Network equipment and wireless base stations

Abstract

This network device receives, from another network device, a message including approval information indicating whether acquisition of position information of a terminal is approved, and executes processing relating to acquisition of the position information on the basis of the approval information.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a network device and a radio base station that support obtaining location information of a terminal reflecting user approval.

Background Art

[0002] The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has specified the 5th generation mobile communication system (also called 5G, New Radio (NR) or Next Generation (NG)), and is also proceeding with the specification of the next generation called Beyond 5G, 5G Evolution or 6G.

[0003] For example, since 3GPP Release 17, support for a non-terrestrial network (NTN: Non Terrestrial Network) using communication satellites and HAPS (High-Altitude Platform Station) has been planned, and in 3GPP Release 18, extensions related to NTN are being considered (Non-Patent Document 1).

[0004] In the study of such extensions related to NTN, it is assumed that user approval is required from the perspective of meeting legal requirements for obtaining the location information of a user, specifically, a terminal (User Equipment, UE). Therefore, it has been considered to enable the acquisition of UE location information only when there is an explicit approval from the user (Non-Patent Documents 2, 3).

Prior Art Documents

Non-Patent Documents

[0005]

Non-Patent Document 1

[0006] However, obtaining location information based on user consent presents the following problems. For example, it can be difficult to properly maintain the user's consent status for location information acquisition within the network, regardless of the terminal (UE) state. For instance, it is considered difficult to properly maintain the consent status between the UE's idle state and connected state, or between the roaming state and the non-roaming state.

[0007] Therefore, the following disclosure is made in light of these circumstances and aims to provide network equipment and wireless base stations that enable the acquisition of location information reflecting user approval, regardless of the terminal's status.

[0008] One aspect of this disclosure is a network device (network device 40) comprising a receiving unit (location information processing unit 45) that receives a message from another network device that includes approval information indicating whether or not the acquisition of location information of a terminal has been approved, and a control unit (control unit 47) that executes processing related to the acquisition of location information based on the approval information.

[0009] One aspect of this disclosure is a radio base station (gNB100) comprising a receiving unit (location information acquisition unit 130) that receives a message from another radio base station containing approval information indicating whether or not approval has been given for the acquisition of location information of a terminal, and a control unit (control unit 140) that executes processing related to the acquisition of location information based on the approval information.

[0010] One aspect of this disclosure is a network device 40 comprising a receiving unit (user management unit 43) that receives roaming status information indicating the roaming status of a terminal from another network device, and a control unit (control unit 47) that determines the acquisition of location information of the terminal based on the roaming status information. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of the overall configuration of the wireless communication system 10. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of the network device 40. [Figure 3] Figure 3 is a functional block diagram of the gNB100. [Figure 4] Figure 4 is a functional block diagram of the UE200. [Figure 5] Figure 5 shows an example sequence of the Mobility Registration Update Procedure (5G). [Figure 6] Figure 6 shows an example of Nudm_SDM specific Data Types. [Figure 7] Figure 7 shows an example sequence of the Xn handover procedure. [Figure 8] Figure 8 shows an example sequence of the NG handover procedure. [Figure 9] Figure 9 shows an example sequence of UE200 registration and initial context setting during roaming. [Figure 10]FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the network device 40, gNB 100, and UE 200. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the vehicle 2001.

Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0012] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described based on the drawings. In addition, the same or similar reference numerals are assigned to the same functions and configurations, and the description thereof will be omitted as appropriate.

[0013] (1) Overall Schematic Configuration of the Wireless Communication System FIG. 1 is an overall schematic configuration diagram of the wireless communication system 10 according to the present embodiment. The wireless communication system 10 is a wireless communication system according to 5G New Radio (NR), and includes a Next Generation-Radio Access Network 20 (hereinafter, NG-RAN 20), and a terminal 200 (User Equipment 200, hereinafter, UE 200).

[0014] Note that the wireless communication system 10 may be a wireless communication system according to a system called Beyond 5G, 5G Evolution, or 6G, or may include a wireless communication system according to a system called Long Term Evolution (LTE) or 4G. The wireless communication system 10 may support functions related to Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), URLLC (Ultra-Reliable and Low Latency Communications), and IAB (Integrated Access and Backhaul).

[0015] NG-RAN 20 includes a radio base station 100 (hereinafter, gNB 100). Note that the specific configuration of the wireless communication system 10 including the number of gNBs (which may be eNBs, etc.) and UEs is not limited to the example shown in FIG. 1.

[0016] NG-RAN 20 actually includes a plurality of NG-RAN nodes, specifically gNBs (or ng-eNBs), and is connected to a 5G-compliant core network (5GC, not shown). In the 5GC, the concept of CUPS (Control and User Plane Separation) where the functions of the user plane and the control plane are clearly separated may be introduced.

[0017] NG-RAN 20 is included in the 5G system architecture and is connected to an Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) that provides access and mobility management functions for the UE 200, a Session Management Function (SMF) that provides session management functions, etc. Also, a UDM / UDR (Unified Data Management / User Data Repository) may be connected to the AMF and / or the SMF.

[0018] In the UDM, the concept of UDC (User Data Convergence) where the UDR that holds and manages subscriber information and the front-end part that processes subscriber information are separated may be introduced.

[0019] These devices (functions) may be referred to as network device 40. Note that NG-RAN 20 and 5GC may simply be expressed as "network".

[0020] gNB 100 is a radio base station compliant with NR and performs radio communication with the UE 200 according to NR. Note that gNB 100 may be composed of a CU (Central Unit) and a DU (Distributed Unit), and the DU may be separated from the CU and installed at a geographically different location. Also, gNB 100 (gNB-CU) may be connected by an Xn interface.

[0021] The gNB100 and UE200 can support Massive MIMO, which generates a more directional beam by controlling the radio signals transmitted from multiple antenna elements; carrier aggregation (CA), which uses multiple component carriers (CCs) bundled together; and dual connectivity (DC), which enables simultaneous communication between the UE and multiple NG-RAN Nodes.

[0022] The wireless communication system 10 may support a non-terrestrial network (NTN). The NTN may include communication satellites and HAPS (High-Altitude Platform Stations) located in orbit rather than on the ground. Such a multi-layered NTN, with communication satellites and HAPS connected, may constitute a larger-scale, three-dimensional heterogeneous network than conventional networks.

