Handling dynamic changes in traffic patterns in the dl

Abstract

Systems and methods are described herein for handling dynamic changes in traffic patterns in the downlink (DL). Network devices may handle dynamic changes in traffic patterns. Network devices may provide a means for detecting or being made aware of when a traffic burst may start. Based on a detection or being aware of when a traffic burst may start, a network device may activate resources used for delivering traffic, for example, to minimize jitter and / or delay.

Description

HANDLING DYNAMIC CHANGES IN TRAFFIC PATTERNS IN THE DLCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. patent application number 63 / 541 ,176 filed September 28, 2023, the contents of both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein in their entireties.BACKGROUND

[0002] Mobile communications using wireless communication continue to evolve. A fifth generation may be referred to as 5G. A previous (legacy) generation of mobile communication may be, for example, fourth generation (4G) long term evolution (LTE).SUMMARY

[0003] Systems and methods are described herein for handling dynamic changes in traffic patterns in the downlink (DL). Network devices may handle dynamic changes in traffic patterns. Network devices may provide a means for detecting or being made aware of when a traffic burst may start. Based on a detection or being aware of when a traffic burst may start, a network device may activate resources used for delivering traffic, for example, to minimize jitter and / or delay.

[0004] A wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) may perform actions associated with burst predictions. The WTRU may receive configuration information from a network entity. The configuration information may be received via a session description protocol (SDP) message. The SDP message may be received from an application server node or an application function node. The configuration information may enable the use of data traffic pattern notification reports. The enabled use of data traffic pattern notification reports may be associated with enabling sending data with a PDU set header extension. The WTRU may transmit a message to the network entity. The message may indicate that data traffic pattern notification report use is enabled for one or more of a WTRU application, a protocol data unit (PDU) session, a quality of service (QoS) flow, and / or a data flow. The WTRU may receive a data traffic pattern notification report. The data traffic pattern notification report may be received via radio resource control (RRC) signaling. The data traffic pattern notification report may indicate that downlink data is expected. The data traffic pattern notification report may indicate burst information associated with the expected downlink data. The WTRU may activate a resource based on the data traffic pattern notification report. The activation of the resource may beassociated with activation of a tethered connection to one or more tether devices, for example, before the data traffic is received. The WTRU may receive data traffic. The WTRU may process the received data traffic using the activated resource. The WTRU may transmit the data traffic using the tethered connection to the one or more tether devices. The WTRU may perform resource selection (e.g., reselection) associated with reserving at least one sidelink resource for relaying the data traffic to a tethered device.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0005] FIG. 1 A is a system diagram illustrating an example communications system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented.

[0006] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment.

[0007] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating an example radio access network (RAN) and an example core network (ON) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1 A according to an embodiment.

[0008] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating a further example RAN and a further example ON that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment.

[0009] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example multiplexed data flow.

[0010] FIG. 3 is a signal diagram depicting the dynamic detection and handling of data traffic patterns according to an embodiment.

[0011] FIG. 4 is a signal diagram depicting dynamic detection and reporting to user equipment of changes in data traffic patterns according to an embodiment.TECHNICAL FIELD

[0012] This disclosure addresses the accommodation of data traffic pattern detection and reporting in 5G systems.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0013] In the following detailed description, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of embodiments and / or examples disclosed herein. However, it will be understood that such embodiments and examples may be practiced without some or all of the specific details set forth herein. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, and circuits have not been described indetail, so as not to obscure the following description. Further, embodiments and examples not specifically described herein may be practiced in lieu of, or in combination with, the embodiments and other examples described, disclosed, or otherwise provided explicitly, implicitly and / or inherently (collectively "provided") herein.

[0014] Example communication systems may be described herein.

[0015] FIG. 1A is a diagram illustrating an example communications system 100 in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented. The communications system 100 may be a multiple access system that provides content, such as voice, data, video, messaging, broadcast, etc., to multiple wireless users. The communications system 100 may enable multiple wireless users to access such content through the sharing of system resources, including wireless bandwidth. For example, the communications systems 100 may employ one or more channel access methods, such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA), zero-tail unique-word DFT-Spread OFDM (ZT UW DTS-s OFDM), unique word OFDM (UW-OFDM), resource block-filtered OFDM, filter bank multicarrier (FBMC), and the like.

[0016] As shown in FIG. 1A, the communications system 100 may include wireless transmit / receive units (WTRUs) 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, a RAN 104 / 113, a ON 106 / 115, a public switched telephone network (PSTN) 108, the Internet 110, and other networks 112, though it will be appreciated that the disclosed embodiments contemplate any number of WTRUs, base stations, networks, and / or network elements. Each of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may be any type of device configured to operate and / or communicate in a wireless environment. By way of example, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d, any of which may be referred to as a “station” and / or a “STA”, may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals and may include a user equipment (UE), a mobile station, a fixed or mobile subscriber unit, a subscription-based unit, a pager, a cellular telephone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a smartphone, a laptop, a netbook, a personal computer, a wireless sensor, a hotspot or Mi-Fi device, an Internet of Things (loT) device, a watch or other wearable, a head-mounted display (HMD), a vehicle, a drone, a medical device and applications (e.g., remote surgery), an industrial device and applications (e.g., a robot and / or other wireless devices operating in an industrial and / or an automated processing chain contexts), a consumer electronics device, a device operating on commercial and / or industrial wireless networks, and the like. Any of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and 102d may be interchangeably referred to as a UE.

[0017] The communications systems 100 may also include a base station 114a and / or a base station 114b. Each of the base stations 114a, 114b may be any type of device configured to wirelessly interface with at least one of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to facilitate access to one or morecommunication networks, such as the CN 106 / 115, the Internet 110, and / or the other networks 112. By way of example, the base stations 114a, 114b may be a base transceiver station (BTS), a Node-B, an eNode B, a Home Node B, a Home eNode B, a gNB, a NR NodeB, a site controller, an access point (AP), a wireless router, and the like. While the base stations 114a, 114b are each depicted as a single element, it will be appreciated that the base stations 114a, 114b may include any number of interconnected base stations and / or network elements.

[0018] The base station 114a may be part of the RAN 104 / 113, which may also include other base stations and / or network elements (not shown), such as a base station controller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114a and / or the base station 114b may be configured to transmit and / or receive wireless signals on one or more carrier frequencies, which may be referred to as a cell (not shown). These frequencies may be in licensed spectrum, unlicensed spectrum, or a combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum. A cell may provide coverage for a wireless service to a specific geographical area that may be relatively fixed or that may change over time. The cell may further be divided into cell sectors. For example, the cell associated with the base station 114a may be divided into three sectors. Thus, in one embodiment, the base station 114a may include three transceivers, i.e. , one for each sector of the cell. In an embodiment, the base station 114a may employ multiple-input multiple output (MIMO) technology and may utilize multiple transceivers for each sector of the cell. For example, beamforming may be used to transmit and / or receive signals in desired spatial directions.

[0019] The base stations 114a, 114b may communicate with one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d over an air interface 116, which may be any suitable wireless communication link (e.g., radio frequency (RF), microwave, centimeter wave, micrometer wave, infrared (IR), ultraviolet (UV), visible light, etc.). The air interface 116 may be established using any suitable radio access technology (RAT).

[0020] More specifically, as noted above, the communications system 100 may be a multiple access system and may employ one or more channel access schemes, such as CDMA, TDMA, FDMA, OFDMA, SC-FDMA, and the like. For example, the base station 114a in the RAN 104 / 113 and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) Terrestrial Radio Access (UTRA), which may establish the air interface 116 using wideband CDMA (WCDMA). WCDMA may include communication protocols such as High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA) and / or Evolved HSPA (HSPA+). HSPA may include High-Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High-Speed Uplink Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0021] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as Evolved UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA), which mayestablish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and / or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and / or LTE- Advanced Pro (LTE-A Pro).

[0022] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement a radio technology such as NR Radio Access, which may establish the air interface 116 using New Radio (NR).

[0023] In an embodiment, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement multiple radio access technologies. For example, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement LTE radio access and NR radio access together, for instance using dual connectivity (DC) principles. Thus, the air interface utilized by WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be characterized by multiple types of radio access technologies and / or transmissions sent to / from multiple types of base stations (e.g., an eNB and a gNB).

[0024] In other embodiments, the base station 114a and the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement radio technologies such as IEEE 802.11 (i.e., Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), IEEE 802.16 (i.e., Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX)), CDMA2000, CDMA2000 1X, CDMA2000 EV- DO, Interim Standard 2000 (IS-2000), Interim Standard 95 (IS-95), Interim Standard 856 (IS-856), Global System for Mobile communications (GSM), Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (EDGE), GSM EDGE (GERAN), and the like.

[0025] The base station 114b in FIG. 1 A may be a wireless router, Home Node B, Home eNode B, or access point, for example, and may utilize any suitable RAT for facilitating wireless connectivity in a localized area, such as a place of business, a home, a vehicle, a campus, an industrial facility, an air corridor (e.g., for use by drones), a roadway, and the like. In one embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.11 to establish a wireless local area network (WLAN). In an embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may implement a radio technology such as IEEE 802.15 to establish a wireless personal area network (WPAN). In yet another embodiment, the base station 114b and the WTRUs 102c, 102d may utilize a cellular-based RAT (e.g., WCDMA, CDMA2000, GSM, LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR etc.) to establish a picocell or femtocell. As shown in FIG. 1 A, the base station 114b may have a direct connection to the Internet 110. Thus, the base station 114b may not be required to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106 / 115.

[0026] The RAN 104 / 113 may be in communication with the CN 106 / 115, which may be any type of network configured to provide voice, data, applications, and / or voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services to one or more of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d. The data may have varying quality of service (QoS) requirements, such as differing throughput requirements, latency requirements, error tolerance requirements, reliability requirements, data throughput requirements, mobility requirements, andthe like. The CN 106 / 115 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, prepaid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1A, it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 / 113 and / or the CN 106 / 115 may be in direct or indirect communication with other RANs that employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT. For example, in addition to being connected to the RAN 104 / 113, which may be utilizing a NR radio technology, the CN 106 / 115 may also be in communication with another RAN (not shown) employing a GSM, UMTS, CDMA 2000, WiMAX, E-UTRA, or WiFi radio technology.

[0027] The CN 106 / 115 may also serve as a gateway for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d to access the PSTN 108, the Internet 110, and / or the other networks 112. The PSTN 108 may include circuit- switched telephone networks that provide plain old telephone service (POTS). The Internet 110 may include a global system of interconnected computer networks and devices that use common communication protocols, such as the transmission control protocol (TCP), user datagram protocol (UDP) and / or the internet protocol (IP) in the TCP / IP internet protocol suite. The networks 112 may include wired and / or wireless communications networks owned and / or operated by other service providers. For example, the networks 112 may include another CN connected to one or more RANs, which may employ the same RAT as the RAN 104 / 113 or a different RAT.

[0028] Some or all of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d in the communications system 100 may include multi-mode capabilities (e.g., the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, 102d may include multiple transceivers for communicating with different wireless networks over different wireless links). For example, the WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1A may be configured to communicate with the base station 114a, which may employ a cellular-based radio technology, and with the base station 114b, which may employ an IEEE 802 radio technology.

[0029] FIG. 1 B is a system diagram illustrating an example WTRU 102. As shown in FIG. 1 B, the WTRU 102 may include a processor 118, a transceiver 120, a transmit / receive element 122, a speaker / microphone 124, a keypad 126, a display / touchpad 128, non-removable memory 130, removable memory 132, a power source 134, a global positioning system (GPS) chipset 136, and / or other peripherals 138, among others. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may include any sub-combination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0030] The processor 118 may be a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), a state machine, and the like. The processor 118 may perform signal coding, data processing,power control, input / output processing, and / or any other functionality that enables the WTRU 102 to operate in a wireless environment. The processor 118 may be coupled to the transceiver 120, which may be coupled to the transmit / receive element 122. While FIG. 1 B depicts the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 as separate components, it will be appreciated that the processor 118 and the transceiver 120 may be integrated together in an electronic package or chip.

