interface port as input devices. For example, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) port can be used to provide both input and output devices.

[0099] In some embodiments, power supply 608 is configured as a battery or battery pack. Other types of power sources, such as external power sources (e.g., electrical outlets), photovoltaic devices, or power cells, can be used. Power supply 608 may further include power supply circuitry for delivering power from power supply 608 itself and / or external power sources to various parts of UE 600 via an interface or input circuitry such as a power cable. The delivered power may be used, for example, for charging power supply 608. The power supply circuitry may perform any formatting, conversion, or other modifications on the power from power supply 608 to suit the appropriate components of the UE 600 being powered.

[0100] Memory 610 may be or be configured to include memory such as random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), disk, optical disk, hard disk, removable cassette tape, flash drive, etc. In one example, memory 610 includes one or more applications 614 (such as an operating system, web browser application, widget, gadget engine, or other application) and corresponding data 616. Memory 610 can store any operating system or combination of operating systems from a wide variety of operating systems used by UE 600.

[0101] The memory 610 can be configured to include multiple physical drive units such as a redundant array of independent disks (RAID), flash memory, USB flash drive, external hard drive, thumb drive, pen drive, key drive, high-density digital universal disc (HD-DVD) optical disc drive, internal hard drive, Blu-ray disc drive, holographic digital data storage (HDDS) optical disc drive, external mini dual in-line memory module (DIMM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), external micro DIMM SDRAM, tamper-proof smart card memory such as a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC) (including one or more subscriber identity modules (SIM) such as USIM and / or ISIM), other memory, or any combination thereof. The UICC can be, for example, an embedded UICC (eUICC), an integrated UICC (iUICC), or a removable UICC commonly referred to as a "SIM card". The memory 610 can allow the UE 600 to access instructions, applications, etc., stored on temporary or non-temporary storage media to offload or upload data. Articles of manufacture, such as those utilizing communication systems, may be tangibly embodied in or contained in memory 610, which may be or include a device-readable storage medium.

[0102] Processing circuitry 602 can be configured to communicate with an access network or other network using communication interface 612. Communication interface 612 may include one or more communication subsystems and may include or be communicatively coupled to antenna 622. Communication interface 612 may include one or more transceivers for communication, such as through communication with one or more remote transceivers of another device capable of wireless communication (e.g., a network node in the access network or another UE). Each transceiver may include a transmitter 618 and / or a receiver 620 adapted to provide network communication (e.g., optical, electrical, frequency allocation, etc.). Furthermore, transmitter 618 and receiver 620 may be coupled to one or more antennas (e.g., antenna 622) and may share circuitry, software, or firmware, or alternatively, transmitter 618 and receiver 620 may be implemented separately.

[0103] In the illustrated embodiment, the communication functions of the communication interface 612 may include cellular communication, Wi-Fi communication, LPWAN communication, data communication, voice communication, multimedia communication, short-range communication such as Bluetooth, near-field communication, location-based communication such as using a Global Positioning System (GPS) to determine location, another similar communication function, or any combination thereof. Communication may be implemented according to one or more communication protocols and / or standards such as IEEE 802.11, Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA), GSM, LTE, New Radio (NR), UMTS, WiMax, Ethernet, Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol (TCP / IP), Synchronous Optical Networking (SONET), Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), QUIC, Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP), etc.

[0104] Regardless of the type of sensor, the UE can provide the output of data captured by its sensors via its communication interface 612, through a wireless connection to the network node. Data captured by the UE's sensors can be transmitted via another UE, through a wireless connection to the network node. The output can be periodic (e.g., every 15 minutes if it reports the sensed temperature), random (e.g., balancing the load of reports from several sensors), responsive to a triggered event (e.g., sending an alarm when humidity is detected), responsive to a request (e.g., a user-initiated request), or a continuous stream (e.g., live video feed of a patient).

[0105] As another example, the UE includes actuators, motors, or switches associated with a communication interface configured to receive wireless input from a network node via a wireless connection. The state of the actuator, motor, or switch can change in response to the received wireless input. For example, the UE may include a motor for adjusting the control surfaces or rotors of a drone in flight based on the received input, or for adjusting the motor of a robotic arm performing medical procedures based on the received input.

[0106] When a UE is in the form of an Internet of Things (IoT) device, it can be a device for use in one or more application domains, including but not limited to urban wearable technology, extended industrial applications, and healthcare. Non-limiting examples of such IoT devices are devices or devices embedded in the following: connected refrigerators or freezers, TVs, connected lighting devices, electricity meters, robotic vacuum cleaners, voice-controlled smart speakers, home security cameras, motion detectors, thermostats, smoke detectors, door / window sensors, flood / humidity sensors, electric door locks, connected doorbells, heat pump-like air conditioning systems, autonomous vehicles, monitoring systems, weather monitoring devices, vehicle parking monitoring devices, electric vehicle charging stations, smartwatches, fitness trackers, head-mounted displays for augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR), wearable devices for haptic or sensory enhancement, sprinklers, animal or object tracking devices, sensors for monitoring plants or animals, industrial robots, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and any kind of medical device such as heart rate monitors or remotely controlled surgical robots. (Except as per the above...) Figure 8 In addition to the other components described in UE 600 shown, UEs in the form of IoT devices include circuitry and / or software that depend on the intended application of the IoT device.