[0023] Furthermore, in the wireless communication system 10 supporting NTN, the location information of the UE200 may be used, similar to conventional 4G and 5G systems. The content of the UE200's location information is not particularly limited. For example, it may be location information obtained by cell-level positioning, or it may be more accurate location information determined by the UE200's Global Positioning System (GPS). Such location information may mean Full GNSS (global navigation satellite system) coordinates and may be interpreted as being different from Coarse GNSS coordinates, which are coarser location information.

[0024] The location information of the UE200 can be used not only to confirm the location of the UE200, but also for setting the SMTC (SSB-based RRM Measurement Timing Configuration window), generating a neighbor cell list, and configuring the beam for the UE200.

[0025] (2) Functional block configuration of the wireless communication system Next, the functional block configuration of the wireless communication system 10 will be described. Specifically, the functional block configurations of the network device 40, gNB100, and UE200 will be described.

[0026] Figure 2 is a functional block diagram of the network device 40. Figure 3 is a functional block diagram of the gNB100. Figure 4 is a functional block diagram of the UE200. Note that Figures 2-4 only show the main functional blocks relevant to the description of the embodiment, and the gNB100 and UE200 have other functional blocks (e.g., power supply unit). Also, Figures 2-4 show the functional block configuration of the network device 40, gNB100, and UE200, but please refer to Figure 10 for the hardware configuration.

[0027] (2.1) Network device 40 As shown in Figure 2, the network device 40 includes a network interface unit 41, a user management unit 43, a location information processing unit 45, and a control unit 47.

[0028] This explanation describes the case where the AMF constitutes the network device 40, but other network devices (SMF, UDM / UDR, etc.) may have similar functions.

[0029] The network IF unit 41 provides a network interface (IF) necessary for communication with devices within 5GC and NG-RAN20. This network IF may include interfaces in accordance with 3GPP specifications (e.g., N1, N2, N3, N6, N11, N15).

[0030] The user management unit 43 provides access and mobility management functions for the UE200. In particular, in this embodiment, the user management unit 43 can manage whether or not the user has approved the acquisition and provision of the UE200's location information.

[0031] The user management unit 43 can handle approval information (which may also be called user consent) indicating whether or not UE200 has approved the acquisition of location information.

[0032] The user management unit 43 may be configured as a receiving unit that receives roaming status information indicating the roaming status of the UE200 from other network devices. Specifically, the user management unit 43 may receive a Nudm_UECM_Registration response from the UDM in the Tracking Area Update Procedure (5G) that includes RoamingInfoUpdate or RoamingStatusReport, which are information elements (IE).

[0033] Furthermore, if the UE200 is located on a VPLMN (Visited Public Land Mobile Network) rather than an HPLMN (Home Public Land Mobile Network), it can be interpreted as being in a roaming state. However, the VPLMN does not necessarily have to be located in a different country (or region) than the HPLMN. In other words, the VPLMN and HPLMN may be located in the same country (or region). Also, NTN may be included in both the VPLMN and HPLMN.

[0034] The location information processing unit 45 performs processing related to the location information of the UE200. Specifically, the location information processing unit 45 can receive and transmit approval information indicating whether or not approval has been granted for obtaining the location information of the UE200.

[0035] In this embodiment, the location information processing unit 45 may be configured as a receiving unit that receives messages from other network devices that include approval information indicating whether or not approval has been given for obtaining the location information of the UE200 via the network. For example, the user management unit 43 (AMF) may receive a Nudm_SDM_Get response including user consent from the UDM in the Tracking Area Update Procedure (5G).

[0036] The location information processing unit 45 may be configured as a transmission unit that transmits a message containing the approval information to a wireless base station. For example, the location information processing unit 45 (AMF) may transmit a PATH SWITCH REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGE containing User consent to the gNB100 (specifically, to the target gNB to which the UE200 will be handed over) during the Xn handover procedure.

[0037] The control unit 47 controls each functional block that constitutes the network device 40 (AMF). In particular, in this embodiment, the control unit 47 can execute processing related to the acquisition of location information of the UE200 based on approval information for location information acquisition.

[0038] Furthermore, the control unit 47 can decide whether to acquire the location information of the UE200 based on roaming status information (RoamingInfoUpdate or RoamingStatusReport).

[0039] Specifically, if the approval information (User consent) indicates approval for location information acquisition, the control unit 47 performs control to notify other network devices and / or wireless base stations (gNBs) that location information acquisition for the UE200 is possible.

[0040] Furthermore, User consent may indicate either approval or rejection of location information acquisition, or it may indicate either approval or rejection of location information acquisition.

[0041] Furthermore, if the roaming status information indicates that location information acquisition is permitted, the control unit 47 performs control to notify other network devices and / or radio base stations (gNBs) that location information acquisition for the UE200 is possible.

[0042] In this context, the location information of the UE200 can be interpreted as Full GNSS (global navigation satellite system) coordinates, not Coarse GNSS coordinates (the same applies below).

[0043] (2.2) gNB100 As shown in Figure 3, the gNB100 includes a wireless communication unit 110, a handover execution unit 120, a location information acquisition unit 130, and a control unit 140.

[0044] The wireless communication unit 110 transmits a downlink signal (DL signal) in accordance with NR. The wireless communication unit 110 also receives an uplink signal (UL signal) in accordance with NR.

[0045] The handover execution unit 120 performs the handover of UE200. Specifically, the handover execution unit 120 performs the handover of UE200 from the serving cell to another neighboring cell.

[0046] While a serving cell can simply be interpreted as the cell to which the UE200 is connected, more precisely, in the case of an RRC_CONNECTED UE without carrier aggregation (CA) configured, there is only one serving cell that constitutes the primary cell. In the case of an RRC_CONNECTED UE configured with CA, a serving cell can be interpreted as representing one or more sets of cells, including the primary cell and all secondary cells.

[0047] Furthermore, handovers may include conditional handovers (CHOs).

