Data collection based on user or packet data unit session markers

Abstract

A method performed by a User Plane Function (UPF) includes receiving, from a session management function, SMF, information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of User Equipments (UEs) that indicates t

Description

TECHNOLOGICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates generally to telecommunications and, in particular, to an event exposure service of a user plane function in a telecommunications system. BACKGROUND

[0002] A telecommunications system can be seen as a facility that enables communication sessions between two or more entities such as user terminals, base stations and / or other nodes by providing carriers between the various entities involved in the communications path. A telecommunications system can be provided for example by means of a communication network and one or more compatible communication devices. The communication sessions may comprise, for example, communication of data for carrying communications such as voice, video, electronic mail (email), text message, multimedia and / or content data and so on. Non-limiting examples of services provided comprise two-way or multi-way calls, data communication or multimedia services and access to a data network system, such as the Internet.

[0003] In a wireless telecommunications system at least a part of a communication session between at least two stations occurs over a wireless link. Examples of wireless systems comprise public land mobile networks (PLMN), satellite based communication systems and different wireless local networks, for example wireless local area networks (WLAN). Some wireless systems can be divided into cells, and are therefore often referred to as cellular systems.

[0004] A user can access the telecommunications system by means of an appropriate communication device or terminal. A communication device of a user may be referred to as user equipment (UE) or user device. A communication device is provided with an appropriate signal receiving and transmitting apparatus for enabling communications, for example enabling access to a communication network or communications directly with other users. The communication device may access a carrier provided by a station, for example a base station of a cell, and transmit and / or receive communications on the carrier.

[0005] The telecommunications system and associated devices typically operate in accordance with a given standard or specification which sets out what the various entities associated with the system are permitted to do and how that should be achieved. Communication protocols and / or parameters which shall be used for the connection are also typically defined. One example of a telecommunications system is the Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS). Other examples of telecommunications systems are Long-Term Evolution (LTE), LTE Advanced and the so-called 5G or New Radio (NR) networks. NR is being standardized by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP). BRIEF SUMMARY

[0006] Example implementations of the present disclosure are directed to telecommunications and, in particular, to an event exposure service of a user plane function in a telecommunications system. The present disclosure includes, without limitation, the following example implementations for illustrative purposes.

[0007] Some example implementations provide an apparatus to implement a user plane function (UPF), the apparatus comprising: at least one memory configured to store instructions; and at least one processing circuitry configured to access the at least one memory, and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to at least: receive, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; receive, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; detect an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; collect data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; and send, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0008] Some example implementations provide an apparatus to implement a user plane function (UPF), the apparatus comprising: means for receiving, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; means for receiving, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; means for detecting an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; means for collecting data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; and means for sending, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0009] Some example implementations provide a method performed by a user plane function (UPF), the method comprising: receiving, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; receiving, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; detecting an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; collecting data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; and sending, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0010] Some example implementations provide a computer-readable storage medium that is non-transitory and has instructions stored therein that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes a user plane function (UPF) to at least: receive, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; receive, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; detect an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; collect data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; and send, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0011] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present disclosure will be apparent from a reading of the following detailed description together with the accompanying figures, which are briefly described below. The present disclosure includes any combination of two, three, four or more features or elements set forth in this disclosure, regardless of whether such features or elements are expressly combined or otherwise recited in a specific example implementation described herein. This disclosure is intended to be read holistically such that any separable features or elements of the disclosure, in any of its aspects and example implementations, should be viewed as combinable unless the context of the disclosure clearly dictates otherwise.

[0012] It will therefore be appreciated that this Brief Summary is provided merely for purposes of summarizing some example implementations so as to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the disclosure. Accordingly, it will be appreciated that the above described example implementations are merely examples and should not be construed to narrow the scope or spirit of the disclosure in any way. Other example implementations, aspects and advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of some described example implementations. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURE(S)

[0013] Having thus described example implementations of the disclosure in general terms, reference will now be made to the accompanying figures, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, and wherein:

[0014] FIG. 1 illustrates a telecommunications system that includes one or more public land mobile networks (PLMNs) coupled to one or more external data networks, according to some example implementations of the present disclosure;

[0015] FIG. 2 illustrates a deployment of a PLMN, according to some example implementations;

[0016] FIG. 3 more particularly depicts aspects of the deployment of FIG. 2, according to some example implementations;

[0017] FIG. 4 is a signaling chart for requesting session management (SM) subscription data for a user equipment, according to some example implementations;

[0018] FIG. 5 is a signaling chart of SM policy association establishment, according to some example implementations;

[0019] FIG. 6 is a signaling chart of a N4 session establishment procedure, according to some example implementations;

[0020] FIG. 7 is a signaling chart of a N4 session modification procedure, according to some example implementations;

[0021] FIG. 8 is a signaling chart for user plane function (UPF) event exposure subscription creation, according to some example implementations;

[0022] FIG. 9 is a signaling chart of a UPF sending a notification on subscribed events, according to some example implementations;

[0023] FIGS. lOAand 10B are flowcharts illustrating various steps in a method performed by a UPF, according to various example implementations; and

[0024] FIG. 11 illustrates an apparatus according to some example implementations. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] Some implementations of the present disclosure will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying figures, in which some, but not all implementations of the disclosure are shown. Indeed, various implementations of the disclosure may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the implementations set forth herein; rather, these example implementations are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the disclosure to those skilled in the art. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout.

[0026] Unless specified otherwise or clear from context, references to first, second or the like should not be construed to imply a particular order. A feature described as being above another feature (unless specified otherwise or clear from context) may instead be below, and vice versa; and similarly, features described as being to the left of another feature else may instead be to the right, and vice versa. Also, while reference may be made herein to quantitative measures, values, geometric relationships or the like, unless otherwise stated, any one or more if not all of these may be absolute or approximate to account for acceptable variations that may occur, such as those due to engineering tolerances or the like.

[0027] As used herein, unless specified otherwise or clear from context, the “or” of a set of operands is the “inclusive or” and thereby true if and only if one or more of the operands is true, as opposed to the “exclusive or” which is false when all of the operands are true. Thus, for example, “[A] or [B]” is true if [A] is true, or if [B] is true, or if both [A] and [B] are true. Further, the articles “a” and “an” mean “one or more,” unless specified otherwise or clear from context to be directed to a singular form. Furthermore, it should be understood that unless otherwise specified, the terms “data,” “content,” “digital content,” “information,” and similar terms may be at times used interchangeably. The term “network” may refer to a group of interconnected computers including clients and servers; and within a network, these computers may be interconnected directly or indirectly by various means including via one or more switches, routers, gateways, access points or the like.

[0028] Reference may be made herein to terms specific to a particular system, architecture or the like, but it should be understood that example implementations of the present disclosure may be equally applicable to any of a number of systems, architectures and the like. For example, reference may be made to 3 GPP technologies such as Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM), UMTS, LTE, LTE Advanced, 5GNR, 5G Advanced and 6G; however, it should be understood that example implementations of the present disclosure may be equally applicable to non-3GPP technologies such as IEEE 802, Bluetooth and Bluetooth Low Energy.

