Discovery and use of an intermediate node for ambient devices

Abstract

An intermediate node WTRU may receive an intermediate node policy from the network. The intermediate node policy may identify one or more destination(s) that the WTRU can forward data to and / or information about conditions that may trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node. The WTRU may determine to operate as an intermediate node. The WTRU may transmit a broadcast message to indicate that it is operating as an intermediate node. A low power device may receive a broadcast message from a WTRU and may transmit a message to the WTRU. The WTRU may receive a message from a low power device. The message may include data. The WTRU may use the address that is associated with the destination to transmit the data to the network. Lightweight authentication procedures may be used between low-power devices and intermediate nodes (e.g., transmission and group keys, nonce).

Description

DISCOVERY AND USE OF AN INTERMEDIATE NODE FOR AMBIENT DEVICESCROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63 / 588,101 , filed October 5, 2023, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference as if fully set forth.BACKGROUND

[0002] An intermediate node may be an entity that is capable of forwarding data to specific destination endpoint(s). A wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) is an example of an intermediate node. An ambient internet of things (loT) device is an example of a low-power device. A destination endpoint may be a node such as a network function (NF) or an application function (AF) that is supposed to receive data from the device. Information transfer between the low-power device and the network may consider the limited accessible and available power in the low-power device.

[0003] A device may be unable to communicate directly with the network due to limited power availability. This may include low-power devices such as ambient loT devices and / or devices that encounter the low power level as an unusual circumstance. A low- power device may discover an intermediate node that is able to send uplink data toward the network and to a specific destination. The device may be triggered to use the intermediate node to send data to the destination Endpoint. Lightweight authentication procedures may be used between low-power devices and intermediate nodes.SUMMARY

[0004] Methods and systems are disclosed for discovery and use of intermediate nodes for ambient devices. A WTRU may discover and / or use an intermediate node to forward data to a desired destination.

[0005] An intermediate node WTRU may receive intermediate node policy information from the network. The intermediate node policy information may identify one or more destination(s) that the WTRU can forward data to and / or information about one or more conditions that may trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node. The policymay include one or more addresses that are associated with each of the one or more destinations. The address may, for example, be an internet protocol (IP) address or a data network name (DNN) / single-network slice selection assistance information (S- NSSAI) combination. The policy may be received in a non-access stratum (NAS) message. The information about conditions that may trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node may relate to times of day and / or location. The policy may indicate what types of low power devices are allowed to send data via the WTRU.

[0006] The WTRU may determine to operate as an intermediate node. The determination to act as an intermediate node may be based on detecting a condition that was indicated in the policy (e.g., location information or time of day). The determination to act as an intermediate node may be based on receiving a trigger message. The determination to act as an intermediate node may be based on both receiving a trigger message and / or based on detecting a condition that was indicated in the policy.

[0007] The WTRU may transmit a broadcast message to indicate that it is operating as an intermediate node. The broadcast message may indicate the Destination-identifier (ID) of the one or more destination(s) that the WTRU can forward data to. The broadcast message may also include a Destination-ID-Code of the one or more destinations. The WTRU may receive a message from a low power device. The message may include data. The received message may also include the Destination-ID or a Destination-ID-Code. The WTRU may use the address that is associated with a destination to transmit the data to the network. The identity of the low power device may be transmitted with the data.

[0008] A low power device may be configured with the identity of a destination that the low power device can send data to. A low power device may receive a broadcast message from a WTRU that indicates that the WTRU is operating as an intermediate node. The broadcast message may indicate the Destination-ID. The broadcast message may also include a Destination-ID-Code. A low power device may transmit a message to an intermediate node. The message may include data. The low power device may determine to transmit the data based on receiving the Destination-ID from a WTRU. The transmitted message may also include the Destination-ID and / or aDestination-ID-code. As explained more thoroughly below, the WTRU may send the data on to the destination associated with the destination ID or destination ID code.