[0107] As another specific example, in IoT scenarios, a UE can represent a machine or other device that performs monitoring and / or measurement and transmits the results of such monitoring and / or measurement to another UE and / or network node. In this case, the UE can be an M2M device, which may be referred to as an MTC device in the 3GPP context. As a specific example, the UE can implement the 3GPP NB-IoT standard. In other scenarios, the UE can represent a vehicle, such as a car, bus, truck, ship, or aircraft, or other device capable of monitoring and / or reporting its operational status or other functions associated with its operation.

[0108] In practice, any number of UEs can be used together for a single use case. For example, the first UE can be an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or can be integrated into the UAV and provide the UAV's speed information (obtained via a speed sensor) to a second UE, which acts as a remote controller for operating the UAV. When a user makes a change from the remote controller, the first UE can adjust a throttle valve on the UAV (e.g., by controlling an actuator) to increase or decrease the UAV's speed. The first and / or second UEs can also include more than one of the functionalities described above. For example, the UE can include sensors and actuators and handle the transmission of data from both the speed sensor and the actuator.

[0109] Figure 9A network node 700 according to some embodiments is shown, which may be Figure 7 An embodiment of network node 110.

[0110] As used herein, a network node refers to a device that is capable of, configured to, arranged to, and / or operable to communicate directly or indirectly with the UE and / or with other network nodes or devices in a telecommunications network. Examples of network nodes include, but are not limited to, access points (APs) (e.g., radio access points) and base stations (BSs) (e.g., radio base stations, Node Bs, evolved Node Bs (eNBs), and NR Node Bs (gNBs)).

[0111] Base stations can be classified based on the coverage they provide (or, in other words, their transmit power levels), and therefore, depending on the coverage provided, a base station can be referred to as a femtobase, picobase, microbase, or macrobase. A base station can be a relay node or a relay donor node controlling a relay. A network node can also include one or more (or all) portions of a distributed radio base station such as a centralized digital unit and / or a remote radio unit (RRU) sometimes referred to as a remote radio headend (RRH). Such a remote radio unit may or may not be integrated with an antenna as an antenna-integrated radio device. A portion of a distributed radio base station can also be referred to as a node in a distributed antenna system (DAS).

[0112] Other examples of network nodes include multi-transmission point (multi-TRP) 5G access nodes, multi-standard radio (MSR) devices such as MSR BS, network controllers such as radio network controllers (RNC) or base station controllers (BSC), base transceiver stations (BTS), transmission points, transmission nodes, multi-cell / multicast coordination entities (MCE), operation and maintenance (O&M) nodes, operation support system (OSS) nodes, self-organizing network (SON) nodes, location nodes (such as evolved servicing mobile location centers (E-SMLC)), and / or minimized drive tests (MDT).

[0113] Network node 700 includes processing circuitry 702, memory 704, communication interface 706, and power supply 708. Network node 700 may consist of multiple physically separate components (e.g., NodeB components and RNC components, or BTS components and BSC components, etc.), each of which may have its own corresponding components. In some scenarios where network node 700 includes multiple separate components (e.g., BTS and BSC components), one or more of these separate components may be shared among several network nodes. For example, a single RNC can control multiple NodeBs. In such scenarios, each unique NodeB and RNC pair may be considered a single separate network node in some instances. In some embodiments, network node 700 may be configured to support multiple Radio Access Technologies (RATs). In such embodiments, some components may be duplicated (e.g., separate memory 704 for different RATs) and some components may be reused (e.g., the same antenna 710 may be shared by different RATs). Network node 700 may also include multiple sets of components for integrating various wireless technologies, such as GSM, WCDMA, LTE, NR, WiFi, Zigbee, Z-wave, LoRaWAN, RFID, or Bluetooth wireless technologies. These wireless technologies may be integrated into the same or different chips or chipsets and other components within network node 700.

[0114] The processing circuitry 702 may include a combination of one or more of a microprocessor, controller, microcontroller, central processing unit, digital signal processor, application-specific integrated circuit, field-programmable gate array, or any other suitable computing device or resource, or a combination of hardware, software, and / or coding logic operable to provide functionality of the network node 700, either alone or in combination with other network node 700 components such as memory 704.

[0115] In some embodiments, processing circuitry 702 includes a system-on-a-chip (SOC). In some embodiments, processing circuitry 702 includes one or more of radio frequency (RF) transceiver circuitry 712 and baseband processing circuitry 714. In some embodiments, RF transceiver circuitry 712 and baseband processing circuitry 714 may be on separate chips (or chipsets), boards, or units such as radio units and digital units. In alternative embodiments, some or all of RF transceiver circuitry 712 and baseband processing circuitry 714 may be on the same chip or chipset, board, or unit.

[0116] Memory 704 may include any form of volatile or non-volatile computer-readable memory, including, but not limited to, permanent storage devices, solid-state memory, remotely mounted memory, magnetic media, optical media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), mass storage media (e.g., hard disk), removable storage media (e.g., flash drives, CDs, or DVDs), and / or any other volatile or non-volatile, non-transitory device-readable and / or computer-executable memory that stores information, data, and / or instructions that can be used by processing circuitry 702. Memory 704 may store any suitable instructions, data, or information, including applications, software, computer programs, and / or other instructions that contain one or more of logic, rules, codes, tables, and can be executed by processing circuitry 702 and utilized by network node 700. Memory 704 may be used to store any calculations performed by processing circuitry 702 and / or any data received via communication interface 706. In some embodiments, processing circuitry 702 and memory 704 are integrated.

