Coverage evaluation for local slices and private networks

Abstract

The position of a user equipment “UE” is determined based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE; a received beam of the base station at the UE; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam o

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] The invention relates generally to local slices and private networks, in particular to coverage evaluation in—and methods / systems for the geographic definition of—local slices and private networks. BACKGROUND

[0002] It is known that a private network can be created from an underlying network, such as a cellular telecommunications network. Private networks and their respective licenses are typically issued for a certain geographic coverage area on a certain frequency or range of frequencies. In this way, a private network can be considered as being a slice, portion, segment, or other divisible unit of the underlying network and serving a geographic coverage area less than or equal to the coverage area of the underlying network. However, the coverage areas of different private networks (e.g. licensed to different users) can be adjacent to one another, which is typically the case for dense urban areas.

[0003] A problem may therefore arise as how to ensure that the entire private network geographic coverage area is adequately covered, but without signals leaking too significantly into the areas covered by neighbouring private networks. For example, a user equipment (UE) setting up a connection within a private network and which is moving to a coverage edge (e.g. cell edge) of said private network may be subject to interference from another private network bordering the first private network.

[0004] This may be of special interest when the private network is realized by equipment of a public network, for example where the private network corresponds to only a part of an area covered by a base station of the underlying network, but also for cases where the private network is realized with separate / dedicated equipment by the owner of the private network. The private network owner may want to cover the entirety of a specific area (typically rectangular) which may, for example, be a certain block or company area, however coverage areas served by a base station of the underlying network typically look different (e.g. they may cover a circular / radial area) and hence may leak to some extent into neighbouring areas not owned by said private network owner.

[0005] In general, this is a similar situation to some border case scenarios at the border between different cells of a network, however due to the possibility of there being many separate parties involved it can be more difficult to handle. As there is typically no inter-relation with adjacent private networks, a UE cannot relocate nor intends to do measurements on said cell. Even when doing said measurements it is still questionable whether the cell is still at the edge or already entering the neighbour private network and hence causing interference there. For example, the UE may perform measurements in idle mode for autonomous mobility / relocation or in connected mode to report to the base station for mobility control, but if cells belong to a different private network (e.g. for which the UE is not authorized), there is no benefit to the UE as it would not be served by that different private network, nor will the network instruct UE to do measurements and report them as there is no network relation.

[0006] A naive solution may be to reduce the output power of the private networks to avoid spillover into adjacent private networks, however this can drastically reduce the throughput of the entire private network, particularly at the edges of the private network.

[0007] A similar problem may arise from slices: for example the Inventor’s anticipate that very few companies will ask for global slices of the underlying network, whereas most other participants may ask for localized slices, a local slice being a portion of the underlying network which guarantees (e.g. as a contractual clause of a license) a certain throughput / QoS (quality of service) for a certain user group in a certain area.

[0008] Accordingly, there is a need in the art for systems and methods which address these problems. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] According to one or more embodiments of the invention, there is provided a method of coverage evaluation in a private network, the method comprising: determining, by a base station assigned to the private network, a position of a user equipment “UE”, wherein the position is determined based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE; a received beam of the base station at the UE; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam of the base station at the UE; or a determined distance of the base station from the UE; and based on the determined position of the UE, serving the UE on the private network if: the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else not serving the UE on the private network, wherein the private network is a slice of a cellular network.

[00010] According to some embodiments, the predefined geographical coverage area is defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application.

[00011] According to some embodiments, defining the geographical coverage area using the software application comprises drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using a mapping interface of the software application.

[00012] According to some embodiments, the software application sends data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to a core network element of the cellular network, and wherein the core network element converts the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network.

[00013] According to some embodiments, slicing the cellular network comprises assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00014] According to some embodiments, slicing the cellular network comprises assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00015] According to some embodiments, the private network has at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum service level; or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network, wherein the predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, or the predefined set of identifying information are defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application.

[00016] According to some embodiments, the method further includes, following successful connection of the UE to the private network, sending a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring.

[00017] According to some embodiments, the method further includes: monitoring a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density; and stopping serving the UE on the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network, wherein the evaluation density is based on a last known position of the UE and increases as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00018] According to some embodiments, the method further includes sending a notification to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00019] According to one or more embodiments, there is provided a system for coverage evaluation in a private network, the system comprising: a user equipment “UE”; and a base station assigned to the private network, the base station configured to: determine a position of the UE, wherein the position is determined based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE; a received beam of the base station at the UE; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of the beam of the base station at the UE; or a determined distance of the base station from the UE; and based on the determined position of the UE, serve the UE on the private network if: the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else not serve the UE on the private network, wherein the private network is a slice of a cellular network.

[00020] According to some embodiments, the predefined geographical coverage area is defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application.

[00021] According to some embodiments, the software application comprises a mapping interface configured to receive user input for defining the geographical coverage area, wherein the user input comprises drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using the mapping interface.

[00022] According to some embodiments, the software application is configured to send data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to a core network element of the cellular network, and wherein the core network element is configured to convert the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network.

[00023] According to some embodiments, the core network element is configured to slice the cellular network by assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00024] According to some embodiments, the core network element is configured to slice the cellular network by assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00025] According to some embodiments, the private network has at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum service level; or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network, wherein the predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, or the predefined set of identifying information are defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application.

[00026] According to some embodiments, the base station assigned to the private network is configured to, following successful connection of the UE to the private network, send a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring.

[00027] According to some embodiments, the base station assigned to the private network is configured to: monitor a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density; and stop serving the UE by the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network, wherein the evaluation density is based on a last known position of the UE and increases as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00028] According to some embodiments, the base station assigned to the private network is configured to send a notification to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00029] According to one or more embodiments, there is provided a method of coverage evaluation in a private network, the method comprising: determining, by a network element of a cellular network connected to one or more base stations assigned to the private network, a position of a user equipment “UE”, wherein the position of the UE is determined by the network element based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE, the base station ID belonging to one of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a received beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; or a determined distance of the UE from one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; and based on the determined position of the UE, instructing at least one of the one or more base stations to serve the UE on the private network if: the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else not serving the UE by the private network, wherein the private network is a slice of the cellular network.

[00030] According to some embodiments, the predefined geographical coverage area is defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application.

[00031] According to some embodiments, defining the geographical coverage area using the software application comprises drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using a mapping interface of the software application.

[00032] According to some embodiments, the software application sends data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to the network element of the cellular network, and wherein the network element converts the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network.

[00033] According to some embodiments, slicing the cellular network comprises assigning one or more base stations of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the one or more assigned base stations to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00034] According to some embodiments, slicing the cellular network comprises assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of one or more base stations of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00035] According to some embodiments, the private network has at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum service level; or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network, wherein the predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, or the predefined set of identifying information are defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application.

