Method of asynchronous data communication and user equipment registration

Abstract

To provide a method for enabling wireless communication between one or more user equipment and a communication network by a low-density satellite constellation incapable of simultaneously connecting to the user equipment and a terrestrial network, and for registering the user equipment in a mobile communication network.SOLUTION: A terrestrial network (GN) comprising ground stations located on the surface of the Earth and a network core for establishing and controlling communication with a mobile communication network comprising the communication satellite constellation and the core, and a user equipment (UE) located on the surface of the Earth and communicating with the terrestrial network via the communication satellite constellation, wherein a registration request comprising an identifier (ID) of the user equipment is transmitted by the user equipment to the communication satellite constellation. The communications satellite constellation transmits a provisional request rejection message to the user equipment to effect registration of the user terminal with the mobile communications network via the terrestrial network.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention is directed to a method and system for asynchronous data communication, and more particularly to a method for enabling bidirectional data transmission between a user equipment, a satellite constellation, and a land network having a land station connected to the mobile communication network, when the user equipment and / or the land station are not simultaneously visible to at least one satellite of the satellite constellation. Additionally, the present invention provides a method for registering a user equipment with a mobile communication network. [Background technology]

[0002] Currently, more and more devices are being connected to the Internet via mobile phone networks, and as 5G networks are being implemented, network access will become easier not only for the latest generation smartphones but also for other electronic devices, especially for outdoor use, in the so-called Internet of Things (IoT).

[0003] However, 3GPP networks, the set of standards that governs mobile phone networks to which the 5G protocols belong, do not have global coverage and in some places are extremely inadequate, so as an alternative to extending networks using traditional structures, the use of orbiting satellites has been proposed, which allow the establishment of a connection between user equipment (UE) and earth stations or terrestrial segments connected to the network.

[0004] Currently, 3GPP experts are working on a version of the 5G protocol known as the Release 17, or Rel17, specification that will integrate satellite networks for both broadband and Internet of Things connectivity. A network architecture has already been proposed that includes radio stations in satellites to decode messages from user terminals and transmit them to a network core residing in the ground segment. This rather complex architecture has yet to be developed, and the current version of the Rel17 specification does not anticipate it. This network architecture is known as regenerative.

[0005] On the other hand, the 3GPP Rel17 specifications are focused on standardizing architectures that can operate in a transparent mode, where the satellite simply acts as a repeater or mirror for communications from terrestrial terminals and radio stations located in the ground segment and directly connected to the network core. As of today, 3GPP assumes that there is continuous connectivity between the user equipment and the 3GPP network core located in the ground segment.

[0006] Currently, to provide continuous connectivity between user equipment and the ground segment from any satellite, whether transparent or regenerative, it is necessary to restrict the operation of the service to regions on the Earth where the satellite has coverage for both the user terminal, or user equipment, and the ground station.

[0007] With low-earth orbit satellites, it is necessary to deploy a dense constellation of satellites with connections between each other to create a mesh, so that if one of the satellites does not have coverage with a ground station, it can transmit data to other satellites until it reaches a satellite that has coverage with that ground station.With low-earth orbit satellites that do not have mesh connections as in the above case, it is necessary to create a tiered network architecture in which satellites in a given orbit transmit data to more distant satellites in geostationary positions to use as repeaters to reach ground stations that are fixed relative to the position of the geostationary satellites.

[0008] All of the above proposals are either limited in terms of service delivery or extremely costly.

[0009] Therefore, a solution is needed to the above challenges currently presented by the 3GPP architecture for low density satellite networks for Internet of Things services. Summary of the Invention

[0010] The present invention makes it possible to overcome the drawbacks of the state of the art by providing an asynchronous communication method for a communication system comprising a constellation of satellites, a terrestrial network having at least one earth station or terrestrial segment connected to the core of the mobile communication network, and at least one user equipment or terminal communicating with the mobile communication network, said asynchronous communication method being complemented by a method for asynchronous registration of a user equipment in the mobile communication network.