[0117] Communication interface 706 is used in wired or wireless communication of signaling and / or data between network nodes, access networks, and / or UEs. As illustrated, communication interface 706 includes one or more ports / terminals 716 for transmitting data to and receiving data from the network, for example, via a wired connection. Communication interface 706 also includes radio front-end circuitry 718 that may be coupled to antenna 710 or, in some embodiments, is part of antenna 710. Radio front-end circuitry 718 includes a filter 720 and an amplifier 722. Radio front-end circuitry 718 may be connected to antenna 710 and processing circuitry 702. Radio front-end circuitry 718 may be configured to modulate the signal transmitted between antenna 710 and processing circuitry 702. Radio front-end circuitry 718 may receive digital data to be transmitted via a wireless connection to other network nodes or UEs. Radio front-end circuitry 718 may use a combination of filter 720 and / or amplifier 722 to convert the digital data into radio signals with appropriate channel and bandwidth parameters. The radio signals may then be transmitted via antenna 710. Similarly, upon receiving data, antenna 710 can collect radio signals and then convert the radio signals into digital data via radio front-end circuitry 718. The digital data can then be transmitted to processing circuitry 702. In other embodiments, the communication interface may include different components and / or different combinations of components.

[0118] In some alternative embodiments, network node 700 does not include a separate radio front-end circuitry 718; instead, processing circuitry 702 includes radio front-end circuitry and is connected to antenna 710. Similarly, in some embodiments, all or some of the RF transceiver circuitry 712 is part of communication interface 706. In other embodiments, communication interface 706 includes one or more ports or terminals 716, radio front-end circuitry 718, and RF transceiver circuitry 712 as part of a radio unit (not shown), and communication interface 706 communicates with baseband processing circuitry 714, which is part of a digital unit (not shown).

[0119] Antenna 710 may include one or more antennas or antenna arrays configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals. Antenna 710 may be coupled to radio front-end circuitry 718 and may be any type of antenna capable of wirelessly transmitting and receiving data and / or signals. In some embodiments, antenna 710 is separate from network node 700 and may be connected to network node 700 via an interface or port.

[0120] Antenna 710, communication interface 706, and / or processing circuitry 702 can be configured to perform any receive operation and / or certain acquire operation described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data, and / or signals can be received from the UE, another network node, and / or any other network device. Similarly, antenna 710, communication interface 706, and / or processing circuitry 702 can be configured to perform any transmit operation described herein as being performed by a network node. Any information, data, and / or signals can be transmitted to the UE, another network node, and / or any other network device.

[0121] Power supply 708 provides power to various components of network node 700 in a form suitable for the respective components (e.g., at the voltage and current levels required by each respective component). Power supply 708 may further include or be coupled to power management circuitry to power the components of network node 700 for performing the functionality described herein. For example, network node 700 may be connectable to an external power source (e.g., mains, electrical outlet) via input circuitry or interface such as a cable, thereby supplying power to the power circuitry of power supply 708. As another example, power supply 708 may include a power source in the form of a battery or battery pack, connected to or integrated into the power circuitry. The battery can provide backup power in the event of an external power failure.

[0122] Embodiments of network node 700 may include, except Figure 9Additional components beyond those shown herein are used to provide certain aspects of the functionality of the network node, including any functionality described herein and / or any functionality necessary to support the topics described herein. For example, network node 700 may include user interface devices for allowing information to be input to and output from network node 700. This allows users to perform diagnostic, maintenance, repair, and other management functions for network node 700.

[0123] Figure 10 This is a block diagram illustrating a virtualization environment 800 in which functions implemented by some embodiments can be virtualized.

[0124] In this context, virtualization means creating a virtual version of a device or apparatus that may include a virtualized hardware platform, storage devices, and networking resources. As used herein, virtualization can be applied to any apparatus or its components described herein and relates to the implementation of at least a portion of its functionality as one or more virtual components. Some or all of the functionality described herein can be implemented as virtual components executed by one or more virtual machines (VMs) implemented in one or more virtualization environments 800 hosted by one or more hardware nodes, such as hardware computing devices operating as network nodes, UEs, CN nodes, or hosts. Furthermore, in embodiments where the virtual nodes do not require radio connectivity (e.g., CN nodes or hosts), the nodes can be fully virtualized.

[0125] Application 802 (which may alternatively be referred to as a software instance, virtual device, network function, virtual node, virtual network function, etc.) is run in virtualization environment 800 to implement some of the features, functions, and / or benefits of some of the embodiments disclosed herein.

[0126] Hardware 804 includes processing circuitry, memory storing software and / or instructions executable by the hardware processing circuitry, and / or other hardware devices as described herein, such as network interfaces, input / output interfaces, etc. The processing circuitry may execute software to instantiate one or more virtualization layers 806 (also referred to as hypervisors or virtual machine monitors (VMMs)), provide VMs 808a and 808b (one or more of which may be generally referred to as VM 808), and / or perform any of the functions, features, and / or benefits described in relation to some embodiments described herein. Virtualization layer 806 may present a virtual operating platform to VM 808 that appears to be networked hardware.