[00036] According to some embodiments, the method further includes: following successful connection of the UE to the private network, sending a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring.

[00037] According to some embodiments, the method further includes: monitoring a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density; and stopping serving the UE by the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network, wherein the evaluation density is based on a last known position of the UE and increases as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00038] According to some embodiments, the method further includes sending a notification to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00039] According to one or more embodiments, there is provided a network element of a cellular network connected to one or more base stations assigned to a private network, the network element configured to: determine a position of a user equipment “UE”, wherein the position of the UE is determined based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE, the base station ID belonging to one of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a received beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; or a determined distance of the UE from one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; and based on the determined position of the UE, to instruct at least one of the one or more base stations to serve the UE on the private network if: the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else instructing the one or more base stations not to serve the UE on the private network, wherein the private network is a slice of the cellular network.

[00040] According to some embodiments, the network element is configured to perform one or more methods disclosed herein.

[00041] According to one or more embodiments, there is provided a system for defining a private network, the private network being a slice of a cellular network, the system comprising: a user equipment “UE” configured to execute a software application for defining a private network; and a network element of the cellular network, wherein the software application is configured to: receive user input data, via a user interface, for defining the private network; and send, to the network element of the cellular network, the user input data, wherein the user interface comprises a mapping interface configured to receive at least a portion of the user input data in the form of a shape drawn around a desired geographical coverage area of the private network, and wherein the network element of the cellular network is configured to: receive, from the software application, the user input data; and provide the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data.

[00042] According to some embodiments, the network element of the cellular network is configured to slice the cellular network according to the user input data by assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00043] According to some embodiments, the network element of the cellular network is configured to slice the cellular network according to the user input data by assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to the private network to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00044] According to some embodiments, the user input data comprises at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum quality of service; or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network.

[00045] According to some embodiments, the private network is configured to provide coverage evaluation in accordance with one or more methods disclosed herein.

[00046] According to one or more embodiments, there is provided method for defining a private network, the private network being a slice of a cellular network, the method comprising: using a software application executed by a user equipment “UE” to receive user input data, via a user interface, for defining the geographical area of the private network; sending, to a network element of the cellular network, the user input data; and providing the private network by slicing the cellular network, by the network element, according to the user input data, wherein the user interface comprises a mapping interface configured to receive at least a portion of the user input data in the form of a shape drawn around a desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00047] According to some embodiments, providing the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data comprises assigning, by the network element, at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00048] According to some embodiments, providing the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data comprises assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to the private network to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

[00049] According to some embodiments, the user input data comprises at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum quality of service; or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[00050] Non-limiting examples of embodiments of the disclosure are described below with reference to figures attached hereto. Dimensions of features shown in the figures are chosen for convenience and clarity of presentation and are not necessarily shown to scale. The subject matter regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. The invention, however, both as to organization and method of operation, together with objects, features, and advantages thereof, may be understood by reference to the following detailed description when read with the accompanied drawings. Embodiments are illustrated without limitation in the figures, in which like reference numerals indicate corresponding, analogous, or similar elements, and in which:

[00051] Fig. 1A shows an example of multiple nearby network coverage areas;

[00052] Fig. IB shows an example of a consumer slice of a network coverage area;

[00053] Fig. IC shows an example of single cells within a network coverage area;

[00054] Fig. ID shows an example of boundary behaviour in an overlap of two private network cells;

[00055] Fig. 2 shows a flowchart of a method, according to some embodiments of the invention;

[00056] Fig. 3 shows beamforming of signals and multi-antenna aspects in 5G positioning;

[00057] Fig. 4 shows an example of coverage evaluation according to some embodiments of the invention;

[00058] Fig. 5 is a block diagram of an exemplary computing device which may be used with some embodiments of the present invention;

[00059] Fig. 6 is a block diagram of an exemplary user equipment which may be used with embodiments of the present invention; and

[00060] Fig. 7 is a block diagram of an exemplary base station which may be used with embodiments of the present invention.

[00061] It will be appreciated that for simplicity and clarity of illustration, elements shown in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements may be exaggerated relative to other elements for clarity. Further, where considered appropriate, reference numerals may be repeated among the figures to indicate corresponding or analogous elements. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[00062] In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention can be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, modules, units and / or circuits have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the invention.

[00063] Embodiments of the invention may solve the above identified problems by using coverage evaluation techniques which do not rely on signal strength, which at the edge of a coverage area can be weaker than at the centre. Signal strength is also unduly influenced by obstacles such as walls, which in the case of private networks in dense urban areas or within a building may be prevalent.

[00064] Some embodiments of the invention also provide a software application (app) which can enable an operator (e.g. a mobile network operator, MNO) to sell slices according to a geographic area defined by the customer, where the area may be defined by drawing or otherwise marking an area where he intends to have the private network. Hence the slice geometry may not fit to the network coverage geometry, e.g. the coverage made by a certain base station or combined coverage area of certain base stations. The operator could offer the entire BS coverage area for the private slice whilst charging may only be done for the requested area, but this may lead to misuse effects, insufficient coverage, or too low pricing. Embodiments of the invention may solve this problem by beamforming, for example beamforming a beam or a signal of a beam.

[00065] Fig. 1A shows an example of multiple nearby network coverage areas. A geographic area, such as an urban area is served by three network elements 100-a, 100-b, and 100-c, each with a respective geographic coverage area 110-a, 110-b. and 110-c. It can be seen that some coverage areas are close to one another, for example in regions 120 the boundaries or perimeter of the geographic coverage areas are close or may overlap at the cell edge.

[00066] Said problem is especially severe for 5G, as the system has more flexibility concerning BW configuration and corresponding inter-working. A 20 MHz band could in a certain area be allocated to one private network of 20MHz and in another region to two separate private networks each having 10 MHz BW. So, all networks see each other as an inter-frequency neighbour, as the CD-SSBs will be allocated to different frequencies and hence measurements on the respective other system would only be performed if indicated. Moreover a private network could also consist of a single cell which indicates no intra-frequency mobility as the intra-frequency neighbour is a different private network.

[00067] Fig. IB shows an example of a slice 130-c of network coverage area 110-c. Slice 130-c is a local and virtual portion of coverage area 110-c of network 100-c. Fig. IC shows an example of single cells 140-1 and 140-2 within a network coverage area. Within that scenario, and with reference to Fig. ID showing an example of boundary behaviour in an overlap of two private network cells, a UE can have a Radio Link 150 established with a private network A (PN A) whereby the Cell of a private network B (PN B) is available at the location as well. The cell edge situation, where the interference can increase, and the BS has to decide to extend the radio beam according to location or UE will have bad service conditions.

