Providing user equipment specific services in a radio access network

Abstract

Generally, the present subject matter relates to providing user equipment-specific services in a radio access network. In some implementations, usage information uniquely associated with a user equipment (UE) having a UE context can be received from a radio access network (RAN) in a core network. The usage information can be collected by the RAN. After the UE context is released, the received usage information can be stored in the core network.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] In some implementations, the present subject matter relates to communication systems, and more particularly to providing specific services to user equipment in a wireless access network. [Background technology]

[0002] In today's world, cellular networks provide on-demand communication capabilities to individuals and business entities. Typically, cellular networks are wireless networks that can be distributed over a terrestrial area called a cell. Each such cell is served by at least one fixed-location transceiver, referred to as a cell site or base station. Each cell can use a different set of frequencies from its neighboring cells to avoid interference and provide improved service within each cell. Together, the cells provide wireless coverage over a wide geographic area, allowing numerous mobile phones and / or other wireless devices or portable transceivers to communicate with each other and with fixed transceivers and phones anywhere in the network. Such communication is performed through base stations, even when a communicating mobile transceiver passes through more than one cell. Major wireless communication providers deploy such cell sites worldwide, allowing communicating mobile phones and mobile computing devices to connect to public switched telephone networks and the public Internet.

[0003] A mobile phone is a portable telephone that can receive and / or make telephone and / or data calls through a cell site or communication tower by using radio waves to transmit signals to and from the mobile phone. From the perspective of a large number of mobile phone users, current mobile phone networks offer limited and shared resources. In this regard, cell sites and handsets can change frequencies and use low-power transmitters to allow simultaneous use of the network by many callers with less interference. Coverage by a cell site can depend on the particular geographic location and / or the number of users that can potentially use the network. For example, in a city, a cell site may have a range of up to about 1 / 2 mile. In suburban areas, the range may be as long as 5 miles. In some areas, users can receive signals from cell sites as far away as 25 miles.

[0004] The following are some examples of digital cellular technologies used by communications providers: Global System for Mobile Communications ("GSM"), General Packet Radio Service ("GPRS"), cdmaOne, CDMA2000, Evolution-Data Optimized ("EV-DO"), Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution ("EDGE"), Universal Mobile Telecommunications System ("UMTS"), Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications ("DECT"), Digital AMPS ("IS-136 / TDMA"), and Integrated Digital Enhanced Network ("iDEN"). Long Term Evolution or 4G LTE, developed by the Third Generation Partnership Project ("3GPP") standards organization, is a standard for high-speed data wireless communications for mobile phones and data terminals. 5G standards are currently being developed and deployed. 3GPP cellular technologies such as LTE and 5G NR are evolutions of previous generations of 3GPP technologies such as GSM / EDGE and UMTS / HSPA digital cellular technologies, and allow for increased capacity and speeds by using different air interfaces along with core network improvements.

[0005] A cellular network may be divided into a radio access network and a core network. The radio access network (RAN) may include network functions capable of handling radio layer communication processing. The core network may include network functions capable of handling higher layer communication (e.g., Internet Protocol (IP), transport layer, and application layer). In some cases, the RAN function may be divided into a baseband unit function and a radio unit function. Here, the radio unit connected to the baseband unit via a fronthaul network may be responsible for lower layer processing, for example, of the radio physical layer, and the baseband unit may be responsible for higher layer radio protocols (e.g., MAC, RLC, etc.). Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Each mobile phone or other user equipment (UE) has a unique identifier (International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) for LTE systems or Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI) for 5G systems). Under 3GPP standards, for security reasons, the unique identifier is allowed to be shared with the core network but not with the RAN. This has made it difficult, if not impossible, for the RAN to store and use information uniquely associated with a UE after the UE disconnects from the cellular network. Thus, the RAN may not optimally serve a particular UE, even if the UE was previously connected to the RAN and reconnects with the RAN. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In some implementations, the present subject matter relates to a computer-implemented method. The method can include receiving, at a core network, from a radio access network (RAN) usage information uniquely associated with a user equipment (UE) having a UE context. The usage information can be collected by the RAN. The method can also include storing the received usage information at the core network after the UE context is released.

[0008] The method may allow the core network to send the stored usage information about the UE to the RAN when the UE later reconnects with the RAN, so that immediately after the UE reconnects with the RAN, the RAN has access to the usage information uniquely associated with the UE, allowing the RAN to improve its service to the UE.

[0009] In some implementations, the current subject may include one or more of the following optional features:

[0010] In some implementations, the usage information may include one or more of: a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) Control Channel Element (CCE) allocation statistic for the UE, a Block Error Rate (BLER) distribution for the UE, a Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) distribution for the UE, an uplink power allocation history based on Transmit Power Control (TPC) commands sent in association with the UE, a Carrier Aggregation (CA) band combination used in association with the UE, and a Dual Connectivity (DC) band combination used in association with the UE. Further, the method may include sending an octet stream with the usage information from the RAN to the core network.

[0011] In some implementations, the usage information may be sent from the RAN to the core network in a UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMPLETE message.

[0012] In some implementations, the method may further include transmitting the stored usage information from the core network to the RAN after the UE context is released. Furthermore, the RAN may be configured to use the received usage information to fine-tune UE-specific scheduling behavior and CA and DC carrier addition strategies. The RAN may be configured to use the received usage information in one or more of: adjusting proportional fair scheduler alpha / beta parameters; adjusting a UE-specific PDCCH search space; adjusting a CCE aggregation level; adjusting uplink power allocation to approximately start from the power level last used by the RAN for the UE; adjusting an initial MCS and / or BLER target; and adjusting the connected mode discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration of the UE. The core network may transmit the stored usage information to the RAN in an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP MESSAGE associated with the UE reconnecting to the RAN.

[0013] In some implementations, the method may further include a core network User Plane Function (UPF) collecting mean packet inter-arrival time information associated with the UE per Quality of Service (QoS) flow. The method may further include a UPF sending the collected information to a core network Session Management Function (SMF). The UPF may further send the collected information to the SMF in a Packet Forwarding Control Protocol (PFCP) Session Report Request message. The method may further include an SMF sending the collected information to a core network Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF). The SMF may further send the collected information to the AMF in an Update Session Management (Update SM) Context Response message. The method may further include an AMF sending the collected information and the stored usage information to the RAN. Furthermore, the AMF may send the collected information and stored usage information to the RAN in an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP MESSAGE. The AMF may also send one or more of uplink and downlink volumes per QoS flow and uplink and downlink flow times per QoS flow to the RAN.

[0014] In some implementations, the core network may store the usage information in association with a unique identifier of the UE, which may be an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) or a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI).

[0015] In some implementations, the RAN may include base stations including eNodeBs, and the core network may be the core network of an LTE system.

[0016] In some implementations, the RAN includes base stations including gNodeBs, and the core network may be a core network of a 5G system or a post-5G next-generation system.

[0017] Non-transitory computer program products (i.e., physically embodied computer program products) storing instructions that, when executed by one or more data processors of one or more computing systems, cause at least one data processor to perform the operations described herein are also described. Similarly, computer systems are described that may include one or more data processors and memory coupled to the one or more data processors. The memory may store, on a temporary or permanent basis, instructions that cause at least one processor to perform one or more of the operations described herein. In addition, methods may be implemented by one or more data processors within a single computing system or distributed across two or more computing systems. Such computing systems may be connected to exchange data and / or commands or other instructions, etc., over one or more connections (including, but not limited to, connections over a network (e.g., the Internet, a wireless wide area network, a local area network, a wide area network, a wired network, etc.)), such as via a direct connection between one or more of the multiple computing systems.

[0018] Details of one or more variations of the subject matter described herein are set forth in the accompanying drawings and the description below. Other features and advantages of the subject matter described herein will be apparent from the description and drawings, and from the claims. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0019] The following accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate certain aspects of the presently disclosed subject matter and, together with the description, serve to explain some of the principles associated with the disclosed implementations.

[0020] FIG. 1a illustrates an exemplary conventional "long term evolution" ("LTE") communications system.

[0021] FIG. 1b shows further details of the exemplary LTE system shown in FIG. 1a.

