Methods and apparatus for n3gpp sensing capability information and network registration

Abstract

A method performed by a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) may comprise: transmitting, to a server, a first registration request requesting a non-3GPP (N3GPP) sensing capability registration, including one or more N3GPP sensor types and parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types; and receiving, from the server, in response to the first registration request, a sensing capability registration response, including information indicating a standardized sensing type and a standardized sensing class.

Description

METHODS AND APARATUS FOR N3GPP SENSING CAPABILITY INFORMATION AND NETWORK REGISTRATIONCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 63 / 529,523, filed July 28, 2023, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.BACKGROUND

[0002] Integrated sensing is a process of collecting sensing measurement data which is data collected about radio / wireless signals impacted (e.g., reflected, refracted, diffracted) by an object or environment of interest for sensing purposes and derive sensing results from processing sensing measurement data. A sensing service area location is an area, with or without obstacles, that the 5G system can provide sensing service with certain quality. Integrated sensing services may be used in various target verticals and application, including, but not limited to, autonomous / assisted driving, V2X, UAVs, 3D maps, smart city, smart home, factories, healthcare, and the maritime sector.SUMMARY

[0003] A method performed by a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) may comprise: transmitting, to a server, a first registration request requesting a non-3GPP (N3GPP) sensing capability registration, including one or more N3GPP sensor types and parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types; and receiving, from the server, in response to the first registration request, a sensing capability registration response, including information indicating a standardized sensing type and a standardized sensing class. The method may further comprise: transmitting, to an access and mobility management function (AMF), a second registration request requesting a N3GPP sensing capability registration, including the one or more N3GPP sensor types and the parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types; and receiving, from the AMF, a registration accept message.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004] A more detailed understanding may be had from the following description, given by way of example in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein like reference numerals in the figures indicate like elements, and wherein:

[0005] FIG. 1A is a system diagram illustrating an example communications system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented;

[0006] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment;

[0007] FIG. 1C is a system diagram illustrating an example radio access network (RAN) and an example core network (CN) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment;

[0008] FIG. 1D is a system diagram illustrating a further example RAN and a further example CN that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment;

[0009] FIG. 2 is a system diagram illustrating a reference model of an exemplary 5G or NextGen network;

[0010] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a pedestrian / animal intrusion detection system;

[0011] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a smart home intruder detection system;

[0012] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a base station and WTRU sensing objects;

[0013] FIG. 6 illustrates an example method to register a WTRU’s N3GPP sensing capability and to translate WTRU’s N3GPP sensing capability into the standardized N3GPP sensing type;

[0014] FIG. 7 illustrates an method for a WTRU to register with a 5GC with its capability for N3GPP sensing and configured with parameters to be used for N3GPP sensing operation at the registered NW;

[0015] FIG. 8 illustrates an example method for handling sensing service request including N3GPP sensing data; and

[0016] FIG. 9 illustrates an example method to establish a user plane path for N3GPP sensing data collection with setting up QoS flows for each requested N3GPP sensing data type; and

[0017] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary procedure performed by a WTRU.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0018] FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an example communications system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communications system 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content, such as voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc., to multiple wireless users. The communications system 100 may enable multiple wireless users to access such content through the sharing of system resources, including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communications systems 100 may employ one or more channel access methods, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), singlecarrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero-tail unique-word discrete Fourier transform Spread OFDM (ZT-UW-DFT-S- OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block-filtered OFDM, filter bank multicarrier (FBMC), and the like.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 1A, the communications system 100 may include wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, a radio access network (RAN) 104, a core network (CN) 106, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112, though itwill be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and / orcommunicate in a wireless environment By way of example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, any of which may be referred to as a station (STA), may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals and may include a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a subscription-based unit, a pager, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a laptop, a netbook, a personal computer, a wireless sensor, a hotspot or Mi-Fi device, an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and / or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and / or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and the like. Any of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and 102d may be interchangeably referred to as a UE.

[0020] The communications systems 100 may also include a base station 114a and / or a base station 114b. Each of the base stations 114a, 114b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to facilitate access to one or more communication networks, such as the CN 106, the Internet 110, and / or the other networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114a, 114b may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a NodeB, an eNode B (eNB), a Home Node B, a Home eNode B, a next generation NodeB, such as a gNode B (gNB), a new radio (NR) NodeB, a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, and the like. While the base stations 114a, 114b are each depicted as a single element, it will be appreciated that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0021] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 104, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, and the like. The base station 114a and / or the base station 114b may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). These frequencies may be in licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum A cell may provide coverage for a wireless service to a specific geographical area that may be relatively fixed or that may change over time. The cell may further be divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associated with the base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in one embodiment, the base station 114a may include three transceivers, i.e., one for each sector of the cell. In an embodiment, the base station 114a may employ multiple-input multiple output (MIMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers for each sector of the cell. For example, beamforming may be used to transmit and / or receive signals in desired spatial directions.

[0022] The base stations 114a, 114b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d over an air interface 116, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0023] More specifically, as noted above, the communications system 100 may be a multiple access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, and the like. For example, the base station 114a in the RAN 104 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using wideband CDMA (WCDMA). WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High-Speed Downlink (DL) Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High-Speed Uplink (UL) Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0024] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and / or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and / or LTE-Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro).

[0025] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as NR Radio Access , which may establish the air interface 116 using NR.

[0026] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement LTE radio access and NR radio access together, for instance using dual connectivity (DC) principles. Thus, the air interface utilized by WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and / or transmissions sent to / from multiple types of base stations (e.g , an eNB and a gNB).

[0027] In other embodiments, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (i.e , Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV-DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), and the like.

[0028] The base station 114b in FIG 1A may be a wireless router, Home Node B, Home eNode B, or access point, for example, and may utilize any suitable RAT for facilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area, such as a place of business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an air corridor (e.g., for use by drones), a roadway, and the like. In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet another embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR etc.) to establish a picocell or femtocell. As shown in FIG. 1A, the base station 114b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Thus, the base station 114b may not be required to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106.

