Method for considering energy intensity of data transmission between a user equipment and a telecommunications network, user equipment, telecommunications network, program, and computer-readable medium

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for taking into account an energy intensity of a data transmission between a user equipment and a telecommunication network, the telecommunication network comprising a core network and an access network, the user equipment being at least temporarily, during a communication exchange with the telecommunication network, by using radio resources of an air interface between the user equipment and the access network, whereby a plurality of radio access technologies and / or a plurality of radio signal transmission schemes are available for transmitting uplink data from the user equipment towards the access network and / or downlink data from the access network towards the user equipment, the plurality of radio access technologies and / or the plurality of radio signal transmission schemes being related or associated with a first low level of energy intensity or at least a second high level of energy intensity, The user equipment is provided with energy priority information and the method comprises a first step of the user equipment receiving from the telecommunication network or a dedicated network node of the telecommunication network at least one energy intensity indication in order to take into account the energy intensity of such data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunication network, the at least one energy intensity indication relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for transmitting uplink data and / or receiving downlink data, and a second step subsequent to the first step, in which the user equipment selects the at least one radio access technology and / or the at least one radio signal transmission scheme in dependence on the energy intensity indication and the energy priority information.

Description

[Background technology]

[0001] The invention relates inter alia to a method for taking into account the energy intensity of a data transmission between a user equipment and a telecommunications network.

[0002] Furthermore, the invention relates to a user equipment arranged to take into account the energy intensity of a data transmission between the user equipment and a telecommunications network.

[0003] Additionally, the present invention relates to a telecommunications network for taking into account the energy intensity of data transmissions between a user equipment and the telecommunications network.

[0004] Furthermore, the invention relates to a program comprising a computer readable program code and a computer readable medium for using the inventive user equipment or the inventive telecommunications network.

[0005] Energy consumption in cellular networks, especially in new systems like 5G, is relatively high. Due to the Shannon-Hartley theorem, a certain minimum amount of energy per transmitted bit is and will always be necessary to achieve any (reliable) data transmission over a wireless transmission channel. Therefore, new approaches are needed as part of the global responsibility of companies and industries to meet CO2 reduction targets. Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] The present invention provides a method for taking into account the energy intensity of data transmission between a user equipment and a telecommunications network at a relatively fine granularity level, and by using and exchanging energy intensity indications by both the telecommunications network and the user equipment, data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunications network that requires a lower amount of energy can be realized, resulting in a reduction in the overall consumption of energy involved in realizing wireless data transmission. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The object of the invention is a method for taking into account the energy intensity of a data transmission between a user equipment and a telecommunication network, the telecommunication network comprising an access network, wherein said user equipment, at least temporarily, during a communication exchange with said telecommunication network, is able to use a plurality of radio access technologies and / or a plurality of radio signal transmission schemes for transmitting uplink data from said user equipment towards said access network and / or downlink data from said access network towards said user equipment, said plurality of radio access technologies and / or said plurality of radio signal transmission schemes being related or associated with a first low level of energy intensity or at least a second high level of energy intensity, and wherein said user equipment is adapted to receive a first low level of energy intensity and / or a second high level of energy intensity. is achieved by a method comprising a first step of the user equipment receiving from the telecommunication network or a dedicated network node of the telecommunication network at least one energy intensity indication comprising energy priority information and taking into account the energy intensity of such data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunication network, the at least one energy intensity indication relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for transmitting uplink data and / or receiving downlink data, and a second step subsequent to the first step of the user equipment selecting the at least one radio access technology and / or the at least one radio signal transmission scheme depending on the energy intensity indication and the energy priority information.

[0008] According to the invention it is advantageously possible to specifically adjust, in a fine-grained manner, the energy consumption or energy intensity of a specifically considered wireless data transmission between the considered user equipment and a corresponding network node (typically a base station entity) of the telecommunications network depending on the energy intensity indication received by the user equipment from the telecommunications network and depending on a corresponding selection or indication by the user equipment of at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme.

[0009] In modern mobile communication systems, especially cellular communication systems, there are multiple ways to provide the transmission of data, starting from the use of very different radio technologies of different generations of radio access technologies (like GSM / UMTS / LTE / NB-IoT / LTE-M / 5G) in public land mobile networks, as well as different variants of WiFi technology, also called Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs). This flexibility of having multiple accesses to enable data transfer (or multiple radio access technologies or multiple radio signal transmission methods) leads to a mainly binary decision between the selection of a preferred radio access technology and / or the use of either WiFi technology and / or cellular technology, especially when both cellular and WiFi access are available, as is often the case in a typical home.