[0048] The location information acquisition unit 130 performs processing related to acquiring the location information of the UE200. Specifically, the location information acquisition unit 130 can receive and transmit approval information indicating whether or not approval has been granted for acquiring the location information of the UE200.

[0049] In this embodiment, the location information acquisition unit 130 may be configured as a receiving unit that receives a message from another radio base station containing approval information indicating whether or not the acquisition of the location information of the UE200 has been approved. For example, in the Xn handover procedure, the location information acquisition unit 130 may receive a HANDOVER REQUEST containing User consent from the source gNB that is the handover source.

[0050] The location information acquisition unit 130 may be configured as a transmission unit that sends a message to the network device 40 that includes an inquiry about the existence of the approval information. For example, the location information acquisition unit 130 may send a PATH SWITCH REQUEST including User consent to the AMF.

[0051] The control unit 140 controls each functional block that constitutes the gNB100. In particular, in this embodiment, the control unit 140 can execute processing related to acquiring the location information of the UE200 based on approval information (User consent).

[0052] Specifically, if User consent indicates authorization for location information acquisition, the control unit 140 may acquire the location information of the UE200 and perform related controls (e.g., SMTC settings).

[0053] (2.3)UE200 As shown in Figure 4, the UE200 includes a wireless communication unit 210, a registration processing unit 220, a measurement reporting unit 230, and a control unit 240.

[0054] The wireless communication unit 210 transmits an uplink signal (UL signal) in accordance with NR. The wireless communication unit 210 also receives an uplink signal (DL signal) in accordance with NR.

[0055] The registration processing unit 220 performs processing related to the registration of the UE200 with the wireless communication system 10 (network). Specifically, if the UE200 is in an idle state, the registration processing unit 220 performs procedures such as TAU (Tracking Area Update), Mobility Registration Update, and Period Registration Update to register the UE200 with the wireless communication system 10. An idle state may mean a state in which all settings in a specific layer, such as the Radio Resource Control Layer (RRC), are released and the device is not connected to (or attached to) the network. However, the idle state as used here may be interpreted to include a state in which some of the relevant settings are maintained.

[0056] The measurement reporting unit 230 can measure the quality of the UE200's serving cell and its neighboring cells, and report the measurement results (Measurement Report) to the network. The measurement reporting unit 230 may perform measurement reporting of the source cell and target cell during handover. The measurement items may also include the UE200's location information (GNSS coordinates).

[0057] The quality of the object being measured can be, for example, the quality included in the Measurement Report as defined in 3GPP TS38.331 (e.g., Reference Signal Received Power (RSRP), Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ)).

[0058] The control unit 240 controls each functional block that makes up the UE200. Specifically, the control unit 240 can perform control related to registering the UE200 with the network, reporting measurement results, and handover of the UE200.

[0059] (3) Operation of the wireless communication system Next, the operation of the wireless communication system 10 will be described. Specifically, the operation related to acquiring the location information of the UE200 based on authorization information (User consent) will be described. Note that the following explanation assumes the use of a non-terrestrial network (NTN).

[0060] (3.1) Example of operation 1 This example describes the operation of the transfer (which may be interpreted as transmission or relaying) of user consent information for obtaining location information of the UE200 within the network when the UE200 is in the RRC IDLE state (RRC IDLE mobility) or the RRC CONNECTED state (RRC connected mobility).

[0061] As mentioned above, the location information of the UE200 can be interpreted here as Full GNSS coordinates (the same applies hereafter).

[0062] (3.1.1) RRC IDLE mobility The UDM / UDR may notify the target AMF in TAU (Tracking Area Update), Mobility Registration Update, or Period Registration Update whether or not there is user consent for the acquisition of location information for the UE200 at NTN.

[0063] Figure 5 shows an example sequence of the Mobility Registration Update Procedure (5G). The TAU Procedure is defined in 3GPP TS23.502 Chapter 4.2.2.2.2.

[0064] As shown in Figure 5, the UDM / UDR may include user consent in the Nudm_SDM_Get response (step 14b, see underlined section). In other words, the UDM / UDR may send a Nudm_SDM_Get response containing user consent for location information acquisition to the target AMF (New AMF). The target AMF can receive the Nudm_SDM_Get response containing user consent from the UDM / UDR. In this way, the Nudm_SDM_Get response may notify whether or not there is authorization for location information acquisition.

[0065] (3.1.2) RRC connected mobility Figure 6 shows an example of Nudm_SDM specific Data Types. As shown in Figure 6, NTNUELocationUserConsent (tentative name) may be included as one type of Nudm_SDM specific Data Type (see 3GPP TS29.503). NTNUELocationUserConsent (IE) indicates whether NTN has authorized the acquisition of location information for UE200.

[0066] Figure 7 shows an example sequence of the Xn handover procedure. Specifically, the Xn handover procedure is defined in TS38.300 Chapter 9.2.3.2.1.

[0067] As shown in Figure 7, the source gNB from which the UE200 is being handed over may send a HANDOVER REQUEST containing NTNUELocationUserConsent to the target gNB during the Xn handover.

[0068] Furthermore, the target gNB (which may be read as target cell or target node) may apply NTNUELocationUserConsent only in the case of NTN cells. Also, in the XnAP NG-RAN node configuration update procedure, the local node may exchange information about its subordinate NTN cells with neighboring nodes. The target gNB may hold NTNUELocationUserConsent.

[0069] NTNUELocationUserConsent can be just one bit of information and may indicate either user consent given or user consent not given.

[0070] NTNUELocationUserConsent may be a list of PLMNs (i.e., User consent for location information acquisition may be given within that PLMN list).

[0071] During Xn handover, AMF may send a PATH SWITCH REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGE containing NTNUELocationUserConsent to the target node (other network device).

[0072] The target node may also request the AMF to send an NTNUELocationUserConsent using a PATH SWITCH REQUEST. In response to this request, the AMF may send a PATH SWITCH REQUEST ACKNOWLEDGE containing the NTNUELocationUserConsent to the target node (for example, if the source cell is a terrestrial network cell and the target cell is an NTN cell).

[0073] Figure 8 shows an example sequence of the NG handover procedure. Specifically, the NG handover procedure is defined in TS23.502 Chapter 4.9.1.3, etc.