[0009] A WTRU may use secure communication between an intermediate node and a low power device. The intermediate node WTRU may receive intermediate node policy information from the network. The intermediate node policy information may include one or more of the following: a Destination-ID, a device-ID for the WTRU and / or authorized low power device(s), a transmission key (TK), and / or a destination address. The intermediate node WTRU may transmit a broadcast message to indicate that it is operating as an intermediate node. The broadcast message may include a concealed version of the Destination-ID and / or a nonce. The nonce may be generated by the WTRU. The nonce, TK and Destination-ID may be used to calculate the concealed version of the Destination-ID. The intermediate node WTRU may receive a message from a low power device. The message may include data, a concealed version of the low power device-ID, and / or a third nonce value. The WTRU may use the TK, the concealed version of the low power device-ID, and / or the third nonce value to calculate, or determine the low power device-ID. The intermediate node WTRU may use the address that is associated with the destination to transmit data to the network. The identity of the low power device may be transmitted with the data. The intermediate node WTRU may send a report to the network to provide the network with information about the message about the data transmission. The report may include the low power device ID and destination ID.

[0010] A low power device may be configured with the identity of a destination that the low power device can send data to, a low power device-ID, and a TK. The low power device may receive a broadcast message from a WTRU that indicates that the WTRU is operating as an intermediate node. The message may include a concealed version of the Destination-ID and / or a nonce. The low power device may use a TK, a nonce, and / or a concealed version of the Destination-ID to determine a Destination-ID. The low power device may detect that the determined destination-ID is associated with a destination that the low power device can send data to. A low power device may transmit a message to a WTRU. The message may include data, a concealed version of the low power device-ID, and / or a third nonce value. The third nonce value may begenerated by the low power device. The concealed version of the low power device-ID may be determined based on the third nonce, the TK, and the low power device-ID.BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] FIG. 1A is a system diagram illustrating an example communications system in which one or more disclosed embodiments may be implemented.

[0012] 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.

[0013] FIG. 1 C is a system diagram illustrating an example radio access network (RAN) and an example core network (CN) that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment.

[0014] FIG. 1 D is a system diagram illustrating a further example RAN and a further example CN that may be used within the communications system illustrated in FIG. 1A according to an embodiment.

[0015] FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting an example transmission of uplink data via an intermediate node.DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0016] 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.

[0017] 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 CN 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 subscriptionbased 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 headmounted 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 WTRU.

[0018] 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 more communication 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.

[0019] 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 stationcontroller (BSC), a radio network controller (RNC), relay nodes, etc. The base station 114a and / or the base station 11 b 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 multipleinput 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.

[0020] 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).

[0021] 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 115 / 116 / 117 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 (DL) Packet Access (HSDPA) and / or High-Speed UL Packet Access (HSUPA).

[0022] 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 may establish the air interface 116 using Long Term Evolution (LTE) and / or LTE-Advanced (LTE-A) and / or LTE-Advanced Pro (LTE -A Pro).

[0023] 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).

[0024] 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).

[0025] 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.

[0026] The base station 114b in FIG. 1A 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. 1A, the base station 114b may have a direct connection tothe Internet 110. Thus, the base station 114b may not be required to access the Internet 110 via the CN 106 / 115.

[0027] 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, and the like. The CN 106 / 115 may provide call control, billing services, mobile location-based services, pre-paid calling, Internet connectivity, video distribution, etc., and / or perform high-level security functions, such as user authentication. Although not shown in FIG. 1 A, 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.

[0028] 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.

[0029] 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 wirelessnetworks over different wireless links). For example, the WTRU 102c shown in FIG. 1 A 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.

[0030] 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 subcombination of the foregoing elements while remaining consistent with an embodiment.

[0031] 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.

[0032] 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 andlight signals. It will be appreciated that the transmit / receive element 122 may be configured to transmit and / or receive any combination of wireless signals.

[0033] 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.

[0034] 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.

[0035] 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 lightemitting 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, the processor 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).

[0036] 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.

[0037] 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.

[0038] 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.

[0039] 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 UL (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 self-interference 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 WRTU 102 may include a halfduplex radio for which transmission and reception of some or all of the signals (e.g., associated with particular subframes for either the LIL (e.g., for transmission) or the downlink (e.g., for reception)).

[0040] 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-LITRA 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.

[0041] 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.

[0042] 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 UL and / or 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.

[0043] The CN 106 shown in FIG. 1 C 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.

[0044] 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 acontrol plane function for switching between the RAN 104 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as GSM and / or WCDMA.

[0045] 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.

[0046] 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.

[0047] The ON 106 may facilitate communications with other networks. For example, the ON 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.