[0010] In conventionally known telecommunication networks, the topic of high level of importance of energy consumption is known per se, but the implemented wireless standards, especially cellular standards, are overwhelmingly used today, such as LTE or 5G. It does not provide a concrete solution or implementation that specifically considers, in addition to other considerations, the amount of energy used to transmit a specifically considered amount of data (or the energy intensity of the considered data transmission), or the connections or data flows specifically considered at a fine-grained level. Any data transmission over a wireless channel requires a minimum amount of energy per transmitted bit, and this principle was already outlined many years ago by Claude Shannon and Ralph Hartley in the famous and still valid Shannon-Hartley theorem, which states that Eb / N0>ln2, i.e. the transmission of a certain number of bits requires a minimum amount of energy (Eb). The faster the transmission of data over a non-ideal channel, the more energy is required (or the more data is transferred, the greater the power consumption). With regard to the above mentioned wireless technology selection (i.e., selecting a preferred radio access technology and / or deciding between using either WiFi and / or cellular technologies), traditionally there is typically no need to consider minimizing the energy (or energy intensity) required for such transmissions, since traditionally this selection is primarily driven by subscription costs, simple signal quality level service requirements, and therefore no energy budget or energy priority to be used is traditionally considered, either on the device (user equipment) side or on the network side, for a particular amount of data, or for a particular connection or data flow.

[0011] According to the present invention, the device side (i.e., user equipment) is involved in defining or determining the energy intensity to be applied to a certain amount of data or to a certain connection or data flow, i.e., the user equipment is the control point for minimizing the power consumption of the network as well as its own. Thus, according to the present invention, the energy intensity of the data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunication network (a network node that is typically a base station entity) is taken into account (or can be taken into account). Typically, the user equipment is at least temporarily in a communication exchange with the telecommunication network. Using the radio resources of the air interface between the user equipment and the access network, multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission schemes can be used to transmit uplink data (from the user equipment towards the access network) and / or downlink data (from the access network towards the user equipment). Preferably, the telecommunication network also includes (or is assigned to or associated with) a core network in addition to the access network.

[0012] The multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission schemes relate or are associated with a first lower level of energy intensity or at least a second higher level of energy intensity, and the user equipment is provided with energy priority information, typically a preference for either the lower or higher level of energy intensity. In order to take into account (or be able to take into account) the energy intensity of such data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunication network at a relatively fine level, according to the present invention, it is proposed that in a first step the user equipment receives from the telecommunication network or from its dedicated network node at least one energy intensity indication, the at least one energy intensity indication relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for transmitting uplink data and / or receiving downlink data. In a second step, following the first step, at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme is selected by the user equipment depending on the (user equipment's) energy intensity indication and the energy priority information.

[0013] Thus, according to the invention, at least one energy intensity indication (associated or associated with at least one, typically more than one, one or more radio access technologies and / or radio signal transmission schemes for transmitting uplink data and / or receiving downlink data) is received by the user equipment, and one of these radio access technologies or transmission schemes is selected depending on the energy priority information (and what the energy intensity indication indicates). Thus, since there are often multiple ways of forwarding a data packet (upstream or downstream direction between the user equipment and the telecommunication network) with different radio technologies, which have very different energy consumptions (or energy intensities), the invention proposes to utilize information on the "energy budget" or "energy priority" (contained in the energy priority information and the energy intensity indication) for the routing of said data packets. Thus, the invention relates in particular to the configuration of the user equipment (or the communication device used) and the associated signaling (energy intensity indication between the telecommunication network and the user equipment) for specifically setting different "energy consumption" and / or "persistence" profiles. One particular decision to be made according to the present invention concerns the decision to use either WiFi or cellular radio access technology (e.g., WiFi vs. LTE), although the present invention is in no way limited to deciding only between these two access technologies. In fact, many more than two radio access technologies (or signaling schemes) may be utilized in the context of the present invention, and as a function of the energy priority information signaled by the energy intensity indication, are taken into account in deciding which radio access technology and / or which radio signal transmission scheme to use in a particularly considered communication of the user equipment with the respective base station entity of the telecommunications network. In particular, the decision or selection (which radio access technology and / or which radio signal transmission scheme should be used) is made as part of the initial access selection or during the lifetime of one or more connections over various different radio technologies.

[0014] According to the invention, the telecommunication network and the user equipment are assumed to support a choice of multiple radio access technologies and / or transmission schemes. Possible radio access technologies in this sense are technologies using licensed or unlicensed spectrum, using techniques such as GPRS / EDGE, UMTS / HSPA, LTE / LTE-A, WIFI, etc., with features such as higher order modulation, power control, MIMO, beamforming, carrier aggregation, etc.