[0011] In a first inventive aspect, the present invention provides a method for producing a cellular membrane comprising: a communications satellite constellation including at least one satellite; a terrestrial network comprising ground stations and a network core located on the surface of the Earth and configured to establish and control communications with a mobile communications network comprising a constellation of communications satellites and the core; a user equipment located on the surface of the Earth, configured to communicate with a terrestrial network via a constellation of communications satellites, and registered in a mobile communications network; An asynchronous communication method for a communication system comprising: The method comprises: When the user equipment has a connection to the communications satellite constellation, transmitting, by a user equipment, a data set to a constellation of communications satellites; storing the data set by the communications satellite constellation; When a communications satellite constellation has a connection with a ground station of a terrestrial network, transmitting the data set to a terrestrial network core by a constellation of communications satellites; Includes:

[0012] Throughout this specification, it should be understood that communications are established asynchronously by radio frequency between one or more user equipment and a ground station via at least one satellite. Preferably, user equipment previously registered with the communications network is located on the Earth's surface at a relatively distant location, e.g., several thousand kilometers, relative to the land stations of the terrestrial communications network, while a constellation of communications satellites orbits the Earth in non-geostationary orbits. Thus, the orbit of each satellite periodically passes through at least one point in the orbit that is visible to the user equipment or the ground station. "Having a connection" or "being visible" should be understood as the relative position between the device and the orbiting satellite such that the curvature of the Earth allows direct transmission by radio frequency, i.e., when the satellite has a connection with either the user equipment or the ground station; for example, from the relative perspective of the ground station, the satellite has a connection with the station when it is above the horizon. In some cases, the user equipment and the ground station are simultaneously visible to the satellite, but the objective of the method of the present invention is more useful when this period of simultaneous connection is short or nonexistent.

[0013] In this way, the communication is considered to be asynchronous or discontinuous due to the curvature of the Earth and the positions of the various elements of the system, and a data set or packet transmitted by an emitting element, either the user equipment or the terrestrial network, cannot reach the receiver without facing a latency until the satellite becomes visible to the receiver. For this purpose, the satellites of the communications constellation, the user equipment and the terrestrial stations comprise data storage means making it possible to store information, i.e., data sets, at least until the moment when they become visible to the receiver. In a preferred example, the data storage means are conventional memory units.

[0014] In a preferred embodiment, the method is configured to use a communication protocol defined for landline networks known as 3GPP 5G NB-IoT, standardized by the 3GPP organization responsible for 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G mobile phone standards. A feature of these standards is that they are designed and configured to be used in landline telephone networks, with all elements of the network interconnected between them up to a management point known as the core of the network (also known as the EPC).

[0015] Preferably, the user equipment is a device with IoT capabilities and compatibility with a 5G standard mobile phone network, and typically comprises a radio transmitter configured to establish two-way communication over radio frequencies with a satellite of the communications satellite constellation. A terrestrial network or land network should be understood as a communications network comprising at least one land station, ground station or ground segment, which should be understood as a link facility between a communications satellite constellation, e.g., according to a 5G architecture mobile phone network, and a core of a mobile communications network comprising at least one authentication server. In one embodiment, the terrestrial network comprises multiple ground stations distributed on the Earth's surface, such that the connection with the communications satellite constellation allows transmission latencies of the order of minutes or seconds.

[0016] Preferably, the communication system is configured to the 3GPP 5G NB IoT standard, in which each satellite of the communication satellite constellation comprises a base communication node that enables direct communication between user equipment and the satellite as well as processing of communication flows, and thus the satellites of the communication satellite constellation behave like a regenerative architecture and are not limited to redirecting information transmitted by user equipment to a ground station but are also involved in the transmission process.

[0017] The user equipments are also preferably IoT type devices capable of communicating over a 5G standard wireless communication network, and each of these user equipments is configured to transmit information specific to each of the user equipments to a destination server over a larger communication network, preferably the Internet.

[0018] The information transmission is achieved by communication with a terrestrial network that communicates with the core of the mobile communications network, e.g., a conventional ground station or terrestrial segment for a communications satellite constellation configured to issue and receive 3GPP 5G NB IoT standard transmissions with modules operating in the 3GPP 5G NB IoT standard in an asynchronous mode between user equipment and the core of the mobile communications network.

[0019] Each satellite of the communications satellite constellation may be a conventional communications satellite having a base communications node enabling communications between the satellite and user equipment, preferably operating in accordance with the 3GPP 5G NB IoT standard, and between the satellite and a ground station, and the satellite further comprises the necessary modules for enabling two-way communications and asynchronous registration to a mobile communications network. Advantageously, the satellite constellation includes a small number of satellites, such as three or four, in a non-geostationary orbit around the Earth, in particular a low orbit. In this way, the manufacturing and maintenance costs of a large satellite constellation are reduced, and the potential of the present invention can be fully utilized, since the costs and complexity of placing one or more satellites in a high or geostationary orbit are not incurred.