[0048] 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.

[0049] In representative embodiments, the other network 112 may be a WLAN.

[0050] 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 tothe 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 802.11 e 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.

[0051] When using the 802.11ac 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 is sensed / 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.

[0052] 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.

[0053] 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+80configuration, 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 abovedescribed operation for the 80+80 configuration may be reversed, and the combined data may be sent to the Medium Access Control (MAC).

[0054] Sub 1 GHz modes of operation are supported by 802.11 af and 802.11 ah. The channel operating bandwidths, and carriers, are reduced in 802.11af and 802.11 ah relative to those used in 802.11 n, and 802.11ac. 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).

[0055] 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 channel is 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.

[0056] 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.

[0057] 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.

[0058] 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, 108b 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).

[0059] 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. TheWTRUs 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).

[0060] 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 also accessing 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.

[0061] 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 UL and / or 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.

[0062] 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 foregoingelements 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.

[0063] 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 162 may provide a control plane function for switching between the RAN 113 and other RANs (not shown) that employ other radio technologies, such as LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, and / or non-3GPP access technologies such as WiFi.

[0064] 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 WTRU IP address, managing PDU sessions, controlling policy enforcement and QoS, providing downlink data notifications, and the like. A PDU session type may be IPbased, non-IP based, Ethernet-based, and the like.

[0065] 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.

[0066] 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.

[0067] In view of Figures 1 A-1 D, and the corresponding description of Figures 1 A-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-ab, 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.

[0068] 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 / or deployed 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 perform testing using over-the-air wireless communications.

[0069] 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 wirelesscommunication network. For example, the emulation devices may be utilized in a testing scenario in a testing laboratory and / or a non-deployed (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.

[0070] A WTRU may discover and use an intermediate node to forward data to a desired destination.

[0071] FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting transmitting uplink data via an intermediate node. An intermediate node WTRU may receive intermediate node policy information from the network. The intermediate node policy information may identify one or more destination(s) that the WTRU can forward data to and / or information about conditions that may trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node. The policy information may include one or more addresses that are associated with each of the one or more destinations. The addresses may, for example, be internet protocol (IP) addresses or data network name (DNN) / single-network slice selection assistance information (S- NSSAI) combinations.

[0072] The policy information may be received in a non-access stratum (NAS) Message. The information about conditions that may trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node may relate to times of day and / or location. The policy information may indicate what types of low power devices are allowed to send data via the WTRU.

[0073] The WTRU may determine to operate as an intermediate node. The determination to act as an intermediate node may be based on detecting a condition that was indicated in the policy (e.g., location information and / or time of day). The determination to act as an intermediate node may be based on receiving a trigger message. The determination to act as an intermediate node may be based on both receiving a trigger message and / or based on detecting a condition that was indicated in the policy.

[0074] The WTRU may transmit a broadcast message to indicate that it is operating as an intermediate node. The broadcast message may indicate the Destination-identifier(ID) for the one or more destinations that the WTRLI can forward data to. The broadcast message may also include a Destination-ID-Code for the one or more destinations.

[0075] The WTRU may receive a message from a low power device. The low power device may be a WTRU (e.g., such as a low power WTRU). The message may include data. The received message may also include the Destination-ID or a Destination-ID- Code.

[0076] The WTRU may use the address that is associated with the destination to transmit the data to the network. An indication of the identity of the low power device that sent the data may be transmitted with the data.

[0077] A low power device may be configured with the identity of a destination that the low power device can send data to. A low power device may receive a broadcast message from a WTRU that indicates that the WTRU is operating as an intermediate node. The broadcast message may indicate the Destination-ID. The broadcast message may also include a Destination-ID-Code.

[0078] The low power device may transmit a message to the intermediate node. The message may include data. The low power device may determine to transmit the data based on receiving the Destination-ID from an WTRU. The transmitted message may also include the Destination-ID and / or a Destination-ID-code.

[0079] A WTRU may use secure communication between an intermediate node and a low power device.

[0080] An intermediate node WTRU may be configured for authentication and security. An intermediate node WTRU may receive intermediate node policy information from the network. The intermediate node policy information may include one or more of the following: Destination-IDs, a device-ID for the WTRU, a transmission key (TK), destination addresses, and / or an indication of which low power devices the WTRU may communicate with and what data destinations the data from the low power devices can be sent to.

