System and method for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network

Abstract

A system for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network is provided. The offload mechanism supports both unicast and broadcast traffic. The system includes a converged cellular core network 102, a World Wide Web 110, a CDN 112, a Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114, a cellular base station 116, a Broadcast Radio Head (BRH) 118, and a converged user UE 120. The converged cellular core network 102 includes an enhanced packet core 104, a policy rule engine 106, and a packet inspection and steering unit 108. The BO-PC 114 includes a broadcast proxy 202, a subscriber database 204, a broadcast offload service center 206, a broadcast / offload gateway 208, and an analysis engine 210. To offload unicast traffic, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 identifies sessions to be offloaded to support the offload of traffic from the converged cellular core network 102 to the broadcast network.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] [CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS] This application claims priority to Indian Non-Provisional Patent Application No. 201841034480, filed September 12, 2018, and Indian Provisional Patent Application No. 202041011782, filed March 18, 2020, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

[0002] TECHNICAL FIELD Embodiments herein relate generally to cellular and broadcast networks, and more particularly to systems and methods for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network. [Background technology]

[0003] Mobile data offload is the use of complementary network technologies to deliver data originally intended for cellular networks. Offloading reduces the amount of data being carried in the cellular band, freeing up bandwidth for other users. It is also used in situations where local cell reception may be poor, allowing users to connect via alternative wireless or wired services with better connectivity.

[0004] The explosive growth of Internet data traffic, especially the growing portion of traffic flowing over mobile networks, has created a growing need for offloading solutions. This is enabled by smartphone devices with high-resolution screens and a variety of Internet applications, from browsers to video and audio streaming applications. A particular problem is the increasing volume of video traffic, which not only requires high bandwidth but also stringent quality of service (QoS) in terms of latency and jitter. Massive viewing of content streamed over unicast networks, such as live sports and news events, can cause severe congestion in cellular networks. The emergence of over-the-top (OTT) content presents significant challenges for cellular broadband services, exacerbated by the fact that users are migrating from traditional television to personal mobile devices. While Wi-Fi is currently the preferred offloading mechanism, it is not the best solution for video and high-QoS-demanding services because the downlink competes with the uplink for transmission resources (frequency bands and time slots). Maintaining QoS in Wi-Fi networks is also more difficult than in cellular or broadcast networks. Recognizing the fact that broadcast networks are the best way to deliver video downloads, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP®) is incorporating the "Evolved Mobile Broadcast Multicast Service (eMBMS)."This is explained in a paper published on June 29, 2018, entitled "Broadcast and Multicast Communication Enablers for the Fifth-Generation of Wireless Systems" (http: / / 5g-xcast.eu / wp-content / uploads / 2019 / 04 / 5G-Xcast_D3.1_v1.1_web.pdf), which reports that broadcast standards have better spectral efficiency than eMBMS. However, eMBMS services only work for linear TV and share the same spectrum resources as cellular traffic. Therefore, they do not solve general congestion problems and only provide minor relief for a small percentage of heavily viewed content.

[0005] Therefore, there remains a need for systems and methods to mitigate and / or overcome the drawbacks associated with current systems and methods. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0006] [Non-Patent Document 1] Broadcast and Multicast Communication Enablers for the Fifth-Generation of Wireless Systems” (http: / / 5g-xcast.eu / wp-content / uploads / 2019 / 04 / 5G-Xcast_D3.1_v1.1_web.pdf Summary of the Invention

[0007] In consideration of the above, embodiments herein provide a system for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network. The system includes a converged cellular core network including a packet inspection and steering unit. The packet inspection and steering unit monitors traffic between the converged cellular core network and a cellular base station to identify at least one collaborative consumption content stream for offloading traffic. The packet inspection and steering unit determines whether the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is consumed in unicast. If the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is consumed in unicast, the packet inspection and steering unit determines whether at least one converged user equipment (UE) receiving the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is within a region including an appropriate coverage area and appropriate available capacity in a broadcast pipe in a unidirectional downlink network for offloading the broadcast traffic. The packet inspection and steering unit offloads the broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network via the unidirectional downlink network based on an offload signal received from the analysis engine.