[0020] Advantageously, the present invention enables a continuously moving, low-density constellation of satellites to provide internet connectivity to devices anywhere on Earth that need to send or receive data for a particular application, without having a continuous connection via the constellation and ground stations between the user equipment and the core of a terrestrially located mobile communications network.

[0021] In certain embodiments, the method further comprises transmitting the data set to a core of the mobile communication network by a terrestrial network.

[0022] Advantageously, after achieving asynchronous transmission of the data set from the user equipment and the terrestrial network, the terrestrial network transmits said data set to the core of the mobile communication network, for example to another user equipment or terminal connected to the core of the mobile communication network in a conventional manner. The data set is to be understood as information to be transmitted from or to the user equipment or transmission load such as IP network protocol data packets. In a particular embodiment, the user equipment is configured to be connected to the mobile communication network in a conventional manner.

[0023] In certain embodiments, the constellation of satellites includes a first satellite and a second satellite in a non-geostationary orbit, the first satellite receiving and storing a data set from a user equipment, and when the first satellite has a connection with the second satellite, the method includes transmitting the data set by the first satellite to the second satellite.

[0024] Advantageously, the satellite constellation includes multiple satellites in non-geostationary orbits, which means that there are shorter periods when there is no connection between the user equipment or terrestrial network and at least one satellite in the satellite constellation, and the more satellites the satellite constellation has, the shorter the transmission periods. In addition, each satellite is configured to establish communication with another satellite in the satellite constellation, which allows data to be spread from one satellite to another, further reducing transmission periods. Advantageously, a data set consisting of multiple packets can be transmitted by several different satellites in the same satellite constellation, thereby reducing transmission latency. Preferably, for transmitting data packets, the satellites operate in a transparent mode, limited to storing and redirecting the data packets to the ground station. In certain embodiments, the satellite constellation further includes additional satellites, and the method includes transmitting the data set to another satellite by the first or second satellite.

[0025] In certain embodiments, the method further includes transmitting the data set by the second satellite to the terrestrial network when the second satellite has a connection with a ground station of the terrestrial network.

[0026] In some circumstances, the second satellite receiving the data set may connect with the ground station before the first satellite and therefore transmit the data set before the first satellite, speeding up communication. In this case, when the first satellite connects with the ground station and then transmits the data set, the ground network can simply discard this duplicate data.

[0027] In a second inventive aspect, the present invention provides a method for producing a medicament for the treatment of a pulmonary arthritis, comprising: a communications satellite constellation including at least one satellite; a terrestrial network comprising ground stations and a network core located on the surface of the Earth and configured to establish and control communications with a mobile communications network comprising a constellation of communications satellites and the core; a user equipment located on the surface of the Earth, configured to communicate with a terrestrial network via a constellation of communications satellites, and registered in a mobile communications network; An asynchronous communication method for a communication system comprising: The method comprises: When a communications satellite constellation has a connection with a ground station of a terrestrial network, receiving a data set from a core of a mobile communications network via a terrestrial network by a constellation of communications satellites; storing the data set by the communications satellite constellation; When the communications satellites have a connection with a user equipment, transmitting the data set to a user equipment by a constellation of communications satellites; Includes:

[0028] Advantageously, the method of the second inventive aspect provides a solution for the transmission of data from a communication network to a user equipment to complete two-way communication.

[0029] In certain embodiments, the method further comprises receiving the data set from the core of the mobile communications network by the terrestrial network.

[0030] In certain embodiments, the communications satellite constellation includes a first satellite and a second satellite in a non-geostationary orbit, the first satellite receiving and storing a data set from a terrestrial network, and when the first satellite has a connection with the second satellite, the method includes transmitting the data set by the first satellite to the second satellite.

[0031] In certain embodiments, the communications satellite constellation further includes an additional satellite, and the method includes transmitting the data set by the first or second satellite to another satellite.

[0032] In certain embodiments, the method further includes transmitting the data set by the second satellite to the user equipment when the second satellite has a connection with the user equipment.