[0022] FIG. 1c shows additional details of the "evolved packet core" of the exemplary LTE system shown in FIG. 1a.

[0023] FIG. 1d illustrates an exemplary "evolved Node B" for the exemplary LTE system shown in FIG. 1a.

[0024] FIG. 2 illustrates further details of the "evolved Node B" shown in FIGS. 1a-d.

[0025] FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary virtual radio access network according to some implementations of the current subject matter.

[0026] FIG. 4 shows an exemplary 3GPP split architecture for providing its users with use of higher frequency bands.

[0027] FIG. 5a illustrates an exemplary 5G wireless communication system.

[0028] FIG. 5b shows an example layer architecture for a split gNB and / or a split ng-eNB (e.g., a “next generation eNB” that may be connected to 5GC).

[0029] Figure 5c shows an exemplary functional split in the gNB architecture shown in Figures 5a-b.

[0030] FIG. 6 illustrates another exemplary 5G wireless communication system in accordance with some implementations of the current subject matter.

[0031] FIG. 7 illustrates another exemplary LTE wireless communication system in accordance with some implementations of the current subject matter.

[0032] FIG. 8 illustrates an exemplary method according to some implementations of the current subject matter.

[0033] FIG. 9 illustrates an exemplary system according to some implementations of the current subject matter.

[0034] FIG. 10 illustrates another exemplary system according to some implementations of the current subject matter.

[0035] FIG. 11 illustrates another exemplary method according to some implementations of the current subject matter. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0036] The present subject matter can provide systems and methods that can be implemented in wireless communication systems. Such systems can include various wireless communication systems, including 5G New Radio communication systems, "long term evolution" communication systems, and the like.

[0037] Generally, the present subject matter relates to providing user equipment specific services in a wireless access network.

[0038] In some implementations of the current subject matter, a radio access network (RAN) may be configured to collect usage information uniquely associated with a user equipment (UE) communicatively coupled to the RAN. A core network configured to be communicatively coupled to the RAN may be configured to cause the release of a UE context for the UE stored in the RAN. The RAN may be configured to transmit the collected usage information to the core network in association with the release of the UE context. The core network may be configured to store the usage information received from the RAN. In this manner, usage information uniquely associated with a particular UE may be stored in the core network even after the UE context for the particular UE has been released by the RAN. When the UE later reconnects with the RAN, the core network may be configured to transmit the stored usage information for the particular UE to the RAN. Thus, immediately after the UE reconnects with the RAN, the RAN has access to the usage information uniquely associated with the UE, allowing the RAN to improve service to the UE. Because the usage information was previously collected by the RAN, it is also uniquely associated with the RAN, allowing the RAN to improve service to the UE.

[0039] According to the 3GPP standards, the core network has access to a unique identifier of the UE (e.g., an identifier stored on the UE's Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) card, such as an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) for an LTE system or a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI) for a 5G system). For security reasons, according to the 3GPP standards, the RAN does not have access to the UE's unique identifier. Therefore, according to the 3GPP standards, while the UE is connected to the RAN, the UE can be uniquely identified in the RAN by a temporary identifier (e.g., an S-Temporary Mobile Subscriber Identity (S-TMSI) for an LTE system or an S-Temporary Mobile Subscription Identifier (5G-S-TMSI) for a 5G system). Thus, after the UE's context is released in the RAN, the RAN cannot store information uniquely associated with a particular UE because the RAN no longer has an identifier to uniquely identify the UE. The RAN configured to transmit usage information uniquely associated with a particular UE to a core network, and the core network configured to store the received usage information, enables usage information for a particular UE to be stored even after the UE context is released at the RAN. The core network can store usage information associated with a unique identifier of the UE even when the UE is in an IDLE state, allowing the usage information to be uniquely associated with a particular UE and remain available for transmission back to the RAN when the UE reconnects with the RAN.

[0040] 3GPP standards that define one or more aspects of the present subject matter include 3GPP TS 23.401 "General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) enhancements for Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN) access", 3GPP TS 23.501 "System architecture for the 5G System (5GS); Stage 2", 3GPP TS 29.244 "Interface between the Control Plane and the User Plane Nodes; Stage 3", 3GPP TS 29.274 "3GPP Evolved Packet System (EPS); Evolved General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol for Control plane (GTPv2 C); Stage 3", 3GPP TS 29.501 "5G System; Principles and Guidelines for Services Definition; Stage 3", 3GPP TS 29.502 "5G System; Session Management Services; Stage 3", 3GPP TS 36.413 "Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network (E-UTRAN); S1 Application Protocol (S1AP)" and 3GPP TS 38.413 "NG-RAN; NG Application Protocol (NGAP)". O-RAN Alliance standards, such as those of Working Group 1 (WG1), the Use Cases and Overall Architecture workgroup, may also be relevant to one or more aspects of the current subject matter.

[0041] One or more aspects of the present subject matter may be integrated into transmitter and / or receiver components of a base station (e.g., gNodeB, eNodeB, etc.) in such communication systems. The following is a general discussion of long-term evolution communication systems and 5G New Radio communication systems. I. "Long-term evolution" communication systems

[0042] 1a-c and 2 illustrate an exemplary conventional long-term evolution ("LTE") communication system 100 along with its various components. LTE systems, or 4G LTE, as they are commercially known, conform to standards for high-speed data wireless communications for mobile phones and data terminals. The standards are an evolution of GSM / EDGE ("Global System for Mobile Communications" / "Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution") and UMTS / HSPA ("Universal Mobile Telecommunications System" / "High Speed ​​Packet Access") network technologies. The standards were developed by 3GPP ("3rd Generation Partnership Project").

[0043] As shown in FIG. 1a, system 100 may include an “evolved universal terrestrial radio access network” (“EUTRAN”) 102, an “evolved packet core” (“EPC”) 108, and a “packet data network” (“PDN”) 101 through which EUTRAN 102 and EPC 108 provide communication between user equipment 104 and PDN 101. EUTRAN 102 may include multiple “evolved Node Bs” (“eNodeBs” or “ENODEBs” or “enodeb” or “eNBs”) or base stations 106(a, b, c) (as shown in FIG. 1b) that provide communication capabilities to multiple user equipment 104(a, b, c). User equipment 104 may be a mobile phone, a smartphone, a tablet, a personal computer, a personal digital assistant (“PDA”), a server, a data terminal, and / or any other type of user equipment, and / or any combination thereof. User equipment 104 can connect to the EPC 108 and therefore the PDN 101 via any eNodeB 106. Typically, user equipment 104 can connect to the eNodeB 106 that is closest in distance. In the LTE system 100, the EUTRAN 102 and the EPC 108 cooperate to provide connectivity, mobility, and services to user equipment 104.

[0044] Figure 1b illustrates further details of the network 100 shown in Figure 1a. As previously mentioned, the EUTRAN 102 includes multiple eNodeBs 106, also known as cell sites. The eNodeBs 106 provide radio functionality and perform key control functions, including scheduling of air link resources or radio resource management, active mode mobility or handover, and admission control for services. The eNodeBs 106 are responsible for selecting which mobility management entity (MME, as shown in Figure 1c) serves the user equipment 104 and for protocol features such as header compression and encryption. The eNodeBs 106 that make up the EUTRAN 102 cooperate with each other for radio resource management and handover.

[0045] Communication between the user equipment 104 and the eNodeB 106 occurs over an air interface 122 (also known as the "LTE-Uu" interface). As shown in FIG. 1b, the air interface 122 provides communication between the user equipment 104b and the eNodeB 106a. The air interface 122 uses Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access ("OFDMA") and Single-Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access ("SC-FDMA"), an OFDMA variant, on the downlink and uplink, respectively. OFDMA enables the use of multiple known antenna technologies, such as "Multiple Input Multiple Output" ("MIMO").

[0046] The air interface 122 uses various protocols, including radio resource control ("RRC") for signaling between the user equipment 104 and the eNodeB 106 and non-access stratum ("NAS") for signaling between the user equipment 104 and the MME (as shown in FIG. 1c). In addition to signaling, user traffic is transferred between the user equipment 104 and the eNodeB 106. Both signaling and traffic in the system 100 are carried by physical layer ("PHY") channels.