[0031] The transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit signals to, or receive signals from, a base station (e.g., the base station 114a) over the air interface 116. For example, in one embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an antenna configured to transmit and / or receive RF signals. In an embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be an emitter / detector configured to transmit and / or receive IR, UV, or visible light signals, for example. In yet another embodiment, the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive both RF and light signals. It will be appreciated that the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0032] Although the transmit / receive element 122 is depicted in FIG. 1 B as a single element, the WTRU 102 may include any number of transmit / receive elements 122. More specifically, the WTRU 102 may employ MIMO technology. Thus, in one embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include two or more transmit / receive elements 122 (e.g., multiple antennas) for transmitting and receiving wireless signals over the air interface 116.

[0033] The transceiver 120 may be configured to modulate the signals that are to be transmitted by the transmit / receive element 122 and to demodulate the signals that are received by the transmit / receive element 122. As noted above, the WTRU 102 may have multi-mode capabilities. Thus, the transceiver 120 may include multiple transceivers for enabling the WTRU 102 to communicate via multiple RATs, such as NR and IEEE 802.11 , for example.

[0034] The processor 118 of the WTRU 102 may be coupled to, and may receive user input data from, the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128 (e.g., a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit or organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit). The processor 118 may also output user data to the speaker / microphone 124, the keypad 126, and / or the display / touchpad 128. In addition, the processor 118 may access information from, and store data in, any type of suitable memory, such as the non-removable memory 130 and / or the removable memory 132. The non-removable memory 130 may include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), a hard disk, or any other type of memory storage device. The removable memory 132 may include a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a memory stick, a secure digital (SD) memory card, and the like. In other embodiments, theprocessor 118 may access information from, and store data in, memory that is not physically located on the WTRU 102, such as on a server or a home computer (not shown).

[0035] The processor 118 may receive power from the power source 134, and may be configured to distribute and / or control the power to the other components in the WTRU 102. The power source 134 may be any suitable device for powering the WTRU 102. For example, the power source 134 may include one or more dry cell batteries (e.g., nickel-cadmium (NiCd), nickel-zinc (NiZn), nickel metal hydride (NiMH), lithium-ion (Li-ion), etc.), solar cells, fuel cells, and the like.

[0036] The processor 118 may also be coupled to the GPS chipset 136, which may be configured to provide location information (e.g., longitude and latitude) regarding the current location of the WTRU 102. In addition to, or in lieu of, the information from the GPS chipset 136, the WTRU 102 may receive location information over the air interface 116 from a base station (e.g., base stations 114a, 114b) and / or determine its location based on the timing of the signals being received from two or more nearby base stations. It will be appreciated that the WTRU 102 may acquire location information by way of any suitable location-determination method while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0037] The processor 118 may further be coupled to other peripherals 138, which may include one or more software and / or hardware modules that provide additional features, functionality and / or wired or wireless connectivity. For example, the peripherals 138 may include an accelerometer, an e-compass, a satellite transceiver, a digital camera (for photographs and / or video), a universal serial bus (USB) port, a vibration device, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, a Virtual Reality and / or Augmented Reality (VR / AR) device, an activity tracker, and the like. The peripherals 138 may include one or more sensors, the sensors may be one or more of a gyroscope, an accelerometer, a hall effect sensor, a magnetometer, an orientation sensor, a proximity sensor, a temperature sensor, a time sensor; a geolocation sensor; an altimeter, a light sensor, a touch sensor, a magnetometer, a barometer, a gesture sensor, a biometric sensor, and / or a humidity sensor.

[0038] The WTRU 102 may include a full duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for both the uplink (e.g., for transmission) and downlink (e.g., for reception) may be concurrent and / or simultaneous. The full duplex radio may include an interference management unit 139 to reduce and or substantially eliminate selfinterference via either hardware (e.g., a choke) or signal processing via a processor (e.g., a separate processor (not shown) or via processor 118). In an embodiment, the WTRU 102 may include a half-duplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for either the uplink (e.g., for transmission) or the downlink (e.g., for reception)).

[0039] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 104 and the CN 106 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 104 may employ an E-UTRA radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 104 may also be in communication with the CN 106.

[0040] The RAN 104 may include eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 104 may include any number of eNode-Bs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may implement MIMO technology. Thus, the eNode-B 160a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a.

[0041] Each of the eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the uplink (UL) and / or downlink (DL), and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 C, the eNode- Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may communicate with one another over an X2 interface.

[0042] The CN 106 shown in FIG. 1C may include a mobility management entity (MME) 162, a serving gateway (SGW) 164, and a packet data network (PDN) gateway (or PGW) 166. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 106, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0043] The MME 162 may be connected to each of the eNode-Bs 162a, 162b, 162c in the RAN 104 via an S1 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the MME 162 may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, bearer activation / deactivation, selecting a particular serving gateway during an initial attach of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like. The MME 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and / or WCDMA.

[0044] The SGW 164 may be connected to each of the eNode Bs 160a, 160b, 160c in the RAN 104 via the S1 interface. The SGW 164 may generally route and forward user data packets to / from the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. The SGW 164 may perform other functions, such as anchoring user planes during inter-eNode B handovers, triggering paging when DL data is available for the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, managing and storing contexts of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, and the like.

[0045] The SGW 164 may be connected to the PGW 166, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet-switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices.

[0046] The CN 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to circuit-switched networks, such as the PSTN 108, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and traditional land-line communications devices. For example, the CN 106 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 106 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 106 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers.

[0047] Although the WTRU is described in FIGS. 1 A-1 D as a wireless terminal, it is contemplated that in certain representative embodiments that such a terminal may use (e.g., temporarily or permanently) wired communication interfaces with the communication network.

[0048] In representative embodiments, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0049] A WLAN in Infrastructure Basic Service Set (BSS) mode may have an Access Point (AP) for the BSS and one or more stations (STAs) associated with the AP. The AP may have an access or an interface to a Distribution System (DS) or another type of wired / wireless network that carries traffic in to and / or out of the BSS. Traffic to STAs that originates from outside the BSS may arrive through the AP and may be delivered to the STAs. Traffic originating from STAs to destinations outside the BSS may be sent to the AP to be delivered to respective destinations. Traffic between STAs within the BSS may be sent through the AP, for example, where the source STA may send traffic to the AP and the AP may deliver the traffic to the destination STA. The traffic between STAs within a BSS may be considered and / or referred to as peer-to-peer traffic. The peer-to-peer traffic may be sent between (e.g., directly between) the source and destination STAs with a direct link setup (DLS). In certain representative embodiments, the DLS may use an 802.11e DLS or an 802.11 z tunneled DLS (TDLS). A WLAN using an Independent BSS (IBSS) mode may not have an AP, and the STAs (e.g., all of the STAs) within or using the IBSS may communicate directly with each other. The IBSS mode of communication may sometimes be referred to herein as an “ad-hoc” mode of communication.

[0050] When using the 802.11 ac infrastructure mode of operation or a similar mode of operations, the AP may transmit a beacon on a fixed channel, such as a primary channel. The primary channel may be a fixed width (e.g., 20 MHz wide bandwidth) or a dynamically set width via signaling. The primary channel may be the operating channel of the BSS and may be used by the STAs to establish a connection with the AP. In certain representative embodiments, Carrier Sense Multiple Access with Collision Avoidance (CSMA / CA) may be implemented, for example in in 802.11 systems. For CSMA / CA, the STAs (e.g., every STA), including the AP, may sense the primary channel. If the primary channel issensed / detected and / or determined to be busy by a particular STA, the particular STA may back off. One STA (e.g., only one station) may transmit at any given time in a given BSS.

[0051] High Throughput (HT) STAs may use a 40 MHz wide channel for communication, for example, via a combination of the primary 20 MHz channel with an adjacent or nonadjacent 20 MHz channel to form a 40 MHz wide channel.

[0052] Very High Throughput (VHT) STAs may support 20MHz, 40 MHz, 80 MHz, and / or 160 MHz wide channels. The 40 MHz, and / or 80 MHz, channels may be formed by combining contiguous 20 MHz channels. A 160 MHz channel may be formed by combining 8 contiguous 20 MHz channels, or by combining two non-contiguous 80 MHz channels, which may be referred to as an 80+80 configuration. For the 80+80 configuration, the data, after channel encoding, may be passed through a segment parser that may divide the data into two streams. Inverse Fast Fourier Transform (IFFT) processing, and time domain processing, may be done on each stream separately. The streams may be mapped on to the two 80 MHz channels, and the data may be transmitted by a transmitting STA. At the receiver of the receiving STA, the above described operation for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed, and the combined data may be sent to the Medium Access Control (MAC).

[0053] Sub 1 GHz modes of operation are supported by 802.11af and 802.11 ah. The channel operating bandwidths, and carriers, are reduced in 802.11 af and 802.11 ah relative to those used in 802.11 n, and 802.11 ac. 802.11 af supports 5 MHz, 10 MHz and 20 MHz bandwidths in the TV White Space (TVWS) spectrum, and 802.11 ah supports 1 MHz, 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, and 16 MHz bandwidths using non-TVWS spectrum. According to a representative embodiment, 802.11 ah may support Meter Type Control / Machine-Type Communications, such as MTC devices in a macro coverage area. MTC devices may have certain capabilities, for example, limited capabilities including support for (e.g., only support for) certain and / or limited bandwidths. The MTC devices may include a battery with a battery life above a threshold (e.g., to maintain a very long battery life).

[0054] WLAN systems, which may support multiple channels, and channel bandwidths, such as 802.11 n, 802.11 ac, 802.11 af, and 802.11 ah, include a channel which may be designated as the primary channel. The primary channel may have a bandwidth equal to the largest common operating bandwidth supported by all STAs in the BSS. The bandwidth of the primary channel may be set and / or limited by a STA, from among all STAs in operating in a BSS, which supports the smallest bandwidth operating mode. In the example of 802.11 ah, the primary channel may be 1 MHz wide for STAs (e.g., MTC type devices) that support (e.g., only support) a 1 MHz mode, even if the AP, and other STAs in the BSS support 2 MHz, 4 MHz, 8 MHz, 16 MHz, and / or other channel bandwidth operating modes. Carrier sensing and / or Network Allocation Vector (NAV) settings may depend on the status of the primary channel. If the primary channelis busy, for example, due to a STA (which supports only a 1 MHz operating mode), transmitting to the AP, the entire available frequency bands may be considered busy even though a majority of the frequency bands remains idle and may be available.

[0055] In the United States, the available frequency bands, which may be used by 802.11 ah, are from 902 MHz to 928 MHz. In Korea, the available frequency bands are from 917.5 MHz to 923.5 MHz. In Japan, the available frequency bands are from 916.5 MHz to 927.5 MHz. The total bandwidth available for 802.11 ah is 6 MHz to 26 MHz depending on the country code.

[0056] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating the RAN 113 and the CN 115 according to an embodiment. As noted above, the RAN 113 may employ an NR radio technology to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. The RAN 113 may also be in communication with the CN 115.

[0057] The RAN 113 may include gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c, though it will be appreciated that the RAN 113 may include any number of gNBs while remaining consistent with an embodiment. The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may each include one or more transceivers for communicating with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c over the air interface 116. In one embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement MIMO technology. For example, gNBs 180a, 180b may utilize beamforming to transmit signals to and / or receive signals from the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c. Thus, the gNB 180a, for example, may use multiple antennas to transmit wireless signals to, and / or receive wireless signals from, the WTRU 102a. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement carrier aggregation technology. For example, the gNB 180a may transmit multiple component carriers to the WTRU 102a (not shown). A subset of these component carriers may be on unlicensed spectrum while the remaining component carriers may be on licensed spectrum. In an embodiment, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may implement Coordinated Multi-Point (CoMP) technology. For example, WTRU 102a may receive coordinated transmissions from gNB 180a and gNB 180b (and / or gNB 180c).