[0008] In some embodiments, the analysis engine instructs the packet inspection and steering unit to offload at least one collaborative consumption content stream as a broadcast payload within the unidirectional downlink network by (i) determining whether there is an appropriate coverage area and appropriate available capacity in a region of interest within the unidirectional downlink network, and (ii) determining whether multiple UEs are consuming at least one collaborative consumption content stream within the appropriate coverage area and appropriate available capacity in the region of interest.

[0009] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit offloads the downlink portion of the unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service if the analysis engine determines that multiple UEs are not receiving at least one collaborative consumption content stream.

[0010] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit redirects traffic from the broadcast network back to the cellular network if the analysis engine determines that an adequate coverage area or adequate free capacity is not available on the unidirectional downlink network.

[0011] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit offloads broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network or offloads the downlink portion of unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service based on rules stored in the policy rule engine. In some embodiments, the policy rule engine is implemented using the packet inspection and steering unit.

[0012] In some embodiments, the system includes a Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) including a broadcast proxy, a subscriber (SUBS) database, a Broadcast / Offload Service Center (BO-SC), a Broadcast / Offload Gateway (BO-GW), and an analytics engine.

[0013] In some embodiments, the Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) interfaces with a Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) to obtain location information of at least one converged UE to provide a handoff mechanism when a one-way downlink is used for unicast traffic.

[0014] In some embodiments, the analytics engine is configured to collect traffic flow data from at least one of (i) a converged cellular core network, or (ii) at least one converged user equipment (UE). In some embodiments, the analytics engine collects traffic flow data in the cellular network reported by the at least one converged user equipment (UE) via at least one of (i) an “Element Management System (EMS)” or (ii) a “Self-Optimizing Network (SON)” and a load manager that monitors each traffic flow data via the load manager.

[0015] In some embodiments, the subscriber (SUBS) database includes user information determined by a unique identification of at least one converged user equipment (UE) for extracting selected data from traffic flow data between the converged cellular core network and the at least one converged user equipment (UE).

[0016] In some embodiments, the Broadcast Offload Service Center (BO-SC) schedules traffic flow data to be transmitted over the unidirectional downlink for all BRHs under the Broadcast Offload Service Center (BO-SC) control.

[0017] In some embodiments, the Broadcast Offload Gateway (BO-GW) is configured to interface to a legacy IP backhaul network to connect all Broadcast Radio Heads (BRHs) via unicast or multicast links. In some embodiments, the Broadcast Offload Gateway (BO-GW) tunnels header-compressed IP packets through the legacy IP backhaul network to target Broadcast Radio Heads (BRHs).

[0018] In some embodiments, the at least one converged UE comprises a location identification module that reports a current location on the at least one converged UE. In some embodiments, the at least one converged UE determines a current location based on at least one of: (i) cellular cell site information, (ii) broadcast radio head identification indicators, (iii) Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) information, and (iv) location information obtained from an access point or beacon.

[0019] In some embodiments, the system includes a converged RAN including an ORAN-based eNB / gNB, where the ORAN-based eNB / gNB includes a central unit, a distributed unit, and a radio unit.

[0020] In one aspect, a method for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network is provided, the method including: (i) monitoring traffic between the converged cellular core network and a cellular base station using a packet inspection and steering unit of the converged cellular core network to identify at least one common consumption content stream for offloading traffic, (ii) determining whether the at least one common consumption content stream is consumed in unicast, (iii) if the at least one common consumption content stream is consumed in unicast, determining whether at least one converged user equipment (UE) receiving the at least one common consumption content stream is within a region including an adequate coverage area and adequate available capacity in a broadcast pipe in a unidirectional downlink network for offloading the broadcast traffic, and (iv) offloading the broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network via the unidirectional downlink network based on an offload signal received from an analysis engine.

[0021] In some embodiments, the method includes using an analysis engine to (i) determine whether there is an adequate coverage area and adequate available capacity in a region of interest within the unidirectional downlink network, and (ii) determine whether multiple UEs are consuming at least one collaborative consumption content stream within the adequate coverage and adequate available capacity in the region of interest, thereby instructing a packet inspection and steering unit to offload at least one collaborative consumption content stream as a broadcast payload within the unidirectional downlink network.

[0022] In some embodiments, the method includes using a packet inspection and steering unit to offload a downlink portion of the unicast traffic to a unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service if the analysis engine determines that multiple UEs are not receiving at least one collaborative consumption content stream.