[0029] The RAN 104 may be in communication with the CN 106, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. The data may have varying quality of service (QoS) requirements, such as differing throughput requirements, latency requirements, error tolerance requirements, reliability requirements, data throughput requirements, mobility requirements, and the like. The CN 106 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1A, it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 and / or the CN 106 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANs that employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 104, which may be utilizing a NR radio technology, the CN 106 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSM, UMTS, CDMA 2000, WiMAX, E-UTRA, or WiFi radio technology.

[0030] The CN 106 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or the other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include circuit-switched telephone networks that provide plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP) and / or the internet protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired and / or wireless communications networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 or a different RAT.

[0031] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities (e.g., the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks over different wireless links). For example, the WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1 A may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellularbased radio technology, and with the base station 114b, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0032] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example WTRU 102. As shown in FIG. 1 B, the WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display / touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and / or other peripherals 138, among others. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0033] The processor 118 may be 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 (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, and the like. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing, power control,input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. While FIG. 1 B depicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separate components, it will be appreciated that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0034] The transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 116. For example, in one embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an emitter / detector configured to transmit and / or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example. In yet another embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive both RF and light signals. It will be appreciated that the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0035] Although the transmit / receive element 122 is depicted in FIG. 1 B as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may employ MIMO technology. Thus, in one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

[0036] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signals that are to be transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and to demodulate the signals that are received by the transmit / receive element 122. As noted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers for enabling the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as NR and IEEE 802.11 , for example.

[0037] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to, and may receive user input data from, the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit) The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128. In addition, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, any type of suitable memory, such as the non-removable memory 130 and / or the removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In other embodiments, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (not shown).

[0038] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and may be configured to distribute and / or control the power to the other components in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include one or moredry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li- ion), etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, and the like.

[0039] The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to, or in lieu of, the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information over the air interface 116 from a base station (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) and / or determine its location based on the timing of the signals being received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by way of any suitable location-determination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment

[0040] The processor 118 may further be coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functionality and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photographs and / or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, a Virtual Reality and / or Augmented Reality (VR / AR) device, an activity tracker, and the like. The peripherals 138 may include one or more sensors. The sensors may be one or more of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a hall effect sensor, a magnetometer, an orientation sensor, a proximity sensor, a temperature sensor, a time sensor; a geolocation sensor, an altimeter, a light sensor, a touch sensor, a magnetometer, a barometer, a gesture sensor, a biometric sensor, a humidity sensor and the like.

[0041] The WTRU 102 may include a full duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e g., associated with particular subframes for both the UL (e.g., for transmission) and DL (e.g., for reception) may be concurrent and / or simultaneous. The full duplex radio may include an interference management unit to reduce and or substantially eliminate self-interference via either hardware (e.g., a choke) or signal processing via a processor (e.g., a separate processor (not shown) or via processor 118). In an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include a half-duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for either the UL (e g., for transmission) or the DL (e g., for reception)).

[0042] FIG. 1C is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the GN 106.

[0043] The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may implement MIMOtechnology. Thus, the eNode-B 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a.

[0044] Each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 C, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with one another over an X2 interface.

[0045] The CN 106 shown in FIG. 1C may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, a serving gateway (SGW) 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway (PGW) 166. While the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0046] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 162a, 162b, 162c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation / deactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like. The MME 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and / or WCDMA

[0047] The SGW 164 may be connected to each of the eNode Bs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via the S1 interface. The SGW 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to / from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The SGW 164 may perform other functions, such as anchoring user planes during inter-eNode B handovers, triggering paging when DL data is available for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, managing and storing contexts of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like.

[0048] The SGW 164 may be connected to the PGW 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0049] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks For example, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. For example, the CN 106 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0050] Although the WTRU is described in FIGS. 1A-1 D as a wireless terminal, it is contemplated that in certain representative embodiments that such a terminal may use (e.g., temporarily or permanently) wired communication interfaces with the communication network.

[0051] In representative embodiments, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0052] A WLAN in Infrastructure Basic Service Set (BSS) mode may have an Access Point (AP) for the BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the AP. The AP may have access or an interface to a Distribution System (DS) or another type of wired / wireless network that carries traffic in to and / or out of the BSS. Traffic to STAs that originates from outside the BSS may arrive through the AP and may be delivered to the STAs. Traffic originating from STAs to destinations outside the BSS may be sent to the AP to be delivered to respective destinations. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be sent through the AP, for example, where the source STA may send traffic to the AP and the AP may deliver the traffic to the destination STA The traffic between STAs within a BSS may be considered and / or referred to as peer-to-peer traffic. The peer-to- peer traffic may be sent between (e.g., directly between) the source and destination STAs with a direct link setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use an 802.11e DLS or an 802.11z tunneled DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using an Independent BSS (IBSS) mode may not have an AP, and the STAs (e.g., all of the STAs) within or using the IBSS may communicate directly with each other. The IBSS mode of communication may sometimes be referred to herein as an “ad-hoc” mode of communication.

[0053] When using the 802.11 ac infrastructure mode of operation or a similar mode of operations, the AP may transmit a beacon on a fixed channel, such as a primary channel. The primary channel may be a fixed width (e.g., 20 MHz wide bandwidth) or a dynamically set width. The primary channel may be the operating channel of the BSS and may be used by the STAs to establish a connection with the AP. In certain representative embodiments, Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA / CA) may be implemented, for example in 802.11 systems. For CSMA / CA, the STAs (e.g., every STA), including the AP, may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel is sensed / detected and / or determined to be busy by a particular STA, the particular STA may back off. One STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time in a given BSS.

[0054] High Throughput (HT) STAs may use a 40 MHz wide channel for communication, for example, via a combination of the primary 20 MHz channel with an adjacent or nonadjacent 20 MHz channel to form a 40 MHz wide channel.