[0015] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the energy priority information relates to or reflects a preference stored in the user equipment, and in particular provided by a user of the user equipment, for either a lower level of energy intensity or a higher level of energy intensity.

[0016] Thereby, advantageously, the decision or selection to be made (i.e. which radio access technology and / or which radio signal transmission scheme should be used in a particular situation) can be based on the priority (at the user equipment level), i.e. whether the energy priority information reflects a preference for either a lower level of energy intensity or a higher level of energy intensity. Of course, according to variants or embodiments of the invention, a higher granularity of such priority is possible, for example in the form of having three different levels of energy priority information, such as "low", "medium", "high", and / or in the form of energy priority information expressed in terms of quality of service requirements stored in the user equipment or provided by a customer or user of the user equipment (e.g. ad-hoc or previously stored). The energy priority information does not have to be defined by the customer or user of the user equipment, but can also be defined by the network operator's settings, for example depending on the type of contract for the particular user equipment.

[0017] According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the at least one energy intensity indication is received by the user equipment via one or more of the following: - a broadcast control channel or a common broadcast control channel, in particular a broadcast control channel according to either the LTE (Long Term Evolution) radio access technology or the NR (New Radio) radio access technology, or a WiFi broadcast channel, or any other broadcast channel of a relevant radio access technology, - A dedicated control channel for a user equipment or a group of user equipment. as part of a registration procedure of a user equipment to a telecommunications network or as part of a service set-up procedure of a user equipment to a telecommunications network, As part of pre-configuration using a secure subscriber element such as a Universal Integrated Circuit Card (UICC).

[0018] Thereby, advantageously, the energy intensity indication may be capable of being transmitted to the user equipment using a number of different routes or modalities.

[0019] According to the invention it is further preferred that the user equipment is a mobile user equipment, the user equipment being capable of receiving from a telecommunications network. -Mobile communications networks and / or mobile access from mobile communications networks; -Fixed-line access from a fixed-line telecommunications network using Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) capabilities.

[0020] This advantageously allows the concepts of the present invention to be applied to many different situations and scenarios.

[0021] According to a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the at least one energy intensity indication comprises at least a first energy intensity finger indication portion and a second energy intensity indication portion, the first energy intensity indication portion relating to or associated with a first radio access technology and / or a first radio signal transmission scheme and the second energy intensity indication portion relating to or associated with a second radio access technology and / or a second radio signal transmission scheme, wherein in particular the at least two energy intensity indications refer to one single radio access technology depending on different operation modes and / or different radio signal transmission schemes used based on that radio access technology.

[0022] This advantageously enables, in accordance with the present invention, the content of the energy intensity indication (or the content of a plurality of energy intensity indications) to convey a fine-grained indication as to which radio access technologies and / or which radio signal transmission schemes within a radio access technology are associated with, rather, lower energy intensities or rather higher energy intensities.

[0023] According to another preferred embodiment of the invention, the at least one energy intensity indication refers to the energy intensity of the data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunications network with respect to one or more of the following measures of energy intensity: - the energy used per amount of data transmitted, e.g. the value of Joules required per Mbyte transmitted, - the energy used per bandwidth used, e.g. the value of the joules required per bandwidth, in particular Mbit / s, applies, -The energy used per latency achieved, such as the value of Joules required per latency expressed in milliseconds. In particular, the first energy intensity indication refers to a first one of such energy intensity scales and the second energy intensity indication refers to a second one of such energy intensity scales, where at least one of the at least one energy intensity indications and / or at least one of the energy intensity indication portions refers to or indicates one of at least three defined different levels of energy intensity, in particular one of at least four different levels of energy intensity.

[0024] Thereby, according to the invention, it is advantageously possible for the energy intensity indication to refer to different or multiple scales and / or for the energy intensity indication to indicate only two different values ​​(e.g., "high(er)" or "low(er)").

[0025] According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention the energy priority information defines whether a significantly lower level of energy intensity or a significantly higher level of energy intensity is preferred by the user equipment or its user for at least one situation of both the user equipment and at least local network conditions of the access network and / or the telecommunication network, where in particular the energy priority information is transmitted by the user equipment to the telecommunication network or to a dedicated network node thereof.