[00068] Embodiments of the invention may address the respective coverage area problems which may occur for private networks or slices and use available 5G features. The usage of said features to solve and avoid said problems due to overlapping coverage areas is done in an innovative way. Previously employed methods to adapt the output power to the coverage area leads to dramatical QoS losses concerning throughput at cell edge. The Inventors have realized that a method based on position estimate / calculation, exploiting built-in 5G positioning capabilities to decide whether service should be provided, avoids such base station power restrictions.

[00069] An analogy may be made to NTN, where positioning is used to assess position e.g. which country the UE is located in (based on GPS positioning) whether certain national regulations apply, or a service can be provided. However, this is based on GPS positioning which is for NTN a natural build in functionality. In anticipated use cases of embodiment of the invention relating to terrestrial networks, positioning methods thereof (e.g. 5G positioning methods as shown in Fig. 3) are used in a new way for private networks and / or slice provisioning, according to embodiments of the invention.

[00070] Fig. 2 shows a flowchart of a method 200 of coverage evaluation in a private network, according to some embodiments of the invention.

[00071] Method 200 may include determining a position of a user equipment “UE” (Step 210). The determining may be performed by, for example, a base station assigned to the private network.

[00072] The position may be determined based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE; a received beam or signal of a beam of the base station at the UE; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam of the base station at the UE; and / or a determined distance of the base station from the UE (Step 220).

[00073] For example, based on a maximum range of a base station model corresponding to the base station ID received at the UE, an approximation of the position of the UE can be made.

[00074] As another example, the position of the UE may be determined based on a particular received beam or received signal of a beam at the UE. A set of beams transmitted from a base station may include downlink positioning reference signals (DL-PRS), as shown in Fig. 3 herein. Such reference signals can be used to determine a position of the UE. Reference herein to a beam may include reference to one or more signals of a beam.

[00075] Similarly, an angle of arrival of a beam received at the UE can be used to determine a position of the UE when one or more beams are transmitted from the base station at particular angular separations.

[00076] A time of arrival of a signal of a beam of the base station received at the UE can also be used to determine the position of the UE based on the physical interrelation between speed (e.g. the speed of light for electromagnetic waves in air), distance, and time. A difference between a time stamp of transmission (e.g. coded in the beam signal) and a timestamp of arrival at the UE may be used. A beam may also have dedicated and general signals at the same time for TA-timing advance.

[00077] Similarly, a determined distance of the base station from the UE can be used to determine a position of the UE. For example, an approximation that the UE is within a given radius of the base station.

[00078] Fig. 3 shows beamforming and multi-antenna aspects in 5G positioning. In particular, distances and angles of arrival / departure are shown in polar coordinates. Embodiments of the invention may use 5G positioning methods based on such parameters. For example, based on network evaluation of the UE position and comparison of the UE position with the corresponding position (e.g. coverage area) of the private network or slice, the network (e.g. a network element such as a base station or core network element) decides whether service will be provided, or in case of not being within the related geographical coverage area the UE may be transferred to a different network, e.g. public network.

[00079] A network according to embodiments of the invention may have a functionality to calculate / know based on base station position the coverage area from each BS in each direction, for example based on an angle of arrival (AoA) / direction and may also use a time of arrival (TA) as TA is independent of LOS (line of sight) or NLOS (non-line of sight) and estimate the coverage. For example, whilst the position can be estimated based on the received signal strength, in case the UE is close to the base station behind a wall the received signal will be small, similarly to if the UE would be far away without any wall in between the UE and base station. Thus, estimates based on received signal power, especially for private networks within buildings, based on received signal strength has an uncertainty of which model to apply for distance calculation. However, the TA timing advance (e.g. the time it took from base station to UE) would not be affected by a wall or not (e.g. TA is independent from signal strength). Thus, the Inventors have identified that TA estimates for positioning provide sufficient granularity better suited for private networks in areas with buildings. Hence, the network may have knowledge on the area that is formed for a certain private network or slice, for example when private network coverage is provided by a public operator.

[00080] When a UE is connected, AoA and TA may be trackable by a network element such as a base station, and hence the network element can check whether the AoA for the UE is still within a certain range, for example being related to the geographical coverage area considered for said private network or slice area or not. In some cases, combinations of measurement results of certain beams may be used for coverage evaluation.

[00081] In case that a slice coverage area desired by the customer or private network is provided by more than one base station, the network may calculate which beams (e.g. which signals) of which base station at what distance from the base stations and at which angles from the base stations coverage of said area is provided, and can thus distinguish UEs at different positions in that area and can thus serve different UEs differently, for example serving some UEs as private network / slice only. For UEs in idle mode it may be important to know whether they still could connect to the private network or slice, only measuring RF signal being of sufficient strength may not be sufficient, and thus embodiments of the invention use the positioning methods disclosed herein.

[00082] Returning to Fig. 2, method 200 may include, based on the determined position of the UE (e.g. as determined at Step 210), serving the UE by the private network (Step 230). The private network may serve the UE if the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network.

[00083] If these conditions are not met, then method 200 includes not serving the UE by the private network. In other words, method 200 applies an else condition (Step 240), wherein if the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network then the private network will serve the UE, else the private network will not serve the UE.

[00084] For example, if the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network but the UE is not authorized to connect to the private network, then the private network will not serve the UE. Similarly, if the UE is authorized to connect to the private network but is not within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network, then the private network will not serve the UE.

[00085] The private network may be a slice of a cellular network. For example, the private network may be a local virtual slice of a cellular network in the sense that the private network is localised to a particular geographic region / coverage area and is a non-physical partition or portion of the coverage area of the cellular network. The private network slice may be a portion of one or more cells of the cellular network.

[00086] In some embodiments, the predefined geographical coverage area is defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application. The commissioner of the private network may also be referred to herein as an “owner” of the private network. The commissioner / owner of the private network may be a natural or legal person / entity. In the case of a natural person, said person may use the software application to define the geographical coverage area desired to be covered by the private network. For example, defining the geographical coverage area may include drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using a mapping interface of the software application. In the case where the owner of the private network is a legal entity, an employee, director, or other natural person associated or affiliated with the legal entity may use the software application to define the desired coverage area of the private network.

[00087] The software application may be executed by a UE (such as UE 600 shown in Fig. 6) or other computing device (such as computing device 500 shown in Fig. 5). The software application may be a browser- or web-based application.

[00088] The mapping interface of the software application may present (e.g. via a display or user interface, such as user interface 635 of UE 600) a digital representation of a map to a user, and the user may use one or more input methods (e.g. touchscreen, mouse) to draw a shape around the desired coverage area for their private network. The shape may be drawn free-form (e.g. “by hand”). A shape drawn by a user may be regularised in that an approximate shape drawn by the user may be converted by the software application into a circle or regular polygon with a same approximate area as that drawn by the user.