[0074] As shown in Figure 8, the AMF (Target AMF) may use a Handover request to notify whether or not user consent has been given to acquire the location information of the UE200. Specifically, the AMF may send a Handover request containing NTNUELocationUserConsent to the target gNB.

[0075] User consent may be provided as a list of PLMNs (i.e., user consent for location information acquisition may be given within the PLMN list). The target node may also store NTNUELocationUserConsent.

[0076] If, while the User consent procedure is still being performed within the network, the target node receives NTNUELocationUserConsent (user consent given) from AMF, obtainCommonLocationInfo (set to true) contained in the information element (IE) otherConfig (see TS38.331) may be set for UE200. Furthermore, includeCommonLocationInfo (set to true) contained in otherConfig may also be set for UE200.

[0077] Furthermore, even if obtaincommonLocationInfo and / or includeCommonLocationInfo are set from the gNB, the UE200 may refuse to obtain location information from the network (gNB) based on UE preference. In this case, the reason for refusal (e.g., due to privacy reason, locationInfo is unavailable, etc.) may be notified.

[0078] (3.2) Example of operation 2 This example demonstrates how user consent is handled when UE200 is roaming on VPLMN.

[0079] Figure 9 shows an example sequence of UE200 registration and initial context setting during roaming.

[0080] As shown in Figure 9, the AMF may check the roaming status of the UE200 with the UDM / UDR during UE200 registration. If the user (UE200) is in the home operator PLMN(s) and user consent for location information acquisition has been given, the AMF may send NTNUELocationUserConsent to the gNB during the Initial context setup procedure (i.e., the gNB may acquire the location information of the UE200).

[0081] On the other hand, if the user (UE200) is located in a PLMN(s) other than the home operator PLMN(s), or if there is no user consent to obtain location information, the AMF does not need to send NTNUELocationUserConsent to the gNB (i.e., the gNB cannot obtain the location information of UE200).

[0082] More specifically, the roaming status information of the UE200 may be notified to the AMF by RoamingInfoUpdate (Data type: boonlean, True: The new serving PLMN is different from the HPLMN; False: The new serving PLMN is the HPLMN), which is one of the parameters included in the Nudm_UECM_Registration response shown in Figure 9.

[0083] Alternatively, the roaming status information of the UE200 may be notified to the AMF by the RoamingStatusReport (see 3GPP TS29.503) included in the Nudm_EE message.

[0084] Furthermore, the UDM / UDR may use the Nudm_SDM_Get response to notify the AMF whether or not the user consented to the acquisition of the user's location information.

[0085] The AMF may retain the received User consent, and if the RoamingInfoUpdate or RoamingStatusReport received from the UDM / UDR is set to False (i.e., UE200 is in the HPLMN area) and User consent for obtaining location information in NTN has been given, it may send the User consent for obtaining location information in NTN to the gNB using an initial context setup request.

[0086] On the other hand, if RoamingInfoUpdate or RoamingStatusReport is set to True, or if User consent for location information acquisition by NTN has not been given, AMF will not send User consent for location information acquisition by NTN to gNB (or will send information to gNB indicating that such User consent has not been given).

[0087] Furthermore, even if UE200 is located in a home operator PLMN(s) and gNB has received user consent from AMF for location information acquisition, location information of UE200 may be acquired only if UE200 is located in an NTN cell.

[0088] (4) Action and Effects According to the embodiment described above, the following effects can be obtained. Specifically, the AMF or gNB100 can decide whether or not to acquire the location information of the UE200 based on the user consent for location information acquisition.

[0089] Therefore, even when using NTN or roaming, it is possible to implement operation that reflects the user's authorization for acquiring location information. As a result, regardless of the state of the UE200, the UE's location information can only be acquired if the user has given explicit authorization.

[0090] (5) Other embodiments Although embodiments have been described above, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to those embodiments described and that various modifications and improvements are possible.

[0091] For example, in the embodiment described above, the use of NTN was assumed, but even if UE200 does not use NTN (is not located in an NTN cell), the decision of whether or not to acquire the location information of UE200 may be made based on the User consent for location information acquisition described above.

[0092] Furthermore, in the above description, configure, activate, update, indicate, enable, specify, and select may be interpreted interchangeably. Similarly, link, associate, correspond, and map may be interpreted interchangeably, as may allocate, assign, monitor, and map.

[0093] Furthermore, "specific," "dedicated," "UE specific," and "UE individual" may be interpreted interchangeably. Similarly, "common," "shared," "group-common," "UE common," and "UE shared" may be interpreted interchangeably.

[0094] Furthermore, the block diagrams (Figures 2-4) used in the description of the embodiments above show functional units. These functional blocks (components) are realized by any combination of at least one of hardware and software. Moreover, the method of realizing each functional block is not particularly limited. That is, each functional block may be realized using one device that is physically or logically coupled, or it may be realized using two or more physically or logically separated devices that are directly or indirectly connected (for example, using wired or wireless connections). A functional block may also be realized by combining the above one device or the above multiple devices with software.

[0095] Functions include, but are not limited to, judgment, decision, judgment, calculation, calculation, processing, derivation, investigation, exploration, confirmation, reception, transmission, output, access, resolution, selection, selection, establishment, comparison, assumption, expectation, assumption, broadcasting, notifying, communicating, forwarding, configuring, reconfiguring, allocating (mapping), and assigning. For example, a functional block (configuration part) that enables transmission is called a transmitting unit or transmitter. In any case, as mentioned above, the method of implementation is not particularly limited.

[0096] Furthermore, the network device 40, gNB100, and UE200 (the device) described above may function as a computer that processes the wireless communication method of this disclosure. Figure 10 shows an example of the hardware configuration of the device. As shown in Figure 10, the device may be configured as a computer device including a processor 1001, memory 1002, storage 1003, communication device 1004, input device 1005, output device 1006, and bus 1007.

[0097] In the following explanation, the term "device" can be replaced with "circuit," "device," "unit," etc. The hardware configuration of the device may include one or more of the devices shown in the diagram, or it may be configured to omit some of the devices.

[0098] Each functional block of the device (see Figures 2-4) is implemented by any hardware element of the computer device, or a combination of such hardware elements.