[0026] This advantageously allows for a flexible handling of minimizing energy intensity according to the invention. Usually, the level of quality of service is typically associated with the energy intensity, i.e. a fairly high applied energy intensity corresponds to a fairly high possible quality of service level, and conversely a fairly low applied energy intensity corresponds to a fairly low possible quality of service level. Although a user or customer using user equipment may usually be inclined to prefer (and accept a lower quality of service level) a lower energy intensity (especially for some of the telecommunication services required), even for such a user or customer there may be situations in which quality of service takes priority over energy intensity. The way in which the telecommunications network (or the base station entity serving a particular user equipment) is actually informed (by the user equipment) about the selection or selection of the user equipment (informed by the energy intensity indication received by the telecommunications network as a function of the energy priority information) may differ according to different embodiments of the invention or even according to different situations or scenarios: one possibility is to simply transmit (by the user equipment) the energy priority information to the telecommunications network (or to a base station entity or another dedicated network node); another possibility is to select (to the user equipment) one of the radio access technologies and / or one of the radio signal transmission schemes indicated or referenced by the energy intensity indication. This latter approach offers the possibility that the actual value (or content) of the energy priority information is rather hidden from the telecommunications network and only the result of the decision is communicated or shared with the telecommunications network or its dedicated network node. However, information regarding which radio access technology and / or which radio signal transmission scheme (or which energy priority information) to use is transmitted to the telecommunications network (or the respective network nodes), which controls or configures the respective components and functions (in particular the scheduler) in such a way that the user preferences are implemented, or at least as truly as possible.

[0027] Furthermore, in accordance with the present invention, the energy priority information preferably corresponds to user preferences of a user of the user equipment and / or subscription-related settings reflecting predetermined energy intensity settings which may in particular differ at different times according to one or more of the following scenarios: Energy priority information is generally set to a relatively low energy intensity, particularly as part of a green mode subscription associated with the user equipment. The energy priority information may be set to prefer a relatively low energy intensity under normal circumstances, but may be set to a boost mode setting that corresponds to preferring a higher energy intensity at a particular time and at a particular request from a user of the user equipment.

[0028] Thereby, according to the present invention, advantageously, the overall energy intensity can be lowered for a user equipment, which can be fully aligned with the preferences and decisions of the user of the user equipment, i.e. having or experiencing a lower quality of service (associated with or associated with the use of a lower energy intensity) corresponds to the user's decision and is not imposed by the telecommunications network or its operator.

[0029] The present invention also relates to a user equipment configured to take into account the energy intensity of data transmission between the user equipment and a telecommunications network, the user equipment being at least temporarily configured to take into account the energy intensity of data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunications network, in a communication exchange with the telecommunications network using radio resources of an air interface between the user equipment and an access network of the telecommunications network, such that the multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission schemes may be used to transmit uplink data (from the user equipment to the access network) and / or downlink data (from the access network to the user equipment), the multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission schemes are related or associated with a first lower level of energy intensity or at least a second higher level of energy intensity, the user equipment being equipped with energy priority information. Wherein, in order to take into account the energy intensity of such data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunications network, the user equipment is configured as follows: The user equipment receives, from the telecommunications network or from a dedicated network node thereof, at least one energy intensity indication, the at least one energy intensity indication relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for transmitting uplink data and / or for receiving downlink data. At least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme is selected by the user equipment depending on the energy strength indication and the energy priority information.

[0030] This advantageously allows the energy intensity to be modulated or modified with respect to a particular user equipment, particularly based on the decisions or preferences of a user of the user equipment.

[0031] The present invention also relates to a telecommunications network for taking into account the energy intensity of data transmission between a user equipment and the telecommunications network, the telecommunications network comprising a core network and an access network, the user equipment at least temporarily communicating with the telecommunications network. Using radio resources of an air interface between the user equipment and the access network, such that multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission schemes can be used to transmit uplink data from the user equipment towards the access network and / or to transmit downlink data from the access network towards the user equipment. The multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission schemes relate or relate to a first lower level of energy intensity or at least a second higher level of energy intensity. Wherein, in order to take into account the energy intensity of such data transmission between the user equipment and the telecommunications network, the telecommunications network is configured as follows: - the telecommunications network or a dedicated network node thereof transmits at least one energy intensity indication to a user equipment, the at least one energy intensity indication relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for receiving uplink data and / or transmitting downlink data. At least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme is selected by the user equipment depending on the energy strength indication and the energy priority information.

[0032] Thereby, advantageously it becomes possible for the telecommunications network as well to modulate or modify the energy intensity for a particular user equipment, in particular based on decisions or preferences of a user of the user equipment.

[0033] Furthermore, the present invention relates to a program comprising computer readable program code which, when executed on a computer or a network node of a telecommunications network or user equipment, or when executed partly on a network node of a telecommunications network and / or partly on a user equipment, causes a computer or a network node of a telecommunications network or user equipment to carry out the method of the present invention.

[0034] The invention also relates to a computer-readable medium comprising instructions which, when executed on a computer, or on a network node of a telecommunications network, or on a user equipment, or partly on a network node of a telecommunications network and / or partly on a user equipment, cause the computer or the network node of the telecommunications network or the user equipment to carry out the method of the invention.