[0029] Further, as used in this application, the term “circuitry” may refer to one or more or all of the following: (a) hardware-only circuit implementations (such as implementations in only analog and / or digital circuitry); (b) combinations of hardware circuits and software, such as (as applicable): (i) a combination of analog and / or digital hardware circuit(s) with software / firmware and (ii) any portions of hardware processor(s) with software (including digital signal processor(s)), software, and memory(ies) that work together to cause an apparatus, such as a mobile phone or server, to perform various functions); or (c) hardware circuit(s) and / or processor(s), such as a microprocessor(s) or a portion of a microprocessor s), that requires software (e.g., firmware) for operation, but the software may not be present when it is not needed for operation.

[0030] The above definition of circuitry applies to all uses of this term in this application, including in any claims. As a further example, as used in this application, the term circuitry also covers an implementation of merely a hardware circuit or processor (or multiple processors) or portion of a hardware circuit or processor and its (or their) accompanying software and / or firmware. The term circuitry also covers, for example and if applicable to the particular claim element, a baseband integrated circuit or processor integrated circuit for a mobile device or a similar integrated circuit in server, a cellular network device, or other computing or network device.

[0031] FIG. 1 illustrates a telecommunications system 100 according to various example implementations of the present disclosure. The telecommunications system generally includes one or more telecommunications networks. As shown, for example, the system includes one or more public land mobile networks (PLMNs) 102 coupled to one or more other external data networks 104 - notably including a wide area network (WAN) such as the Internet. Each of the PLMNs includes a core network (CN) 106 backbone such as the Evolved Packet Core (EPC) of LTE, the 5G core network (5GC) or the like; and each of the core networks and the Internet are coupled to one or more radio access networks (RANs) 108, air interfaces or the like that implement one or more radio access technologies (RATs). As used herein, a “network device” refers to any suitable device at a network side of a telecommunications network. Examples of suitable network devices are described in greater detail below.

[0032] In addition, the system includes one or more radio units that may be varyingly known as user equipment (UE) 110, terminal device, terminal equipment, mobile station or the like. The UE is generally a device configured to communicate with a network device or a further UE in a telecommunication network. The UE may be a portable computer (e.g., laptop, notebook, tablet computer), mobile phone (e.g., cell phone, smartphone), wearable computer (e.g., smartwatch), or the like. In other examples, the UE may be an Internet of Things (loT) device, an industrial loT (IIoT device), a vehicle equipped with a vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication technology, or the like. In some examples, as referenced by 3GPP, the UE may be a narrowband loT (NB-IoT) device, an enhanced machine-type communication (eMTC) device, a reduced capability (RedCap) device, an ambient loT device, or the like.

[0033] In operation, these UEs may be configured to connect to one or more of the RANs 108 according to their particular radio access technologies to thereby access a particular CN 106 of a PLMN 102, or to access one or more of the external data networks 104 (e.g., the Internet). The external data network may be configured to provide Internet access, operator services, 3rd party services, etc. For example, the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has classified 5G mobile network services into three categories: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC), and massive machine type communications (mMTC) or massive internet of things (MIoT).

[0034] Examples of radio access technologies include 3 GPP radio access technologies such as GSM, UMTS, LTE, LTE Advanced, 5GNR, 5G Advanced, and 6G. Other examples of radio access technologies include IEEE 802 technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.15 (including 802.15.1 (WPAN / Bluetooth), 802.15.4 (Zigbee) and 802.15.6 (WBAN)), Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), ultra wideband (UWB), and the like. Generally, a radio access technology may refer to any 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G, 6G or higher generation mobile communication technology and their different versions, as well as to any other wireless radio access technology that may be arranged to interwork with such a mobile communication technology to provide access to the CN 106 of a mobile network operator (MNO). Example implementations of the present disclosure refer to PLMN (Public Land Mobile Network) and mobile network operator (MNO) but may equally apply to SNPN (Standalone Non-Public Networks) and the private entity (corporate) that operates the SNPN. It should also be understood that, although some example implementations and figures refer to RAN and 3GPP access, example implementations of the present disclosure apply to any kind of access, not only to 5G or 6G 3GPP access but also to non-3GPP access (e.g., wireline access, untrusted non-3GPP access, trusted non-3GPP access using a W-AGF / N3IWF / TNGF) to a 5G core or to a 6G core.

[0035] In various examples, a RAN 108 may be configured as one or more macrocells, microcells, picocells, femtocells or the like. The RAN may generally include one or more radio access nodes that are configured to interact with UEs 110. In various examples, a radio access node may be referred to as a base station (BS), access point (AP), base transceiver station (BTS), Node B (NB), evolved NB (eNB), macro BS, NB (MNB) or eNB (MeNB), home BS, NB (HNB) or eNB (HeNB), next generation NB (gNB), enhanced gNB (en-gNB), next generation eNB (ng-eNB), or the like. The RAN may include some type of network controlling / governing entity responsible for control of the radio access nodes. The network controlling / goveming entity and radio access node may be separate or integrated into a single apparatus. The network controlling / governing entity may include processing circuity configured to carry out various management functions, etc. The processing circuity may be associated with a memory, computer-readable storage medium or database for maintaining information required in the management functions.

[0036] A RAN 108 may be centralized or distributed. In various examples, components of a RAN may be interconnected by Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), optical fiber, dark fiber, passive wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), WDM passive optical network (WDM-PON), optical transport network (OTN), time sensitive networking (TSN) and / or any other data link layer network, possibly including radio links. The RAN may be connected to a CN 106 through one or more gateways, network functions or the like.

[0037] As will be appreciated, a PLMN 102 may be deployed in a number of different manners. In a 4G LI E deployment, the EPC is the CN 106, and the evolved UMTS terrestrial radio access network (E-UTRAN) is the RAN 108; and the E-UTRAN includes one or more eNBs (radio access nodes) configured to connect UEs 110 to the E-UTRAN to thereby access the EPC. FIG. 2 illustrates a deployment 200, such as a 5G or 6G deployment. As shown, the 5GC 202 is the CN, and the next generation (NG) radio access network (NG-RAN) 204 is the RAN; and the NG-RAN includes one or more gNBs 206 (radio access nodes) configured to connect UEs 208 to the NG-RAN to thereby access the 5GC. The term ‘gNB’ in 5G may correspond to the eNB in 4G LTE.

[0038] Some 4G LTE and 5G deployments are considered standalone (SA) deployments. Other deployments combine 4G LTE and 5G technologies, and are referred to as non-standalone (NSA) deployments. In some deployments, the E-UTRAN includes one or more ng-eNBs that are configured to communicate with the 5GC, and that may also be configured to communicate with one or more gNBs. Similarly, in another deployment, the NG-RAN may include one or more en-gNBs that are configured to communicate with the EPC, and that may also be configured to communicate with one or more eNBs. In various instances, a single UE 110, a dual-mode or multimode UE, may support multiple (two or more) RANs—thereby being configured to connect to multiple RANs, such as 4G LTE and 5G.