[0047] Multiple eNodeBs 106 may be interconnected with each other using X2 interfaces 130(a, b, c). As shown in FIG. 1b, X2 interface 130a provides interconnection between eNodeB 106a and eNodeB 106b, X2 interface 130b provides interconnection between eNodeB 106a and eNodeB 106c, and X2 interface 130c provides interconnection between eNodeB 106b and eNodeB 106c. The X2 interfaces may be established between two eNodeBs to provide for the exchange of signals that may include load- or interference-related information and handover-related information. The eNodeBs 106 communicate with the “evolved packet core” 108 via S1 interfaces 124(a, b, c). The S1 interface 124 may be divided into two interfaces: One is the control plane (shown in FIG. 1c as control plane interface (S1-MME interface) 128) and the other is the user plane (shown in FIG. 1c as user plane interface (S1-U interface) 125).

[0048] The EPC 108 establishes and enables "Quality of Service" ("QoS") for user services and allows the user equipment 104 to maintain a consistent Internet Protocol ("IP") address while moving, where each node in the network 100 has its own IP address. The EPC 108 is designed to work with legacy wireless networks. The EPC 108 is also designed to separate the control plane (i.e., signaling) and user plane (i.e., traffic) in the core network architecture, allowing for greater flexibility in implementation and independent scalability of control and user data functions.

[0049] The architecture of the EPC 108, which is for packet data, is shown in more detail in Figure 1c. The EPC 108 includes a Serving Gateway (S-GW) 110, a PDN Gateway (P-GW) 112, a Mobility Management Entity ("MME") 114, a Home Subscriber Server ("HSS") 116 (the subscriber database for the EPC 108), and a Policy Control and Charging Rules Function ("PCRF") 118. Some of these (such as the S-GW, P-GW, MME, and HSS) are often combined into a node according to the manufacturer's implementation.

[0050] The S-GW 110 functions as an IP packet data router and is the user equipment's bearer path anchor in the EPC 108. Thus, as the user equipment moves from one eNodeB 106 to another during mobility operation, the S-GW 110 remains the same, and the bearer path towards the EUTRAN 102 is switched to talk to the new eNodeB 106 serving the user equipment 104. If the user equipment 104 moves to the domain of another S-GW 110, the MME 114 forwards all of the user equipment's bearer paths to the new S-GW. The S-GW 110 establishes bearer paths for the user equipment to one or more P-GWs 112. When downstream data is received for an idle user equipment, the S-GW 110 buffers the downstream packets and requests the MME 114 to identify and re-establish the bearer path to and through the EUTRAN 102.

[0051] The P-GW 112 is the gateway between the EPC 108 (and thus the user equipment 104 and EUTRAN 102) and the PDN 101 (shown in FIG. 1a). The P-GW 112 acts as a router for user traffic and performs functions on behalf of the user equipment. These include IP address allocation for the user equipment, packet filtering of downstream user traffic to ensure it is placed on the appropriate bearer path, and enabling downstream QoS, including data rate. Depending on the services a subscriber is using, there may be multiple user data bearer paths between the user equipment 104 and the P-GW 112. A subscriber can use services on PDNs served by different P-GWs. In this case, the user equipment has at least one bearer path established to each P-GW 112. During handover of a user equipment from one eNodeB to another, if the S-GW 110 also changes, the bearer path from the P-GW 112 is switched to the new S-GW.

[0052] The MME 114 manages the user equipment 104 in the EPC 108 (including managing subscriber authentication, maintaining context for authenticated user equipment 104, establishing a data bearer path in the network for user traffic, and keeping track of the location of idle mobiles that have not detached from the network). For idle user equipment 104 that needs to reconnect to the access network to receive downstream data, the MME 114 initiates paging to identify the user equipment and reestablish a bearer path to and through the EUTRAN 102. The MME 114 for a particular user equipment 104 is selected by the eNodeB 106 from which the user equipment 104 initiates system access. The MME is typically part of a collection of MMEs in the EPC 108 for load sharing and redundancy purposes. In establishing a user's data bearer path, the MME 114 is responsible for selecting the P-GW 112 and S-GW 110 that constitute the ends of the data path through the EPC 108.

[0053] The PCRF 118 is responsible for policy control decision making and controlling the flow-based charging functionality in the Policy Control Activation Function ("PCEF") residing in the P-GW 110. The PCRF 118 provides QoS authorization (QoS Class Identifier ("QCI") and bitrate) that determines how a particular data flow is treated in the PCEF and ensures that this is in line with the user's subscription profile.

[0054] As previously mentioned, IP services 119 are provided by PDN 101 (shown in FIG. 1a).

[0055] 1d shows an example configuration of an eNodeB 106. The eNodeB 106 may include at least one "remote radio head" ("RRH") 132 (typically, there may be three RRHs 132) and a baseband unit ("BBU") 134. The RRHs 132 may be connected to an antenna 136. The RRHs 132 and BBU 134 may be connected using an optical interface compliant with the "common public radio interface" ("CPRI") / "enhanced CPRI" ("eCPRI") 142 specification, using RRH-specific custom control and user plane framing methods or O-RAN Alliance-compliant control and user plane framing methods. The operation of the eNodeB 106 may be characterized using the following standard parameters (and specifications): radio frequency band (Band 4, Band 9, Band 17, etc.), bandwidth (5, 10, 15, 20 MHz), access scheme (downlink: OFDMA; uplink: SC-OFDMA), antenna technology (single-user and multi-user MIMO; uplink: single-user and multi-user MIMO), number of sectors (up to 6), maximum transmission rate (downlink: 150 Mb / s; uplink: 50 Mb / s), S1 / X2 interface (1000Base-SX, 1000Base-T), and mobile environment (up to 350 km / h). The BBU 134 may be responsible for digital baseband signal processing, S1 line termination, X2 line termination, call processing, and monitoring control processing. IP packets received from the EPC 108 (not shown in FIG. 1d) may be modulated into digital baseband signals and transmitted to the RRH 132. Conversely, digital baseband signals received from the RRH 132 may be demodulated into IP packets for transmission to the EPC 108.

[0056] The RRH 132 can transmit and receive wireless signals using an antenna 136. The RRH 132 can convert digital baseband signals from the BBU 134 to radio frequency ("RF") signals (using a converter ("CONV") 140) and can power amplify (using an amplifier ("AMP") 138) for transmission to the user equipment 104 (not shown in FIG. 1d). Conversely, RF signals received from the user equipment 104 are amplified (using AMP 138) and converted (using CONV 140) to digital baseband signals for transmission to the BBU 134.

[0057] Figure 2 shows additional details of an exemplary eNodeB 106. The eNodeB 106 includes multiple layers: "LTE Layer 1" 202, "LTE Layer 2" 204, and "LTE Layer 3" 206. LTE Layer 1 includes the physical layer ("PHY"). LTE Layer 2 includes media access control ("MAC"), radio link control ("RLC"), and packet data convergence protocol ("PDCP"). LTE Layer 3 includes various functions and protocols, including radio resource control ("RRC"), dynamic resource allocation, eNodeB measurement configuration and provisioning, radio admission control, connection mobility control, and radio resource management ("RRM"). The RLC protocol is an "automatic repeat request" ("ARQ") fragmentation protocol used over the cellular air interface. The RRC protocol handles LTE Layer 3 control plane signaling between user equipment and the EUTRAN. The RRC includes functions for connection establishment and release, system information broadcast, radio bearer establishment / reconfiguration and release, RRC connection mobility procedures, paging notification and release, and outer loop power control. The PDCP performs IP header compression and decompression, user data transfer, and sequence number maintenance for radio bearers. The BBU 134 shown in FIG. 1d may include LTE layers L1-L3.