[0099] Furthermore, each function in the device is realized by loading predetermined software (programs) onto hardware such as the processor 1001 and memory 1002, which allows the processor 1001 to perform calculations, control communication by the communication device 1004, and control at least one of data reading and writing in the memory 1002 and storage 1003.

[0100] The processor 1001 controls the entire computer, for example, by running an operating system. The processor 1001 may consist of a central processing unit (CPU) that includes interfaces with peripheral devices, control units, arithmetic units, registers, and so on.

[0101] Furthermore, the processor 1001 reads programs (program code), software modules, data, etc., from at least one of the storage 1003 and the communication device 1004 into the memory 1002 and executes various processes accordingly. The program used is one that causes the computer to execute at least a part of the operations described in the above embodiment. Moreover, the above-mentioned various processes may be executed by one processor 1001, or by two or more processors 1001 simultaneously or sequentially. The processor 1001 may be implemented by one or more chips. The program may be transmitted from a network via a telecommunications line.

[0102] Memory 1002 is a computer-readable recording medium and may consist of at least one of the following: Read Only Memory (ROM), Erasable Programmable ROM (EPROM), Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM (EEPROM), Random Access Memory (RAM), etc. Memory 1002 may also be called a register, cache, main memory, etc. Memory 1002 can store a program (program code), software modules, etc., that can execute a method according to one embodiment of this disclosure.

[0103] Storage 1003 is a computer-readable recording medium and may consist of at least one of the following: an optical disc such as a Compact Disc ROM (CD-ROM), a hard disk drive, a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk (e.g., a compact disc, a digital multipurpose disc, a Blu-ray® disc), a smart card, flash memory (e.g., a card, a stick, a key drive), a floppy® disk, a magnetic strip, etc. Storage 1003 may also be called an auxiliary storage device. The recording medium described above may also be, for example, a database, server, or other suitable medium including at least one of memory 1002 and storage 1003.

[0104] The communication device 1004 is hardware (transceiver / receiver device) for communicating between computers via at least one of a wired network and a wireless network, and is also called a network device, network controller, network card, communication module, etc.

[0105] The communication device 1004 may be configured to include, for example, a high-frequency switch, a duplexer, a filter, a frequency synthesizer, etc., in order to implement at least one of frequency division duplex (FDD) and time division duplex (TDD).

[0106] The input device 1005 is an input device that accepts input from an external source (e.g., a keyboard, mouse, microphone, switch, button, sensor, etc.). The output device 1006 is an output device that outputs to an external source (e.g., a display, speaker, LED lamp, etc.). The input device 1005 and the output device 1006 may be configured as an integrated unit (e.g., a touch panel).

[0107] Furthermore, each device, such as the processor 1001 and the memory 1002, is connected by a bus 1007 for communicating information. The bus 1007 may be configured using a single bus, or different buses may be configured for each device.

[0108] Furthermore, the device may include hardware such as a microprocessor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a programmable logic device (PLD), and a field-programmable gate array (FPGA), and some or all of each functional block may be implemented by such hardware. For example, processor 1001 may be implemented using at least one of these hardware components.

[0109] Furthermore, notification of information is not limited to the embodiments / models described herein and may be carried out by other means. For example, notification of information may be carried out by physical layer signaling (e.g., Downlink Control Information (DCI), Uplink Control Information (UCI)), upper layer signaling (e.g., RRC signaling, Medium Access Control (MAC) signaling, broadcast information (Master Information Block (MIB), System Information Block (SIB))), other signals, or combinations thereof. RRC signaling may also be called RRC messages, and may be, for example, RRC Connection Setup messages, RRC Connection Reconfiguration messages, etc.

[0110] Each aspect / embodiment described herein may be applied to at least one of the following: Long Term Evolution (LTE), LTE-Advanced (LTE-A), SUPER 3G, IMT-Advanced, 4th generation mobile communication system (4G), 5th generation mobile communication system (5G), Future Radio Access (FRA), New Radio (NR), W-CDMA®, GSM®, CDMA2000, Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), IEEE 802.11 (Wi-Fi®), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX®), IEEE 802.20, Ultra-WideBand (UWB), Bluetooth®, and other appropriate systems, as well as next-generation systems extended based thereon. Furthermore, multiple systems may be applied in combination (for example, a combination of at least one of LTE and LTE-A with 5G).

[0111] The processing procedures, sequences, flowcharts, etc., of each aspect / embodiment described herein may be reordered, provided they are consistent with each other. For example, the methods described herein present various step elements in an exemplary order and are not limited to that specific order.

[0112] The specific operations described in this disclosure as being performed by a base station may, in some cases, be performed by its upper node. In a network consisting of one or more network nodes having a base station, it is clear that various operations performed for communication with a terminal can be performed by the base station and at least one other network node (for example, an MME or S-GW, but not limited to these). Although the above example illustrates the case where there is one other network node besides the base station, it may also be a combination of multiple other network nodes (for example, an MME and an S-GW).

[0113] Information and signals (such as data) can be output from a higher layer (or lower layer) to a lower layer (or higher layer). Input and output may occur via multiple network nodes.

[0114] Input and output information may be stored in a specific location (e.g., memory) or managed using a management table. Input and output information may be overwritten, updated, or appended to. Output information may be deleted. Input information may be sent to other devices.

[0115] The determination may be made by a value represented by 1 bit (0 or 1), by a boolean value (true or false), or by a numerical comparison (for example, a comparison with a predetermined value).

[0116] Each aspect / embodiment described herein may be used individually, in combination, or switched between as needed during implementation. Furthermore, notification of specific information (e.g., notification that "X is") is not limited to explicit notification, but may also be implicit (e.g., by not providing such notification).

[0117] Software should be broadly interpreted to mean instructions, instruction sets, code, code segments, program code, programs, subprograms, software modules, applications, software applications, software packages, routines, subroutines, objects, executable files, execution threads, procedures, functions, and so on, whether they are called software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or by any other name.

[0118] Furthermore, software, instructions, information, etc., may be transmitted and received via a transmission medium. For example, if software is transmitted from a website, server, or other remote source using at least one of wired technology (such as coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, or Digital Subscriber Line (DSL)) and wireless technology (such as infrared or microwave), then at least one of these wired and wireless technologies is included in the definition of a transmission medium.