[0055] Very High Throughput (VHT) STAs may support 20MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, and / or 160 MHz wide channels The 40 MHz, and / or 80 MHz, channels may be formed by combining contiguous 20 MHz channels. A 160 MHz channel may be formed by combining 8 contiguous 20 MHz channels, or by combining two noncontiguous 80 MHz channels, which may be referred to as an 80+80 configuration. For the 80+80 configuration, the data, after channel encoding, may be passed through a segment parser that may divide the data into two streams. Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) processing, and time domain processing, may be done on each stream separately The streams may be mapped on to the two 80 MHz channels, and the data may be transmitted by a transmitting STA. At the receiver of the receiving STA, the above described operation for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed, and the combined data may be sent to the Medium Access Control (MAC).

[0056] Sub 1 GHz modes of operation are supported by 802.11 af and 802.11 ah. The channel operating bandwidths, and carriers, are reduced in 802.11 af and 802.11ah relative to those used in 802.11n, and 802.11ac. 802.11 af supports 5 MHz, 10 MHz, and 20 MHz bandwidths in the TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum, and 802.11 ah supports 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, and 16 MHz bandwidths using non-TVWS spectrum. According to a representative embodiment, 802.11 ah may support Meter Type Control / Machine- Type Communications (MTC), such as MTC devices in a macro coverage area. MTC devices may have certain capabilities, for example, limited capabilities including support for (e.g , only support for) certain and / or limited bandwidths The MTC devices may include a battery with a battery life above a threshold (e.g., to maintain a very long battery life).

[0057] WLAN systems, which may support multiple channels, and channel bandwidths, such as 802 11 n, 802.11ac, 802.11 af, and 802.11 ah, include a channel which may be designated as the primary channel. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the largest common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in the BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and / or limited by a STA, from among all STAs in operating in a BSS, which supports the smallest bandwidth operating mode. In the example of 802.11 ah, the primary channel may be 1 MHz wide for STAs (e.g., MTC type devices) that support (e.g., only support) a 1 MHz mode, even if the AP, and other STAs in the BSS support 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, 16 MHz, and / or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and / or Network Allocation Vector (NAV) settings may depend on the status of the primary channel. If the primary channel is busy, for example, due to a STA (which supports only a 1 MHz operating mode) transmitting to the AP, all available frequency bands may be considered busy even though a majority of the available frequency bands remains idle.

[0058] In the United States, the available frequency bands, which may be used by 802.11 ah, are from 902 MHz to 928 MHz. In Korea, the available frequency bands are from 917.5 MHz to 923.5 MHz. In Japan, the available frequency bands are from 916.5 MHz to 927.5 MHz. The total bandwidth available for 802.11ah is 6 MHz to 26 MHz depending on the country code.

[0059] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ an NR radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the CN 106.

[0060] The RAN 104 may include gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of gNBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, gNBs 180a, 108b may utilize beamforming to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c. Thus, the gNB 180a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement carrier aggregation technology. For example, the gNB 180a may transmit multiple component carriers to the WTRU 102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on unlicensed spectrum while theremaining component carriers may be on licensed spectrum. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) technology. For example, WTRU 102a may receive coordinated transmissions from gNB 180a and gNB 180b (and / or gNB 180c).

[0061] The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using transmissions associated with a scalable numerology. For example, the OFDM symbol spacing and / or OFDM subcarrier spacing may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and / or different portions of the wireless transmission spectrum. The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using subframe or transmission time intervals (TTIs) of various or scalable lengths (e.g., containing a varying number of OFDM symbols and / or lasting varying lengths of absolute time).

[0062] The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be configured to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c in a standalone configuration and / or a non-standalone configuration. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c without also accessing other RANs (e.g., such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c). In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may utilize one or more of gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c as a mobility anchor point. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using signals in an unlicensed band. In a non-standalone configuration WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with / connect to gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c while also communicating with / connecting to another RAN such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c. For example, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement DC principles to communicate with one or more gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c and one or more eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c substantially simultaneously. In the non- standalone configuration, eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may serve as a mobility anchor for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may provide additional coverage and / or throughput for servicing WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0063] Each of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the UL and / or DL, support of network slicing, DC, interworking between NR and E-UTRA, routing of user plane data towards User Plane Function (UPF) 184a, 184b, routing of control plane information towards Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 182a, 182b and the like. As shown in FIG. 1D, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may communicate with one another over an Xn interface.

[0064] The CN 106 shown in FIG. 1 D may include at least one AMF 182a, 182b, at least one UPF 184a, 184b, at least one Session Management Function (SMF) 183a, 183b, and possibly a Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b. While the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0065] The AMF 182a, 182b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 104 via an N2 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the AMF 182a, 182b may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, support for network slicing (e.g., handling of differentprotocol data unit (PDU) sessions with different requirements), selecting a particular SMF 183a, 183b, management of the registration area, termination of non-access stratum (NAS) signaling, mobility management, and the like. Network slicing may be used by the AMF 182a, 182b in order to customize CN support for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c based on the types of services being utilized WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. For example, different network slices may be established for different use cases such as services relying on ultra-reliable low latency (URLLC) access, services relying on enhanced massive mobile broadband (eMBB) access, services for MTC access, and the like The AMF 182a, 182b may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or non-3GPP access technologies such as WiFi.

[0066] The SMF 183a, 183b may be connected to an AMF 182a, 182b in the CN 106 via an N11 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may also be connected to a UPF 184a, 184b in the CN 106 via an N4 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may select and control the UPF 184a, 184b and configure the routing of traffic through the UPF 184a, 184b. The SMF 183a, 183b may perform other functions, such as managing and allocating UE IP address, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, providing DL data notifications, and the like. A PDU session type may be IP-based, non-IP based, Ethernet-based, and the like.

[0067] The UPF 184a, 184b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 104 via an N3 interface, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices. The UPF 184, 184b may perform other functions, such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multi-homed PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering DL packets, providing mobility anchoring, and the like.

[0068] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks For example, the CN 106 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers In one embodiment, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to a local DN 185a, 185b through the UPF 184a, 184b via the N3 interface to the UPF 184a, 184b and an N6 interface between the UPF 184a, 184b and the DN 185a, 185b.