[0039] FIG. 3 more particularly depicts aspects of the deployment 200 for a MNO, according to some example implementations. As shown, the deployment includes the 5GC 202, and NG-RAN 204 with one or more gNBs 206 configured to connect UEs 208 to the NG-RAN to thereby access the 5GC. In the context of a 3GPP 5G service based architecture (SBA), the 5GC may include a number of network functions (NFs) divided between the control plane and the user plane. As shown, for example, the 5GC may include an access and mobility management function (AMF) 302, a session management function (SMF) 304, a user plane function (UPF) 306, and the like. As also shown, for example, the 5GC may include a policy and charging function (PCF) 308, a unified data management (UDM) 310, unified data repository (UDR) 312, network data analytics function (NWDAF) 314, a network exposure function (NEF) 316. The 5GC may also include an application function (AF) 318 and / or the application function may external to the 5GC and in an external data network (DN) 320. A 5GC may include other NFs not shown in the figure.

[0040] In the control plane, the AMF 302 is configured to provide UE-based authentication, authorization, mobility management, etc. The PCF 308 may be responsible for policy enforcement and management, controlling Quality of Service (QoS), charging, and resource allocation for subscribers. The PCF may facilitate efficient resource utilization, optimizing network performance, and delivering a quality user experience.

[0041] The SMF 304 is configured to provide various functionality including session management (SM), UE Internet Protocol (IP) address allocation and management, selection and control of UPF(s) 306, control part of policy enforcement and Quality of Service (QoS), lawful intercept, termination of SM parts of network access stratum (NAS) messages, downlink data notification (DDN), roaming functionality, local enforcement to apply QoS for Service Level Agreements (SLAs), charging data collection and charging interface, etc. If the UE 208 has multiple sessions, different SMFs may be allocated to each session to manage the sessions individually and possibly provide different functionalities per session.

[0042] The UDM 310 serves as a centralized repository for user-related subscription and authentication data. The UDM manages user authentication, authorization, and profile information, ensuring secure and authorized access to the 5GC 202. The UDR 312 is responsible for storing and managing user-related data, including session and policy information. The UDR facilitates functions such as data storage, retrieval, and update, ensuring the maintenance of user-related information across the 5G network. The NWDAF 314 collects and analyzes network data to provide insights into the performance, optimization, and overall health of the 5GC. This information may be used for network management, optimization, and decision-making processes to enhance the network’s efficiency.

[0043] The UPF 306 supports various user plane operations and functionalities, such as packet routing and forwarding, traffic handling (e.g., QoS enforcement), an anchor point for intra-RAT / inter-RAT mobility (when applicable), packet inspection and policy rule enforcement, lawful intercept (UP collection), traffic accounting and reporting, etc. The UPF may be the point of interconnect between the 5GC and at least one DN 320 (i.e., point of ingress or egress for a DN), and in that case routes packets to and from the DN. The DN may be configured to provide Internet access, operator services, 3rd party services, etc. It is to be noted that example implementations may operate the same way regardless of whether the UPF is connected to a DN 320 or whether the UPF for a PDU session is only connected to the RAN and or to other UPF(s).

[0044] The AF 318 may interact with the 5GC 202 to enable the deployment of specific services and applications. The AF communicates with other NFs to request and manage network resources, ensuring that the network adapts to the requirements of different applications and services. The NEF 316 allows authorized third-party applications and services to access specific network functions and services in a controlled manner. The NEF enables the exposure of network capabilities to external entities, fostering innovation and the development of new services.

[0045] In some deployments, such as deployment 200, operations of the gNB 206 or other radio access node may be carried out, at least partly, in a central / centralized unit (CU), such as a server, host or node, operationally coupled to a distributed unit (DU), such as a radio head / node. It is also possible that node operations may be distributed among a plurality of servers, hosts or nodes. It should also be understood that the distribution of work between 5GC 202 (or other CN) operations and gNB (or other radio access node) operations may vary depending on implementation.

[0046] A 5G network architecture may be based on a so-called CU-DU split. One gNB-CU (central node) may control one or more gNB-DUs. The gNB-CU may control a plurality of spatially separated gNB-DUs, acting at least as transmit / receive (Tx / Rx) nodes. In some example implementations, however, the gNB-DUs (also called DU) may include, for example, a radio link control (RLC) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer and a physical (PHY) layer, whereas the gNB-CU (also called a CU) may include the layers above the RLC layer, such as a packet data convergence protocol (PDCP) layer, a radio resource control (RRC) layer, and an internet protocol (IP) layer. Other functional splits are also possible. It is considered that a skilled person is familiar with the open systems interconnection (OSI) model and the functionalities within each layer.

[0047] In some example implementations, the server or CU may generate a virtual network through which the server communicates with the radio node. In general, virtual networking may involve a process of combining hardware and software network resources and network functionality into a single, software-based administrative entity, a virtual network. Such virtual network may provide flexible distribution of operations between the server and the radio head / node. In practice, any digital signal processing task may be performed in either the CU or the DU, and the boundary where the responsibility is shifted between the CU and the DU may be selected according to implementation.

[0048] The 3GPP 5G SBA facilitates flexible information exchange between NFs via a service Based Interfaces (SBI).

[0049] The 3GPP 5G SBA facilitates flexible information exchange between NFs via service based interfaces (SBIs) in which the NFs may communicate with each other using representational state transfer application programming interfaces (APIs). For example, the UPF 306 may expose data to other NFs (NF service consumers) using a UPF event exposure service (NupfEventExposure). An NF service consumer (e.g., SMF 304, NWDAF 314, AF 318) may subscribe to this service, and the subscription may target any UE 208 or a specific UE’s packet data unit (PDU) session identified, e.g., by its IPaddress. For each subscription, the UPF may perform requested measurements (e.g., user data usage or user data trends) and send event notifications or reports, per subscription, including the measurements.

[0050] The growth of artificial intelligence (AI) / machine learning (ML) usage in mobile networks results in extensive data collection from the UPF 306, which may cause massive signaling and processing that in turn degrades performance of the network including the UPF and NF service consumer.

[0051] In several use cases, a MNO may need to collect frequent user plane measurements for PDU sessions or users having specific characteristics (e.g., specific subscriber category such as VIP or gold / silver / bronze users). Currently, the only way to achieve this with the current UPF event exposure service design is to create an event exposure subscription for each individual PDU session (e.g., of each VIP user), which may result in a very large number of subscriptions at the UPF 306 and excessive signaling to create (and terminate) the subscriptions. Furthermore, the UPF may report measurements per subscription, causing massive signaling (e.g., very high number of HTTP requests and responses) for reporting the measurements from all of the respective PDU sessions (e.g., from VIP users).

[0052] In one example, user experience data for some VIP users (or gold, silver or bronze users) may be collected with a given frequency e.g. every five minutes, while other users need only to be sampled to collect user experience data with a smaller frequency. For PLMNs with a large number of subscribers, this may result in a very large number of subscriptions at the UPF 306 and a high frequency of event notifications by the UPF.

[0053] In another example, the experience data of users who have signed up for VIP application services, or who have subscribed to / are using specific services, may be collected every minute. For PLMNs with a large number of subscribers, this may also result in a very large number of subscriptions at the UPF 306 and a high frequency of event notifications by the UPF.