[0058] The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using transmissions associated with a scalable numerology. For example, the OFDM symbol spacing and / or OFDM subcarrier spacing may vary for different transmissions, different cells, and / or different portions of the wireless transmission spectrum. The WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using subframe or transmission time intervals (TTIs) of various or scalable lengths (e.g., containing varying number of OFDM symbols and / or lasting varying lengths of absolute time).

[0059] The gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be configured to communicate with the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c in a standalone configuration and / or a non-standalone configuration. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c without alsoaccessing other RANs (e.g., such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c). In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may utilize one or more of gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c as a mobility anchor point. In the standalone configuration, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c using signals in an unlicensed band. In a non-standalone configuration WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may communicate with / connect to gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c while also communicating with / connecting to another RAN such as eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c. For example, WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may implement DC principles to communicate with one or more gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c and one or more eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c substantially simultaneously. In the non-standalone configuration, eNode-Bs 160a, 160b, 160c may serve as a mobility anchor for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may provide additional coverage and / or throughput for servicing WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c.

[0060] Each of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may be associated with a particular cell (not shown) and may be configured to handle radio resource management decisions, handover decisions, scheduling of users in the uplink (UL) and / or downlink (DL), support of network slicing, dual connectivity, interworking between NR and E-UTRA, routing of user plane data towards User Plane Function (UPF) 184a, 184b, routing of control plane information towards Access and Mobility Management Function (AMF) 182a, 182b and the like. As shown in FIG. 1 D, the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c may communicate with one another over an Xn interface.

[0061] The CN 115 shown in FIG. 1 D may include at least one AMF 182a, 182b, at least one UPF 184a, 184b, at least one Session Management Function (SMF) 183a, 183b, and possibly a Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b. While each of the foregoing elements are depicted as part of the CN 115, it will be appreciated that any of these elements may be owned and / or operated by an entity other than the CN operator.

[0062] The AMF 182a, 182b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N2 interface and may serve as a control node. For example, the AMF 182a, 182b may be responsible for authenticating users of the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c, support for network slicing (e.g., handling of different PDU sessions with different requirements), selecting a particular SMF 183a, 183b, management of the registration area, termination of NAS signaling, mobility management, and the like. Network slicing may be used by the AMF 182a, 182b in order to customize CN support for WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c based on the types of services being utilized WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c. For example, different network slices may be established for different use cases such as services relying on ultra-reliable low latency (URLLC) access, services relying on enhanced massive mobile broadband (eMBB) access, services for machine type communication (MTC) access, and / or the like. The AMF a82a, 182b may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 113 and other RANs (not shown) thatemploy other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or non-3GPP access technologies such as WiFi.

[0063] The SMF 183a, 183b may be connected to an AMF 182a, 182b in the CN 115 via an N11 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may also be connected to a UPF 184a, 184b in the CN 115 via an N4 interface. The SMF 183a, 183b may select and control the UPF 184a, 184b and configure the routing of traffic through the UPF 184a, 184b. The SMF 183a, 183b may perform other functions, such as managing and allocating UE IP address, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, providing downlink data notifications, and the like. A PDU session type may be IP-based, non-IP based, Ethernetbased, and the like.

[0064] The UPF 184a, 184b may be connected to one or more of the gNBs 180a, 180b, 180c in the RAN 113 via an N3 interface, which may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to packet- switched networks, such as the Internet 110, to facilitate communications between the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c and IP-enabled devices. The UPF 184, 184b may perform other functions, such as routing and forwarding packets, enforcing user plane policies, supporting multi-homed PDU sessions, handling user plane QoS, buffering downlink packets, providing mobility anchoring, and the like.

[0065] The CN 115 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the CN 115 may include, or may communicate with, an IP gateway (e.g., an IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) server) that serves as an interface between the CN 115 and the PSTN 108. In addition, the CN 115 may provide the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c with access to the other networks 112, which may include other wired and / or wireless networks that are owned and / or operated by other service providers. In one embodiment, the WTRUs 102a, 102b, 102c may be connected to a local Data Network (DN) 185a, 185b through the UPF 184a, 184b via the N3 interface to the UPF 184a, 184b and an N6 interface between the UPF 184a, 184b and the DN 185a, 185b.

[0066] In view of Figs. 1A-1 D, and the corresponding description of Figs. 1A-1 D, one or more, or all, of the functions described herein with regard to one or more of: WTRU 102a-d, Base Station 114a-b, eNode-B 160a-c, MME 162, SGW 164, PGW 166, gNB 180a-c, AMF 182a-b, UPF 184a-b, SMF 183a-b, DN 185a-b, and / or any other device(s) described herein, may be performed by one or more emulation devices (not shown). The emulation devices may be one or more devices configured to emulate one or more, or all, of the functions described herein. For example, the emulation devices may be used to test other devices and / or to simulate network and / or WTRU functions.

[0067] The emulation devices may be designed to implement one or more tests of other devices in a lab environment and / or in an operator network environment. For example, the one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being fully or partially implemented and / ordeployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network in order to test other devices within the communication network. The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, or all, functions while being temporarily implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. The emulation device may be directly coupled to another device for purposes of testing and / or may performing testing using over-the-air wireless communications.

[0068] The one or more emulation devices may perform the one or more, including all, functions while not being implemented / deployed as part of a wired and / or wireless communication network. For example, the emulation devices may be utilized in a testing scenario in a testing laboratory and / or a nondeployed (e.g., testing) wired and / or wireless communication network in order to implement testing of one or more components. The one or more emulation devices may be test equipment. Direct RF coupling and / or wireless communications via RF circuitry (e.g., which may include one or more antennas) may be used by the emulation devices to transmit and / or receive data.

[0069] Examples provided herein do not limit applicability of the subject matter to other wireless technologies, e.g., using the same or different principles as may be applicable.

[0070] As explained herein, a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) may be an example of a user equipment (UE). Hence the terms UE and WTRU may be used with equal scope herein.

[0071] Systems and methods are described herein for handling dynamic changes in traffic patterns in the downlink (DL). Network devices may handle dynamic changes in traffic patterns. Network devices may provide a means for detecting or being made aware of when a traffic burst may start. Based on a detection or being aware of when a traffic burst may start, a network device may activate resources used for delivering traffic, for example, to minimize jitter and / or delay.

[0072] A wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) may perform actions associated with burst predictions. The WTRU may receive configuration information from a network entity. The configuration information may be received via a session description protocol (SDP) message. The SDP message may be received from an application server node or an application function node. The configuration information may enable the use of data traffic pattern notification reports. The enabled use of data traffic pattern notification reports may be associated with enabling sending data with a PDU set header extension. The WTRU may transmit a message to the network entity. The message may indicate that data traffic pattern notification report use is enabled for one or more of a WTRU application, a protocol data unit (PDU) session, a quality of service (QoS) flow, and / or a data flow. The WTRU may receive a data traffic pattern notification report. The data traffic pattern notification report may be received via radio resource control (RRC) signaling. The data traffic pattern notification report may indicate that downlink data is expected. The data traffic pattern notification report may indicate burst information associated with the expected downlink data. The WTRU may activatea resource based on the data traffic pattern notification report. The activation of the resource may be associated with activation of a tethered connection to one or more tether devices, for example, before the data traffic is received. The WTRU may receive data traffic. The WTRU may process the received data traffic using the activated resource. The WTRU may transmit the data traffic using the tethered connection to the one or more tether devices. The WTRU may perform resource selection (e.g., reselection) associated with reserving at least one sidelink resource for relaying the data traffic to a tethered device.

[0073] Session management parameters (e.g., N4 Session Management Parameters) may be described herein.

[0074] Parameters may be used by a session management function (SMF), for example, to control the functionality of the user plane function (UPF) and / or inform the SMF about events occurring at the UPF.

[0075] The parameters (e.g., over N4 reference point) provided from the SMF to the UPF may include a session ID (e.g., an N4 Session ID) and may also include one or more of the following: Packet Detection Rules (PDR) that may include information to classify traffic (PDU(s)) arriving at the UPF; Forwarding Action Rules (FAR) that may include information on whether forwarding, dropping, or buffering is to be applied to a traffic identified by PDR(s); Multi-Access Rules (MAR) that may include information on how to handle traffic steering, switching, and splitting for a MA PDU Session; Usage Reporting Rules (URR) that may include information that indicates (e.g., defines) how traffic identified by PDR(s) shall be accounted as well as how a certain measurement shall be reported; QoS Enforcement Rules (QER), for example, that may include information related to QoS enforcement of traffic identified by PDR(s); Session Reporting Rules (SRR) that may include information to request the UP function to detect and report events for a PDU session that are not related to specific PDRs of the PDU session or that are not related to traffic usage measurement; Trace Requirements; Port Management Information Container (e.g., in 5GS); Bridge / Router Information; etc.

[0076] The session ID (e.g., N4 Session ID) may be assigned by the SMF. The N4 Session ID may identify (e.g., uniquely identify) an N4 session.

[0077] PDU Set Header Fields may be used and / or described herein.

[0078] Header fields may be associated with a PDU Set. The PDU Set Sequence Number (PSSN) may include a header field that encodes the sequence number of the PDU Set to which the current PDU belongs acting as a 10-bit numerical identifier for the PDU Set.

[0079] The use of the PDU Set Feature may be negotiated.

[0080] An Application Server (AS) and / or application that is hosted in the WTRU may use Session Description Protocol (SDP) signaling, for example, to negotiate the use of the PDU Set markings. Negotiating the use of PDU Set markings may include the sender application (e.g., an AS or WTRU Hosted Application) indicating to the receiver application (e.g., the other of the AS or WTRU Hosted Application) ifthe sender supports adding PDU Set header extensions. This indication can be included and sent in an SDP message.

[0081] Traffic Patterns may be described herein.

[0082] Traffic may resemble various patterns that may change over time. Some patterns may be more common and known in advance than others.

[0083] Types of metadata may be carried as RTP payload for Augmented Reality Real-Time Communication services. Reliability may be assumed to be not strict when the data is delivered in a continuous manner. Old values may lose importance when delayed. Continuous bitstreams may be sent at a fixed sampling rate. Bursty traffic may be triggered, e.g., a motion signal can be sent when motion is detected. The direction may be determined based on whether a WTRU will send the data, receive it or both (e.g., sendrecv).Table 1 : Types of Metadata

[0084] In examples, an application may contain audio, video and haptic flows. The traffic pattern may also vary based on the modality. For example, a video may have frames which may shift in time due to clock shift or network usage. Audio may have periodic samples but can have periods of silence with no traffic.

[0085] An End of Burst may be considered and / or described herein.

[0086] An indication of End of Data Burst may be provided to the NG-RAN by the UPF, e.g., to configure WTRU power management schemes (e.g., connected mode discontinuous reception (DRX)).

[0087] The Policy Control Function (PCF) may provision the Protocol Description within Policy and Charging Control (PCC) Rules based on the information provided by the AF and / or the local operator policies.

[0088] The SMF may request the UPF to detect the last PDU of the data burst and mark the End of Data burst in the General Packet Radio Service Tunnelling Protocol User Plane (GTP-U) header of the last PDU in downlink, for example, according to the PCC rule and / or the local operator policies.

[0089] According to the request and information from the SMF, the UPF may identify the last PDU of a Data burst in the DL traffic based on the End indication according to the protocol header as defined in a Protocol Description or UPF implementation and provides an End of Data Burst indication to the NG-RAN over GTP-U of the last PDU of a Data burst.

[0090] There can be some packets from the Data Burst received by NG-RAN after the PDU with End of Data Burst Indication (e.g., if packets are received out of sequence).

