Method and system for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a method and system for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network. The disclosure encompasses initiating, by an initiating unit [202], a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter; freezing, by a processing unit [204], the guard timer upon determining that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state; upon determining execution of a connected mode procedure, re-initiating, by the initiating unit [202], the guard timer; upon determining that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the UE is in the connected state, invoking, by the processing unit [204], a timeout-procedure; and initiating, by the initiating unit [202], a resource cleanup operation across network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.

Description

METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR MANAGING NETWORK RESOURCE CLEANUP IN A TELECOMMUNICATION NETWORKFIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] Embodiments of the present disclosure generally relate to the field of wireless communication systems. More particularly, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to methods and systems for managing network resources clean-up in a telecommunication network.BACKGROUND

[0002] The following description of related art is intended to provide background information pertaining to the field of the disclosure. This section may include certain aspects of the art that may be related to various features of the present disclosure. However, it should be appreciated that this section be used only to enhance the understanding of the reader with respect to the present disclosure, and not as admissions of prior art.

[0003] Wireless communication technology has rapidly evolved over the past few decades, with each generation bringing significant improvements and advancements. The first generation of wireless communication technology was based on analog technology and offered only voice services. However, with the advent of the second-generation (2G) technology, digital communication and data services became possible, and text messaging was introduced. 3G technology marked the introduction of high-speed internet access, mobile video calling, and location-based services. The fourth-generation (4G) technology revolutionized wireless communication with faster data speeds, better network coverage, and improved security. Currently, the fifth-generation (5G) technology is being deployed, promising even faster data speeds, low latency, and the ability to connect multiple devices simultaneously. With each generation, wireless communication technology has become more advanced, sophisticated, and capable of delivering more services to its users.

[0004] When a user equipment (UE) needs to connect with a 5G core network, it needs to establish a connection to an Access Management Function (AMF). The UE initiates the initial registration procedure followed by a Packet Data Unit (PDU) session establishment. After registration and the PDU establishment, the UE successfully latches to the 5G core network (5GCN). Thus, the connection management (CM) between the UE and the AMF has two states i.e., transition CM-Idle and CM-Connected. The CM-Idle defines a state when UE does not have signaling with AMF e.g., Radio Resource Control (RRC) Idle, and the CM-Connected means UE performs signaling connection with the AMF e.g., RRC-Connected and RRC -Inactive.

[0005] Once the UE is successfully attached to the network, the AMF allocates resources for the UE and maintains the user state so that AMF is in sync with UE and gNB. As per 3 GPP standards, when the UE state becomes idle, the AMF needs to start either the Mobile Reachability Timer (MRT), Implicit Detach Timer (IDT), or PURGE timer to initiate the implicit detach procedure and needs to perform the de-registration procedure if the purge timer expires. However, when the UE is in CM-connected state, no such rules are defined in the existing solutions. Furthermore, due to any issue in the network and / or network node, if the procedure (say UE initiated PDU Release / Session Management Function (SMF) initiated PDU Release / Access Network (AN) Release, etc.) responsible to release the PDU sessions are not getting executed or completed, then the state of the UE at 5GC can be stale and resource remains stuck at AMF along with other 5GC nodes. Similarly, PDU session resources are also unnecessarily stuck at SMF and UPF. Thus, there is no synchronization between the UE and 5G-core node states.

[0006] Therefore, there exists an imperative need in the art for a method and system for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network. More particularly, the method and system to clean up network resources stuck in the connected mode of the UE.SUMMARY

[0007] This section is provided to introduce certain aspects of the present disclosure in a simplified form that are further described below in the detailed description. This summary is not intended to identify the key features or the scope of the claimed subject matter.

[0008] An aspect of the present disclosure may relate to a method for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network. The method includes initiating, by an initiating unit, a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter. Next, the method includes freezing, by a processing unit, the guard timer upon determining that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state. Next, the method includes, upon determining the execution of a connected mode procedure, re-initiating, by the initiating unit, the guard timer. Next, the method includes, upon determining that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the user is in the connected state, invoking, by theprocessing unit, a timeout procedure. Thereafter, the method includes initiating, by the initiating unit, a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.

[0009] In an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the first configuration parameter comprises a guard timer value and the second configuration parameter comprises the threshold timeout count.

[0010] In an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the timeout procedure comprises sending, by a transceiver unit, a de-regi strati on request to the UE upon invoking the timeout procedure; and in response to the de-regi strati on request, receiving, by the transceiver unit, a de-regi strati on response from the UE.

[0011] In an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the timeout procedure further comprises determining, by the processing unit, whether the UE has established at least one packet data unit (PDU) session based at least on one session identifier; upon determining that the UE has established at least one PDU session, sending, by the transceiver unit, at least one release session request corresponding to at least one PDU session to a Session Management Function (SMF); and receiving, by the transceiver unit, at least one release session response in response to the at least one release session request from the SMF.

[0012] In an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the timeout procedure further comprises determining, by the processing unit, whether the UE is associated with a policy control function (PCF); and initiating, by the initiating unit, a policy association termination procedure.

[0013] In an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the timeout procedure further comprises sending, by the transceiver unit, a de-regi strati on request to a Unified Data Management (UDM); and in response to the de-regi strati on request, receiving, by the transceiver unit, a de-regi strati on response from the UDM.

[0014] In an exemplary aspect of the present disclosure, the method further comprises maintaining, by the processing unit, a checkpointed state of the guard timer, wherein the checkpointed state ensures continuation of the guard timer in a standby process of an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) in case of a failover (failure) of an active process; and upon a failover event where an active AMF process becomes non-functional, automaticallyactivating, by the processing unit via the standby process, the continuation of the guard timer based on the checkpointed state; and in response to the guard timer reaching its timeout in the activated standby process, initiating, by the initiating unit via the standby process, the resource cleanup operation across the one or more network function (NF) nodes.

[0015] Another aspect of the present disclosure may relate to a system for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network. The system comprises an initiating unit configured to initiate a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter; a processing unit configured to freeze the guard timer upon the determination that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state; the initiating unit configured to reinitiate the guard timer, upon determination of the execution of a connected mode procedure; the processing unit configured to invoke a timeout-procedure, upon the determination that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the user is in the connected state; and the initiating unit configured to initiate a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.