[00089] Drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using a mapping interface of the software application may include “dragging-and-dropping” a predefined shape onto the desired coverage area. The shape may be selected from a predefined list of shapes, for example, circle, triangle, and / or quadrilateral. Available predefined shapes may be associated with different representative areas (e.g. according to the scale of the map, for example in units of square meters) which may have different associated pricing plans or costs based on the area. For example, a coverage area of 100 nr may be provided for a higher monetary cost to the owner of the private network than a coverage area of 50 m2. Costs may be a cost per unit time, for example €100 per month.

[00090] In some embodiments, the software application sends data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to a core network element of the cellular network. The core network element may convert the data into positioning information for slicing (e.g. locally virtually slicing) the cellular network.

[00091] In some embodiments, slicing the cellular network (e.g. locally virtually slicing) includes assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network. For example, the beamforming may include adjusting at least one of a size and / or a shape of a lobe of a beam of the base station. The beamforming may include combining beams of the base station such that beams at particular angles exhibit constructive interference and / or destructive interference. It will be understood that where a beam contains one or more signals, beamforming of the beam may also include beamforming of the one or more signals of the beam.

[00092] Slicing the cellular network may, in some embodiments, include assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network. For example, the defined geographical coverage area may already be fully covered by a beam of a base station of the cellular network, and thus providing the private network as a slice of the cellular network may include assigning at least a fraction, portion, or other part of the beam to provide the private network service in the geographic area covered by said fraction, portion, or part. In some cases, for example depending on the size and / or shape of the desired geographic coverage area of the private network, the whole of a beam of a base station may be assigned.

[00093] The private network may be characterised by other parameters, constraints, or desired qualities other than shape or size. For example, the private network may have at least one of: a predefined duration; a predefined minimum service level; and / or a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network. The predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, and / or the predefined set of identifying information may be defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application. A minimum service level may relate to one or more quality of service (QoS) classes.

[00094] For example, the commissioner may select a predefined duration from an available list of options (e.g. 1 hour, 5 hours, 1 day, 1 week, etc.) or may be able to enter a desired start time and end time (e.g. a date accompanied by a time, such as 1st January 00:01 until 1st February 23:59). Different lengths of duration for the private network may be associated with different pricing plans or monetary costs for the commissioner. For example a duration of one hour may cost less than a duration of one week. In some cases, a predefined duration may not be necessary or required, for example where the private network is provided by a network provider (such as mobile network operator “MNO”) to the commissioner on a rolling basis or for the foreseeable future.

[00095] As another example, the commissioner may select a desired minimum service level from an available list of service levels. A service level may be a minimum quality of service class. The minimum service level may be associated with a desired or minimum required throughput for the private network. For example, different service levels may be defined for a throughputs of 10 Mbps, 50 Mbps and 100 Mbps. Different minimum service levels for the private network may be associated with different pricing plans or monetary costs for the commissioner. For example, a private network provided at a service level with a throughput of 100Mbps may cost more than a private network provided at a service level with a throughput of 10 Mbps.

[00096] As another example, the commissioner may provide a set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments (such as a list of phone numbers, international mobile subscriber identities “IMSIs”, international mobile equipment identities “IMEIs”, or the like) for which access to the private network is desired. The set of identifying information may be used to authorize the user equipments to access the private network, for example by providing access credentials or the like. The number or quantity of identified user equipments may be associated with different pricing plans or monetary costs for the commissioner. For example, a private network which is intended to serve 10 UEs may be provided at a lower cost than a private network which is intended to serve 100 UEs.

[00097] As an illustrative example, a private individual may wish to commission a temporary private network for an event such as a birthday party held at a location such as a bar. The individual may use a software application according to embodiments of the invention to define the coverage area of the desired private network by drawing a shape around the location where the event is to be held. The individual may input or otherwise select a duration of the private network of 5 hours, may specify a throughput of 50 Mbps, and may provide a list of phone numbers of attendees of the event for which access to the private network is desired. The individual may be presented with a total cost for providing the private network based on their input data, which may be calculated on the basis of the size of the geographic area, the duration, the service level and the number of authorized users. The individual may accept any terms and conditions and may pay the cost, and then an MNO may provide the private network according to the input data. The effect of the private network may be to prioritize service to the authorized user equipment’s within the coverage area before other user equipment’s within the coverage area. As discussed herein, determining if a UE is within the coverage area (e.g. coverage evaluation) may be based on one or more of a base station ID received at the UE; a received beam of the base station at the UE; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam of the base station at the UE; and / or a determined distance of the base station from the UE.

[00098] In some embodiments, following successful connection of the UE to the private network, method 200 may include sending a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring. For example, the notification may warn a user of the UE that the private network is due to expire in 1 day, 1 hour, 10 minutes, or any other configurable period of time. The notification may be received as a short message service (SMS) message, email, or notification from the software application. If the notification is received as a notification of the software application, the notification may include a prompt, such as a link, for defining a new private network or extending the duration of the existing private network.