[0119] The information, signals, etc. described in this disclosure may be represented using any of the various different technologies. For example, the data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, chips, etc. that may be referred to throughout the above description may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or photons, or any combination thereof.

[0120] In addition, terms used in this disclosure and terms necessary for understanding this disclosure may be replaced with terms having the same or similar meanings. For example, at least one of the channel and symbol may be a signal (signaling). Also, a signal may be a message. Furthermore, a component carrier (CC) may be called a carrier frequency, cell, frequency carrier, etc.

[0121] The terms “system” and “network” as used in this disclosure are interchangeable.

[0122] Furthermore, the information, parameters, etc., described in this disclosure may be expressed using absolute values, relative values ​​from a given value, or other corresponding information. For example, wireless resources may be indicated by an index.

[0123] The names used for the parameters described above are not restrictive in any way. Furthermore, the formulas and other expressions using these parameters may differ from those expressly disclosed in this disclosure. Since various channels (e.g., PUCCH, PDCCH, etc.) and information elements can be identified by any suitable name, the various names assigned to these various channels and information elements are not restrictive in any way.

[0124] In this disclosure, terms such as "Base Station (BS)," "wireless base station," "fixed station," "NodeB," "eNodeB (eNB)," "gNodeB (gNB)," "access point," "transmission point," "reception point," "transmission / reception point," "cell," "sector," "cell group," "carrier," and "component carrier" may be used interchangeably. Base stations may also be referred to by terms such as macrocell, small cell, femtocell, and picocell.

[0125] A base station can house one or more (e.g., three) cells (also called sectors). If a base station houses multiple cells, the entire coverage area of ​​the base station can be divided into multiple smaller areas, each of which can also be provided with communication services by a base station subsystem (e.g., a small indoor base station (Remote Radio Head: RRH)).

[0126] The terms "cell" or "sector" refer to a portion or all of the coverage area of ​​at least one of the base stations and base station subsystems that provide communication services in this coverage.

[0127] In this disclosure, terms such as "Mobile Station (MS)," "user terminal," "User Equipment (UE)," and "terminal" may be used interchangeably.

[0128] A mobile station may also be referred to by those skilled in the art as a subscriber station, mobile unit, subscriber unit, wireless unit, remote unit, mobile device, wireless device, wireless communication device, remote device, mobile subscriber station, access terminal, mobile terminal, wireless terminal, remote terminal, handset, user agent, mobile client, client, or some other appropriate term.

[0129] At least one of the base station and the mobile station may be called a transmitting device, a receiving device, a communication device, etc. At least one of the base station and the mobile station may be a device mounted on a mobile body, the mobile body itself, etc. The mobile body may be a vehicle (e.g., a car, an airplane, etc.), an unmanned mobile body (e.g., a drone, an autonomous vehicle, etc.), or a robot (manned or unmanned). At least one of the base station and the mobile station may be a device that does not necessarily move during communication operation. For example, at least one of the base station and the mobile station may be an Internet of Things (IoT) device such as a sensor.

[0130] Furthermore, the term "base station" in this disclosure may be interpreted as "mobile station" (user terminal, hereinafter the same). For example, each aspect / embodiment of this disclosure may be applied to a configuration in which communication between a base station and a mobile station is replaced with communication between multiple mobile stations (which may be called, for example, Device-to-Device (D2D), Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), etc.). In this case, the mobile station may have the functions that a base station has. Also, terms such as "uplink" and "downlink" may be interpreted as terms corresponding to terminal-to-terminal communication (for example, "side"). For example, uplink channel, downlink channel, etc. may be interpreted as side channel.

[0131] Similarly, the term "mobile station" in this disclosure may be interpreted as "base station." In this case, the base station may be configured to have the functions that a mobile station has. A wireless frame may consist of one or more frames in the time domain. Each of these one or more frames in the time domain may be called a subframe. A subframe may further consist of one or more slots in the time domain. A subframe may have a fixed time length (e.g., 1 ms) that is independent of numerology.

[0132] Numerology may be communication parameters applied to at least one of the transmission and reception of a signal or channel. Numerology may include, for example, at least one of the following: subcarrier spacing (SCS), bandwidth, symbol length, cyclic prefix length, transmission time interval (TTI), number of symbols per TTI, radio frame configuration, specific filtering processes performed by the transceiver in the frequency domain, and specific windowing processes performed by the transceiver in the time domain.

[0133] A slot may consist of one or more symbols in the time domain (such as an Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) symbol or a Single Carrier Frequency Division Multiple Access (SC-FDMA) symbol). A slot may also be a time unit based on neurology.

[0134] A slot may include multiple minislots. Each minislot may consist of one or more symbols in the time domain. Minislots may also be called subslots. Minislots may consist of fewer symbols than a slot. A PDSCH (or PUSCH) transmitted in a time unit larger than a minislot may be called a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type A. A PDSCH (or PUSCH) transmitted using a minislot may be called a PDSCH (or PUSCH) mapping type B.

[0135] Wireless frames, subframes, slots, minislots, and symbols all represent units of time when transmitting a signal. Different names may be used for each of these terms.

[0136] For example, one subframe may be called a Transmit Time Interval (TTI), multiple consecutive subframes may be called a TTI, or one slot or one minislot may be called a TTI. In other words, at least one of a subframe and a TTI may be a subframe (1 ms) in existing LTE, a period shorter than 1 ms (e.g., 1-13 symbols), or a period longer than 1 ms. Note that the unit representing the TTI may be called a slot, minislot, etc., instead of a subframe.

[0137] Here, TTI refers to, for example, the smallest unit of time for scheduling in wireless communication. For example, in an LTE system, the base station schedules each user terminal to allocate wireless resources (such as the frequency bandwidth and transmission power available to each user terminal) in TTI units. However, the definition of TTI is not limited to this.

[0138] TTI may be a transmission time unit for channel-encoded data packets (transport blocks), code blocks, code words, etc., or it may be a processing unit for scheduling, link adaptation, etc. Given a TTI, the actual time interval (e.g., number of symbols) to which the transport block, code block, code word, etc. are mapped may be shorter than the given TTI.