[0033] In a third inventive aspect, the present invention provides a method for asynchronous registration of a user equipment in a mobile communication network by a communication system, the method comprising: The communication system a communications satellite constellation including at least one satellite; a terrestrial network comprising ground stations located on the surface of the Earth and configured to establish and control communications with a mobile communications network comprising a constellation of communications satellites and a core; a user equipment located on the surface of the Earth and configured to communicate with a terrestrial network via a constellation of communications satellites; Equipped with The method comprises: transmitting, by the user equipment, a registration request including an identifier of the user equipment to a communications satellite constellation; storing an identifier of the user equipment by the communications satellite constellation; transmitting a tentative authentication request rejection message to the user equipment by the communications satellite constellation; When a communications satellite constellation has a connection with a ground station of a terrestrial network, transmitting, by the communications satellite constellation, via a terrestrial network to a core of a mobile communications network, a request for authentication information generated with an identifier of the user equipment; Includes:

[0034] The proposed registration method enables the authentication process of a user equipment with respect to an authentication server of a mobile communication network accessed via a terrestrial network. According to the proposed method, during a period when a satellite of a communications satellite constellation is visible to the user equipment, the satellite receives a user identifier that enables the user equipment to complete authentication with the authentication server. In a conventional authentication process, the identifier is transmitted to the authentication server, but in the proposed method, transmission of the identifier is not possible when the ground station of the terrestrial network that provides access to the authentication server of the mobile communication network does not have a connection with the communications satellite constellation. Instead, the satellite stores the identifier and issues a provisional authentication rejection message that differs from the error message that the user equipment receives in a conventional method. In another example, the provisional rejection message is another type of conventional message that is interpreted by the user equipment as a provisional rejection message. If the authentication information of the user terminal is already stored in the satellite, authentication is completed.

[0035] In a particular embodiment, the method further comprises authenticating the user equipment by the core of the mobile communication network.

[0036] In certain embodiments, when authentication of the user equipment is valid, the method includes transmitting an authentication vector of the user equipment by the core of the mobile communications network via the terrestrial network to the communications satellite constellation.

[0037] In certain embodiments, the communications satellite constellation includes a first satellite and a second satellite in non-geostationary orbit; The method includes, by a first satellite, when the user equipment has a connection with the first satellite: receiving a registration request with an identifier of the user equipment; storing an identifier of the user equipment; sending a provisional authentication rejection message to the user equipment; Includes:

[0038] In certain embodiments, the method further includes transmitting, by the first satellite, an authentication information request generated with the user equipment identifier via the terrestrial network to a core of the mobile communications network when a ground station of the terrestrial network has a connection with the first satellite.

[0039] In certain embodiments, the method includes, by a first satellite, when the user equipment has a connection with the first satellite: receiving a connection request from a user equipment; verifying whether an authentication vector exists for the user equipment identifier; sending an updated location answer to the user equipment; Further includes:

[0040] Advantageously, the method of user registration with a mobile network is completed by the step of sending an updated location answer to the user equipment.

[0041] In certain embodiments, the method includes, by a first satellite, when a ground station of the terrestrial network has a connection with the first satellite: receiving an authentication vector and an updated location answer for the user equipment from a core of the mobile communications network via a terrestrial network; storing the authentication vector and the updated location answer; Further includes:

[0042] In certain embodiments, the method includes, by the second satellite, when a ground station of the terrestrial network has a connection with the second satellite: receiving an authentication vector and an updated location answer for the user equipment from a core of the mobile communications network via a terrestrial network; storing the authentication vector and the updated location answer; Further includes:

[0043] In certain embodiments, the method includes, by a second satellite, when the user equipment has a connection with the second satellite: receiving a connection request from a user equipment; verifying whether an authentication vector exists for the user equipment identifier; sending an updated location answer to the user equipment; Further includes:

[0044] When the second satellite, i.e., the satellite that received the authentication vector AV and updated location answer ULA, becomes visible to the user equipment, the satellite exchanges data with the user equipment, thus completing authentication of the user equipment. Once authentication is asynchronously completed, the user equipment can transmit data packets to a communications network, e.g., the Internet, via the ground station according to the methods of the first and / or second inventive aspects.