[0054] In view of the foregoing, example implementations of the present disclosure provide a solution that enables MNOs to associate (operator defined) one or more markers to UEs 208 and / or PDU sessions (data network name (DNN) / network slice configuration), at one or more of the UDM 310 (subscription data), SMF 304 or PCF 308 (policy data). Markers may be operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of a specific group, a specific enterprise, users in an area of interest (Aoi), users of a specific subscriber category or particular type (gold / silver / bronze), users subscribed to a specific package, users that are not roaming, users that are roaming, users that are roaming from one or more specific PLMNs, or users using a specific service.

[0055] Each marker for a UE 208 or PDU session may include a marker value, or a combination of marker type / identity (ID) and marker value.

[0056] The UPF 306 may receive, from the SMF 304, information for PDU sessions of UEs indicating the UEs 208 or the PDU sessions are associated with marker(s). In some examples, the marker(s) may be set by a MNO in SM subscription data in the UDM 310, and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the marker(s) may be set by the MNO in policy control subscription data in the UDR 312, and provided to the SMF by the PCF 308 during SM policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the marker(s) may be set by the MNO in policies locally configured at the SMF, such as policies associated with a DNN and / or slice (e.g., single - network slice selection assistance (S-NSSAI)) of the PDU sessions.

[0057] In some examples, the UPF 306 may receive the information for each PDU session during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session. This may include, for each PDU session of a UE, a N4 session establishment or modification request message that indicates at least one of the marker(s) with which the PDU session or the UE is associated. If a marker is associated with a UE 208, the SMF may provide the marker to the UPF for every PDU session of that UE. The UPF may store the at least one of the marker(s) in its N4 session context.

[0058] The UPF 306 may receive, from a NF service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs 208 or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the marker(s). More particularly, for example, the UPF may receive a request for creation or modification of a UPF event exposure subscription, and the request may include at least one of the marker(s). Some example implementations may therefore enhance the current UPF event exposure service to enable the NF service consumer to create a UPF event exposure subscription for a UPF event that targets UEs 208 or PDU sessions associated with at least one of the marker(s). In some examples, the UPF event exposure subscription may include multiple markers and one or more Boolean operators (e.g., “AND,” “OR”). In some examples, then, a UPF event exposure subscription may be for a UPF event that targets PDU sessions matching markers A and B, or PDU sessions matching markers A or B or C or PDU sessions matching markers A or B but NOT C. The subscription that is created at the UPF targets all the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the marker(s) that are already established in the UPF (i.e. that were established before the subscription creation) and all those that will be established by the SMF after the subscription creation.

[0059] The UPF 306 may detect an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs 208 or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the marker(s). In this regard, the UPF may detect the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that are associated with at least one marker that match the at least one of the marker(s) of the UPF event exposure subscription. For instance, for a subscription requesting the UPF to perform periodic reporting of data usage of PDU sessions matching specific markers, the UPF generates a periodic notification reporting the data usage of each individual PDU session matching said specific markers. The occurrence of the event in this example is detected at every reporting period requested in the subscription.

[0060] On detecting the occurrence of the UPF event, the UPF 306 may collect data (e.g., measurements) according to the subscription, for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions. The UPF may aggregate the reports of the data for the PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions in a single message, and send (to the NF service consumer) an event notification that includes all the reports of each individual PDU session; the UPF may also send several such notification messages if the size of all reports exceed the maximum payload size of a notification message. In some examples, the event notification may indicate to which PDU session respective data (or report) applies. In another example, the UPF may aggregate the data for the PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions in a single report, and send that report within a notification message.

[0061] As an example, consider a MNO defining a marker for VIP users. The MNO may provision in SM subscription data for each VIP user, a user's marker defined as follows: Marker type / ID: USERCATEGORY, Marker value: VIP (or alternatively only the Marker value: VIP). The NWDAF 314 or another NF service consumer may then subscribe to the UPF with a new marker criterion set with the above marker information.

[0062] As explained above, the SMF 304 may receive the markers associated with a UE 208 or PDU session in a number of different manners. Again, in some examples, subscription data in the UDM 310 may be extended to allow the provisioning by MNOs of markers per UE and / or PDU session (e.g., DNN / S-NSSAI configuration). The UDM and UDR 312 APIs may be extended to allow the SMF to retrieve these markers during the PDU session establishment or modification (and be notified about possible updates of these markers in the user subscription).

[0063] FIG. 4 is a signaling chart 400 for requesting a UE’s SM subscription data, according to some example implementations. As shown, a SMF 304 at step 401 sends a request (e.g., a GET request) to a resource (e.g., UDM) representing the UE’s SM subscription data, with query parameters indicating a selected network slice and / or the DNN and / or supported-features and / or PLMN ID. On success, the UDM 310 at step 402a responds with an acknowledgement (e.g., “200 OK”), including a message body containing the UE’s SM subscription data (e.g., SmSubsData), which may be extended to include marker(s) for the UE 208 and / or PDU session. If there is no valid subscription data for the UE, or if the UE subscription data exists but the requested SM subscription is not available, the UDM at step 402b returns a HTTP status code indicating that that lack of valid or unavailabiltiy of subscription data (e.g., “404 Not Found)”, including a response body containing including additional error information. This exchange may, for example, take place when the SMF is handling a PDU session establishment request from a UE. The UDM may also later provide SMF with updated / new marker(s) for the UE and / or PDU session, for example, upon or based on a change of session subscription data for a user equipment in a UDR.

[0064] Policy data and / or operator policy in the PCF 308 may also allow the PCF to provide marker(s) to the SMF 304 during the SM policy association establishment or modification. In this regard, the PCF SM policy association control service (N7) may be extended to allow the PCF to provide marker(s) to the SMF. The marker(s) provided by the PCF to the SMF may, for example, correspond to allowed services and / or subscriber categories.

[0065] FIG. 5 is a signaling chart 500 of SM policy association establishment, according to some example implementations. As shown, the SMF 304 at step 501 sends an HTTP POST request to the PCF 308 to create an individual SM policy for a PDU session of a UE 208. When the PCF receives the HTTP POST request from the NF service consumer, the PCF shall make a policy authorization based on the information received from the SMF in the HTTP POST request and, if available, information received from other NF(s) and operator policies pre-configured at the PCF. If the policy authorization is successful, the PCF creates a new individual SM policy. The PCF at step 502 responds to the SMF with an acknowledgement (e.g., a HTTP 201 created) response, which may be extended to include marker(s) for the UE and / or PDU session. The PCF may also later provide the SMF with updated / new marker(s) for the UE and / or PDU session, for example upon based on a change in data of a policy subscription for a UE in the UDR, or for instance upon or based on user policy subscription data change in UDR

[0066] MNO policies may also be locally configured at the SMF 304 to enable the SMF to set markers on its own, for example, based on other subscription information received from the UDM 310 or PCF 308. In some examples, the SMF may set marker(s) corresponding to a specific home PLMN (HPLMN) value of the UE 208, or to set a marker for non-roaming or for roaming UEs (possibly from specific PLMNs). In some examples, the SMF may set marker(s) for UEs associated with of a specific enterprise located in a specific Aoi (Area of Interest). In some of these examples, the SMF may determine whether the UEs are associated with a specific enterprise from the markers received from subscription data and whether the UEs are in the specific Aoi by subscribing to the AMF to receive notification of the presence of UE in an Aoi event for these UEs.