[0023] In some embodiments, the method includes using a packet inspection and steering unit to redirect traffic from the broadcast network back to the cellular network if the analysis engine determines that an adequate coverage area or adequate free capacity is not available on the unidirectional downlink network.

[0024] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit offloads broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network or offloads the downlink portion of unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service based on rules stored in the policy rule engine. In some embodiments, the policy rule engine is implemented using the packet inspection and steering unit.

[0025] The present system and method enables offloading live OTT and video traffic viewed by multiple users from a unicast network to a broadcast network. Because the broadcast network is optimized for live video and OTT delivery, the overall bandwidth required to transport the same content is reduced. This allows for denoising the unicast network and improving the spectral efficiency of the entire network. A policy rule engine determines which types of traffic should be offloaded from the unicast network to the broadcast network. The policy rule engine then triggers a packet inspection and steering unit to divert the traffic appropriately.

[0026] These and other aspects of the embodiments herein will be better understood when considered in conjunction with the following description and the accompanying drawings. It should be understood, however, that the following description, while indicating preferred embodiments and many specific details thereof, is given by way of illustration and not limitation. Many changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the embodiments herein without departing from the spirit thereof, and the embodiments herein include all such modifications. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0027] The present embodiments will be better understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the following drawings:

[0028] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BOPC) with a packet inspection and steering unit, according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0029] [Figure 2] 2 is a block diagram illustrating offloading traffic using the packet inspection and steering unit of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments herein.

[0030] [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an implementation of an offload mechanism in a scenario where the radio access network (RAN) implementation is distributed, in accordance with some embodiments herein.

[0031] [Figure 4] FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an implementation of offloading over a unidirectional downlink network having a cellular network as the uplink using a traffic steering control unit based on the topology described in FIG. 2 , in accordance with some embodiments of the present specification.

[0032] [Figure 5] FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an implementation of offloading over a unidirectional downlink network based on the topology described in FIGS. 1 and 3, using a traffic steering control unit and a cellular core as the uplink, in accordance with some embodiments of the present specification.

[0033] [Figure 6A] 2 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for offloading at least one of (i) broadcast traffic or (ii) unicast traffic using the packet inspection and steering unit of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments herein. [Figure 6B] 2 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for offloading at least one of (i) broadcast traffic or (ii) unicast traffic using the packet inspection and steering unit of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments herein.

[0034] [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a flow diagram illustrating a method for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network, according to some embodiments herein. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0035] The embodiments herein and their various features and advantageous details will be more fully described with reference to the non-limiting embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings and detailed in the following description. Descriptions of well-known components and processing techniques will be omitted so as not to unnecessarily obscure the embodiments herein. The examples used herein are intended only to facilitate understanding of how the embodiments herein can be implemented and to further enable those skilled in the art to implement the embodiments herein. Therefore, the examples should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments herein.

[0036] As previously mentioned, there remains a need for a system and method for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network. Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Figures 1-7, like reference numerals indicate corresponding features consistently throughout the drawings, and preferred embodiments are shown.

[0037] 1 is a block diagram 100 illustrating a broadcast offload packet core (BO-PC) 114 having a packet inspection and steering unit 108, according to some embodiments herein. The block diagram 100 includes a converged cellular core network 102, a World Wide Web 110, a content delivery network (CDN) 112, a broadcast offload packet core (BO-PC) 114, a cellular base station (eNodeB) 116, a broadcast radio head (BRH) 118, and a converged user equipment (UE) 120. The converged cellular core network 102 includes an enhanced packet core 104, a policy rule engine 106, and the packet inspection and steering unit 108. The converged cellular core network 102 uses the cellular base station 116 and the broadcast radio head (BRH) 118 to serve at least one of (i) converged cellular DTT UEs, or (ii) converged cellular UEs. In some embodiments, the BO-PC 114 provides very high frequency / ultra high frequency (VHF / UHF) based "Digital Terrestrial Transmission (DTT)."