[0035] These and other characteristics, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which illustrate, by way of example, the principles of the invention. The description is given for the sake of example only, without limiting the scope of the invention. The reference figures quoted below refer to the attached drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0036] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 illustrates, in a schematic manner, a telecommunications network which exemplarily comprises a fixed-line part, a number of radio cells served by a number of base station entities and user equipment served by the telecommunications network. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary diagram of different energy efficiencies of different radio access technologies and / or radio signal transmission schemes usable by user equipment connected to a telecommunication network. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0037] The present invention will be described with respect to particular embodiments and with reference to certain drawings but the invention is not limited thereto but only by the claims. The drawings described are purely schematic and non-limiting. In the drawings, the size of some of the elements may be exaggerated and not drawn to scale for illustrative purposes.

[0038] Where an indefinite or definite article is used when referring to a singular noun e.g. "a", "an" or "the", this includes a plural of that noun unless something else is specifically stated.

[0039] Moreover, terms such as first, second, third, etc. in the description and claims are used to distinguish between similar elements and not necessarily to describe a sequential or chronological order, and it is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances, and that the embodiments of the invention described herein are capable of operating in sequences other than those described or illustrated herein.

[0040] In Fig. 1, a telecommunications network 100 is shown diagrammatically. In the illustrated example, the telecommunications network 100 is represented as comprising a fixed-line portion (comprising a fixed-line connected WiFi access point 111) and a number of radio cells served by a number of base station entities 112, 113, 114. Furthermore, a user equipment 20 is diagrammatically shown to be served by the telecommunications network 100. Typically, but not necessarily, the telecommunications network 100 also comprises a core network 120 in addition to the access network 110. The telecommunications network 100 is preferably a cellular telecommunications network, typically comprising a number of network cells (served by base station entities 112, 113, 114) and / or a fixed-line telecommunications network (or including a fixed-line portion). The user equipment 20 is exemplarily shown as being in contact with the telecommunications network 100, i.e. exchanging data (i.e. typically in the form of data packets) either from the user equipment 20 towards the telecommunications network 100 (in the context of the present invention, also referred to as uplink data 21 and diagrammatically indicated in FIG. 1 by an upwards arrow) or vice versa, i.e. from the telecommunications network 100 towards the user equipment 20 (in the context of the present invention, also referred to as downlink data 22 and diagrammatically indicated in FIG. 1 by a downwards arrow).

[0041] With regard to these data transmissions between the user equipment 20 and the telecommunication network 100, the present invention provides a method (corresponding user equipment 20 and corresponding telecommunication network 100) for taking into account the energy intensity of these data exchanges or data transmissions in the uplink and / or downlink direction. The user equipment 20 typically, at least temporarily, performs a communication exchange with the telecommunication network 100 using radio resources of the air interface between the user equipment 20 and the access network 110 (i.e. the respective base station entity 112, 113, 114 or WiFi access point 111). With regard to this communication exchange or to realize this data transmission or transmissions, typically multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission schemes (or multiple radio signal transmission schemes as part of one (or each) radio access technology) are available or usable for transmitting such uplink data 21 or downlink data 22.

[0042] Indeed, such multiple radio access technologies and / or radio signal transmission schemes (or combinations thereof) may either be with a relatively low or low energy intensity (according to different measures to be discussed in more detail) or else with a relatively high or higher energy intensity, or of course may be ranked with respect to their energy intensity. According to the present invention, these radio access technologies and / or radio signal transmission schemes relate or relate to a first lower level of energy intensity or at least a second higher level of energy intensity (or of course relate or relate to a finer granularity with two or more different levels of energy intensity), and the user equipment 20 is provided with energy priority information 150.

[0043] According to the invention, in order to be able to take into account the energy intensity of such data transmission between the user equipment 20 and the telecommunication network 100, the user equipment 20 receives from the telecommunication network 100 or from a dedicated network node thereof (i.e. the telecommunication network 100 or its dedicated network node transmits towards the user equipment 20) at least one energy intensity indication 250 relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for transmitting uplink data and / or receiving downlink data. The at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme is then selected by the user equipment 20 depending on the energy intensity indication 250 and the energy priority information 150 of the user equipment 20. Preferably, the energy priority information 150 relates to or reflects a preference stored in the user equipment 20, in particular provided by a user of the user equipment 20, for either a lower level of energy intensity or a higher level of energy intensity.