[0139] Furthermore, if one slot or one mini-slot is referred to as TTI, then one or more TTIs (i.e., one or more slots or one or more mini-slots) may constitute the minimum time unit of scheduling. In addition, the number of slots (number of mini-slots) that constitute this minimum time unit of scheduling may be controlled.

[0140] A TTI with a time length of 1ms may also be called a normal TTI, long TTI, normal subframe, long subframe, slot, etc. A TTI shorter than a normal TTI may also be called a shortened TTI, short TTI, partial or fractional TTI, shortened subframe, short subframe, mini slot, sub slot, slot, etc.

[0141] Furthermore, long TTIs (e.g., normal TTIs, subframes, etc.) may be interpreted as TTIs with a time length exceeding 1 ms, and short TTIs (e.g., shortened TTIs, etc.) may be interpreted as TTIs with a TTI length less than that of a long TTI but 1 ms or more.

[0142] A resource block (RB) is a resource allocation unit in the time domain and frequency domain, and in the frequency domain, it may contain one or more consecutive subcarriers. The number of subcarriers in an RB may be the same regardless of the neurology, for example, 12. The number of subcarriers in an RB may be determined based on the neurology.

[0143] Furthermore, the time domain of the RB may contain one or more symbols and may be the length of one slot, one minislot, one subframe, or one TTI. One TTI, one subframe, etc., may each consist of one or more resource blocks.

[0144] One or more RBs may also be called a Physical RB (PRB), Sub-Carrier Group (SCG), Resource Element Group (REG), PRB pair, RB pair, etc.

[0145] Furthermore, a resource block may consist of one or more resource elements (REs). For example, one RE may be a radio resource area comprising one subcarrier and one symbol.

[0146] A Bandwidth Part (BWP), also known as a partial bandwidth, may represent a subset of consecutive common resource blocks (RBs) for a given neurology on a given carrier. Here, the common RBs may be identified by an index of the RBs relative to the carrier's common reference point. PRBs are defined within a BWP and may be numbered within that BWP.

[0147] A BWP may include BWPs for UL (UL BWP) and BWPs for DL ​​(DL BWP). One or more BWPs may be set within a single carrier for a UE.

[0148] At least one of the configured BWPs may be active, and the UE does not need to assume that it will send or receive a given signal / channel outside of the active BWP. In this disclosure, terms such as "cell" and "carrier" may be read as "BWP".

[0149] The structures described above, such as wireless frames, subframes, slots, minislots, and symbols, are merely illustrative. For example, the number of subframes included in a wireless frame, the number of slots per subframe or wireless frame, the number of minislots included in a slot, the number of symbols and RBs included in a slot or minislot, the number of subcarriers included in an RB, and the number of symbols, symbol length, and cyclic prefix (CP) length within the TTI can be varied in various ways.

[0150] The terms “connected,” “coupled,” or any variation thereof, mean any direct or indirect connection or coupling between two or more elements, and may include the presence of one or more intermediate elements between two elements that are “connected” or “coupled” with each other. The coupling or connection between elements may be physical, logical, or a combination thereof. For example, “connection” may be reinterpreted as “access.” As used in this disclosure, two elements may be considered to be “connected” or “coupled” with each other using at least one of one or more wires, cables, and printed electrical connections, and, in some non-limiting and non-exclusive examples, electromagnetic energy having wavelengths in the radio frequency domain, microwave domain, and optical (both visible and invisible) domain.

[0151] The reference signal can also be abbreviated as Reference Signal (RS), and may be called a pilot depending on the applicable standard.

[0152] In this disclosure, the phrase "based on" does not mean "based solely on" unless otherwise specified. In other words, the phrase "based on" means both "based solely on" and "based at least on."

[0153] In the configuration of each of the above devices, "means" may be replaced with "part," "circuit," "device," etc.

[0154] Any reference to elements using designations such as “First,” “Second,” etc., as used in this disclosure does not generally limit the quantity or order of those elements. These designations may be used in this disclosure as a convenient way to distinguish between two or more elements. Accordingly, references to the First and Second elements do not imply that only two elements may be employed therein, or that the First element must precede the Second element in any way.

[0155] Where the terms “include,” “including,” and variations thereof are used in this disclosure, these terms are intended to be inclusive, as is the term “comprising.” Furthermore, the term “or” as used in this disclosure is not intended to mean exclusive OR.

[0156] In this disclosure, if articles are added through translation, such as a, an, and the in English, this disclosure may include the fact that the noun following these articles is plural.

[0157] As used in this disclosure, the terms “determining” and “determining” may encompass a wide variety of actions. “Determining” may include, for example, judging, calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, looking up, searching, inquiry (e.g., searching in a table, database, or other data structure), and ascertaining. “Determining” may also include, for example, receiving (e.g., receiving information), transmitting (e.g., sending information), input, output, and accessing (e.g., accessing data in memory). Furthermore, "judgment" and "decision" can include considering something as having been "judged" or "decided" after resolving, selecting, choosing, establishing, comparing, etc. In other words, "judgment" and "decision" can include considering something as having been "judged" or "decided" after some action. Also, "judgment (decision)" can be reinterpreted as "assuming," "expecting," or "considering."

[0158] In this disclosure, the term "A and B are different" may mean "A and B are different from each other." The term may also mean "A and B are each different from C." Terms such as "separate" and "combine" may be interpreted similarly to "different."

[0159] Figure 11 shows an example of the configuration of vehicle 2001. As shown in Figure 11, vehicle 2001 includes a drive unit 2002, a steering unit 2003, an accelerator pedal 2004, a brake pedal 2005, a shift lever 2006, left and right front wheels 2007, left and right rear wheels 2008, an axle 2009, an electronic control unit 2010, various sensors 2021 to 2029, an information service unit 2012, and a communication module 2013.

[0160] The drive unit 2002 is composed of, for example, an engine, a motor, or a hybrid of an engine and a motor. The steering unit 2003 includes at least a steering wheel (also called a handle) and is configured to steer at least one of the front wheels and the rear wheels based on the operation of the steering wheel performed by the user. The electronic control unit 2010 consists of a microprocessor 2031, memory (ROM, RAM) 2032, and communication ports (IO ports) 2033. Signals from various sensors 2021 to 2027 installed in the vehicle are input to the electronic control unit 2010. The electronic control unit 2010 may also be called an ECU (Electronic Control Unit).