[0016] Yet another aspect of the present disclosure may relate to a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, the storage medium include executable code which, when executed by one or more units of a system, causes: an initiating unit of the system to initiate a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter; a processing unit of the system to freeze the guard timer upon determination that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state; the initiating unit of the system to re-initiate the guard timer, upon determination of execution of a connected mode procedure; the processing unit of the system to invoke a timeout-procedure, upon determination that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the user is in the connected state; and the initiating unit of the system to initiate a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

[0017] Some of the objects of the present disclosure, which at least one embodiment disclosed herein satisfies are listed herein below.

[0018] It is an object of the present disclosure to provide a system and a method for the clean-up of network resources stuck in a connected mode for a user equipment (UE).

[0019] It is another object of the present disclosure to provide a solution that enhances the network capacity.

[0020] It is yet another object of the present disclosure to provide a solution for starting a connected mode guard timer at an AMF when the UE moves into a connected state.DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated herein, and constitute a part of this disclosure, illustrate exemplary embodiments of the disclosed methods and systems which like reference numerals refer to the same parts throughout the different drawings. Components in the drawings are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the present disclosure. Also, the embodiments shown in the figures are not to be construed as limiting the disclosure, but the possible variants of the method and system according to the disclosure are illustrated herein to highlight the advantages of the disclosure. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that disclosure of such drawings includes disclosure of electrical components or circuitry commonly used to implement such components.

[0022] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a computing device upon which the features of the present disclosure may be implemented, in accordance with an exemplary implementation of the present disclosure.

[0023] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a system for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0024] FIG. 3 illustrates a method flow diagram for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0025] FIG. 4 illustrates a sequence flow diagram for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure.

[0026] The foregoing shall be more apparent from the following more detailed description of the disclosure.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0027] In the following description, for the purposes of explanation, various specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, that embodiments of the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. Several features described hereafter may each be used independently of one another or with any combination of other features. An individual feature may not address any of the problems discussed above or might address only some of the problems discussed above.

[0028] The ensuing description provides exemplary embodiments only and is not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the disclosure. Rather, the ensuing description of the exemplary embodiments will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing an exemplary embodiment. It should be understood that various changes may be made to the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure as set forth.

[0029] Specific details are given in the following description to provide a thorough understanding of the embodiments. However, it will be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the embodiments may be practiced without these specific details. For example, circuits, systems, processes, and other components may be shown as components in block diagram form in order not to obscure the embodiments in unnecessary detail.

[0030] Also, it is noted that individual embodiments may be described as a process which is depicted as a flowchart, a flow diagram, a data flow diagram, a structure diagram, or a block diagram. Although a flowchart may describe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operations may be performed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of the operations may be rearranged. A process is terminated when its operations are completed but could have additional steps not included in a figure.

[0031] The word “exemplary” and / or “demonstrative” is used herein to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. For the avoidance of doubt, the subject matter disclosed herein is not limited by such examples. In addition, any aspect or design described herein as “exemplary” and / or “demonstrative” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other aspects or designs, nor is it meant to preclude equivalent exemplary structures and techniques known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, to the extent that the terms “includes,” “has,” “contains,” and other similar words are used in either the detailed description or the claims, such terms are intended to be inclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as an open transition word without precluding any additional or other elements.

[0032] As used herein, a “processing unit”, “processor” or “operating processor” includes one or more processors, wherein the processor refers to any logic circuitry for processing instructions. A processor may be a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a (Digital Signal Processing) DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits, Field Programmable Gate Array circuits, any other type of integrated circuits, etc. The processor may perform signal coding data processing, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the working of the system according to the present disclosure. More specifically, the processor or processing unit is a hardware processor.

[0033] As used herein, “a user equipment”, “a user device”, “a smart-user-device”, “a smartdevice”, “an electronic device”, “a mobile device”, “a handheld device”, “a wireless communication device”, “a mobile communication device”, “a communication device” may be any electrical, electronic and / or computing device or equipment, capable of implementing the features of the present disclosure. The user equipment / device may include but is not limited to, a mobile phone, smartphone, laptop, general-purpose computer, desktop, personal digital assistant, tablet computer, wearable device, or any other computing device that is capable of implementing the features of the present disclosure. Also, the user device may contain at least one input means configured to receive an input from at least one of a transceiver unit, a processing unit, a storage unit, and any other such unit(s) that are required to implement the features of the present disclosure.

[0034] As used herein, “storage unit” or “memory unit” refers to a machine or computer-readable medium including any mechanism for storing information in a form readable by a computer or similar machine. For example, a computer-readable medium includes read-only memory(“ROM”), random access memory (“RAM”), magnetic disk storage media, optical storage media, flash memory devices, or other types of machine-accessible storage media. The storage unit stores at least the data that may be required by one or more units of the system to perform their respective functions.

[0035] As used herein “interface” or “user interface” refers to a shared boundary across which two or more separate components of a system exchange information or data. The interface may also be referred to as a set of rules or protocols that define the communication or interaction of one or more modules or one or more units with each other, which also includes the methods, functions, or procedures that may be called.

[0036] All modules, units, and components used herein, unless explicitly excluded herein, may be software modules or hardware processors, the processors being a general-purpose processor, a special-purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC), Field Programmable Gate Array circuits (FPGA), any other type of integrated circuits, etc.

[0037] As used herein, the transceiver unit includes at least one receiver and at least one transmitter configured respectively for receiving and transmitting data, signals, information, or a combination thereof between units / components within the system and / or connected with the system.

[0038] As used herein, network resources refer to components or assets assigned or accessed by user devices connected to the network. The network resources may include but are not limited to assigned IP addresses, storage, bandwidth, and channels.

[0039] As used herein, network resource clean-up refers to managing, reassigning, or optimizing the use of network resources for the efficient functioning of the communication system. Cleaning up the network resources increases the efficiency, security, and performance of the network. For example, in case the user state is connected and if due to any issue in the network and / or network node, PDU release procedures are not getting executed or completed, then resource cleanup in 5GC nodes [e.g., SMF, UPF, PCF, and UDM] will not only make the User State in-sync with UE, gNB and the 5GC nodes but also increases the network capacity and performance.

[0040] As used herein, a release session refers to releasing a connection or session between a user device and a network entity. More specifically in an implementation of the present disclosure, the release session request indicates a request for termination of an existing PDU session or data session for a particular user device (or user equipment) in a communication network, releasing associated network resources such as the IP address assigned to the PDU session.

[0041] As used herein, a Radio Access Network (RAN) is part of a mobile telecommunications system that connects user equipment (UE) to the core network (CN) and provides access to different types of services in the network (e.g., 5G network). It consists of radio base stations and radio access technologies that enable wireless communication.

[0042] As used herein, the Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) is a 5G core network function responsible for managing access and mobility aspects, such as UE registration, connection, and reachability. It also handles mobility management procedures like handovers and paging.