[0069] In view of FIGs. 1A-1 D, and the corresponding description of FIGs. 1A-1 D, one or more, or all, of the functions described herein with regard to one or more of: WTRU 102a-d, Base Station 114a-b, eNode-B 160a-c, MME 162, SGW 164, PGW 166, gNB 180a-c, AMF 182a-b, UPF 184a-b, SMF 183a-b, DN 185a-b, and / or any other device(s) described herein, may be performed by one or more emulation devices (not shown). The emulation devices may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more, or all, of the functions described herein. For example, the emulation devices may be used to test other devices and / or to simulate network and / or WTRU functions.

[0070] The emulation devices may be designed to implement one or more tests of other devices in a lab environment and / or in an operator network environment. For example, the one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being fully or partially implemented and / or deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network in order to test other devices within the communication network. The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being temporarily implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network The emulation device may be directly coupled to another device for purposes of testing and / or performing testing using over-the-air wireless communications.

[0071] The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, including all, functions while not being implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. For example, the emulation devices may be utilized in a testing scenario in a testing laboratory and / or a non-deployed (e.g., testing) wired and / or wireless communication network in order to implement testing of one or more components. The one or more emulation devices may be test equipment. Direct RF coupling and / or wireless communications via RF circuitry (e.g., which may include one or more antennas) may be used by the emulation devices to transmit and / or receive data.

[0072] The following abbreviations and acronyms may be referred to:5GC 5G Core Network5GS 5G SystemAF Application FunctionAMF Access and Mobility Management FunctionAUSF Authentication Server FunctionBS Base StationCP Control PlaneDL DownlinkDN Data NetworkDNN Data Network NameISANF Integrated Sensing Assistance NFM BS M ulticast / Broadcast ServiceN3GPP Non-3GPPNAS Non Access Stratum NEF Network Exposure Function NF Network Function PCF Policy Control Function ProSe Proximity based Service QoS Quality of ServiceRAN Radio Access Network RAN Radio Access Network RAT Radio Access Technology SMF Session Management FunctionSOMF Sensing Operation Management Function TA Tracking Area UDM Unified Data Management UL Uplink UPF User Plane Function WTRU Wireless Transmit / Receive Unit

[0073] Integrated sensing, is a process of collecting sensing measurement data which is data collected about radio / wireless signals impacted (e.g., reflected, refracted, diffracted) by an object or environment of interest for sensing purposes and derive sensing results from processing sensing measurement data. A sensing service area location is an area, with or without obstacles, that the 5G system can provide sensing service with certain quality. Integrated sensing services may be used in various target verticals and application, including autonomous / assisted driving, V2X, UAVs, 3D map, smart city, smart home, factories, healthcare, and the maritime sector.

[0074] FIG. 2 illustrates a reference model of an exemplary 5G or NextGen network. RAN may refer to a radio access network based on the 5G RAT or Evolved E-UTRA that connects to the NextGen core network.

[0075] The AMF 202 may include at least the following functionalities: registration management, connection management, reachability management, and / or mobility management.

[0076] The SMF 204 may include at least the following functionalities: session management (including session establishment, modify and release), WTRU IP address allocation, selection, and / or control of UP function.

[0077] The UPF 206 may include at least the following functionalities: packet routing & forwarding, packet inspection, and / or traffic usage reporting.

[0078] Integrated sensing is a process of collecting sensing measurement data. Sensing measurement data may include data about radio / wireless signals impacted (e.g., reflected, refracted, diffracted) by an object or environment of interest for sensing purposes. Integrated sensing includes deriving sensing results by processing the sensing measurement data. In certain scenarios, there may be an area defined for sensing, known as the “sensing service area location,” which is an area, whether with or without obstacle, the 5G system can provide sensing service with certain quality. Integrated sensing services may be used in various target verticals and application, including, but not limited to autonomous / assisted driving, V2X, UAVs, 3D map, smart city, smart home, factories, healthcare, and the maritime sector.

[0079] Integrated sensing can also be used on N3GPP entities. Sensing measurement data collected from N3GPP entities is transparent to a 5GS because data collected from N3GPP entities is communicated to the 5GS using a standard protocol to an interface defined by the 5GS.

[0080] One use case for integrated sensing is object detection. For example, object detection can include pedestrian / animal intrusion detection on a highway or intruder detection in surroundings of a smart home

[0081] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a pedestrian / animal intrusion detection system. As shown in FIG. 3, base station 302a and 302b may collect sensing data in a certain area (e.g., highway, roadway, pedestrian area, etc.) by measuring one or more sensing signals (e.g., returned sensing signal sent from the base station, received sensing signal sent from another designated BS) or by receiving the information of received sensing signal by user terminal (e.g., vehicle passing the area, dedicated user terminal to receive the sensing signal, etc.)

[0082] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of a smart home intruder detection system. As shown in FIG. 4, WTRU 402, which is located near one or more buildings 406, may send a sensing signal to the BS 404. The BS 404may receive sensing signal(s) or reflected sensing signal(s) and may detect an intruder by calculating the change of characteristics of received sensing signal(s).

[0083] In FIG. 3 and FIG. 4, the BS(s) or the WTRU(s) may detect the intrusion on the sensing area of a BS by itself or by collaboration between the WTRU(s) and base station(s). The sensing measurement is transferred to the network and further processed into the sensing result.

[0084] Another use case for integrated sensing is transparent sensing in which sensing data is captured by the WTRU and communicated so that 5GS is aware of the sensing information.

[0085] FIG. 5 illustrates an example of a base station and WTRU sensing objects. As shown in FIG, 5, WTRUs 502a and 502b may acquire sensing signals from devices 506a and 506b. Devices 506a and 506b may be 3GPP or N3GPP devices. WTRUs 502a and 502b may transmit the sensed data to a base station 506. The 5GC may determine various available sensing services by processing the collated sensing data. Note, that although FIG. 5 shows two devices that transmit sensing signals to WTRUs 502a and 502b, it is possible for there to be more devices that transmit sensing signals to WTRUs.

[0086] One issue is how a 5G system can be aware of the available N3GPP sensing capabilities in a requested area. For integrated sensing, in certain wireless standards, the following may be potential requirements: (1) subject to user consent, regulation, and operator’s policy, the 5G system must be able to collect N3GPP sensing data from authorized N3GPP sensors and securely provide it to a 5G network for processing; and (2) subject to user consent, regulation, and operator’s policy, the 5G system should support the combination of the 3GPP sensing data and N3GPP sensing data to derive a combined sensing result.