[0038] The enhanced packet core 104 controls a cellular radio access network (RAN) to provide bidirectional connectivity to a converged user equipment (UE) 120 for transmitting or receiving data. In some embodiments, a broadcast offload packet core (BO-PC) 114 controls the broadcast radio access network (RAN). The broadcast radio access network (RAN) includes a broadcast radio head (BRH) 118 and provides a unidirectional downlink path for the converged user equipment (UE) 120 to receive selected data via the broadcast radio head (BRH) 118. In some embodiments, the broadcast offload packet core (BO-PC) 114 operates with 2G, 3G, Wi-Fi, 4G, and 5G networks. The converged user equipment (UE) 120 is an enhanced user equipment configured to receive collaborative consumption content streams from a cellular network and receive the collaborative consumption content streams from the unidirectional downlink path via the broadcast offload packet core (BO-PC) 114. The broadcast radio head (BRH) 118 is configured to transmit selected data from the broadcast radio access network (RAN) to the converged user equipment (UE) 120.

[0039] The packet inspection and steering unit 108 monitors traffic between the converged cellular core network 102 and the cellular base stations 116. In some embodiments, General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol (GTP-U) and General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) Tunneling Protocol (GTP-C) packets are used to tunnel user traffic and corresponding control plane functions, respectively. The packet inspection and steering unit 108 determines whether a collaborative consumption content stream is being consumed in unicast. In some embodiments, if a cellular base station 116 is identified from the tunneled data and control packets monitored by the packet inspection and steering unit 108, the identified collaborative consumption content stream can be localized. In some embodiments, if there is free capacity in the broadcast pipe after accommodating all broadcast traffic, selected unicast traffic in the cellular network is shifted to a unicast downlink in a unicast mode of transport.

[0040] To offload unicast traffic, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 identifies sessions to be offloaded to assist in offloading traffic from the converged cellular core network 102 to the broadcast network. In some embodiments, downlink offloaded traffic is directed from the converged cellular core network 102 towards the Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114. The Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114 encapsulates the traffic in a format compatible with a broadcast standard and communicates the compatible traffic format to the BRH 118 for delivery to the converged UE 120. In some embodiments, the return path is through the cellular uplink and is merged with the original traffic session within the packet inspection and steering unit 108. The policy rule engine 106 is used by the packet inspection and steering unit 108 to identify one or more user equipments (UEs) and traffic flows corresponding to the one or more user equipments (UEs), and to offload the traffic flows corresponding to the one or more user equipments (UEs).

[0041] 2 is a block diagram 200 illustrating offloading traffic using the packet inspection and steering unit 108 of FIG. 1 in accordance with some embodiments herein. In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 is located between a converged cellular core network 102, such as an enhanced packet core 104, and the World Wide Web 110 or a CDN 112. Block diagram 200 includes the converged cellular core network 102, the World Wide Web 110, a content delivery network (CDN) 112, a broadcast offload packet core (BO-PC) 114, a cellular base station (eNodeB) 116, a broadcast radio head (BRH) 118, and converged user equipment 120. The converged cellular core network 102 includes the enhanced packet core 104, a policy rule engine 106, and the packet inspection and steering unit 108.

[0042] The Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114 includes a Broadcast Proxy 202, a Subscriber (SUBS) Database 204, a Broadcast / Offload Service Center (BO-SC) 206, a Broadcast / Offload Gateway (BO-GW) 208, and an Analysis Engine 210. In some embodiments, the 4G network may include a control link with a legacy Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) 212 and a control link with the Analysis Engine 210 that is part of the BO-PC 114. The Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114 interfaces with the legacy Gateway Mobile Location Center (GMLC) 212 to obtain location information for the converged UE 120 and to provide a handoff mechanism when a one-way downlink is used for unicast traffic. In some embodiments, the converged UE 120 includes a location that identifies a module on the converged UE 120 that reports the current location. The converged UE 120 determines its current location based on at least one of: (i) cellular cell site information, (ii) broadcast radio head identification indicators, (iii) Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) information, and (iv) location information obtained from an access point or beacon.

[0043] The broadcast proxy 202 initiates a broadcast session in the Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114. In some embodiments, the broadcast proxy 202 manages multicasting over the broadcast core network and backhaul network to reach the BRH. In some embodiments, for unicast traffic offload, the functionality of the broadcast proxy 202 is bypassed when group communication is not involved.

[0044] The subscriber (SUBS) database 204 includes user information determined by the unique identification information of the converged user equipment (UE) 120 to extract selected data from traffic flow data between the converged cellular core network 102 and the converged UE 120. The broadcast offload service center (BO-SC) 206 schedules traffic flows to be transmitted over the unidirectional downlink for all BRHs under the broadcast offload service center (BO-SC) control.