[0043] As used herein, a Session Management Function (SMF) is a 5G core network function responsible for managing session-related aspects, such as establishing, modifying, and releasing sessions. It coordinates with the User Plane Function (UPF) for data forwarding and handles IP address allocation and QoS enforcement.

[0044] As used herein, Policy Control Function (PCF) refers to a network function in a 5G network that is responsible for policy control decisions, such as QoS, charging, and access control, based on subscriber information and network policies.

[0045] As used herein, Unified Data Management (UDM) refers to a network function in a 5G network that centralizes the management of subscriber data, including authentication, authorization, and subscription information.

[0046] As used herein, a User Plane Function (UPF) is a network function responsible for handling user data traffic, including packet routing, forwarding, and QoS enforcement.

[0047] As discussed in the background section, the current known solutions have several shortcomings, and no solution exists for managing and cleaning up the network resources when resources are stuck in a connected state for a user equipment (UE). The present disclosure aims toovercome the above-mentioned and other existing problems in this field of technology by providing a method and system for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network in an efficient manner.

[0048] The present disclosure aims to overcome the above-mentioned and other existing problems in this field of technology by initiating a connected mode guard timer at the network node (such as at an Access and Mobility Management Function) when the UE moves into a connected state. Upon the timeout, the AMF is configured to clean the resource at all 5GC network nodes like UDM, PCF, SMF, and UPF. In addition, the guard timer type may be a checkpointed type timer. Both active and standby service units (SU) may maintain this timer. For example, if the active process fails after the guard timer starts, the timeout may come at standby turn active process. Hence, the use of guard timeout is an efficient and effective way to enhance the network properties.

[0049] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a computing device

[0100] (also referred to herein as a computer system

[0100] ) upon which the features of the present disclosure may be implemented in accordance with exemplary implementation of the present disclosure. In an implementation, the computing device

[0100] may also implement a method for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network utilizing the system. In another implementation, the computing device

[0100] itself implements the method for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network using one or more units configured within the computing device

[0100] , wherein said one or more units are capable of implementing the features as disclosed in the present disclosure.

[0050] The computing device

[0100] may include a bus

[0102] or other communication mechanism for communicating information, and a processor

[0104] coupled with a bus

[0102] for processing information. The processor

[0104] may be, for example, a general-purpose microprocessor. The computing device

[0100] may also include a main memory

[0106] , such as a random-access memory (RAM), or other dynamic storage device, coupled to the bus

[0102] for storing information and instructions to be executed by the processor

[0104] , The main memory

[0106] also may be used for storing temporary variables or other intermediate information during the execution of the instructions to be executed by the processor

[0104] , Such instructions, when stored in non-transitory storage media accessible to the processor

[0104] , render the computing device

[0100] into a specialpurpose machine that is customized to perform the operations specified in the instructions. The computing device

[0100] further includes a read-only memory (ROM)

[0108] or other static storagedevice coupled to the bus

[0102] for storing static information and instructions for the processor

[0104] ,

[0051] A storage device

[0110] , such as a magnetic disk, optical disk, or solid-state drive is provided and coupled to the bus

[0102] for storing information and instructions. The computing device

[0100] may be coupled via the bus

[0102] to a display

[0112] , such as a cathode ray tube (CRT), Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), Light Emitting Diode (LED) display, Organic LED (OLED) display, etc. for displaying information to a computer user. An input device

[0114] , including alphanumeric and other keys, touch screen input means, etc. may be coupled to the bus

[0102] for communicating information and command selections to the processor

[0104] , Another type of user input device may be a cursor controller

[0116] , such as a mouse, a trackball, or cursor direction keys, for communicating direction information and command selections to the processor

[0104] , and for controlling cursor movement on the display

[0112] , This input device typically has two degrees of freedom in two axes, a first axis (e.g., x) and a second axis (e.g., y), that allow the device to specify positions in a plane.

[0052] The computing device

[0100] may implement the techniques described herein using customized hard-wired logic, one or more ASICs or FPGAs, firmware, and / or program logic which in combination with the computing device

[0100] causes or programs the computing device

[0100] to be a special-purpose machine. According to one implementation, the techniques herein are performed by the computing device

[0100] in response to the processor

[0104] executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions contained in the main memory

[0106] , Such instructions may be read into the main memory

[0106] from another storage medium, such as the storage device

[0110] , Execution of the sequences of instructions contained in the main memory

[0106] causes the processor

[0104] to perform the process steps described herein. In alternative implementations of the present disclosure, hard-wired circuitry may be used in place of or in combination with software instructions.

[0053] The computing device

[0100] also may include a communication interface

[0118] coupled to the bus

[0102] , The communication interface

[0118] provides a two-way data communication coupling to a network link

[0120] that is connected to a local network

[0122] , For example, the communication interface

[0118] may be an integrated services digital network (ISDN) card, cable modem, satellite modem, or a modem to provide a data communication connection to a corresponding type of telephone line. As another example, the communication interface

[0118] may be a local area network (LAN) card to provide a data communication connection to a compatibleLAN. Wireless links may also be implemented. In any such implementation, the communication interface

[0118] sends and receives electrical, electromagnetic, or optical signals that carry digital data streams representing various types of information.

[0054] The computing device

[0100] can send messages and receive data, including program code, through the network(s), the network link

[0120] , and the communication interface

[0118] , In the Internet example, a server

[0130] might transmit a requested code for an application program through the Internet

[0128] , the ISP

[0126] , the Host

[0124] , the local network

[0122] , and the communication interface

[0118] , The received code may be executed by the processor

[0104] as it is received, and / or stored in the storage device

[0110] , or other non-volatile storage for later execution.

[0055] Referring to FIG. 2, an exemplary block diagram of a system

[0200] for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, is shown, in accordance with an exemplary implementation of the present disclosure. The system

[0200] comprises at least one initiating unit

[0202] , at least one processing unit

[0204] , at least one transceiver unit

[0206] , and at least one storage unit

[0208] , Also, all of the components / units of the system

[0200] are assumed to be connected to each other unless otherwise indicated below. As shown in the figures all units shown within the system should also be assumed to be connected to each other. Also, in FIG. 2 only a few units are shown, however, the system

[0200] may comprise multiple such units, or the system

[0200] may comprise any such numbers of said units, as required to implement the features of the present disclosure. In an implementation, the system

[0200] may reside in a server or a network entity.