[0044] In Fig. 2, this transmission of energy intensity indications 250 (related to radio access technologies and / or radio signal transmission schemes) is shown diagrammatically and exemplarily by one diagram of different energy efficiencies of different radio access technologies and / or radio signal transmission schemes that can be used by user equipments 20 connected to the telecommunications network 100. For example, the base station entity 112 can use (or propose) either a first (cellular) radio access technology or radio signal transmission scheme with a first (higher) energy intensity (designated by reference number 330 in the central part of Fig. 2) or a second (cellular) radio access technology or radio signal transmission scheme with a second (lower) energy intensity (designated by reference number 331 in the central part of Fig. 2) in the communication between the user equipments 20 and the base station entity 112 (either in the uplink direction and / or in the downlink direction). Furthermore, the WiFi access point (or base station entity) 111 may similarly use (or propose) either a third (non-cellular) radio access technology or radio signal transmission scheme (designated by reference number 310 in the center of FIG. 2 ) with a third (higher) energy intensity or a fourth (non-cellular) radio access technology or radio signal transmission scheme (designated by reference number 311 in the center of FIG. 2 ) with a fourth (lower) energy intensity in the communication between the user equipment 20 and the WiFi access point 111 (either in the uplink direction and / or the downlink direction). In such a scenario, the energy intensity indication 250 may, for example, indicate a lower energy intensity for the second and fourth radio access technologies or radio signal transmission schemes and a higher energy intensity for the first and third radio access technologies or radio signal transmission schemes. On the right side of FIG. 2, a schematic diagram is shown regarding the involved required energy (in Joules) E(J) for different bandwidths of a certain first transmission (scheme) 380 (radio access technology or transmission scheme) or a certain second transmission (scheme) 390 (radio access technology or transmission scheme).It can be seen that a lower bandwidth transmission for the first transmission (scheme) 380 is more energy intensive (per bandwidth) compared to a higher bandwidth transmission (per bandwidth), whereas a lower bandwidth transmission for the second transmission (scheme) 390 is less energy intensive (per bandwidth) compared to a higher bandwidth transmission (per bandwidth). In particular, according to the present invention, the energy intensity indication 250 (which the user equipment 20 receives from its respective base station entity, e.g. base station entity 112) also includes an energy intensity indication 250 (or energy intensity indication portion 250) relating to one or more radio access technologies or radio signal transmission schemes that the user equipment 20 can receive (or is able to receive) from another base station entity, in particular from the WiFi access point 111 (and vice versa).

[0045] Thus, preferably, the at least one energy intensity indication 250 includes at least a first energy intensity indication and a second energy intensity indication, the first energy intensity indication pertaining to or associated with a first radio access technology and / or a first radio signal transmission scheme (e.g., of (or may be provided by) a base station entity to which the user equipment 20 is camped). The second energy intensity indication pertaining to or associated with a second radio access technology and / or a second radio signal transmission scheme (e.g., of (or may be provided by) either the same base station entity or another base station entity (or WiFi access point) to which the user equipment 20 is not currently connected). In particular, the at least two energy intensity indications refer to one single radio access technology according to different operation modes and / or different radio signal transmission schemes used based on that radio access technology.

[0046] In particular, according to the invention, the at least one energy intensity indication 250 refers to the energy intensity of the data transmission between the user equipment 20 and the telecommunications network 100 in terms of one or more of the following measures of energy intensity: - the energy used per amount of data transmitted, for example the value of Joules required per Mbyte transmitted; - the energy used per bandwidth used, for example in terms of the joules required per bandwidth (e.g. Mbit / s), -The energy used per latency achieved, such as the value of Joules required per latency expressed in milliseconds. Here, in particular, the first energy intensity indication 250 refers to a first one of such energy intensity scales and the second energy intensity indication 250 refers to a second one of such energy intensity scales, where at least one energy intensity indication 250 and / or at least one of the energy intensity indicators refers to or indicates one of at least three defined different levels of energy intensity, in particular at least four different levels of energy intensity, such as, for example, low energy intensity, medium energy intensity, high energy intensity (for three different levels), or lowest energy intensity, lower energy intensity, higher energy intensity, and highest energy intensity (for four different levels).

[0047] According to the invention, the energy priority information 150 defines in particular whether a rather low level of energy intensity or a rather high level of energy intensity is preferred by the user equipment 20 or its user for both at least one condition of the user equipment 20 and at least local network conditions of the access network 110 and / or the telecommunications network 100, and the energy priority information 150 is in particular transmitted by the user equipment 20 to the telecommunications network 100 or a dedicated network node thereof.

[0048] According to a particularly preferred alternative of the invention, each technology "ranks" its particular energy consumption (or energy intensity), e.g. in Joules / Mbps or Joules / latency or Joules / Mbyte. This can also be done for multiple configurations to allow for different consumption models (e.g. low energy consumption but low bit rate and high delay vs. high bit rate, low delay and high energy consumption vs. high bit rate, low delay, maximum energy consumption, high bit rate and minimum delay). One method of announcement according to the invention is to use a common control channel of the particular radio technology (e.g. BCCH for LTE / NR).