[0087] In order to satisfy the above requirements, sensing service operations, including sensing transmitter / sensing receiver discovery and selection, coordination between sensing transmitter(s) and sensing receiver(s), sensing data collection (including 3GPP sensing data and / or non 3GPP sensing data, which may be transmitted and collected by the gNB or the WTRU or both), and sensing data processing of 3GPP sensing data and / or non 3GPP sensing data, may be performed. For better sensing quality, 3GPP sensing data and N3GPP sensing data should to be used together. Therefore, when a sensing service is requested, the 5GC will be able to decide proper sensing mechanism including 3GPP sensing and N3GPP sensing. Accordingly, one issue is how 5G systems can be aware of the available N3GPP sensing capabilities in the requested area.

[0088] Another potential issue is how a WTRU can get assistance from other WTRUs in order to enhance downlink and uplink performance. Each N3GPP sensing data from different sensor (e.g., Lidar, CCTV, etc.) may have different characteristics of traffic. The 5GC may provide the proper transport for collecting sensing data with specific QoS. Accordingly, when a WTRU has capabilities for multiple N3GPP sensing data, the data needs to be handled properly in reflecting their different characteristics.

[0089] FIG. 6 describes example methods to register a WTRU’s N3GPP sensing capability and to translate WTRU’s N3GPP sensing capability into the standardized N3GPP sensing type with specific QoS class or QoS parameters for control of N3GPP sensing data collection in 5GC. FIG. 6 describes three exemplary embodiments, 620, 640, and 660.

[0090] In embodiment 620, at 622, a WTRU 602 may transmit a N3GPP sensing capability registration request to a sensing server 612 to register its N3GPP sensing capability. The registration request may include the N3GPP sensing capability of the WTRU, including its N3GPP sensor type (e g., radar, ultrasonic sensor, video sensor, audio sensor, lidar, etc ) and sensing data collection characteristics of the N3GPP sensor (e.g., sensing period, sensing data type, sensing data rate, granularity of sensor output). For example, the data rate may be an average data rate, minimum data rate, or a maximum data rate. For example, the granularity may include the level of details provided be the sensor (e.g., bits, resolution, high, medium, low).

[0091] The sensing server 612 may be an application server or a NF in a 5GC. If the sensing server 612 is an application server, WTRU 602 may a use user plane for the connection between WTRU 602 and sensing server 612. If sensing service is an NF in a 5GC, the WTRU 602 may use a user plane (e.g. PDU session) for the connection between the WTRU 602 and sensing server 612 or the WTRU 602 may use a control plane (e g. NAS transport) for the connection between the WTRU 602 and sensing server 612.

[0092] At 624, upon receiving the N3GPP sensing capability of the WTRU 602, the sensing server 612 may translate the N3GPP sensing capability into a standardized N3GPP sensing type and standardized sensing class or QoS parameters. The sensing server 612 may provide the 5GC with the translated standardized N3GPP sensing type and standardized sensing class or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type of the WTRU The 5GC may store the received standardized sensing type and standardized sensing class or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type in UDR. The standardized N3GPP sensing type may include the sensor type such as video sensor, audio sensor, ultrasonic sensor, lidar sensor, etc.

[0093] Standardized sensing classes for each standardized N3GPP sensing type may be assigned for different sensing requirements. For example, for a video sensor, a sensor having a higher video resolution, a higher sampling ratio and / or a higher color depth may be assigned a high sensing class value.

[0094] T able 1 below illustrates examples of standardized sensing classes for a video sensor.T able 1 - Examples of Standardized Sensing Classes for Video Sensors

[0095] For each sensing class, the sensing server 612 may assign different QoS parameters with which the 5GC may provide transport channel with required bandwidth to send sensing data belongs to the sensing class.

[0096] Alternatively, for each sensing class, the sensing server 612 may assign different service requirement and the 5GC may assign QoS parameters for each service requirement from the sensing server for each sensing class.

[0097] The sensing server 612 may assign a traffic descriptor for each standardized sensing type For example, when an IP-based connection is used, for each sensing class, a different IP port number may be assigned by the sensing server 612. Also, based on the security policy for each standardized sensing type, a different traffic descriptor may be assigned.

[0098] At 626, the sensing server 612 may send the WTRU 602 a N3GPP sensing capability registration response. The registration response may include the standardized N3GPP sensing type and the standardized sensing class or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type which is indicated as the registered N3GPP sensing capability of the WTRU 602. The registration response may include a traffic descriptor for each sensing type. For each sensing type and sensing class, a preferred transmission method may be added (e.g., control plane preferred, user plane preferred, or both). QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type may be included when the preferred transmission method indicates that the user plane may be used or preferred for data collection of the sensing type and sensing class.

[0099] Embodiment 640 illustrates an exemplary N3GPP sensing capability registration procedure, where the procedure may be performed by an AF.

[0100] At 642, the sensing server 612 may send a N3GPP sensing capability registration request to the WTRU 602. The sensing server 612 may be an application server or an NF in a 5GC. If the sensing server 612 is an application server, the WTRU 602 may use user plane for the connection between the WTRU 602 and the sensing server 612. When the sensing service 612 is an NF in a 5GC, the WTRU 602 may use user plane for the connection between the WTRU 602 and the sensing server 612 or the WTRU may use control plane for the connection between the WTRU 602 and the sensing server 612.

[0101] At 644, the WTRU 602 may send a N3GPP sensing capability registration response to the sensing server to register its N3GPP sensing capability with the sensing server 612. The response may include a N3GPP sensor type (e.g., radar, ultrasonic sensor, video sensor, audio sensor, lidar, etc.) and characteristics of a N3GPP sensor (e.g., sensing period, sensing data type, sensing data rate, granularity of sensor output).

[0102] At 646, upon receiving N3GPP sensing capability, the sensing server 612 may translate the N3GPP sensing capability into a standardized N3GPP sensing type and a standardized sensing class or QoS parameters The sensing server 612 may provide the 5GC with the translated standardized N3GPP sensing type and standardized sensing class or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type for the WTRU. The5GC may store the received standardized sensing type and standardized sensing class or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type in UDR.