[0045] In some embodiments, the Broadcast Offload Gateway (BO-GW) 208 is configured to interface to a legacy IP backhaul network and connect all the Broadcast Radio Heads (BRHs) via unicast or multicast links. The Broadcast Offload Gateway (BO-GW) 208 tunnels the header-compressed IP packets through the legacy IP backhaul network to the target Broadcast Radio Heads (BRHs).

[0046] The analytics engine 210 is configured to collect traffic flow data from at least one of (i) the converged cellular core network 102, or (ii) the converged user equipment (UE) 120. In some embodiments, the analytics engine 210 collects traffic data within the cellular network reported by the converged UE 120 via at least one of (i) an “Element Management System (EMS)” or (ii) a “Self-Optimizing Network (SON),” and a load manager that monitors the respective traffic flow data via the load manager.

[0047] In some embodiments, the analytics engine 210 includes a geographic database that includes latitude and longitude and various radio frequency (RF) parameters, such as estimated signal strength, SINR, time-of-day-based capacity utilization, etc. The various radio frequency RF parameters include baseline signal levels, noise and interference levels, and traffic patterns, which quantify coverage and quality of service at a given location. The geographic database, along with traffic pattern analysis of traffic flow data, determines suitable traffic flows to be transmitted over the unidirectional downlink. In some embodiments, the analytics engine 210 includes a radio environment database. The radio environment database includes data regarding geographic locations, latitude, longitude, and various radio frequency RF parameters. In some embodiments, the various radio frequency RF parameters include baseline signal levels, noise and interference levels, and traffic patterns, which quantify coverage and quality of service at a given location. In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 transmits inspection and measurement data including, but not limited to, session start and end times, websites visited, packet throughput, packet jitter and acknowledgment latency, discontinuities (in a particular session flow, e.g., RTP), retransmissions, etc. In the case of Figure 1, the inspected packet headers also provide information regarding the serving eNodeB location.

[0048] The packet inspection and steering unit 108 monitors traffic between the converged cellular core network 102 and the cellular base station 116 to identify collaborative consumption content streams for traffic offloading. The packet inspection and steering unit 108 determines whether the collaborative consumption content streams are consumed via unicast. If the collaborative consumption content streams are consumed via unicast, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 determines whether the converged user equipment (UE) 120 receiving the collaborative consumption content streams is within a region containing an appropriate coverage area and appropriate available capacity in a broadcast pipe in the unidirectional downlink network for offloading the broadcast traffic. The packet inspection and steering unit 108 offloads the broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network via the unidirectional downlink network based on the offload signal received from the analysis engine 210.

[0049] In some embodiments, the analysis engine 210 determines whether there is an appropriate coverage area and appropriate available capacity in a region of interest within the unidirectional downlink network, and instructs the packet inspection and steering unit 108 to offload the collaborative consumption content stream as a broadcast payload within the unidirectional downlink network by determining whether multiple UEs are consuming the collaborative consumption content stream within the appropriate coverage area and appropriate available capacity in the region of interest.

[0050] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 offloads the downlink portion of the unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service if the analysis engine 210 determines that multiple UEs are not receiving the collaborative consumption content stream.

[0051] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 redirects traffic from the broadcast network back to the cellular network if the analysis engine 210 determines that an adequate coverage area or adequate free capacity is not available on the unidirectional downlink network.

[0052] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 offloads broadcast traffic from the cellular network to a broadcast network or offloads the downlink portion of unicast traffic to a unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service based on rules stored in the policy rules engine 106. The policy rules engine 106 can be implemented using the packet inspection and steering unit 108.

[0053] 3 is a block diagram 300 illustrating an implementation of an offload mechanism in a distributed Radio Access Network (RAN) implementation scenario, according to some embodiments herein. In some embodiments, the offload mechanism is in a distributed RAN implementation scenario, such as in the Open RAN (ORAN) framework, which is fully described as part of the O-RAN Alliance standard (https: / / www.o-ran.org / ) and also as part of the 5G NG-RAN Description standard (3GPP TS 38.401). Block diagram 300 includes an enhanced packet core 104, a BO-PC 114, a BRH 118, a converged user equipment 120, and a converged RAN 302. The converged RAN 302 includes a packet inspection and steering unit 108, and the ORAN-based eNB / gNB 306 includes a central unit 308, a distributed unit 310, and a radio unit 312. The central unit 308 is a logical node that hosts the Radio Resource Control (RRC), Service Data Adaptation Protocol (SDAP), and Packet Data Convergence Protocol (PDCP). The central unit 308 includes control plane and user plane components. The control plane of the central unit 308 is a logical node that hosts the control plane parts of the RRC and PDCP protocols. The user plane is a logical node that hosts the user plane parts of the PDCP and SDAP protocols.