[0127] VM 808 includes virtual processing, virtual memory, virtual networking or interfaces, and virtual storage devices, and can run through a corresponding virtualization layer 806. Different embodiments of instances of virtual devices 802 can be implemented on one or more VMs within VM 808, and can be implemented in different ways. Hardware virtualization is referred to in some contexts as Network Functions Virtualization (NFV). NFV can be used to consolidate many types of network devices into industry-standard high-capacity server hardware, physical switches, and physical storage devices that can be located in data centers and customer premises.

[0128] In the context of NFV, a VM 808 can be a software implementation of a physical machine that runs programs as if they were executing on a physical, non-virtualized machine. Each VM in the VM 808, and the part of the hardware 804 that executes that VM, whether it is hardware dedicated to that VM and / or hardware shared by that VM and other VMs in the VM, forms a separate virtual network element. Still in the context of NFV, the virtual network function is responsible for handling the specific network functions running in one or more VMs 808 on top of the hardware 804 and corresponds to application 802.

[0129] Hardware 804 can be implemented in a standalone network node with general or specific components. Hardware 804 can utilize virtualization to implement some functions. Alternatively, hardware 804 can be part of a larger hardware cluster (e.g., in a data center or CPE) where many hardware nodes work together and are managed via management and orchestration 810, which, among other things, oversees the lifecycle management of application 802. In some embodiments, hardware 804 is coupled to one or more radio units, each including one or more transmitters and one or more receivers that can be coupled to one or more antennas. The radio units can communicate directly with other hardware nodes via one or more suitable network interfaces and can be combined with virtual components to provide radio capabilities to virtual nodes, such as radio access nodes or base stations. In some embodiments, a control system 812 can be used to provide signaling, which can alternatively be used for communication between hardware nodes and radio units.

[0130] While the computing devices described herein (e.g., UE, network node, host) may include combinations of the hardware components shown, other embodiments may include computing devices with different combinations of components. It should be understood that these computing devices may include any suitable combination of hardware and / or software required to perform the tasks, features, functions, and methods disclosed herein. The determination, calculation, acquisition, or similar operations described herein may be performed by processing circuitry that processes information by, for example, converting acquired information into other information, comparing the acquired or converted information with information stored in a network node, and / or performing one or more operations based on the acquired or converted information, and making a determination as a result of said processing. Furthermore, although components are depicted as single boxes located within larger boxes or nested within multiple boxes, in practice, a computing device may include multiple different physical components constituting a single illustrated component, and functionality may be partitioned between individual components. For example, a communication interface may be configured to include any of the components described herein, and / or the functionality of a component may be partitioned between processing circuitry and the communication interface. In another example, non-computationally intensive functions of any such component may be implemented in software or firmware, and computationally intensive functions may be implemented in hardware.

[0131] In some embodiments, some or all of the functionality described herein may be provided by processing circuitry that executes instructions stored in memory, which in some embodiments may be a computer program product in the form of a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. In alternative embodiments, some or all of the functionality may be provided by processing circuitry without executing instructions stored on a separate or discrete device-readable storage medium, such as in a hard-wired manner. In any of those particular embodiments, the processing circuitry may be configured to perform the described functionality regardless of whether instructions stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium are executed. The benefits provided by such functionality are not limited to individual processing circuitry or other components of the computing device, but are enjoyed by the computing device as a whole and / or generally by the end user and wireless network.

[0132] Example Implementation Group A Example Implementation Example Implementation A1. A method performed by a user equipment for transmitting PDU session information by signaling, the method comprising: any one of the above-described user equipment steps, features, or functions, alone or in combination with the other steps, features, or functions described above.

[0133] Example Implementation A2. The method according to the previous embodiments further includes one or more additional user equipment steps, features, or functions described above.

[0134] Example Implementation A3. The method according to any of the previous embodiments further includes: providing user data; and forwarding the user data to the host via transmission to a network node.

[0135] Group B Example Implementation Example Implementation B1. A method for transmitting PDU session information by signaling, performed by a network node, the method comprising: any one of the above-described network node steps, features, or functions, alone or in combination with the other steps, features, or functions described above.

[0136] Example Implementation B2. The method according to the previous embodiment further includes one or more of the additional network node steps, features, or functions described above.

[0137] Example Implementation B3. The method according to any embodiment of the preceding embodiments further includes: acquiring user data; and forwarding the user data to a host or user device.

[0138] Group C Example Implementation Example Implementation C1. A method for transmitting PDU session information by signaling, performed by a network node, the method comprising at least one of: transmitting first PDU session information to a CN, the first PDU session information indicating at least an active or inactive PDU session; and receiving second PDU session information from the CN that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0139] Example Implementation C2. The method according to Example Implementation C1, wherein the first PDU session information indicates at least one first PDU session having active user plane resources.

[0140] Example Implementation C3. The method according to Example Implementation C2, wherein the first PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to activate CN-based MT communication processing of at least one UE associated with at least one first PDU session.

[0141] Example Implementation C4. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C3, wherein the first PDU session information indicates at least one first PDU session with inactive user plane resources.