[0091] A system (e.g., 5G System) design may not provide a means for the RAN node to detect or be made aware of when a burst is about to start. The time period between two consecutive bursts may be similar for multiple consecutive bursts but it may also change. Thus, a RAN Node may not anticipate that the time between two consecutive bursts will be similar. If the RAN Node was able to detect when a burst is about to start, the RAN node may be able to activate the user plane resources that are necessary for delivering the traffic to the WTRU. By ensuring that user plane resources are activated for the burst more quickly, jitter and delay may be minimized.

[0092] Data traffic generated by applications may resemble certain traffic patterns. Data traffic may vary in time and based on the modality of data (e.g., Video, Audio, Haptic). A (e.g., one) traffic pattern may be valid for a period (e.g., only be valid for a period).

[0093] For example, Downlink data traffic that is associated with a flow of extended reality, augmented reality, or general media streaming traffic may be characterized by the fact that it is received by the UPF in a regular pattern. The pattern may be characterized by the fact that the data traffic is received in bursts. A burst may include one or more PDUs (e.g., where the time between receiving each PDU is relatively small). The next burst of traffic may come a time period later, for example, where the time period between bursts is relatively large compared to the time period between PDUs in a burst.

[0094] The pattern that is associated with the downlink traffic may change (e.g., on occasion). A change in the pattern may mean that the time period between consecutive bursts may be similar for many consecutive bursts before changing to a second time period.

[0095] The system (e.g., 5G System) may include a design such that the UPF may detect (e.g., sometimes detect) the end of a burst. For example, a UPF may detect that a PDU is the last PDU in a PDU Set, for example, based on information in the header of the PDU. When the UPF sends a PDU to a RAN Node the UPF may indicate that the PDU is the last PDU in the burst. The RAN may use the End of Burst information to trigger a change in the WTRU's power management settings. Connected Mode DRX settings and times (e.g., via timers) may be example power management settings.

[0096] The 5G System design may refrain from including support for the RAN node to detect or be made aware of when a burst is about to start. The time period between two consecutive bursts may be similar formultiple consecutive bursts but it may also change. Thus, a RAN Node may not be able to anticipate that the time between two consecutive bursts will be similar. If the RAN Node was able to detect when a burst is about to start, the RAN node may be able to activate the user plane resources that are used (e.g., necessary) for delivering the traffic to the WTRU. By ensuring that user plane resources are activated for the burst more quickly, jitter and delay may be minimized.

[0097] Multiple service data flows (SDFs) may be multiplexed onto the same QoS Flow (e.g., as shown in FIG. 2), for example, which may be a challenge with detecting the beginning of a burst. SDFs may be associated with different burst patterns. If multiple SDFs are multiplexed onto the same QoS Flow, then the data burst that is associated with each QoS flow may follow a different pattern. The RAN node may detect when a burst is about to start for each SDF of a QoS Flow.

[0098] The WTRU may not be able to detect that a burst is about to arrive and / or may not be able to determine the time between the current burst and the next burst. If the WTRU can detect when a burst is about to start, then the WTRU may be able to begin to prepare resources for approaching data burst. For example, if the data burst will be forwarded to a tethered device, the WTRU may activate (e.g., begin to activate) the tethered connection. This may reduce (e.g., help reduce) perceived jitter. Therefore, allowing the WTRU to detect when a burst is about to start may enable the WTRU to prepare resources to handle the traffic in advance of receiving the traffic.

[0099] A RAN Node may include (e.g., refer to) a base station or a network node that controls one or more base stations. The terms RAN Node, NG-RAN, and NG-RAN Node may be interchangeable. Details and / or features that apply to a RAN node may apply to other nodes that interface to access networks, such as, for example, a Non-3GPP Interworking Function (N3IWF) or a Trusted Non-3GPP Gateway Function (TNGF).

[0100] N6 may include (e.g., refer to) the UPF interface that may be used to send and receive PDUs. For example, the PDUs may be sent to Application Server and received from Application Servers. The PDUs may be IP or Ethernet format. An N6 traffic flow may include a series of PDUs that match the same PDR or SDF.

[0101] Packet Detection Rules (PDR) may be described herein. PDRs may include information used (e.g., required) to classify an uplink or downlink packet arriving at the UPF. The information that is used to detect a packet may include one or more of a source interface, WTRU IP Address, network instance, core network tunnel information, packet filter set, application identifier, QoS Flow Identifier, ethernet PDU Session information, framed route information, FQDN Filter for DNS Query, or protocol description. The Application Identifier in a PDR may identify a Packet Flow Description (PFD). A PDR may also include what QoS Enforcement Rules should be applied to the detected traffic.

[0102] QoS Enforcement Rules (QER) may be described herein. QERs may include a QoS Flow ID that may be applied to the associated traffic. QERs may indicate if the UPF should insert PDU Set Information related to downlink packets into a GTP-U header.

[0103] The detection and the dynamic reporting of traffic pattern changes to RAN may be enabled. The detection and the dynamic reporting of traffic pattern changes to WTRU may be enabled. Implications on the traffic patterns when multiple data flows / SDFs are multiplexed into the same QoS flow may be described herein. One or more of the following parameters may be included in the traffic pattern reports, with respect to embodiments described herein: early indication that a burst is imminent; the duration of the burst; how long (e.g., in ms) until the next packet or next burst; how many times or how long the pattern may repeat; dependencies between traffic, within a data stream, inter- data streams, inter- QoS flows, inter- PDU sessions / devices / users (e.g., a header field may indicate that the next burst may occur in another QoS flow or bursts may occur in multiple QoS flows at a similar time; a header field may specify if the same burst pattern that is experienced at the current QoS flow may be experienced in another QoS flow in 2 ms); start and end of a traffic pattern; a (e.g., any) variations in the current pattern (e.g., if only the interval between the bursts may change from 2ms to 1 ms, this may be indicated in the header field of the packet(s)); the importance of the traffic pattern or part of the pattern (e.g., so that the notified entity may decide whether to use the notification or not), for example, which may be a priority indication; a traffic model for predicting the following traffic patterns; the average and variance of burst period / length / size; the number of sub-flows present in the flow; the codecs and codec settings being used (e.g., indication about the size of the burst, for example, which may be in terms of the number of bytes or a relative measure such as "small", "medium", "large"); etc.

[0104] A guard time parameter may be used in or when sending traffic pattern notifications, which may be used to mitigate wrong detections / predictions, e.g., the RAN gets the WTRU out of sleep state too early, using more energy that the optimum, or the RAN reacts too late, resulting in some delay. A detected / predicted time subtracted by the guard time can be adjusted depending on the preference between the 2 effects (e.g., too early vs. too late), when deciding when to report or when reporting the traffic pattern timing (e.g., burst start time).

[0105] Changes in traffic patterns may be detected and reported dynamically to RAN.

[0106] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of procedures that enable the detection and the dynamic reporting of traffic pattern changes to RAN.

[0107] As shown in FIG. 3 at 1 , a traffic pattern detection may be triggered at the RAN.

[0108] As shown in FIG. 3 at 2, a WTRU App and AS may negotiate support for indicating burst arrival time information in the header.

[0109] As shown in FIG. 3 at 3, the SMF may receive a message from the RAN node indicating that the RAN node supports the reception of traffic pattern notifications.

[0110] As shown in FIG. 3 at 4, the Application Server / Application Function (AS / AF) may tell the PCF (e.g., via the NEF) that it may mark downlink traffic with pattern related information (e.g., burst arrival time information).

[0111] As shown in FIG. 3 at 5, the SMF may receives PCC Rules from PCF. The PCC Rules tell the SMF that downlink traffic will include traffic pattern information (e.g., burst arrival time information).

[0112] As shown in FIG. 3 at 6, the SMF may enable (e.g., decides on whether to enable) the traffic pattern detection and notification feature.

[0113] As shown in FIG. 3 at 7, the UPF may be configured (e.g., by the SMF) for detecting traffic pattern information based on the traffic pattern detection configuration generated. The PDR and / or QER may be enhanced to specify that header fields in packets received may indicate that a burst of traffic will be followed, and upon reading this field, the UPF may notify the RAN about the imminent burst of traffic.

[0114] As shown in FIG. 3 at 8, the SMF may configure the RAN for receiving dynamic traffic pattern information.

[0115] As shown in FIG. 3 at 9, the UPF may detect the specific traffic pattern / traffic bursts.

[0116] As shown in FIG. 3 at 10, the UPF may send a notification to the RAN over GTP-U that a specific traffic pattern (e.g., burst) is expected.

[0117] As shown in FIG. 3 at 11 , the UPF may send a notification message (e.g., via the SMF) to the RAN that a specific traffic pattern (e.g., burst) may be expected.

[0118] As shown in FIG. 3 at 12, the RAN nodes may prepare user plane resources for the second traffic pattern (e.g., burst), for example, before it arrives.

[0119] As shown in FIG. 3 at 1 , traffic pattern detection may be triggered at the RAN. For example, this may be triggered by procedures such as PDU Session Establishment / Modification or Handover.

[0120] Alternatively, the traffic pattern detection may be triggered at the core network. For example, SMF may be triggered to detect traffic patterns, and the SMF may configure UPF for detecting specific traffic patterns.

[0121] As shown in FIG. 3 at 2, the RAN Node may send a message to the SMF, for example, indicating that the RAN node supports the reception of traffic patten notifications. For example, such notifications may be about bursts that are about to happen. The RAN node may specify its capabilities on traffic pattern detection / recognition. Examples of such capabilities may include but may not be limited to the following: whether the RAN node supports the reception of updates / changes to traffic pattern recognitionconfigurations; whether the RAN node supports receiving traffic pattern detection / notification using header information; what types of Headers the RAN node can read (e.g., GTP-U, IP); the RAN node's deep packet inspection capabilities; the size of the pattern that it is capable of detecting, recognizing, or monitoring (e.g., the RAN may indicate a maximum size of a pattern (e.g., maximum size a patten that is 2s long and repeats in every 5s) that it supports, as this may be limited to the buffer resources of the RAN node); support for inter-flow, inter- PDU Session, inter-user traffic pattern detection (e.g., traffic patterns that occur across QoS flows may be supported); traffic frequency indicator (e.g., indicate that only high priority traffic bursts should be reported about); etc.

[0122] As shown in FIG. 3 at 3, a WTRU App and AS may negotiate support for indicating burst arrival time information, for example, in the header. The application may negotiate how the traffic pattern information may be added to the header fields (e.g., over SDP).

[0123] The WTRU may indicate to the AS / AF that the traffic pattern indicator markings may be enabled on the downlink (e.g., at the AS), for example to be used by the 5GC for network optimization. In scenarios where the traffic pattern information may not be included (e.g., is not included) in the header fields, the WTRU may indicate that traffic pattern detection / recognition at the 5G system (e.g., at the UPF) may be enabled (e.g., which the AF / AS may later request from the 5G system).

[0124] As shown in FIG. 3 at 4, the AS / AF may tell the PCF (e.g., via the NEF) that it may mark (e.g., may be marking) downlink traffic with pattern related information (e.g., burst arrival time information). Alternatively, the AS / AF may request that the network (e.g., UPF) predict (e.g., independently predict) the start of bursts (e.g., new bursts). Independent prediction may be applied in the UPF in cases where the UPF may not be able to extract information from the traffic headers to help predict the start of the next traffic burst.

[0125] In scenarios where the 5GC predicts and detects traffic patterns (e.g., using AI / ML techniques), the AS / AF may specify that the traffic may exhibit certain traffic patterns. For example, the AS / AF may indicate that traffic may contain bursts.

[0126] As shown in FIG. 3 at 5, the PCF may send rules (e.g., PCC Rules) to the SMF. The rules (e.g., PCC Rules) may tell the SMF that downlink traffic may include traffic pattern information (e.g., burst arrival time information). The indication in the rules (e.g., PCC Rules) may be per SDF. The PCC Rules may indicate if traffic pattern information will be included in the headers of the traffic that is associated with a (e.g., each) Service Data Flow.