[0161] Signals from various sensors 2021-2028 include current signals from the current sensor 2021 that senses motor current, front and rear wheel rotation speed signals obtained by the rotation speed sensor 2022, front and rear wheel air pressure signals obtained by the air pressure sensor 2023, vehicle speed signals obtained by the vehicle speed sensor 2024, acceleration signals obtained by the acceleration sensor 2025, accelerator pedal depression signals obtained by the accelerator pedal sensor 2029, brake pedal depression signals obtained by the brake pedal sensor 2026, shift lever operation signals obtained by the shift lever sensor 2027, and detection signals obtained by the object detection sensor 2028 for detecting obstacles, vehicles, pedestrians, etc.

[0162] The Information Services Unit 2012 consists of various devices for providing various types of information, such as driving information, traffic information, and entertainment information, including a car navigation system, audio system, speakers, television, and radio, and one or more ECUs that control these devices. The Information Services Unit 2012 uses information acquired from external devices via a communication module 2013, etc., to provide various multimedia information and multimedia services to the occupants of Vehicle 1.

[0163] The driver assistance system unit 2030 consists of various devices that provide functions to prevent accidents or reduce the driver's workload, such as millimeter-wave radar, LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), cameras, positioning locators (e.g., GNSS), map information (e.g., high-definition (HD) maps, autonomous vehicle (AV) maps), gyro systems (e.g., IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), INS (Inertial Navigation System)), AI (Artificial Intelligence) chips, and AI processors, as well as one or more ECUs that control these devices. The driver assistance system unit 2030 also sends and receives various information via the communication module 2013 to realize driver assistance functions or autonomous driving functions.

[0164] The communication module 2013 can communicate with the microprocessor 2031 and components of the vehicle 1 via its communication port. For example, the communication module 2013 sends and receives data via its communication port 2033 between the drive unit 2002, steering unit 2003, accelerator pedal 2004, brake pedal 2005, shift lever 2006, left and right front wheels 2007, left and right rear wheels 2008, axle 2009, the microprocessor 2031 and memory (ROM, RAM) 2032 in the electronic control unit 2010, and sensors 2021 to 2028 provided in the vehicle 2001.

[0165] The communication module 2013 is a communication device that can be controlled by the microprocessor 2031 of the electronic control unit 2010 and can communicate with external devices. For example, it can send and receive various types of information to and from external devices via wireless communication. The communication module 2013 may be located either inside or outside the electronic control unit 2010. The external device may be, for example, a base station or a mobile station.

[0166] The communication module 2013 transmits current signals from current sensors input to the electronic control unit 2010 to an external device via wireless communication. The communication module 2013 also transmits, via wireless communication, other signals input to the electronic control unit 2010, including front and rear wheel rotation speed signals obtained by the rotation speed sensor 2022, front and rear wheel air pressure signals obtained by the air pressure sensor 2023, vehicle speed signals obtained by the vehicle speed sensor 2024, acceleration signals obtained by the acceleration sensor 2025, accelerator pedal depression signals obtained by the accelerator pedal sensor 2029, brake pedal depression signals obtained by the brake pedal sensor 2026, shift lever operation signals obtained by the shift lever sensor 2027, and detection signals obtained by the object detection sensor 2028 for detecting obstacles, vehicles, pedestrians, etc.

[0167] The communication module 2013 receives various information (traffic information, signal information, distance information, etc.) transmitted from external devices and displays it on the information service unit 2012 installed in the vehicle. The communication module 2013 also stores the various information received from external devices in memory 2032, which is available to the microprocessor 2031. Based on the information stored in memory 2032, the microprocessor 2031 may control the drive unit 2002, steering unit 2003, accelerator pedal 2004, brake pedal 2005, shift lever 2006, left and right front wheels 2007, left and right rear wheels 2008, axles 2009, sensors 2021-2028, etc., installed in the vehicle 2001.

[0168] Although the present disclosure has been described in detail above, it will be clear to those skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments described herein. The present disclosure may be implemented in modified and altered forms without departing from the intent and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims. Accordingly, the descriptions in the present disclosure are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to be restrictive in any way. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0169] 10 Wireless communication systems 20 NG-RAN 40 Network devices 41 Network Interface Section 43 User Management Department 45 Location Information Processing Unit 47 Control Unit 100 gNB 110 Wireless Communication Section 120 Handover Execution Unit 130 Location information acquisition unit 140 Control Unit 200 UE 210 Wireless Communication Section 220 Registration Processing Unit 230 Measurement Report Department 240 Control Unit 1001 Processor 1002 memory 1003 Storage 1004 Communication device 1005 Input device 1006 Output device 1007 Bus 2001 Vehicle 2002 Drive Unit 2003 Steering Department 2004 Accelerator pedal 2005 Brake pedal 2006 Shift Lever 2007 Left and right front wheels 2008 Left and right rear wheels 2009 Axle 2010 Electronic Control Unit 2012 Information Services Department 2013 Communication Module 2021 Current Sensor 2022 Rotation speed sensor 2023 Pneumatic Sensor 2024 Vehicle Speed ​​Sensor 2025 Accelerometer 2026 Brake Pedal Sensor 2027 Shift lever sensor 2028 Object Detection Sensor 2029 Accelerator pedal sensor 2030 Driver Support Systems Department 2031 Microprocessor 2032 memory (ROM, RAM) 2033 Communication Port

Claims

1. A receiving unit that receives approval information indicating whether or not the acquisition of the terminal's location information has been approved, and roaming status information indicating the roaming status of the terminal, from other network devices. If the roaming status information indicates that the terminal is in service with a network other than the home network, the control unit controls the transmission of the information indicating the approval for obtaining location information to the wireless base station, even if the approval information indicates approval for obtaining location information. A network device equipped with the following features.

2. The network device according to claim 1, further comprising a transmitting unit that transmits a message containing the aforementioned approval information to a wireless base station.

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