[0142] Example Implementation C5. The method according to Example Implementation C4, wherein the first PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to disable CN-based MT communication processing of at least one UE associated with at least one first PDU session.

[0143] Example Implementation C6. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C5, wherein the first PDU session information is transmitted to the CN in an NGAP MT communication processing request message.

[0144] Example Implementation C7. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C6, wherein the second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session, for which the network node will transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0145] Example Implementation C8. The method according to Example Implementation C7, wherein the second PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission to at least one UE associated with at least one second PDU session.

[0146] Example Implementation C9. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C8, wherein the second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session with inactive user plane resources.

[0147] Example Implementation C10. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C9, wherein the second PDU session information is included or is included in the RAN paging request message.

[0148] Example Implementation C11. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C10 includes: making a decision about at least one paging message and / or at least one small data transmission based on second PDU session information.

[0149] Example Implementation C12. The method according to Example Implementation C11 includes: determining the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions for at least one paging message and / or at least one small data transmission based on second PDU session information; and determining to transmit at least one paging message and / or at least one small data transmission based on the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions.

[0150] Example Implementation C13. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C12, wherein at least one of the first PDU session information and the second PDU session information includes a PDU session resource list.

[0151] Example Implementation C14. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C13, wherein at least one of the first PDU session information and the second PDU session information includes at least one PDU session ID.

[0152] Example Implementation C15. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C14, wherein: transmitting the first PDU session information to the CN includes transmitting the first PDU session information to the CN node; and / or receiving the second PDU session information from the CN includes receiving the second PDU session information from the CN node.

[0153] Example Implementation C16. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C15, wherein: transmitting the first PDU session information to the CN includes transmitting the first PDU session information to the AMF; and / or receiving the second PDU session information from the CN includes receiving the second PDU session information from the AMF.

[0154] Example Implementation C17. The method according to any one of Example Implementations C1 to C16, wherein at least one of the first PDU session information and the second PDU session information is associated with at least one UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

[0155] Example Implementation C18. The method according to Example Implementation C13, wherein at least one UE is configured with a long eDRX of more than 10.24 seconds.

[0156] Example Implementation C19. The method according to any embodiment of the preceding example embodiments further includes: acquiring user data; and forwarding the user data to a host or user device.

[0157] Example Implementation C20. A network node including processing circuitry configured to perform any of the methods of Example Implementations C1 to C19.

[0158] Example Implementation C21. A network node configured to perform any of the methods of Example Implementations C1 through C19.

[0159] Example Implementation C22. A computer program including instructions that, when executed on a computer, perform any of the methods of Example Implementations C1 to C19.

[0160] Example Implementation C23. A computer program product including a computer program that, when executed on a computer, includes instructions for performing any of the methods of Example Implementations C1 to C19.

[0161] Example Implementation C24. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computer, perform any of the methods of Example Implementations C1 to C19.

[0162] Example Implementation of Group D Example Implementation D1. A method for transmitting a PDU session by signaling, performed by a CN, the method comprising at least one of the following: receiving first PDU session information from a network node, the first PDU session information indicating at least an active or inactive PDU session; and transmitting second PDU session information to the network node that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0163] Example Implementation D2. The method according to Example Implementation D1 includes: determining a context update that triggers at least one UE based on at least one of first PDU session information and / or second PDU session information.

[0164] Example Implementation D3. The method according to Example Implementation D2, wherein determining to trigger a context update for at least one UE includes at least one of the following: when the 5GC action is set to HLCOM active, triggering UpdateSmContext to enable buffering of at least one PDU session associated with first PDU session information and / or second PDU session information; and when the 5GC action is set to HLCOM deactivated, triggering UpdateSmContext to enable stopping buffering of at least one PDU session associated with first PDU session information and / or second PDU session information.

[0165] Example Implementation D4. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D3, wherein the first PDU session information indicates at least one first PDU session with active user plane resources.

[0166] Example Implementation D5. The method according to Example Implementation D4, wherein first PDU session information is included or is included in a message having a request to activate CN-based MT communication processing of at least one UE associated with at least one first PDU session.

[0167] Example Implementation D6. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D5, wherein the first PDU session information indicates at least one first PDU session with inactive user plane resources.

[0168] Example Implementation D7. The method according to Example Implementation D6, wherein the first PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to disable CN-based MT communication processing of at least one UE associated with at least one first PDU session.

[0169] Example Implementation D8. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D7, wherein first PDU session information is received from the network node in the NGAPMT communication processing request message.

[0170] Example Implementation D9. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D8, wherein the second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session for which the network node will transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

[0171] Example Implementation D10. The method according to Example Implementation D9, wherein the second PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to transmit at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission to at least one UE associated with at least one second PDU session.

[0172] Example Implementation D11. The method according to any embodiment of the example implementations D1 to D10, wherein the second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session with inactive user plane resources.

[0173] Example Implementation D12. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D11, wherein the second PDU session information is included or is included in the RAN paging request message.

[0174] Example Implementation D13. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D12 includes receiving a message from an SMF indicating at least one of the following: the SMF supports multiple PDU sessions, and the SMF has received at least one MT call for at least one second PDU session associated with at least one second PDU session information.

[0175] Example Implementation D14. The method according to Example Implementation D13, wherein the at least one second PDU information is transmitted based on a message received from the SMF.