[0081] The intermediate node WTRU may transmit a broadcast message to indicate that the intermediate node is operating as an intermediate node. The broadcast message may include a concealed version of the Destination-ID and / or a nonce. The nonce maybe generated by the WTRU. The nonce, TK and Destination-ID may be used to calculate the concealed version of the Destination-ID.

[0082] The intermediate node WTRU may receive a message from a low power device. The message may include one or more of: data, a concealed version of the low power device-ID, and / or a third nonce value. The WTRU may use the TK, the concealed version of the low power device-ID, and / or the third nonce value to calculate and / or determine the low power device-ID.

[0083] The intermediate node WTRU may use the address that is associated with the destination to transmit data to the network. An indication of the identity of the low power device that sent the data to the intermediate node WTRU may be transmitted with the data.

[0084] The intermediate node WTRU may send a report to the network, for example, to provide the network with information about the message about the data transmission. The report may include the low power device ID and destination ID.

[0085] A low power device may be configured with the identity of a destination that the low power device can send data to, a low power device-ID, and / or a TK.

[0086] The low power device may receive a broadcast message from a WTRU that indicates that the WTRU is operating as an intermediate node. The message may include a concealed version of the Destination-ID and / or a nonce.

[0087] The low power device may use a TK, a nonce, and / or a concealed version of the Destination-ID to determine a Destination-ID. The low power device may detect that the determined destination-ID is associated with a destination that the low power device can send data to.

[0088] The low power device may transmit a message to the WTRU. The message may include data, a concealed version of the low power device-ID, and / or a third nonce value. The third nonce value may be generated by the low power device. The concealed version of the low power device-ID may be determined based on the third nonce, the TK, and the low power device-ID.

[0089] The term intermediate node may refer to an entity that is capable of forwarding data to specific destination endpoint(s). A WTRU may be an example of an intermediate node.

[0090] The term device may refer to a low-power device. Device and low-power device may be used interchangeably. An ambient internet-of-things (loT) device may be an example of low-power device.

[0091] Destination endpoint may refer to a node such as network function (NF) or application function (AF) that may receive data from a device. An Application Function may refer to functionality that is executed by a server. An Application Function may also be called an Application Server.

[0092] Information may be transferred between a low-power device and a network.

[0093] An ambient loT device may be called a Type-A device. A Type-A device may have no energy storage and no independent signal generation (e.g., it may transmit by using backscattering transmission).

[0094] An ambient loT device may be called a Type-B device. A Type-B device may have energy storage but may not have the capability to perform independent signal generation (e.g., it may transmit by using backscattering transmission) (e.g., use of stored energy may include amplification for reflected signals).

[0095] An ambient loT device may be called a Type-C device. A Type-C device may have energy storage and may have the ability to perform independent signal generation (e.g., the device may have active RF components for transmission).

[0096] A low-power device (e.g., such as an ambient loT device or smart phone with low power) may have a limited capability to send data to the network due to the limited available power. Sending data to the network may require power that is not available or accessible to the WTRU. The device may have enough power to send data to a nearby device where less power is required for transmission and communication. A system may be designed in such a way that some low-power devices can (e.g., only can) send data to the network via an intermediate node such as a WTRU. Low power devices may use an intermediate node for communication with the network. Low-power devices may discover an intermediate node that is capable of forwarding data to the destination endpoint that is supposed to receive the data.

[0097] A system may support the low-power device’s discovery of an intermediate node that is capable of sending data to a specific destination. One or more lightweight authentication procedures may be provided to enable low power devices to authenticateintermediate nodes and intermediate nodes to authenticate the low power devices. Herein, lightweight means computationally inexpensive for the low power devices to perform.

[0098] A device may be unable to communicate directly with the network due to the limited power availability. This may include low-power devices such as ambient loT devices and / or devices that encounter the low power level as an unusual circumstance. A low-power device may discover an intermediate node that is able to send uplink data toward the network and to a specific destination. For example, when the low-power device needs to send data to a specific destination server.

[0099] A WTRU may be triggered to act as an intermediate node. The WTRU may, for example, act as an intermediate node because of a direct request (e.g., a trigger message) from the network or due to using information from a policy to detect a condition. The device may be triggered to use an intermediate node to send data to the destination Endpoint. Lightweight authentication procedures may be used between low- power devices and intermediate nodes.