[0056] The system

[0200] is configured for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, with the help of the interconnection between the components / units of the system

[0200] , In an exemplary implementation, the telecommunication network may be, such as, but not limited to, a 5G network.

[0057] The system

[0200] comprises an initiating unit

[0202] , The initiating unit

[0202] is configured to initiate a guard timer when the user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter. In an exemplary aspect, when the UE is successfully registered and a Packet Data Unit (PDU) session is established in the telecommunication network, the network node such as Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) allocates network resources to the UE and maintains the UE state so that the AMF may be in-sync with the UE and the gNB / RAN. After this procedure, the UE moves into a connected state. In the connected state, the UE may be in such as, but not limited to,RRC-connected state or RRC-idle state. During the connected state of the UE, the initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may be configured to initiate the guard timer for monitoring the state of the UE and utilization of the network resources in the network.

[0058] As used herein, the guard timer may correspond to a timer initiated for the clean-up of the network resources based on the monitoring of the state of the UE and based on the value of the timer reaches to a threshold time out. The guard timer may have at least the first configuration parameter and the second configuration parameter. The first configuration parameter comprises a guard timer value and the second configuration parameter comprises the threshold timeout count. The guard timer value and the threshold timeout count limit or range may be set by a network administrator, service provider, or any authorised person or entity. In an exemplary aspect, the guard timer value may be defined in seconds, minutes, or hours, depending upon the requirement or complexity of the cleanup task. In an exemplary aspect, threshold timeout count may have any default value such as zero (indicating immediate attention on the clean-up of network resources) or network administrator-defined value. In an example, the threshold timeout count limit lies in a range of 5 to 10 minutes. The initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may send the guard timer and the state information of the UE to a processing unit

[0204] for further processing.

[0059] The system

[0200] comprises the processing unit

[0204] , The processing unit

[0204] is configured to freeze the guard timer upon determination that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state. As used herein, freezing the guard timer means to halt, stop, or pause the timer’s countdown for a temporary period and then restarting the time from the specific point of time instead of starting it from the initial level. The processing unit

[0204] analyses the current state of the UE, such that the UE is still in the connected state as the initiating of the guard timer or the current state of the UE has been changed. If the processing unit

[0204] determines that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state, the processing unit

[0204] freezes or stops the guard timer. In an exemplary aspect, the disconnected state may be an idle state or a deregistered state. In a disconnected state, UE may not have signaling with network nodes such as the AMF. The processing unit

[0204] may send the information for stopping the guard timer to the initiating unit

[0202] ,

[0060] In an exemplary aspect, the storage unit

[0208] may store data such as, but not limited to, operational parameters, guard timer values, active process or active AMF, standby process or standby AMF, and the like. The storage unit

[0208] is further configured to store the data required for the implementation of the features of the present disclosure.

[0061] The initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] is further configured to re-initiate the guard timer, upon determination of the execution of a connected mode procedure. In an exemplary aspect, when the UE comes to any connected mode procedure (e.g., service request procedure) from the idle mode procedure or access network release procedure, the initiating unit

[0202] may determine the execution of the connected mode procedure and may re-initiate the guard timer associated with the connected mode. Now, the UE is in the connected state. In an exemplary aspect, the connected mode procedure may comprise, at least one from among a registration followed by the PDU session, Xn Handover, and N2 Handover execution.

[0062] As used herein, Xn handover refers to a type of handover procedure in which there is direct communication between a source gNB and a destination gNB. In the Xn handover, an Xn interface is configured between the source gNB and the destination gNB.

[0063] As used herein, N2 handover refers to a type of handover procedure in which the source gNB communicates with the target gNB through a core network. In the N2 handover, there is no Xn interface configured, and hence, signalling is managed by an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) / Session Management Function (SMF). Further, in the N2 handover, an indirect tunnel is formed between the gNB via the User Plane Function (UPF).

[0064] As used herein, AMF is a 5G core network function responsible for managing access and mobility aspects, such as UE registration, connection, and reachability. It also handles mobility management procedures like handovers and paging.

[0065] As used herein, SMF is a 5G core network function responsible for managing session- related aspects, such as establishing, modifying, and releasing sessions. It coordinates with the User Plane Function (UPF) for data forwarding and handles IP address allocation and QoS enforcement.

[0066] As used herein, UPF is a network function responsible for handling user data traffic, including packet routing, forwarding, and QoS enforcement.

[0067] The initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may further send the guard timer and the state information of the UE to the processing unit

[0204] for further processing.

[0068] The processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] is further configured to invoke a timeout procedure, upon determination that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the UE is in the connected state. After receiving the information on the guard timer and information on the state of the UE from the initiating unit

[0202] , the processing unit

[0204] may check the first configuration parameter, such as guard timer value, and the second configuration parameter, such as threshold timeout count. When the processing unit

[0204] determines, during UE is in the connected state, the pre-defined or configured value of the second configuration parameter reaches the threshold timeout or maximum value, the processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] may invoke the timeout-procedure. During this, there may be no change in the state of the UE.

[0069] In an exemplary aspect, a transceiver unit

[0206] may be configured to send a de-regi strati on request to the UE upon invoke of the timeout procedure; and the transceiver unit

[0206] configured to receive a de-regi strati on response from the UE in response to the de-registration request. As used herein, the timeout procedure refers to the triggering of one or more actions (e.g., initiating a resource cleanup operation) when a specified time expires without the occurrence of the expected event (e.g., complete registration of the UE to the network). In an implementation, the transceiver unit

[0206] of the system

[0200] may send the de-registration request to the UE upon invoke of the timeout procedure. The de-registration request may be sent for setting a re-registration procedure so that the UE should re-register at the end of the deregistration procedure. Further, in response to the de-registration request, the transceiver unit

[0206] may receive the de-registration response from the UE. In an exemplary aspect, when the UE checks the de-registration type as re-registration, the UE invokes the initial registration again and gracefully registers itself again to the network.