[0054] The distributed unit 310 is a logical node that hosts the RLC / MAC / High-PHY layers based on the lower layer functional division. The radio unit 312 is a logical node that hosts the Low-PHY layer and RF processing based on the lower layer functional division. It is similar to the 3GPP "TRP" or "RRH" but is more limited in that it includes the Low-PHY layer (FFT / iFFT, PRACH extraction).

[0055] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 is integrated with the central unit 308 using a common handler responsible for traffic encapsulation protocols, such as GTP, operating between the converged cellular core network 102 and the converged RAN 302 to achieve an improved offloading implementation by having joint management of user sessions. The packet inspection and steering unit 108 determines which traffic flows to offload. In some embodiments, when a user of the converged user equipment 120 moves from the coverage area of an ORAN-based eNB / gNB 306 to another coverage area, the enhanced packet core 104 performs a handoff mechanism. The ORAN-based eNB / gNB 306 includes the packet inspection and steering unit 108 that determines which BRH to offload the traffic flow to. In some embodiments, the identification of the UE and traffic flow for offloading is signaled via the Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114.

[0056] 4 is a block diagram 400 of an implementation of unicast offload over a unidirectional downlink network in accordance with some embodiments herein, using a cellular network as the uplink, a traffic steering control unit 408, and based on the topology described in FIG. 2. As shown in block diagram 400, the network includes a server-based application 402, a broadcast network 404, a cellular network 406, a traffic steering control unit 408, a packet inspection and steering unit 108, and a converged user equipment 120. The server-based application 402 hosts a content application and interfaces via a standard protocol stack including a transport layer (TCP / UDP), a network (IP Layer), a media access layer (L2), and a physical layer (L1). The packet inspection and steering unit 108 includes an extended IP layer, an L1 layer, and an L2 layer. The converged user equipment 120 includes an application layer, TCP / UDP, an extended IP layer, a cellular MAC, a cellular PHY, a broadcast L2 layer, and a broadcast PHY.

[0057] In some embodiments, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 is implemented using a policy rules engine 106 to determine the traffic flows to be offloaded. The policy rules engine 106 contains rules used to identify traffic that can be offloaded to a unidirectional downlink. In some embodiments, the downlink traffic is offloaded and the uplink traffic continues to be served by the cellular network 406. This requires modifications to the standard protocol stack in the converged UE 120, leading to the requirement of an enhanced IP layer.

[0058] The packet inspection and steering unit 108 steers traffic from the cellular RAN to the downlink Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114. In some embodiments, the traffic reaches the converged UE 120. Uplink traffic from the converged UE 120 continues through the cellular network 406. The packet inspection and steering unit 108 maintains session integrity in accordance with the requirements of higher layer protocols. The traffic steering control unit 408 determines and directs the handover process on both the network side and the terminal side.

[0059] Figure 5 is a block diagram 500 of an implementation of unicast offload over a unidirectional downlink network, using a core 504 as the uplink, a traffic steering control unit 408, and based on the topology described in Figures 1 and 3, in accordance with some embodiments herein. Block diagram 500 includes a packet inspection and steering unit 108, a converged user equipment 120, a server-based application 402, a broadcast network 404, a traffic steering control unit 408, a cellular RAN 502, and a cellular core 504. The functionality of these components is described above. The implementation is similar to Figure 4, except that in this particular case, the packet inspection and steering unit 108 performs its operations on traffic tunneled using a protocol such as GPRS Tunneling Protocol (GTP). In some embodiments, outer packet headers, such as GTP packet headers, are terminated, and the tunneled packets are extracted and directed to the Broadcast Offload Packet Core (BO-PC) 114.