[0100] FIG. 2 shows an example procedure where a device is triggered to use an intermediate node WTRU to send data to a specific destination. The example procedure lists example conditions that might trigger the low power device to transmit data via the intermediate node WTRU.

[0101] The intermediate node WTRU in this example procedure may receive policy information. The policy information may include information related to which low power devices the WTRU may communicate with and what data destinations the data from the low power devices can be sent to. The WTRU may receive the policy information from a policy control function (PCF) in a WTRU Configuration Update message. The PCF may derive the policies based on the WTRU’s subscription information, or service parameters, and / or based on information that is received from an application function (AF). For example, the WTRU’s subscription information may indicate which destination IDs the WTRU may service and / or service parameters from the AF may indicate which destination IDs the WTRU may service.

[0102] When the WTRII is triggered by a condition (e g., one of the conditions disclosed herein), the WTRII may broadcast a message to inform one or more of the surrounding low-power devices of the WTRU’s ability to act as an intermediate node.

[0103] FIG. 2 is a diagram depicting an example transmission of uplink data via an intermediate node at 200. At 201 , a low-power device may be pre-configured with the Destination-ID(s) of the destination Endpoints where the low-power device should send the data to. Destination-IDs may be sent to the low-power device in NAS messages such as registration NAS messages. Additionally, or alternatively, other types of NAS messages may be used to send this information (e.g., a downlink (DL) NAS Transport Message). The low power device may be configured with information about conditions that trigger the device to use intermediate nodes to send data to the network. In examples, these conditions may include: detecting that a measurement of power stored in the low power device crossed a threshold, receiving a message from the network or an intermediate node that indicates that the low power device may transmit data, detecting the time of day has reached a certain value, and / or detecting that the low power device is in a certain location.

[0104] At 202, a WTRU may receive a policy message from an NF in the core network (CN) such as the PCF. This message may include intermediate node policy information. The policy information may include the list of Destination-ID(s) that the WTRU can send data to. The policy information may include information about conditions that should trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node. For example, the policy information may indicate that the WTRU should behave as an intermediate node when the WTRU is in certain locations or at certain times of day. For example, the policy information may indicate that the WTRU should operate (e.g., only operate) as an intermediate node when the WTRU receives a trigger message from the Low Power Device or network.

[0105] The policy information may include information that indicates what types of low power devices are allowed to send data via the WTRU. The WTRU may use this when determining whether to accept data from a low power device.

[0106] The policy information that the WTRU receives may be per Destination-ID. For example, the WTRU may receive a first policy with a first set of information that appliesto a first Destination-ID and the WTRU may receive a second policy with a second set of information that applies to a second Destination-ID.

[0107] At 203-205, the WTRU may be triggered to act as an intermediate node. The WTRU may be triggered to act as an intermediate based on receiving a message from the network 203. The indication may be received in a NAS message. A network function may have requested that the access and mobility functions (AMFs) send the indication to the WTRU in the NAS message. The network function may have requested that the AMF send the indication to the WTRU in a NAS message based on detecting the WTRU’s location or based on receiving a request from an AF.

[0108] The WTRU may be triggered to act as intermediate node based by using information from a policy to detect a condition that triggers the WTRU to act as intermediate node 204. For example, the WTRU may detect that it is in a location that was provided in the policy information.

[0109] The WTRU may be triggered to act as an intermediate node based on receiving a request from a low power device 205. For example, the WTRU may be triggered to act an intermediate node based on receiving a discovery request from a low power device that indicates that the low power device wants to discover an intermediate node. For example, the WTRU may be triggered to act as an intermediate node based on receiving an indication from a low power device that indicates that the low power device has data to transmit to a destination.

[0110] The WTRU may be triggered to act as an intermediate node based on a combination of conditions. For example, the WTRU may allow (e.g., only allow) a message from a low power device to trigger the WTRU to act as an intermediate node if the policy information that was received indicates that the WTRU is permitted to act as an intermediate node in the WTRU’s current location.