[0127] As shown in FIG. 3 at 6, the SMF may decide on whether to enable the traffic pattern detection and notification feature.

[0128] The SMF may make this decision based on PCC Rules from the PCF. The UPF may use traffic pattern detection criteria (e.g., requirements), for example, when selecting a suitable UPF. The SMF may inform the UPF whether or not to enable the feature based on the received service requirements from the AF.

[0129] As shown in FIG. 3 at 7, the SMF may configure the UPF for detecting traffic pattern information, for example, based on the traffic pattern detection configuration (e.g., generated as shown at 6 in FIG. 3).

[0130] The rules (e.g., N4 Rules) in this message may provide Packet Detection Rules (PDRs) to the UPF. The rules may be used by the UPF to identify downlink traffic that is associated with the PDR. The PDR may indicate a QoS Enforcement Rule (QER) that is associated with the traffic.

[0131] PDR and / or QER may be enhanced to include information about traffic pattern detection / recognition, and the actions to take when traffic patterns are detected. For example, it may specify that header fields in packets received may indicate that a burst of traffic is imminent and upon reading this field, the UPF may notify the RAN about the imminent burst of traffic before the arrival of the burst at the UPF.

[0132] As shown in FIG. 3 at 8, the SMF may configure the RAN. This message may indicate how the RAN may be notified of the traffic patterns and the information of the type of traffic patterns that the RAN may be notified about. The SMF may take into consideration the RAN capabilities that were indicated to SMF (e.g., as shown at 2 in FIG. 3).

[0133] This configuration information may specify the granularity at which the traffic patterns are detected. For example, it may be specified for a service data flow, PDU session, QoS flow, or a data stream.

[0134] The N2 message may include QoS Profiles. The QoS Profile may identify one or more SDFs that are associated with a (e.g., each) QoS Flow that is included in the QoS Profile. For an (e.g., each) identified SDF, the QoS Profile may indicate if traffic pattern (e.g., early burst) notifications are enabled. For each identified SDF, the QoS Profile may indicate how much time is expected to pass between the early burst notification and the arrival of the burst.

[0135] The SMF may indicate to the RAN Node if the traffic patterns are reported over GTP-U or by the SMF via the N2 interface. The indication may also be part of the QoS Profile.

[0136] This configuration information may specify if multiple reports occurring in the same time frame may be bundled together into a single message (e.g., reports that belong to multiple traffic pattern detection tasks may be bundled together into one message for minimizing signaling). Bundling may be performed (e.g., only be done), for example, if a (e.g., any) delay or early delivery, resulting from bundling of reports, does not reach a certain threshold.

[0137] If there is an imminent handover and the RAN node is aware of the target base station, this request may indicate that the reports should be sent to the specific target base station, for example, once the handover is complete.

[0138] This configuration information may indicate that the reports may be sent to more than one RAN node. For example, this may be done if the reports are to be sent during a handover that is in process, and the reports are sent to both the source and the target base stations.

[0139] This configuration information may specify if the traffic pattern notifications must also be sent to the WTRU(s). For example, this may be useful in scenarios where there are long intervals between traffic bursts and the WTRU uses this information to optimize computing resources (e.g., Dynamic Voltage and Frequency Scaling (DVF) - adjusting CPU frequency to reduce energy consumption), such that, energy consumption is reduced. For example, the WTRU might use this notification to determine when to begin exiting from a sleep state, determine when to increase the energy and computing resources that are allocated to certain tasks.

[0140] As shown in FIG. 3 at 9, a burst of traffic may arrive at the UPF.

[0141] As shown in FIG. 3 at 10, the UPF may detects the specific traffic pattern / traffic bursts. For example, the UPF may detect traffic patterns based on traffic markings or header fields or through traffic analysis (e.g., based on an AI / ML traffic model received by the AF). Properties of traffic patterns may be detected, such as, for example, one or more of the following: gow long (in ms) until the next packet or next burst; how many times or how long the pattern may repeat; dependencies between traffic, within a data stream, inter- data streams, inter- QoS flows, inter- PDU sessions / devices / users (e.g., a header field may indicate that the next burst may occur in another QoS flow; this may specify if the same burst pattern that is experienced at the current QoS flow may be experienced in another QoS flow in 2 ms); a start and end of a traffic pattern; a (e.g., any) variations in the current pattern (e.g., if only the interval between the bursts may change from 2ms to 1 ms, this may be indicated in the header field of the packet(s)); the average and variance of burst period / length / size; the number of sub-flows present in the flow; the codecs and codec settings being used; importance level of traffic (e.g., if the importance level information is available at the PDUs in the header, then that can be detected and used later on.).

[0142] As shown in FIG. 3 at 11, before the second traffic pattern (e.g., burst) arrives or is detected, the UPF may send a notification to RAN over GTP-U that a specific traffic pattern (e.g., burst) is expected.

[0143] As shown in FIG. 3 at 12, the UPF may tell the SMF (to be sent to RAN) when the next traffic pattern (e.g., burst) is expected. This may be sent with or after the current burst is done.

[0144] As shown in FIG. 3 at 13, the SMF may indicate to the RAN (e.g., send to the RAN) when the next traffic pattern (burst) is expected.

[0145] The SMF may indicate whether the RAN node forward the traffic pattern report message to the WTRU(s).

[0146] As shown in FIG. 3 at 14, the RAN nodes may configure / activate user plane resources for the second traffic pattern (e.g., burst) before it arrives.

[0147] UPF Actions may be performed and / or described herein.

[0148] The UPF may receive N4 Rules from the SMF (e.g., as described herein). The N4 Rules may provide Packet Detection Rules (PDRs) to the UPF. The information in the PDRs is used by the UPF to identify downlink traffic that is associated with the PDR. The PDR may indicate a QoS Enforcement Rule (QER) that is associated with the traffic. The QER may be used to determine what QoS Flow the downlink traffic should be assigned to.

[0149] The QER and / or PDR may indicate (e.g., be enhanced to indicate) to the UPF that the UPF should send burst expected notifications to the RAN Node.

[0150] The QER or PDR may indicate (e.g., be enhanced to indicate) how the UPF should detect when a burst is expected. For example, the QER or PDR may indicate a protocol type or header field type that may be included in the traffic and can be used to determine when a burst can be expected.

[0151] The QER or PDR may indicate (e.g., be enhanced to indicate) a time range for the time to next burst (e.g., next burst in less than 6ms, 6 to 20ms, or more than 20ms). The QER or PDR may indicate to the UPF that (e.g., if traffic that matches information in the QER or PDR is detected) then the time information that is provided in the QER or PDR can be used to estimate when the next burst of data will arrive.

[0152] The QER or PDR may indicate (e.g., be enhanced to indicate) the exact time for the next burst (e.g., the time to next burst may be expressed in milli seconds or seconds). The QER or PDR may indicate to the UPF that (e.g., if traffic that matches information in the QER or PDR is detected) then the time information that is provided in the QER or PDR can be used to estimate when the next burst of data will arrive

[0153] The QER or PDR may include information (e.g., be enhanced with information) about how to translate a header value into a time value. For example, the information may be a time scale value that indicates that a header field value should be multiplied (e.g., by 3 ms) in order to obtain the expected start time of the next burst.

[0154] The QER or PDR may include information (e.g., be enhanced with information) on how to anticipate traffic bursts in one data flow / SDF, from (PDU set, burst) information of another data flow / SDF,e.g. , bursts in one data flow may be temporally correlated with one or more other data flows. For example, it may be the case that a burst in one data flow / SDF may be followed by a burst in another data flow / SDF.

[0155] The QER or PDR may include information (e.g., be enhanced with information) on how to anticipate traffic bursts in one PDU session or one device or one user's traffic, from traffic in another PDU session or another device or another user's traffic, e.g., bursts in one PDU session may be temporally correlated with one or more other PDU sessions. For example, in a multi-user gaming application, it may be the case that one user's action affects the in-game states, in-turn affecting other user's states. Therefore, a burst in one PDU session may be followed by a burst in another PDU session or in another user's traffic.

[0156] The PDU may include a Next Burst Time header field, for example, if (e.g., when) the UPF receives a PDU and the PDU includes an End of Burst Indication. The UPF may use the information in the Next Burst Time header field to determine when the next burst is expected to start.

[0157] The UPF may send the PDU to the RAN Node in a GTP-U message. The GTP-U message may include the information from the Next Burst Time header, or the GTP-U message may include the amount of time that is expected to pass before the next burst starts.

[0158] The UPF may track a time (e.g., via a configured a timer). The time may be associated with a value (e.g., set the timer to a value) that is equal to or less than the amount of time that is expected to pass before the next burst starts. The UPF may send a GTP-U Message to the RAN Node to indicate that a burst is expected to start, for example, if (e.g., when) the time is about to expire or has expired (e.g., timer is about to expire or has expired). The UPF may send an empty GTP-U PDU to the RAN node or the UPF may send a dummy packet to the RAN node, for example, if no user plane packet is available for transmission between the UPF and the RAN node.

[0159] RAN Actions may be performed and / or described herein.

[0160] The SMF may configure the RAN for receiving traffic pattern notifications (e.g., as described herein). A configuration message sent by the SMF may indicate how the RAN may be notified of the traffic patterns, and information about the type of traffic patterns that the RAN will be notified about.

[0161] The configuration information may be sent from the SMF to the RAN in a message (e.g., an N2 message). The N2 configuration message may include a QoS Profile. The QoS Profile may indicate that the RAN may enable traffic pattern detection or reception of traffic patten notifications, at the level of granularity specified (e.g., SDF, QoS flow).

[0162] The configuration message sent from SMF to RAN may include one or more of the following information.

[0163] The configuration message may indicate how the RAN should detect the traffic pattern notification. For example, the message may indicate a header field type that will be included in the traffic and can be used to determine when a burst is expected and the length of the burst that will follow.

[0164] The configuration message may indicate how to translate a header value in the notification into a time value. For example, the information may be a time scale value that indicates that a header field value should be multiplied (e.g., by 3 ms), for example, in order to obtain the expected start time of the next burst.

[0165] The configuration message may indicate how to anticipate traffic bursts in one data flow / SDF, from (e.g., PDU set, burst) information of another data flow / SDF, e.g., bursts in one data flow may be temporally correlated with one or more other data flows. For example, it may be the case that, burst in one data flow / SDF may be followed by a burst in another data flow / SDF.

[0166] The configuration message may indicate how to anticipate traffic bursts in one PDU session or one device or one user's traffic or one QoS flow or data flow, from traffic in another PDU session or another device or another user's traffic or one QoS flow or data flow, e.g., bursts in one PDU session may be temporally correlated with one or more other PDU sessions. For example, in a multi-user gaming application, it may be the case that one user's action affects the in-game states, in-turn affecting other user's states. Therefore, a burst in one PDU session may be followed by a burst in another PDU session or in another user's traffic.

[0167] The UPF may ensure that duplicate traffic pattern notifications are not sent (e.g., with respect to indicating how to translate a header value in the notification into a time value or with respect to indicating how to anticipate traffic bursts in one fata flow / SDF from information of another data flow / SDF. For example, if a traffic pattern is detected in one flow from a notification received for another flow, a second notification is not needed.

[0168] A similar configuration to the one sent from the SMF to the RAN may be sent to the WTRU (e.g., forwarded to the WTRU via the RAN node and / or sent directly to the WTRU from the Core Network via NAS messages). This may enable the WTRU to detect XR traffic patterns in the uplink that are generated in the WTRU, and notify the RAN node accordingly. For example, based on the configuration received message, the WTRU may be able to better time / adapt its request for resources to the RAN node. For example, the WTRU may use the information on the traffic pattern in the uplink to send Buffer Status Reports (BSR) and / or pre-emptive BSR at the right time and with the index in the BSR table indicating the right volume of data.