[0058] One of the primary functions of the eNodeB 106 is radio resource management, including scheduling of both uplink and downlink air interface resources for the user equipment 104, control of bearer resources, and admission control. As an agent for the EPC 108, the eNodeB 106 is responsible for forwarding paging messages used to identify idle mobiles. The eNodeB 106 also communicates over-the-air common control channel information, header compression, encryption and decryption of over-the-air user data, and establishes handover reporting and trigger criteria. As previously mentioned, the eNodeB 106 can cooperate with other eNodeBs 106 over the X2 interface for handover and interference management purposes. The eNodeB 106 communicates with the MME of the EPC via the S1-MME interface and with the S-GW over the S1-U interface. Furthermore, the eNodeB 106 exchanges user data with the S-GW over the S1-U interface. The eNodeBs 106 and the EPC 108 have a many-to-many relationship to support load sharing and redundancy among the MMEs and S-GWs. The eNodeB 106 selects an MME from a group of MMEs so that the load can be shared by multiple MMEs to avoid congestion. II. 5G NR Wireless Communication Network

[0059] In some implementations, the current subject matter relates to 5G new radio ("NR") communication systems. 5G NR is the next communication standard after the 4G / IMT-Advanced standard. 5G networks offer higher capacity than current 4G, allowing more mobile broadband users per unit area and enabling consumption of higher and / or unlimited data volumes in gigabytes per month and per user. This may enable users to stream high-resolution media using their mobile devices much of each day (even when it is not possible to do the same with Wi-Fi networks). 5G networks have improved support for device-to-device communication, lower cost, lower latency than 4G equipment, and lower battery consumption. Such networks have data rates of tens of megabits per second for many users, data rates of 100 Mb / s for metropolitan areas, simultaneous 1 Gb / s for users in a restricted area (e.g., an office floor), many simultaneous connections for wireless sensor networks, improved spectral efficiency, improved coverage, improved signaling efficiency, and 1-10 ms latency, a reduced latency compared to existing systems.

[0060] 3 illustrates an exemplary virtual radio access network 300. The network 300 can provide communication between various components, including a base station (e.g., eNodeB, gNodeB) 301, radio equipment 307, aggregation units 302, digital units 304, and wireless devices 306. The components in the system 300 can be communicatively coupled to the core using backhaul links 305. The aggregation units (“CUs”) 302 can be communicatively coupled to the distributed units (“DUs”) 304 using midhaul connections 308. The radio frequency (“RUs”) components 306 can be communicatively coupled to the DUs 304 using fronthaul connections 310.

[0061] In some implementations, the CU 302 can provide intelligent communication capabilities to one or more DU units 308. The units 302, 304 can include one or more base stations, macro base stations, micro base stations, "remote radio heads," etc., and / or any combination thereof.

[0062] In a lower layer split architecture environment, the CPRI bandwidth requirements for NR can be several hundred Gb / s. CPRI compression can be implemented in the DU and RU (shown in Figure 3). In 5G communication systems, compressed CPRI over Ethernet frames is denoted as eCPRI and is the recommended fronthaul network. The architecture can enable standardization of fronthaul / midhaul, which can include fronthaul with higher layer split (e.g., "Option 2" or "Option 3-1" (higher / lower RLC split architecture)) and L1 split architecture ("Option 7").

[0063] In some implementations, a lower layer split architecture (e.g., "Option 7") may include receiver in the uplink, joint processing across multiple transmission points (TPs) for both DL / UL, and transport bandwidth and latency requirements for ease of deployment. Additionally, the subject lower layer split architecture may include a split between cell-level and user-level processing, which may include cell-level processing in a remote unit ("RU") and user-level processing in a DU. Additionally, using the subject lower layer split architecture, frequency-domain samples may be transported over the Ethernet fronthaul, which may be compressed to reduce fronthaul bandwidth.

[0064] 4 illustrates an example communication system 400 that can implement 5G technology and provide users with access to higher frequency bands (e.g., above 10 GHz). The system 400 can include a macrocell 402 and small cells 404, 406.

[0065] The mobile device 408 may be configured to communicate with one or more of the small cells 404, 406. The system 400 may enable separation of the control plane (C-plane) and user plane (U-plane) between the macrocell 402 and the small cells 404, 406 using different frequency bands. In particular, the small cells 404, 406 may be configured to utilize higher frequency bands when communicating with the mobile device 408. The macrocell 402 may utilize existing cellular bands for C-plane communications. The mobile device 408 may be communicatively coupled via the U-plane 412, where the small cell (e.g., the small cell 406) may provide higher data rates and more flexible, cost-effective, and energy-efficient operation. The macrocell 402 may maintain good connectivity and mobility via the C-plane 410. Furthermore, in some cases, LTE and NR may be transmitted on the same frequency.

[0066] FIG. 5a illustrates an exemplary 5G wireless communication system 500 according to some implementations of the present subject matter. The system 500 may be configured to have a lower layer split architecture according to "Option 7-2." The system 500 may include a core network 502 (e.g., 5G Core) and one or more gNodeBs (or gNBs), which may have an aggregation unit (gNB-CU). The gNB-CU may be logically separated into a control plane portion (gNB-CU-CP) 504 and one or more user plane portions (gNB-CU-UP) 506. The control plane portion 504 and the user plane portion 506 may be configured to be communicatively coupled using an E1 communication interface 514 (defined in the 3GPP standard). The control plane portion 504 may be configured to be responsible for executing the RRC and PDCP protocols of the radio stack.

[0067] The control plane and user plane portions 504, 506 of the aggregation unit of the gNB may be configured to be communicatively coupled to one or more distributed units (DUs) 508, 510 according to a higher layer split architecture. The distributed units 508, 510 may be configured to execute the upper RLC, MAC, and PHY layer protocols of the radio stack. The control plane portion 504 may be configured to be communicatively coupled to the distributed units 508, 510 using an F1-C communication interface 516, and the user plane portion 506 may be configured to be communicatively coupled to the distributed units 508, 510 using an F1-U communication interface 518. The distributed units 508, 510 may be coupled to one or more remote radio units (RUs) 512 via a fronthaul network 520 (which may include one of a switch, a link, etc.) and may communicate with one or more user equipment (not shown in FIG. 5a). The remote radio unit 512 may be configured to execute the lower portions of the PHY layer protocol and provide antenna capabilities to the remote unit for communication with user equipment (similar to the discussion above with respect to FIGS. 1a-2).

[0068] Figure 5b shows an example layer architecture 530 for a split gNB. The architecture 530, which may be configured as a virtualized and disaggregated radio access network (RAN) architecture (layers L1, L2, L3 and radio processing may be virtualized and disaggregated in the aggregation unit, distributed unit, and radio unit), may be implemented in the communication system 500 shown in Figure 5a. As shown in Figure 5b, the gNB-DU 508 may be communicatively coupled to the gNB-CU-CP control plane portion 504 (also shown in Figure 5a) and the gNB-CU-UP user plane portion 506. Each of the components 504, 506, 508 may be configured to include one or more layers.

[0069] The gNB-DU 508 may include RLC, MAC, and PHY layers, as well as various communication sublayers. These may include an F1-Application Protocol (F1-AP) sublayer, a GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTPU) sublayer, a Stream Control Transmission Protocol (SCTP) sublayer, a User Datagram Protocol (UDP) sublayer, and an Internet Protocol (IP) sublayer. As previously described, the distribution unit 508 may be communicatively coupled to the control plane portion 504 of the aggregation unit, which may include the F1-AP, SCTP, and IP sublayers, and the Radio Resource Control and PDCP Control (PDCP-C) sublayers. Furthermore, the distribution unit 508 may be communicatively coupled to the user plane portion 506 of the aggregation unit of the gNB. The user plane portion 506 may include the Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), PDCP User (PDCP-U), GTPU, UDP, and IP sublayers.

[0070] Figure 5c shows an example functional split in the gNB architecture shown in Figures 5a-b. As shown in Figure 5c, the gNB-DU 508 may be communicatively coupled to the gNB-CU-CP 504 and the GNB-CU-UP 506 using an F1-C communication interface. The gNB-CU-CP 504 and the GNB-CU-UP 506 may be communicatively coupled using an E1 communication interface. A higher portion of the PHY layer (or Layer 1) may be performed by the gNB-DU 508, and a lower portion of the PHY layer may be performed by the RU (not shown in Figure 5c). As shown in Figure 5c, the RRC and PDCP-C portions may be performed by the control plane portion 504, and the SDAP and PDCP-U portions may be performed by the user plane portion 506.