[0111] At 206, the WTRU may send a broadcast message to advertise that it can act as an intermediate node for specific destination endpoints. The WTRU may determine to send the broadcast message based on a determination that the WTRU has been triggered to act as an intermediate node. The broadcast message may include a destination-ID and / or a destination-ID-code. The destination-ID may be N bits long. The destination-ID-code may be M bits long. M may be less than N. The destination-ID-code may be part of the destination-1 D or a value that is separate from the destination-ID. At 207, the low-power device may receive and decrypt the broadcast message from the WTRU.

[0112] If the intermediate node can send the data to the destination endpoints, the low- power device may send a message to the intermediate node at 208. The message may comprise the data to be transmitted to the destination and / or an identity of the destination. Additionally, or alternatively, the message may include the destination-ID- code, for example, rather than the identity of the destination. The destination-ID-code may be smaller and therefore require less energy to transmit than the destination ID.

[0113] At 209, the WTRU may forward data toward the destination. The message that the WTRU sends toward the destination may include the low-power device identity, WTRU identity, Destination-ID, and / or payload data.

[0114] At 210, the WTRU may receive an acknowledgment message from the destination endpoint. The acknowledgement message may indicate one or more of the following: The data has been successfully received; the data is corrupted or has errors, and the device needs to perform retransmission; and / or the device identity is not recognized by the endpoint station. At 211 , the WTRU may forward the acknowledgment message to the low-power device.

[0115] The processing capabilities of the low power device may be limited. Therefore, it may be desirable to design procedures that enable secure information exchange between the low power device and WTRU without requiring the low power device to perform computation or power expensive operations.

[0116] Transmitting uplink data via an intermediate node may be enhanced so that information exchange between the low power device and WTRU is secure.

[0117] A low power device may be configured with a low power device-id, a transmission key (TK), and / or one or more identities of destinations where the device may forward data to (e.g., Destination ID(s)). The low power device may be configured with a separate low power device-ID and a separate TK for each destination that the low power device is allowed to send data to. The low-power device may be configured with one or more device group IDs (e.g., common to a group or class of devices) and / or one or more associated device group keys (GKs). The group ID and GK may be used by agroup of low power devices to receive secure information from an intermediate WTRU (e.g., during broadcast).

[0118] A low power device may receive a broadcast message from the WTRU. The low power device may detect that the broadcast message indicates that the WTRU can forward information to a destination that the lower power device needs to send data to. For example, the broadcast message may include a Destination-ID. Additionally, or alternatively, the broadcast message may include a concealed version of the Destination-ID and / or a nonce. A concealed version of a Destination-ID may be a value that can be used to derive the associated Destination-ID. The derivation may require performing a calculation, or mathematical operation. The nonce, concealed version of a Destination-ID, and / or TK may be inputs to the calculation, or mathematical operation. For example, the broadcast message may include a device group ID. The device group ID may be concealed using a GK.

[0119] The low power device may de-conceal the concealed version of Destination-ID (e.g., and / or device group ID) that it received. The de-conceal operation may involve performing a calculation or mathematical operation. The nonce, concealed version of Destination-ID, and / or TK may be inputs to the calculation or mathematical operation. The result of the de-conceal operation may include a Destination-ID. The low power device may check if the Destination-ID is a destination that the low power device wants to send data to. Since the low power device successfully de-concealed the Destination- ID, the low power device may assume that the WTRU is authenticated and authorized for sending data to the destination. The broadcast message may include an indication of its availability for a group of low power devices. The low power device may use the GK (e.g., instead of individual TK) to de-conceal the concealed identifiers.

[0120] After the low power device determines that it wants to send data to the destination that was identified in a broadcast message, the low power device may transmit a message to the WTRU. The message may include data to be sent to the destination, a second concealed destination ID, and / or a second nonce value. The low power device may randomly generate the second nonce value. The low power device may calculate the second concealed destination ID. Inputs to the calculation may include the destination ID and the first and second nonce value. Additionally, oralternatively, the low power device may cipher the data to be sent to the destination using TK or GK and one or more nonce values. The message may include a concealed low power device-ID and / or a second nonce value. The concealed low power device-ID may be a concealed version of an identifier of the low power device. The concealed low power device-ID may be the result of a calculation that is performed by the low power device. The TK, nonce values, and / or the identifier of the low power device may be inputs to the calculation. In the scenario of the broadcast message addressing a group of devices the low power device may use GK to conceal the identifiers (e.g., device and / or destination IDs).