[0045] In a particular embodiment, the terrestrial network has a data connection with an authentication server in the core of the mobile communication network; The method includes, when the communications satellites have a connection with a ground station of the terrestrial network, receiving a request for authentication information from the communications satellite constellation; sending an authentication information request to an authentication server; receiving an authentication vector from an authentication server for an identifier of the user equipment; storing the authentication vector; sending an update location request to an authentication server; receiving an updated location answer from the authentication server; transmitting the authentication vector and the updated location answer to the communications satellite constellation; Includes:

[0046] From the perspective of the terrestrial network, the authentication process for a user equipment begins with the initiation of a connection between the ground station and a first satellite and the receipt of an authentication information request AIR for the user equipment, identified by the user equipment's identifier, which in a preferred embodiment is an IMSI identifier. The terrestrial network then transmits the authentication information request AIR and the update location request ULR to an authentication server, which processes the request and generates an authentication vector AV and an update location answer ULA. The authentication vector AV and the update location answer ULA are then stored in the terrestrial network until a second satellite, which may in fact be the same satellite as the one that transmitted the authentication information request AIR, is visible, after which they proceed to transmission.

[0047] Once the ground station is in view of the satellite, the satellite issues an authentication request AIR for each individual user equipment to the ground station. At this point, after receiving the AIR, the ground network establishes contact with an authentication server and, if the authentication is valid, issues an authentication vector AV. This vector is sent from the user equipment to the satellite along with an updated location answer ULA.

[0048] Both the authentication vector AV and the updated location answer ULA are stored in the terrestrial network, and the ground station transmits them to the satellite that is first visible to the user equipment according to its orbit. For clarity, this satellite is called the second satellite, but in fact it may be the same satellite that transmitted the authentication information request AIR.

[0049] In certain embodiments, the communications satellite constellation includes a first satellite and a second satellite in a non-geostationary orbit, and the method further includes generating, by the first satellite, a context for the user equipment based on an identifier and an authentication vector for the user equipment.

[0050] A context should be understood as a data structure containing a set of attributes of a user equipment registered in an operator's network that allows for unique identification and advantageously allows data transmission between the satellite and the user equipment without the need for further authentication.

[0051] In certain embodiments, the method comprises: transmitting the context by the first satellite to a ground station; transmitting the context by the ground station to a second satellite; Further includes:

[0052] Advantageously, this embodiment of the method allows the context to be spread among the satellites of the communications constellation so that the user equipment can communicate with any satellite of the communications constellation.

[0053] In a particular embodiment, when a first satellite has a connection with a second satellite, the method includes: transmitting, by the first satellite, the user equipment context to the second satellite; Further includes:

[0054] Advantageously, this step allows the context to be spread from satellite to satellite without having to go through a ground station.

[0055] These and other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the description of preferred but non-exclusive embodiments thereof, which are illustrated by way of non-limiting examples in the accompanying drawings, in which: [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0056] [Figure 1a] The sequence of information flow as well as the elements of the transmission system are shown. [Figure 1b] The sequence of information flow as well as the elements of the transmission system are shown. [Figure 1c] The sequence of information flow as well as the elements of the transmission system are shown. [Figure 1d] The sequence of information flow as well as the elements of the transmission system are shown. [Figure 2] 1 shows a diagram of the authentication process by the system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0057] In the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the relevant teachings. However, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the present teachings may be practiced without such details.

[0058] The present invention enables wireless communication between one or more user equipment and a communications network by means of a sparse constellation of satellites that cannot simultaneously connect to the user equipment and to a terrestrial network (GN).

[0059] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a communication system includes a plurality of user equipment (UE), which in this example are outdoor household appliances or similar devices, and which have an "Internet of Things" (IoT) configuration, i.e., electronic sensors or devices capable of collecting and transmitting information via the Internet, e.g., to a web server of the user equipment's (UE's) service provider, for further processing. The system also includes a non-geostationary satellite constellation, which in the illustrated example, for simplicity, consists of only two satellites (SAT1, SAT2) with a radio frequency communication base node and a conventional satellite communication link for managing communications according to the 3GPP 5G IoT standard. Each satellite has a computer configured to at least process the signals from the user equipment (UE) and a terrestrial network (GN). The terrestrial network (GN), in the illustrated example, for simplicity, is a communication network including a conventional ground station or terrestrial segment operating according to the 3GPP 5G IoT standard and configured to establish data communications with a mobile communication network, e.g., a 5G mobile network. The connection between the core of the terrestrial network and the core of the mobile network can be made by conventional wiring, in particular to the connection to the authentication server (HSS) and the Internet. In this way, data packets generated by the user equipment (UE) are transmitted from the user equipment (UE) to the satellite constellation, from the latter to the terrestrial network (GN), and from the terrestrial network (GN) to their destination location, for example to a web server of a service provider via the Internet.