[0067] As also explained above, the UPF 306 may receive the information (including marker(s)) for each PDU session of a UE 208 during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF 304 and the UPF for the PDU session. If a marker is associated with the UE, the SMF may provide the marker to the UPF for every PDU session of that UE. The UPF may store the PDU session’s marker(s) in its N4 session context.

[0068] FIG. 6 is a signaling chart 600 of a session establishment procedure (e.g., a N4 session establishment procedure), according to some example implementations. As shown, the SMF 304 at step 601 receives a trigger from an NF (e.g., AMF 302, PCF 308) to establish a new PDU Session or change the UPF 306 for an established PDU session. The SMF at step 602 sends session establishment request (e.g., an N4 session establishment request message) to the UPF, the request including control information which defines how the UPF is to behave, and the request may be extended to include marker(s) for the UE and / or PDU session. The SMF may also include DNN and S-NSSAI in the session establishment procedure (e.g., N4 session establishment procedure).

[0069] The UPF 306 at step 603 responds with a session establishment response (e.g., an N4 session establishment response message) that includes information that the UPF is to provide to the SMF according to the control information that defines UPF behavior. The SMF 304 then at step 604 interacts with the NF that triggered the session establishment procedure (e.g., N4 session establishment procedure).

[0070] FIG. 7 is a signaling chart 700 of a session modification procedure (e.g., a N4 session modification procedure), according to some example implementations. As shown, the SMF 304 at step 701 receives a trigger from an NF (e.g., AMF 302, PCF 308, UDM 310) to modify an existing PDU session. The SMF at step 702 sends a session modification request (e.g., an N4 session modification request message) to the UPF 306, the request including an update for the control information that defines how the UPF needs to behave. Similar to the session establishment procedure, the session modification request (e.g., N4 session modification request message) may be extended to include marker(s), or an update of marker(s), for the UE and / or PDU session.

[0071] The UPF 306 identifies the session context (e.g., N4 session context) to be modified, and updates parameters of this session context according to parameters sent by the SMF 304. The UPF at step 703 responds with session modification response (e.g., an N4 session modification response message) the response including information that the UPF is to provide to the SMF in response to the control information received. The SMF then at step 704 interacts with the NF that triggered the session modification procedure (e.g., N4 session modification procedure).

[0072] In some examples, when information (e.g., N4 information) is sent by an anchor SMF 304 to an UPF 306 via an intermediate SMF (I-SMF), the information may contain marker information.

[0073] The UPF event exposure service may also be enhanced to enable an NF service consumer to create an event exposure subscription at the UPF 306 targeting all UEs or PDU sessions matching at least one of the marker(s).

[0074] FIG. 8 is a signaling chart 800 for UPF event exposure subscription creation, according to some example implementations. As shown in FIG. 8, an NF service consumer 802 at step 801 sends a request (e.g., a POST request) to create a subscription resource in the UPF. The request may contain a representation of the individual subscription resource to be created, including a target of the event reporting indicated by at least one marker or a logical combination of markers. On success of the creation of the subscription resource, the UPF at step 802a sends a response message indicating that the requested resource is created. The response message includes a HTTP location header to provide the location of the newly created resource (subscription) together with the status code 201. On failure or redirection of the creation of the resource, the UPF at step 802b returns a response message including an appropriate HTTP status code. For a 4xx / 5xx response, the message body contains a problem detail structure with an attribute set to indicate an application error.

[0075] On detecting the occurrence of the UPF event, the UPF 306 may collect data (e.g., measurements) according to the UPF event exposure subscription in the event notification to be sent toward the NF service consumer 802.

[0076] FIG. 9 is a signaling chart 900 of the UPF 306 sending a notification on subscribed events, according to some example implementations. As shown in FIG. 9, the UPF 306 at step 901 sends a request (e.g., a POST request) to a uniform resource identifier (URI) for the NF service consumer as provided during the provisioning of a session reporting rule or received in the subscription creation. The request includes one or more notification items (e.g., NotificationData) representing respective reports on subscribed events, and which may include measurements of different UEs 208 or PDU sessions matching the marker(s). Upon success of the notification, the NF service consumer 802 at step 902a responds with a message that indicates the NF service consumer successfully processed the notification.” On failure or redirection, the UPF at step 902b returns a response message including an appropriate HTTP status code.

[0077] The solution of some example implementations may address the excessive signaling issue outlined above. Instead of having to create as many subscriptions as there are individuals in a group of interest, e.g., VIP users, or more specifically UEs of VIP users), the NF service consumer may create a single UPF event exposure subscription targeting all of the PDU sessions desired by the operator (e.g., VIP users). Note that the markers in the subscription may be used in addition to existing parameters of the UPF event exposure service (e.g., S-NSSAI, DNN), such as for targeting PDU sessions of VIP users of specific DNN / S- NS S Ais or users of an enterprise in an Aoi. Furthermore, the UPF 306 may aggregate data (e.g., measurements) from these matching PDU sessions in the same notification message, which may significantly reduce the number of notification messages (and therefore HTTP requests / responses) required to report the requested data.

[0078] The solution of some example implementations may reduce processing overhead as a single subscription can target all the PDU sessions matching MNO-defined criteria, which may in turn reduce the number of event notifications. The solution may also be flexible in allowing each MNO to define its own UEs 208 or PDU session markers.

[0079] It should also be noted that in some example implementations, the solution may be further extended to also apply to measurements / events report sent by the SMF 304. This may enable creation of a subscription for SMF event exposure for UEs 208 or PDU sessions matching certain marker(s). More generally, markers for UEs and / or PDU sessions may be applied to other 5GC NFs, such as to optimize the data collection from these 5GC NFs.

[0080] FIGS. lOAand 10B are flowcharts illustrating various steps in a method 1000 performed by a user plane function (UPF), according to various example implementations. The method includes receiving, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers, as shown at block 1002 of FIG. 10A. The method includes receiving, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers, as shown at block 1004. As an example, the NF service consumer may correspond to an SMF or an NWADF. The method includes detecting an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers, as shown at block 1006. The method includes collecting data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions, as shown at block 1008. And the method includes sending, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data, as shown at block 1010.

[0081] In some examples, each of the one or more markers comprises at least a marker value.

[0082] In some examples, the one or more markers are operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of: a specific group; a specific enterprise; users in an area of interest; users of a specific subscriber category; users subscribed to a specific package; users that are not roaming; users that are roaming; users that are roaming from one or more specific public land mobile networks; or users using a specific service.

[0083] In some examples, the one or more markers are stored in session management subscription data for one or more UEs in an unified data repository (UDR) or unified data management (UDM), and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions.

[0084] In some examples, the one or more markers are stored in policy control subscription data in a unified data repository (UDR), and provided to the SMF by a policy control function (PCF) during session management (SM) policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions.

[0085] In some examples, the one or more markers are stored in policies locally configured at the SMF.

[0086] In some examples, the policies locally configured at the SMF are associated with at least one of a data network name (DNN) or an identifier of a network slice of the PDU sessions.

[0087] In some examples, the information for each PDU session of the PDU sessions is received at block 1002 during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session.