[0103] At 648, the sensing server 612 may sends the WTRU 602 a N3GPP sensing capability registration confirmation message. The registration confirmation message may include the standardized N3GPP sensing type and standardized sensing class or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type as the WTRU’s registered N3GPP sensing capability. The registration confirmation message may include a traffic descriptor for each sensing type. For each sensing type and sensing class, a preferred transmission method may be added (e.g., control plane preferred, user plane preferred, or both). QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type may be included when the preferred transmission method indicates that the user plane may be used or preferred for data collection of the sensing type and sensing class.

[0104] Embodiment 660 illustrates an exemplary the N3GPP sensing capability registration procedure which may be handled at PCF over NAS connection.

[0105] At 662, the WTRU 602 may send, to the AMF 606, a N3GPP sensing capability report. The sensing capability report may include a standardized N3GPP sensing type and a standardized sensing class. WTRU 602 may be configured with standardized N3GPP sensing type and standardized sensing class by a sensing server 612 or may be preconfigured. For each sensing type and sensing class, a preferred transmission method may be also be included in the sensing capability report (e.g. Control Plane preferred, User Plane preferred, or both).

[0106] At 664, the AMF 606 may send a N3GPP sensing capability report of the WTRU to the PCF 608.

[0107] At 666, upon receiving the N3GPP sensing capability report of the WTRU 602, the PCF 608 may check the validity of N3GPP sensing capability with the sensing server 6012 (e.g., by comparing the N3GPP sensing capability report received from WTRU and registered N3GPP sensing capability of the WTRU in the application server).

[0108] At 668, the PCF 608 may store, in the UDM / UDR 610, the received standardized sensing type and standardized sensing class or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type of the WTRU 602.

[0109] At 670, the PCF may send, based on the N3GPP sensing capabilities of the WTRU 602, policy and parameters for sensing (e.g , updated URSP’s for sensing).

[0110] The policy and parameters for sensing for each of the WTRU’s N3GPP sensing capabilities may include QoS parameters for each sensing class of the N3GPP sensing type of the WTRU 602. The policy and parameters may include an indication as to whether user plane-based sensing data collection is supported, an indication whether control plane-based sensing data collection is supported, an IP address for the data collection server when user plane-based sensing data collection is used.

[0111] At 672, the AMF 606 may forward the received policy and parameters to the WTRU 602.

[0112] Alternatively, or additionally, a WTRU may be assigned with standardized sensing type and multiple standardized sensing classes with validity condition. For example, in normal situations, for the sensing type, alower value of sensing class may be assigned and in event detection with condition for event triggering, for the sensing type, a higher value of sensing class may be assigned. And for each sensing class, a preferred transmission method may be included additionally (e.g., control plane preferred, user plane preferred, or both).

[0113] Alternatively, or additionally when a WTRU is assigned a N3GPP sensing capability, a security requirement may be considered For example, the WTRU may provide the indication whether user consent needed or not for each sensing type And the server may assign different sensing classes for each sensing type when user consent is provided or when user consent is not provided. For example, the WTRU may be provided with different sensing classes for each sensing type in depending on the type of security policy applied.

[0114] FIG. 7 illustrates an example method for a WTRU to register, with a 5GC, its capability for N3GPP sensing and configured with parameters to be used for N3GPP sensing operation at the registered NW.

[0115] At 720, the WTRU 702 may transmit, to the server 712, a N3GPP sensing capability report, which may include the WTRU’s 702 N3GPP sensors and the characteristics of the sensing data collection. At 722, the server 712 may map the received N3GPP sensors to the standardized N3GPP sensing types and sensing classes and transmit, to the UDM / UDR 710, the standardized sensing types and standardize sensing classes. The UDM / UDR 710 may then store the standardized sensing types and standardize sensing classes.

[0116] At 724, the WTRU 702 may send a registration request to the AMF 706. The registration request may include the an indication of the sensing capability of the WTRU 702 The indication may include an indication of both 3GPP and N3GPP sensing capability.

[0117] At 726, upon receiving the sensing capability of the WTRU 702, the AMF 706 may check the subscription data of the WTRU 702 for authorization of integrated sensing from the UDM / UDR 710.

[0118] At 728, the AMF 706 may send an access and mobility (AM) policy association request message to the PCF 708. The AM policy association request message may include an indication of sensing capability of the WTRU 702.

[0119] At 730, the PCF 708 may check the WTRU’s sensing capability by referring stored data in the UDM / UDR 710.

[0120] At 732, the PCF 708 may send an AM policy association response message to the AMF 706. The AM policy association response message may include policy and parameters for sensing. The policy and parameters for each of the N3GPP sensing types of the WTRU 702 may include QoS parameters for each sensing class associated with each of the N3GPP sensing types, an indication as to whether user plane-based sensing data collection is supported, an indication as to whether control plane-based sensing data collection is supported, and an IP address for the data collection server when user plane-based sensing data collection is used.

[0121] At 734, the AMF 706 may send a registration accept message to the WTRU 702. The registration accept message may include an indication that the WTRU 702 is authorized for sensing and parameters for sensing, including N3GPP sensing

[0122] Additionally, or alternatively, the PCF 708 may send policy and parameters associated with each of the N3GPP sensing capabilities of the WTRU 702 as separate procedures For example, at 736, the PCF 708 may send the WTRU 702 a configuration update messages for policy and parameters provisioning for sensing. Next, for example, at 738, the PCF 708 may the send the WTRU 702 a configuration update message for URSP rule update for user plane based on N3GPP sensing data collection, (e.g., DNN, SNSSAI for PDU session for N3GPP sensing data collection.)

[0123] For handling sensing service, there may be several new network functions defined such as Integrated Sensing Assistance NF (ISANF) and Sensing Operation Management Function (SOMF) ISANF and SOMF are logical entities and may be collocated with other entities. For example, NEF, ISANF, and SOMF may be implemented at the same entity. For example, SOMF may be implemented at AMF, RAN, or another NF.