[0060] For this, the user equipment (UE) must first be registered or authenticated at the authentication server (HSS). This process is illustrated schematically in the steps of Figures 1a to 1d, which show in a first step how the user equipment (UE) issues an authentication request and sends its corresponding identifier (ID) to the first satellite (SAT1) when it is visible.

[0061] As defined by this method and shown in Figure 2, when the user equipment (UE) has visibility to a first satellite (SAT1), the first satellite (SAT1) receives an identifier (ID), which in the described example is an IMSI identifier, and verifies whether an authentication vector (AV) exists for the IMSI identifier (ID). If, at this point, the first satellite (SAT1) assumes that it cannot establish direct communication with the authentication server (HSS) because it does not have visibility to the ground stations of the terrestrial network (GN), the first satellite (SAT1) issues a provisional rejection message that keeps the user equipment (UE) in a standby state, i.e., blocks repeated authentication requests that would result in an error message in the conventional method, and further stores the authentication information request AIR and the IMSI identifier (ID) in its internal memory until the moment the terrestrial network (GN) becomes visible to the first satellite (SAT1), as shown in Figures 1b and 1c and 2.

[0062] When a first satellite (SAT1) and a ground station of a terrestrial network (GN) have visibility, the first satellite (SAT1) sends an authentication information request AIR generated with the user equipment's IMSI identifier (ID), and the terrestrial network (GN) receives them, and if the authentication is confirmed by the authentication server (HSS), generates an authentication vector AV for the user equipment's (UE) identifier (ID) and an updated location answer ULA. The core of the terrestrial network (GN) then stores this information until at least a second satellite (SAT2) is visible, and the ground station of the terrestrial network (GN) then transmits the authentication vector AV and updated location answer ULA to the second satellite (SAT2) or, if still visible, to the first satellite (SAT1).

[0063] Finally, to complete the authentication, it is only necessary to enable authentication to the user equipment (UE) as shown in Figure 1d and Figure 2, where the first satellite (SAT1) or the second satellite (SAT2) has already received and stored the authentication vector AV and the updated location answer ULA, and when the user equipment (UE) is visible and receives a connection request from the user equipment (UE), the first satellite (SAT1) or the second satellite (SAT2) will verify the existence of credentials for the requesting user equipment (UE) and send the updated location answer ULA to the user equipment (UE), so that the user equipment (UE) is authenticated and can start transmitting data packets.

[0064] Once a user equipment (UE) registers to establish communication with one of the satellites (SAT1, SAT2), the first satellite (SAT1) generates a context for the user equipment (UE) and disseminates it to the remaining satellites in the satellite constellation (SAT). In one example, the first satellite (SAT1) transmits the context to the terrestrial network (GN), which then transmits the context to the second satellite (SAT2), as long as the involved elements have connectivity. In another example, the first satellite (SAT1) transmits the context directly to the second satellite (SAT2).

[0065] Once the user equipment (UE) is registered, it can perform bidirectional communication with the mobile communication network asynchronously. For transmission from the user equipment (UE), i.e., uplink, the user equipment (UE) transmits one or more data packets to the first satellite in the satellite constellation with which it has connectivity (referred to for convenience as the first satellite (SAT1)). In one example, the first satellite (SAT1) stores the data packets internally and transmits them to the terrestrial network (GN) ground station as soon as it passes a point in its orbit where it has connectivity with the terrestrial network (GN) ground station. Finally, the terrestrial network (GN) core transmits the data packets to the mobile communication network core, where they continue to be transmitted to a receiving device, such as another user equipment or a service provider's server, in a conventional manner.

[0066] Alternatively, in another example, a first satellite (SAT1) has a connection with a second satellite (SAT2) and transmits data packets to it, so that both satellites transmit data sets to the ground stations of the terrestrial network (GN), thereby minimizing transmission latency as much as possible.