[0121] The WTRU may receive one or more intermediate node policies from the network. For example, the policies may be received from the PCF. Each policy may relate to a data destination. Each policy may include information comprising one or more of: a Destination-ID, a device-id for the WTRU, a TK, and / or a destination address. Additionally, or alternatively, each policy may include a group ID and associated Group key. Security material (e.g., TK, GK and other key material) may be provisioned by key management function (e.g., public key management function (PKMF)).

[0122] A device-ID for the WTRU may be an identifier that the WTRU can use when the WTRU is performing operations related to communicating with low power devices and sending data to the destination that the policy relates to. The group ID may be an identifier that the WTRU can use when the WTRU is performing operations related to communicating with a group of low power devices (e.g., broadcasting availability securely to a group of devices).

[0123] A destination address can be an address that is associated with a Destination-ID. The destination address may comprise an IP Address and Port Number combination that the WTRU should forward data to when data is received from the low power device. For example, it may include the address of the server that data is sent to. Additionally, or alternatively, a destination address may comprise a DNN and S-NSSAI combination that the WTRU can use to determine, or select, a non-IP packet data unit (PDU) session on which to send data related to destination.

[0124] A policy may include the identities of the low power devices that are allowed to send data to the destination. Each the low power device may be associated with its own TK and the TK of each device may be included in the policy. An advantage of including device specific TKs is that it may mitigate the risk of TK leakage and impersonation among low power devices. Additionally, or alternatively, the WTRU may be configured with information that can be used to derive the low power device specific TK. An advantage to enabling the WTRU to derive the low power device specific TK is that the WTRU may not have to be configured with the identity of every low power device that may connect to the WTRU while still minimizing the risk of TK leakage. For example, a TK may be derived in part based on an identity of the WTRU (e.g., device- id). A TK may be derived using a Master Key (MK) provisioned to the WTRU by a PKMF. The MK may be associated with a group of low power devices (e.g., group ID).

[0125] The WTRU may send a broadcast message. The broadcast message may include a Destination-ID. Additionally or alternatively, the broadcast message may include a concealed version of the Destination-ID and a first nonce. The nonce may be randomly generated by the WTRU. The concealed version of the Destination-ID may be based on a calculation that is performed by the WTRU. The TK, Destination-ID and / or the nonce may be inputs to the calculation. The output of the calculation may include the concealed version of the Destination-ID. The broadcast message may include an indication of the WTRU availability for a group of low power devices. In that scenario, the intermediate WTRU may conceal the identifiers (e.g., destination or group ID) using a GK (e.g., instead of TK).

[0126] The WTRU may receive the data, the concealed version of the low power device- ID, the concealed version of the Destination-ID, and a second nonce value. The WTRU may use the TK, the concealed version of the low power device-ID, and the nonce values to calculate, or determine the low power device-ID. The WTRU may also use the TK or GK, concealed version of the Destination-ID, and / or the nonce values to calculate, or determine the Destination-ID. The WTRU may use the TK to create a deciphered version of the data.

[0127] Based on the WTRU successfully de-concealing the low-power device-ID and destination-ID, the WTRU may determine that the low power device is authenticated and authorized to send data to the given destination.

[0128] The WTRU may use a Destination-ID that was previously derived and the policy information that was previously received to determine an address and a PDU session to use to transmit the de-ciphered version of the data to the destination server.

[0129] The WTRU may periodically report, to the network (e.g., session management function (SMF)), information about what traffic it forwarded to a destination. For example, a policy that was received by the WTRU may indicate to the WTRU that periodic reports should be sent to the network. For example, the policy may indicate that a report should be sent after a time period and / or after a certain number of data packets are forwarded. The report may be sent for one or more device(s) that have transmitted data. The report from the WTRU may be sent in a UL NAS TRANSPORT and / or another type of NAS message. The report may include indication information about each packet that was forwarded to the destination (e.g., low power device-ID, time of transmission, and destination ID). The information included in the report may be used by the mobile network operator for charging purposes.