[0070] In an exemplary aspect, the timeout procedure comprises the processing unit

[0204] configured to determine whether the UE has established at least one packet data unit (PDU) session based at least on one session identifier. The processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] may determine that the UE has established at least one PDU session based on at least one session identifier. If the UE has established a PDU session, then the processing unit

[0204] may invoke such as, but not limited to, ReleaseSMContext service operation to release individual PDU sessions towards a Session Management Function (SMF). In an exemplary aspect, the processing unit

[0204] may release each PDU session. The processing unit

[0204] may communicate this information to the transceiver unit

[0206] , The transceiver unit

[0206] may configure to send, upon determination that the UE has established at least one PDU session, at least one release session request corresponding to at least one PDU session to the SMF. Further the transceiver unit

[0206] may be configured to receive at least one release session response in response to the at least one release session request from the SMF. In an implementation of the present disclosure, the SMF may release all resources such as but not limited to, internet protocol (IP) addresses, that were allocated to the PDU Session and may release the corresponding user plane function (UPF) resources. The SMF may send an N4 session release request (N4 Session ID) message to the UPF of the PDU session. The UPF may drop any remaining packets of the PDU session and release all tunnel resources and contexts associated with the N4 session. The UPF may acknowledge the N4 Session release request by the transmission of an N4 Session release response (N4 Session ID) message to the SMF. Further, the SMF may respond with such as, but not limited to, Nsmf_PDUSession_ReleaseSMContext response message. As used herein, Nsmf PDUSession ReleaseSMContext response message refers to a message sent to the AMF in response to a PDU session release request to indicate that the PDU session has been successfully released.

[0071] In an exemplary aspect, upon invoking the timeout procedure, the processing unit

[0204] is configured to determine whether the UE is associated with a policy control function (PCF); and the initiating unit

[0202] is configured to initiate a policy association termination procedure. The processing unit

[0204] may be configured to determine whether the UE is associated with the PCF. If the processing unit

[0204] determines any association with the PCF for this UE, the processing unit

[0204] may send policy termination information to the initiating unit

[0202] , The initiating unit

[0202] may be configured to initiate a policy association termination procedure. The initiating unit

[0202] may perform an AMF -initiated access management (AM) policy association termination procedure and may delete the association with the PCF for both UE and AM Policy. As used herein, the AM policy refers to one or more policies that govern the UE behaviour in terms of mobility, session management, access control, and the like. As used herein, the policy association termination procedure refers to the process of terminating or ending the existing policy sessions between the network node (i.e., PCF) and the UE, including both UE-specific and AMF-specific policies.

[0072] In an exemplary aspect, upon invoking the timeout procedure, the transceiver unit

[0206] is configured to send a de-registration request to a Unified Data Management (UDM). The transceiver unit

[0206] is configured to receive, in response to the de-registration request, a deregistration response from the UDM. In an implementation, the transceiver unit

[0206] may be configured to send a de-registration request to Unified Data Management (UDM). In an implementation, the processing unit

[0204] may invoke such as, but not limited to,Nudm UECM Deregistration service operation to remove the association with the UDM. In response to the de-regi strati on request, the transceiver unit

[0206] may receive the de-regi strati on response from the UDM.

[0073] In an implementation of the present disclosure, the response may comprise at least one of a positive or a negative acknowledgment / confirmation. Furthermore, in the negative acknowledgment response, the release process may repeat.

[0074] The initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] is further configured to initiate a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected. After, receiving the network resource release or termination request, the initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may initiate the resource cleanup operation across the one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected. The initiating unit

[0202] by invoking the de-regi strati on procedure performs end-to-end network resource cleanup in the NF nodes such as SMF, UPF, PCF, UDM, and the like. As used herein, the network resource cleanup operation may include steps, processes, or mechanisms that aim to free one or more resources such as assigned IP address, storage, bandwidth, channels, and the like. More particularly, the resource cleanup operation includes the steps of identifying, releasing, or reassigning resources that are no longer in use in the communication system or network environment. For example, the resource cleanup operation may include but is not limited to identifying unused resources, evaluating the unused resources for their dependency in the network, releasing the resources after evaluating the unused resources, cleaning up the release process (e.g., cleaning cache memory), reassigning the released resources to optimize the use of network resources. Further, the resource cleanup operation may be performed in a pre-defined time interval or based on user input.

[0075] In an exemplary aspect, if the UE receives a deregistration request message from the system

[0200] , the UE may send a deregistration accept message to the system

[0200] ,

[0076] In an exemplary implementation of the present disclosure, the system

[0200] may be implemented in a network node such as an access and mobility management function (AMF). Further, in an exemplary implementation of the present disclosure, the system

[0200] may be implemented separately and connected with the network node such as the access and mobility management function (AMF).

[0077] Referring to FIG. 3, an exemplary method flow diagram

[0300] for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network is shown. In an implementation, the method

[0300] is performed by the system

[0200] , Further, in an implementation, the system

[0200] may be present in a server device to implement the features of the present disclosure. Also, as shown in FIG. 3, the method

[0300] starts at step

[0302] ,

[0078] At step

[0304] , the method

[0300] , as disclosed by the present disclosure, comprises initiating, by an initiating unit

[0202] , a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter. The method

[0300] implemented by the initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may initiate the guard timer when user equipment (UE) is in the connected state. In an exemplary aspect, when the UE is successfully registered and a PDU session is established in the telecommunication network, the network node such as an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) allocates network resources to the UE and maintains the UE state so that it should be in-sync with the UE and the gNB / RAN. After this procedure, the UE moves into a connected state. In the connected state, the UE may be in such as, but not limited to, an RRC-connected state or RRC-idle state. During the connected state of the UE, the initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may be configured to initiate the guard timer for monitoring the state of the UE and utilization of the network resources in the network. The guard timer may have at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter. The first configuration parameter comprises a guard timer value and the second configuration parameter comprises the threshold timeout count. The guard timer value and the threshold timeout count limit or range may be set by a network administrator, service provider, or any authorized person or entity. In an exemplary aspect, the guard timer value may be such as, in second(s) or minute(s). In an exemplary aspect, threshold timeout count may have any default value such as zero or network administrator-defined value. The initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may send the guard timer and the state information of the UE to a processing unit

[0204] for further processing.

[0079] Next, at step

[0306] , the method

[0300] as disclosed by the present disclosure comprises freezing, by a processing unit

[0204] , the guard timer upon determining that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state. The method

[0300] implemented by the processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] may freeze the guard timer upon determining that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state. The processing unit

[0204] analyses the current state of the UE, such that the UE is still in the connected state as the initiating of the guard timer or the current state of the UE has been changed. If the processing unit

[0204] determines that the UEmoves from the connected state to a disconnected state, the processing unit

[0204] freezes or stops the guard timer. In an exemplary aspect, the disconnected state may be an idle state or a deregistered state. In a disconnected state, UE may not have signaling with network nodes such as AMF. The processing unit

[0204] may send the information of the stopping guard timer to the initiating unit

[0202] ,

[0080] Next, at step

[0308] , the method

[0300] , as disclosed by the present disclosure, comprises upon determining execution of a connected mode procedure, re-initiating, by the initiating unit

[0202] , the guard timer. The method

[0300] implemented by the initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may re-initiate the guard timer upon determining the execution of a connected mode procedure. In an exemplary aspect, when the UE comes to any connected mode procedure (e.g., service request procedure) from the idle mode procedure or access network release procedure, the initiating unit

[0202] may determine the execution of the connected mode procedure and may reinitiate the guard timer associated with the connected mode. Now, the UE is in the connected state. In an exemplary aspect, the connected mode procedure may comprise, at least one, registration followed by the PDU session, XN Handover, and N2 Handover execution. The initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may further send the guard timer and the state information of the UE to the processing unit

[0204] for further processing.