[0060] 6A-6B are flow diagrams illustrating a method for offloading at least one of (i) broadcast traffic or (ii) unicast traffic using the packet inspection and steering unit 108 of FIG. 1 , according to some embodiments herein. In step 602, the method 600 includes starting a process. In step 604, the method 600 includes using the packet inspection and steering unit 108 to monitor traffic streams, file transfers, and sessions and identify sessions that may be suitable for offloading. In some embodiments, the same information can also be obtained by receiving a notification from at least one of (i) a content provider or (ii) a converged UE 120. In step 606, the method 600 includes checking whether the collaborative stream is being consumed in unicast, and if yes, proceeding to step 608; otherwise, proceeding to step 610. In step 608, method 600 includes checking whether the set of co-streams being received by the converged UE are in an area with good broadcast coverage and whether there is adequate free capacity in the broadcast pipe in the unidirectional downlink to accommodate the traffic streams; if yes, proceeding to step 612; otherwise, proceeding to step 604. In step 610, if no suitable co-streams are identified in step 606, method 600 includes checking whether there is adequate coverage and free capacity in the unidirectional downlink to provide supplemental downlink services to the converged UE and offload unicast traffic; if yes, proceeding to step 614; otherwise, proceeding to step 604. In step 612, method 601 includes offloading broadcast traffic over the unidirectional downlink. In step 614, method 601 includes offloading unicast traffic over the unidirectional downlink while continuing the uplink in the unidirectional cellular network.In this manner, a one-way downlink is used to provide supplemental downlink services.

[0061] If the traffic is found not suitable for offloading to the unidirectional downlink (based on steps 606, 608 and 610), the traffic continues to flow in a unicast manner in the cellular network and is monitored (similar to step 604).

[0062] 6B of method 601, for traffic offloaded from the cellular network to the unidirectional downlink using the method described in FIG. 6A, in step 614, method 601 includes continuously checking whether converged UE 120 is still in a good coverage area of a broadcast region (in the case of broadcast offload) or whether the unidirectional downlink still has adequate signal strength and capacity (in the case of supplemental downlink), and if yes, continues the process, otherwise proceeds to step 618. In step 618, method 601 includes returning traffic to the unicast cellular network if these conditions are not true in step 614.

[0063] 7 is a flow diagram illustrating a method 700 for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network, in accordance with some embodiments herein. In step 702, the method 700 includes using a packet inspection and steering unit 108 of the converged cellular core network 102 to monitor traffic between the converged cellular core network 102 and a cellular base station 116 to identify a collaborative consumption content stream for offloading traffic. In step 704, the method 700 includes using the packet inspection and steering unit 108 to determine whether the collaborative consumption content stream is being consumed in unicast. In step 706, the method 700 includes using the packet inspection and steering unit 108 to determine, if the collaborative consumption content stream is being consumed in unicast, whether the converged user equipment (UE) 120 receiving the collaborative consumption content stream is within a region including an appropriate coverage area and appropriate available capacity in a broadcast pipe in the unidirectional downlink network for offloading the broadcast traffic. In step 708, the method 700 includes offloading broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network via the unidirectional downlink network based on the offload signal received from the analysis engine 210 using the packet inspection and steering unit 108.

[0064] The foregoing description of specific embodiments sufficiently reveals the general nature of the embodiments herein, so that others, by applying their current knowledge, can easily modify and / or adapt such specific embodiments to various uses without departing from the general concept; therefore, such adaptations and modifications should, and are intended to, be understood within the meaning and range of equivalents of the disclosed embodiments. It should be understood that the phraseology or terminology used herein is for purposes of description and not of limitation. Thus, while the embodiments herein have been described with reference to preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the embodiments herein can be practiced with modification within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. 1. A system for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network, comprising: A converged cellular core network (102) having a packet inspection and steering unit (108), The packet inspection and steering unit (108) monitoring traffic between the converged cellular core network (102) and a cellular base station (116) to identify at least one collaborative consumption content stream for offloading the traffic; determining whether the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is consumed in unicast; determining whether at least one converged user equipment (UE) (120) receiving the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is located within a region that includes an adequate coverage area and adequate available capacity in a broadcast pipe within a unidirectional downlink network for offloading broadcast traffic when the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is consumed in unicast; offloading the broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network via the unidirectional downlink network based on an offload signal received from an analysis engine (210); The analysis engine (210) determining whether the suitable coverage area and the suitable available capacity are available in a region of interest within the unidirectional downlink network; determining whether a plurality of UEs are consuming the at least one collaborative consumption content stream within the appropriate coverage area and the appropriate available capacity in the region of interest; Instructing the packet inspection and steering unit (108) to offload the at least one collaborative consumption content stream as a broadcast payload within the unidirectional downlink network.