[0049] According to a further particularly preferred alternative of the invention, as part of the registration procedure or as part of the service setup procedure, the telecommunications network 100 (either the radio access network 110 or the core network 120, which accommodates multiple access, i.e. radio access technologies and / or radio signal transmission schemes) can configure the device (or user equipment 20) with an energy consumption (or energy intensity) that "ranks" for different access types, e.g. Joules / Mbps or Joules / latency or Joules / Mbyte. This can also be done for multiple configurations to allow for different consumption models (e.g. low energy consumption but low bit rate and high delay, vs. high bit rate, low delay and high energy consumption, vs. high bit rate, low delay, maximum energy consumption, high bit rate and minimum delay).

[0050] A particular focus according to the present invention is the implementation of the inventive procedures and methods by means of protocol extensions for 4G / 5G / 6G cellular systems as defined by 3GPP; however, this does not exclude the application of the same or corresponding principles and associated signalling to non-3GPP accesses, such as, for example, WiFi as defined by IEEE 802.11.

[0051] In the future, the focus may shift from very high data rates with very low latency to more (environmentally) sustainable wireless communications, taking into account also the energy intensity of the different radio access technologies and / or radio schemes involved or (mainly) used.

Claims

1. A method for taking into account the energy intensity of a data transmission between a user equipment (20) and a telecommunications network (100), said telecommunications network (100) comprising an access network (110), a plurality of radio access technologies and / or a plurality of radio signal transmission schemes are available for transmitting uplink data from the user equipment (20) to the access network (110) and / or downlink data from the access network (110) to the user equipment (20) by using radio resources of an air interface between the user equipment (20) and the access network (110) at least temporarily during a communication exchange with the telecommunication network (100), the plurality of radio access technologies and / or the plurality of radio signal transmission schemes being related or associated with a first low level of energy intensity or at least a second high level of energy intensity, the user equipment (20) being provided with energy priority information (150); To take into account the energy intensity of such data transmission between said user equipment (20) and said telecommunications network (100), a first step of receiving, by the user equipment (20), from the telecommunications network (100) or a dedicated network node of the telecommunications network (100), at least one energy intensity indication (250), said at least one energy intensity indication (250) relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for transmitting uplink data and / or receiving downlink data; a second step following the first step, in which the user equipment (20) selects the at least one radio access technology and / or the at least one radio signal transmission scheme depending on the energy strength indication (250) and the energy priority information (150), the at least one energy intensity indication (250) is a measure of energy intensity; Energy used per amount of data transmitted, Energy used per bandwidth used, Energy used per achieved latency The method of claim 1, further comprising: referring to the energy intensity of data transmission between the user equipment (20) and the telecommunications network (100) in terms of one or more measures of:

2. 2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the energy priority information (150) relates to or reflects a preference for either a lower level of energy intensity or a higher level of energy intensity stored in the user equipment (20), in particular provided by the user of the user equipment (20).

3. The at least one energy intensity indication (250) may include: a broadcast control channel or a common broadcast control channel, in particular a broadcast control channel according to the LTE (Long Term Evolution) radio access technology or the NR (New Radio) radio access technology, or any WiFi broadcast channel, or any other broadcast channel of a relevant radio access technology; a dedicated control channel for said user equipment (20) or group of user equipments; As part of a registration procedure of the user equipment (20) with the telecommunications network (100) or as part of a service setup procedure of the user equipment (20) with the telecommunications network (100), As part of pre-configuration using a secure subscriber element 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the user equipment (20) receives the signal via one or more of:

4. The user equipment (20) is a mobile user equipment, and the user equipment (20) receives a Mobile access from a mobile communications network; and / or Fixed-line access from a fixed-line telecommunications network using wireless local area network (WLAN) capabilities - Patents.com The method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving

5. the at least one energy intensity indication (250) includes at least a first energy intensity indication portion and a second energy intensity indication portion, the first energy intensity indication portion being related or associated with a first radio access technology and / or a first wireless signal transmission scheme, and the second energy intensity indication portion being related or associated with a second radio access technology and / or a second wireless signal transmission scheme; The method according to claim 1, wherein in particular the at least two energy intensity indicators refer to one single radio access technology depending on different operating modes and / or different radio signal transmission schemes used based on that radio access technology.

6. In particular, a first energy intensity indication (250) refers to a first of such measures of energy intensity, and a second energy intensity indication (250) refers to a second of such measures of energy intensity; 2. The method of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the at least one energy intensity indications (250) and / or at least one of the energy intensity indication portions refers to or indicates one of at least three defined different levels of energy intensity, in particular one of at least four different levels of energy intensity.