[0067] In the case of transmission from the communication network to the user equipment (UE), i.e., downlink, the data packets are delivered to the terrestrial network (GS), which then transmits the data packets to the first satellite (SAT1) with which it has a connection. In turn, the first satellite (SAT1) transmits a data set to the user equipment (UE) as soon as it has a connection. If a second satellite (SAT2) is involved, the process is similar to that described for the uplink.

Claims

1. a communications satellite constellation (SAT) including at least one satellite; a terrestrial network (GN) comprising earth stations and a network core located on the surface of the Earth, configured to establish and control communications with a mobile communications network comprising said communications satellite constellation (SAT) and core; a user equipment (UE) located on the surface of the Earth and configured to communicate with said terrestrial network (GN) via said communications satellite constellation (SAT), and registered with said mobile communications network; An asynchronous communication method for a communication system comprising: When the user equipment (UE) has a connection with the communications satellite constellation (SAT), transmitting a data set by said user equipment (UE) to said communications satellite constellation (SAT); storing said data set by said communications satellite constellation (SAT); When said communications satellites (SAT) have a connection with said earth stations of said terrestrial network (GN), transmitting said data set to said core of said terrestrial network (GN) by said communications satellite constellation (SAT); A method comprising:

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of transmitting said data set by said terrestrial network (GN) to said core of said mobile communication network.

3. The communications satellite constellation (SAT) includes a first satellite (SAT1) and a second satellite (SAT2) in a non-geostationary orbit, the first satellite (SAT1) receives and stores the dataset of the user equipment (UE), and when the first satellite (SAT1) has a connection with the second satellite (SAT2), the method includes: transmitting said data set by said first satellite (SAT1) to said second satellite (SAT2); 3. The method of claim 1 or 2, comprising:

4. when said second satellite (SAT2) has a connection with said earth station of said terrestrial network (GN), transmitting said data set by said second satellite (SAT2) to said terrestrial network (GN); The method of claim 3 further comprising:

5. a communications satellite constellation (SAT) including at least one satellite; a terrestrial network (GN) comprising earth stations and a network core located on the surface of the Earth, configured to establish and control communications with a mobile communications network comprising said communications satellite constellation (SAT) and core; a user equipment (UE) located on the surface of the Earth and configured to communicate with said terrestrial network (GN) via said communications satellite constellation (SAT), and registered with said mobile communications network; An asynchronous communication method for a communication system comprising: When said communications satellites (SAT) have a connection with said earth stations of said terrestrial network (GN), receiving a data set from the core of the mobile communications network via the terrestrial network (GN) by the communications satellites (SAT); storing said data set by said communications satellite constellation (SAT); When the communications satellites (SAT) have a connection with the user equipment (UE), transmitting said data set to said user equipment (UE) by said communications satellite constellation (SAT); A method comprising:

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising receiving said data set from said core of said mobile communication network by said terrestrial network (GN).

7. The constellation of communications satellites (SAT) includes a first satellite (SAT1) and a second satellite (SAT2) in a non-geostationary orbit, the first satellite (SAT1) receives and stores the data set from the terrestrial network (GN), and when the first satellite (SAT1) has a connection with the second satellite (SAT2), the method comprises: transmitting said data set by said first satellite (SAT1) to said second satellite (SAT2); 7. The method of claim 5 or 6, comprising:

8. when the second satellite (SAT2) has a connection with the user equipment (UE), transmitting said data set to said user equipment (UE) by said second satellite (SAT2); The method of claim 7 further comprising:

9. A method for asynchronous registration of a user equipment (UE) in a mobile communication network by a communication system, comprising: The communication system includes: a communications satellite constellation (SAT) including at least one satellite; a terrestrial network (GN) comprising earth stations and a network core located on the surface of the Earth, configured to establish and control communications with a mobile communications network comprising said communications satellite constellation (SAT) and core; a user equipment (UE) located on the surface of the Earth and configured to communicate with said terrestrial network (GN) via said communications satellite constellation (SAT); Equipped with The method comprises: transmitting, by the user equipment (UE), a registration request including an identifier (ID) of the user equipment (UE) to the communications satellite constellation (SAT); storing the identifier (ID) of the user equipment (UE) by the communications satellite constellation (SAT); sending a provisional authentication request rejection message to the user equipment (UE) by the communications satellite constellation (SAT); When said communications satellites (SAT) have a connection with said earth stations of said terrestrial network (GN), sending, by said communications satellites (SAT), via said terrestrial network (GN) to said core of said mobile communications network, an authentication information request (AIR) generated with said identifier (ID) of said user equipment (UE); A method comprising:

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising authenticating the user equipment (UE) by the core of the mobile communication network.