[0071] Some of the functions of the PHY layer in a 5G communication network may include error detection on transport channels and suggestion to higher layers, FEC encoding / decoding of transport channels, hybrid ARQ soft combining, rate matching of coded transport channels to physical channels, mapping of coded transport channels onto physical channels, power weighting of physical channels, modulation and demodulation of physical channels, frequency and time synchronization, radio characteristic measurements and suggestion to higher layers, MIMO antenna processing, digital and analog beamforming, RF processing, and other functions.

[0072] The MAC sublayer of Layer 2 may perform beam management, random access procedures, mapping between logical channels and transport channels, concatenation of multiple MAC service data units (SDUs) belonging to one logical channel into transport blocks (TBs), multiplexing / demultiplexing of SDUs belonging to logical channels to / from TBs delivered on transport channels to / from the physical layer, scheduling of reporting information, error correction via HARQ, priority handling between logical channels for one UE, priority handling between UEs via dynamic scheduling, transport format selection, and other functions. The RLC sublayer's functions may include forwarding upper layer packet data units (PDUs), error correction via ARQ, reordering of data PDUs, duplication and protocol error detection, reestablishment, etc. The PDCP sublayer may be responsible for forwarding user data, various functions during reestablishment procedures, retransmission of SDUs, discarding SDUs in the uplink, forwarding of control plane data, and others.

[0073] The RRC sublayer of Layer 3 may perform functions such as broadcasting system information to the NAS and AS, establishing, maintaining and releasing RRC connections, security, establishing, configuring, maintaining and releasing point-to-point radio bearers, mobility functions, reporting, and other functions. III. Providing UE-specific services in the RAN

[0074] In some implementations of the present subject matter, a core network (e.g., a core network in an LTE system such as EPC 108 of FIGS. 1a-1c and 2, a core network in a 5G system such as core network 502 of FIG. 5a, or a core network in a 6G or later generation system) communicatively coupled to a radio access network (RAN) (e.g., a RAN in an LTE system such as EUTRAN 102 of FIGS. 1a-1c, a RAN in a 5G system such as RAN 300 of FIG. 3, or a RAN in a 6G or later generation system) may be configured to cause a user equipment (UE) context to be established in the RAN for a particular UE (e.g., UE 104 of FIGS. 1a-1c, UE 408 of FIG. 4, etc.). The UE context may be established according to 3GPP standards. The UE may have a unique identifier (e.g., an identifier stored on the UE's SIM card, such as an IMSI for an LTE system or a SUPI for a 5G system). However, for security reasons, according to the 3GPP standards, the unique identifier of the UE is known to the core network but not to the RAN, so according to the 3GPP standards, a UE connected to the RAN is uniquely identified in the RAN by a temporary identifier (e.g., S-TMSI in an LTE system or 5G-S-TMSI for a 5G system).

[0075] In some implementations of the present subject matter, a RAN may be configured to collect usage information uniquely associated with a UE connected thereto. The RAN may be configured to store the collected information uniquely associated with the UE, such as by storing the collected information in association with a temporary identifier of the UE. Usage information collected by the RAN in association with a particular UE is also referred to herein as "RAN context information."

[0076] The core network may be configured to effect the release of the UE context, for example, in accordance with 3GPP standards, when the UE transitions to IDLE. The RAN may be configured to transmit usage information associated with the UE to the core network in association with the release of the UE context. The RAN may be configured to transmit the usage information as uniquely associated with the UE, such as by associating the usage information with a temporary identifier.

[0077] The core network may be configured to store usage information received from the RAN even when the UE is in an idle state. The core network may be configured to identify the usage information as uniquely associated with a particular UE, for example, using a temporary identifier received from the RAN in association with the usage information. In this manner, the core network stores the received usage information uniquely associated with a UE, such as by storing the received usage information in association with a unique identifier of the UE known to the core network. Thus, usage information uniquely associated with a particular UE is stored in the core network even after the UE context for the particular UE is released at the RAN, without compromising security because the UE's unique identifier remains unknown to the RAN.

[0078] When the UE later reconnects with the RAN, the core network can be configured to transmit the stored usage information for the particular UE to the RAN, so that immediately after the UE reconnects with the RAN, the RAN has access to the usage information uniquely associated with the UE, allowing the RAN to improve its service to the UE. Because the usage information was previously collected by the RAN, it is also uniquely associated with the RAN, allowing the RAN to improve its service to the UE.

[0079] The RAN may be configured to use usage information collected by the RAN relating to a particular UE and later returned from the core network when the particular UE reconnects with the RAN to improve service to the reconnected UE. Generally, the service improvement relies on the RAN using the usage information to fine-tune UE-specific scheduling and radio resource management (RRM) behavior.

[0080] Various usage information associated with a particular UE connected to the RAN may be collected by the RAN. Generally, the usage information may include UE-specific usage statistics and UE-specific usage profiles.

[0081] In some implementations of the current subject matter, the usage information may include one or more of the following parameters: physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) control channel element (CCE) allocation statistics for the UE, block error rate (BLER) distribution for the UE, modulation and coding scheme (MCS) distribution for the UE, uplink power allocation history based on transmit power control (TPC) commands sent in association with the UE, carrier aggregation (CA) band combinations used in association with the UE, and dual connectivity (DC) band combinations used in association with the UE.

[0082] The RAN may be configured to adjust a UE-specific PDCCH search space based on PDCCH CCE allocation statistics for the UE, in other words, based on historical PDCCH CCE allocation statistics for the UE, the RAN may be configured to adjust a UE-specific PDCCH search space.

[0083] The RAN may be configured to adjust the CCE aggregation level of the UE based on PDCCH CCE allocation statistics for the UE, in other words, based on historical PDCCH CCE allocation statistics for the UE.

[0084] The RAN may be configured to adjust a connected mode discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration of the UE based on PDCCH CCE allocation statistics for the UE. In other words, based on historical PDCCH CCE allocation statistics for the UE, the RAN may be configured to adjust a connected mode DRX configuration of the UE.

[0085] The RAN may be configured to adjust an initial MCS target for the UE based on the MCS distribution for the UE, in other words, based on the UE's historical MCS distribution.

[0086] The RAN may be configured to adjust an initial BLER target for the UE based on the BLER distribution rate for the UE, in other words, based on the UE's historical BLER distribution rate.

[0087] The RAN may be configured to adjust the UE's uplink power allocation based on the UE's historical uplink power allocation using TPC commands transmitted in association with the UE. In other words, based on the UE's historical uplink power allocation, the RAN may be configured to adjust the UE's uplink power allocation. Adjusting the UE's uplink power allocation may allow the uplink power allocation to start from a power level closer to the power level last used by the UE (e.g., the time the UE was previously connected to the RAN) instead of gradually ramping up to the power level.

[0088] The RAN may be configured to adjust a secondary cell (SCell) addition strategy based on the CA band combination used in association with the UE. In other words, based on the UE's historical CA band combination usage, the RAN may be configured to adjust the UE's SCell addition strategy. Adjusting the UE's SCell addition strategy may include SCell addition based on event A1 (triggered when the serving cell becomes better than a threshold) or blind SCell addition.

[0089] The RAN may be configured to adjust a secondary node (e.g., SgNB, etc.) addition strategy based on the DC band combination used in association with the UE. In other words, based on the UE's historical DC band combination usage, the RAN may be configured to adjust the UE's secondary node addition strategy. Adjusting the UE's secondary node addition strategy may include SCell addition or blind sequence number (SN) addition based on event A1 (triggered when the serving cell becomes better than a threshold).

[0090] In some implementations of the current subject matter, a core network may be configured to collect information associated with a particular UE while the UE is connected to the RAN. The core network may also be configured to store the collected information in the core network in a unique association with the UE (e.g., store the collected information in a UE context). In this manner, the core network can store information collected by the core network and uniquely associated with a particular UE even after the UE context for the particular UE has been released in the RAN. Information collected by the core network (CN) in association with a particular UE is also referred to herein as "core network context information."

[0091] When the UE later reconnects with the RAN, the core network may be configured to transmit to the RAN the CN context information collected by the core network during the UE's previous connection with the RAN, so that immediately after the UE reconnects with the RAN, the RAN has access to information uniquely associated with the UE collected by the core network, enabling the RAN to improve its service to the UE. The core network may be configured to transmit the CN context information to the RAN together with the RAN context information also transmitted from the core network to the RAN.