[0169] The RAN Node may receive a GTP-U packet from the UPF. The GTP-U packet may or may not include a PDU. The GTP-U message may include information that the RAN node may use to predict when a data burst (e.g., new data burst) will arrive at the RAN Node. For example, the header of the GTP-Umessage may include a field that indicates how much time is expected to pass before a burst (e.g., new burst) arrives. The configuration information that was received from the SMF may be used by the RAN node to translate the header field value to a time duration. Based on the determined time duration, the RAN node may determine when to activate the user plane resource that will be needed to send the data to the WTRU.

[0170] In examples, the RAN node may generate and send traffic pattern reports to one or more other RAN nodes. For example, a (e.g., one) RAN node may receive or detect a traffic pattern that may be correlated traffic that belongs to another RAN node. Therefore, instead of the SMF or UPF sending those notifications, the configured RAN node may send the traffic pattern notification to the affected / related RAN nodes. The RAN node may start GTP-U packet header reading for traffic specified (e.g., a specific application), for example, if the traffic patterns are reported over GTP-U.

[0171] Information in the configuration message (e.g., observable time interval between traffic bursts), and the notifications received dynamically, may be used by the RAN for various optimization tasks. For example, RAN may use traffic burst and inactive times for one or more of the following.

[0172] RAN may use traffic burst and inactive times for power optimization procedures (e.g., connected Mode DRX settings and times (e.g., via timers) for power management settings). The information in the configuration message may allow the RAN node to configure the DRX cycle (e.g., length of onDuration timer in the DRX cycle and / or apply a time offset to the start of the DRX cycle and / or the start of the onDuration timer within the DRX cycle) to better align the DRX cycle with the arrival of the downlink traffic.

[0173] RAN may use traffic burst and inactive times for better resource management at the RAN node. For example,, the information in the configuration message may allow the RAN node to configure the Semi- Persistent Scheduling (SPS) in the WTRU accordingly (e.g., SPS grant size, SPS grant frequency).

[0174] RAN may use traffic burst and inactive times for ensuring that the WTRU will be awake during the upcoming burst. For example, the RAN node may send DL traffic or dummy DL traffic to the WTRU during the WTRUs last CDRX cycle before the arrival of the upcoming burst. This may have the effect of triggering the CDRX inactivity time (e.g., via an inactivity timer) so that the WTRU stays awake until the expected burst time. Alternatively, the RAN node may send an RRC message to the WTRU just prior to the upcoming burst, for example, which may configure the WTRU to be awake during the burst arrival.

[0175] RAN may use traffic burst and inactive times for aligning the measurement configurations (e.g., measurement gap patterns for performing intra- and / or inter-frequency measurements in FR1 and FR2), for example, such that an occasion (e.g., any of the occasions) during which the WTRU is configured to perform measurements do not overlap with the occasions when the (e.g., new) traffic (e.g., per new traffic pattern) is expected to be delivered. For example, such reconfiguration of the measurement pattern(s) maybe done in advance based on the awareness of the new traffic pattern properties (e.g., start / end of new traffic pattern).

[0176] During congestion at the RAN level, it might be beneficial for the RAN node to know that there is an upcoming traffic, and that traffic is a data burst, with certain size and expected duration. The RAN can use this notification (e.g., along with parameters such as priority level of the QoS flow the burst belongs to) to pre-emptively drop packet that belong to other QoS flows, or service data flows, before even the burst start arriving at the RAN, in order to take advantage of this notification.

[0177] RAN may use traffic burst and inactive times for anticipating traffic in Uplink. For example, there may be traffic patterns where a downlink burst is followed a burst in the uplink, and vise versa.

[0178] In examples, the RAN may request SMF to change settings / properties of the traffic pattern reports. This configuration may specify the required frequency and interval of the reports (e.g., only notify bursts with high importance), and if multiple reports occurring in the same time frame may be bundled together into a single message (e.g., reports that belong to multiple traffic pattern detection tasks may be bundled together into one message for minimizing signaling). For example, in scenarios where too many reports are received at the RAN node consuming too many resources, the RAN node may request SMF to bundle multiple reports (belonging to the same application or the user) or to stop notifications for low priority traffic bursts with a backoff time (e.g., via a timer).

[0179] In examples, the RAN may request SMF when to start and stop the reporting. For example, it may request reports to stop when there are too many reports, and they consume too many resources.

[0180] If there is an imminent or ongoing handover and the RAN node is aware of the target base station, the source RAN node may forward early traffic pattern reports received at the source RAN to the target RAN node until the handover is complete.

[0181] If there is an imminent or ongoing handover and the RAN node is aware of the target base station, the source RAN node may send traffic pattern detection or report information to the target RAN node before the handover is complete.

[0182] In some scenarios, the RAN may reconfigure or start / stop certain functionality or configuration at the AS / WTRU based on the traffic pattern reports. For example, the RAN may activate / deactivate one or more component carriers when the WTRU is configured with CA to enable the DL traffic to be transmitted with higher / lower bandwidth based on the expected change in the traffic pattern. In another example, the RAN may reconfigure the QoE reporting configuration in the WTRU (e.g., update the application buffer threshold, reporting periodicity) based on the expected change in the current traffic pattern and / or the info on dependency between flows.

[0183] Burst Predictions in the Network may be performed and / or described herein.

[0184] UPF Actions may be performed and / or described herein.

[0185] The UPF may receive N4 Rules from the SMF. The QER or PDR in the N4 Rules may indicate (e.g., be enhanced to indicate) to the UPF that the UPF may (e.g., should) send burst expected notifications to the RAN Node.

[0186] The QER or PDR may indicate (e.g., be enhanced to indicate) how the UPF should detect when a burst is expected. For example, the QER or PDR may indicate a protocol type or header field type that will be included in the traffic and can be used to determine when a burst can be expected.

[0187] The QER or PDR may include information (e.g., be enhanced with information) about how to translate a header value into a time value. For example, the information may be a time scale value that indicates that a header field value may (e.g., should) be multiplied (e.g., by 3 ms), for example, in order to obtain the expected start time of the next burst.

[0188] The QER or PDR may include information (e.g., be enhanced with information) on how to anticipate traffic bursts in one data flow / SDF, from (e.g., PDU set, burst) information of another data flow / SDF, e.g., bursts in one data flow may be temporally correlated with one or more other data flows. For example, it may be the case that, burst in one data flow / SDF may be followed by a burst in another data flow / SDF.

[0189] The QER or PDR may include information (e.g., be enhanced with information) on how to anticipate traffic bursts in one PDU session or one device or one user's traffic, from traffic in another PDU session or another device or another user's traffic, e.g., bursts in one PDU session may be temporally correlated with one or more other PDU sessions. For example, in a multi-user gaming application, it may be the case that one user's action affects the in-game states, in-turn affecting other user's states. Therefore, a burst in one PDU session may be followed by a burst in another PDU session or in another user's traffic.

[0190] The UPF may detect that a burst is coming, for example, based on the QER / PDR parameters.

[0191] The UPF may send a GTP-U notification to RAN to warn RAN that a burst is coming. The GTP-U message may include the information from the Next Burst Time header, or the GTP-U message may include the amount of time that is expected to pass before the next burst starts.

[0192] RAN Action may be performed and / or described herein.

[0193] The RAN may receive traffic pattern configuration information from the SMF. The configuration information may be sent from the SMF to the RAN in an N2 message.

[0194] The configuration message may indicate how the RAN should detect the traffic pattern notification.

[0195] The configuration message may indicate how to translate a header value in the notification into a time value.

[0196] The configuration message may indicate how to anticipate traffic bursts in one data flow / SDF, from (PDU set, burst) information of another data flow / SDF.

[0197] The configuration message may indicate how to anticipate traffic bursts in one PDU session or one device or one user's traffic or one QoS flow or data flow, from traffic in another PDU session or another device or another user's traffic or one QoS flow or data flow.

[0198] RAN may use the configuration received for various optimization tasks. For example, RAN may use traffic burst and inactive times for power optimization procedures (e.g., Connected Mode DRX settings and timers may be example power management settings).

[0199] In examples, the RAN node may generate and send traffic pattern reports to one or more other RAN nodes (e.g., same traffic is sent to another user that is connected to the application through another RAN node).

[0200] In examples, the RAN may request SMF to change setti ngs / properties of the traffic pattern reports. For example, the RAN may request that reports for low priority traffic patterns be stopped with a backoff timer value.

[0201] If there is an imminent or ongoing handover the source RAN node may forward early traffic pattern reports received at the source RAN to the target RAN node until the handover is complete. The source RAN node may send traffic pattern detection or report information to the target RAN node before the handover is complete.

[0202] The changes in traffic patterns may be detected and / or reported to WTRUs dynamically.

[0203] FIG. 4 illustrates an example of procedures that enable the detection and the dynamic reporting of traffic pattern changes to WTRU.

[0204] As shown in FIG. 4 at 1 , a WTRU hosted application may receive an SDP message from an AS / AF. The SDP message may indicate that the AS / AF supports sending data with PDU Set header extensions. The SDP message may also indicate that that the AS supports receiving information about tethered devices, that the AS / AF supports sending traffic pattern reports (e.g., early burst indicator reports), and traffic reports associated with traffic that is sent to or from the WTRU Hosted Application or tethered devices.

[0205] As shown in FIG. 4 at 2, the WTRU hosted application may send an SDP message to the AS / AF. If the Application Server indicated that the AS / AF supports dynamic traffic pattern reports, this message may indicate that dynamic traffic patten is to be enabled for an application, PDU session, QoS flow or adata flow. This message may include the reporting criteria (e.g., report when the interval between the bursts exceeds 10ms), frequency (e.g., report before each burst arrives at the WTRU), method of reporting (e.g., through traffic marking).

[0206] As shown in FIG. 4 at 3, the AS / AF may enable traffic pattern reporting through traffic marking.

[0207] As shown in FIG. 4 at 4, the AS / AF may tell the PCF (e.g., via the NEF) that it may be marking downlink traffic with pattern related information (e.g., burst arrival time information). This message may indicate that traffic pattern information may be forwarded to the WTRU by the RAN. This message may indicate that dynamic traffic pattern may be enabled for a specific application, PDU session, QoS flow or a data flow. This message may include the reporting criteria (e.g., report when the interval between the bursts exceeds 10ms), frequency (e.g., report before each burst arrives at the UE), method of reporting (e.g., through traffic marking).

[0208] As shown in FIG. 4 at 5, the PCF may generate PCC rules. Rules generated for the RAN may indicate that traffic pattern information may be sent to the WTRU, for example, as per the requested configuration (e.g., with respect to 2 as shown in FIG. 4).

[0209] As shown in FIG. 4 at 6, the PCF may send PCC Rules to the SMF. The PCC Rules may tell the SMF that downlink traffic may include traffic pattern information (e.g., burst arrival time information), and that RAN may be configured to send traffic pattern notifications to the WTRU (e.g., over RRC). This message may include notification configuration information such as reporting frequency and criteria.

[0210] As shown in FIG. 4 at 7, the SMF may decide on whether to enable the traffic pattern detection and notification feature. The SMF may decide on where the traffic pattern detection takes place, e.g., UPF, RAN.

[0211] As shown in FIG. 4 at 8, the SMF may send a configuration message to the RAN to enable traffic pattern reporting to the WTRU. This message may indicate how traffic pattern indications / notifications are received at the RAN (e.g., header field values).

[0212] This message may indicate if RAN may detect traffic patterns, receive traffic pattern notifications (e.g., from the UPF), or both.

[0213] This message may indicate what RAN may do upon receiving a traffic pattern notification (e.g., over GTP-U from the UPF) or detecting traffic patterns. For example, it may indicate that RAN may send the received traffic pattern notification to the WTRU over RRC or create a traffic pattern notification based on detected traffic patterns and send to the WTRU.

[0214] As shown in FIG. 4 at 9, RAN may enable traffic pattern notifications to the WTRU.