[0088] In some further examples, receiving at block 1002 the information comprises, for each PDU session of a UE, receiving a N4 session establishment or modification request message that indicates at least one of the one or more markers with which the PDU session or the UE is associated.

[0089] In some examples, receiving the request for the subscription at block 1004 comprises receiving a request for creation or modification of a UPF event exposure subscription, where the request comprises the at least one of the one or more markers, as shown at block 1012 of FIG. 10B. In some of these examples, detecting the occurrence of the UPF event at block 1006 comprises detecting the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that are associated with at least one marker that matches the at least one of the one or more markers of the UPF event exposure subscription, as shown at block 1014.

[0090] According to example implementations of the present disclosure, a telecommunications system 100 or PLMN 102, and its components such as a UE 110, CN 106, RAN 108, 5GC 202, NG-RAN 204, gNB 206, UE 208, AMF 302, SMF 304, UPF 306, PCF 308, UDM 310, UDR 312, NWDAF 314, NEF 316, and / or AF 318 may be implemented by various means. Means for implementing the system and its components may include hardware, firmware, software, or combinations thereof. In some examples, one or more apparatuses may be configured to function as or otherwise implement the system and its components shown and described herein. In examples involving more than one apparatus, the respective apparatuses may be connected to or otherwise in communication with one another in a number of different manners, such as directly or indirectly via a wired or wireless network or the like.

[0091] According to some example implementations, at least some of the method 1000 described with respect to FIGS. lOAand 10B may be carried out by an apparatus comprising means for performing functions corresponding steps of the method. Examples of a suitable apparatus may include UPF or any suitable apparatus, such as a server, host or node.

[0092] FIG. 11 illustrates an apparatus 1100 in which means for performing various functions includes hardware, alone or under direction of one or more computer programs from a computer-readable storage medium or other memory, such as computer memory, according to some example implementations of the present disclosure. The apparatus may include one or more of each of a number of components such as, for example, processing circuitry 1102 connected to computer-readable storage medium or other memory 1104.

[0093] The processing circuitry 1102 may be composed of one or more processors alone or in combination with one or more computer-readable storage media. The processing circuitry is generally any piece of computer hardware that is capable of processing information such as, for example, data, computer programs and / or other suitable electronic information. The processing circuitry is composed of a collection of electronic circuits some of which may be packaged as an integrated circuit or multiple interconnected integrated circuits (an integrated circuit at times more commonly referred to as a “chip”). The processing circuitry may be configured to execute computer programs, which may be stored onboard the processing circuitry or otherwise stored in the memory 1104 (of the same or another apparatus).

[0094] The processing circuitry 1102 may be a number of processors, a multi-core processor or some other type of processor, depending on the particular implementation. Further, the processing circuitry may be implemented using a number of heterogeneous processor systems in which a main processor is present with one or more secondary processors on a single chip. As another illustrative example, the processing circuitry may be a symmetric multi-processor system containing multiple processors of the same type. In yet another example, the processing circuitry may be embodied as or otherwise include one or more ASICs, FPGAs or the like. Thus, although the processing circuitry may be capable of executing a computer program to perform one or more functions, the processing circuitry of various examples may be capable of performing one or more functions without the aid of a computer program. In either instance, the processing circuitry may be appropriately programmed to perform functions or operations according to example implementations of the present disclosure.

[0095] The memory 1104 is generally any piece of computer hardware that is capable of storing information such as, for example, data, computer programs, instructions 1106 (e.g., computer-readable program code) and / or other suitable information either on a temporary basis and / or a permanent basis. The memory may include volatile and / or non-volatile memory, and may be fixed or removable. Examples of suitable memory include recording media, random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard drive, a flash memory, a thumb drive, a removable computer diskette, an optical disk or some combination thereof.

[0096] The memory 1104 is a non-transitory device capable of storing information. One example of a suitable memory is a computer-readable storage medium, which is distinguishable from a computer-readable transmission medium capable of carrying information from one location to another. Examples of suitable computer-readable transmission media comprise electronic carrier signals, telecommunications signals, or some combination thereof. As used herein, the term “non-transitory” is a limitation of the medium itself (i.e., tangible, not a signal) as opposed to a limitation on data storage persistency (e.g., RAM versus ROM). A computer-readable medium as described herein generally refers to a computer-readable storage medium or computer-readable transmission medium. A computer-readable medium is any entity or device capable in which information, such as one or more computer programs or portions thereof, may be stored and carried.

[0097] In addition to the memory 1104 (e.g., computer-readable storage medium), the processing circuitry 1102 may also be connected to one or more interfaces for displaying, transmitting and / or receiving information. The interfaces may include a communications interface 1108 and / or one or more user interfaces (e.g., display, user input interface). The communications interface may be configured to transmit and / or receive information, such as to and / or from other apparatus(es), network(s) or the like. The communications interface may be configured to transmit and / or receive information by physical (wired) and / or wireless communications links. Examples of suitable communication interfaces include a network interface controller (NIC), wireless NIC (WNIC) or the like.

[0098] Execution of the instructions 1106 by the processing circuitry 1102, or storage of the instructions in the memory 1104, supports combinations of operations for implementing example implementations of the present disclosure. In this manner, an apparatus 1100 may comprise at least one processing circuitry and at least one memory coupled to the at least one processing circuitry, where the at least one processing circuitry is configured to execute instructions stored in the at least one memory. It will also be understood that one or more functions, and combinations of functions, may be implemented by special purpose hardwarebased computer systems and / or processing circuitry which perform the specified functions, or combinations of special purpose hardware and program code instructions.

[0099] Some example implementations of the present disclosure may also be carried out in the form of a computer process defined by one or more computer programs or portions thereof. Example implementations of the present disclosure may be carried out by executing at least one portion of a computer program comprising instructions. The computer program may be in source code form, object code form, or in some intermediate form. The computer program may be stored in a computer-readable medium that is readable by a computer, processing circuitry or other suitable apparatus. As indicated above, for example, the computer program may be stored in a memory, such as a computer-readable storage medium. Additionally or alternatively, for example, the computer program may be stored in a computer-readable transmission medium. The coding of software for carrying out example implementations of the present disclosure is well within the scope of a person of ordinary skill in the art.

[0100] As will be appreciated, any suitable instructions may be loaded onto a computer, a processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus from a memory or a computer-readable medium (e.g., computer-readable storage medium, computer-readable transmission medium) to produce a particular machine, such that the particular machine becomes a means for implementing the functions specified herein. The instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable medium that can direct a computer, a processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus to function in a particular manner to thereby generate a particular machine or particular article of manufacture. In some examples, the instructions stored in the computer-readable medium may produce an article of manufacture, where the article of manufacture becomes a means for implementing functions described herein. The instructions may be retrieved from a computer-readable medium and loaded into a computer, processing circuitry / or other programmable apparatus to configure the computer, processing circuitry' or other programmable apparatus to execute operations to be performed on or by the computer, processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus.

[0101] Retrieval, loading and execution of instructions comprising program code instructions may be performed sequentially such that one instruction is retrieved, loaded and executed at a time. In some example implementations, retrieval, loading and / or execution may be performed in parallel such that multiple instructions are retrieved, loaded, and / or executed together. Execution of the program code instructions may produce a computer-implemented process such that the instructions executed by the computer, processing circuitry or other programmable apparatus provide operations for implementing functions described herein.