[0124] The ISANF may oversee interaction with an application function for sensing service. The ISANF may understand the service request from the application function and may derive a corresponding requested sensing mechanism. After determining a requested sensing mechanism, the ISANF may forward the request to the AMF which serves the requested area or requested entities. Later, the ISANF may receive the report on sensing directly from the AMF or from another network entity (e.g., SOMF) and report the result to the application function.

[0125] If the application function is a third party application that is not a trusted entity of the 5GS, the application function and ISANF may communicate through the NEF

[0126] The SOMF may handle coordination of sensing operation among BSs and WTRUs. Based on information received from the AMF, for example, requested sensing area, BSs’ list and WTRUs’ list, and requested sensing mechanism with QoS requirement, the SOMF may derive coordination information for a sensing operation.

[0127] FIG. 8 describes an example method for handling sensing service request including N3GPP sensing data

[0128] At 820, the AF 818 may send a service request for sensing to the ISANF 816 The service request may include a specific type of sensing request (e.g , object detection, tracking, environment detection, motion detection, intrusion detection, raining detection, drone detection, and area information in which the sensing need to be performed). Further, the service request may include the target WTRU’s information and the other WTRU’s information which may be involved at sensing operation (i.e., collecting sensing measurements data). The service request may include specific QoS requirements on the sensing service (e.g., sensing accuracy, latency, sensing frequency, resolution, etc.). When the target WTRU is included, the target sensing service area may be determined according to target WTRU”s location.

[0129] At 822, the ISANF 816 may determine a target sensing service area for the requested sensing service.

[0130] At 824, if the WTRU 802 is included in the service request, the ISANF 816 may query the serving AMF’s information for the target WTRU (for example, from the UDM) When a target sensing service area is determined, the ISANF may derive the AMFs’ information serving the target sensing service area.

[0131] At 826, the ISANF 816 may request, from the AMF 810 a list of sensing capable WTRUs for sensing at the target sensing service area

[0132] At 828, the AMF 810 may send a list of candidate WTRU’s for sensing at the target sensing service area.

[0133] At 830, the ISANF 816 may query candidate WTRU’s sensing capabilities including N3GPP sensing capabilities from the UDM / UDR 814.

[0134] At 832, based on each candidate WTRU’s sensing capabilities, including N3GPP sensing capabilities, the ISANF 816 may determine sensing mechanisms and decide requested N3GPP sensing data for each WTRU which will be involved for sensing with the decided sensing mechanism.

[0135] At 834, the ISANF 816 may send a sensing service request to the AMF 810 that serves the determined target sensing service area. The message may include the target sensing service area, sensing mechanism, list of WTRUs and base stations for sensing mechanism at the target sensing service area and requested N3GPP sensing information from WTRUs involved in the sensing mechanism.

[0136] At 836, the AMF 810 may select a proper SOMF 806 to handle a sensing service request from the ISANF 816 and send a sensing service request to the SOMF 806. The sensing service request may include the determined target sensing service area, sensing mechanism, list of WTRUs and base stations for sensing mechanism at the target sensing service area, and requested N3GPP sensing information from WTRUs involved in the sensing mechanism.

[0137] Alternatively, at 834, the ISANF 816 may select a SOMF 806 for a sensing service request at the target sensing service area and send a sensing service request to the SOMF 806 directly. The sensing service request may include target sensing service area, sensing mechanism, list of WTRUs and base stations for sensing mechanism at the target sensing service area, and requested N3GPP sensing information from WTRUs involved in the sensing mechanism.

[0138] At 838, for each WTRU 802 included in the sensing service request for requested N3GPP sensing data, the SOMF 806 may send a sensing data collection request via the AMF 810 (e.g., by Downlink NAS transport message) to each of the WTRUs 802. The sensing data collection request may include requested N3GPP sensing data type and information for setting up user plane connection for N3GPP sensing data collection.

[0139] FIG. 9 describes an example method to establish user plane path for N3GPP sensing data collection with setting up QoS flows for each requested N3GPP sensing data type.

[0140] At 920, the WTRU 902 may register, at the network, its N3GPP sensing capabilities and may be configured with URSP rules for PDU session setup for N3GPP sensing data collection. The N3GPP sensingcapabilities of the WTRU 902 may be stored at the NW (e.g., standardized N3GPP sensing type and sensing class and / or QoS parameters for each N3GPP sensing type). The 5GC (e.g., PCF and / or UDR) may be configured with the requested N3GPP sensing data types for the WTRU for each sensing service request (e.g., from AF).

[0141] At 922, the WTRU 902 may be triggered, by the AMF 914, via the sensing server 914, for a PDU session setup for N3GPP sensing data collection (e.g., based on request for N3GPP sensing data collection path setup from sensing server). When the WTRU 902 is triggered for a PDU session setup, the WTRU 902 may use configured information (e.g., requested N3GPP sensing data type, DNN, SNSSAI, server address, etc.) which may be received from a request message from the sensing server 914. Alternatively, the WTRU may be configured from an application or other method.

[0142] At 924, the WTRU 902 may send a PDU session setup request for N3GPP sensing data collection to the SMF 908 via the AMF 906. The PDU session setup request may include DNN, SNSSAI and requested N3GPP sensing data types.

[0143] At 926, upon receiving the PDU session setup request, the SMF 908 may send a policy association request for a PDU session to the PCF 910 . The PDU session setup request may include an indication that the PDU session is for N3GPP sensing data collection, associated DNN, SNSSAI, and requested N3GPP sensing data type.

[0144] At 928, the PCF 910 may query authorized N3GPP sensing data capabilities for the WTRU 902 and derive PCC rules for the requested PDU session according to the requested N3GPP sensing data type and the WTRU’s N3GPP sensing data capabilities and sensing class. When deriving PCC rules, the PCF 910 may derive QoS parameters for each service requirement for each sensing class which is stored in UDM / UDR or is received from the sensing server.