[0176] Example Implementation D15. A method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D14, wherein at least one of the first PDU session information and the second PDU session information includes a PDU session resource list.

[0177] Example Implementation D16. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D15, wherein at least one of the first PDU session information and the second PDU session information includes at least one PDU session ID.

[0178] Example Implementation D17. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D16, wherein: receiving first PDU session information from a network node includes receiving first PDU session information by a CN node; and / or transmitting second PDU session information from a CN includes transmitting second PDU session information from a CN node.

[0179] Example Implementation D18. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D17, wherein: receiving the first PDU session information includes receiving the first PDU session information by the AMF; and / or transmitting the second PDU session information through the AMF.

[0180] Example Implementation D19. The method according to any one of Example Implementations D1 to D18, wherein at least one of the first PDU session information and the second PDU session information is associated with at least one UE in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

[0181] Example Implementation D20. The method according to Example Implementation D19, wherein at least one UE is configured with a long eDRX of more than 10.24 seconds.

[0182] Example Implementation D21. The method according to any of the foregoing embodiments further includes: acquiring user data; and forwarding the user data to a host or user device.

[0183] Example Implementation D22. A network node including processing circuitry configured to perform any of the methods of Example Implementations D1 to D21.

[0184] Example Implementation D23. A network node configured to perform any of the methods of Example Implementations D1 to D21.

[0185] Example Implementation D24. A computer program including instructions that, when executed on a computer, perform any of the methods of Example Implementations D1 to D21.

[0186] Example Implementation D25. A computer program product including a computer program that, when executed on a computer, includes instructions for performing any of the methods of Example Implementations D1 to D21.

[0187] Example Implementation D26. A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing instructions that, when executed by a computer, perform any of the methods of Example Implementations D1 to D21.

[0188] Example Implementation of Group E Example Implementation E1. A user equipment (UE) for transmitting PDU session information by signaling, the UE comprising: processing circuitry configured to perform any step of any of the example embodiments in Group A; and a power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the processing circuitry.

[0189] Example Implementation E2. A network node for transmitting PDU sessions using signaling, the network node comprising: processing circuitry configured to perform any step of any of the example implementations in Groups B, C, and D; and power supply circuitry configured to supply power to the processing circuitry.

[0190] Example Implementation E3. A user equipment (UE) for transmitting PDU sessions using signaling, the UE comprising: an antenna configured to transmit and receive radio signals; radio front-end circuitry connected to the antenna and processing circuitry and configured to modulate signals transmitted between the antenna and processing circuitry; the processing circuitry being configured to perform any step in any of the Group A example embodiments; an input interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to allow information to be input into the UE for processing by the processing circuitry; an output interface connected to the processing circuitry and configured to output information from the UE that has been processed by the processing circuitry; and a battery connected to the processing circuitry and configured to power the UE.

[0191] Example Implementation E4. A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide over-the-top (OTT) services, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and a network interface configured to initiate the transmission of user data to a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE), wherein the UE includes a communication interface and processing circuitry, the communication interface and processing circuitry of the UE being configured to perform any step of any of the Group A example embodiments to receive user data from the host.

[0192] Example Implementation E5. The host according to the previous example implementation, wherein the cellular network further includes a network node configured to communicate with the UE to transmit user data from the host to the UE.

[0193] Example Implementation E6. A host according to the previous two example implementations, wherein: the host's processing circuitry is configured to execute a host application to provide user data; and the host application is configured to interact with a client application executed on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

[0194] Example Implementation E7. A method implemented by a host operating in a communication system further including network nodes and user equipment (UE), the method comprising: providing user data to the UE; and initiating a transmission carrying the user data to the UE via a cellular network including network nodes, wherein the UE performs any operation of any of the Group A embodiments to receive the user data from the host.

[0195] Example Implementation E8. The method according to the previous example implementation further includes: at the host, executing a host application associated with a client application executed on the UE to receive user data from the UE.

[0196] Example Implementation E9. The method according to the previous example implementation further includes: at the host, transmitting input data to a client application executed on the UE, the input data being provided by executing the host application, wherein the user data is provided by the client application in response to input data from the host application.

[0197] Example Implementation E10. A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide over-the-top (OTT) services, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and a network interface configured to initiate the transmission of user data to a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE), wherein the UE includes a communication interface and processing circuitry configured to perform any step of any of the Group A example embodiments to transmit user data to the host.

[0198] Example Implementation E11. A host according to a previous example embodiment, wherein the cellular network further includes a network node configured to communicate with the UE to transmit user data from the UE to the host.

[0199] Example Implementation E12. A host according to the previous two example implementations, wherein: the host's processing circuitry is configured to execute a host application to provide user data; and the host application is configured to interact with a client application executed on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

[0200] Example Implementation E13. A method implemented by a host configured to operate in a communication system further including network nodes and user equipment (UE), the method comprising: at the host, receiving user data transmitted from the UE to the host via the network nodes, wherein the UE performs any step of any of the Group A example embodiments to transmit the user data to the host.

[0201] Example Implementation E14. The method according to the previous example implementation further includes: at the host, executing a host application associated with a client application executed on the UE to receive user data from the UE.

[0202] Example Implementation E15. The method according to the previous example implementation further includes: at the host, transmitting input data to a client application executed on the UE, the input data being provided by executing the host application, wherein the user data is provided by the client application in response to input data from the host application.