2. the packet inspection and steering unit (108) enables offloading a downlink portion of unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service if the analysis engine (210) determines that the plurality of UEs are not receiving the at least one collaborative consumption content stream; 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the packet inspection and steering unit (108) identifies sessions that can be offloaded to assist in offloading traffic from the converged cellular core network (102) to a broadcast network to offload unicast traffic.

3. 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the packet inspection and steering unit (108) returns the traffic from the broadcast network to the cellular network if the analysis engine (210) determines that the adequate coverage area or the adequate free capacity is not available on the unidirectional downlink network.

4. the packet inspection and steering unit (108) offloads the broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network or offloads the downlink portion of the unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as the supplemental downlink service based on rules stored in a policy rule engine (106); The system of claim 2 , wherein the policy rule engine (106) is implemented by the packet inspection and steering unit (108).

5. the analytics engine (210) is configured to collect traffic flow data from at least one of: (i) the converged cellular core network (102); or (ii) the at least one converged user equipment (UE) (120); 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the analytics engine (210) collects the traffic flow data in the cellular network reported by the at least one converged user equipment (UE) (120) via at least one of (i) an Element Management System (EMS) or (ii) a Self-Optimizing Network (SON) and the load manager monitors each traffic flow data via a load manager.

6. the at least one converged UE (120) comprises a location identification module that reports a current location on the at least one converged UE (120); 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the at least one converged UE (120) determines the current location based on at least one of: (i) cellular cell site information, (ii) broadcast radio head identification indicators, (iii) Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) information, and (iv) location information obtained from an access point or beacon.

7. 2. The system of claim 1, comprising a converged RAN (302) comprising an ORAN-based eNB / gNB (306), the ORAN-based eNB / gNB (306) comprising a central unit (308), a distributed unit (310), and a radio unit (312).

8. 1. A method for offloading traffic from a cellular network to a broadcast network, comprising: monitoring, by a packet inspection and steering unit (108) of the converged cellular core network (102), traffic between the converged cellular core network (102) and a cellular base station (116) to identify at least one collaborative consumption content stream for offloading the traffic; determining whether the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is consumed in unicast; determining, by the packet inspection and steering unit (108) of the converged cellular core network (102), if the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is consumed in unicast, whether at least one converged user equipment (UE) (120) receiving the at least one collaborative consumption content stream is located in a region that includes an adequate coverage area and adequate free capacity in a broadcast pipe in a unidirectional downlink network for offloading broadcast traffic; offloading the broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network via the unidirectional downlink network based on an offload signal received from an analysis engine (210) by the packet inspection and steering unit (108) of the converged cellular core network (102); The analysis engine (210) determining whether the suitable coverage area and the suitable available capacity are available in a region of interest within the unidirectional downlink network; determining whether a plurality of UEs are consuming the at least one collaborative consumption content stream within the appropriate coverage area and the appropriate available capacity in the region of interest; instructing the packet inspection and steering unit (108) to offload the at least one collaborative consumption content stream as a broadcast payload within the unidirectional downlink network; Thereby reducing the overall bandwidth required to transmit the at least one collaborative consumption content stream to the plurality of UEs.

9. If the analysis engine (210) determines, via the packet inspection and steering unit (108), that the plurality of UEs are not receiving the at least one collaborative consumption content stream, enabling offloading of a downlink portion of unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as a supplemental downlink service; 10. The method of claim 8, wherein the packet inspection and steering unit (108) identifies sessions that can be offloaded to assist in offloading traffic from the converged cellular core network (102) to a broadcast network to offload unicast traffic.

10. 9. The method of claim 8, further comprising returning the traffic from the broadcast network to the cellular network if the analysis engine determines, via the packet inspection and steering unit, that the suitable coverage area or the suitable available capacity is not available on the unidirectional downlink network.

11. 10. The method of claim 9, wherein the packet inspection and steering unit (108) offloads the broadcast traffic from the cellular network to the broadcast network or offloads the downlink portion of the unicast traffic to the unidirectional downlink network as the supplemental downlink service based on rules stored in a policy rule engine (106), the policy rule engine (106) being implemented by the packet inspection and steering unit (108).

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