[0102] As explained above and reiterated below, the present disclosure includes, without limitation, the following example implementations.

[0103] Clause 1. An apparatus to implement a user plane function (UPF), the apparatus comprising: at least one memory configured to store instructions; and at least one processing circuitry' configured to access the at least one memory', and execute the instructions to cause the apparatus to at least: receive, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; receive, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a. UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; detect an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; collect data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; and send, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0104] Clause 2. The apparatus of clause 1, wherein each of the one or more markers comprises at least a marker value.

[0105] Clause 3, The apparatus of clause 1 or clause 2, wherein the one or more markers are operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of: a specific group; a specific enterprise; users in an area of interest; users of a specific subscriber category; users subscribed to a specific package, users that are not roaming; users that are roaming; users that are roaming from one or more specific public land mobile networks; or users using a specific service. ^01061 Clause 4. The apparatus of any of clauses 1 to 3, wherein the one or more markers are stored in session management subscription data for one or more UEs m an unified data repository (UDR) or unified data management (UDM), and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions.

[0107] Clause 5. The apparatus of any of clauses 1 to 4, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policy control subscription data in a unified data repository / (UDR), and provided to the SMF by a policy control function (PCF) during session management (SM) policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions.

[0108] Clause 6. The apparatus of any of clauses 1 to 5, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policies locally configured at the SMF.

[0109] Clause 7. The apparatus of clause 6, wherein the policies locally configured at the SMF are associated with at least one of a data network name (DNN) or an identifier of a slice of the PDU sessions.

[0110] Clause 8. The apparatus of any of clauses 1 to 7, wherein the information for each PDU session of the PDU sessions is received during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session.

[0111] Clause 9. The apparatus of clause 8, wherein the apparatus caused to receive the information comprises the apparatus caused to, for each PDU session of a UE., receiving a N4 session establishment or modification request message that indicates at least one of the one or more markers with which the PDU session or the UE is associated.

[0112] Clause 10. The apparatus of any of clauses 1 to 9. wherein the apparatus caused to receive the request for the subscription comprises the apparatus caused to receive a request for creation or modification of a UPF event exposure subscription, wherein the request comprises the at least one of the one or more markers, and wherein the apparatus caused to detect the occurrence of the UPF event comprises the apparatus caused to detect the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that are associated with at least one marker that matches the at least one of the one or more markers of the UPF event exposure subscription.

[0113] Clause 11. An apparatus to implement a user plane function (UPF), the apparatus comprising: means for receiving, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; means for receiving, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; means for detecting an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; means for collecting data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; and means for sending, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0114] Clause 12. The apparatus of clause 11, wherein each of the one or more markers comprises at least a marker value.

[0115] Clause 13. The apparatus of clause 11 or clause 12, wherein the one or more markers are operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of: a specific group; a specific enterprise; users in an area of interest; users of a specific subscriber category; users subscribed to a specific package; users that are not roaming; users that are roaming; users that are roaming from one or more specific public land mobile networks; or users using a specific service.

[0116] Clause 14. The apparatus of any of clauses 11 to 13, wherein the one or more markers are stored in session management subscription data for one or more UEs in an unified data management (UDM), and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions.

[0117] Clause 15. The apparatus of any of clauses 11 to 14, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policy control subscription data in an unified data repository (UDR), and provided to the SMF by a policy control function (PCF) during session management (SM) policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions.

[0118] Clause 16. The apparatus of any of clauses 11 to 15, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policies locally configured at the SMF.

[0119] Clause 17. The apparatus of clause 16, wherein the policies locally configured at the SMF are associated with at least one of a data network name (DNN ) or an identifier of a slice of the PDU sessions.

[0120] Clause 18. The apparatus of any of clauses 11 to 1 7, wherein the information for each PDU session of the PDU sessions is received during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session.

[0121] Clause 19. The apparatus of clause 18, wherein receiving the information comprises, for each PDU session of a UE, receiving a N4 session establishment or modification request message that indicates at least one of the one or more markers with which the PDU session or the UE is associated.

[0122] Clause 20. The apparatus of any of clauses 11 to 19, wherein the means for receiving the request for the subscription comprises means for receiving a request for creation or modification of a UPF event exposure subscription, wherein the request comprises the at least one of the one or more markers, and wherein the means for detecting the occurrence of the UPF event comprises means for detecting the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that are associated with at least one marker that matches the at least one of the one or more markers of the UPF event exposure subscription.

[0123] Clause 21.. A method performed by a user plane function (UPF), the method comprising: receiving, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; receiving, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; detecting an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; collecting data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions, and sending, to the NF sendee consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0124] Clause 22. The method of clause 21, wherein each of the one or more markers comprises at least a marker value.

[0125] Clause 23. The method of clause 21 or clause 22, wherein the one or more markers are operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of: a specific group; a specific enterprise; users in an area of interest; users of a specific subscriber category; users subscribed to a specific package, users that are not roaming; users that are roaming; users that are roaming from one or more specific public land mobile networks; or users using a specific service.

[0126] Clause 24. The method of any of clauses 21 to 23, wherein the one or more markers are stored in session management subscription data for one or more UEs in an unified data repository (UDR) or unified data management (UDM), and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions.

[0127] Clause 25. The method of any of clauses 21 to 24, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policy control subscription data in a unified data repository (UDR), and provided to the SMF by a policy control function (PCF) during session management (SM) policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions.

[0128] Clause 26. The method of any of clauses 21 to 25, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policies locally configured at the SMF.

[0129] Clause 27. The method of clause 26, wherein the policies locally configured at the SMF are associated with at least one of a data network name (DNN) or an identifier of a slice of the PDU sessions.

[0130] Clause 28. The method of any of clauses 21 to 27, wherein the information for each PDU session of the PDU sessions is received during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session.

[0131] Clause 29. The method of clause 28, wherein receiving the information comprises, for each PDU session of a UE., receiving a N4 session establishment or modification reriuest message that indicates at least one of the one or more markers with which the PDU session or the UE is associated.

[0132] Clause 30. The method of any of clauses 21 to 29, wherein receiving the request for the subscription comprises receiving a request, for creation or modification of a UPF event exposure subscription, wherein the request comprises the at least one of the one or more markers, and wherein detecting the occurrence of the UPF event comprises detecting the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that, are associated with at least one marker that, matches the at least one of the one or more markers of the UPF event exposure subscription.

[0133] Clause 31. A computer-readable storage medium that is non-transitory and has instructions stored therein that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes a user plane function (UPF) to at least: receive, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers; receive, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers; detect an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers; collect data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; and send, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

[0134] Clause 32. The computer-readable storage medium of clause 31, wherein each of the one or more markers comprises at least a marker value.

[0135] Clause 33. The computer-readable storage medium of clause 31 or clause 32, wherein the one or more markers are operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of: a specific group; a specific enterprise; users in an area of interest; users of a specific subscriber category; users subscribed to a specific package; users that are not roaming; users that are roaming; users that are roaming from one or more specific public land mobile networks; or users using a specific service.