[00099] Method 200 may further include monitoring a position of the UE following successful connection to the private network and stopping serving the UE by the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network. For example, if the UE is being served by the private network (e.g. the UE is within the geographic coverage area of the private network) but moves outside of the geographic coverage area of the private network, then the private network may stop serving the UE, thereby avoiding interference with other cells or network areas in which the UE may have entered. The position may be monitored according to one or more techniques discussed herein, such as based on an angle of arrival. GPS positioning may also be used. [000100] According to some embodiments, monitoring a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network is done according to an evaluation density. The evaluation density may be based on a last known position of the UE, and may, for example, increase as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network. For example, after initial successful connection of the UE to the private network, if the UE is determined to be near the centre of the geographic coverage area, continued monitoring of the position of the UE may not be necessary, because the UE may be considered to be “well within” the geographical limits of the private network. Accordingly, the density, periodicity, or frequency at which the position of the UE is monitored may be scaled back, which may, for example, conserve resources (e.g. battery power, network traffic, computing capability, or the like). A UE which has not changed position, or has not substantially changed position, may not experience a change in one or more of: a base station ID received at the UE, a change a received beam of the base station at the UE; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE; and / or a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam of the base station at the UE. the evaluation density may change based on a detected change in one or more of these factors. Conversely, in the example, if the UE moves closer to the permitter of the geographic coverage area of the private network, the evaluation density may increase e.g. a base station or other network element of the private network may increase a density, periodicity, or frequency of position monitoring related measurements to better determine if the UE should continue to be served on the private network. For example, there may be “rough” or “fuzzy” approximation of the UE position at the centre (e.g. centroid or geometric centre) of the geographic coverage area for which a low density of position measurements is sufficient, increasing to a higher density and refinement of the position determination as the UE moves away from the centre and towards an edge or perimeter of the geographic coverage area. [000101] Monitoring of the UE position near the geographic limits of the private network may be important for example for avoiding interference with other networks or private networks at the cell edge or boundary. [000102]In some embodiments, a notification may be sent to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network. For example, if the UE is determined to be near an edge of the coverage area (e.g. within 100m of an edge of the coverage area), the UE may receive a notification that it is about to leave the coverage area of the private network. The notification may be received as a short message service (SMS) message, email, or notification from the software application. The perimeter of the coverage area may be considered to be the convex hull of the coverage area. [000103] Fig. 4 shows an example of coverage evaluation according to some embodiments of the invention. Fig. 4 demonstrates how a private network / slice could be formed by only two beams of the four beams provided by a base station. The beams have an SSB index matched to each beam, from 0 to 3. UE1 is within a defined coverage area for a private network formed by beams 1 and 2. Based on different angles of arrival for the different beams, distinctions can be made as to whether UE1 is being served by beam 0, beam 1, beam 2, or beam 3. If served by beam 1 or beam 2, UE1 is determined to be within the coverage area of the private network and will be served by the private network. However if served by beam 0 or beam 3, UE1 is determined to not be within the coverage area of the private network, and so will not be served on the private network. UE2, which is served by beam 3 will not be served on the private network for this reason. [000104] According to one or more embodiments of the invention, there is provided a system for coverage evaluation in a private network. The system may include a user equipment (such as user equipment 600 described in Fig. 6 herein) and a base station assigned to the private network (such as a base station 700 described in Fig. 7 herein). The system may be configured to carry out one or more methods or one or method steps as disclosed herein, such as method 200. [000105] For example, the base station may be configured to determine a position of the UE, wherein the position is determined based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE; a received beam of the base station at the UE; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam of the base station at the UE; and / or a determined distance of the base station from the UE. [000106] Based on the determined position of the UE, the base station may be configured to serve the UE on the private network if: the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else not serve the UE on the private network. The private network may be a slice (e.g. a local virtual slice) of a cellular network, as described herein. [000107] The predefined geographical coverage area may be defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application, as described herein. For example, the software application may comprise a mapping interface configured to receive user input for defining the geographical coverage area, wherein the user input comprises drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using the mapping interface. The software application may be configured to send data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to a core network element of the cellular network, wherein the core network element is configured to convert the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network, as described herein. [000108] The core network element may be configured to slice the cellular network by assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network, as described herein. Alternatively, or complimentarily, the core network element may be configured to slice the cellular network by assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network. [000109] In some embodiments, the system may provide a private network which has at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum service level; and / or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network. The predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, and / or the predefined set of identifying information may be defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application, as described herein. [000110] The base station assigned to the private network may be configured to, following successful connection of the UE to the private network, send a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring. In some embodiments, the base station assigned to the private network may be configured to: monitor a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density; and stop serving the UE by the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network. The evaluation density may be based on a last known position of the UE, and may increase as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network, as described herein. [000111] The base station assigned to the private network may be configured to send a notification to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network. [000112] Whilst some method steps have been described as being carried out by a base station, such as a base station assigned to the private network, functionality may also be located in a network element, such as a core network element (e.g. a 5GC). [000113] Accordingly, in some embodiments there is provided a method of coverage evaluation in a private network (being a slice of a cellular network), the method comprising: determining, by a network element of the cellular network connected to one or more base stations assigned to the private network, a position of a user equipment “UE”, wherein the position of the UE is determined by the network element based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE, the base station ID belonging to one of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a received beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; and / or a determined distance of the UE from one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network. [000114] Based on the determined position of the UE, the method may include instructing (e.g. by the network element) at least one of the one or more base stations to serve the UE on the private network if: the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else not serving the UE by the private network. [000115] As described herein, the predefined geographical coverage area may be defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application. Defining the geographical coverage area using the software application may include drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using a mapping interface of the software application. The software application may send data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to the network element of the cellular network, and the network element may convert the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network. [000116] Slicing the cellular network may include assigning one or more base stations of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the one or more assigned base stations to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network. Slicing the cellular network could include assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of one or more base stations of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network. [000117] As previously described, the private network may have at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum service level; and / or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network. Such properties may be defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application. [000118]In some embodiments, following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the method may include sending a notification (e.g. by the network element) to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring. As previously described in respect of a base station, the method include, by a network element, monitoring a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density (e.g. as described herein); and stopping serving the UE by the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network. The method may include sending a notification (e.g. by the network element) to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network. [000119] According to some embodiments, a network element itself is provided. As discussed, a network element could be a base station (such as gNB), a core network element (such as a 5GC), or any other element within the network. [000120] A network element of a cellular network connected to one or more base stations assigned to a private network, in accordance with one or more embodiments of the invention, may be configured to: determine a position of a user equipment “UE” as described herein, for example based on at least one of: a base station ID received at the UE, the base station ID belonging to one of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a received beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; and / or a determined distance of the UE from one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network. [000121] Based on the determined position of the UE, the network element may be further configured to instruct at least one of the one or more base stations to serve the UE on the private network if: the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else instructing the one or more base stations not to serve the UE on the private network. [000122] The network element may carry out one or more methods, or one or more method steps, as described herein. [000123] According to one or more embodiments, there is also provided a system for defining a private network. The private network may be a slice of a cellular network, such as a local virtual slice as described herein. [000124] The system may include a user equipment configured to execute a software application for defining a private network, and a network element of the cellular network. [000125] The software application may be configured to receive user input data, via a user interface, for defining the private network, and send, to the network element of the cellular network, the user input data. The user interface may include a mapping interface configured to receive at least a portion of the user input data in the form of a shape drawn around a desired geographical coverage area of the private network, as described herein. [000126] The network element of the cellular network may be configured to receive, from the software application, the user input data, and to provide the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data. [000127] The network element of the cellular network may be configured to slice the cellular network according to the user input data by assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network. If the network element is itself a base station, then it may assign itself (e.g. “self-assignment”) to the private network and beamform its own beams where necessary. [000128] According to some embodiments, the network element of the cellular network is configured to slice the cellular network according to the user input data by assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to the private network to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network. If the network element is itself a base station, then it may assign (e.g. “self-assignment”) at least a fraction of one or more of its own beams. [000129] As described herein, the user input data may include at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum quality of service; and / or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network. [000130] The private network may be configured to provide coverage evaluation in accordance with one or more methods disclosed herein, such as method 200. [000131] According to one or more embodiments, there is also provided a method (e.g. as implemented by a system as described above) for defining a private network, the private network being a slice of acellular network. The method may include: using a software application executed by a user equipment “UE” to receive user input data, via a user interface, for defining the geographical area of the private network; sending, to a network element of the cellular network, the user input data; and providing the private network by slicing the cellular network, by the network element, according to the user input data. The user interface may include a mapping interface configured to receive at least a portion of the user input data in the form of a shape drawn around a desired geographical coverage area of the private network, as described herein. [000132] Providing the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data may comprise assigning, by the network element, at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network. Providing the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data may comprise assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to the private network to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network. As described herein, where the network element is itself a base station, self-assignment may be performed. [000133] The user input data may include, as described herein, at least one of: (a) a predefined duration; (b) a predefined minimum quality of service; and / or (c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network. [000134] Fig. 5 shows a block diagram of an exemplary computing device 500 which may be used with some embodiments of the present invention. [000135] As described herein, any of: a user equipment; a network element, a core network element; a base station; and / or a server (e.g. a server in connection with a core network element), may be, or may include elements of, a computing device 500 as shown in Fig. 5. [000136] Computing device 500 may include a controller or computer processor 505 that may be, for example, a central processing unit processor (CPU), a chip or any suitable computing device, an operating system 515, a memory 520, a storage 530, input devices 535 and output devices 540 such as a computer display or monitor displaying for example a computer desktop system. [000137] Operating system 515 may be or may include code to perform tasks involving coordination, scheduling, arbitration, or managing operation of computing device 100, for example, scheduling execution of programs. Memory 520 may be or may include, for example, a Random Access Memory (RAM), a read only memory (ROM), a Flash memory, a volatile or nonvolatile memory, or other suitable memory units or storage units. At least a portion of Memory 520 may include data storage housed online on the cloud. Memory 520 may be or may include a plurality of different memory units. Memory 520 may store for example, instructions (e.g., code 525) to carry out a method as disclosed herein, such as method 200. Memory 520 may use a datastore, such as a database. [000138] Executable code 525 may be any application, program, process, task, or script. Executable code 525 may be executed by controller 105 possibly under control of operating system 515. For example, executable code 525 may be, or may execute, one or more applications performing methods as disclosed herein, such as method 200. In some embodiments, more than one computing device 500 or components of device 500 may be used. One or more processor(s) 505 may be configured to carry out embodiments of the present invention by, for example, executing software or code. [000139] Storage 530 may be or may include, for example, a hard disk drive, a floppy disk drive, a compact disk (CD) drive, a universal serial bus (USB) device or other suitable removable and / or fixed storage unit. Data described herein may be stored in a storage 530 and may be loaded from storage 530 into a memory 520 where it may be processed by controller 505. Storage 530 may include cloud storage. Storage 530 may include storing data in a database. [000140] Storage 530 may store, for example, an MNC, MCC, TIMSI, secret value, UE capability information, or other data. [000141]Input devices 535 may be or may include a mouse, a keyboard, a touch screen or pad or any suitable input device or combination of devices. Input devices 535 may include a receiver, such as an antenna receiver. Output devices 540 may include one or more displays, speakers and / or any other suitable output devices or combination of output devices. Output devices 540 may include a transmitter, such as an antenna transmitter. Any applicable input / output (I / O) devices may be connected to computing device 500, for example, a wired or wireless network interface card (NIC), a modem, printer, a universal serial bus (USB) device or external hard drive may be included in input devices 535 and / or output devices 540. [000142] Embodiments of the invention may include one or more article(s) (e.g., memory 520 or storage 530) such as a computer or processor non-transitory readable medium, or a computer or processor non-transitory storage medium, such as for example a memory, a disk drive, or a USB flash memory encoding, including, or storing instructions, e.g., computer-executable instructions, which, when executed by a processor or controller, carry out methods disclosed herein. [000143] Reference is now made to Fig. 6, which is a block diagram of an exemplary user equipment (UE) 600 which may be used with embodiments of the present invention. [000144] UE 600 may include a radio interface 605. Radio interface 605 may include an antenna, a transceiver and / or any other suitable component to allow communication between UE 600 and a telecommunications network. [000145] UE 600 may include a user identity module 610. User identity module 610 may store user-specific information such as the International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) and may be used for authentication and authorization on the telecommunications network. [000146] UE 600 may include a mobile equipment 615. Mobile equipment 615 may include a processor, a