[0215] As shown in FIG. 4 at 10, RAN may receive a traffic pattern report from the UPF (e.g., over GTP- U) or from SMF (e.g., as described herein).

[0216] As shown in FIG. 4 at11 , RAN may send a traffic pattern report with information received about the traffic pattern (e.g., burst information) to the WTRU.

[0217] In examples, the RAN node may generate and send traffic pattern reports to one or more WTRUs. For example, traffic bursts belonging to a (e.g., one) WTRU may be correlated with the traffic pattern of another WTRU (e.g., as described herein). One RAN node may receive traffic pattern notifications or detect a traffic pattern of a (e.g., one) WTRU, which may be correlated with traffic that belongs to a second WTRU. Therefore, instead of AF or UPF sending those notifications, the configured RAN node may send the traffic pattern notification to the affected / related other WTRUs.

[0218] The traffic pattern report may be an RRC message that indicates to the RAN that downlink data for a PDU Session, QoS Flow, or Service Data Flow is expected soon. The report may also provide an indication of how much time is predicted before the burst. Alternatively, the information / indications associated with the traffic pattern report may be provided to the WTRU via DL MAC CE or DCI.

[0219] As shown in FIG. 4 at 12, the WTRU may use information from the report for various resource optimization tasks. For example, traffic burst information may be used for preparing tethered connectivity to other tethered devices. By activating a connection to a tethered device before data is received, jitter may be reduced. An example of a tethered connecting may include a Bluetooth device. For example, this may be useful in scenarios where there are long intervals between traffic bursts and the WTRU uses this information to optimize computing resources (e.g., dynamic frequency scaling), such that, energy consumption may be reduced.

[0220] In examples, when the WTRU is configured with Mode 2 operation over sidelink, the WTRU may trigger resource (re)selection procedure for determining and / or reserving sufficient radio resources over sidelink such that the received burst in DL may be relayed to the tethered device with low latency. Such triggering of resource (re)selection may be done based the traffic pattern report provided by the RAN node to the WTRU. The WTRU may (e.g., alternatively) release any of the selected or preconfigured resources over sidelink if the traffic pattern report indicates a long gap before the burst arrival, for example.

[0221] Burst Predictions in the WTRU may be performed and / or described herein.

[0222] WTRU actions may be performed and / or described herein.

[0223] A WTRU hosted application may receive an SDP message from an AS / AF. The SDP message may indicate that the AS / AF supports sending data with PDU Set header extensions.

[0224] A WTRU hosted application may send an SDP message to the AS / AF, indicating that dynamic traffic patten is to be enabled for an application, PDU session, QoS flow or a data flow.

[0225] A WTRU may receive a traffic pattern notification report. The traffic pattern report may be an RRC message that indicates to the WTRU that downlink data for a PDU Session, QoS Flow, or Service Data Flow is expected soon.

[0226] A WTRU may use information from the report for resource activation decisions. For example, traffic burst information may be used for preparing tethered connectivity to other tethered devices. By activating a connection to a tethered device before data is received, jitter may be reduced.

[0227] A WTRU may receive the data and process the data using the activated resources or transmit the data using the activated tethered connection.

[0228] RAN action may be performed and / or described herein.

[0229] The RAN may receive a configuration message from SMF requesting to enable traffic pattern receiving at RAN. This message may indicate how traffic pattern indications / notifications are received at the RAN (e.g., header field values). This message may indicate what RAN may do upon receiving a traffic pattern notification (e.g., over GTP-U from the UPF) or detecting traffic patterns. For example, it may indicate that RAN must send the received traffic pattern notification to the WTRU over RRC or create a traffic pattern notification based on detected traffic patterns and send to the WTRU.

[0230] RAN may enable traffic pattern notifications to the WTRU.

[0231] RAN may receive a traffic pattern report from the UPF (e.g., over GTP-U) or may detect a traffic pattern.

[0232] RAN may send a traffic pattern report with information received about the traffic pattern (e.g., burst information) to the WTRU. The report may indicate the QoS Flow, PDU Session, or SDF that the anticipated burst is associated with.

[0233] Multiplexed Data Flows may be performed and / or described herein

[0234] Traffic pattern notifications may be sent for a specific application, PDU session, QoS flow, or a data stream. Depending on the specified level of the notifications, the RAN or the WTRU may derive the traffic pattern associated with corresponding QoS flows or PDU sessions. For example, the traffic pattern notifications may specify (e.g., only) the traffic patterns associated with data streams or SDFs. However, further processing may be performed (e.g., required) to derive the traffic patterns of the QoS flow where multiple data streams or SDFs are multiplexed. For example, the RAN or WTRU may determine the start of the next burst for a QoS flow to be the shortest time-to-next-burst among all data streams or SDFs in the QoS flow.

[0235] NWDAF and UPF Interaction may be described herein.

[0236] The UPF may obtain burst prediction information from the NWDAF. The predication information may indicate when a burst is expected to arrive.

[0237] For example, a service of the NWDAF may be invoked by the UPF. During service invocation, the UPF may provide the NWDAF with statistics, or information, about a QoS Flow or an SDF. The information may include the protocol description that was received from the SMF in the N4 Rules. The information may indicate the identity of the RAN node that is serving the QoS Flow or SDF. The statistics may include information about burst sizes and burst arrival times that are associated with the QoS Flow or SDF. During service invocation, the UPF may indicate to the NWDAF the predictions about burst arrival times on the QoS Flow or SDF are requested. The type of predictions may be indicated by providing an Analytics ID value when the service is invoked.

[0238] The UPF may provide the statistics to the NWDAF periodically.

[0239] The NWDAF may use the statistics and information to determine burst time predictions that represent the time that a burst is expected to arrive for the QoS Flow or SDF.

[0240] The NWDAF may send the prediction information to the UPF so that the UPF can send a burst notification to the RAN Node.

[0241] Alternatively, the NWDAF may send the prediction information to the RAN Node to notify the RAN that a burst is anticipated.

[0242] Prediction information may include a burst time value, a burst size value, and the associated QoS Flow ID or SDF ID.

[0243] NWDAF and RAN Node Interaction may be described herein.

[0244] The RAN Node may obtain burst prediction information from the NWDAF. The predication information may indicate when a burst is expected to arrive.

[0245] For example, a service of the NWDAF may be invoked by the RAN Node. During service invocation, the RAN Node may provide the NWDAF with statistics, or information, about a QoS Flow. The information may include QoS Profile information and the PDU Session ID that was received from the SMF in an N2 message. The information may indicate the identity of the UPF that is serving the QoS Flow. The statistics may include information about burst sizes and burst arrival times that are associated with the QoS Flow. During service invocation, the RAN Node may indicate to the NWDAF the predictions about burst arrival times on the QoS Flow are requested. The type of predictions may be indicated by providing an Analytics ID value when the service is invoked.

[0246] The RAN Node may provide the statistics to the NWDAF periodically.

[0247] The NWDAF may also collect statistics about the QoS Flow from the UPF. The NWDAF may use the UPF ID, QoS Flow ID, and PDU Session ID that was received from the RAN node to indicate to the UPF which flows the NWDAF wants to collect statistics about. The UPF may then provide the statistics to the NWDAF periodically.

[0248] The NWDAF may use the statistics and information from the RAN Node and UPF to determine burst time predictions that represent the time that a burst is expected to arrive for the QoS Flow.

[0249] The NWDAF may send the prediction information to the RAN Node so that the RAN Node can begin to activate the user plane resources that are associated with the QoS Flow before the burst arrives at the RAN Node.

[0250] Prediction information may include a burst time value, a burst size value, and the associated QoS Flow ID.

[0251] Non-3GPP Access may be considered.

[0252] The RAN Node that is described herein may be an N3IWF or a TNGF. The N3I WF or TNGF may send downlink data to the WTRU via a Wi-Fi connection. If an N3IWF or TNGF receives a GTP-U message from the UPF that indicates that a burst of data will soon arrive for a WTRU, the N3IWF or TNGF may choose to not grant transmission opportunities to stations (e.g. WTRUs) in the Wi-Fi network until the burst arrives and is transmitted. A Hybrid Coordination Function (HCF) that is associated with the N3IWF or TNGF may choose to not grant a Transmit Opportunity (TXOP) that overlaps with the expected data burst.

[0253] Although features and elements are provided above in particular combinations, one of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that each feature or element can be used alone or in any combination with the other features and elements. The present disclosure is not to be limited in terms of the particular embodiments described in this application, which are intended as illustrations of various aspects. Many modifications and variations may be made without departing from its spirit and scope, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. No element, act, or instruction used in the description of the present application should be construed as critical or essential to the invention unless explicitly provided as such. Functionally equivalent methods and apparatuses within the scope of the disclosure, in addition to those enumerated herein, will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing descriptions. Such modifications and variations are intended to fall within the scope of the appended claims. The present disclosure is to be limited only by the terms of the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled. It is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to particular methods or systems.

[0254] The foregoing embodiments are discussed, for simplicity, with regard to the terminology and structure of infrared capable devices, i.e., infrared emitters and receivers. However, the embodimentsdiscussed are not limited to these systems but may be applied to other systems that use other forms of electromagnetic waves or non-electromagnetic waves such as acoustic waves.

[0255] It is also to be understood that the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only, and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the term "video" or the term "imagery" may mean any of a snapshot, single image and / or multiple images displayed over a time basis. As another example, when referred to herein, the terms "user equipment" and its abbreviation "UE", the term "remote" and / or the terms "head mounted display" or its abbreviation "HMD" may mean or include (i) a wireless transmit and / or receive unit (WTRU); (ii) any of a number of embodiments of a WTRU; (iii) a wireless-capable and / or wired-capable (e.g., tetherable) device configured with, inter alia, some or all structures and functionality of a WTRU; (iii) a wireless-capable and / or wired-capable device configured with less than all structures and functionality of a WTRU; or (iv) the like. Details of an example WTRU, which may be representative of any WTRU recited herein, are provided herein with respect to FIGs. 1 A-1 D. As another example, various disclosed embodiments herein supra and infra are described as utilizing a head mounted display. Those skilled in the art will recognize that a device other than the head mounted display may be utilized and some or all of the disclosure and various disclosed embodiments can be modified accordingly without undue experimentation. Examples of such other device may include a drone or other device configured to stream information for providing the adapted reality experience.

[0256] In addition, the methods provided herein may be implemented in a computer program, software, or firmware incorporated in a computer-readable medium for execution by a computer or processor. Examples of computer-readable media include electronic signals (transmitted over wired or wireless connections) and computer-readable storage media. Examples of computer-readable storage media include, but are not limited to, a read only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a register, cache memory, semiconductor memory devices, magnetic media such as internal hard disks and removable disks, magneto-optical media, and optical media such as CD-ROM disks, and digital versatile disks (DVDs). A processor in association with software may be used to implement a radio frequency transceiver for use in a WTRU, UE, terminal, base station, RNC, MME, EPC, AMF, or any host computer.

[0257] Variations of the method, apparatus and system provided above are possible without departing from the scope of the invention. In view of the wide variety of embodiments that can be applied, it should be understood that the illustrated embodiments are examples only and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the following claims. For instance, the embodiments provided herein include handheld devices, which may include or be utilized with any appropriate voltage source, such as a battery and the like, providing any appropriate voltage.

[0258] Moreover, in the embodiments provided above, processing platforms, computing systems, controllers, and other devices that include processors are noted. These devices may include at least one Central Processing Unit ("CPU") and memory. In accordance with the practices of persons skilled in the art of computer programming, reference to acts and symbolic representations of operations or instructions may be performed by the various CPUs and memories. Such acts and operations or instructions may be referred to as being "executed," "computer executed" or "CPU executed."