11. When the authentication of the user equipment (UE) is valid, the method comprises: transmitting an authentication vector (AV) from the user equipment (UE) to the satellite constellation (SAT) by the core of the mobile communication network via the terrestrial network (GN); 11. The method of claim 9 or 10, comprising:

12. the communications satellite constellation (SAT) includes a first satellite (SAT1) and a second satellite (SAT2) in non-geostationary orbit; The method includes, by the first satellite (SAT1), when the user equipment (UE) has a connection with the first satellite (SAT1), receiving the registration request including the identifier (ID) of the user equipment (UE); storing the identifier (ID) of the user equipment (UE); sending a provisional authentication rejection message to the user equipment (UE); The method according to any one of claims 9 to 11, comprising:

13. The method comprises the steps of: when the ground station of the terrestrial network (GN) has a connection with the first satellite (SAT1), sending an authentication information request (AIR) generated with said identifier (ID) of said user equipment (UE) to said core of said mobile communication network via said terrestrial network (GN); 13. The method of claim 12, comprising:

14. The method includes, by the first satellite (SAT1), when the user equipment (UE) has a connection with the first satellite (SAT1), receiving a connection request from the user equipment (UE); verifying whether an authentication vector (AV) exists for the identifier of the user equipment (UE); sending an Updated Location Answer (ULA) to the User Equipment (UE); 14. The method of claim 13, comprising:

15. The method comprises the steps of: when the ground station of the terrestrial network (GN) has a connection with the first satellite (SAT1), receiving an authentication vector (AV) and an updated location answer (ULA) for said user equipment (UE) from the core of said mobile communication network via said terrestrial network (GN); storing the authentication vector (AV) and the updated location answer (ULA); 15. The method of claim 14, comprising:

16. The method comprises, by the second satellite (SAT2), when the ground station of the terrestrial network (GN) has a connection with the second satellite (SAT2), receiving an authentication vector (AV) and an updated location answer (ULA) for said user equipment (UE) from the core of said mobile communication network via said terrestrial network (GN); storing the authentication vector (AV) and the updated location answer (ULA); 14. The method of claim 13, comprising:

17. The method includes, by the second satellite (SAT2), when the user equipment (UE) has a connection with the second satellite (SAT2), receiving a connection request from the user equipment (UE); verifying whether an authentication vector (AV) exists for the identifier of the user equipment (UE); sending an Updated Location Answer (ULA) to the User Equipment (UE); 17. The method of claim 16, comprising:

18. the terrestrial network (GN) has a data connection with the core authentication server (HSS) of the mobile communication network; The method comprises, when the communications satellites (SAT) have a connection with the ground stations of the ground network (GN), receiving an authentication information request (AIR) from the communications satellite constellation (SAT); sending the authentication information request (AIR) to the authentication server (HSS); receiving an authentication vector (AV) from the authentication server (HSS) for the identifier (ID) of the user equipment (UE); storing the authentication vector (AV); sending an Update Location Request (ULR) to said Authentication Server (HSS); receiving an Updated Location Answer (ULA) from the Authentication Server (HSS); transmitting said authentication vector (AV) and said updated location answer (ULA) to said communications satellite constellation (SAT); The method according to any one of claims 9 to 17, comprising:

19. The communications satellite constellation (SAT) includes a first satellite (SAT1) and a second satellite (SAT2) in non-geostationary orbit, and the method includes: generating, by the first satellite (SAT1), a context for the user equipment (UE) from the identifier (ID) and the authentication vector (AV) of the user equipment (UE); The method of any one of claims 9 to 18, further comprising:

20. The method comprises: transmitting said context by said first satellite (SAT1) to said terrestrial network (GN); transmitting said context by said terrestrial network (GN) to said second satellite (SAT2); 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

21. When the first satellite (SAT1) has a connection with the second satellite (SAT2), the method comprises: transmitting said context of said user equipment (UE) by said first satellite (SAT1) to said second satellite (SAT2); 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising:

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