memory, a display and a user interface. [000147] UE 600 may include a battery 620. Battery 620 may provide power to UE 600, allowing it to operate without being connected to an external power source. [000148] UE 600 may include an operating system 625. Operating system 625 may manage UE’s 600 resources and / or provide a platform for running applications. [000149] UE 600 may include application software 630. Application software 630 may be user-installed and system applications that run on UE 600, providing UE 600 various functionalities. [000150] UE 600 may include a user interface 635. UE 635 may include a touchscreen, buttons, display and / or any other suitable components through which users may interact with UE 600. [000151] UE 600 may include sensors 640. Sensors 640 may include accelerometers, gyroscopes, GPS, and ambient light sensors, cameras and / or any other suitable sensors known in the art. Sensors 640 may allow features such as orientation detection, location-based services, and any other suitable features known in the art. [000152] UE 600 may include connectivity module 645. Connectivity model 645 may support various connectivity options, including cellular networks (e.g., 4G / LTE, 5G), Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and NFC (Near Field Communication), allowing UE 600 to connect to other devices and telecommunications networks. [000153] UE 600 may include security components 650. Security components 650 may be responsible for ensuring the security and privacy of user data and communications. Security components 650 may include encryption / decryption hardware and software, as well as security features to protect against malware and unauthorized access. [000154] UE 600 may include a memory 655 (e.g., RAM) for running applications. UE 600 may include a storage 660 (e.g., internal storage or removable SD cards) and storage (e.g., internal storage or removable SD cards) for storing data and applications. [000155] UE 600 may include a charging port 665 for recharging battery 620. [000156]In some embodiments, some of the components shown in Fig. 6 may be omitted. In some embodiments, UE 600 may include additional components in accordance with standards specifications (e.g., 3GPP specifications) that are not shown in Fig. 6. [000157] Reference is now made to Fig. 7, which is a block diagram of an exemplary base station (BS) 700 which may be used with embodiments of the present invention. BS 700 could be, for example a G node B (gNB), or Evolved node B (eNB). [000158] BS 700 may include a radio transceiver 705. Radio transceiver 705 may transmit and receive radio signals. [000159] BS 700 may include an antenna system 710. Antenna system 710 may include one or more antennas that may transmit and receive signals via the air in specific directions and patterns. For example, antenna system 710 may include advanced antenna technologies such as Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) and beamforming that may improve network performance and coverage. [000160] BS 700 may include baseband processing unit 715. Baseband processing unit 715 may handle the baseband processing of communication signals. Baseband processing unit 715 may perform tasks such as modulation / demodulation. encoding / decoding, error correction, and channel allocation. [000161] BS 700 may include a digital signal processing unit 720. Digital signal processing unit 720 may process and manipulate digital signals within baseband processing unit 715. Digital signal processing unit 720 may perform tasks such as signal processing, beamforming, interference cancellation, and MIMO processing. [000162] BS 700 may include a backhaul connection 725. Backhaul connection 725 may provide a high-capacity backhaul connection to connect BS 700 to the core network. Backhaul connection 725 may include wired connections such as optical fibre or microwave links. [000163] BS 700 may include a power supply unit 730. Power supply unit 730 may provide electrical power to BS’s 700 components to ensure continuous operation. [000164] BS 700 may include a control and management unit 735. Control and management unit 735 may be responsible for controlling and managing the operation of BS 700. Control and management unit 735 may handle tasks such as network configuration, software updates, and fault management. [000165] BS 700 may include a cooling system 740. Cooling system 740 may fans, heat sinks, and / or liquid cooling systems that may maintain the equipment of BS 700 within its operating temperature range. [000166] BS 700 may include a timing and synchronization unit 745. Timing and synchronization unit 745 may perform timing and synchronization for maintaining the integrity of the communication network, e.g., to ensure that all base stations in the network are synchronized with a common timing reference. [000167] BS 700 may include a security and encryption unit 750. Security and encryption unit 750 may perform tasks such as encryption of user data and authentication of UEs for protecting the network from unauthorized access and malicious attacks. [000168] BS 700 may include a fault detection and alarming unit 755. Fault detection and alarming unit 755 may monitoring equipment health and raising alarms in case of hardware or software issues are critical for maintaining network reliability and availability. [000169]In some embodiments, some of the components shown in Fig. 7 may be omitted. In some embodiments, BS 700 may include additional components in accordance with standards specifications (e.g., 3GPP specifications) that are not shown in Fig. 7. [000170] It is anticipated that embodiments of the invention may have an impact on existing or future telecommunications network architecture and associated standards. For example, embodiments of the invention may be employed in, 5G, beyond 5G, 6G, and / or future network architectures. The ongoing development of these standards, and the conceptualization and implementation of future standards, may rely on systems and / or methods of the present invention. [000171] For example, embodiments of the invention may extend the capabilities of the 3GPP, 5G, and / or 6G standards in that coverage evaluation is based on parameters other than received power, thereby allowing for providing private network coverage with high quality service at the cell edge. [000172] Reference herein to a “beam” may refer to one or more signals (e.g. specific signals) included in such a beam. [000173] Unless specifically stated otherwise, as apparent from the foregoing discussion, it is appreciated that throughout the specification discussions utilizing terms such as "processing," "computing," "calculating," "determining," or the like, refer to the action and / or processes of a computer or computing system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and / or transforms data represented as physical, such as electronic, quantities within the computing system's registers and / or memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computing system's memories, registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices. [000174] Embodiments of the invention may include an article such as a computer or processor readable non-transitory storage medium, such as for example a memory, a disk drive, or a USB flash memory encoding, including, or storing instructions, e.g., computer-executable instructions, which when executed by a processor or controller, cause the processor or controller to carry out methods disclosed herein. [000175] It should be recognized that embodiments of the invention may solve one or more of the objectives and / or challenges described in the background, and that embodiments of the invention need not meet every one of the above objectives and / or challenges to come within the scope of the present invention. [000176] In the above description, an embodiment is an example or implementation of the inventions. The various appearances of "one embodiment,” "an embodiment" or "some embodiments" do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiments. [000177] Although various features of the invention may be described in the context of a single embodiment, the features may also be provided separately or in any suitable combination. Conversely, although the invention may be described herein in the context of separate embodiments for clarity, the invention may also be implemented in a single embodiment. While the invention has been described with respect to a limited number of embodiments, it should be understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art that one or more features from one particular embodiment or group of embodiments may be combined with features of another embodiment or group of embodiments. [000178] Reference in the specification to "some embodiments", "an embodiment", "one embodiment" or "other embodiments" means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiments is included in at least some embodiments, but not necessarily all embodiments, of the inventions. [000179] It is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein is not to be construed as limiting and are for descriptive purposes only. [000180] It is to be understood that the details set forth herein do not construe a limitation to an application of the invention. [000181] It is to be understood that the terms “including”, “comprising”, “consisting” and grammatical variants thereof do not preclude the addition of one or more components, features, steps, or integers or groups thereof and that the terms are to be construed as specifying components, features, steps, or integers. [000182] If the specification or claims refer to "an additional" element, that does not preclude there being more than one of the additional elements. [000183] It is to be understood that where the claims or specification refer to "a" or "an" element, such reference is not to be construed that there is only one of that element. [000184] It is to be understood that where the specification states that a component, feature, structure, or characteristic "may", "might", "may" or "could" be included, that a particular component, feature, structure, or characteristic is not required to be included. [000185] Where applicable, although state diagrams, flow diagrams or both may be used to describe embodiments, the invention is not limited to those diagrams or to the corresponding descriptions. For example, flow need not move through each illustrated box or state, or in exactly the same order as illustrated and described.