7. the energy priority information (150) defines, for at least one condition of both the user equipment (20) and at least local network conditions of the access network (110) and / or the telecommunications network (100), whether a significantly lower level of energy intensity or a significantly higher level of energy intensity is preferred by the user equipment (20) or its user; The method of claim 1, wherein in particular the energy priority information (150) is transmitted by the user equipment (20) to the telecommunications network (100) or to a dedicated network node of the telecommunications network (100).

8. The energy priority information (150) may include user preferences of a user of the user equipment; and / or a scenario in which the energy priority information (150) is set to a relatively low energy intensity overall, particularly as part of a green mode subscription associated with the user equipment (20); A scenario in which the energy priority information (150) is set to prefer a relatively low energy intensity under normal circumstances, but may be set to a boost mode setting corresponding to preferring a higher energy intensity at a particular time and at a particular request from a user of the user equipment. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the subscription-related settings correspond to predetermined defined energy intensity settings which may in particular differ at different times according to one or more of the following:

9. A user equipment (20) configured to take into account the energy intensity of data transmission between the user equipment (20) and a telecommunication network (100), wherein the user equipment (20) is configured to, at least temporarily, during a communication exchange with the telecommunication network (100), use radio resources of an air interface between the user equipment (20) and an access network (110) of the telecommunication network, thereby allowing multiple radio access technologies and / or multiple radio signal transmission methods to transmit uplink data from the user equipment (20) to the access network (110). and / or may be used to transmit downlink data from the access network (110) towards the user equipment (20), the plurality of radio access technologies and / or the plurality of radio signal transmission schemes being related or associated with a first lower level of energy intensity or at least a second higher level of energy intensity, the user equipment (20) including energy priority information (150), and in order to take into account the energy intensity of such data transmission between the user equipment (20) and the telecommunications network (100), the user equipment (20) said user equipment (20) receiving at least one energy intensity indication (250) from said telecommunications network (100) or from a dedicated network node of said telecommunications network (100), said at least one energy intensity indication (250) relating to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for transmitting uplink data and / or for receiving downlink data, At least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme is selected by the user equipment (20) depending on the energy strength indication (250) and the energy priority information (150). It is configured as follows: the at least one energy intensity indication (250) is a measure of energy intensity; Energy used per amount of data transmitted, Energy used per bandwidth used, Energy used per achieved latency The user equipment (20) refers to the energy intensity of data transmission between the user equipment (20) and the telecommunications network (100) in terms of one or more of the following measures:

10. A telecommunications network (100) for taking into account an energy intensity of data transmission between a user equipment (20) and the telecommunications network (100), the telecommunications network (100) comprising a core network (120) and an access network (110), wherein the user equipment (20) at least temporarily, during a communication exchange with the telecommunications network (100), may use radio resources of an air interface between the user equipment (20) and the access network (110) to transmit uplink data from the user equipment (20) towards the access network (110) and / or downlink data from the access network (110) towards the user equipment (20), the plurality of radio access technologies and / or the plurality of radio signal transmission schemes being associated or related to a first lower level of energy intensity or at least a second higher level of energy intensity, In order to take into account the energy intensity of such data transmissions between said user equipment (20) and said telecommunications network (100), said telecommunications network (100) is adapted to: said telecommunications network (100) or a dedicated network node of said telecommunications network (100) transmits at least one energy intensity indication (250) to said user equipment (20), said at least one energy intensity indication (250) being related to at least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme for receiving uplink data and / or for transmitting downlink data, At least one radio access technology and / or at least one radio signal transmission scheme is selected by the user equipment (20) depending on the energy strength indication (250) and the energy priority information (150). It is configured as follows: the at least one energy intensity indication (250) is a measure of energy intensity; Energy used per amount of data transmitted, Energy used per bandwidth used, Energy used per achieved latency The telecommunications network (100) refers to the energy intensity of data transmission between the user equipment (20) and the telecommunications network (100) in terms of one or more of the following measures:

11. 2. A program comprising computer readable program code which, when executed on a computer or a network node or user equipment (20) of a telecommunications network (100), or when executed partially on the network node of the telecommunications network (100) and / or partially on the user equipment (20), causes the computer or the network node of the telecommunications network (100) or the user equipment (20) to perform the method of claim 1.

12. A computer-readable medium comprising instructions, when executed on a computer or a network node or user equipment (20) of a telecommunications network (100), or when executed partially on the network node of the telecommunications network (100) and / or partially on the user equipment (20), that cause the computer or the network node or the user equipment (20) of the telecommunications network (100) to perform the method of claim 1.

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