[0203] Example Implementation E16. A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide over-the-top (OTT) services, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to provide user data; and a network interface configured to initiate the transmission of user data to a network node in a cellular network for transmission to a user equipment (UE), the network node having a communication interface and processing circuitry configured to perform any operation of any of the example embodiments in Groups B, C, and D to transmit user data from the host to the UE.

[0204] Example Implementation E17. A host according to a previous example embodiment, wherein: the host's processing circuitry is configured to execute a host application that provides user data; and the UE includes processing circuitry configured to execute a client application associated with the host application to receive the transmission of user data from the host.

[0205] Example Implementation E18. A method implemented in a host, the host being configured to operate in a communication system further including network nodes and user equipment (UE), the method comprising: providing user data to the UE; and initiating a transmission carrying the user data to the UE via a cellular network including network nodes, wherein the network nodes perform any of the operations in any of the example embodiments of Groups B, C, and D to transmit the user data from the host to the UE.

[0206] Example Implementation E19. The method according to the previous example implementation further includes transmitting user data provided by the host to the UE at a network node.

[0207] Example Implementation E20. The method according to any of the previous two example implementations, wherein user data is provided at the host by executing a host application that interacts with a client application executed on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

[0208] Example Implementation E21. A communication system configured to provide over-the-top services, the communication system comprising: a host including: processing circuitry configured to provide user data to a user equipment (UE), the user data being associated with an over-the-top service; and a network interface configured to initiate the transmission of the user data to a cellular network node for transmission to the UE, the network node having a communication interface and processing circuitry, the processing circuitry of the network node being configured to perform any operation of any of the example embodiments in Groups B, C, and D to transmit the user data from the host to the UE.

[0209] Example embodiment E22. The communication system according to the previous example embodiment further includes: a network node; and / or a user equipment.

[0210] Example Implementation E23. A host configured to operate in a communication system to provide over-the-top (OTT) services, the host comprising: processing circuitry configured to initiate the reception of user data; and a network interface configured to receive user data from a network node in a cellular network, the network node having a communication interface and processing circuitry, the processing circuitry of the network node being configured to perform any operation of any of the example embodiments in Groups B, C, and D to receive user data from the host's user equipment (UE).

[0211] Example Implementation E24. A host according to the previous two example implementations, wherein: the host's processing circuitry is configured to execute a host application to provide user data; and the host application is configured to interact with a client application executed on the UE, the client application being associated with the host application.

[0212] Example Implementation E25. A host according to any of the previous two example implementations, wherein initiating the reception of user data includes requesting user data.

[0213] Example Implementation E26. A method implemented by a host, the host being configured to operate in a communication system further including a network node and a user equipment (UE), the method comprising: at the host, initiating the reception of user data from the UE, the user data originating from a transmission already received from the UE by the network node, wherein the network node performs any step of any of the example embodiments of Groups B, C, and D to receive user data from the UE for the host.

[0214] Example Implementation E27. The method according to the previous example implementation further includes transmitting the received user data to the host at the network node.

Claims

1. A method (200) for transmitting Packet Data Unit (PDU) session information by signaling, performed by a network node (510), the method comprising: Transmit (202) first PDU session information to the core network CN (506), the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one PDU session with active user plane resources.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein, The first PDU session information includes at least one PDU session identifier.

3. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, wherein, The first PDU session information is transmitted to the CN in a Next Generation Application Protocol Machine Type MT Communication Processing Request message.

4. The method according to claim 3, wherein: The first PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to activate CN-based machine type MT communication processing for at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one PDU session, or The first PDU session information includes or is included in a message that has a request to disable CN-based machine type MT communication processing for at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one PDU session.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, comprising receiving second PDU session information from the CN that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein, The second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session, for which the network node will transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission.

7. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 6, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in a message that has a request to transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission to at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one second PDU session.

8. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 7, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in the RAN paging request message.

9. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 8, comprising: Based on the second PDU session information, determine the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions for the at least one paging message and / or the at least one small data transmission; and Based on the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions, determine to transmit the at least one paging message and / or the at least one small data transmission.

10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein: Transmitting the first PDU session information to the CN includes transmitting the first PDU session information to the AMF.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein, The first PDU session information is associated with at least one user equipment (UE) in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

12. A method (400) for transmitting packet data unit (PDU) session information by signaling, performed by a core network CN (506), the method comprising: Receive (402) first PDU session information from network node (510), the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one first PDU session with active user plane resources.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising: Based on the first PDU session information, it is determined that at least one UE's context update should be triggered.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein, Determining that the context update is triggered for at least one UE includes at least one of the following: When the 5GC action is set to HLCOM active, UpdateSmContext is triggered to enable buffering for at least one first PDU session associated with the first PDU session information, and When the 5GC action is set to HLCOM disabled, UpdateSmContext is triggered to stop buffering of at least one first PDU session associated with the first PDU session information.

15. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 14, wherein, The first PDU session information includes at least one PDU session identifier.

16. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 15, wherein, The first PDU session information is received from the network node in a Next Generation Application Protocol Machine Type NGAP MT communication processing request message.

17. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 16, wherein: The first PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to activate CN-based machine type MT communication processing for at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one first PDU session, or The first PDU session information is included or is included in a message that has a request to disable CN-based MT communication processing of at least one UE associated with the at least one first PDU session.

18. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 17, comprising transmitting to the network node second PDU session information that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

19. The method according to claim 18, wherein, The second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session, for which the network node will transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission.

20. The method according to any one of claims 18 to 19, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in a message that has a request to transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission to at least one UE associated with the at least one second PDU session.

21. The method according to any one of claims 18 to 19, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in the RAN paging request message.

22. The method according to any one of claims 18 to 21, comprising receiving a message from a session management function (SMF) indicating at least one of the following: The SMF supports multiple PDU sessions, and The SMF has received at least one machine type MT call associated with the at least one second PDU session information.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein, The at least one second PDU information is transmitted based on the message received from the SMF.

24. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 23, wherein: Receiving the first PDU session information includes receiving the first PDU session information by the AMF.

25. The method according to any one of claims 12 to 24, wherein, The first PDU session information is associated with at least one user equipment (UE) in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

26. A network node (510) for signaling Packet Data Unit (PDU) session information, the network node being configured to perform at least one of the following: Transmit first PDU session information to the core network CN (506), the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one PDU session with active user plane resources.

27. The network node according to claim 26, wherein, The first PDU session information includes at least one PDU session identifier.

28. The network node according to any one of claims 26 to 27, wherein, The first PDU session information is transmitted to the CN in a Next Generation Application Protocol Machine Type MT Communication Processing Request message.

29. The network node according to claim 28, wherein: The first PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to activate CN-based machine type MT communication processing for at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one PDU session, or The first PDU session information includes or is included in a message that has a request to disable CN-based machine type MT communication processing for at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one PDU session.

30. A network node according to any one of claims 26 to 29, configured to receive second PDU session information from the CN that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

31. The network node according to claim 30, wherein, The second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session, for which the network node will transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission.

32. The network node according to any one of claims 30 to 31, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in a message that has a request to transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission to at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one second PDU session.

33. The network node according to any one of claims 30 to 32, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in the RAN paging request message.

34. The network node according to any one of claims 30 to 33, configured as follows: Based on the second PDU session information, determine the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions for the at least one paging message and / or the at least one small data transmission; and Based on the cumulative data size of all PDU sessions, determine to transmit the at least one paging message and / or the at least one small data transmission.

35. The network node according to any one of claims 26 to 34, wherein, When transmitting the first PDU session information to the core network, the network node is configured to transmit the first PDU session information to the AMF.

36. The network node according to any one of claims 26 to 35, wherein, The first PDU session information is associated with at least one user equipment (UE) in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

37. A core network CN node (508) for transmitting packet data unit (PDU) session information by signaling, the CN node being configured to: Receive first PDU session information from network node (510), the first PDU session information including a list of PDU session resources indicating at least one PDU session with active user plane resources.

38. The CN node according to claim 37, configured as follows: Based on the first PDU session information, it is determined that at least one UE's context update should be triggered.

39. The CN node according to claim 38, wherein, When it is determined that the context update was triggered for at least one UE, the CN node is configured to perform at least one of the following: When the 5GC action is set to HLCOM active, UpdateSmContext is triggered to enable buffering for at least one first PDU session associated with the first PDU session information, and When the 5GC action is set to HLCOM disabled, UpdateSmContext is triggered to stop buffering of at least one first PDU session associated with the first PDU session information.

40. The CN node according to any one of claims 37 to 39, wherein, The first PDU session information includes at least one PDU session identifier.

41. The CN node according to any one of claims 37 to 40, wherein, The first PDU session information is received from the network node in a Next Generation Application Protocol Machine Type NGAP MT communication processing request message.

42. The CN node according to any one of claims 37 to 41, wherein: The first PDU session information includes or is included in a message having a request to activate CN-based machine type MT communication processing for at least one user equipment (UE) associated with the at least one first PDU session, or The first PDU session information is included or is included in a message that has a request to disable CN-based MT communication processing of at least one UE associated with the at least one first PDU session.

43. The CN node according to any one of claims 37 to 42, configured to transmit second PDU session information to the network node that triggers at least one paging message or at least one small data transmission.

44. The CN node according to claim 43, wherein, The second PDU session information indicates at least one second PDU session, for which the network node will transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission.

45. The CN node according to any one of claims 43 to 44, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in a message that has a request to transmit the at least one paging message or the at least one small data transmission to at least one UE associated with the at least one second PDU session.

46. ​​The CN node according to any one of claims 43 to 44, wherein, The second PDU session information includes or is included in the RAN paging request message.

47. The CN node according to any one of claims 37 to 46, configured to receive a message from the Session Management Function (SMF) indicating at least one of the following: The SMF supports multiple PDU sessions, and The SMF has received at least one machine type MT call associated with the at least one second PDU session information.

48. The CN node according to claim 47, wherein, The at least one second PDU information is transmitted based on the message received from the SMF.

49. The CN node according to any one of claims 37 to 48, wherein: When the first PDU session information is received, the CN node is configured to receive the first PDU session information via AMF.

50. The CN node according to any one of claims 37 to 49, wherein, The first PDU session information is associated with at least one user equipment (UE) in the RRC_INACTIVE state.

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