[0081] Next, at step

[0310] , the method

[0300] as disclosed by the present disclosure comprises upon determining that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the user is in the connected state, invoking, by the processing unit

[0204] , a timeoutprocedure. The method

[0300] implemented by the initiating unit

[0202] of the system

[0200] may invoke the timeout procedure, upon determination that the value of the second configuration parameter reaches the threshold timeout count when the UE is in the connected state. After receiving the information on the guard timer and information on the state of the UE from the initiating unit

[0202] , the processing unit

[0204] may check the first configuration parameter, such as guard timer value, and the second configuration parameter, such as threshold timeout count. When the processing unit

[0204] determines, during UE is in the connected state, the pre-defined or configured value of the second configuration parameter reaches the threshold timeout or maximum value, and there is no change in the state of the UE, the processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] may invoke the timeout-procedure.

[0082] In an exemplary aspect, the timeout procedure comprises sending, by a transceiver unit

[0206] , a de-registration request to the UE upon invoking the timeout procedure; and in response tothe de-regi strati on request, receiving, by the transceiver unit

[0206] , a de-regi strati on response from the UE. In an implementation, the transceiver unit

[0206] of the system

[0200] may send the deregistration request to the UE upon invoke of the timeout procedure. The de-registration request may be sent for setting a re-registration procedure so that the UE can re-register at the end of the deregistration procedure. Further, in response to the de-registration request, the transceiver unit

[0206] may receive the de-registration response from the UE. In an exemplary aspect, when the UE checks the de-registration type as re-registration, the UE invokes the initial registration again and gracefully registers itself again to the network.

[0083] In an exemplary aspect, the timeout procedure comprises determining, by the processing unit

[0204] , whether the UE has established at least one packet data unit (PDU) session based at least on one session identifier; upon determining that the UE has established at least one PDU session, sending, by the transceiver unit

[0206] , at least one release session request corresponding to at least one PDU session to a Session Management Function (SMF); and receiving, by the transceiver unit

[0206] , at least one release session response in response to the at least one release session request from the SMF. The method

[0300] implemented by the processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] may determine whether the UE has established at least one packet data unit (PDU) session based at least on one session identifier. If the UE has established the PDU session, then the processing unit

[0204] may invoke such as, but not limited to, ReleaseSMContext service operation to release individual PDU sessions towards a Session Management Function (SMF). In an exemplary aspect, the processing unit

[0204] may release each PDU session. The processing unit

[0204] may communicate this information to the transceiver unit

[0206] , The transceiver unit

[0206] may configure to send, upon determination that the UE has established at least one PDU session, at least one release session request corresponding to at least one PDU session to the SMF and further the transceiver unit

[0206] may configure to receive at least one release session response in response to the at least one release session request from the SMF. In an implementation of the present disclosure, the SMF may release all resources such as but not limited to, internet protocol (IP) address that are allocated to the PDU Session and may release the corresponding user plane function (UPF) resources. The SMF may send an N4 session release request (N4 Session ID) message to the UPF of the PDU session. The UPF may drop any remaining packets of the PDU session and release all tunnel resources and contexts associated with the N4 session. The UPF may acknowledge the N4 Session release request by the transmission of the N4 Session release response (N4 Session ID) message to the SMF. Further, the SMF may respond with such as, but not limited to, Nsmf_PDUSession_ReleaseSMContext response message. As used herein, the N4 session refers to a session established over the N4 interface between the SMF and the UPF. The session isresponsible for managing the user plane resources (e.g., data forwarding, traffic handling) and the parameters (e.g., N4 session ID, IP address) for a specific Packet Data Unit (PDU). The N4 interface is defined as a reference point to enable communication between the SMF and the UPF.

[0084] As used herein, the N4 session ID refers to a unique identifier assigned to each N4 session. The unique identifier facilitates the identification and management of the particular session between the SMF and the UPF.

[0085] In an exemplary aspect, the timeout procedure comprises determining, by the processing unit

[0204] , whether the UE is associated with a policy control function (PCF); and initiating, by the initiating unit

[0202] , a policy association termination procedure. Further, the method

[0300] implemented by the processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] may determine whether the UE is associated with the policy control function (PCF). If the processing unit

[0204] determines any association with the PCF for the UE, the processing unit

[0204] may send policy termination information to the initiating unit

[0202] , Further, the initiating unit

[0202] may initiate the policy association termination procedure. The initiating unit

[0202] may perform an AMF-initiated access management (AM) policy association termination procedure and may delete the association with the PCF for both UE and AM Policy.

[0086] In an exemplary aspect, the timeout procedure comprises sending, by the transceiver unit

[0206] , a de-regi strati on request to the Unified Data Management (UDM); and in response to the de-registration request, receiving, by the transceiver unit

[0206] , a de-regi strati on response from the UDM. The method

[0300] implemented by the transceiver unit

[0206] of the system

[0200] may send the de-registration request to the UDM. In an implementation, the processing unit

[0204] may invoke such as, but not limited to, Nudm UECM Deregistration service operation to remove the association with the UDM and send it to the transceiver unit

[0206] for sending the de-registration request to the UDM. In response to the de-registration request, the transceiver unit

[0206] may receive the de-registration response from the UDM.

[0087] In an implementation of the present disclosure, the response may be one of a positive acknowledgment or a negative acknowledgment. Further, in the negative acknowledgment response, the release process may repeat.

[0088] Next, at step

[0312] , the method

[0300] as disclosed by the present disclosure comprises initiating, by the initiating unit

[0202] , a resource cleanup operation across one or more networkfunction (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected. The method

[0300] implemented by the initiating unit

[0202] of the system after receiving the network resource release or termination request may initiate the resource cleanup operation across the one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected. The initiating unit

[0202] by invoking the de-regi strati on procedure may perform end-to-end network resource cleanup in the NF nodes such as SMF, UPF, PCF, UDM, and the like. The network resource cleanup may comprise at least one from among free of assigned IP address, storage, bandwidth, channels, and the like.