[0259] One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the acts and symbolically represented operations or instructions include the manipulation of electrical signals by the CPU. An electrical system represents data bits that can cause a resulting transformation or reduction of the electrical signals and the maintenance of data bits at memory locations in a memory system to thereby reconfigure or otherwise alter the CPU's operation, as well as other processing of signals. The memory locations where data bits are maintained are physical locations that have particular electrical, magnetic, optical, or organic properties corresponding to or representative of the data bits. It should be understood that the embodiments are not limited to the above-mentioned platforms or CPUs and that other platforms and CPUs may support the provided methods.

[0260] The data bits may also be maintained on a computer readable medium including magnetic disks, optical disks, and any other volatile (e.g., Random Access Memory (RAM)) or non-volatile (e.g., Read-Only Memory (ROM)) mass storage system readable by the CPU. The computer readable medium may include cooperating or interconnected computer readable medium, which exist exclusively on the processing system or are distributed among multiple interconnected processing systems that may be local or remote to the processing system. It should be understood that the embodiments are not limited to the above- mentioned memories and that other platforms and memories may support the provided methods.

[0261] In an illustrative embodiment, any of the operations, processes, etc. described herein may be implemented as computer-readable instructions stored on a computer-readable medium. The computer- readable instructions may be executed by a processor of a mobile unit, a network element, and / or any other computing device.

[0262] There is little distinction left between hardware and software implementations of aspects of systems. The use of hardware or software is generally (but not always, in that in certain contexts the choice between hardware and software may become significant) a design choice representing cost versus efficiency tradeoffs. There may be various vehicles by which processes and / or systems and / or other technologies described herein may be effected (e.g., hardware, software, and / or firmware), and the preferred vehicle may vary with the context in which the processes and / or systems and / or other technologies are deployed. For example, if an implementer determines that speed and accuracy areparamount, the implementer may opt for a mainly hardware and / or firmware vehicle. If flexibility is paramount, the implementer may opt for a mainly software implementation. Alternatively, the implementer may opt for some combination of hardware, software, and / or firmware.

[0263] The foregoing detailed description has set forth various embodiments of the devices and / or processes via the use of block diagrams, flowcharts, and / or examples. Insofar as such block diagrams, flowcharts, and / or examples include one or more functions and / or operations, it will be understood by those within the art that each function and / or operation within such block diagrams, flowcharts, or examples may be implemented, individually and / or collectively, by a wide range of hardware, software, firmware, or virtually any combination thereof. In an embodiment, several portions of the subject matter described herein may be implemented via Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs), digital signal processors (DSPs), and / or other integrated formats. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that some aspects of the embodiments disclosed herein, in whole or in part, may be equivalently implemented in integrated circuits, as one or more computer programs running on one or more computers (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more computer systems), as one or more programs running on one or more processors (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more microprocessors), as firmware, or as virtually any combination thereof, and that designing the circuitry and / or writing the code for the software and or firmware would be well within the skill of one of skill in the art in light of this disclosure. In addition, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the mechanisms of the subject matter described herein may be distributed as a program product in a variety of forms, and that an illustrative embodiment of the subject matter described herein applies regardless of the particular type of signal bearing medium used to actually carry out the distribution. Examples of a signal bearing medium include, but are not limited to, the following: a recordable type medium such as a floppy disk, a hard disk drive, a CD, a DVD, a digital tape, a computer memory, etc., and a transmission type medium such as a digital and / or an analog communication medium (e.g., a fiber optic cable, a waveguide, a wired communications link, a wireless communication link, etc.).

[0264] Those skilled in the art will recognize that it is common within the art to describe devices and / or processes in the fashion set forth herein, and thereafter use engineering practices to integrate such described devices and / or processes into data processing systems. That is, at least a portion of the devices and / or processes described herein may be integrated into a data processing system via a reasonable amount of experimentation. Those having skill in the art will recognize that a typical data processing system may generally include one or more of a system unit housing, a video display device, a memory such as volatile and non-volatile memory, processors such as microprocessors and digital signal processors, computational entities such as operating systems, drivers, graphical user interfaces, andapplications programs, one or more interaction devices, such as a touch pad or screen, and / or control systems including feedback loops and control motors (e.g., feedback for sensing position and / or velocity, control motors for moving and / or adjusting components and / or quantities). A typical data processing system may be implemented utilizing any suitable commercially available components, such as those typically found in data computing / communication and / or network computing / communication systems.

[0265] The herein described subject matter sometimes illustrates different components included within, or connected with, different other components. It is to be understood that such depicted architectures are merely examples, and that in fact many other architectures may be implemented which achieve the same functionality. In a conceptual sense, any arrangement of components to achieve the same functionality is effectively "associated" such that the desired functionality may be achieved. Hence, any two components herein combined to achieve a particular functionality may be seen as "associated with" each other such that the desired functionality is achieved, irrespective of architectures or intermedial components.Likewise, any two components so associated may also be viewed as being "operably connected", or "operably coupled", to each other to achieve the desired functionality, and any two components capable of being so associated may also be viewed as being "operably couplable" to each other to achieve the desired functionality. Specific examples of operably couplable include but are not limited to physically mateable and / or physically interacting components and / or wirelessly interactable and / or wirelessly interacting components and / or logically interacting and / or logically interactable components.

[0266] With respect to the use of substantially any plural and / or singular terms herein, those having skill in the art can translate from the plural to the singular and / or from the singular to the plural as is appropriate to the context and / or application. The various si ng ular / pl ural permutations may be expressly set forth herein for sake of clarity.

[0267] It will be understood by those within the art that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as "open" terms (e.g., the term "including" should be interpreted as "including but not limited to," the term "having" should be interpreted as "having at least," the term "includes" should be interpreted as "includes but is not limited to," etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, where only one item is intended, the term "single" or similar language may be used. As an aid to understanding, the following appended claims and / or the descriptions herein may include usage of the introductory phrases "at least one" and "one or more" to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles "a" or "an" limits any particular claim includingsuch introduced claim recitation to embodiments including only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases "one or more" or "at least one" and indefinite articles such as "a" or "an" (e.g., "a" and / or "an" should be interpreted to mean "at least one" or "one or more"). The same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations. In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of "two recitations," without other modifiers, means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, and C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, and C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a convention analogous to "at least one of A, B, or C, etc." is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., "a system having at least one of A, B, or C" would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and / or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that virtually any disjunctive word and / or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms. For example, the phrase "A or B" will be understood to include the possibilities of "A" or "B" or "A and B." Further, the terms "any of' followed by a listing of a plurality of items and / or a plurality of categories of items, as used herein, are intended to include "any of," "any combination of," "any multiple of," and / or "any combination of multiples of' the items and / or the categories of items, individually or in conjunction with other items and / or other categories of items. Moreover, as used herein, the term "set" is intended to include any number of items, including zero. Additionally, as used herein, the term "number" is intended to include any number, including zero. And the term "multiple", as used herein, is intended to be synonymous with "a plurality".

[0268] In addition, where features or aspects of the disclosure are described in terms of Markush groups, those skilled in the art will recognize that the disclosure is also thereby described in terms of any individual member or subgroup of members of the Markush group.

[0269] As will be understood by one skilled in the art, for any and all purposes, such as in terms of providing a written description, all ranges disclosed herein also encompass any and all possible subranges and combinations of subranges thereof. Any listed range can be easily recognized as sufficiently describing and enabling the same range being broken down into at least equal halves, thirds, quarters,fifths, tenths, etc. As a non-limiting example, each range discussed herein may be readily broken down into a lower third, middle third and upper third, etc. As will also be understood by one skilled in the art all language such as "up to," "at least," "greater than," "less than," and the like includes the number recited and refers to ranges which can be subsequently broken down into subranges as discussed above. Finally, as will be understood by one skilled in the art, a range includes each individual member. Thus, for example, a group having 1-3 cells refers to groups having 1 , 2, or 3 cells. Similarly, a group having 1-5 cells refers to groups having 1 , 2, 3, 4, or 5 cells, and so forth.

[0270] Moreover, the claims should not be read as limited to the provided order or elements unless stated to that effect. In addition, use of the terms "means for" in any claim is intended to invoke 35 U.S.C. §112, U 6 or means-plus-function claim format, and any claim without the terms "means for" is not so intended.

[0271] Suitable processors include, by way of example, a general purpose processor, a special purpose processor, a conventional processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors in association with a DSP core, a controller, a microcontroller, Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), Application Specific Standard Products (ASSPs); Field Programmable Gate Arrays (FPGAs) circuits, any other type of integrated circuit (IC), and / or a state machine.

[0272] The WTRU may be used in conjunction with modules, implemented in hardware and / or software including a Software Defined Radio (SDR), and other components such as a camera, a video camera module, a videophone, a speakerphone, a vibration device, a speaker, a microphone, a television transceiver, a hands free headset, a keyboard, a Bluetooth® module, a frequency modulated (FM) radio unit, a Near Field Communication (NFC) Module, a liquid crystal display (LCD) display unit, an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display unit, a digital music player, a media player, a video game player module, an Internet browser, and / or any Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) or Ultra Wide Band (UWB) module.

[0273] Although the various embodiments have been described in terms of communication systems, it is contemplated that the systems may be implemented in software on microprocessors / general purpose computers (not shown). In certain embodiments, one or more of the functions of the various components may be implemented in software that controls a general-purpose computer.

[0274] In addition, although the invention is illustrated and described herein with reference to specific embodiments, the invention is not intended to be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications may be made in the details within the scope and range of equivalents of the claims and without departing from the invention.

Claims

CLAIMSWhat Is Claimed Is1 . A wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) comprising: a processor configured to: receive configuration information from a network entity, wherein the configuration information enables use of data traffic pattern notification reports; transmit a message to the network entity, wherein the message indicates that data traffic pattern notification report use is enabled for one or more of a WTRU application, a protocol data unit (PDU) session, a quality of service (QoS) flow, or a data flow; receive a data traffic pattern notification report, wherein the data traffic pattern notification report indicates that downlink data is expected; activate a resource based on the data traffic pattern notification report; receive data traffic; and process the received data traffic using the activated resource.

2. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the configuration information is received via a session description protocol (SDP) message, and wherein the SDP message is received from one of an application server node or an application function node.

3. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the data traffic pattern notification report is received via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

4. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the enabled use of data traffic pattern notification reports is associated with enabling sending data with a PDU set header extension.

5. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the activation of the resource is associated with activation of a tethered connection to one or more tether devices before the data traffic is received.

6. The WTRU of claim 5, wherein the processor is further configured to: transmit the data traffic using the tethered connection to the one or more tether devices.

7. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the data traffic pattern notification report further indicates burst information associated with the expected downlink data.

8. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the processor is further configured to: perform resource selection associated with reserving at least one sidelink resource for relaying the data traffic to a tethered device.

9. A method comprising: receiving configuration information from a network entity, wherein the configuration information enables use of data traffic pattern notification reports; transmitting a message to the network entity, wherein the message indicates that data traffic pattern notification report use is enabled for one or more of a WTRU application, a protocol data unit (PDU) session, a quality of service (QoS) flow, or a data flow; receiving a data traffic pattern notification report, wherein the data traffic pattern notification report indicates that downlink data is expected; activating a resource based on the data traffic pattern notification report; receiving data traffic; and processing the received data traffic using the activated resource.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the configuration information is received via a session description protocol (SDP) message, and wherein the SDP message is received from one of an application server node or an application function node.11 . The method of claim 9, wherein the data traffic pattern notification report is received via radio resource control (RRC) signaling.

12. The method of claim 9, wherein the enabled use of data traffic pattern notification reports is associated with enabling sending data with a PDU set header extension.

13. The method of claim 9, wherein the activation of the resource is associated with activation of a tethered connection to one or more tether devices before the data traffic is received.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the method further comprises: transmitting the data traffic using the tethered connection to the one or more tether devices.

15. The method of claim 9, wherein the data traffic pattern notification report further indicates burst information associated with the expected downlink data.

16. The method of claim 9, wherein the method further comprises: performing resource selection associated with reserving at least one sidelink resource for relaying the data traffic to a tethered device.

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