[0092] Various information associated with a particular UE connected to the RAN may be collected by the core network. In some implementations of the current subject matter, UE-specific information collected by the core network and stored in the core network (e.g., UE context) may include average downlink and uplink packet sizes per QoS flow (5G QoS Identifiers (5QI) / QoS Class Identifiers (QCI)), average downlink and uplink packet inter-arrival times per QoS flow (5QI / QCI), and time-of-day based traffic usage patterns for the QoS flow (5QI / QCI) average downlink and uplink packet sizes and average downlink and uplink packet inter-arrival times per QoS flow (5QI / QCI).

[0093] The RAN may be configured to perform QCI / 5QI-specific scheduling alpha / beta tuning based on packet inter-arrival times and volumes. In other words, based on the UE's historical QoS flow (5QI / QCI) packet inter-arrival times and volumes, the RAN may be configured to perform QCI / 5QI-specific scheduling alpha / beta tuning for the UE. The QCI / 5QI-specific scheduling alpha / beta tuning for the UE may include tuning proportional fair scheduler alpha / beta parameters for the UE.

[0094] The RAN may be configured to perform UE admission control based on PDCCH CCE allocation statistics for the UE, the MCS distribution for the UE, and the time-of-day traffic usage pattern of the UE. In other words, the RAN may be configured to perform UE admission control based on the UE's historical PDCCH aggregation level, MCS distribution, and time-of-day traffic usage pattern. For example, if a UE has historically used aggressive data and the MCS distribution requires a large number of physical resource blocks (PRBs) to meet its traffic demands, and the current cell load cannot consistently provide such a large number of PRBs, then admission of the UE is unnecessary.

[0095] In some implementations of the present subject matter, a unique identifier of the UE (e.g., IMSI or SUPI) may be made available from the core network to an O-RAN Non-Real-Time RAN Intelligent Controller (Non-RT RIC) or an O-RAN Near-Real-Time RAN Intelligent Controller (Near-RT RIC). In such implementations, the RAN may be configured to collect and send RAN context information to the core network and receive RAN context information (and CN context information) from the core network, as described herein.

[0096] In some implementations of the current subject matter, the RAN may be configured to transmit the collected usage information associated with a particular UE in a UE context release complete message to the core network, as defined by 3GPP. In this manner, the usage information may be transmitted from the RAN to the core network using a message already transmitted from the RAN to the core network according to the 3GPP standards.

[0097] 6 illustrates an exemplary system 600 including a RAN configured to transmit usage information to a core network according to some implementations of the present subject matter. The system 600 of FIG. 6 is a 5G system. Thus, the RAN (e.g., such as the RAN of FIG. 3) includes a gNB 602 (e.g., such as the gNB of FIGS. 5a-5c), and the core network (e.g., such as core network 502 of FIG. 5a) includes an access and mobility management function (AMF) 604.

[0098] As shown in the implementation of Figure 6, the gNB 602 sends a UE context release request to the AMF 604 in accordance with 3GPP standards (606) in association with the particular UE. In response, the AMF 604 sends a UE context release command to the gNB 602 in accordance with 3GPP standards in association with the particular UE (608). In response, the gNB 602 sends a UE context release command to the AMF 604 in association with the particular UE (610). The UE context release command is sent in accordance with 3GPP standards (610), except that the UE context release command also includes RAN context information collected by the RAN. The core network can be configured to later send usage information back to the RAN in association with the UE reconnecting to the RAN, as described herein.

[0099] The system 600 of FIG. 6 may also be implemented in a 6G or later generation system with the RAN transmitting usage information to a core network of the 6G or later generation system.

[0100]

[0033] Figure 7 illustrates another exemplary system 700 including a RAN configured to transmit usage information to a core network in accordance with some implementations of the present subject matter. The system 700 of Figure 7 is an LTE system. Thus, the RAN (e.g., EUTRAN 102 of Figures 1a-1c and 2, etc.) includes an eNB 702 (e.g., eNBs 106 of Figures 1b-2, eNB 301 of Figure 3, etc.), and the core network (e.g., EPC 108 of Figures 1a-1c and 2, etc.) includes a mobility management entity (MME) 704 (e.g., MME 114 of Figures 1c and 2, etc.).

[0101] As shown in the implementation of Figure 7, the eNB 702 sends a UE context release request to the MME 704 in accordance with 3GPP standards (706) in association with the particular UE. In response, the MME 704 sends a UE context release command to the eNB 702 in accordance with 3GPP standards in association with the particular UE (708). In response, the eNB 702 sends a UE context release command to the MME 704 in association with the particular UE (710). The UE context release command is sent in accordance with 3GPP standards (710), except that the UE context release command also includes RAN context information collected by the RAN. The core network can be configured to later send usage information back to the RAN in association with the UE reconnecting to the RAN, as described herein.

[0102] In some implementations, the usage information may be transmitted to the core network as an octet string that is transparent to the core network (610, 710). The octet string may be an opaque binary blob, since the usage information is useful and understandable to the RAN, but not useful or understandable to the core network. In this manner, transmitting the usage information as an opaque binary blob (610, 710) is useful for transferring RAN vendor specific information to the core network that does not need to be interpreted by the core network.

[0103] Figure 8 illustrates an example method 800 according to some implementations of the present subject matter. Method 800 is described with respect to an example system 900 shown in Figure 9 for ease of explanation, but may be implemented in other systems as well. System 900 of Figure 9 is a 5G system, but as previously mentioned, providing user equipment-specific services in a radio access network as described herein may also be performed in other types of wireless communication systems.

[0104] The method 800 includes a UE 902 connecting 802 to a RAN 904 in accordance with 3GPP standards. The RAN 904 of the 5G system 900 of FIG. 9 (e.g., the RAN of FIG. 3) includes a gNB 906 (e.g., the gNB of FIGS. 5a-5c, gNB 602 of FIG. 6, etc.). The UE's connection 802 to the RAN 904 may be the UE's initial connection to the RAN 904 configured to provide UE-specific services as described herein, or may be the UE's initial connection to the RAN 904 after the RAN 904 has been updated to be configured to provide UE-specific services as described herein. Once the UE 902 is connected to the RAN 904, the RAN 904 collects or gathers 804 RAN context information about the UE 902 as described herein.

[0105] Also, a core network 908 (e.g., such as core network 502 of FIG. 5a) communicatively coupled to the RAN 904 collects or aggregates CN context information for the UE 902 as described herein (804). The core network 908 of the 5G system 900 of FIG. 9 includes an AMF 910 (e.g., such as AMF 604 of FIG. 6), an SMF 912, and a UPF 914.

[0106] As shown in FIG. 9 , the core network 908 that collects CN context information (804) may include a UPF 914 that monitors packet volume and packet inter-arrival rate per QoS flow for the UE 902. The UPF 916 may send a PFCP session report request to the SMF 912 (918) in accordance with 3GPP standards, except that the PFCP session report request also includes the collected CN context information (804) as a session report to the SMF 912. In this manner, the CN context information collected by the UPF 914 may be transmitted to the SMF 912 using messages already sent from the UPF 914 to the SMF 912 in accordance with 3GPP standards. The SMF 912 stores (920) the received CN context information. Also, in response to receiving the PFCP session report request, the SMF 912 sends (922) a PFCP session report response to the UPF 914 in accordance with 3GPP standards.

[0107] At some point during the UE's connection with the RAN 904, for example, when the UE 902 transitions to IDLE, the RAN 904 can send 806 a UE context release request message to the core network 908 in accordance with 3GPP standards. In response to receiving the UE context release request message, the core network 908 sends 808 a UE context release command to the RAN 904 in accordance with 3GPP standards. In response to receiving the UE context release command, the RAN 904 sends 810 a UE context release complete message to the core network 908 in accordance with 3GPP standards, except that the UE context release complete message also carries RAN context information collected by the RAN 904 in 804, as described herein. The core network 908 stores 812 the received RAN context information as described herein.