[0145] Alternatively, the WTRU may send a PDU session setup request for N3GPP sensing data collection to the 5GC without indicating requested N3GPP sensing data types. The PCF may query requested N3GPP sensing data type, for example, from the UDR, AMF, orSOMF. The PCF may be configured to query requested N3GPP sensing data type from a network entity, for example AMF, or SOMF, during a sensing service request procedure from the AF. The PCF may derive PCC rules for the request PDU session according to the derived or preconfigured requested N3GPP sensing data type and the WTRU’s N3GPP sensing data capabilities and sensing class.

[0146] At 930, the PCF 910 may respond to the SMF 908 with a policy association response. The policy association response may include PCC rule(s) for allowed N3GPP sensing data collection.

[0147] At 932, the SMF 908 may respond to the WTRU 902 with a PDU session establishment response for N3GPP sensing data collection. The PDU session establishment response may include QoS flows for allowed N3GPP sensing data type. The PDU session establishment response may also include the address of a data collection server which WTRU 902 needs to access for reporting N3GPP sensing data and securityrelated parameters which may be used for setting up secure data path between the WTRU 902 and the data collection server. The PDU session establishment response may include traffic descriptor for each allowed N3GPP sensing data type. (e.g. port number for each sensing type, etc.).

[0148] Alternatively, the PDU session for N3GPP sensing data collection may be setup without having a QoS flows for multiple type of N3GPP sensing data. In case that a QoS flow is used for multiple types of N3GPP sensing data and when the WTRU 902 reports N3GPP sensing data over the PDU session, the WTRU 902 may include an indicator of N3GPP sensing type in the packet for N3GPP sensing data.

[0149] At 934, the WTRU 902 may setup a data collection path with a data collection server that is established between the WTRU 902 and data collection function using the address of the data collection server 916.

[0150] At 936, the WTRU 902 may send a message to the sensing server that indicates a N3GPP sensing data collection path setup (if the WTRU received request). In the message, the WTRU 902 may include its assigned IP address and any security related parameter for setting up security data collection path. The sensing server 914 may inform the WTRU’s IP address and security related parameters to the data collection server 916.

[0151] At 938, the WTRU 902 and the data collection server 916 may setup a secure data collection path (e g. by IPsec protocol, etc.).

[0152] At 940, the data collection server 916 may inform the sensing server 914 that a secure data collection path is setup between the WTRU 902 and the data collection server 916. The sensing server 914 may inform the AMF 906 that a secure data collection path is setup between the WTRU 902 and the data collection server 916

[0153] FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating an exemplary procedure 1000 performed by a WTRU to register its N3GPP sensing capabilities. At 1002, the WTRU may transmit, to a server, a first registration request requesting a N3GPP sensing capability registration, including one or more N3GPP sensor types and parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types. At 1004, the WTRU may receive, from the server, in response to the registration request, a sensing capability registration response, including information indicating a standardized sensing type and a standardized sensing class. At 1006, the WTRU may transmit, to an AMF, a second registration request requesting a N3GPP sensing capability registration, including the one or more N3GPP sensor types and the parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types. At 1008, the WTRU may receive, from the AMF, a registration accept message.

[0154] Although features and elements are described above in particular combinations, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that each feature or element can be used alone or in any combination with the other features and elements. In addition, the methods described herein may be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware incorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of computer-readable media include electronic signals (transmitted over wired or wirelessconnections) and computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a register, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magnetooptical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks, and digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WTRU, UE, terminal, base station, RNC, or any host computer.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat is Claimed:

1. A method performed by a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), the method comprising: transmitting, to a server, a first registration request requesting a non-3GPP (N3GPP) sensing capability registration, including one or more N3GPP sensor types and parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types; and receiving, from the server, in response to the first registration request, a sensing capability registration response, including information indicating a standardized sensing type and a standardized sensing class.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising: transmitting, to an access and mobility management function (AMF), a second registration request requesting a N3GPP sensing capability registration, including the one or more N3GPP sensor types and the parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types; and receiving, from the AMF, a registration accept message.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the registration accept message includes an indication that the WTRU is authorized for sensing.

4. The method of claim 2, further comprising: receiving, from the A F, a configuration update message, including policy and parameter provisioning information associated with sensing.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising: receiving, from the AMF, a configuration update message, including User Equipment (UE) RouteSelection Policy (URSP) rules for N3GPP sensing data collection6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sensor type includes at least one of a radar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a video sensor, an audio sensor, or a lidar sensor.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the parameters includes at least one of a sensing type, a sensing period, a sensing data type, a sensing data rate, or a granularity of sensor output.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the server is an application server.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the server is a network function.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the first registration request further includes a traffic descriptor of each of a one or more standardized NG3PP sensor types.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first registration request further includes a preferred transmission method.

12. A wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), comprising: a transceiver; and a processor; wherein the transceiver and processor are configured to: transmit, to a server, a first registration request requesting a non-3GPP (N3GPP) sensing capability registration, including one or more N3GPP sensor types and parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types; and receive, from the server, in response to the registration request, a sensing capability registration response, including information indicating a standardized sensing type and a standardized sensing class.

13. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the transceiver and processor are further configured to: transmit, to an access and mobility management function (AMF), a second registration request requesting a N3GPP sensing capability registration, including the one or more N3GPP sensor types and the parameters associated with the one or more N3GPP sensor types; and receive, from the AMF, a registration accept message.

14. The WTRU of claim 13, wherein the registration accept message includes an indication that the WTRU is authorized for sensing.

15. The WTRU of claim 13, further comprising: receiving, from the A F, a configuration update message, including policy and parameter provisioning information associated with sensing.

16. The WTRU of claim 13, further comprising: receiving, from the AMF, a configuration update message, including User Equipment (UE) Route Selection Policy (URSP) rules for N3GPP sensing data collection17. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the sensor type includes at least one of a radar sensor, an ultrasonic sensor, a video sensor, an audio sensor, or a lidar sensor.

18. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the parameters includes at least one of a sensing type, a sensing period, a sensing data type, a sensing data rate, or a granularity of sensor output.

19. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the server is an application server.

20. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the server is a network function21. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the registration request further includes a traffic descriptor of each of a one or more standardized NG3PP sensor types.

22. The WTRU of claim 12, wherein the registration request further includes a preferred transmission method.

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