Claims

1. A method of coverage evaluation in a private network, the method comprising: determining, by a base station assigned to the private network, a position of a user equipment “UE”, wherein the position is determined based on at least one of:• a base station ID received at the UE;• a received beam of the base station at the UE;• an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE;• a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam of the base station at the UE; or• a determined distance of the base station from the UE; andbased on the determined position of the UE, serving the UE on the private network if:• the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and• the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else not serving the UE on the private network, wherein the private network is a slice of a cellular network.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the predefined geographical coverage area is defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein defining the geographical coverage area using the software application comprises drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using a mapping interface of the software application.

4. The method of claims 2 or 3, wherein the software application sends data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to a core network element of the cellular network, and wherein the core network element converts the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein slicing the cellular network comprises assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams ofthe at least one assigned base station to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

6. The method of claim 4. wherein slicing the cellular network comprises assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

7. The method of any of claims 2-6, wherein the private network has at least one of:(a) a predefined duration;(b) a predefined minimum service level; or(c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network,wherein the predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, or the predefined set of identifying information are defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application.

8. The method of claim 7(a), further comprising: following successful connection of the UE to the private network, sending a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring.

9. The method of any of claims 1-8, further comprising:monitoring a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density; andstopping serving the UE on the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network,wherein the evaluation density is based on a last known position of the UE and increases as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising sending a notification to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

11. A system for coverage evaluation in a private network, the system comprising:a user equipment “UE”; anda base station assigned to the private network, the base station configured to:determine a position of the UE, wherein the position is determined based on at least one of:• a base station ID received at the UE;• a received beam of the base station at the UE;• an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam of the base station at the UE;• a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam of the base station at the UE; or• a determined distance of the base station from the UE; andbased on the determined position of the UE, serve the UE on the private network if:• the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and• the UE is authorized to connect to the private network, else not serve the UE on the private network, wherein the private network is a slice of a cellular network.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the predefined geographical coverage area is defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the software application comprises a mapping interface configured to receive user input for defining the geographical coverage area, wherein the user input comprises drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using the mapping interface.

14. The system of claims 12 or 13, wherein the software application is configured to send data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to a core network element of the cellular network, and wherein the core network element is configured to convert the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network.

15. The system of claim 14, wherein the core network element is configured to slice the cellular network by assigning at least one base station of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the core network element is configured to slice the cellular network by assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

17. The system of any of claims 11-16. wherein the private network has at least one of:(a) a predefined duration;(b) a predefined minimum service level; or(c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network,wherein the predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, or the predefined set of identifying information are defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application.

18. The system of claim 17(a), wherein the base station assigned to the private network is configured to, following successful connection of the UE to the private network, send a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring.

19. The system of any of claims 10-18, wherein the base station assigned to the private network is configured to:monitor a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density; andstop serving the UE by the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network,wherein the evaluation density is based on a last known position of the UE and increases as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

20. The system of claim 19, wherein the base station assigned to the private network is configured to send a notification to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

21. A method of coverage evaluation in a private network, the method comprising:determining, by a network element of a cellular network connected to one or more base stations assigned to the private network, a position of a user equipment “UE”, wherein the position of the UE is determined by the network element based on at least one of:• a base station ID received at the UE, the base station ID belonging to one of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network;• a received beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network;• an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network;• a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; or• a determined distance of the UE from one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; andbased on the determined position of the UE, instructing at least one of the one or more base stations to serve the UE on the private network if:• the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and• the UE is authorized to connect to the private network,else not serving the UE by the private network, wherein the private network is a slice of the cellular network.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein the predefined geographical coverage area is defined by a commissioner of the private network using a software application.

23. The method of claim 22, wherein defining the geographical coverage area using the software application comprises drawing a shape around a desired geographical coverage area using a mapping interface of the software application.

24. The method of claims 22 or 23, wherein the software application sends data relating to the defined geographical coverage area to the network element of the cellular network, and wherein the network element converts the data into positioning information for slicing the cellular network.

25. The method of claim 24, wherein slicing the cellular network comprises assigning one or more base stations of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the one or more assigned base stations to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein slicing the cellular network comprises assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of one or more base stations of the cellular network to cover the defined geographical coverage area of the private network.

27. The method of any of claims 22-26, wherein the private network has at least one of:(a) a predefined duration;(b) a predefined minimum service level; or(c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network,wherein the predefined duration, the predefined minimum service level, or the predefined set of identifying information are defined by the commissioner of the private network using the software application.

28. The method of claim 27(a), further comprising: following successful connection of the UE to the private network, sending a notification to the UE at a predefined time in advance of the predefined duration of the private network expiring.

29. The method of any of claims 21-28, further comprising:monitoring a position of the UE following successful connection of the UE to the private network, the monitoring according to an evaluation density; andstopping serving the UE by the private network if the UE moves outside the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network,wherein the evaluation density is based on a last known position of the UE and increases as the UE moves closer to a perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

30. The method of claim 29, further comprising sending a notification to the UE if the UE is determined to be within a predefined distance of the perimeter of the predefined geographical coverage area of the private network.

31. A network element of a cellular network connected to one or more base stations assigned to a private network, the network element configured to:determine a position of a user equipment “UE”, wherein the position of the UE is determined based on at least one of:• a base station ID received at the UE, the base station ID belonging to one of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network;• a received beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network;• an angle of arrival “AoA” of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network;• a time of arrival “TA” of a signal of a beam at the UE of one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; or• a determined distance of the UE from one of the base stations of the one or more base stations assigned to the private network; andbased on the determined position of the UE, to instruct at least one of the one or more base stations to serve the UE on the private network if:• the UE is within a predefined geographical coverage area of the private network; and• the UE is authorized to connect to the private network,else instructing the one or more base stations not to serve the UE on the private network,wherein the private network is a slice of the cellular network.

32. The network element of claim 31, configured to perform the method of any of claims 22-30.

33. A system for defining a private network, the private network being a slice of a cellular network, the system comprising:a user equipment “UE” configured to execute a software application for defining a private network; anda network element of the cellular network,wherein the software application is configured to:receive user input data, via a user interface, for defining the private network; and send, to the network element of the cellular network, the user input data,wherein the user interface comprises a mapping interface configured to receive at least a portion of the user input data in the form of a shape drawn around a desired geographical coverage area of the private network, andwherein the network element of the cellular network is configured to:receive, from the software application, the user input data; andprovide the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data.

34. The system of claim 33, wherein the network element of the cellular network is configured to slice the cellular network according to the user input data by assigning at least one base station ofthe cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

35. The system of claim 33, wherein the network element of the cellular network is configured to slice the cellular network according to the user input data by assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to the private network to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

36. The system of any of claims claim 33-35, wherein the user input data comprises at least one of:(a) a predefined duration;(b) a predefined minimum quality of service; or(c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network.

37. The system of any of claims 33-36, wherein the private network is configured to provide coverage evaluation in accordance with the method of any of claims 1-10 or 21-30.

38. A method for defining a private network, the private network being a slice of a cellular network, the method comprising:using a software application executed by a user equipment “UE” to receive user input data, via a user interface, for defining the geographical area of the private network;sending, to a network element of the cellular network, the user input data; andproviding the private network by slicing the cellular network, by the network element, according to the user input data,wherein the user interface comprises a mapping interface configured to receive at least a portion of the user input data in the form of a shape drawn around a desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

39. The method of claim 38, wherein providing the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data comprises assigning, by the network element, at least one basestation of the cellular network to the private network and beamforming one or more beams of the at least one assigned base station to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

40. The method of claim 39, wherein providing the private network by slicing the cellular network according to the user input data comprises assigning at least a fraction of one or more beams of a base station of the cellular network to the private network to cover the desired geographical coverage area of the private network.

41. The method of any of claims claim 38 40. wherein the user input data comprises at least one of:(a) a predefined duration;(b) a predefined minimum quality of service; or(c) a predefined set of identifying information identifying one or more user equipments authorized to access the private network.

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