[0108] At some point after the UE context is released, the UE 902 may reconnect 814 with the RAN 904. The RAN 904 may receive 814 RAN context information and CN context information from the core network 902 and use it in providing services to the UE 902 as discussed herein.

[0109] 9 , the UE 902's connection with the RAN 904 (814) includes the UE 902 transmitting an RRC setup request message to the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 904) (924) in accordance with 3GPP standards. In response to receiving the RRC setup request message, the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 904) transmits an RRC setup message to the UE 902 (926) in accordance with 3GPP standards. In response to receiving the RRC setup message, the UE 902 transmits an RRC setup complete (NAS service request) message to the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 906) in accordance with 3GPP standards (928). In response to receiving the RRC setup complete (NAS service request) message, the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 906) transmits an initial UE message (service request) to the core network 908 (e.g., AMF 910) in accordance with 3GPP standards (930).

[0110] In response to receiving the Initial UE message (Service Request), the AMF 910 sends an Update SM Context message to the SMF 912 in accordance with the 3GPP standards (932). In response to receiving the Update SM Context message, the SMF 912 sends an Update SM Context Response to the AMF 910 in accordance with the 3GPP standards (934), except that the Update SM Context Response also carries RAN context information for the UE 902 and CN context information for the UE 902. In response to receiving the Update SM Context Response, the core network 908 (e.g., AMF 910) sends an Initial Context Setup Request to the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 906) in accordance with the 3GPP standards (936), except that the Initial Context Setup Request also carries the RAN context information and CN context information that the AMF 910 received from the SMF 912. In other words, in addition to the initial context setup request carrying information such as expected UE activity behavior (including expected UE activity periods and expected UE idle periods), expected handover (HO) intervals, and expected UE mobility, as defined by 3GPP, the initial context setup request also carries RAN context information and CN context information, which the RAN 904 can use in providing services to the UE 902, as discussed herein.

[0111] In response to receiving the initial context setup request, the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 906) sends an RRC reconfiguration request to the UE 902 in accordance with 3GPP standards (938). In response to receiving the RRC reconfiguration request, the UE 902 sends an RRC reconfiguration response to the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 906) in accordance with 3GPP standards (940).

[0112] In response to receiving the RRC reconfiguration response, the RAN 904 (e.g., gNB 906) sends an initial context setup response to the core network 908 (e.g., AMF 910) in accordance with the 3GPP standards (942).

[0113] In response to receiving the initial context setup response, the AMF 910 sends an update SM context message to the SMF 912 in accordance with the 3GPP standard (944). In response to receiving the update SM context message, the SMF 912 sends an update SM context message to the AMF 910 (946).

[0114] The UE 902 can then communicate over the wireless communication system 900 in accordance with 3GPP standards, and the method 800 continues as previously described (the RAN collects RAN context information (804) and the core network 908 collects CN context information (804)).

[0115] The method 800 may be performed in association with each UE communicatively coupled with the RAN 904. The method 800 may be performed in association with each RAN communicatively coupled with the core network 908.

[0116] In some implementations, the present subject matter may be configured to be implemented in a system 1000 as shown in FIG. 10. The system 1000 may include one or more of a processor 1010, a memory 1020, a storage device 1030, and an input / output device 1040. Each of the components 1010, 1020, 1030, and 1040 may be interconnected using a system bus 1050. The processor 1010 may be configured to process instructions for execution within the system 600. In some implementations, the processor 1010 may be a single-threaded processor. In alternative implementations, the processor 1010 may be a multi-threaded processor. The processor 1010 may be further configured to process instructions stored in the memory 1020 or the storage device 1030, including receiving or transmitting information through the input / output device 1040. The memory 1020 may store information within the system 1000. In some implementations, the memory 1020 may be a computer-readable medium. In alternative implementations, memory 1020 may be a volatile memory unit. Additionally, in some implementations, memory 1020 may be a non-volatile memory unit. Storage device 1030 may provide mass storage for system 1000. In some implementations, storage device 1030 may be a computer-readable medium. In alternative implementations, storage device 1030 may be a floppy disk device, a hard disk device, an optical disk device, a tape device, a non-volatile solid-state memory, or any other type of storage device. Input / output device 1040 may be configured to provide input / output operations for system 1000. In some implementations, input / output device 1040 may include a keyboard and / or a pointing device. In alternative implementations, input / output device 1040 may include a display unit for displaying a graphical user interface.

[0117] 11 illustrates an exemplary method 1100 for providing user equipment-specific services in a wireless access network in accordance with some implementations of the present subject matter. Method 1100 may be performed, for example, using the implementations shown and described with respect to FIGS.

[0118] The method 1100 includes receiving 1102, in a core network (e.g., EPC 108 of FIGS. 1a-1c and 2, core network 502 of FIG. 5a, core network 908 of FIG. 9, etc.), usage information (e.g., RAN context information) uniquely associated with a UE having a UE context from a RAN (e.g., EUTRAN 102 of FIGS. 1a-1c and 2, RAN of FIG. 3, RAN 904 of FIG. 9, etc.). The usage information may be collected by the RAN. The method may also include storing 1104, in the core network (e.g., a memory of the core network), the received usage information after the UE context is released.

[0119] In some implementations, the current subject may include one or more of the following optional features:

[0120] In some implementations, the usage information may include one or more of: a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) Control Channel Element (CCE) allocation statistic for the UE, a Block Error Rate (BLER) distribution for the UE, a Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) distribution for the UE, an uplink power allocation history based on Transmit Power Control (TPC) commands sent in association with the UE, a Carrier Aggregation (CA) band combination used in association with the UE, and a Dual Connectivity (DC) band combination used in association with the UE. Additionally, the method may further include transmitting an octet stream with the usage information from the RAN to the core network.

[0121] In some implementations, the usage information may be sent from the RAN to the core network in a UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMPLETE message.

[0122] In some implementations, the method may further include transmitting the stored usage information from the core network to the RAN after the UE context is released. Furthermore, the RAN may be configured to use the received usage information to fine-tune UE-specific scheduling behavior and CA and DC carrier addition strategies. The RAN may be configured to use the received information in one or more of: adjusting proportional fair scheduler alpha / beta parameters; adjusting a UE-specific PDCCH search space; adjusting a CCE aggregation level; adjusting uplink power allocation to approximately start from the power level last used by the RAN for the UE; adjusting an initial MCS and / or BLER target; and adjusting the connected mode DRX configuration of the UE. The core network may transmit the stored usage information to the RAN in an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP MESSAGE associated with the UE reconnecting to the RAN.

[0123] In some implementations, the method may further include a core network User Plane Function (UPF) (e.g., UPF 914, etc., of FIG. 9 ) collecting mean packet inter-arrival information associated with the UE per Quality of Service (QoS) flow. The method may further include the UPF sending the collected information to a core network Session Management Function (SMF) (e.g., SMF 912, etc., of FIG. 9 ). The UPF may further send the collected information to the SMF in a Packet Forwarding Control Protocol (PFCP) Session Report Request message. The method may further include the SMF sending the collected information to a core network Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) (e.g., AMF 604, etc., of FIG. 6 , AMF 910, etc., of FIG. 9 ). Further, the SMF may send the collected information to the AMF in an Update Session Management (Update SM) Context Response message. Further, the method may further include the AMF sending the collected information and the stored usage information to the RAN. Further, the AMF may send the collected information and the stored usage information to the RAN in an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP MESSAGE. The AMF may also send one or more of uplink and downlink volumes per QoS flow and uplink and downlink flow times per QoS flow to the RAN.

[0124] In some implementations, the core network may store the usage information in association with a unique identifier of the UE, which may be an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) or a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI).

[0125] In some implementations, the RAN includes base stations including eNodeBs (e.g., eNBs 106 in Figures 1b-2, eNB 301 in Figure 3, eNB 702 in Figure 7, etc.), and the core network may be the core network of an LTE system.

[0126] In some implementations, the RAN includes base stations including gNodeBs (e.g., gNBs in Figures 5a to 5c, gNB 602 in Figure 6, gNB 906 in Figure 9, etc.), and the core network may be a core network of a 5G system or a next-generation system after 5G.