Claims

CLAIMS:1 . A wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU) comprising: a processor and memory, wherein the processor and memory are configured to: receive policy information associated with operation as an intermediate node, wherein the policy information comprises one or more destinations that the WTRU can forward data to and one or more conditions that trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node; determine to operate as an intermediate node for one or more low power devices; send a broadcast message that indicates that the WTRU is operating as an intermediate node, the broadcast message indicating the one or more destinations; receive a message from a low power device, wherein the message comprises data, and wherein the message comprises a destination identifier (ID) or a destination ID code associated with a destination of the one or more destinations indicated in the broadcast message; send the data to the destination associated with the destination ID or the destination ID code in the received message.

2. The WTRU of claim 1 , wherein the processor and memory are configured to determine to operate as an intermediate node based on receipt of a trigger message from the low power device or from a network.

3. The WTRU of claim 1 or 2, wherein the processor and memory are configured to determine to operate as an intermediate node based on detection of one or more conditions indicated in the policy information.

4. The WTRU of claim 3, wherein the one or more conditions indicated in the policy information are associated with a geographic location or a time-of-day.

5. The WTRU of any of claims 1 to 4, wherein the broadcast message indicates the destination IDs or destination ID codes of each of the one or more destinations.

6. The WTRU of any of claims 1 to 5, wherein the policy information comprises an indication of one or more types of low power devices that can send data to the WTRU.

7. The WTRU of any of claims 1 to 6, wherein the policy information comprises a transmission key (TK), wherein the processor and memory are configured to determine a nonce value associated with the TK, wherein the broadcast message comprises the nonce value, and wherein the one or more destinations indicated in the broadcast message are concealed, the concealment being based on at least the nonce value and the TK.

8. The WTRU of any of claims 1 to 7, wherein the message received from the low power device comprises a second nonce value and a concealed identifier of the low power device, wherein the processor and memory are further configured to identify the low power device based on at least the second nonce value and the concealed identifier of the low power device; wherein the data is sent to the destination based on the low power device being identified; and wherein an indication of the identifier of the low power device is sent to the destination along with the data.

9. The WTRU of claim 8, wherein the policy information further comprises an indication of one or more low power devices authorized to send data to the one or more destinations.

10. The WTRU of claim 9, wherein an authorized low power device of the one or more low power devices authorized to send data to the one or more destinations is authorized to send data to a subset of the one or more destinations.

11. A method to be performed by a wireless transmit / receive unit (WTRU), the method comprising:receiving policy information associated with operation as an intermediate node, wherein the policy information comprises one or more destinations that the WTRU can forward data to and one or more conditions that trigger the WTRU to operate as an intermediate node; determining to operate as an intermediate node for one or more low power devices; sending a broadcast message that indicates that the WTRU is operating as an intermediate node, the broadcast message indicating the one or more destinations; receiving a message from a low power device, wherein the message comprises data, and wherein the message comprises a destination identifier (ID) or a destination ID code associated with a destination of the one or more destinations indicated in the broadcast message; sending the data to the destination associated with the destination ID or the destination ID code in the received message.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the determination to operate as an intermediate node is based on receipt of a trigger message from the low power device or from a network.

13. The method of claim 11 or 12, wherein the determination to operate as an intermediate node is based on detection of one or more conditions indicated in the policy information.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the one or more conditions indicated in the policy information are associated with a geographic location or a time-of-day.

15. The method of any of claims 11 to 14, wherein the broadcast message indicates destination IDs or destination ID codes for each of the one or more destinations.

16. The method of any of claims 11 to 15, wherein the policy information comprises an indication of one or more types of low power devices that can send data to the WTRU.

17. The method of any of claims 11 to 16, wherein the policy information comprises a transmission key (TK), wherein the method further comprises determining a nonce value associated with the TK; wherein the broadcast message comprises the nonce value, and wherein the one or more destinations indicated in the broadcast message are concealed, the concealment being based on at least the nonce value and the TK.

18. The method of claim 11 , wherein the message received from the low power device comprises a nonce value and a concealed identifier of the low power device, wherein the method further comprises identifying the low power device based on at least the nonce value and the concealed identifier of the low power device; wherein the data is sent to the destination based on the low power device being identified; and wherein an indication of the identifier of the low power device is sent to the destination along with the data.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the policy information further comprises an indication of one or more low power devices authorized to send data to the one or more destinations.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein an authorized low power device of the one or more low power devices authorized to send data to the one or more destinations is authorized to send data to a subset of the one or more destinations.

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