[0089] In an exemplary aspect, if the UE receives the deregistration request message from the system

[0200] , the UE may send a deregistration accept message to the system

[0200] ,

[0090] In an exemplary aspect, the method

[0300] further comprises maintaining, by the processing unit

[0204] , a checkpointed state of the guard timer, wherein the checkpointed state ensures continuation of the guard timer in a standby process of an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) in case of a failover of an active process; upon a failover event where an active AMF process becomes non-functional, automatically activating, by the processing unit

[0204] via the standby process, the continuation of the guard timer based on the checkpointed state. The method

[0300] implemented by the processing unit

[0204] of the system

[0200] may maintain the checkpointed state of the guard timer.

[0091] As used herein, the checkpointed state of a guard timer refers to a saved state of the time at any instant to allow the system to resume the time only from that instant of time rather than restarting the timer. The checkpointed state of the guard timer ensures the continuation of the guard timer in a standby process of the AMF in case of a failover of an active process. In an exemplary implementation, the system

[0200] may comprise a plurality of AMF. One of the AMFs may act as an active AMF, which may process an active process and the other AMF may act as a standby AMF, which may process a standby process. When the initiating unit

[0202] initiates the guard timer for the active AMF and active process, the processing unit

[0204] may maintain the checkpointed state of the guard timer such that, whenever the guard timer starts for active process or active AMF, the corresponding timer may be maintained for the standby process and standby AMF also. This helps, if the active process or active AMF may get any failure event for any reason, faults, or network issues and becomes non-functional, the processing unit

[0204] automatically activates the standby process or standby AMF, thereby continuation of the guard timer based on the checkpointed state. Therefore, the standby process or standby AMF may take place in the active process or active AMF with the same guard timer value as running for the active AMF. Thisfacilitates a high availability feature for this guard timeout procedure. Further, in response to the guard timer reaching its timeout in the activated standby process, initiating, by the initiating unit

[0202] via the standby process, the resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes. In an implementation, when the running guard timer value reaches the maximum timeout value in the activated standby process or standby AMF, the initiating unit

[0202] may initiate the resource cleanup operation across the one or more network function (NF) nodes. The initiating unit

[0202] by invoking the de-regi strati on procedure may perform end-to-end network resource cleanup in the NF nodes such as SMF, UPF, PCF, UDM, and the like. The network resource cleanup may comprise at least one action to free up assigned IP addresses, storage, bandwidth, channels, and the like.

[0092] Thereafter, the method

[0300] terminates at step

[0314] ,

[0093] FIG. 4 illustrates a sequence flow

[0400] diagram for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, in accordance with exemplary implementations of the present disclosure. In an implementation, the sequence flow diagram

[0400] , is implemented by the system

[0200] , As shown in FIG. 4, the sequence flow

[0400] comprises at least one UE

[0402] , at least one RAN

[0404] , at least one AMF

[0406] , at least one PCF

[0408] , at least one SMF

[0410] , at least one UDM

[0412] and at least one UPF

[0414] , During any connected mode procedure, such as registration of UE followed by PDU session, XN Handover, and N2 Handover, is executed, the UE

[0402] is successfully registered in the telecommunication network and is in the connected state, then the network node such as the AMF

[0406] starts a connected mode guard timer with the configured value of time.

[0094] Next, if UE

[0402] moves to any other state such as an idle state or de-registered state, the AMF

[0406] may stop the guard timer and reset the guard timeout count. If UE

[0402] again comes to connected mode, the sequence flow

[0400] restarts the guard timer again. But if connected mode guard timeout happens, which means during this time the state has not changed, then the AMF

[0406] may perform the below steps:

[0095] At step S2, the AMF

[0406] deregisters the UE

[0402] by sending a deregistration request message. The deregistration type request may be set to re-registration so that, the UE

[0402] should re-register at the end of the deregistration procedure.

[0096] At step S4, the AMF

[0406] may invoke the Nsmf_PDUSession_ReleaseSMContext Request service operation to release individual PDU sessions towards the SMF

[0410] if the UE

[0402] has established PDU session. This may be performed for each PDU session ID.

[0097] At step S6, the SMF

[0410] may release all resources e.g., the IP addresses that were allocated to the PDU session and may release the corresponding user plane function (UPF) resources. The SMF

[0410] may send an N4 session release request (N4 session ID) message to the UPF

[0414] of the PDU session.

[0098] At step S8, the UPF

[0414] may drop any remaining packets of the PDU session and may release all tunnel resource(s) and contexts associated with the N4 session. Further, the UPF

[0414] may acknowledge the N4 session release request by the transmission of an N4 session release response (N4 Session ID) message to the SMF

[0410] ,

[0099] At step S10, the SMF

[0410] may respond with a Nsmf_PDUSession_ReleaseSMContext response message. If the UE

[0402] has not established the PDU session, then these steps may not be executed.

[0100] At step S12, the AMF

[0406] may invoke Nudm_UECM_Deregistration service operation to remove the association for the UE

[0402] with the UDM

[0412] ,

[0101] At step S14, if there is any association with the PCF

[0408] for the UE

[0402] , the AMF

[0406] may perform an AMF-initiated AM Policy Association Termination procedure, AMF-initiated UE Policy Association Termination and may delete the association with the PCF

[0408] for both UE

[0402] and AMF policy.

[0102] At step SI 6, if the UE

[0402] receives the de-registration request message from the AMF

[0406] , the UE

[0402] sends a deregistration accept message to the AMF

[0406] ,

[0103] At step SI 8, if there is an N2 signalling connection to Next Generation Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) / RAN

[0404] , the AMF

[0406] may send an N2 UE Release command to NG- RAN / RAN

[0404] with the cause set to deregistration to release the N2 signalling connection. Thus, all the resources allocated at AMF

[0406] for the UE

[0402] will be released. In the end, when the UE

[0402] checks the de-registration type as re-registration, the UE

[0402] may invoke the initial registration again and gracefully may register itself again to the network.

[0104] The present disclosure further discloses a non-transitory computer readable storage medium storing instructions for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, the storage medium include executable code which, when executed by one or more units of a system, causes: an initiating unit

[0202] of the system to initiate a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter; a processing unit

[0204] of the system to freeze the guard timer upon determination that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state; the initiating unit

[0202] of the system to re-initiate the guard timer, upon determination of execution of a connected mode procedure; the processing unit

[0204] of the system to invoke a timeout-procedure, upon determination that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the user is in the connected state; and the initiating unit

[0202] of the system to initiate a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.