[0127] The systems and methods disclosed herein may be embodied in various forms, including, for example, a data processor such as a computer including a database, digital electronic circuitry, firmware, software, or any combination thereof. Furthermore, the above-described features and other aspects and principles of the disclosed implementations may be implemented in various environments. Such environments and associated applications may be specially configured to perform the various processes and operations of the disclosed implementations, or they may include general-purpose computers or computing platforms selectively activated or reconfigured by code to provide the required functionality. The processes disclosed herein are not inherently related to any particular computer, network, architecture, environment, or other apparatus, but may be implemented by any suitable combination of hardware, software, and / or firmware. For example, various general-purpose devices may be used with programs written in accordance with the teachings of the disclosed implementations, or it may be more convenient to configure specialized devices or systems to perform the required methods and techniques.

[0128] The systems and methods disclosed herein may be implemented as a computer program product (i.e., a computer program tangibly embodied in an information carrier (e.g., a machine-readable storage device or a propagated signal) for execution by or to control the operation of a data processing apparatus (e.g., a programmable processor, computer, or multi-computer)). The computer program may be written in any form of programming language, including compiled or interpreted languages, and may be deployed in any form, including a stand-alone program or a module, component, subroutine, or other unit suitable for use in a computing environment. The computer program may be deployed to be executed on one computer or on multiple computers at one site or distributed across multiple sites and interconnected by a communications network.

[0129] As used herein, the term "user" may refer to any entity, including a person or a computer.

[0130] Although ordinal numbers such as first, second, etc. may refer to an order in some circumstances, ordinal numbers used in this document do not necessarily imply an order. For example, ordinal numbers may be used simply to distinguish one item from another. For example, distinguishing a first event from a second event does not necessarily imply a chronological order or a fixed reference system (just as the first event in one paragraph of a description may be different from the first event in another paragraph of the description).

[0131] The above description is intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims. Other implementations are within the scope of the following claims.

[0132] These computer programs, software, software applications, applications, components, or codes, which may also be referred to as programs, include machine instructions for a programmable processor and may be implemented in a high-level procedural and / or object-oriented programming language and / or assembly / machine language. As used herein, the term "machine-readable medium" refers to any computer program product, apparatus, and / or device (e.g., magnetic disks, optical disks, memory, and programmable logic devices (PLDs)) used to provide machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor, including a machine-readable medium that receives machine instructions as a machine-readable signal. The term "machine-readable signal" refers to any signal used to provide machine instructions and / or data to a programmable processor. A machine-readable medium may non-transitory store such machine instructions (e.g., non-transitory solid-state memory or a magnetic hard drive or any equivalent storage medium). Alternatively or additionally, a machine-readable medium may store such machine instructions in a transitory manner (e.g., processor cache or other random access memory associated with one or more physical processor cores).

[0133] To provide for user interaction, the subject matter described herein may be implemented on a computer having a display device, such as a cathode ray tube (CRT) or liquid crystal display (LCD) monitor, for displaying information to the user, and a keyboard and pointing device, such as a mouse or trackball, through which the user can provide input to the computer. Other types of devices may also be used to provide for user interaction. For example, feedback provided to the user may be any form of sensory feedback, such as visual feedback, auditory feedback, or tactile feedback. Input from the user may be received in any form, including, but not limited to, acoustic, speech, or tactile input.

[0134] The subject matter described herein may be implemented in a computing system that includes back-end components such as one or more data servers, or middleware components such as one or more application servers, or front-end components such as one or more client computers having a graphical user interface or web browser through which a user can interact with an implementation of the subject matter described herein, or any combination of such back-end, middleware, or front-end components. The components of the system may be interconnected by any form or medium of digital data communication, such as a communications network. Examples of communications networks include, but are not limited to, a local area network ("LAN"), a wide area network ("WAN"), and the Internet.

[0135] A computing system may include clients and servers. Clients and servers are generally, but not limited to, remote from each other and typically interact through a communication network. The relationship of client and server arises by virtue of computer programs running on the respective computers and having a client-server relationship to each other.

[0136] The implementations presented in the foregoing description do not represent all implementations consistent with the subject matter described herein. Rather, they are merely some examples consistent with aspects related to the described subject matter. While a few variations have been described in detail above, other modifications or additions are possible. In particular, additional features and / or variations may be provided in addition to those presented herein. For example, the implementations described above may be directed to various combinations and subcombinations of the disclosed features and / or combinations and subcombinations of some additional features disclosed above. In addition, the logic flow depicted in the accompanying figures and / or described herein does not necessarily require the particular order depicted or sequential order to achieve desirable results. Other implementations may also be within the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. receiving, in a core network, from a Radio Access Network (RAN), usage information collected by the RAN that is uniquely associated with a user equipment (UE) having a UE context; storing the received usage information in the core network after the UE context is released; and 1. A computer-implemented method comprising:

2. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the usage information comprises one or more of: a Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) Control Channel Element (CCE) allocation statistics for the UE; a Block Error Rate (BLER) distribution for the UE; a Modulation and Coding Scheme (MCS) distribution for the UE; an uplink power allocation history based on Transmit Power Control (TPC) commands transmitted in association with the UE; a Carrier Aggregation (CA) band combination used in association with the UE; and a Dual Connectivity (DC) band combination used in association with the UE.

3. 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the usage information is sent from the RAN to the core network in a UE CONTEXT RELEASE COMPLETE message.

4. 10. The method of claim 1, further comprising transmitting the stored usage information from the core network to the RAN after the UE context is released.

5. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the RAN is configured to use the usage information received from the core network to fine-tune UE-specific scheduling behavior and carrier aggregation (CA) and dual connectivity (DC) carrier addition strategies.

6. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the RAN is configured to use the usage information received from the core network in one or more of: adjusting proportional fair scheduler alpha / beta parameters; adjusting a UE-specific physical downlink control channel (PDCCH) search space; adjusting a control channel element (CCE) aggregation level; adjusting an uplink power allocation to start from approximately the power level last used by the RAN for the UE; adjusting an initial modulation and coding scheme (MCS) and / or block error rate (BLER) target; and adjusting a connected mode discontinuous reception (DRX) configuration of the UE.

7. 5. The method of claim 4, wherein the core network transmits the stored usage information to the RAN in an INITIAL CONTEXT SETUP MESSAGE associated with the UE reconnecting to the RAN.

8. 10. The method of claim 1, further comprising: a User Plane Function (UPF) of the core network collecting mean packet inter-arrival information associated with the UE on a per Quality of Service (QoS) flow basis.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising the UPF sending the collected information to a Session Management Function (SMF) of the core network.

10. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the UPF sends the collected information to the SMF in a Packet Forwarding Control Protocol (PFCP) Session Report Request message.

11. 10. The method of claim 9, further comprising the SMF sending the collected information to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) of the core network.

12. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the SMF sends the collected information to the AMF in an Update Session Management (Update SM) Context Response message.

13. 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising the AMF transmitting the collected information and the stored usage information to the RAN.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the AMF sends the collected information and the stored usage information to the RAN in an initial context setup message.

15. 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the AMF also transmits one or more of uplink and downlink volumes per QoS flow and uplink and downlink flow times per QoS flow to the RAN.

16. The method of claim 1 , wherein the core network stores the usage information in association with a unique identifier of the UE, which is an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) or a Subscription Permanent Identifier (SUPI).

17. the RAN includes base stations including eNodeBs; The core network is a core network of an LTE system. The method of claim 1.

18. the RAN includes base stations including gNodeBs; The core network is a core network of a 5G system or a next-generation system after 5G, The method of claim 1.

19. at least one processor; When executed by the at least one processor, receiving, in a core network, from a Radio Access Network (RAN), usage information collected by the RAN that is uniquely associated with a user equipment (UE) having a UE context; storing the received usage information in the core network after the UE context is released; and at least one non-transitory storage medium storing instructions that cause the at least one processor to perform operations comprising: An apparatus comprising:

20. When executed by at least one processor, receiving, in a core network, from a Radio Access Network (RAN), usage information collected by the RAN that is uniquely associated with a user equipment (UE) having a UE context; storing the received usage information in the core network after the UE context is released; and and at least one non-transitory storage medium storing instructions that cause the at least one processor to perform operations comprising:

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