[0136] Clause 34. The computer-readable storage medium of any of clauses 31 to 33, wherein the one or more markers are stored in session management subscription data, for one or more UEs in an unified data repository (UDR) or unified data management (UDM), and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions.

[0137] Clause 35. The computer-readable storage medium of any of clauses 31 to 34, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policy control subscription data in a unified data repository (UDR), and provided to the SMF by a policy control function (PCF) during session management (SM) policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions.

[0138] Clause 36. The computer-readable storage medium of any of clauses 31 to 35, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policies locally configured at the SMF.

[0139] Clause 37. The computer-readable storage medium of clause 36, wherein the policies locally configured at the SMF are associated with at least one of a data network name (DNN) or an identifier of a slice of the PDU sessions.

[0140] Clause 38. The computer-readable storage medium of any of clauses 31 to 37, wherein the information for each PDU session of the PDU sessions is received during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session.

[0141] Clause 39. The computer-readable storage medium of clause 38, wherein the UPF caused to receive the information comprises the UPF caused to, for each PDU session of a UE, receiving a N4 session establishment or modification request message that indicates at least one of the one or more markers with which the PDU session or the UE is associated.

[0142] Clause 40. The computer-readable storage medium of any of clauses 31 to 39, wherein the UPF caused to receive the request for the subscription comprises the UPF caused to receive a request for creation or modification of a UPF event exposure subscription, wherein the request comprises the at least one of the one or more markers, and wherein the UPF caused to detect the occurrence of the UPF event comprises the UPF caused to detect the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that are associated with at least one marker that matches the at least one of the one or more markers of the UPF event exposure subscription.

[0143] Clause 41. An apparatus comprising means for performing the method of any of clauses 12 to 30.

[0144] Clause 42, A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 12 to 30.

[0145] Clause 43. A computer-readable storage medium comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 12 to 30.

[0146] Clause 44. A computer program comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of clauses 12 to 30.

[0147] Many modifications and other implementations of the disclosure set forth herein will come to mind to one skilled in the art to which the disclosure pertains having the benefit of the teachings presented in the foregoing description and the associated figures. Therefore, it is to be understood that the disclosure is not to be limited to the specific implementations disclosed and that modifications and other implementations are intended to be included within the scope of the appended claims. Moreover, although the foregoing description and the associated figures describe example implementations m the context of certain example combinations of elements and / or functions, it should be appreciated that different combinations of elements and / or functions may be provided by alternative implementations without departing from the scope of the appended claims. In this regard, for example, different combinations of elements and / or functions than those explicitly described above are also contemplated as may be set forth in some of the appended claims. Although specific terms are employed herein, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only and not for purposes of limitation.

Claims

1. An apparatus to implement a user plane function (UPF), the apparatus comprising:means for receiving, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers;means for receiving, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers;means for detecting an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers;means for collecting data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; andmeans for sending, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

2. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein each of the one or more markers comprises at least a marker value.

3. The apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the one or more markers are operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of:a specific group;a specific enterprise;users in an area of interest;users of a specific subscriber category;users subscribed to a specific package;users that are not roaming;users that are roaming;users that are roaming from one or more specific public land mobile networks; orusers using a specific service.

4. The apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 3, wherein the one or more markers are stored in session management subscription data for one or more UEs in an unified data repository (UDR) or unified data management (UDM), and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions.

5. The apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policy control subscription data in a unified data repository (UDR), and provided to the SMF by a policy control function (PCF) during session management (SM) policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions.

6. The apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policies locally configured at the SMF.

7. The apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein the policies locally configured at the SMF are associated with at least one of a data network name (DNN) or an identifier of a network slice of the PDU sessions.

8. The apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the information for each PDU session of the PDU sessions is received during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session.

9. The apparatus as claimed in claim 8, wherein receiving the information comprises, for each PDU session of a UE, receiving a N4 session establishment or modification request message that indicates at least one of the one or more markers with which the PDU session or the UE is associated.

10. The apparatus as claimed in any of claims 1 to 9, wherein the means for receiving the request for the subscription comprises means for receiving a request for creation or modification of a UPF event exposure subscription, wherein the request comprises the at least one of the one or more markers, andwherein the means for detecting the occurrence of the UPF event comprises means for detecting the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that are associated with at least one marker that matches the at least one of the one or more markers of the UPF event exposure subscription.

11. A method performed by a user plane function (UPF), the method comprising: receiving, from a session management function (SMF), information for packet data unit (PDU) sessions of user equipments (UEs) that indicates the UEs or the PDU sessions are associated with one or more markers;receiving, from a network function (NF) service consumer, a request for a subscription to a UPF event associated with the UEs or the PDU sessions associated with at least one of the one or more markers;detecting an occurrence of the UPF event for a group of the UEs or a group of the PDU sessions that are associated with the at least one of the one or more markers;collecting data according to the subscription, the data for PDU sessions of the group of the UEs or for the group of the PDU sessions; andsending, to the NF service consumer, an event notification comprising the data.

12. The method as claimed in claim 11, wherein each of the one or more markers comprises at least a marker value.

13. The method as claimed in claim 11 or claim 12, wherein the one or more markers are operator defined and identify UEs or PDU sessions associated with at least one of:a specific group;a specific enterprise;users in an area of interest;users of a specific subscriber category;users subscribed to a specific package;users that are not roaming;users that are roaming;users that are roaming from one or more specific public land mobile networks; orusers using a specific service.

14. The method as claimed in any of claims 11 to 13, wherein the one or more markers are stored in session management subscription data for one or more UEs in an unified data repository (UDR) or unified data management (UDM), and retrieved by the SMF during establishment or modification of the PDU sessions.

15. The method as claimed in any of claims 11 to 14, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policy control subscription data in a unified data repository (UDR), and provided to the SMF by a policy control function (PCF) during session management (SM) policy association establishment or modification for the PDU sessions.

16. The method as claimed in any of claims 11 to 15, wherein the one or more markers are stored in policies locally configured at the SMF.

17. The method as claimed in claim 16, wherein the policies locally configured at the SMF are associated with at least one of a data network name (DNN) or an identifier of a network slice of the PDU sessions.

18. The method as claimed in any of claims 11 to 17, wherein the information for each PDU session of the PDU sessions is received during a procedure to establish or modify a N4 session between the SMF and the UPF for the PDU session.

19. The method as claimed in claim 18, wherein receiving the information comprises, for each PDU session of a UE, receiving a N4 session establishment or modification request message that indicates at least one of the one or more markers with which the PDU session or the UE is associated.

20. The method as claimed in any of claims 11 to 19, wherein receiving the request for the subscription comprises receiving a request for creation or modification of a UPF eventexposure subscription, wherein the request comprises the at least one of the one or more markers, andwherein detecting the occurrence of the UPF event comprises detecting the group of the UEs or the group of the PDU sessions that are associated with at least one marker that5 matches the at least one of the one or more markers of the UPF event exposure subscription.

21. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions that, in response to execution by at least one processing circuitry, causes an apparatus to perform the method of any of claims 11 to 20.1038

Images