[0105] As is evident from the above, the present disclosure provides a technically advanced solution for the clean-up of network resources stuck in the connected mode of any user equipment. The solution provided by the present disclosure has the functionality to perform admin deregistration procedure on its own and performs end-to-end user resource clean-up in all 5GC nodes, such as session management function (SMF), user plane function (UPF), policy control function (PCF) and Unified data management (UDM) UDM. By applying the procedure of present disclosure, again user state may be in sync with UE, gNB, and all 5GC nodes. The invention ensures that there are no unwanted resources stuck in the network, hence network capacity may be increased. In the end, UE starts a new registration and gracefully attaches to the network again for uninterrupted communication services.

[0106] Further, in accordance with the present disclosure, it is to be acknowledged that the functionality described for the various components / units can be implemented interchangeably. While specific embodiments may disclose a particular functionality of these units for clarity, it is recognized that various configurations and combinations thereof are within the scope of the disclosure. The functionality of specific units as disclosed in the disclosure should not be construed as limiting the scope of the present disclosure. Consequently, alternative arrangements and substitutions of units, provided they achieve the intended functionality described herein, are considered to be encompassed within the scope of the present disclosure.

[0107] While considerable emphasis has been placed herein on the disclosed embodiments, it will be appreciated that many embodiments can be made and that many changes can be made to the embodiments without departing from the principles of the present disclosure. These and other changes in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art, whereby it is to be understood that the foregoing descriptive matter to be implemented is illustrative and non-limiting.

Claims

We Claim:

1. A method for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, the method comprising: initiating, by an initiating unit [202], a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter; freezing, by a processing unit [204], the guard timer upon determining that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state; upon determining execution of a connected mode procedure, re-initiating, by the initiating unit [202], the guard timer; upon determining that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the UE is in the connected state, invoking, by the processing unit [204], a timeout procedure; and initiating, by the initiating unit [202], a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first configuration parameter comprises a guard timer value and the second configuration parameter comprises the threshold timeout count.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the timeout procedure comprises: sending, by a transceiver unit [206], a de-regi strati on request to the UE upon invoking the timeout procedure; and in response to the de-regi strati on request, receiving, by the transceiver unit [206], a deregistration response from the UE.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the timeout procedure further comprises: determining, by the processing unit [204], whether the UE has established at least one packet data unit (PDU) session based at least on one session identifier; upon determining that the UE has established at least one PDU session, sending, by the transceiver unit [206], at least one release session request corresponding to at least one PDU session to a Session Management Function (SMF); and receiving, by the transceiver unit [206], at least one release session response in response to the at least one release session request from the SMF.

5. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the timeout procedure further comprises: determining, by the processing unit [204], whether the UE is associated with a policy control function (PCF); and initiating, by the initiating unit [202], a policy association termination procedure.

6. The method as claimed in claim 3, wherein the timeout procedure further comprises: sending, by the transceiver unit [206], a de-regi strati on request to Unified Data Management (UDM); and in response to the de-regi strati on request, receiving, by the transceiver unit [206], a de-regi strati on response from the UDM.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: maintaining, by the processing unit [204], a checkpointed state of the guard timer, wherein the checkpointed state ensures continuation of the guard timer in a standby process of an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) in case of a failover of an active process; upon a failover event where an active AMF process becomes non-functional, automatically activating, by the processing unit [204] via the standby process, the continuation of the guard timer based on the checkpointed state; and in response to the guard timer reaching its timeout in the activated standby process, initiating, by the initiating unit [202] via the standby process, the resource cleanup operation across the one or more network function (NF) nodes.

8. A system for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, the system comprises: an initiating unit [202] configured to initiate a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter; a processing unit [204] configured to freeze the guard timer upon determination that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state; the initiating unit [202] configured to re-initiate the guard timer, upon determination of execution of a connected mode procedure; the processing unit [204] configured to invoke a timeout-procedure, upon determination that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the UE is in the connected state; andthe initiating unit [202] configured to initiate a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.

9. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the first configuration parameter comprises a guard timer value and the second configuration parameter comprises the threshold timeout count.

10. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein upon invoking the timeout procedure, a transceiver unit [206] is configured to send a de-registration request to the UE upon invoke of the timeout procedure; and the transceiver unit [206] is configured to receive a de-registration response from the UE in response to the de-registration request.

11. The system as claimed in claim 10, wherein upon invoking the timeout procedure, the processing unit [204] is configured to determine whether the UE has established at least one packet data unit (PDU) session based at least on one session identifier; the transceiver unit [206] is configured to send, upon determination that the UE has established at least one PDU session, at least one release session request corresponding to at least one PDU session to a Session Management Function (SMF); and the transceiver unit [206] is configured to receive at least one release session response in response to the at least one release session request from the SMF.

12. The system as claimed in claim 10, wherein upon invoking the timeout procedure, the processing unit [204] is further configured to determine whether the UE is associated with a policy control function (PCF); and the initiating unit [202] configured to initiate a policy association termination procedure.

13. The system as claimed in claim 10, wherein upon invoking the timeout procedure, the transceiver unit [206] is configured to send a de-registration request to Unified Data Management (UDM); and the transceiver unit [206] is configured to receive, in response to the de-registration request, a de-registration response from the UDM.

14. The system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the system comprises:the processing unit [204] to maintain a checkpointed state of the guard timer, wherein the checkpointed state ensures continuation of the guard timer in a standby process of an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) in case of a failover of an active process; the processing unit [204] to automatically activate, via the standby process, the continuation of the guard timer based on the checkpointed state, upon a failover event where an active AMF process becomes non-functional; and the initiating unit [202] to initiate, via the standby process, the resource cleanup operation across the one or more network function (NF) nodes, in response to the guard timer reaching its timeout in the activated standby process.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instruction for managing network resource cleanup in a telecommunication network, the storage medium comprising executable code which, when executed by one or more units of a system [200], causes: an initiating unit [202] to initiate a guard timer when a user equipment (UE) is in a connected state, wherein the guard timer comprises at least a first configuration parameter and a second configuration parameter; a processing unit [204] to freeze the guard timer upon determination that the UE moves from the connected state to a disconnected state; the initiating unit [202] to re-initiate the guard timer, upon determination of execution of a connected mode procedure; the processing unit [204] to invoke a timeout-procedure, upon determination that a value of the second configuration parameter reaches a threshold timeout count when the UE is in the connected state; and the initiating unit [202] to initiate a resource cleanup operation across one or more network function (NF) nodes to which the UE is connected.

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